Results tagged “shooting” from Crime & Courts

A Gardena man shot his father three times during an argument that turned violent at the family's flower shop, police said Monday.

Albert Almaraz, 35, allegedly shot Robert Almaraz, 67, shortly after noon Friday at Colors Flowers and Gifts, 1858 Marine Ave., Gardena police Sgt. Russ Temple said.

The father was expected to survive wounds to the back of his head, right shoulder and left wrist.

"They were arguing about family problems," Temple said.

The father and son got into an argument that lasted about 30 minutes. It turned into a physical battle.

"At some point, Albert pulled a .22-caliber handgun and he shoots his dad," Temple said. "Dad yells, 'You shot me!' and they kept fighting."

The struggle spilled over to an adjacent garage.

Police officers arrived and arrested the son on suspicion of attempted murder. He was held at the Gardena jail on $1 million bail and scheduled to appear in Torrance court on Tuesday.

The father was taken to County Harbor-UCLA Medical Center. He suffered non-life threatening wounds because of the small caliber bullets.

LONG BEACH - Charges were filed today against two Whittier men allegedly involved in the fatal shooting of a woman whose body was discovered late last month in San Pedro.

Deputy District Attorney Carrie Smith of Long Beach Branch Office said Michael Lee Bonfiglio, 31 (dob 6/12/77), and Raul Tiscareno, 26 (dob 9/20/82), are charged with one count each of murder, conspiracy to commit a crime and second-degree robbery. 

The woman found shot in the head behind a popular San Pedro restaurant has died, police said Monday.

The woman, Ginie M. Samoya, 27, of San Pedro died Sunday at County Harbor-UCLA Medical Center from her wound.

Samoya was about 8:15 a.m. in her Toyota Tercel parked in an alley behind the Pacific Diner at 3821 S. Pacific Ave.

Los Angeles police Capt. Dave Lindsay said detectives continued investigating leads on Monday.

"We're making progress," Lindsay said. "This was not a random act and people in the area really don't have anything to worry about."

A woman in her 20s was found shot in the head inside a car in San Pedro today, police said.

The woman was discovered about 8:15 a.m. parked behind a restaurant in the 3800 block of South Pacific Avenue, Los Angeles police spokesman Richard French said.

The wound was to the left side of her head.

She was taken to County Harbor-UCLA Medical Center near Torrance and was reported in critical condition.

"Right now we don't have any suspect information, although the investigators do believe that this was not a self-inflicted injury," French said.

Larry's still out at the scene, but he's given us this so far:

Two men were shot today during a possible robbery inside a Torrance business.

The shooting occurred about 11 a.m. at A&A Builders, a home-construction contracting firm located in a strip mall in the 2300 block of Sepulveda Boulevard, just east of Crenshaw Boulevard.

Sgt. Bernard Anderson said two gunmen came into the business, each holding a handgun. They were described only as male Latinos wearing hooded sweat shirts.

His full story, as far as what we know so far, is here. More updates should come soon.

Larry is running out of the office to check on a shooting at Sepulveda Boulevard and Pennsylvania Avenue. All we know is that someone was hit during a robbery. We'll give you updates as we get them.

A shooting suspect arrested after a 2 1/2 hour standoff with sheriff's deputies was identified Monday as Christopher Gosalves, 37, of Carson.

Gosalves barricaded himself in his home with his family about 5 p.m. in the 100 block of West 220th Street, deputies said.

Carson sheriff's Sgt. Barry Shapiro said Gosalves got into an argument with another man and shot at him before running into the house.

A sheriff's special weapons team surrounded the house. Gosalves surrendered about 7:30 p.m. He was arrested on suspicion of assault with a firearm.

I took a ride over to the Ryan Roots barber shop in Lomita this morning to see what I could find out about the shooting that occurred there yesterday afternoon.

No one would talk to me about it. They were nice enough, and said they were OK when I asked if they were all right. They just weren't talking.

Business did not seem to be affected. Six customers were waiting and two were getting haircuts. Seemed like a decent enough place to get a haircut.

But yesterday at about 4:30 p.m., a gunman walked in and fired five or six rounds at two guys in the barber chairs.

Detective Randy Oviedo at the Lomita station told me this morning that he did not yet know the motive, but one of the two victims appeared to be targeted. The shooter opened fire without saying a word.

Oviedo still has to talk to one of the victims, who remains hospitalized.

A Wilmington woman was shot and killed and two of her passengers were wounded as she drove in the southwest Los Angeles area, authorities said today.

One of the wounded victims was a 13-year-old girl.

The woman killed was identified as Stephanie Latrice Smith, 37, of Wilmington. She died shortly after the 9 p.m. shootin gSunday at 102nd Street and Denker
Avenue.

The suspect was in a champagne-colored car, possibly a Nissan Maxima or Altima, police said.

Info from City News Service

Two people were killed inside the Toys R Us in Palm Desert.

It happened about 11:30.

"We have two dead individuals inside the store," Riverside County sheriff's Sgt. Dennis Gutierrez told the Riverside Press-Enterprise.

"The events of why the shots were fired is still ongoing."

Press-Enterprise story

This shooting and standoff occurred just over the lines of the Daily Breeze coverage area. It's just north of El Segundo Boulevard and the Harbor Gateway, and east of the Athens area:

Here's a report from City News Service:

LOS ANGELES - A woman was shot and critically wounded today in South Los Angeles, and her alleged assailant was later found dead of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound, police said.

The woman was shot about 8 a.m. in the 600 block of Laconia Boulevard, and was taken to a
hospital in critical condition, said Officer April Harding of the Los Angeles Police
Department.

A SWAT team surrounded the residence for more than five hours before making entry just
before 2 p.m. and finding the suspected gunman dead of what appeared to be a self-inflicted
gunshot wound, said LAPD Officer Ana Aguirre. His name was withheld pending notification of
relatives.

Police had gone to the location on a report of a domestic dispute. Shortly after gunfire was
heard, the wounded woman came outside and was carried to safety by two officers. A short time later, an officer was seen carrying a child to safety.

The dead man's relationship to the woman and child were not immediately known.

Redondo Beach police tell us what they've been up to:


Monday 09/15
12:00 hrs - Torrance Police requested assistance from adjacent agencies for containment of a stolen vehicle suspect that had just fled from them on foot. One of the RBPD units that responded was a K-9 unit and the K-9, Dak, was eventually utilized for a building safety search. Dak discovered the suspect hiding under a desk, seized and held him for officers. Suspect was booked by Torrance Police on suspicion of vehicle theft and related charges.

19:06 hrs - A twenty-eight year old female committed suicide by hanging herself over the edge of a railing at her home on Avenue "A." She was discovered by her mother, who called 911. Paramedics attempted to revive her with negative results. She was transported to Little Company of Mary where she was pronounced deceased.

Wednesday 09/17
00:42 hrs - A vehicle that was described by witnesses as being involved in a purse-snatch robbery at the Galleria last week was observed by Sheriff Deputies in the City of Lennox. Deputies detained the juvenile occupants of the vehicle and notified RBPD. We took custody of the juveniles and impounded the vehicle. One of the juveniles, a female, admitted to involvement in the Galleria robbery to the interviewing officer. She was detained and transported to a juvenile detention facility. This juvenile was also wanted for a previous robbery by another jurisdiction. The investigation continues.

Thursday 09/18
23:42 hrs - Officers were dispatched to a fight involving 2-3 subjects fighting inside of Old Tony's. Officers arrived in the area and contacted one of the subjects as he was leaving the pier on foot south bound on the bike path. As officers were talking to the detained subject, the suspect's brother approached in an aggressive manner. He was ordered several times to stay back. The subject refused to back away and instead pushed against one of the officers.

Officers attempted to take him into custody and he became combative. He was ultimately Tased so that he could be controlled. A third subject approached officers, this time a female, the girlfriend of the first subject detained. She began yelling at officers and interfering. She was ordered several times to back away, but refused.

The female then threw her shoes at one of the officers and kicked towards her. This subject was then Tased and eventually taken into custody. The arrested female continued to be uncooperative even while in RBPD jail and had to be restrained. She was secured in a sobering cell for her safety. When it was later discovered that she was bleeding from abrasions on her arm and hands, paramedics were requested. Paramedics examined her and determined that medical attention was not required. Felony vandalism charges were later added to her booking when it was discovered that she had torn away a large area of padding from the interior of her cell.

I don't cover Inglewood PD directly anymore like I did through the 90s, so I haven't been involved in the coverage of the recent controversial officer-involved shootings the agency's had.

A man was shot today in front of a health food warehouse in Carson, deputies said.

The shooting near Cedarlane Natural Foods Inc. warehouse in the 1100 block of East Walnut Street occurred about 1:30 p.m., deputies said.

The victim underwent surgery Tuesday afternoon.

No suspects were in custody. The motive was not immediately known.

Previous man shot in Carson

Apparently a lot of you were interested in this item yesterday, so I thought I'd repeat it for people who didn't see it.

Here's a little addendum to my story (Monday) about El Segundo police Lt. Ray Garcia, who was shot in April at the Pacific theaters. He has returned to work. Officer Scott O'Connor remains off-duty following another surgery.

This wouldn't have done anything to prevent Jonathan Taylor from bringing a gun into the theaters, but the folks over there have instituted a "code of conduct" for movie goers and patrons of neighboring businesses.

It sort of gives them some ability to refuse service to anyone, just like at a restaurant.

Here it is:

Beach Cities Plaza

Code of Conduct

In an effort to ensure that our guests experience a clean, professional, and safe environment, Beach Cities Plaza adheres to a strict code of conduct which includes the following that will not be tolerated while visiting any of the businesses within the property.

1.     Offensive, disruptive, or obscene language

2.     Loitering
3.     Inappropriate and/or offensive clothing or gestures
4.     Verbal or physical abuse
5.     Attire that conceals one's identity
6.     Intoxication or being under the influence of any controlled substance
7.     Threatening or harassing any individual
8.     Weapons of any kind are prohibited

9.     Movies starting at 9:00 pm or later require that you are 18 or accompanied by an adult guardian (21 or older)

If you fail to comply with the Beach Cities Plaza Code of Conduct, you will be asked to leave the property.  Failure to leave the property when advised to do so will subject you to arrest for criminal trespass.

I received an e-mail yesterday from a reader whose wife and sons were in the El Segundo theater lobby in April when a gang member pulled a gun and shot at two police officers, wounding both. The officers killed him.

The reader, grateful that the officers prevented his family from being hurt, wondered how Lt. Ray Garcia, left, and Officer Scott O'Connor are doing in their recoveries. Just by chance, I was already working on a story about Garcia, who I talked with extensively Thursday morning. I turned the story in earlier today.

It is scheduled to run Monday, unless something in the world requires a change in the news planning. So look for it.
(And I'll check up on O'Connor and the other victim, Devan Jackson, soon.)

My colleague, Sandy Mazza, received a few e-mails regarding a story on the killing of a San Pedro man on Friday. Some people might have missed a followup that included his name. He was Gilbert Boscilio Rodriguez, 23. He was shot to death at 2:45 a.m. near 12th and Gaffey. A man driving a dark-colored sport utility vehicle opened fire on Rodriguez and crashed. He then ran.

Here's the emails:

• "I really find it disrespectful on the comments that people have left. Stuff like that should not be up when someone got shot and killed. I grew up with his part of the family. I really would appreciate if those comments can be deleted as soon as possible."

• "I am writing this letter in regards to a story you wrote on Aug 2, 2008 about a man shot in San Pedro. The "Man Shot" had a name and I believe if you or any reporter is going to write a story then you should have all the facts. His name was Gilbert Rodriguez and was 23 years old. He was a member of society. He was someone's son, someone's brother and a father to a 4-year-old little girl who will never know her father. Due to a senseless fight he lost his life.

No one has been out to talk to his mother or family, police nor reporters. I know you are probably very busy and sorry for bothering you but I just wanted to let you know a little about Gilbert Rodriguez because he will be missed dearly....."

• "Is there any more information in regards to whom died and if there are any people in custody for the slaying? May the concerned public in the city get more detailed information in regards to this matter? Thank you."

I checked this morning and there is no new information to report. Police said the shooting is believed to be gang-related. Rodriguez was a local gang member.

I get e-mail:

Capt. Don Schwartzer, commanding officer, of the Los Angeles Police Department's South Traffic Division writes:

Dear Mr. Altman:

I wanted to thank you and the Daily Breeze for the very generous coverage you offered one of our unsolved hit and run fatal collisions. Your article was very detailed and thoughtfully prepared to hit all of the pertinent facts of this case from 1992 where Fred and Ezna Crescitelli were fatally injured while crossing the street in San Pedro.

We appreciate this partnership and assistance. Thank you.

Chris Delgado writes:

Mr. Altman,

How much is the Lennox station paying you to drag this poor victim and his family's name through the mud? Your story does nothing to present both sides. The people in the comments area seem to know a lot more than you do and should have your job, or you have a biased point of view and are trying to protect the cops from public opinion. The headline should read "Unarmed Man Gunned Down in his Own Driveway By Police while Sitting in his Car not Bothering Anyone."

A Lawndale gang member will spend 50 years to life in prison for a shooting that left a teenager in wheelchair forever. Gilbert Espinoza, 32, was sentenced in Torrance Superior Court Wednesday. A jury found him guilty in April of three counts each of attempted murder and assault with a deadly weapon.

He was also convicted of allegations that the shooting was gang-related and that he used a gun and caused great bodily injury. The shooting occurred Sept. 22, 2006 on Prairie Avenue just north of Redondo Beach Boulevard.

Espinoza yelled out a car to three 14-year-old boys who were walking, asking them where they were from - a typical challenge that often leads to violence. While two of the boys responded that they "don't bang," one yelled back: "Redondo." Espinoza, who belongs to a rival Lawndale gang, made a U-turn and shot out the window, hitting the boy who said "Redondo."

The victim was hit in the back and is now paralyzed.

There are news reports about a fatal shooting early this morning in Lomita. We're hearing that there may be two victims. We're checking on the details and will have an update as soon as we can.