An investigation continued Monday into the fatal shooting by a Santa Monica police officer of an allegedly knife-wielding man in Palisades Park, the first of two shootings in the area to take place over the weekend.
The officer-involved shooting occurred at 12:49 p.m. Saturday in the 1400 block of Ocean Avenue, according to the Santa Monica Police Department.
The Santa Monica Visitor Information Kiosk is also located in the same block of the park where the shooting occurred, between Broadway and Santa Monica Boulevard, across from The Georgian Hotel.
Officers had initially responded to a report of domestic violence, police said.
“While officers were interviewing witnesses, an unrelated individual armed with a knife charged at the officers,” according to an SMPD statement. “An officer discharged their firearm, striking the individual.”
Santa Monica Fire Department paramedics treated the wounded man at the scene before taking him to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead, police said. The involved officer was not hurt.
The SMPD did not release the man’s name, but stated he was in his late 40s.
A “rather large knife” was recovered at the scene, Santa Monica Police Chief Darrick Jacob told reporters during a briefing. The officer fired a single shot.
There were indications that the man may have been homeless, Jacob said.
The Ocean Avenue-adjacent park, which stretches over a mile and half north from the pier, is home to many transients.
The shooting preceded another case of gun violence in the area, this one on Sunday.
A person was shot in the leg when a fight occurred during an armed robbery near the ramp to the Santa Monica Pier at about 7:50 p.m. Sunday at the ramp near Colorado Avenue and Appian Way, Santa Monica Police Department Lt. Lewis Gilmour said.
“The preliminary investigation indicates that a victim was approached by a group of individuals and an altercation occurred during an attempted robbery,” Gilmour said. “During the altercation, one individual fired a weapon, striking the victim in the leg.”
Officers tended to the victim until paramedics arrived to take the victim to a hospital for treatment of a wound not believed to be life-threatening, he said.
The suspects fled the scene and officers were working to identify and locate them, said Gilmour.
Both shootings remain under investigation.