Officer Shot Dead While Responding to Traffic Accident

Officials say a California police officer was killed and another wounded in a shooting while they were trying to help a man who had been in a traffic accident in Whittier, the AP reports. Lt. John Corina of the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department said the two city police officers had responded to a report Monday of a traffic accident and approached the vehicle when they were shot. Police returned fire, wounding the suspect. His name was not released and his condition was not immediately available. The slain officer's name was not released. The condition of the wounded officer was not immediately available.

The Los Angeles Times reports that it was a gang member driving a stolen vehicle who rear-ended another vehicle, then shot at officers as they approached. "He started firing at the officers and they returned fire," Corina says. "We are still looking into that, why he just opened fire." (More police shooting stories.)