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Polling Place On Lockdown After Fatal Shooting In Azusa
One person is dead and three are injured after a gunman opened fire in an Azusa neighborhood. The shooting took place near two polling locations which are currently "impacted" by police activity.
The shooting took place around 2 p.m. on the 600 block of West Fourth Street. Roberto Chavez told the L.A. Times that he was sitting with his wife on their porch when they saw a heavily-armed man fire at a group of people. Chavez told the Times that he recognized the gunman as someone who frequently visited and hung out at his neighbor's.
An official told the Times that one of the victims was on his way to vote.
Four people were shot, and Los Angeles County Fire Department officials said one of the victims was dead on arrival at the hospital. A fire official told KTLA that the suspect exchanged gunfire with police, but no officers were hit.
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The suspect has since reportedly barricaded herself inside a home in the neighborhood, and Los Angeles County Sheriff's Deputy Grace Medrano told LAist that sheriff's officials are assisting in establishing a perimeter in the area. Azusa police are reporting that the suspect is a woman who may have had a male accomplice.
Two polling places in the area—Memorial Park and Dalton Elementary—were impacted as a result of the police activity, and one remains on lockdown. Voting officials suggest casting a provisional ballot elsewhere for the time being:
Monitoring #ActiveShooter situation in Azusa. Two polling locations currently impacted - Memorial Park & Dalton Elementary in Azusa (cont).
— Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk (@LACountyRRCC) November 8, 2016
(cont) - Voters should avoid the area and, if necessary, cast a ballot at an alternate polling location. Updates to follow. #Azusa
— Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk (@LACountyRRCC) November 8, 2016
#Azusa UPDATE: The polling location at Dalton Elementary School is open and operational. Memorial Park remains closed.
— Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk (@LACountyRRCC) November 9, 2016
At a press conference outside the Azusa Police Department, Police Chief Steve Hunt said that the suspect is a female, with "conflicting reports" that a male suspect was also involved. Hunt said that she was armed with an assault rifle. The suspect or suspects have not yet been accounted for. Hunt says that police have contained the area.
The shooting took place in a residential area that is directly across the street from Memorial Park, but it's uncertain if the shooting has any relation with the polling place there.
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According to Hunt, there are 3 confirmed shooting victims, and one of the victims is deceased. Among the victims there are two females and one male, but the gender of the deceased has not been disclosed. Hunt says that there is also a person lying at the door of a house in the area. It has not been determined if this is the suspect, and the condition of the person is unknown at the moment. No officers were injured.
Hunt says that, for any voters affected by the polling place lockdowns, Azusa PD will be posting on their social sites other polling places that they can go to.
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