Police chief: 2 officers killed, 1 hurt; shooter at large

PALM SPRINGS, Calif. -- Two Palm Springs police officers trying to resolve a family dispute were shot to death Saturday when a man they had been speaking calmly with suddenly pulled out a gun and opened fire on them, the city's police chief said.

A third officer was wounded. The shooter was not immediately apprehended.

"It was a simple family disturbance, and he elected to open fire on a few of the guardians of the city," police chief Bryan Reyes, his voice breaking, told reporters.

The chief, near tears, identified the slain officers as Jose "Gil" Gilbert Vega and Lesley Zerebny. He did not disclose their ranks or other information and did not reveal the wounded officer's name.

Reyes said the officers were standing near the front door speaking with the man, "trying to negotiate with the suspect to just comply," when he suddenly shot them.

He said the shooter was not apprehended and still may be in the house. He said SWAT officers had the residence surrounded.

Dozens of law-enforcement officers converged on the normally quiet residential neighborhood in this high-desert resort city after the shooting. They sealed off several blocks and evacuated some residents.

Police Sgt. William Hutchinson said officers were warning people inside their homes to stay there, lock their doors and not answer them until further notice.

Although Reyes didn't identify the shooting suspect, he indicated police had previous dealings with him. He added he expected to be able to release more information later.

A neighbor, Frances Serrano, said she called authorities after the father of the shooting suspect came to her house across the street and told her his son was "acting crazy."

"He said his wife left because she was so scared of him," she said, adding the father warned his son threatened to shoot police if they arrived.

She'd gone back inside her home before officers arrived, Serrano said, and a few minutes after they got there, she heard gunfire.

Moments later officers were knocking on her door, warning her to stay inside.

Serrano said the man police are looking for had been in jail at one time and had to wear a monitor on his ankle when he was first released. But she added he always had been friendly and polite to her and her family.

"We never had any problems with him," she said.