Gunman wounds two Los Angeles County deputies in ambush attack on their car

By Gabriella Borter and Aishwarya Nair

 

A Los Angeles County Sheriffs Department vehicle is towed from the scene where two deputies were shot in an ambush style shooting in Compton, California, U.S., September 13, 2020. REUTERS/Patrick T. Fallon

 

(Reuters) - A gunman shot and critically injured two Los Angeles County sheriff's deputies as they sat in their patrol car late on Saturday in an attack that was captured on video.

 

Footage of the incident released by the sheriff's department showed the suspect approaching the parked vehicle on foot in the city of Compton and firing with a handgun through the passenger side window before running away.

 

"The gunman walked up on the deputies and opened fire without warning or provocation," the department said on Twitter.

 

One male deputy and one female deputy sustained multiple gunshot wounds and were in critical condition undergoing surgery overnight, it said. The suspect remains at large.

 

"At this point we have a very, very generic description of a dark-skinned male and that came from one of the victims," Captain Kent Wegener said at a news conference.

 

The footage of the attack was recorded by a security camera on a nearby metro station, police said.

 

U.S. President Donald Trump retweeted the video early on Sunday and wrote, "Animals that must be hit hard!"

 

Later, referring to the deputies, Trump tweeted, "If they die, fast trial death penalty for the killer. Only way to stop this!"

 

A few demonstrators gathered overnight outside St. Francis Medical Center in Lynwood where the deputies were being treated, according to social media video and the sheriff's department.

 

"To the protesters blocking the entrance & exit of the HOSPITAL EMERGENCY ROOM yelling "We hope they die" referring to 2 LA Sheriff's ambushed today in #Compton: DO NOT BLOCK EMERGENCY ENTRIES & EXITS TO THE HOSPITAL," the department wrote on Twitter around midnight local time.

 

It said two people were later arrested: a man who "refused to comply & cooperate" and a reporter for NPR station KPCC. The department said the reporter did not identify herself as a member of the press.

 

Reporter Josie Huang said she was released from county jail on Sunday morning.

 

"I have seen @LASDHQ tweets and have thoughts and videos to share soon after a little rest," she wrote on Twitter.

 

(Reporting by Gabriella Borter and Aishwarya Nair; Editing by Christopher Cushing and Daniel Wallis)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2020-09-14

 

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15 minutes ago, webfact said:

U.S. President Donald Trump retweeted the video early on Sunday and wrote, "Animals that must be hit hard!"

Animals don't carry guns! Cowboy rednecks carry guns!

Not all policemen are bullies and need to be singled out for execution.   Imagine a world were "protesters " run amok undeterred by law enforcement...you do not want to live there.

 

It is a common thread that binds humans together...the need to feel safe for ourselves and our families.

 

Randomly targeting police for execution is not the solution to removing bullies from law enforcement. 

Copy behavior, do your trick!

PLM

Police Lives Matter.....

20 minutes ago, RichardColeman said:

Kneeling for a people that shoot cops and wish they die ? Just showing what they truly are. Animals

Animals DON"T SHOOT ANYBODY! People shoot people and it seems so much more so in the USA!

38 minutes ago, PatOngo said:

Animals don't carry guns! Cowboy rednecks carry guns!

You may need to reword your racism

"description of a dark-skinned male and that came from one of the victims" 

Edited September 13, 20205 yr by meechai

let's see , if any, respect is paid.

protests. riots. or kneeling.

let's see.

PLM? no, wrong color. 

i got some letters. not PLM, not BLM, just 2

BS

god bless these innocent guys

c'mon america, get a grip, set an example to the RotW.

1 hour ago, PatOngo said:

Animals don't carry guns! Cowboy rednecks carry guns!

 

27 minutes ago, meechai said:

You may need to reword your racism

"description of a dark-skinned male and that came from one of the victims" 

???? ???? I stand by MY comment!

12 minutes ago, PatOngo said:

 

???? ???? I stand by MY comment!

Of course you do

I am not surprised by all this shooting--in plain English its called civil war.

59 minutes ago, jastheace said:

let's see , if any, respect is paid.

protests. riots. or kneeling.

let's see.

PLM? no, wrong color. 

i got some letters. not PLM, not BLM, just 2

BS

god bless these innocent guys

c'mon america, get a grip, set an example to the RotW.

No respect paid. 
 

protestors have shown up at the hospital shouting, “I hope they fxxxxx die”.

Off-topic, trolling remarks have been removed.   Continue and face a suspension.  

 

This is such a sad commentary on the current situation.  I am afraid unless there is concrete action to start correcting the systemic racism that affects people of color, the situation will get worse and not better.   Sadly, it is the ordinary police officers who are the face of the conflict, although they are a small part of the problem.   The police brutality we see is offensive in the extreme, but it is a significant but small part of the problem.   The vast majority of the police are honest, hard working and compassionate people.  Hopefully with better resources and training we can see more of the good and less of the evil.

 

I would be interested to find out the ethnicity of the officers that were shot. Was the crime partially motivated by race or was it intended specifically for any cop? You have to remember in the Floyd case two of the cops accused are not even white. 

 

 

Edited September 13, 20205 yr by Cryingdick

6 minutes ago, Credo said:

Sadly, it is the ordinary police officers who are the face of the conflict, although they are a small part of the problem. 

Many cops are now resigning because of the politicization of policing. Google provides examples. At least 17 police chiefs have resigned or been fired since June, some of which were black.

People should be careful what they wish for.

Inflammatory andTroll posts reported and removed.

 

5 minutes ago, thaibeachlovers said:

Many cops are now resigning because of the politicization of policing. Google provides examples. At least 17 police chiefs have resigned or been fired since June, some of which were black.

People should be careful what they wish for.

 

Don't worry affluent neighborhoods will have private police forces to send people to private prisons. Compton will be ruled under the jurisdiction of(poorly paid and ill educated) social workers, and conflicts will be resolved by hitting each other with foam therapy bats.

Edited September 13, 20205 yr by Cryingdick

Act of cruel cowardice. When found guilty the person who committed this crime to receive the full force of the law. The death penalty has not been shown to reduce capital crime, trump's comment is just the usual BS.

 

I'm surprised none of the protestors outside the hospital were arrested and charged for incitement / hate speech.

Edited September 13, 20205 yr by simple1

1 hour ago, PatOngo said:

 

???? ???? I stand by MY comment!

So, cowboy rednecks shot the police? 

8 minutes ago, thaibeachlovers said:

Many cops are now resigning because of the politicization of policing. Google provides examples. At least 17 police chiefs have resigned or been fired since June, some of which were black.

People should be careful what they wish for.

I know a couple of police officers.  They aren't close friends, but acquaintance I speak with occasionally.  I wouldn't want their job, especially now.   I know a big problem for them is they get a fair number of calls of 'suspicious people', which are usually either black or Hispanic people either walking or driving through a neighborhood.  They have to respond and find themselves in a difficult situation when stopping people for no good reason.  

Of the police I know, they are mostly very good people, but in the last several months, they are showing obvious signs of much more stress and distrust.  Only one of them is what I'd call a 'tough guy' who I wouldn't wish to mess with.  

9 minutes ago, simple1 said:

Act of cruel cowardice. When found guilty the person who committed this crime to receive the full force of the law. The death penalty has not been shown to reduce capital crime, trump's comment is just the usual BS.

 

I'm surprised none of the protestors outside the hospital were not arrested and charged for incitement / hate speech.

I am not sure about Trump's comment. However I seem to remember if it is a hate crime/terrorism then it can become a federal case. If that happens the death penalty may apply even if the officers survive. 

5 minutes ago, Curt1591 said:

So, cowboy rednecks shot the police? 

It's called foot in mouth disease.  Everyone should wait for the facts. ????

4 minutes ago, Cryingdick said:

I am not sure about Trump's comment. However I seem to remember if it is a hate crime/terrorism then it can become a federal case. If that happens the death penalty may apply even if the officers survive. 

I was referring to trump's comment below in the OP, which is counter factual as there is no evidence capital crimes are reduced due to the death penalty or in the case of your comment 'hate crime / terrorism'

 

Trump tweeted, "If they die, fast trial death penalty for the killer. Only way to stop this!"

Just now, RoadWarrior371 said:

It's called foot in mouth disease.  Everyone should wait for the facts. ????

 

Like everybody waited for the facts in Minneapolis while burning downtown and Nicollet Mall down, when some black guy murdered somebody and then killed himself? That was reported as a incident involving cops. There wasn't much calm in the storm waiting for further clarity on the matter at that point in time. 

 

Although I digress I always give the benefit of the doubt and that can make me unpopular at times. However there is no suspect to give that benefit to and we know two cops have been shot in the head at point blank range. The fact they may survive is amazing.  Truly one of the most ignorant amateurs doing it. As that is the case there will be other mistakes he/she ( it's ridiculous I feel the need to be open minded and inclusive here, but that's the new reality. I am no sexist.) has made and an arrest should be swift.

I graduated from the Los Angeles County Sheriffs Academy over 30 years ago and in the present climate I would not go into Law Enforcement.

 

The worst part is the protests at the hospital in  Lynwood where the two deputies were taken for medical treatment.  It is true some or possibly many hate the police but protesting at the hospital?  This is new low.  

 

One of the deputies is a female and a mother.  Both deputies are fairly new(at best a couple years on the job).  They were working Transit Enforcement(LA County has a light rail systems that runs in the middle of the Century Freeway that will eventually connect it to LAX).  There is little one can do if a shooter approaches from behind and fires point blank into an occupied police vehicle.  A similar thing happened in New York a few years ago and in that case both NYPD officers died.  

4 minutes ago, sqwakvfr said:

 It is true some or possibly many hate the police but protesting at the hospital?  This is new low.  

Completely agree.

What surprised me from the video is the perp looked like a kid or a very short adult hope they catch the s.o.b. And he is persecuted to the full extent of the law.on a side note I don’t recall this much of a hue and cry when that (boogaloo) boy murdered 2 cops in Oakland a few months back

2 minutes ago, simple1 said:

Completely agree.

 

I don't think it is a new low. I remember the Reverend Phelps showing up at funerals of AIDS victims with signs reading "God hates fags". It is dangerous ground if we begin to pretend one side is more righteous than the other. This whole situation must be nipped in the bud very soon. Dad has to come in and spank everybody involved and ignore the childish cries of he/she said/did it first. 

 

 

 

4 minutes ago, Tug said:

What surprised me from the video is the perp looked like a kid or a very short adult hope they catch the s.o.b. And he is persecuted to the full extent of the law.on a side note I don’t recall this much of a hue and cry when that (boogaloo) boy murdered 2 cops in Oakland a few months back

I noticed that too. Like a midget or somebody with deformed legs. Would be clever if they used it as a disguise. No idea what you mean by "boogaloo" can you expound on that?

Edited September 13, 20205 yr by Cryingdick