Two Teens Killed in Apparent Gang Feud
A weekend shooting in West Los Angeles, apparently provoked by a feud between two street gangs, led to the deaths of two 14-year-old boys, police reported.
Lt. Dan Lang, of the CRASH unit of the Los Angeles Police Department’s Operations West Bureau, said that the two friends, who lived in the area, were approached by several youths about 8:20 p.m. Saturday night as they walked on Guthrie Avenue near Corning Street.
The two teen-agers, who were reportedly unarmed, were cut down by a volley of rifle shots. Lang said police were not sure how many people were involved. After the shooting, the killers ran to a car parked nearby and drove off.
One victim, Paul Laurence Barnes, was pronounced dead at the scene. The other, Devin Clemmons, died after being transported to Kaiser Foundation Hospital in West Los Angeles. One of the youths allegedly was a gang member, Lang said. “It has all the earmarks of gang rivalry,” he added.
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