"Any video that shows someone losing their life in an altercation with police is going to be disturbing," he said.
"It's disturbing for police officers to watch," he said.
The man, whose identity had not been released, was pronounced dead at the scene by Los Angeles Fire Department paramedics. Police said two officers were treated for minor injuries and released.
LAPD Sgt. Barry Montgomery said there could be more video recordings of the incident, noting that he could see two surveillance cameras mounted on buildings at the scene. Smith said the encounter was recorded by body cameras worn by at least one of the officers.
Police had responded to a robbery call in the 500 block of San Pedro Street around noon, Montgomery said. At one point during the confrontation a non-lethal Taser had been deployed, but Smith said it was "ineffective."
The video also shows two officers in the foreground grappling with and handcuffing a woman who had picked up a dropped police nightstick.
An angry crowd gathered immediately after the gunfire, as police cordoned off the scene and ordered onlookers to back away.
One witness can be heard complaining that there had been at least six officers to handle the situation, and that the mortally wounded man had been unarmed.
"Ain't nobody got no … gun!" he shouts.
"That man never was a threat," said Lonnie Franklin, 53, who said he was across the street when the shooting occurred. "The amount of officers present at the time could have subdued him."
Witnesses identified the dead man by his street name, "Africa," and said he'd been living in a tent on skid row for a few months after spending a long stretch in a mental health facility.
The LAPD has struggled for years to effectively police downtown's expansive skid row, which is a frequent destination for people with severe mental illnesses.
"We have to deal with the aftermath of a system that's failed," Officer Deon Joseph, a 16-year skid row beat cop, said Sunday.
Police Commission President Steve Soboroff said Sunday evening that he was watching the video repeatedly trying to hear exactly what the officers said to the man.
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