2 dead, 12-year-old boy wounded in Hawthorne shooting

HAWTHORNE, Calif. (KABC) -- A man and a woman were killed Wednesday afternoon when a Hawthorne police officer came upon a shooting in progress, which prompted an officer-involved shooting.

The shootings occurred at Kornblum and Rosecrans avenues at about 12:42 p.m., officials said.

Police say a woman behind the wheel of a Mercedes-Benz pulled up to a Hawthorne officer and said she thought she was being followed. The officer instructed the woman to pull up and park in front of his vehicle.

A white Cadillac shortly pulled up to the victim's Mercedes, and a male suspect jumped out of the passenger side. He opened fire, killing the woman and injuring her 12-year-old son who was also in the vehicle. That's when the Hawthorne police officer saw the suspect firing his weapon and shot him.

"The suspects pulled adjacent to her. The right front passenger exited the vehicle and began firing at her and the other victim in the vehicle. The shooter was shot and killed by the police officer," said sheriff's Lt. Dave Coleman.

Both the man and woman were pronounced dead at the scene. The boy, who was shot by the male suspect, was transported to a local hospital in stable condition.

No officers were injured, according to Hawthorne police Lt. Aimee Yoshida. The motive for the attack remains unknown.

"We have no idea right now if there's any relationship at all," Coleman said.

The driver and a passenger in the vehicle the male suspect got out of were taken into custody and will be facing murder charges, police said.

Edward Washington and his sister fear the dead suspect is their nephew. They spotted his Cadillac at the scene of the crime.

Rosecrans Avenue is closed between Doty and Yukon avenues for the investigation.

The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department has taken over the investigation, which is routine procedure following officer-involved shootings.

Anyone with information on this incident is encouraged to contact the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department's Homicide Bureau at (323) 890-5500.

City News Service contributed to this report.