Canoga Park : $25,000 Reward OKd for Leads in Shooting

The Los Angeles City Council approved a $25,000 reward this week for information leading to the arrest and conviction of a gunman who fatally shot a Canoga Park woman last month during a robbery.

The victim, Michele Dawn Smith, a 23-year-old Pierce College student, was walking in the 21400 block of Saticoy Street on Nov. 27, when she was approached by a robber who shot her in the chest at point-blank range. Police believe Smith refused to give up her purse to the gunman.

“The brutal murder of Michele Smith on a busy street in broad daylight has caused our West Valley neighborhoods to become ridden with fear and despair,” said Councilwoman Laura Chick, who introduced the motion for the reward. “We need the public’s assistance to get this criminal off our streets and bring justice to this very tragic and sad situation.”

Smith, who is survived by her 3-year-old son, had just left her apartment to buy a pack of cigarettes when she was gunned down. She died at the scene.