Police shoot, kill woman for allegedly carrying a knife in Panorama City

Los Angeles police shot and killed a woman allegedly armed with a knife in Panorama City on Saturday.

Mission Division officers were dispatched to an apartment complex in the 9400 block of Van Nuys Boulevard after learning of a person armed with a knife and threatening family members, according to a press release from the Los Angeles Police Department.

When they arrived, they encountered the suspect, an unidentified woman, and told her to drop the knife and surrender. When she did not obey their commands, they allegedly used a Taser and eventually opened fire.

It's unclear what exactly led to the shooting.

The woman was rushed to a nearby hospital by Los Angeles Fire Department firefighters, where she later died, police said.

Investigators recovered a knife at the scene.

No other injuries were reported during the incident.

Earl Ofari Hutchinson, president of the Los Angeles Urban Policy Roundtable, questioned the shooting, which he called “murder” later Saturday.

“The murder of a Panorama City woman by the LAPD demands an expedited investigation and possible charges against the officers involved in the killing,” a statement said. “The LAPD is again repeatedly using deadly force in questionable situations that do not necessarily pose a life or death threat to officers or others. The Panorama City shooting is another possible example.”

He also asked Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón to conduct a “prompt, prompt and thorough investigation” to determine whether the use of force was unjustified.