A 30-year-old man was shot to death by a Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department deputy responding to a knife fight last night that sent three others to the hospital. The incident occurred at around 9:30 p.m in an apartment at the Palm Villas apartment building at 939 Palm Ave. in West Hollywood. The name of the dead man hasn’t been released.
The Sheriff’s Department said that as deputies approached the apartment two men were exiting it and were aggressive with the deputies. One of them was shot and killed. Inside the apartment, the deputies discovered two men fighting, with one choking the other. A large knife was found nearby and apparently someone had been stabbed.
The gunfire and police cars startled nearby residents, who only two weeks ago had been stunned by the stabbing death in the same building of Kurland Ma, 34, a doctor who had recently move to West Hollywood. His boyfriend, Andres Davids, 36, was charged with his murder. He is being held in lieu of $1 million bail..
The 44-unit apartment building is located between Cynthia and Harratt streets, just north of Santa Monica Boulevard.
Kill the victim then work out the details later. Great police work. Ye Haaa.
OK let me first say that we certainly need to hear all the details of this incident, and that is certainly underway. The city absolutely is taking this very seriously and wants to get to the bottom of what happened. I think everyone agrees that this is a terrible tragedy, now that we know the person killed was a victim. My comments come from the perspective of a former volunteer with the Sheriff’s Department in WeHo and that experience made me very grateful that we have the LASD in WeHo and not LAPD. I feel that in general, we are… Read more »
why do people keep saying that the cops had to shoot the victim because he was running towards them with a knife in hand?
HE DID NOT HAVE A KNIFE! he was just trying to gtfo
go back and read the story
Sorry for double-posting my diatribe but SOMEONE needs to speak up for the countless people that have been gunned down by careless cops, innocent and guilty. Our police are not criminals, kids, druggies or gangsters, at least they shouldn’t be. Therefore need to be held up to a VERY high standard.
It is tragic enough to see this in other communities but I can’t sit by while this is happening a STREET next to me.
i think many an innocent man would act in the manner i did and would take offense for the sloppy work of a lack luster police force..they seemed so worked up..like children playing cops and robbers…they allowed me to enter a building where a man had a knife and a gun…than they attack me and accuse me of being a suspect…sounds like a serious lack of training and forethought,,,and maybe just maybe just maybe the department needs to train officers better…I ask the question why did they officer I spoke to in front of my building allow me to enter… Read more »
Thank you for those brave enough to let us know how the police treated you during this tragic incident. I am well aware of the dangers that police officers face but the use of lethal force should only occur when there is absolutely NO other option. Sadly, our police in America do not fully appreciate the fact that respect, decency and safety are #1 when it comes to public safety. I hope the City and the County release an honest assessment of what led up to the fatal shooting. From the reports I’ve seen the shooting seems like excessive force.… Read more »
I hope there is an investigation into this shooting. I am sure the people defending trigger happy cops would also be happy to send a drone to the apartment to launch a few missiles at anyone who may look like a person of interest. We have a serious problem in America with the police using excessive force and I would hope West Hollywood would be immune to this. Thanks to those that were brave enough to share their thoughts on the police’s response. We pay these individuals royally and should be treated with utmost respect and care with the goal… Read more »
I know everyone involved personally, The gentleman killed by police was a victim, running for his life away from the apartment where his mentally unstable roommate was attacking them with a knife. Another victim was also running for his life and was shot in the leg by police. They were RUNNING to escape from a madman, not being aggressive with police. Unnecessary death at the hands of police…tragic.
Hey Wesley, we watched the entrie time from the beginning from across the street, including the food deliver guy the sheriff let inside the building after the ambulances arrived. The deliver guy came back out followed by the second guy on a stretcher. Go figure!? A girl drove up leaving her car in the middle if the street and they let her in as well. Also curious why the body of the man who was killed was taken out on a stretched covered, put into an ambulance and not taken by the coroner. It was obvious this person was deceased.… Read more »
To Larry: I’m sorry your employee had to go through that. I’m sure it was traumatic. But keep in mind that the deputies were intensely focused on split second life or death decisions, and as we now know, one deputy felt they had no other option than to shoot and that man died. Unfortunately, the last thing they could worry about during the first part of the encounter is helping your employee understand what was going on. They were hyper focused on taking in the situation and looking for threats to their own lives or the lives of others, and… Read more »
@wehodaily he knows, we all know, that the cops were doing their jobs.. and posting above does not reflect any hurt feelings or distract from the excellent job the officers of the peace due every single day.. part of me just wishes that another person didnt have to die and that life in our little burg could be peace and all this stuff is behind us…
Two fatal incidents at the same address – possibly both related to drug-issues – is a pretty good reason to put a building on lock down for a few hours after the second death. Not sure if there are code issues the city could get involved in, but I suspect they will look into this. Meantime, residents on the street should organize a community meeting. The city – with relevant officials, representatives from the Sheriff’s Dept, and some council members – would likely attend and listen to the neighbors. The problem is the street (and Larabee) have a very transient… Read more »
“The City and the Barney Fife police force are doing nothing to stop drug use and sales in West Hollywood.” Pfft. WeHo is not going to do anything real to make the activities of daily living easier for the citizens of WeHo, like installing street lamps near dark meth dens, requiring landlords to provide parking or parking passes for tenants, designating meters for residents only, requiring landlords to upgrade dated apartments with insulation and air conditioning, opening up city parking garages for holiday travelers, or implementing a process by which car owners are contacted before their cars are towed. They’re… Read more »