Comments Elsewhere

Public Safety (cont’d) “A few minutes later, a truck slowly rolled down the quiet residential street. “As the vehicle approached the house, officers opened fire, unloading a barrage of bullets into the back of the truck. WHEN THE SHOOTING STOPPED, THEY QUICKLY REALIZED THEIR MISTAKE. The truck was not a Nissan Titan, but a Toyota Tacoma. The color wasn’t gray, but aqua blue. And it wasn’t Dorner inside the truck, but a woman and her mother delivering copies of the Los Angeles Times. “In an interview with The Times on Friday, LAPD Chief Charlie Beck outlined the most detailed account yet of how the shooting unfolded. Margie Carranza, 47, and her mother, Emma Hernandez, 71, were the victims of “a tragic misinterpretation” . . . “. . . They declined to say how many officers were involved, what kind of weapons they used, how many bullets were fired and, perhaps most important, what kind of verbal warnings — if any — were given to the women before the shooting began. “Law enforcement sources told The Times that at least seven officers opened fire. On Friday, the street was pockmarked with bullet holes in cars, trees, garage doors and roofs. Residents said they wanted to know what happened. “. . . Glen T. Jonas, the attorney representing the women, said the POLICE OFFICERS GAVE ‘NO COMMENTS, NO INSTRUCTIONS AND NO OPPORTUNITY TO SURRENDER’ BEFORE OPENING FIRE. He described a terrifying encounter in which the pair were in the early part of their delivery route through several South Bay communities. Hernandez was in the back seat handing papers to her daughter, who was driving. Carranza would briefly slow the truck to throw papers on driveways and front walks. “As bullets tore through the cabin, the two women ‘covered their faces and huddled down,’ Jonas said. ‘They felt like it was going on forever.’ “Hernandez was shot twice in her back and is expected to recover. Her daughter escaped with only minor wounds from broken glass. . . . “JONAS ESTIMATED THAT THE OFFICERS FIRED BETWEEN 20 AND 30 ROUNDS. Photographs of the back of the truck showed at least two dozen bullet holes. Neighbors, however, suggested there were more shots fired.”