The homeless man accused of shooting three people in the past week, identified as 31-year-old David John Hairston II, could face at least three charges of attempted murder according to the Santa Monica Police Department.
Hairston was arrested on Wednesday following a multi-hour manhunt triggered by Hairston shooting a Santa Monica Police officer who was attempting to arrest him in connection with a prior shooting in Downtown Santa Monica.
In the initial incident, two teens had a verbal argument with Hairston near 2nd and Broadway before entering a Waymo autonomous taxi. Once the victims were in the vehicle, Hairston approached the car and fired several shots into the back seat. Both victims received non-life threatening injuries and were transported to a local hospital.
According to SMPD, an officer observed a suspect matching the description of the Waymo shooter near 2nd and Colorado. The suspect, later identified as Hairston, initially ran from the officer. After about two blocks, Hairston is alleged to have ambushed the officer and shot him.
Following the second shooting, officers from multiple agencies flooded the area. The Santa Monica Place mall was evacuated and streets throughout the Downtown area were closed as armed officers conducted a search.
At approximately 4:20 p.m., officers received a timely tip from a community member who saw someone matching the suspect’s description near Palisades Park. Officers responded immediately and took the suspect into custody following a short foot pursuit and the firearm used in the assault was recovered.
The Santa Monica Police Department has issued a statement thanking the public and the assisting agencies including the Los Angeles Police Department, California Highway Patrol, Beverly Hills Police Department, El Segundo Police Department, Hawthorne Police Department
Torrance Police Department, Los Angeles District Attorney Bureau of Investigation, Gardena Police Department, Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, Culver City Police Department and UCLA Police Department.
Hairson is currently being held on $1,000,000 bail. The case will be presented to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office for filing consideration and SMPD said anticipated charges include, but are not limited to three counts of attempted murder and firearms violations.
Anyone with additional information about this incident, should contact Det. Reyes
(Isaac.Reyes@santamonica.gov), Det. Kayondo
(Lawrence.Kayondo@santamonica.gov) , Detective Sergeant Lozano (Alfonso.Lozano@santamonica.gov) at (310) 458-8774, or the Watch
Commander 24 hours a day at (310) 458-8427.