A Busy Night In South Central
Posted on July 5, 2012 Written By: iadminlaw
Gunshots and fireworks don’t mix, especially during Fourth of July festivities in South Central Los Angeles. Whether they were issuing traffic citations or racially profiling young black men, the Los Angeles Police Department had a busy night in South Central.
Los Angeles police responded to at least eight shootings — including two homicides — during a six-hour period overnight in South L.A., where a modified tactical alert was called when police were pelted with lighted fireworks and other objects by reputed gang members.
Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) Bell 206 Jetranger helicopter (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Several officers were injured after responding to a disturbance call early Thursday in the 1300 block of East 111th Place. The initial call came about 1 a.m., reporting 30 people were fighting outside an apartment, where police found more than 250 people in a nearby parking lot drinking and lighting fireworks as a DJ blasted music.
One man became belligerent and, as officers tried to subdue him, people in the crowd started throwing lighted fireworks, rocks and bottles at officers, police said. One officer, who was not immediately identified, was hospitalized for burns. Another suffered a dislocated shoulder.
Of the eight shootings to which LAPD officers responded from 10:30 p.m. Wednesday to 2:20 a.m. Thursday, most were believed to be gang-related.
The first, which police believe was unrelated to gangs, was a shooting reported shortly before 9 p.m. on the 1300 block of East 48th Place. When officers arrived, they found a 32-year-old woman wounded in the foot and determined she had been shot by an unlicensed security guard, who was shooting at a dog and missed.
The guard was booked on suspicion of assault.
That incident was followed by a gang-related shooting reported about 10:30 p.m. in the 4800 block of 2nd Avenue that left one man dead. According to police, five men were standing in front of a residence when a white SUV drove past and someone opened fire. One man in his 20s, who was not identified, was pronounced dead. Four others were hospitalized in stable condition.
Another gang-related shooting was reported shortly before midnight in the 700 block of 76th Place. A man was confronted by two suspects who briefly exchanged words with him and then fired multiple times. The victim, who was not identified, was hospitalized in stable condition.
An hour and a half later, about 1:30 a.m., a 37-year-old man was walking in the 600 block of West 94th Street when he was approached by three unidentified men between 20 and 30 years old. The suspects asked the victim where he was from.
The victim tried to run but the suspects shot at him, wounding him in the leg. The incident is believed to be gang-related, police said.
About 20 minutes later, police responded to a call near the intersection of 85th Street and Halldale Avenue. When they arrived, they found a 36-year-old man had been shot in the buttocks. The shooting is believed to be gang-related; the victim was hospitalized in stable condition and was uncooperative, they said. He didn’t want to get caught snitching.
About 2 a.m., officers were called to Manchester Boulevard and Vermont Avenue, where they found an 18-year-old man suffering from a gunshot wound to the chest. The victim, who was not immediately identified, died of his injuries at a hospital. Police said they do not have any information on suspects.
A man was shot multiple times in a gang-related shooting moments after he stepped off a bus about 2:15 a.m. near the intersection of Florence and Western avenues. The victim was listed in stable condition; the incident is under investigation.
Five minutes later, the LAPD responded to a shooting near Manchester Boulevard and Van Ness Avenue, where a man was shot in the back while watching a fireworks show. The victim, who was not identified, was hospitalized with injuries that are not life threatening. It was unknown if the incident was gang-related.
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