Westside : Gang Feud Blamed in Fatal Shooting at Birthday Party
A shooting that left one man dead and five other people injured during a birthday party at the Masonic Temple in West Los Angeles last weekend was part of an ongoing feud between rival gangs, police said Monday.
About 11 p.m. on Saturday, members of a Wilshire-area gang apparently jumped out of two cars and attacked a group of people gathered to celebrate the birthday of a 15-year-old girl, spraying the party-goers with shotgun blasts and volleys from at least one handgun, said Los Angeles homicide Detective Brad Roberts.
Jesus Calderon, 25, of Los Angeles, was shot once in the back and was pronounced dead at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center. Five other people were injured in the barrage, one critically, Roberts said.
Some of the 200-plus guests attending the party are believed to be members of a rival Wilshire-area gang, Roberts said. Los Angeles police gang experts have said the two Latino gangs have been warring for several months, he added.
The victims, who range in age from 17 to 43, had been standing outside the Masonic Temple smoking, he said. The building, in the 2200 block of Westwood Boulevard, is a popular place for large parties.
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