Fatal Shooting Stuns Fashionable District

The fatal shooting of a woman during a robbery outside an art gallery on a fashionable West Hollywood street early Tuesday stunned neighbors, shopkeepers and their well-heeled clientele.

About midnight Tuesday, a couple strolling in the 470 block of North Robertson Boulevard was confronted by a gunman who demanded money and attempted to grab the woman’s purse, Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department officials said.

The woman, 31, tried to run away and was shot several times in the back. She was pronounced dead at the scene.

Authorities said the man struggled with the gunman and was shot once in the face. He was expected to recover and leave the hospital late Tuesday, a Cedars-Sinai Medical Center spokesman said. Late Tuesday, sheriff’s deputies were still looking for the gunman.

The names of both victims were withheld pending notification of relatives, but a spokeswoman for the Los Angeles County coroner said that the woman was a 31-year-old Russian visitor. No details about the wounded man were released.

Neighbors were horrified to hear of the killing, which occurred just moments after the couple paused at the window of the Jonathan Kent Gallery.

“Now I’m kind of leery because I’m here by myself most of the time,” said Kimberly Grace, 34, a saleswoman at the gallery. “I thought this was a pretty safe area. Now I’m feeling pretty nervous.”

Most people said they had felt it was safe to walk and window-shop at night along North Robertson, a corridor of antique shops, art galleries and upscale restaurants. But many said they now feel vulnerable.

West Hollywood Mayor Jeffrey Prang said city staff will meet with the Sheriff’s Department to determine whether enforcement should be stepped up in the area. But he said “a random act of violence is very hard to plan for.”

Mick Aarestrup lives in an apartment on Rangely Avenue, around the corner from the scene of the slaying. The 33-year-old illustrator said he often walks in his neighborhood late at night. “This is a total surprise,” he said Tuesday. “It’s a good thing I didn’t go out last night.”

On Tuesday morning, a group of local men gathered at Ed’s Cafe, a tiny diner a few doors from where the killing occurred. Some said there had been a recent string of shop burglaries and street robberies in the area, artist Saul White said.

“It’s kind of a shame,” said White, who grew up in the neighborhood. “Robertson was always considered the fancy part of town.”