Melyda Mely Corado was 27 and an assistant manager at the Trader Joe’s in Silver Lake when she was struck and killed on July 21, 2018. The shooting happened during a police pursuit of Gene Evin Atkins, who had allegedly shot and wounded his grandmother and kidnapped his 17-year-old girlfriend. After Atkins crashed near the store and ran inside, Officers Sinlen Tse and Sarah Winans fired their weapons; a bullet from Officer Tse’s gun struck Corado.

Corado’s family filed suit against the City of Los Angeles and the officers, alleging the officers’ actions were reckless and that they failed to account for civilians before discharging their firearms. An independent use-of-force expert, former Irvine Deputy Police Chief Jeffrey J. Noble, supported that critique. The city reached a tentative $9.5 million settlement with the family. The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office later found the officers’ use of deadly force was justified; Atkins was charged with Corado’s murder and numerous other counts while maintaining he did not fire after the crash.

Did anyone in the Silver Lake community witness or have details about what happened inside the store that day?