Santa Monica Police Department arrested a man Friday in connection with the murder of a 28-year-old woman killed in a party bus shooting in November 2017.
SMPD officers took Camron Lee, 22, into custody in Los Angeles as a person of interest in connection with the murder of De’Ommie de la Cruz. De la Cruz was celebrating a friend’s birthday on a party bus that stopped near the Santa Monica Pier at about 1 a.m. on Nov. 3, 2017. When she and her friends got out of the bus to go to the bathroom, some men in the parking lot got into a confrontation with one of her male friends and started shooting at the group.
De la Cruz was hit by several gunshots and the bus driver drove her to the Santa Monica Police Station. She was later transported to a hospital and died there.
Relatives and friends of de la Cruz filed a lawsuit last November against the City of Santa Monica and the party bus company, Lion Limousine Corp., alleging that both entities were liable in her death. According to the lawsuit, de la Cruz and her friends told the driver they were reluctant to leave the bus because they saw men in the parking lot who appeared to be gang members, but the driver told them he would only let them use the restroom near the Pier.
The lawsuit also alleges that SMPD officers allowed de la Cruz to lie on the ground in front of the police station after she suffered gunshot wounds and did not offer help.
Arrest records show Lee has been arrested on felony charges three times and twice for misdemeanors.
SMPD could not provide additional information on Lee’s connection to the murder.
madeleine@smdp.com