A man suspected of shooting the children was hospitalized with self-inflicted gunshot wounds and remained in police custody.
LOS ANGELES, CA — Two children, ages 4 and 10, were killed Sunday after a shooting near Venice Boulevard and Catalina Street in the Pico-Union neighborhood, according to Los Angeles police. A man believed to have shot the children also suffered self-inflicted gunshot wounds and was hospitalized.
Officers were sent to the area shortly before 1 p.m. after reports of gunfire. Police found three people suffering from gunshot wounds, and all three were taken to hospitals. The children were later pronounced dead. The suspected gunman survived and remained in custody while receiving medical treatment, police said.
Authorities said they were not searching for any additional suspects and there was no continuing threat to the surrounding community. Investigators were working Sunday to determine what led to the shooting and had not publicly announced a motive.
Early reports differed on some details about the children. Multiple news organizations, citing Los Angeles police officials, agreed that the victims were ages 4 and 10. ABC7 and Patch reported that the victims were a 4-year-old boy and a 10-year-old girl, while NBC Los Angeles reported that both children were boys. Authorities had not publicly released their names.
Reports also differed on the suspected gunman’s relationship to the children. NBC Los Angeles reported that police believed the man was their father, while other early reports said the relationship had not yet been established publicly. Because the investigation remained active, police had not released a full account of the circumstances surrounding the shooting.
The first reports from the scene described three people hospitalized in unknown condition. CBS Los Angeles reported that officers were called at about 12:50 p.m. and initially believed one of the three people had shot the other two before shooting himself. Later updates confirmed that both children had died.
Police and Los Angeles Fire Department vehicles converged on the area after the shooting, and authorities restricted access around the scene while investigators worked. Television footage showed emergency vehicles and police tape near the intersection.
The suspected gunman’s name had not been released, and his medical condition was not immediately available. Police described him in one report as a man between 30 and 40 years old. No arrests involving another person had been announced.
The investigation remained ongoing Sunday evening. Police had not released a confirmed motive, the children’s identities or a definitive public account of their relationship to the suspected gunman.
Author note: Last updated October 11, 2026.