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CNN Live At Daybreak
Suspect Arrested in Murder of Williams' Sister
Aired September 15, 2003 - 06:02 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: More now on the fatal shooting of Yetunde Price, the oldest sister of tennis stars Venus and Serena Williams. Here is the latest we have for you.
Less than three hours ago, police in Los Angeles announced they have arrested a suspect in connection with her death. Twenty-four- year-old Aaron Michael Hammer is being held without bail at a detention center in Los Angeles County. A man who was with Price at the time of the shooting on Sunday is jailed on a parole violation charge. An assault rifle was found at the murder scene, and neighbors reported hearing up to 20 gunshots.
Yetunda Price was shot to death not far from where Venus and Serena practiced tennis long, long ago.
CNN's Paul Vercammen tells us what happened.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PAUL VERCAMMEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): L.A. County sheriff's detectives, including gang experts, searched for clues on a tough Compton street, where the oldest sister of Serena and Venus Williams was shot and killed.
Authorities say 31-year-old Yetunde Price was in a white sports utility vehicle sometime after midnight Saturday, when she and a man she was with got into a confrontation with some neighborhood residents.
DEP. SCOTT BUTLER, L.A. COUNTY SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT: When they responded to investigate, they discovered that a man and a woman, who were driving a white SUV-type vehicle, became involved in a confrontation with some local residents. That confrontation led to gunfire. The woman that was inside that vehicle was shot.
VERCAMMEN: Paramedics rushed Yetunde Price to a local hospital, where she died of a gunshot wound to her upper torso. Just two months ago, Price attended the ESPY Awards with little sister Serena. Serena thanked all of her sisters when she received her award for female athlete of the year.
SERENA WILLIAMS, TENNIS STAR: And all of my sisters, Tende (ph), Eisha (ph) and Lende (ph), thank you everyone. Thank you.
VERCAMMEN: Price, who was divorced, leaves behind three children. Friends say she worked as a registered nurse and at a nearby hair salon. LAQUESHA MCGILL, FRIEND OF VICTIM: She was a really nice person. Like I said, she's not into no gangs, she's not into anything.
VERCAMMEN: Authorities report finding an assault rifle at the crime scene and say as many as 20 shots may have been fired.
(on camera): Several residents of this neighborhood, all of them preferring to stay off-camera, say there has been a lot of police activity on this street, and that this can be a very rough place after the sun goes down.
(voice-over): All five Williams sisters spent their early years in Compton. The family later moved to Florida. Yetunde lived in Corona 40 miles southeast of Compton. Now, detectives are trying to figure out why the big sister of the tennis superstars was murdered in a community she used to call home.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: That was CNN's Paul Vercammen reporting.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.
Aired September 15, 2003 - 06:02 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: More now on the fatal shooting of Yetunde Price, the oldest sister of tennis stars Venus and Serena Williams. Here is the latest we have for you.
Less than three hours ago, police in Los Angeles announced they have arrested a suspect in connection with her death. Twenty-four- year-old Aaron Michael Hammer is being held without bail at a detention center in Los Angeles County. A man who was with Price at the time of the shooting on Sunday is jailed on a parole violation charge. An assault rifle was found at the murder scene, and neighbors reported hearing up to 20 gunshots.
Yetunda Price was shot to death not far from where Venus and Serena practiced tennis long, long ago.
CNN's Paul Vercammen tells us what happened.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PAUL VERCAMMEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): L.A. County sheriff's detectives, including gang experts, searched for clues on a tough Compton street, where the oldest sister of Serena and Venus Williams was shot and killed.
Authorities say 31-year-old Yetunde Price was in a white sports utility vehicle sometime after midnight Saturday, when she and a man she was with got into a confrontation with some neighborhood residents.
DEP. SCOTT BUTLER, L.A. COUNTY SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT: When they responded to investigate, they discovered that a man and a woman, who were driving a white SUV-type vehicle, became involved in a confrontation with some local residents. That confrontation led to gunfire. The woman that was inside that vehicle was shot.
VERCAMMEN: Paramedics rushed Yetunde Price to a local hospital, where she died of a gunshot wound to her upper torso. Just two months ago, Price attended the ESPY Awards with little sister Serena. Serena thanked all of her sisters when she received her award for female athlete of the year.
SERENA WILLIAMS, TENNIS STAR: And all of my sisters, Tende (ph), Eisha (ph) and Lende (ph), thank you everyone. Thank you.
VERCAMMEN: Price, who was divorced, leaves behind three children. Friends say she worked as a registered nurse and at a nearby hair salon. LAQUESHA MCGILL, FRIEND OF VICTIM: She was a really nice person. Like I said, she's not into no gangs, she's not into anything.
VERCAMMEN: Authorities report finding an assault rifle at the crime scene and say as many as 20 shots may have been fired.
(on camera): Several residents of this neighborhood, all of them preferring to stay off-camera, say there has been a lot of police activity on this street, and that this can be a very rough place after the sun goes down.
(voice-over): All five Williams sisters spent their early years in Compton. The family later moved to Florida. Yetunde lived in Corona 40 miles southeast of Compton. Now, detectives are trying to figure out why the big sister of the tennis superstars was murdered in a community she used to call home.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: That was CNN's Paul Vercammen reporting.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.
