Woman Is Found Shot to Death
A Saturday morning jogger found the partially clothed body of a woman who was apparently shot to death before her body was dumped off the roadside in Big Tujunga Canyon, authorities said.
The victim, identified as Patrice Rosalind Wells, 22, of Palmdale, probably died from a single gunshot wound to the head, said Deputy Irma Becerra, a spokeswoman for the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. The woman wore only shoes and yellow or gold pants, Becerra said.
“It is believed that she may have been killed elsewhere and the body dumped there,” Becerra said.
The jogger found the woman about 6:30 a.m. about 20 feet below Big Tujunga Canyon Road in an area where he jogs daily, Becerra said.
The Los Angeles County coroner’s office is expected to conduct an autopsy on the woman today to establish the cause and time of death, said Michael Riddle, an investigator for the coroner’s office.
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
