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Updated at 6 p.m. ET: INGLEWOOD, Calif. -- The man believed to be behind a shooting rampage and arson in Inglewood that left a father and his 4-year-old son dead and three other family members wounded was in the process of being evicted from his home, said a relative of one of the victims.
Judy Castellanos, who has a daughter related to one of the victims, said the gunman, who was not identified, had not paid his rent and police had been called several times in the past for disturbances.
He had been renting a unit in the back of a duplex from the family he targeted in the 4900 block of 99th Street (map) about 4 a.m., Castellanos said.
A 30-year-old father died shielding his children from a fusillade of 10 bullets fired into their Inglewood home by the gunman who set the back part of the duplex on fire, police said.
The father's 4-year-old son suffered a bullet wound to the head and died in surgery. The man's 28-year-old wife was hit in the legs. She was in critical but stable condition at a hospital.
Two other children also suffered gunshot wounds and were also in critical but stable condition, police said.
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"The fire had been started before the shooting, and then the suspect came into the house with a painter's mask on,'' said Inglewood Police Chief Mark Fronterotta. "The father was in a position of shielding the children as officers came into the scene."
Police evacuated homes and urged others to remain inside behind locked doors while they searched for the gunman who was believed to be armed and may have hid in a home nearby, police said.
He was described as African American, 5-foot-6, and about 55 years-old. He was wearing a dark baseball cap, police said.
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Firefighters, responding to the blaze, were forced to wait because of the possibility that the gunman was in hiding and because of fears that live wires from downed power lines could harm firefighters attempting to douse the blaze, police said.
Firefighters also witnessed an act of heroism on the part of a wounded mother seen by firefighters carrying her 4-year-old son out of the house, Fronterotta said.
"This extraordinary rescue attempt by the mother occurred in spite of the fact that she had gunshot wounds to both legs," Fronterotta said in a press release.
The other victims included a 6-year-old boy and a 7-year-old girl, Fronterotta said. The only one in the house not injured was an 8-year-old boy, he said.
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Very sad. to bad he didn't have a glock .40 ca. to defend his family. If guns are out lawed on out laws with have guns. Nobama plans to reduce gun dramatically if he wins. LOSER
How do you know he didn't? Maybe he couldn't get to it. Maybe the gunman took it away from him and shoved it up his a$$ like he'd do to you. Maybe he was frozen with fear like you would be. Maybe he went for his children before the gun.
You're lying. Obama has done nothing to curb gun ownership. In fact, gun laws are easier now than under any other president in history.
Does it hurt, being that stupid? Probably not. You don't have enough brain cells to feel pain.
got your panties in a wad eh?
Not me. I'm a gun owner myself.
But it's idiots like John that will eventually wind up getting them banned. He's way to childish and ill-informed to be a responsible gun owner, yet all he has to do is lie about his mental state and he can buy all the Glocks he wants. THAT's what the citizens are afraid of..
Do us all a favor and stick it in your mouth and pull that trigger..
Well we've got plenty on the streets now. We just have to get every legal person registered, to own one.
Two laws that cannot change in a four year term are abortion and guns. Wont happen. We still have two sides that have to agree.
I hope they just execute him. No trial, no "rehabiliatation", No humane treatment. He gave up that right when he took those rights away from the people he killed and wounded. I don't want to know why he did it.
This violence is almost always drug related. It would be nice to hear the entire story but I'm sure that there are details that are not known yet. Sad for the family, esp. the children.
The story said that they are looking for the man who is possibly armed. Gee, you think? When they catch this guy, just shoot him. He does not deserve to be in prison with all his buddys working out in the gym every day and watching cable TV in the cafeteria or reading a good book in the library. He killed a 4 year old boy and the boy's father, theis scumbag deserves to die a painful death.
CaptnCurtass I want to thank you. It is wonderful to see someone here thinks the same way I do. Try the scumbbag convict it and do to it what it did to the victims.
This man died saving his kids but I have to say (and I don't usually jump ahead like this) I suspect he was part of the problem that endangered them to begin with. That many shots fired and then setting the place on fire does not seem random to me.
the story didn't say it was random - in fact, the story said it was because the gunman was being evicted by the victims. i don't know where you got "random" from. the victims and the gunman knew each other well. it was done in anger - selfish cowardly disregard for human life.
And the motive was........?
eviction
First of all my sincerest condolences to the immediate family who lost and husband and a Daddy.
As to the offender, wanna bet he has priors and after psychological examination will only get what will amount to as a slap on the wrist (a roof over his head, clean clothes and food .... in prison at the expense of the taxpayer) rather than a penalty of death.
Hearing more and more of these cases of horrendous crimes against the innocent, one has to ask the question, when beyond all reasonable doubt 'should the penalty not be in accordance to the crime?' as the current system IMO sure and hell isn't working. Regardless that it may not be a random crime and there may more to it, the same message remains. You intentionally take anothers life, you die.
The violence in Afghanistan has nothing on the violence in America.
right sure uh huh
these kinds of attacks need to be considered more then crime, they are terrorism and should face a federal death penalty with quick results.
Doncha just love Inglehood?
We (Americans) don't act or behave any different then the rest of our species across the globe. We are made aware of the horrors people do to each other because of the modern media. Criminals & criminal acts occurs constantly around the world, we have just become a society of excuses for illegal action or the best is the mentally illness or defect instead of a society where one takes responsibility for ones own actions or the fact some of our species needs to be removed permanently from life to protect the innocence for a change.
Go to that place that is better than here plz
It is time to go back to holstered side arms and an eye for an eye. Things would be corrected real fast, including peoples stupid mouths. Yes, innocent people would die but much less than the innocent being killed today!
Of course you would have to Qualify. Have an IQ greater than 115, an upstanding citizen, a psyc test and no previous history. We shall call them "Peace Keepers"
"No greater love..." RIP
hang him in front of city hall
Must be a hate crime. Black guy kills white people. Oh wait, it's only a hate crime when the black person is attacked by a white.
I'm sure Jesse and Rev Al will say it's not his fault, he's just a victim of the white man's oppression.
The victim's name sounds Spanish. Oh spanish people can't own rental property?
@Eric G: Black vs black, white vs white, black vs white or white vs black -- we all bleed red. Let's try to get along.
Eric g: Black vs black, white vs white, black vs white or white vs black, and all the colors in between -- we all bleed red. Lets try to get along and get beyond color coding everything.
It's too bad California makes it so hard to own a gun. Had this man had one, the outcome could have been quite different. He may have saved his family and himself.
I don't live there, but California seems like the kind of place you can purchase a hand gun on every street corner.
Sounds like one mad person of african american decent!Life in da hood!
The family probably had a vote for Romney/Ryan poster in their front yard. You can't be Black and not vote for obama, otherwise you will get blasted. Freedom of choice is not for Blacks, they have to vote obama or else.
Let's get rid of the work out rooms, color t.v. steak or whatever else they get in prison that they dont deserve, and NO FAMILY VISITS, and I am not talking about the visits between the glass either. Make them get up at 5 in the morning eat the food thats given to them, have a break at lunch and then back to work till 6, I guarantee you the prisons will be less full, and give them decent reading material, the bible and no porn. Oh and in bed by 9:00, And bring back the death penalty.
and less murder and violence in the prison. Good plan suseq1591.
Thank you, you are right there will be less violence and murder in prison. Mabe if these people had good parents that didnt spoil them rotten the jails would be less full. Nothing else has worked so what is your suggestion.
R.I.P dad, little guy
condolences and speedy recoveries
catch the dirtbag
an eye for an eye!!!!!!!
Why bother commenting on these murderous low life gang bangers killing houses full of family's then lighting the freaking house on fire. Nothing new in the hood, nothing new for hoodlums.
Take this low life out and gun him down, make him suffer, then take out the rest of the disgusting low life gang bangers while your at it.
Another case for supporting our 2nd Amendments rights to protect ourselves and our families from crazies intent on doing bad things! My heartfelt sorrow goes out to the surviving family members. And a quick execution for the perpetrator!
it is a tragedy they died.Now pull back and look at it sociologically.It is a problem of certain groups/people. prior to giving his life likely the biggest 'contribution' dad made was his efforts in the gene pool