Man Gives Up After SWAT Standoff

A man wanted by police in connection with a racially motivated shooting barricaded himself in a Lancaster home for about 10 hours Thursday before surrendering to SWAT team members.

Deputies went to the house in the 42700 block of 45th Street West shortly before noon, seeking to arrest 19-year-old Michael Ray Kelly in connection with the “vicious” shooting of an African American man on July 2, Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Capt. Carl Deeley said.

The motive for the attack, carried out by three young men, was “purely racial,” Deeley said. The victim, whose name and age were not released, was critically wounded, “but at this point we think he’ll survive,” he said.

When deputies closed in on the single-family home where Kelly was visiting an acquaintance, he refused to come out. Seven other people inside obeyed orders to leave.

“They came out quietly without any problem,” Deputy Mark Round said. “There was no hostage situation. But Kelly made it clear he wasn’t coming out, so we backed off and called in more resources.”

Authorities described Kelly as a member of a white supremacist gang.

They said he and two other men drove up to the victim on a Lancaster street and yelled racial insults. The victim told investigators he had never seen his attackers before.

As the man turned and walked away, he was fired upon. Two of the suspects were arrested within several days by the sheriff’s anti-gang unit on suspicion of attempted murder. Their names and ages were not available.

Deputies said Kelly was believed to be armed with a handgun used in the shooting.

Deeley said SWAT team members launched tear gas into the house about 8:30 p.m. and Kelly came out about 90 minutes later.

During the standoff, Kelly periodically appeared at a window and shouted obscenities at the SWAT team. Deputies also tried unsuccessfully to reach him by telephone.