Gunman Attacks LA Synagogue In Possible Hate Crime

10/29/09-by Paula Brooks LAPD_Seal
Less that 24 hours after President Obama signed into law a federal hate crime law, Los Angeles police are searching for a gunman suspected of shooting at least two people at a synagogue in North Hollywood.

According to a police statement, a man with a handgun approached the synagogue and shot two people in the leg in what is being labeled as a hate crime.

The victims, both Jewish, were shot as they were about to enter the temple for morning prayers. They were transported to a local hospital in stable condition, officials said.

Police say they are searching for a suspect described only as a black man.

Detectives who spoke with LGR this morning on the condition that they not be named because the investigation is ongoing, say they don’t believe the motive was robbery. They also said LAPD officials have alerted other synagogues around Los Angeles about the shooting, and police have stepped up patrols at Jewish religious institutions.

The synagogue is located next to an elementary school. It was not immediately known whether the suspect search affected the school.

The attack occurred 10 miles away from a 1999 shooting at a Jewish community center where white supremacist Buford Furrow wounded three children, a teenager and an adult. He later killed a letter carrier.

2 Shot at North Hollywood Synagogue – KTLA.