At least 4 killed, including gunman, in shooting at historic Southern California biker bar

At least four people including the gunman were killed and six more wounded in a shooting at an iconic biker bar in Southern California’s Orange County Wednesday evening, authorities said.

The gunman was killed by “multiple” deputies who confronted him minutes after they arrived, Orange County Sheriff’s Department Undersheriff Jeff Hallock told reporters at a late night briefing. At least one weapon was recovered, he said.

The gunman and the three others who were fatally shot were pronounced dead at the scene, Orange County Fire Authority Chief Brian Fennessy said at the briefing.

Fennessy said five of the six who were hospitalized were suffering from gunshot wounds and two were in critical condition, adding that the others were listed in stable condition.

The sheriff’s department said no deputies were hurt during the incident.  

The shooting occurred at the historic Cook’s Corner bar in the Trabuco Canyon community at about 7 p.m. local time.

The circumstances leading up to the shooting weren’t immediately known. A law enforcement source told CBS News Los Angeles the situation may have started as a domestic incident between a retired law enforcement officer and his wife. Hallock said authorities were getting similar information but it was way too early to confirm those reports.

He said dispatchers could hear gunfire in the background from deputies’ radios when they arrived at the scene.

CBS News Los Angeles’ Michele Gile spoke to a man who said he lost a friend who was shot in the back.

He said he barricaded himself in the kitchen along with a man described as a cook who’d been shot it the arm. The two armed themselves with a frying pan and waited until it was safe to come out.

The man also told Gile about a woman the gunman allowed to escape. The man said the woman told him she pleaded with the gunman, “Please don’t shoot me, I’m 5 months pregnant.” The gunman allegedly told her to “get out of here,” and she did.

Orange County Supervisor Katrina Foley posted on X, the site formerly known as Twitter, that she was “Heartbroken to hear of another senseless mass shooting, this time in our own backyard.”

The Cook’s Corner website says the bar is “considered to be one of the most famous biker bar & restaurant in Southern California.” 

“We’ve experienced major earthquakes, forest fires, floods, recessions and other disasters,” the bar says on the site. “We’ve gotten through all of them and came out stronger.”

The bar was hosting a spaghetti night special between 4 p.m. and 8 p.m. Deputies estimated that there were 30-40 people inside when the gunman started shooting. 

Wendy Koro, Operations Manager for Russ Brown Motorcycle Attorneys, told CBS News Los Angeles Cook’s Corner is a “legendary landmark.”

“The public, in general, might have the wrong impression that this is a rough and tumble place where there is a lot of hard drinking and hard partying and you know, decent people don’t go there,” said Koro. “It really couldn’t be further from the truth.”

Koro added that the venue is the “heart of the Orange County riding community.” 

Trabuco Canyon is about 55 miles south of Los Angeles.

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