Homeless man and his dog stabbed to death outside Los Feliz shelter

Homeless man, dog killed outside Los Feliz shelter

A homeless man and his dog were killed outside a Los Feliz homeless shelter after allegedly fighting over a woman. Community members say this isn't the first incident at the shelter.

LOS ANGELES - "This is where Richard was stabbed," says Carin, a volunteer counselor at A Bridge Home, an interim shelter located on Riverside Drive in Los Feliz. 

On June 5, a violent confrontation broke out just across the street from the shelter. According to Carin, it involved a current resident and a former one, reportedly fighting over a woman. 

She says staff told them to "take it outside." Moments later, 48-year-old Richard Ware was stabbed to death, along with his dog, Nala. 

"This should never have happened," says Carin. 

She and others at the shelter say they've been warning Council Member Nithya Raman for years about escalating tensions and dangerous conditions among some residents, but those concerns, she says, have gone unanswered. 

"I've seen crime increase in and around the shelter," Carin said. "I've seen fires. I witnessed a rape across the street, a gang member who lives inside the shelter gave a woman fentanyl in the bathroom, then raped her." 

Carin believes Ware's death could have been prevented if the shelter had outside security, something she says staff repeatedly requested. Instead, she says, Council Member Raman opted for something different. 

"Mrs. Raman pivoted to using her nonprofit to pass out socks and coffee, sometimes shuttle rides to local churches," Carin said. "But not the kind of security we needed."

Carin, who has worked at the shelter since 2022, says she's speaking out even if it puts her job at risk. 

"This is not the successful shelter the council office has been touting," she says. "No one had to die. No one had to be raped."

We reached out to Council Member Nithya Raman's office for comment. Raman's office issued the following statement:

"Our office was alerted by the Rangers of a homicide resulting from an interpersonal dispute near the A Bridge Home shelter site on Riverside Dr. over the weekend. We are deeply saddened by this unimaginable tragedy and express our sincerest condolences to the family of the victim.

Our office has always operated under the principle that addressing street homelessness is a public safety priority, and we work with urgency to move people indoors and off the streets. The A Bridge Home shelter site on Riverside Dr. is one such intervention, providing 100 shelter beds in the area for people who would otherwise be living on the streets. Our office has worked to make significant improvements to the site, including addressing sanitation issues, engaging regularly with the community, improving transparency and oversight over site operations, and partnering with a new homelessness service provider to ensure greater support for residents.

Every resident of Los Angeles deserves to be safe in their homes and on our city’s streets – and bringing people indoors into shelter and stability is critical for the public safety of all Angelenos."

A GoFundMe has been created to help with funeral expenses.