Family Breakup Blamed in Slaying of Woman, Mother

A dispute over the breakup of a common-law marriage apparently triggered a shooting in which a North Hollywood woman and her mother were killed during a struggle in front of three young children, Los Angeles police said this morning.

Police said Kimberly Vandenberg, 25, and her mother, Elizabeth Vandenberg, 46, were shot to death in the mother’s Studio City home in the 11100 block of Acama Street about 5 p.m. Sunday. Kimberly Vandenberg’s common-law husband, Luis Palacio, 34, was later arrested in Hawthorne and is being held without bail on suspicion of murder, police said.

Palacio was suffering from a gunshot wound to the chest when he was captured and police believe he was shot during a struggle with the Vandenbergs.

Detective Mike Coffey said the shootings in the home were partially witnessed by the younger woman’s two children, a 4-year-old girl and a 3-year-old boy, who is Palacio’s son, and her 12-year-old sister. The children have been put into the care of the Division of Youth Services while police attempt to find other relatives.

“They were scared to death,” Coffey said of the children. When the shooting started, “they hid in the kitchen. They were still in there when the police arrived.”

Coffey said Palacio and Kimberly Vandenberg lived together in North Hollywood but were in the process of breaking up. Vandenberg had taken her children to her mother’s house for a visit Sunday and Palacio arrived later and a dispute began.

“It was a slight discussion, not even a heated argument as far as we can tell,” Coffey said, before Palacio took out a gun and began shooting.

Palacio fled in his wife’s car after the shooting. Coffey said the suspect went to Hawthorne and knocked on the door of an acquaintance’s house, saying he was shot and needed help. The acquaintance called police and Palacio left the area. But Palacio was arrested at 7:30 p.m. when a Hawthorne police officer spotted him in a telephone booth near Kimberly Vandenberg’s parked car at the intersection of Rosecrans and Ramona avenues.

Palacio was in good condition this morning and was being treated at an undisclosed hospital.