Man charged with murder after ex-girlfriend killed outside Hawthorne police station
A 30-year-old man was charged with murder Tuesday after authorities said he fatally shot his ex-girlfriend outside the Hawthorne police station during a custody exchange.
Jacob Ryan Munn of Hawthorne also faces a count of possession of a firearm by a felon and a special circumstances allegation of lying in wait, according to Los Angeles County Superior Court records.
Munn is being held without bail in Los Angeles County Jail. If convicted, he could face the death penalty or life in prison without the possibility of parole. However, prosecutors have not decided whether to seek capital punishment in the case.
Munn and his ex-girlfriend, 28-year-old Brenda Renteria, had agreed to conduct a custody exchange at the Police Department on Sunday so Renteria could pick up their 17-month-old son. Munn had already dropped the boy off inside the police station when Renteria arrived, according to prosecutors.
When Renteria approached the door to the station Munn opened fire with a shotgun, killing her, prosecutors allege.
An officer who heard shots from inside the station rushed outside, spotted the suspect and opened fire as Munn drove off in a black Chevy truck. Munn was not hit. Renteria was pronounced dead at the scene.
Police tracked Munn’s car to 133rd Street and Hawthorne Boulevard outside a Denny’s restaurant, where it was abandoned. Officers set up a perimeter and brought in police dogs to search for him. He was arrested on suspicion of murder about three hours later in the 4400 block of 134th Street, police said.
Twitter: @Hannahnfry
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