Metro driver shot in East Hollywood in alleged domestic violence incident, agency says

An LA Metro bus driver is in critical condition after being shot in East Hollywood in what police say was an alleged domestic violence incident. 

The shooting happened at around 7:30 a.m. in the 1600 block of N. Vermont Avenue, according to the Los Angeles Police Department. 

"When officers arrived, they located the victim, an MTA bus driver, suffering from a gunshot wound to the face," police said. 

The shooting happened when the victim was on her break and was parked in the area to meet her ex-boyfriend, whom investigators say is also the suspect. He has been identified as 45-year-old Dorian Holt. 

The victim, identified by family as Demetra Kimble, was rushed to a nearby hospital by first responders with the Los Angeles Fire Department where she remains in critical condition, police reported.

Holt is described as a 45-year-old man who was last seen running from the area on foot. He was wearing a black sweatshirt, dark pants and a black baseball cap with a white LA logo, police said. 

"Metro is deeply saddened by the act of domestic violence that seriously injured a Metro employee while she was on the sidewalk during a bus layover near Hollywood and Vermont Streets," Metro spokesman Jose Ubaldo said in a statement.

Police say that there were no occupants on the bus at the time of the shooting. 

Despite LAPD's report that the victim and suspect were previously in a relationship, family members issued a statement on Sunday that disputed the information. 

"Contrary to some reports, Demetra was not in a relationship with the suspect at the time of the incident," the statement read. "This narrative only adds unnecessary pain and distraction from the real issue at hand — seeking justice for the senseless act perpetrated against her."

Anyone with information is urged to contact LAPD detectives at (323) 561-3324 or to contact LA Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.