Police said the woman was shot three times inside a parked vehicle. She was pronounced dead at the scene.
Residents heard the gunfire and called 911. Police units arrived to the scene within minutes.
Police officers swarmed the neighborhood looking for clues.
"It just so happened that some of our units were there within minutes, moments really, after the call came out, and once they got on scene, they immediately requested the fire department to respond," said LAPD Lieutenant Alan Hamilton. "Fire department paramedics responded and pronounced the victim dead at the scene."
Police identified the victim as 37-year-old Anel Juarez.
"We heard the dog barking next door and then we heard three shots -- 'pow, pow, pow,'" said North Hollywood resident Alyissa Kiuhan.
Residents don't know who the victim is or who may be to blame.
Family members are still trying to figure out what brought Juarez to the neighborhood. Investigators believe she may have been lured to the area by the person who shot her.
The victim's sister said she last spoke to her sister just hours before her murder.
"I was at the hospital with my son so I didn't know much about what she was doing last night. She told me to 'make sure you take care of your son Isaac' and that was the last time I spoke to her," said Arlette Juarez.
Neighbors describe the street as sort of a lovers' lane, saying it's not unusual for strangers to park there.
"People do park, leave their beer cans and I've talked to people about coming out here and making sure that nobody's staying here late at night and doing stuff that they shouldn't be doing," said North Hollywood resident Harold Rishe. "And I hope they'll follow that up and we'll have more patrols, keep these people from coming in this area."
"There's always, you find condoms everywhere, all around this area, just kids. They come outside at night, because it's kind of dark at night, so they come and they do the things there," said North Hollywood resident Hugh Roman. "I walk my dog here almost every night but never had any problems."
"In our little area here we're in a cul-de-sac, people are very close, it's very close-knit, and no, it's not the usual problem that we have here, because everyboyd watches out for each other," said Rishe.
Her eldest son said Juarez had worked as nurse and inspired him to follow in her footsteps.
"She taught me how to be a good person in the medical field and that's what I grew up to be and she was a good influence in my life," said Johnny Hernandez.
Police did not reveal any suspects or a possible motive in the shooting.
Anyone with information regarding the shooting was asked to call the /*LAPD*/ at (877) LAPD-24-7 (527-3247).
