Police shoot and kill man carrying a shotgun outside home in Encino

Los Angeles police Tuesday shot and killed a man who was brandishing a shotgun in Encino, authorities said.

The incident occurred in the 5800 block of Balcom Avenue in a neighborhood just north of the 101 Freeway and west of White Oak Avenue.

Officer Marjan Mobasser of the Los Angeles Police Department said police responded to a call reporting an assault with a deadly weapon about 11:20 a.m. When officers arrived, they saw a man walk out with a shotgun and raise it at them, said Sgt. Ruby Malachi.

At least one officer fired at the man, who was declared dead at the scene by paramedics, authorities said. Malachi described the dead man only as white and in his 30s.

A police official familiar with the incident said that in the initial call to police, a person reported shots being fired and a man shouting: “Give me back the shotgun!”

Officers responding to the 911 call told investigators that when they arrived they saw a man carrying a shotgun as he left the house.

At that time, at least one officer fired at him, police said. Four officers were at the scene, with at least one firing his weapon. The circumstances that led to the shooting were unclear. Resident Ron Traylor, 62, who has lived in the neighborhood for 30 years, said he was in bed “when I heard a single gunshot.”

“Then I heard several shots,” he added.

Elsie Myregard, 84, who has lived in the neighborhood for about 60 years, said she did not know the residents at the home where the shooting took place.

“There have been incidents of police, but nothing like what’s going on right now,” she said. “For me, I always thought it was a pretty good area.”

--

ruben.vives@latimes.com

andrew.blankstein@latimes.com

--

Times staff writer Joanna Lin contributed to this report.