Wild shootout with police in Manhattan Beach leads to attempted murder charges

A man who authorities say was involved in a gun battle with police and injured an officer has been charged with attempted murder, the Los Angeles County district attorney’s office announced Monday.

James Louis Boyd III, 37, of Oceanside, was charged with 10 felony counts, including four each of attempted murder and assault on a peace officer with a semiautomatic firearm. He also is charged with shooting at an occupied motor vehicle and discharging a firearm with gross negligence, prosecutors said.

Boyd was arrested April 7 after a shootout with officers near a Manhattan Beach shopping center.

Authorities said Boyd had been involved in a domestic dispute with his girlfriend at a Hawthorne hotel when he fired a rifle into the air.

Police responded at 9:30 a.m. to a Marriott hotel near Rosecrans Avenue and Aviation Boulevard. A man dressed in military fatigues and carrying a handgun was reported chasing a woman in the hotel.

Boyd ran into the Manhattan Gateway shopping center’s parking lot, where he fired at officers, shattering a patrol vehicle’s window, according to police and prosecutors.

Hawthorne Police Chief Michael Ishii told reporters that Boyd was using a high-capacity weapon to shoot at officers. During the gun battle, a 15-year veteran of the Hawthorne police force was shot in the leg, Ishii said.

Boyd eventually surrendered and received treatment for his own injury at a hospital. His arraignment was scheduled for Monday. If convicted, he faces life in prison.

alejandra.reyesvelarde@latimes.com

Twitter: @r_valejandra