Woman fatally shot by LAPD in South Los Angeles identified

SOUTH LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- An armed woman shot and killed by LAPD officers in South Los Angeles Sunday has been identified as 37-year-old Norma Guzman, coroner officials said.

LAPD spokesman Officer Mike Lopez said two officers from the Newton Division responded to a report of a woman armed with an 8-inch blade near East 22nd and South San Pedro streets at about 9:30 a.m.

"They encountered a female who had a blade approximately 8 inches long. Officers did make contact and an officer-involved-shooting occurred," Sgt. Frank Preciado said.

Guzman was pronounced dead at a nearby hospital.

Friends of the woman said she was a possible drug user and often carried a bread knife, but people who knew the woman also said she was harmless.

The officer-involved shooting remains under investigation by the LAPD's Force Investigation Division and the Inspector General's Office.