2 homeless men fatally shot near downtown LA's Skid Row

Dakota Smith, Los Angeles Times on Dec 28, 2024

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LOS ANGELES — Two homeless men were fatally shot early Saturday morning on a downtown L.A. street near Skid Row, police said.

The shooting occurred about 12:50 a.m. in the 500 block of South Los Angeles Street, said Los Angeles Police Department Officer Jeff Lee. Both men were shot multiple times and a third victim was "uncooperative" and refused medical treatment, Lee said.

There are no suspects and it's unclear if the shooting was gang-related, Lee said.

Images taken by OnScene.tv show the shooting took place in front of the Cloud Smoke Shop. The shop is in the 6th and L.A Wholesale Plaza, which also sells clothing, plants, oils and other items.

One of the victims was seen in a photo lying in front of the smoke shop.

Workers at the plaza, who declined to provide their names, told the Los Angeles Times on Saturday that large crowds of people regularly use drugs on the block. Crack, speed, crystal meth and fentanyl are openly used, according to the workers.

Cloud Smoke Shop is regularly open 24 hours a day, according to locals.

Steven, who lives in a nearby hotel and declined to give his last name, said he's been beaten up twice on the street.

"It's very dangerous here," he said. "Just walking to the store is a battle."

The shooting also happened just a block away from a Los Angeles police station.