Police say the children, all under age 2, were in a parked vehicle near the victims and were taken into protective custody.
SAN DIEGO, CA — A man and a woman were found dead on a Grant Hill street just after midnight Monday, and three very young children were discovered unharmed in a nearby vehicle, according to San Diego police. Officers responded to the 100 block of 27th Street near Imperial Avenue around 12:30 a.m., secured the scene and began a homicide investigation.
Detectives described the deaths as “homicidal violence” and said they recovered evidence consistent with gunfire at the location. The victims were believed to be in their late 20s to early 30s. Investigators said the three children — all under age 2 — were in a parked vehicle close to the bodies and showed no visible injuries. The children were placed in protective custody while authorities worked to confirm their identities and relationships to the victims. As of late Monday, police had not released the victims’ names or a description of any suspect, and the motive remained under review.
Officers were dispatched after an overnight caller reported two people down in the roadway. When crews arrived, they found the man and woman unresponsive in the 100 block of 27th Street, steps from the intersection with Imperial Avenue. Shell casings were visible on the pavement, detectives said, and patrol units cordoned off the block while medics confirmed the pair had died at the scene. In a van parked near the bodies, officers saw three children strapped into seats and appearing alert. “They were seemingly unharmed,” a department spokesperson said. Detectives canvassed homes in the dark for doorbell video and interviewed residents who had heard what sounded like two sharp shots ahead of the discovery.
By daylight, homicide investigators, crime lab technicians and uniformed officers worked the street for hours, photographing patterns on the asphalt, marking casings and measuring distances between the victims, the vehicle and nearby homes. Detectives said early information did not suggest a murder-suicide. No weapon was recovered immediately at the scene, and police did not release an initial timeline beyond the 12:30 a.m. call. The department said it was too soon to confirm whether the children are related to the victims. Neighbors described being awakened by noise in the predawn quiet. One resident, who asked not to be named, said he heard “two gunshots” and then saw police lights filling the block.
Grant Hill sits east of downtown and south of State Route 94, a neighborhood of narrow residential streets and small businesses along Imperial Avenue. The 100 block of 27th Street is a short walk from Grant Hill Park and is lined with single-family homes and low-rise apartments. Officers maintained a wide perimeter through the morning, re-routing traffic and keeping residents behind police tape as the crime lab worked. Some neighbors said the area has been quieter in recent years, but several recalled hearing occasional late-night disturbances tied to passing traffic on Imperial. Others stood on porches watching investigators move slowly from marker to marker before sunrise.
San Diego police said the Homicide Unit has taken over the case and is working to determine the circumstances that brought the victims to the block before they were killed. Detectives are seeking video from security cameras, dashcams and doorbells facing 27th Street and Imperial Avenue between midnight and 1 a.m. Officials said the medical examiner would conduct autopsies to confirm the causes and manner of death and to identify the victims through fingerprints and other records. Police did not name any person of interest. The department noted that the investigation is in its early stages and that key details — including the exact sequence of events, how many shots were fired and whether a vehicle was seen leaving — remain unknown.
Authorities said child welfare workers were notified shortly after officers found the three children in the van and that the youngsters received medical checks as a precaution. The children will remain in protective custody while investigators contact relatives and confirm guardianship. The police department said it would release the victims’ names and ages after the medical examiner makes positive identifications and next-of-kin notifications are completed. Detectives planned to return to the neighborhood Monday evening to re-canvass in better light and to look for additional witnesses who might have been away during the holiday morning.
As the sun rose, yellow markers dotted the street where technicians mapped evidence. A sprinkling of neighbors in hoodies and work jackets watched from behind tape, talking quietly and pointing toward the corner. “We’ve lived here 16 years and we don’t see this,” one long-time resident said, calling the scene “tragic.” Another neighbor said he initially stayed inside after hearing what he thought were two blasts before police arrived. By midafternoon, most units had cleared, leaving a smaller team to guard the block while crews removed the bodies and began the slow work of logging evidence.
Police said there were no arrests as of Monday night, and officials had not released a suspect description. The medical examiner will announce the victims’ identities once family members are notified, a process that can take hours or days depending on available records. Detectives expect to provide an update after autopsies are completed and after they review any video collected from the corridor along Imperial Avenue. The next public milestone could be a briefing with the Homicide Unit once preliminary lab work is back, or a written update with the victims’ names and ages. Investigators also intend to determine whether the case involves any domestic ties or whether the victims had reason to be in Grant Hill at that hour.
As of late Monday, the investigation remained active, with homicide detectives reviewing evidence and interviewing witnesses. The children found at the scene were reported to be safe and in protective care while authorities work to locate family. Further updates are expected after the medical examiner completes identifications and releases the victims’ names.
Author note: Last updated January 20, 2026.