By — Corinne Segal Corinne Segal Leave your feedback Share Copy URL https://www.pbs.org/newshour/nation/man-headed-to-los-angeles-pride-parade-arrested-with-weapons Email Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Tumblr Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Man headed to Los Angeles pride parade arrested with weapons Nation Jun 12, 2016 4:02 PM EDT A man who said he was headed to the Los Angeles pride parade was arrested Sunday after police found weapons in his car. The Santa Monica Police Department identified the man as James Howell and said in a release that he was carrying “three assault rifles, high capacity magazines and ammunition” in his car. He also had 5 gallons of chemicals that could be used to make a bomb. The man was spotted “loitering” in the Santa Monica area and knocked on a resident’s door, prompting a call to police around 4:59 a.m. local time, according to the release. When police arrived on the scene, they searched his car and found the weapons and chemicals. “The suspect did make an initial statement to the effect that he was going to go to the pride festival,” Saul Rodriguez, lieutenant at the Santa Monica Police Department, said. “Beyond that he did not make any additional statement saying that he was going to do anything further than that. We do not have any additional information related to what his intentions were,” Rodriguez said. The incident occurred hours after the deadliest shooting in U.S. history, which occurred at Pulse, a popular gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida. Authorities do not believe that the two incidents are related, the Los Angeles Times reported. Los Angeles police increased security around the parade on Sunday, West Hollywood City Councilwoman Lindsey Horvath said in a statement. Parade attendees tweeted images of the march and messages of solidarity for Orlando. With LAX Police Chief Pat Gannon & abt 100 peace officers walking in support #LAPride @LAAirportPD @WHDLASD #WeHo pic.twitter.com/6ujqbPMESQ — Michael Parker (@mplasd) June 12, 2016 We march on, in loving memories of those who cannot@BuzzFeedVideo @BuzzFeed #LAPRIDE #PrayForOrlando pic.twitter.com/XnTTBJWYKS — Eugene Lee Yang (@EugeneLeeYang) June 12, 2016 .@HRC will be marching in silence at #LAPRIDE today as we mourn the tragedy in #Orlando. — Chad Griffin (@ChadHGriffin) June 12, 2016 We're not going anywhere. Stand up for truly independent, trusted news that you can count on! Donate now By — Corinne Segal Corinne Segal Corinne is the Senior Multimedia Web Editor for NewsHour Weekend. She serves on the advisory board for VIDA: Women in Literary Arts. @cesegal
A man who said he was headed to the Los Angeles pride parade was arrested Sunday after police found weapons in his car. The Santa Monica Police Department identified the man as James Howell and said in a release that he was carrying “three assault rifles, high capacity magazines and ammunition” in his car. He also had 5 gallons of chemicals that could be used to make a bomb. The man was spotted “loitering” in the Santa Monica area and knocked on a resident’s door, prompting a call to police around 4:59 a.m. local time, according to the release. When police arrived on the scene, they searched his car and found the weapons and chemicals. “The suspect did make an initial statement to the effect that he was going to go to the pride festival,” Saul Rodriguez, lieutenant at the Santa Monica Police Department, said. “Beyond that he did not make any additional statement saying that he was going to do anything further than that. We do not have any additional information related to what his intentions were,” Rodriguez said. The incident occurred hours after the deadliest shooting in U.S. history, which occurred at Pulse, a popular gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida. Authorities do not believe that the two incidents are related, the Los Angeles Times reported. Los Angeles police increased security around the parade on Sunday, West Hollywood City Councilwoman Lindsey Horvath said in a statement. Parade attendees tweeted images of the march and messages of solidarity for Orlando. With LAX Police Chief Pat Gannon & abt 100 peace officers walking in support #LAPride @LAAirportPD @WHDLASD #WeHo pic.twitter.com/6ujqbPMESQ — Michael Parker (@mplasd) June 12, 2016 We march on, in loving memories of those who cannot@BuzzFeedVideo @BuzzFeed #LAPRIDE #PrayForOrlando pic.twitter.com/XnTTBJWYKS — Eugene Lee Yang (@EugeneLeeYang) June 12, 2016 .@HRC will be marching in silence at #LAPRIDE today as we mourn the tragedy in #Orlando. — Chad Griffin (@ChadHGriffin) June 12, 2016 We're not going anywhere. Stand up for truly independent, trusted news that you can count on! Donate now