4 Slain, 2 Wounded in L.A. County Gang Violence Over the Weekend

A 14-year-old boy was chased down a Hawthorne-area street and shot to death as gang-spawned violence claimed at least four lives during the weekend in Los Angeles County, authorities said Sunday.

Roman Rico of Hawthorne, whom sheriff’s deputies identified as a gang member, was seen fleeing two pursuers when he tripped and fell in a driveway.

Gang Name Shouted

One of the pursuers caught up with the youth in the 3300 block of 134th Street, yelled a gang name and fired several shots. Rico was hit twice in the upper body and died at 11:24 p.m. Friday at Gardena Memorial Hospital.

Deputies said the suspects, who were believed to be members of a rival gang, sped off in a dark sedan that pulled up to the shooting scene. No arrests were made.

A 16-year-old boy was arrested Saturday on suspicion of murder in the shooting of Rick Wooten, 20, in the Athens district of South Los Angeles. The teen-ager and Wooten belonged to rival gangs, deputies said.

Argument Broke Out

The teen-ager was walking with a girl Saturday afternoon when a car with Wooten, of Los Angeles, and two passengers pulled up alongside them on Normandie Avenue, deputies said. They said an argument erupted between the teen-ager and Wooten.

As Wooten drove away, deputies said, the youth pulled a handgun and fired twice, striking Wooten in the head.

Wooten’s car crossed the street, struck a bus bench and came to a stop at gasoline station at Normandie Avenue and Imperial Highway. Wooten died at the scene about 5 p.m.

The 16-year-old was arrested a short time later by deputies who saw him riding a bicycle in the neighborhood.

At least two other young men died and two people were wounded in gang-related shootings.

Jose Ramiro, 21, of Los Angeles, was standing in the parking lot of a restaurant in Paramount late Saturday night when he was fatally wounded by gunfire.

Ramiro was taken to Charter Suburban Hospital in Paramount, where he died at 11:55 p.m. Deputies said they had no motive or suspects in the case, but said it appeared to be gang-related.

Shooting in Arleta

John Duarte, a 17-year-old reputed gang member, was shot and killed Friday by a gunman who walked up to a car Duarte was sitting in. The gunman opened fire when the car began pulling out of a small shopping center in Arleta in the northeastern San Fernando Valley, police said.

In other shootings, sheriff’s detectives were waiting to question a Downey youth who was shot three times in the back and dumped early Saturday in the Whittier Narrows Recreation Area in South El Monte.

The 15-year-old victim, whom deputies refused to identify, was taken in critical condition to County-USC Medical Center.

In Westchester, Los Angeles police said an unidentified man was shot and wounded early Sunday. The victim was said to be in serious condition at an undisclosed hospital and anti-gang officers were investigating the attack.