Man fatally shot at Hollywood Metro station identified

Authorities Wednesday identified a man who allegedly stabbed a security guard at a Metro B (Red) Line station in Hollywood and was then fatally shot by a guard at the facility.

Officers and paramedics were sent to the 1500 block of North Vermont Avenue at about 9:10 a.m. Tuesday, according to the Los Angeles Police Department and the Los Angeles Fire Department.

According to the LAFD, paramedics were directed to the platform level of the station, and they also learned about a second victim nearby at Vermont and De Longpre avenues.

Metro spokesman Jose Ubaldo said the situation began on a B Line train when a passenger "pressed an emergency alarm, causing the train to stop short of the station."

"Metro Contract Security was able to re-set the alarm as the person ran off the train into an ancillary (non-public) area of the Vermont/Sunset Station," Ubaldo said. "This resulted in an altercation where Contract Security Guards first utilized pepper spray and then after the trespasser stabbed one of the Contract Security Guards in the leg, a Contract Security Guard fired a weapon in self-defense.

"The Contract Security Guard has been transported to the hospital in stable condition. The trespasser did not survive his injuries."

It was unclear if the guard who shot the man was the same guard who had been stabbed.

On Wednesday, the fatally wounded man was identified by the Los Angeles County Department of Medical Examiner as Ryan Ludwick, 31, whose city of residence was not known. Ludwick was found dead on a sidewalk a short distance from the station.

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Ubaldo said Metro is working with its security team "to provide the support and assistance they need."

The deadly confrontation is the latest in a series of violent incidents involving the transit system in recent weeks. On Friday, an unknown number of Metro bus drivers took part in a "sick-out" in protest of recent attacks on bus operators, calling for additional security measures. The Metro Board of Directors voted last week to expedite the purchase and installation of protective barriers for drivers.

The board also voted to explore other security measures, noting the recent fatal stabbing of a woman on a B Line train in the Studio City area.

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