Church shooting California

2022 - 5 - 15

California church shooting - Laguna Woods - Orange County church shooting - laguna woods church shooting - shooting in california

Post cover — Image courtesy of "The New York Times"

Multiple Victims in California Church Shooting, Police Say (The New York Times)

It was not immediately clear how many people had been wounded or what led up to the shooting in Laguna Woods, Calif.

Cynthia Conners, the mayor pro tem in Laguna Woods, said on Sunday that she is a member of the church and had attended services that morning. “We’re keeping our fingers crossed for the safety of the congregation,” she said. The person who was killed was found inside the church by the authorities, she said. “I could not even imagine something like this could happen here,” she said. The city of Laguna Woods, which was incorporated in 1999, is about 50 miles southeast of Los Angeles. Four of the victims were in critical condition, she said, and another victim was being treated for minor injuries.

At least 1 dead and 4 critically wounded in shooting at California ... (CNN)

At least one person is dead and four are critically injured after a shooting Sunday at a church in Laguna Woods, California, according to the sheriff's ...

Our thoughts are with the victims, community, and all those impacted by this tragic event," Newsom said in a tweet Police have a suspect in custody, Orange County Undersheriff Jeff Hallock said during a news conference on Sunday evening. Another person has minor injuries, according to the tweet.

Congregants hogtied gunman to thwart more bloodshed in ... (USA TODAY)

Police were searching for a motive a day after congregates stopped a gunman from causing more bloodshed at Geneva Presbyterian in Laguna Woods.

They were all taken to hospitals for treatment, the sheriff's department said. Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez said the incident arose from an "altercation" that involved at least two guns. “I knew someone was shooting," he told the news agency. Congregants had been taking photos with a former pastor for whom the lunch was being held before the shooting began, he said. Jerry Chen, 72, told the Associated Press he was inside the church's kitchen when he heard gunshots ring out. "That group of churchgoers displayed what we believe is exceptional heroism and bravery in intervening to stop the suspect," Hallock said.

California church shooting victim hailed a hero: 'He sacrificed ... (FOX 11 Los Angeles)

The victim in Sunday's shooting at Geneva Presbyterian Church in Laguna Woods, California has been identified as 52-year-old John Cheng.

Numerous search warrants have been served on Chou and his home in Las Vegas, as well as a vehicle registered to him located in the church parking lot. Four others were taken to the hospital for treatment of gunshot injuries. But the gun jammed and he succumbed to his injuries. He was shot and then there was an attempt to shoot him again. It was permeable. A pastor threw a chair at Chou and they were able to hogtie him before law enforcement arrived.

Hate crimes probe opened against suspect in shooting at California ... (NBC News)

David Chou, 68, is charged with murder and attempted murder for Sunday's shooting a the Geneva Presbyterian Church that killed one and injured five.

All of the surviving victims, including a person with minor injuries, were hospitalized. The city is composed of single-family homes, town houses and apartment-style residences. Stephen Galloway, assistant special agent in charge with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, said two 9 mm semi-automatic pistols were found. Large parts of it, including the village, are gated. Chou has lived in Texas, and worked security jobs in Las Vegas, Barnes said. "Dr. Cheng is a hero," he said. There has been no connection established between Chou and the church or any parishioners there, Barnes said. During the same media briefing, Orange County Sheriff Don Barnes called the shooting “a politically motived hate incident." Three Korean women were injured in a shooting at a hair salon Wednesday. Police Chief Eddie Garcia said the department was investigating the shooting as a hate crime. The gunfire was reported at at 1:26 p.m. in the retirement city of Laguna Woods, about 20 miles southeast of Anaheim, the sheriff’s department said. Cheng was a married father of two who was well respected in the field of sports medicine, Barnes said. Congregants were celebrating the return of a pastor who had gone on a mission to Taiwan, Barnes said.

California police say 68-year-old suspect in church shooting was ... (The Guardian)

David Chou, a Chinese immigrant from Las Vegas, had a grievance with the Taiwanese community, officials say.

Laguna Woods, where the shooting occurred, was built as a senior living community and later became a city. “It was amazing how brave (Chang) and the others were,” he said. Fellow congregants told Chen that when the gunman stopped to reload, Pastor Chang hit him on the head with a chair. The US has seen multiple shootings inside houses of worship in recent years. Chang, a beloved and respected community member, moved back to Taiwan two years ago, Chen said, adding that this was his first time back in the US. Then he heard the gunshots and ran out to the parking lot. Those wounded by gunshots included four Asian men, ages 66, 75, 82 and 92, and an 86-year-old Asian woman, the sheriff’s department said. China claims Taiwan is a part of its national territory and has not ruled out force to bring the island under its rule. Peeking around the corner, he saw people running and hiding under tables. He had also placed four molotov cocktail-like devices inside the church, the sheriff said. More people could have died in the Laguna Woods church shooting on Saturday were it not for churchgoers, authorities said. The violence in Irvine, about 50 miles south-east of Los Angeles, unfolded amid a weekend of horrific gun violence across America, including in Buffalo where an 18-year-old white supremacist killed 10 people at a grocery store in a predominantly Black neighborhood.