Man Held in Killing of Parks’ Granddaughter

Eleven days after his granddaughter was shot to death on a Los Angeles street corner, Police Chief Bernard C. Parks on Thursday announced that detectives from his own department have arrested an 18-year-old man and booked him in the killing.

The man, Samuel Sharad Shabazz, has denied shooting Lori Gonzalez, police said. He appeared briefly in court Thursday afternoon, where he was charged with one count of murder as well as one count of attempted murder for allegedly shooting at the passenger in Gonzalez’s car. Police believe the young woman’s passenger, 19-year-old Ernest Gray, was Shabazz’s intended target, and authorities say the two young men are members of rival gangs.

The case also involves the special circumstance that Shabazz was “an active participant in a criminal street gang and the murder was carried out to further the activities of the criminal street gang.”

If convicted, Shabazz could face the death penalty, but the Los Angeles County district attorney’s office has not yet decided whether to seek that sentence.

The arrest comes after a wrenching period of grief and introspection for the chief’s tightly knit, protective family, many of whom have gathered in recent days at Parks’ Los Angeles home. At Gonzalez’s funeral last Saturday, the chief struggled for composure, a rare moment for the proud, sometimes austere man. On Thursday, however, he stood tall and straight, his eyes clear and his voice strong as he reported the arrest to a bank of 18 television cameras and dozens of reporters.

“I’ve certainly been at many of these news conferences in the past,” Parks, dressed in a neatly pressed gray suit, told the silent press corps. “I never thought that I would be talking about my granddaughter in this fashion.”

After delivering his brief remarks, which included his personal thanks to the detectives leading the investigation and to community members who came forward with information, Parks stepped back from the podium and his shoulders slumped a bit. Mayor Richard Riordan, whose only son died in a scuba diving accident at the age of 20, placed a comforting hand on the chief’s shoulder. Parks licked his lips, briefly glancing skyward.

The Gonzalez shooting touched an emotional chord among city and national leaders. The City Council adjourned in the young woman’s memory. Condolences poured in from across the country.

In an interview Thursday, Bobbie Parks, the chief’s wife, said the expressions of compassion had helped console the family. But she stressed that even the arrest will not bring her family peace.

“This does not bring closure for me,” she said. “I feel sorry for the mother of this young man. She’s going to hurt. She’s not going to hurt as much as we hurt. But she’s still going to hurt.”

Bobbie Parks said the shooting should serve as a reminder to parents that they need to steer their children clear of gangs, drugs and violence. And as she spoke, Mrs. Parks returned time and again to a detail that she found chilling: that Shabazz was found not far from the shooting scene, casually drinking a beer.

“If he is truly the person who shot her, this meant nothing to him,” she said. “Life meant absolutely nothing. . . . I just hope and pray that this young person will never do this to anyone again.”

At the morning news conference, detectives were guarded with details of their case, but said that witnesses, including the passenger in Gonzalez’s car, led them to issue a warrant for Shabazz’s arrest a few days ago.

On Tuesday afternoon, police said, uniformed officers patrolling Southwest Los Angeles spotted Shabazz drinking a beer in public at Ferndale Street and Orange Drive, a few miles from the scene of the May 28 crime. They ran a routine check of his name in their computer and realized that he was the suspect in Gonzalez’s shooting.

He was arrested on suspicion of drinking in public and immediately turned over to detectives from the LAPD’s Robbery-Homicide Division, which is investigating the Gonzalez killing, police said.

Detectives searched Shabazz’s house, and ended up arresting his father there on an outstanding, unrelated warrant, officials said. They also interrogated Shabazz for much of the evening.

Although they talked at length--and Robbery-Homicide Capt. Jim Tatreau said Shabazz never asked for a lawyer--Shabazz did not admit anything, police said. Still, they felt that they had enough information from witnesses to have Shabazz charged.

“At 1 a.m. on June 7, he was placed under arrest for 187, murder, of Lori Gonzalez,” LAPD Capt. Margaret York said.

Police said they did not announce the arrest until Thursday because they were trying to develop information about possible accomplices. Detectives added that they have not recovered a weapon.

They blamed a feud between two area gangs for the shooting. Shabazz, detectives said, is affiliated with the West Boulevard Crips, and Gonzalez’s passenger, Gray, was described as a member of the P-Stone Crips. Both men have criminal records, police said. Gray, police have said, was wounded just weeks before Gonzalez’s killing during a confrontation with members of the rival gang.

Lori Gonzalez, by contrast, has been praised and remembered as a promising young woman, devoted to her family and attending college in Mission Viejo. She was a childhood friend of Gray, and had spent the day with him May 28. That evening, the two drove to a nearby restaurant for chicken, with Gonzalez at the wheel.

According to police, Shabazz walked up to Gonzalez’s car as she was leaving the parking lot of the Popeyes restaurant at La Brea Avenue and Jefferson Boulevard. Shabazz, police allege, fired through the passenger window at Gray, but Gray ducked. Gonzalez was struck at least twice and died of a gunshot to the head.

Although police said they continue to hunt for accomplices, one detective involved in the case said he is convinced that Shabazz fired the gun that night.

“I’m certain of that,” Det. Brian Carr said.

Shabazz made his first appearance in court several hours after police announced his arrest. At that hearing, Superior Court Commissioner Christina Hill granted a two-week delay in Shabazz’s arraignment at the request of the public defender’s office, which is representing him.

The burly Shabazz, dressed in a white tank top, objected to that postponement but was overruled by the court commissioner. When he tried to interrupt her, saying “Ma’am, ma’am,” the commissioner abruptly cut him off.

“Sir, please don’t speak,” Hill said. With that, Shabazz was led from the courtroom. He is being held without bail.

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Slaying Suspect Arrested

Police on Wednesday arrested Samuel Sharad Shabazz, and prosecutors Thursday charged him with murdering Lori Gonzalez, the granddaughter of Police Chief Bernard C. Parks. Gonzalez was shot to death May 28, and police say Shabazz killed her in an attempt to murder the passenger in her car. The passenger, Ernest Gray, is a gang member, as is Shabazz, according to police, who say the crime was a gang retaliation killing. Here is how the killing occurred, according to police: