Updated: Police revise death toll in Santa Monica shooting to five

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Marshall Morgan, a doctor at the UCLA Ronald Reagan Medical Center, speaks at a press conference outside the medical center.

This post was updated at 9:53 p.m.

Police revised the death toll in Friday’s shooting near Santa Monica College from seven to five, including the suspect, said Suzie Kim, a crime prevention coordinator for the Santa Monica Police Department.

Initially, police reported that at least seven people died, including the suspect. Officials said the miscount resulted from conflicting witness accounts and that one of the wounded is still in critical condition, the Los Angeles Times reported. The suspect was shot and killed by police at Santa Monica College.

Police investigators believe the shooter acted alone, Kim said. A “person of interest” was released from custody Friday night, she added.

The Santa Monica Police Department plans to hold a press conference at its station Saturday at 10 a.m., Kim said.

Three victims of the shooting were taken to the UCLA Ronald Reagan Medical Center, two in critical condition and one in serious condition.

One of the critical victims died, while the other remains in critical condition on the operating table, said Dr. Marshall Morgan of UCLA Health at a press conference held outside the medical center at 3:15 p.m.

The victim who came in in serious condition is now stable, he said.

Three additional patients were treated at the UCLA Medical Center, Santa Monica, he said.

One was taken to the hospital by ambulance for shrapnel wounds. The other two walked into the hospital for minor injuries.

The medical center is seeking voluntary blood donations to help replenish the center’s blood supply following the incident, he said at the press conference. The center has enough blood to last through the weekend, he added.

Campus and Santa Monica police were not immediately available for comment.

Police said the man opened fire in a car either on the campus or near to it, according to the Los Angeles Times. Bus passengers were reportedly injured.

A fire in a home just outside campus near the scene of the shooting has left two men dead, according to the Associated Press. It is unclear at this point whether the fire and shooting are related.

The college and all schools in the Santa Monica area are currently on lockdown.

There is no indication of a connection between the shooting and UCLA, said university spokesman Phil Hampton.

Mehrdod Heydari, a student at Santa Monica College, said he was studying outside a parking structure not far from the college’s library this morning when he heard gunshots fired.

He said a huge crowd of people then ran from the location of the shooting and drove away from the parking structure, as police and SWAT cars drove to the scene.

The shooting occurred three miles from where President Barack Obama will attend a fundraiser tonight, local news reports said. It is unclear, however, whether there is a relation between his visit and the shooting, according to local news reports.

Compiled by Jillian Beck, Yael Levin and Katherine Hafner, Bruin senior staff.

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1 Comment

  1. The Obama fundraiser happened in Santa Monica yesterday, and he left by 2 p.m. Read the headlines….he’s in Rancho Mirage meeting with the President of China today.

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