Long Beach homeowner fatally shoots woman attacking neighbor

A Long Beach homeowner fatally shot a woman who was harassing his neighborhood early Saturday morning. 

According to Long Beach Police Department, neighbors say that the woman was following people home and pounding on front doors and windows in the early morning, just after midnight, before she attacked a woman. 

The shooting happened minutes before 1 a.m. in the 600 block of Roycroft Avenue, police said, when a man shot a woman in the head. 

"Through their preliminary investigation, including statements provided from witnesses, detectives learned a male adult observed a female adult attacking another woman," said Long Beach Police Department spokesperson Alyssa Baeza. "The female victim was calling for help and the man armed himself with a handgun."

Investigators believe that the man was armed prior to the altercation due to the "prior suspicious activity in front of his residence."

The deceased woman, who has been identified as 44-year-old East Long Beach resident Andrew Powell, was fatally shot as she was charging towards the armed homeowner, police said. 

"He was trying to protect himself and the other neighbors as well," said one resident Eileen Gelso, who says that Powell was banging on doors over and over demanding money. "She was definitely dangerous. I believe that."

The homeowner was detained and officers recovered his handgun from the scene, but after gathering evidence and interviewing witnesses, he was released. 

Grieving family members, who say they plan to pursue legal action against the homeowner, say that Powell was undergoing a mental crisis at the time of the incident, and that the use of force was extremely unnecessary. 

"This case will be presented to the Los Angeles District Attorney's Office," police said.