The stabbing at a Target store in downtown Los Angeles on Tuesday night has caused great concern among local residents and those who work in the area.
There’s no question the number of homeless people in downtown Los Angeles has skyrocketed, but now business owners are demanding more from the city to prevent another stabbing like the one that happened on Tuesday.
A homeless man was stabbed a child and a woman Inside the Target store in downtown Los Angeles at 7th and Figueroa Street that night.
The suspect was shot by a security guard and was pronounced dead at the hospital. The two victims were not fatally injured, but the woman is said to be in critical but stable condition.
Fortunately, the stabbing did not lead to a fatal conclusion, but business owners say the attack is just one of many crimes that occur in the area every day.
“The problem we have is people come in, take merchandise and leave, and Burlington’s policy is now a hands-off policy duty to stop someone,” Nejdeh Avedian said. “People come in and smash things, not just ours. The building, and everything that frustrates tenants and customers. I want to change that.”
Avedian is the owner of a property building that houses a Burlington department store and several other businesses in downtown Los Angeles.
He told CBSLA’s Jasmine Viel that every day people come into the Burlington store to steal. It is department store policy not to provoke or try to deter thieves.
Avedian, who also owns the St. Vincent Jewelry Center at 7th Street and Broadway, employs private armed security but said crime remains rampant.
Claudia Oliveira is the chairperson of the Downtown Los Angeles Neighborhood Council. She’s working with Avedian in an effort to make downtown Los Angeles safer.
“Property crime can definitely escalate into other things. A mayor can declare a state of emergency and pass legislation and make decisions that would normally take years to make,” Oliveira said.
Melynda Choothesa, a member of the neighborhood council, owns Quirk, a resale clothing store. There is a mentally ill mother, and everything she sees on the street every day is sympathetic.
“We need to change the policy. We can’t allow people who can’t make good decisions for themselves to continue deciding not to seek help,” Choothesa said.
CBSLA staff
