- Trader Joe's manager Melody Corado, 28, was shot and killed when a man took hostages inside the Los Angeles supermarket on Saturday.
- Los Angeles Police Department Chief Michael Moore confirmed Corado was killed by a police bullet as officers exchanged gunfire with Gene Atkins outside the store.
A Los Angeles police officer fired the bullet that struck and killed a Trader Joe's manager as authorities exchanged gunfire with a man who took hostages inside the store over the weekend, officials have confirmed.
Trader Joe's assistant manager Melyda Corado, 27, was shot and killed during the chaos that unfolded in south LA on Saturday.
Investigators believe Gene Evan Atkins, 28, shot his grandmother and wounded his girlfriend before leading police on a chase while exchanging gunfire with officers, crashing into a pole and fleeing into the Trader Joe's in Silver Lake.
Corado was struck when she stepped into the parking lot as Atkins ran into the store and exchanged fire with police, The Los Angeles Times reported.
Los Angeles Police Department Chief Michael Moore confirmed to KABC that Corado had been struck by a police bullet.
"I'm sorry to report that we've now determined through our forensic investigation that one of the officers' rounds struck Ms. Corado as she was exiting the market and was in close proximity to Atkins," Moore said. "Ms. Corado ran back into the store and collapsed behind the manager's desk."
Atkins, who sustained a through-and-through gunshot wound to his left arm during the shootout, is being held in lieu of a $2 million bail on suspicion of murder.
Retired LA County Sheriff's Department commander and use-of-force expert Sid Heal defended the officers' decision to open fire in such a busy area, saying that Atkins was an obvious danger to the public.
"We try to have a clear field of fire, but obviously the suspect has a substantial, even a decisive, advantage if we don't return fire," he told the LA Times. "There is no easy answer."