1 dead, 1 hospitalized after argument leads to shooting at McDonald's drive-thru in East Hollywood

EAST HOLLYWOOD, LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- A possible case of road rage may have led to a shooting in a McDonald's drive-thru in East Hollywood early Saturday that left one man dead and a woman hospitalized, authorities said.

The shooting was reported about 3:45 a.m. at the fast food restaurant in the 1000 block of Western Avenue, just south of Santa Monica Boulevard, according to the Los Angeles Police Department.

The suspected gunman, 21, was involved in an argument with a 36-year-old man and a 35-year-old woman before opening fire on them, an LAPD spokesperson said.

Both victims of the shooting were transported to a hospital, where the wounded man died and the woman was listed in stable condition after being shot in the leg, police said. The uninjured suspect was taken into custody without incident at the scene of the shooting.

The names of the deceased man and the person in custody were not immediately released.

The circumstances that led to the argument were under investigation, authorities said. Witnesses said the confrontation was prompted by a minor fender-bender in the drive-thru.

"One guy was getting punched, the other guy shot back in self-defense," said a witness named Elijah, who declined to give his last name.

"Next thing you know, he pulls out his gun and just shoots him," another witness, named Steven, said. "Blood everywhere."

Witnesses say the shooter told them he was shooting in self-defense.

"I talked to the perpetrator. He was trying to get his insurance, and he started punching him, so he shot him," Steven said.

Crime scene tape blocked off the parking lot for five hours as investigators placed evidence markers and took photographs.

The identities of the suspect and the victims have not been released.