VAN NUYS : Man Denies Guilt in Shooting of Boy

A Van Nuys man not guilty Tuesday to a series of charges related to an Easter Sunday spree that left a 2-year-old child dead and a man paralyzed.

Larry Dean Shaw, 31, faces seven felony charges, including murder in the killing of Ryan Brown, who was shot in the head when Shaw allegedly fired a bullet through a car window.

“There were several other children in the car,” said Deputy Dist. Atty. Kathleen M. Cady. “It is very fortunate that no other children in the car were injured.”

Brown’s mother, Tamara Lee, testified during Shaw’s preliminary hearing that she had placed her son in the car as she tried to flee the shooting that had erupted at the picnic and Easter egg hunt at Balboa Park.

James Anthony Wright, 30, a North Hills man now confined to a wheelchair, and Damon Keith Napier, 29, of Sherman Oaks were also wounded in the shooting spree. Shaw faces attempted murder charges in those shootings.

While other people were observed firing weapons in the area, several witnesses identified Shaw soon after the April 11 incident as the gunman armed with two semiautomatic pistols who opened fire in the direction of the car, authorities said.

Shaw may also be charged in the shooting of another man who was severely injured, but prosecutors must wait until the bullet is removed from the victim’s body. Cady said additional charges may be filed if the slug matches one of the two guns linked to Shaw.

Shaw, who is being held in County Jail without bail, was ordered to appear again in Van Nuys Superior Court on Aug. 12 for a pretrial conference.