The Votes Are In!
2024 Readers' Choice is back, bigger and better than ever!
View Winners → Crime Sep 26, 2022
Photo by kat wilcox
by
share with
A woman who was apparently beaten to death inside her Lancaster residence during a home-invasion was identified Monday as a veteran Los Angeles County deputy probation officer.
According to the county Probation Department, Paula Lind was a 16-year veteran of the agency who “was a victim of a home invasion where she suffered fatal injuries.”
“The department sends our sincere condolences and prayers to her family and loved ones during their time of sorrow,” according to the agency.
Deputies were sent to the 45500 block of Barrymoore Avenue at 12:05 a.m. Sunday on a “burglary/home invasion call,” according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.
“When deputies arrived, they found the victim … unresponsive and suffering from blunt head trauma,” according to a sheriff’s department statement. “The victim was subsequently pronounced dead at the scene.”
“A male who was discovered in the house has been currently detained,” the sheriff’s department said in a statement on Sunday. It was unclear if that person remained in custody or was formally arrested.
AFSCME Local 685, the union representing deputy probation officers, announced on Facebook Sunday that the victim was one of its members, but did not identify her.
“One of our DPO II was found deceased early this morning at her residence in Antelope Valley,” according to the union. “… The preliminary information is that she may be a victim of homicide. … Meanwhile, please pray for family during this tragic event.”
In a statement on Monday, Los Angeles County Supervisor Kathryn Barger called Lind’s death “a tragic loss of life.”
“She was a public servant that dedicated her life’s work to helping effect positive change in the lives of the probationers she supervised,” Barger said. “The perpetrator responsible for this brutal attack must be held accountable and brought to justice. I will continue to track the outcome of this investigation closely.”
According to the Los Angeles Times, Lind was assigned to Barry J. Nidorf juvenile hall in Sylmar. A law enforcement official with knowledge of the case told The Times that the woman had just come home from work when the attack happened.
The coroner’s office had not formally identified the victim as of early Monday afternoon, saying only she was a woman about 50-55 years old.
Anyone with information on the crime was urged to call the Sheriff’s Homicide Bureau at 323-890-5500 or Crime Stoppers at 800-222-8477.
