The North Hollywood Shootout

It is amazing how time flies by.

Fifteen years ago today, two men armed with assault rifles and wearing body armor exchanged gunfire with members of the Los Angeles Police Department outside the Bank of America at 6600 Laurel Canyon Blvd. in North Hollywood.

It would forever be dubbed "The North Hollywood shootout," and it would forever change law enforcement policies and procedures.

In a battle that lasted around 44 minutes, the robbers fired off over 1,100 rounds and injured 11 police officers and seven civilians. The two robbers, Larry Phillips, Jr. and Emil Matasareanu, died in the shootout.

I was living in the North Hills community in the San Fernando Valley at the time. I was listening to Rush Limbaugh on KFI-AM when he mentioned the shoot-out in progress. Then, the station broke in with a live report.

North Hollywood was about 8-10 miles from me. I then turned on my police scanner and started listening to the LAPD's radio traffic.

I switched on my television and called my dad in Hawthorne and told him to turn on his scanner. The next hour or so was spellbinding.

I was working the graveyard shift in North Hollywood a couple of nights later and stopped at a Del Taco drive-thru, a block away from the Bank of America. There were several bullet holes in the stucco walls of the Del Taco.

For more on the North Hollywood Shootout, go here.