LAPD officer shot in Exposition Park; suspect taken into custody, police say

EXPOSITION PARK, LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- A Los Angeles police officer was shot and wounded on the job in Exposition Park in South L.A. on Saturday.

Things took a turn after the officer and his partner -- who were assigned to gang enforcement -- spotted someone they wanted to question.

The officer is expected to survive his injuries. LAPD said he's a veteran cop with the department with a heart for serving his community. Now, the person accused of shooting him is expected to be charged with attempted murder.

LAPD said it started as a pedestrian stop just after 3:30 p.m. in the area of 39th Place and Western Avenue. Two officers attempted to question the suspect before the suspect ran off.

"During the foot pursuit, the suspect turned and fired multiple rounds at the officers. One of the officers was struck. The officers returned fire. It did not hit the suspect. The suspect was taken into custody a short time later," LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell said. "Tonight, I truly believe that we were blessed that our officer is going to hopefully be able to make a full recovery based on what we've seen from this point."

Back at the scene, detectives were working to piece together the shooting -- reviewing body camera video, talking to witnesses, and collecting evidence, including the suspect's gun.

"Gun control laws need to change here in America," said rapper Flavor Flav.

This week, Flavor Flav added a new title to his name: Gun control advocate.

The former gang member spoke to ABC News, using his platform to protest gun violence.

"I wasn't a legal gun owner, none of us was legal gun owners, so guns were in the wrong hands. Even my hands," he said.

It's a message Chief McDonnell told Eyewitness News he appreciates coming from Flavor Flav.

"This is one of the best cities in the history of the world and yet we have the types of incidents that we see over and over again with people hurting each other, if we can step away from that and look at things differently than we currently do, whoever the messenger is, it can be effectice, we welcome," McDonnell said.