CARSON, Calif.—Eight people were wounded in a shooting outside a house party in Carson early June 17, two of them critically.
The shooting was reported at 12:05 a.m. in the 1500 block of Abila Street, just north of the San Diego (405) Freeway, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department (LASD).
Arriving deputies found five of the victims down in front of the house, suffering from multiple gunshot wounds to areas including their head, back, and upper and lower bodies, LASD South Patrol Chief Myron Johnson told reporters.
Deputies immediately began life-saving measures including applying pressure to wounds and tourniquets, Johnson said. Those measures and the quick response by LA County firefighters likely saved lives, he said.
Witnesses at the scene told deputies that two victims were taken to hospitals before authorities arrived, Johnson said.
The eighth victim was found in a vehicle that crashed in the 21800 block of Martin Street, near the shooting scene. The 16-year-old boy had a gunshot wound to his upper body, the chief said. Deputies again began first aid until paramedics arrived to take him to a hospital. Two other people in the vehicle were not injured.
The gunshot victims ranged in age from 16 to 24 years of age, Johnson said. Two were listed as critical but stable and six had stable vital signs and wounds not believed to be life-threatening. One of those victims was released from the hospital Saturday.
“We will not tolerate such acts of violence in our community,” Johnson said.
More than 12 detectives from the sheriff’s Operation Safe Streets Bureau were investigating the shooting and were working to determine if the shooting was gang-related due to the area in which it occurred, Lt. Rick Conti said.
Suspect information was not immediately released because detectives were still talking to victims and canvassing the area in search of witnesses, Conti said.
All of the bullet casings found at the scene were from handguns and investigators did not know if there was a fight before the shooting, he said.
“Everyone is expected to recover from their wounds,” Conti said.
“We are all devastated by this senseless crime that occurred in our city,” Carson Mayor Lula Davis-Holmes told reporters. “If you see something, say something.”
The sheriff’s department urged anyone with information about the shooting to call the Carson station at 310-830-1123, or Crime Stoppers at 800-222-8477.
