Week in Review : MAJOR EVENTS, IMAGES AND PEOPLE IN ORANGE COUNTY NEWS : AT THE SCENE : A Front Yard Is End of Road for Long-Sought Rape Suspect

Barrie Lee Hill, a prime suspect in a series of rapes and robberies dating back to 1981, was under surveillance by Garden Grove police, who said said they were hoping to catch him committing a crime.

Instead, the 35-year-old Hill ambushed two officers who were trailing him, wounding one of them in a shoot-out that ended when he killed himself.

Hill, who lived in Garden Grove, had been under investigation for some time, police said, but there had not been enough evidence to charge him with any of the armed robberies or assaults. So, officers Robert Sanders and David Kivier were tailing Hill in hopes of catching him in the act.

An ex-convict who had served five years in prison for rape and robbery in Oceanside, Hill was hiding in shrubbery next to a house on Jackson Street when he reportedly started shooting, hitting Sanders in the arm. The officers returned the fire, wounding Hill five times, but he still managed to get away.

Hill was later found in the front yard of a nearby residence suffering what appeared to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head. He died 2 1/2 hours later. Police said they found that Hill was carrying a ski mask, gloves, a pistol and a dagger.