LAPD SWAT update

Here's the latest from LADN:

WINNETKA - An LAPD SWAT team member was shot to death and another was wounded overnight by a gang member with mental health issues who earlier killed three people inside a home and eventually was shot to death by police, authorities said this morning.

Officer Randy Simmons, 51, died about 1 a.m., a few minutes after entering the home in the 19800 block of Welby Way. He was shot in the neck, according to City Councilman Dennis Zine.

Officer James Veenstra, 51, was shot in the face and jaw, Zine said. He is in critical condition at Northridge Hospital Medical Center, but is expected to survive.

Both worked on the Special Weapons and Tactics team for 20 years, and had spent more than 25 years in the Los Angeles Police Department, said LAPD Assistant Chief Jim McDonnell.

It was the first fatality in the history of the elite LAPD SWAT team, which was created in 1967.

"I want to say how deeply saddened we are this morning that we lost a member of our LAPD family," McDonnell said. "Our hearts and prayers go out to these families at this tough time."

Veenstra was apparently a resident of Pasadena and Altadena in the late 80s and early 1990s, according to public records. He is married to an LAPD.

The LAPD family has several members who live in the San Gabriel Valley and we know they will be monitoring this event closely throughout the day. We'll keep it updated here.