Local : Teen Shot to Death in Pacoima

A teen-ager who was walking with a friend through a Pacoima park was fatally shot after a confrontation with five men, Los Angeles police said today.

The 17-year-old victim, whose name was not immediately released, was shot about 4:10 p.m. Tuesday in Paxton Park. He was taken by friends to Holy Cross Medical Center in Mission Hills where he was pronounced dead.

Detectives this morning were unsure of a motive for the shooting or whether it was gang related.

Detective Marshall White said the victim was walking with a friend through the park at Paxton Street and Haddon Avenue when five men got out of a car and approached him. Words were exchanged and one of the men pulled a gun and shot the 17-year-old, White said.

White said the friend was not injured and did not appear to be a target of the shooting.

The five men, believed to be in their 20s, got back in the car and fled west on Paxton Street. The car was described by police as a early 1980s model gray Mustang with black primer paint spots on it.