Man Held in 3 Fatal Shootings

A woman who allegedly was kidnapped by her ex-boyfriend was found dead after a shootout between the Los Angeles Police Department and the man on Saturday morning -- less than 48 hours after he also allegedly killed his parents, authorities said.

The gun battle started about 8:50 a.m. after police stopped a car driven by Joshua Vick, 23, near the intersection of Main and 88th streets in South Los Angeles.

After he apparently pointed a weapon at police, at least five officers opened fire and wounded him, said LAPD Deputy Chief Earl Paysinger.

Vick was taken to nearby Martin Luther King Jr./Drew Medical Center. Police said his wounds were not life-threatening.

“In my mind it was the most tense and violent gun battle I’ve seen in some time,” Paysinger said.

The woman, Tesha Collins, 29, was found dead after the shootout, a victim of gunshots, police said. Her body still lay by the car early Saturday afternoon.

“Based on the evidence and the result of the preliminary investigation, including at the scene of the double murder [of Vick’s parents], we believe he is the suspect in the three murders,” said Assistant Chief George Gascon.

Paysinger described Vick as having a long history of run-ins with the law, and said that his family had multiple restraining orders against him.

“Mr. Vick was an extraordinarily violent man,” Paysinger said. “His criminal history includes several violent acts against his family.”

Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department records show that Vick was arrested in December and charged with one count of assault with a deadly weapon that was not a firearm.

The latest ordeal began early Friday, when police said that Vick allegedly shot his parents, Gable, 54, and Mary, 52, in their apartment in the 700 block of West Imperial Highway.

At 7:45 a.m. Friday, Vick arrived at Hooper Early Education Center on East 52nd Street and allegedly kidnapped Collins, his ex-girlfriend, at gunpoint.

Police said Vick also was a suspect in several robberies Friday and early Saturday in South Los Angeles. “Most were violent street crimes,” Paysinger said.

On Saturday morning, police received several tips from community members who said they had seen Vick driving around town. Police found him in South Los Angeles and pulled him over. The gun battle then erupted after he got out of his car.

A man who said he was Vick’s brother visited the crime scene Saturday afternoon, but declined to comment on the shootings. Several residents of the apartment where Vick’s parents lived said the couple had moved there recently, but they didn’t know them or hear anything strange Friday morning.

On Saturday, four candles sat behind police crime scene tape on the steps leading to Vick’s parents’ apartment.