Woman Shot by Police Accused of Evading Arrest

A woman who was shot by MTA police Monday evening in the driveway of her Willowbrook home was in jail Wednesday on felony charges of evading arrest, a Los Angeles County Jail spokeswomen said.

Sylvia Bethea, 37, who was shot twice in the arm as she got out of her car after a brief chase, is being held on $35,000 bail in the medical ward of the Twin Towers jail in downtown Los Angeles, authorities said.

MTA police said they saw Bethea, alias Sylvia Perry, run a red light at 119th Street and Willowbrook Avenue and attempted to pull her over. The officers were driving an unmarked van equipped with a siren and flashing lights, which were both activated.

Bethea did not stop, and drove home. In her driveway, she reached under her seat, pulled out an object and was shot as she got out of her vehicle, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, which is investigating the incident.

The object turned out to be keys. After being shot, Bethea ran into her home, where she stayed for nearly two hours until a family member let police in, authorities said. Bethea contends she did not know the van following her was a police vehicle, investigators said.