Injuries after gunfire at college near L.A.

By Dana Feldman

SANTA MONICA, California (Reuters) - At least four people were wounded when gunfire erupted near Santa Monica College west of Los Angeles on Friday, about 3 miles from where President Barack Obama was attending a political fundraiser, and a suspect was arrested, authorities said.

A spokeswoman for the California Highway Patrol told Reuters the highway patrol had received a report of a man armed with multiple weapons, including a shotgun, firing at passing cars and a bus at two locations near the college campus.

Sergeant Denise Joslin said the overall number of injuries was not yet certain, and there were no reports of fatalities, "but that is not something that I would rule out."

Santa Monica police spokesman Richard Lewis told Reuters that "some people" were injured and that a suspect was in custody but could give no further information.

Three people wounded by gunfire were taken to the Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center, where two were listed in critical condition and one was in serious condition, hospital spokesman Mark Wheeler said.

He said a fourth victim was taken to UCLA Medical Center, Santa Monica, but her condition was not immediately known.

Asked about the possibility of a second suspect, Joslin said, "That is a possibility right now."

She said police searched the campus and surrounding area after receiving reports of additional gunshots being fired following the gunman's arrest.

One witness to the shooting who was not identified told a local CNN affiliate that he saw a man drive up in a car, walk into the middle of an intersection with a gun and open fire at passing vehicles and a building before "he jumped back in the car and took off."

"It seemed like he was alone in his car," the witness said, recounting that he took cover under the dashboard of his own car, which was struck by gunfire. "I saw him jumping out of the car. He had a big, black gun in his hand and he just started blasting maybe 10 rounds from the left to the right."

Obama was attending a fundraising event at the Santa Monica home of former News Corp President Peter Chernin at about the time of the shooting and had just finished his remarks, but he made no mention of the incident.

A Secret Service spokesman in Washington said: "We are aware of the incident and it is not impacting the visit. It's a local police matter at this point."

Deputy White House press secretary Josh Earnest said Obama would motorcade back to the Los Angeles airport to avoid any impact on the local response to the shooting.

(Reporting and writing by Steve Gorman; Additional reporting by Ron Grover and Alex Dobuzinskis in Los Angeles, Tim Gaynor in Phoenix and Steve Holland in Washington D.C.; Editing by Cynthia Johnston and Eric Walsh)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/gunfire-erupts-santa-monica-college-injuries-reported-195012691.html

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