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Wednesday's Final Word
Los Angeles police are looking for a convenience store manager after she allegedly attacked an employee, sitting on her and preventing her breathing, which led to her death.
Family members identified the victim as Jessica McLaughlin, 24, and said they made the decision to take her off life support after doctors told them they’d seen no brain activity since the June 24 attack.
Police responded to the 7-Eleven on Melrose Avenue in Hollywood at about 2:15 p.m. on that day and found the young woman unconscious, KTLA reported. Employees told them McLaughlin and the manager got into an argument that turned physical. The manager went to the back of the store and tried to delete surveillance video and then fled the scene on her bicycle before police arrived.
McLaughlin’s brother, Sean McLaughlin, wrote in a GoFundMe that some of his sister’s coworkers tried to intervene but were also attacked. Once the manage fled, he said, they attempted CPR and called 911.
The manager threw a bottle at her, he said, then knocked her to the floor and straddled her, cutting off her oxygen.
Police said they found her critically injured.
“Doctors and detectives later confirmed what we already knew in our hearts — Jessica didn’t do anything wrong. She was the victim, and this attack should have never happened,” Sean McLaughlin wrote.
7-Eleven told KTLA that it was cooperating with law enforcement and that the manager had been fired.
“Our hearts are with those impacted during this difficult time,” a statement from the company reads. “The suspect has been terminated, and we continue to fully cooperate with law enforcement in their investigation.”
Police have not identified the manager or confirmed the family’s narrative of what happened, according to KTTV. They have also not said if she is facing charges.
