Officer’s stray bullet kills girl trying on quinceañera dress with mom, CA cops say

A 14-year-old girl who died after being hit by a stray bullet in the dressing room of a North Hollywood, California, store was shopping for a quinceañera dress with her mom, police said.

A bullet fired by a Los Angeles Police Department officer Thursday, Dec. 23, went through a wall and hit the girl, killing her, as she was inside the dressing room with her mother, police reported in a news release.

“It was a horrible scene,” cleaner Edwin Arroyo told the Los Angeles Times. He said he found blood smeared on the walls and a cream-colored dress on a hanger in the second-floor dressing room.

“The little girl was trying on a dress,” Arroyo told the publication. “The parents never imagined their daughter would die here.”

Officers had responded to reports of a man attacking people at the Burlington Coat Factory store, including reports of shots fired, police said.

“While conducting that search for a suspect, the officers encountered an individual who was in the process of assaulting another and an officer-involved shooting occurred,” Capt. Stacy Spell told KCBS.

Daniel Elena Lopez, 24, died at the scene after being shot by police, KABC reported.

Officers searching the store found Valentina Orellana-Peralta, 14, dead in the dressing room with her mother, the Los Angeles Times reported.

“This chaotic incident resulting in the death of an innocent child is tragic and devastating for everyone involved,” Police Chief Michel R. Moore said in a statement.

“I am profoundly sorry for the loss of this young girl’s life and I know there are no words that can relieve the unimaginable pain for the family,” Moore said, pledging a full investigation.

Body-camera and surveillance video from the incident will be released by Monday, Dec. 27, Moore said.

This story was originally published December 26, 2021 at 2:47 PM with the headline "Officer’s stray bullet kills girl trying on quinceañera dress with mom, CA cops say."