More than 11 years after Brendon Glenn was fatally shot near the Venice Beach Boardwalk, former Los Angeles police officer Clifford Proctor is facing a new criminal indictment in connection with his death.
The Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office announced that an indictment against Proctor was unsealed Aug. 31, charging him with one count of second-degree murder with a special allegation that he personally used a firearm.
The indictment was returned by a grand jury on Aug. 18.
Prosecutors allege Proctor fatally shot Glenn on May 5, 2015, during an encounter near the Venice Beach Boardwalk.
Proctor and his partner had responded to the area after Glenn was reportedly kicked out of a bar and became involved in a dispute with other people.
As officers attempted to subdue and arrest Glenn, Proctor is accused of shooting him.
Glenn was 29 years old.
The prosecution now argues that the shooting was not legally justified and that the evidence supports a finding of implied malice, an important element of the second-degree murder charge.
WHAT PROSECUTORS ALLEGE
Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan J. Hochman said prosecutors believe the evidence supports a conviction despite the complicated history of the case.
“We strongly believe there is more than sufficient evidence to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant maliciously shot and killed Brendon Glenn,” Hochman said.
According to prosecutors, Glenn was unarmed and there was no evidence that he acted aggressively or posed a serious threat to either officer before the shooting.
The prosecution also points to events that allegedly occurred before the shooting.
Prosecutors say Proctor became angry and frustrated after Glenn verbally insulted him. They allege that Proctor then threatened to shoot Glenn's dog while using profanity.
The prosecution further alleges that Proctor later asked a witness to support a false account of what had happened during the confrontation.
Another significant piece of evidence cited by prosecutors is the account of Proctor's partner.
According to the District Attorney's Office, Proctor's partner stated that he did not believe Glenn presented a deadly threat to either himself or Proctor before the shooting.
Prosecutors argue that those circumstances support their position that Proctor acted with conscious disregard for human life.
Hochman said Proctor's alleged decision to use deadly force without justification is central to the prosecution's theory of implied malice.
A CASE THAT HAS BEEN REEXAMINED FOR YEARS
The prosecution of Proctor has a lengthy history.
In March 2018, then-Los Angeles County District Attorney Jackie Lacey released an 83-page report examining the shooting.
That report concluded that there was insufficient evidence to prove Proctor acted unlawfully in self-defense or in defense of others when he used deadly force.
The case was later revisited after George Gascón became district attorney.
Gascón appointed special prosecutor Lawrence Middleton to reexamine the circumstances surrounding Glenn's death.
That review eventually resulted in a grand jury indictment in September 2024 charging Proctor with second-degree murder.
Proctor was arrested in October 2025 as he was leaving the country.
The earlier indictment, however, did not ultimately remain in place.
In June 2026, a court granted a defense motion to dismiss the first indictment. According to the District Attorney's Office, the court found that Special Prosecutor Middleton had failed to present the first grand jury with sufficient evidence of malice as well as legally required exculpatory evidence.
That dismissal did not prevent prosecutors from pursuing the case again.
The District Attorney's Office subsequently presented the case to another grand jury, leading to the new indictment returned Aug. 18.
THE NEW INDICTMENT
The latest indictment marks another significant development in a case that has divided legal interpretations for years.
Hochman said the case was “meticulously analyzed by two of my predecessors,” referring to the differing conclusions reached by previous administrations.
The current prosecution was assigned to Michael Gennaco, whom the District Attorney's Office describes as one of the nation's leading experts on officer-involved shootings and police use of force.
Gennaco examined the evidence and presented the case to the new grand jury.
After hearing the evidence, the grand jury returned an indictment charging Proctor with second-degree murder.
Hochman said Gennaco will represent the prosecution in the proceedings moving forward.
The new case therefore represents not simply a continuation of the original prosecution but another attempt by prosecutors to establish that the shooting meets the legal requirements for a murder charge.
THE OTHER SIDE
OF THE CASE
The history of the case also shows why the circumstances surrounding the shooting remain legally contested.
A previous Los Angeles County District Attorney concluded in 2018 that there was insufficient evidence to prove Proctor's use of deadly force was unlawful under self-defense or defense-of-others theories.
More recently, a court dismissed the first indictment after finding that the prosecution had not presented sufficient evidence of malice to the first grand jury and had failed to provide legally mandated exculpatory evidence.
Those developments are significant because they demonstrate that the prosecution's allegations have not been uniformly accepted throughout the case's history.
The latest indictment represents the current prosecution's position, not a judicial finding that Proctor committed murder.
Proctor has pleaded not guilty, and the case will now proceed through the criminal court system.
WHAT HAPPENS NEXT
Proctor is scheduled to return to court on Sept. 4, 2026, for a pretrial hearing in Department 104 of the Foltz Criminal Justice Center.
If convicted of the second-degree murder charge, he faces a sentence of up to life in state prison.
The firearm allegation could also play a role in sentencing if the prosecution ultimately proves the underlying charge and allegation beyond the applicable legal standards.
For now, the case remains unresolved.
The upcoming proceedings are expected to focus on the evidence surrounding Glenn's death, the circumstances of the attempted arrest and whether Proctor's use of deadly force was legally justified.
The prosecution will have to prove its allegations in court, while the defense will have an opportunity to challenge the evidence and present its own arguments regarding the shooting.
THE BIGGER QUESTION
The case raises difficult questions about the use of deadly force by police officers and how such shootings should be evaluated years after they occur.
At the center of the dispute is whether Glenn presented a sufficiently serious threat to justify Proctor's decision to fire his weapon.
Prosecutors now argue that he did not.
Their case relies in part on Glenn's alleged lack of aggression, his unarmed status, the events leading up to the shooting and statements attributed to Proctor's partner.
But the legal history demonstrates that determining criminal liability in an officer-involved shooting can be complicated.
A previous District Attorney's Office reached a different conclusion regarding the evidence, and a court later dismissed the first murder indictment over deficiencies in the grand-jury presentation.
The new indictment means prosecutors have again persuaded a grand jury that there is sufficient basis to charge Proctor with second-degree murder. It does not, however, establish guilt.
As the case moves forward, the court will ultimately determine whether the prosecution's evidence is sufficient to support a conviction.
Proctor remains presumed innocent unless and until he is proven guilty in a court of law.