Video sparks debate of homeless dumping versus act of compassion

The L.A. County Sheriffs Department is defending itself against accusations that it dumped a homeless man on the streets of San Pedro on Tuesday.

LASD says, they were actually helping the man and it was all caught on video.

The incident in question happened on Tuesday on 25th street near Mermaid Street. LASD says they were showing compassion when they dropped off a homeless man at a nearby bus stop.

But their critics are accusing the department of dumping the man in the city of L.A.'s jurisdiction and not getting him the help he needed.

The video from San Pedro resident Mike Olivieri shows LA County deputies dropping off a homeless man named John Bryan.

LA City Councilman Joe Buscaino says LASD dropped Bryan off into the city's jurisdiction and didn't give him the help he needed.

But, LASD says the critics have it all wrong.

Sgt. Robert Boese says on the day of the video, residents had called about Bryan and deputies had interacted with him two times before.

He says Bryan asked deputies for a ride to Pasadena and then asked to be taken to a nearby bus stop.

And that's when the video was filmed.

County Supervisor Janice Hahn says the video looked bad at first, but she got more context after speaking with Sheriff Jim Mcdonnell.

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