California store owner shot and killed over a Prid…


A business owner was fatally shot Friday after someone allegedly took issue with a Pride flag she had displayed at her clothing store in Cedar Glen, Calif. Here, a Progress Pride Flag is held above a crowd of LGBTQ+ activists in West Hollywood, Calif., in April 2023.

Allison Dinner/AFP via Getty Images


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Allison Dinner/AFP via Getty Images


A business owner was fatally shot Friday after someone allegedly took issue with a Pride flag she had displayed at her clothing store in Cedar Glen, Calif. Here, a Progress Pride Flag is held above a crowd of LGBTQ+ activists in West Hollywood, Calif., in April 2023.

Allison Dinner/AFP via Getty Images

A Southern California business owner was shot and killed Friday by a man who objected to an LGBTQ+ Pride flag displayed at her clothing store, officials said.

San Bernardino County sheriff’s deputies responded to the Mag.Pi clothing store in Cedar Glen, Calif., at around 5 p.m. local time for reports of a shooting.

Deputies discovered the victim, 66-year-old Laura Ann Carleton, suffering from a gunshot wound. Carleton was pronounced dead at the scene, the San Bernardino Sheriff’s Department said in a news release.

The suspect, who was not identified by officials, fled the scene on foot.

According to deputies, the man made “several disparaging remarks about a rainbow flag” that stood outside Carleton’s store before ultimately shooting her.