Man Shoots Woman, Then Kills Himself

A man shot and critically wounded a Canoga Park woman in the frontyard of her home Monday and then shot himself to death as a limousine driver looked on, police said.

Shortly before 1 p.m., the driver took the man, described by neighbors and others as in his 60s and a former boyfriend of the woman, to the home in the 22300 block of Wyandotte Street.

Sherry Schwartz, 54, an IRS auditor, was shot once in the chest and once in the abdomen, police and medical officials said. She was in critical but stable condition Monday night at Northridge Hospital Medical Center after surgery.

The man, who was not immediately identified, turned the gun on himself after shooting Schwartz, police said.

Det. Rick Swanston of the Los Angeles Police Department’s West Valley Division said that after the driver dropped the man off, he saw him and Schwartz arguing on the front lawn.

“The man put Miss Schwartz in a chokehold, at which time he pulled out a gun and shot her twice,” Swanston said.

Neighbors who rushed to the scene after hearing the shots heard Schwartz call out: “Can you help me? Can you help me?”

Police declined to identify the limousine driver or the company he worked for.

Neighbors said they had seen the man walking through the neighborhood several times in recent weeks.

A sister of Schwartz, who did not give her name, described him as Schwartz’s former boyfriend. She did not say when they broke up.

Police found a .38-caliber revolver at the scene, which was believed to be the weapon used.

Schwartz’s ex-husband, who declined to give his name, said she had lived alone in the home since they divorced in the early 1990s. He said she has two grown children.

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Times staff writers Erika Hayasaki and Roberto Manzano contributed to this story.