Man faces charges after filming himself killing homeless person
The Southern California man could face a maximum sentence of 21 years in state prison if convicted.
LEARN MOREPosted: 3:36 p.m. EST Dec 2, 2023
On Saturday, Los Angeles police announced a suspect was taken into custody in connection to the investigation of deadly shootings in November targeting the homeless. The suspect was named as 33-year-old Jerrid Joseph Powell. He is a resident of Los Angeles, police said.
Authorities in Las Vegas and Los Angeles put the public on high alert warning the unhoused in those cities - and their loved ones - to be vigilant and stay in groups after multiple deadly shootings targeting people experiencing homelessness.
Police said Friday they had been searching for a suspect after a series of deadly shooting attacks where someone shot and killed three unhoused people in three separate areas of Los Angeles.
The fatal LA shootings happened in the early morning hours over multiple days last month, according to Police Chief Michel Moore.
"Each one was shot and killed as they slept," Moore said.
In Las Vegas, police announced Friday that law enforcement had been searching for a suspect after shooting attacks on at least five people experiencing homelessness. Police said at least two of those shootings were fatal.
Apart from the two fatalities, another three unhoused people suffered non-life-threatening injuries in the Las Vegas shootings.
In March of last year authorities in New York and Washington, D.C. asked the public for help after a gunman stalked homeless men living on the streets, killing at least two people and injuring at least three others in the span of two weeks.
By mid-March of 2022, just days after publicly appealing for leads in the case, police arrested a man suspected in the shootings.
30-year-old Gerald Brevard was taken into custody in the District of Columbia on murder and assault charges. Brevard was questioned by authorities in New York and Washington, D.C.
He allegedly sat and listened to music after the attacks - information that came out after his first court appearance in 2022.
Brevard wasn't immediately charged by New York authorities at the time, but was quickly considered to be a strong "person of interest" in the New York shootings.
