NORTH HILLS : Youth, 17, Fatally Shot Near School

A 17-year-old North Hills youth was fatally wounded in a gang-related shooting Friday at an intersection near Sepulveda Junior High School, the Los Angeles Police Department said.

The youth was a passenger in a car traveling east on Plummer Street about 3:40 p.m. when shots were fired into the vehicle from an auto that blocked its path, Detective Tom Broad said.

The youth, whose identity was withheld until relatives could be notified, died hours later at a San Fernando Valley hospital, Broad said. The shooting appeared to be related to a 3:30 p.m. shooting at Haskell Avenue and Tupper Street near James Monroe High School, he said.

No victims were discovered at that scene and no suspects were taken into custody in connection with either shooting, Broad said. He could not confirm whether the youth was a student at either school.

At least four students have been wounded in violence near Los Angeles-area public high schools in the past month, including the fatal attack on a Paramount High School cheerleader, Sheila Lorta, 16, who was caught in gang cross-fire as she was returning to campus from a restaurant.

This week, at least two people have been killed by gunfire and two others wounded in gang-related violence in the Valley, including the fatal shooting of Francisco Gudino Serratos, 59, who was caught in gang cross-fire Thursday in North Hollywood as he tried to shoo away gang members painting graffiti on his garage, police said.