Suspect in Los Angeles car-ramming incident has a criminal history and was on parole, police say

LOS ANGELES (AP) — A man suspected of driving his car into a crowd on a sidewalk in Los Angeles, injuring 36 people, has a criminal history that includes a conviction for felony battery, officials said Sunday.

The driver, identified by police as 29-year-old Fernando Ramirez, was attacked by bystanders after the crash early Saturday in east Hollywood and paramedics later found that he had been shot. Police were still searching for the suspected shooter, described as a man with a goatee in a blue Dodgers jacket.

Ramirez, of San Clemente, California, was recovering and was expected to face a felony charge of assault with a deadly weapon. He could not be reached for comment and it wasn't known if he had an attorney.

Los Angeles police Capt. Ben Fernandes told KNBC-TV on Sunday that Ramirez was sentenced in 2020 for attacking a man outside of a Whole Foods grocery store in June 2019. He was on parole at the time of Saturday’s crash, but it’s unclear whether it was in connection with the 2019 attack or another case.

Ramirez has had at least 11 criminal cases ranging from misdemeanors to felonies, KNBC reported. In January 2022, he was charged with felony domestic battery and entered a not guilty plea. That case remains open.

A line of people — mostly women — were waiting to enter the Vermont Hollywood event venue around 2 a.m. when they were struck by a Nissan Versa that also hit a food vending cart and valet stand, Fire Capt. Adam VanGerpen said Saturday.

At least 36 people were treated for injuries including fractures and lacerations, police said Sunday without providing updates on their conditions.

It was not immediately clear if Ramirez was shot before or after the crash or why he drove into the crowd.

Police patrol vehicles close Vermiont Ave. after a vehicle rammed into a crowd gathered outside "The Vermont" nightclub in Los Angeles, early morning Saturday, July 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)

An area is roped off after a vehicle rammed into a crowd of people waiting to enter a nightclub along a busy boulevard in Los Angeles early Saturday, July 19, 2025, injuring several people. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)

Law enforcement investigate the scene where a vehicle rammed into a crowd of people waiting to enter a nightclub along a busy boulevard in Los Angeles early Saturday, July 19, 2025 injuring several people. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)

A vehicle sits on the sidewalk after ramming into a crowd of people waiting to enter a nightclub along a busy boulevard in Los Angeles early Saturday, July 19, 2025 injuring several people. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)

A vehicle sits on the sidewalk after ramming into a crowd of people waiting to enter a nightclub along a busy boulevard in Los Angeles early Saturday, July 19, 2025 injuring several people. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)

A Ukrainian drone strike killed one person and wounded three others in the Russian city of Voronezh, local officials said Sunday.

A young woman died overnight in a hospital intensive care unit after debris from a drone fell on a house during the attack on Saturday, regional Gov. Alexander Gusev said on Telegram.

Three other people were wounded and more than 10 apartment buildings, private houses and a high school were damaged, he said, adding that air defenses shot down 17 drones over Voronezh. The city is home to just over 1 million people and lies some 250 kilometers (155 miles) from the Ukrainian border.

The attack came the day after Russia bombarded Ukraine with hundreds of drones and dozens of missiles overnight into Friday, killing at least four people in the capital Kyiv, according to Ukrainian officials.

For only the second time in the nearly four-year war, Russia used a powerful new hypersonic missile that struck western Ukraine in a clear warning to Kyiv and NATO.

The intense barrage and the launch of the nuclear-capable Oreshnik missile followed reports of major progress in talks between Ukraine and its allies on how to defend the country from further aggression by Moscow if a U.S.-led peace deal is struck.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Saturday in his nightly address that Ukrainian negotiators “continue to communicate with the American side.”

Chief negotiator Rustem Umerov was in contact with U.S. partners Saturday, he said.

Separately, Ukraine’s General Staff said Russia targeted Ukraine with 154 drones overnight into Sunday and 125 were shot down.

Follow the AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

This photo provided by the Ukrainian Security Service on Friday, Jan. 9, 2026, shows a fragment believed to be a part of a Russian Oreshnik intermediate range hypersonic ballistic missile that hit the Lviv region. (Ukrainian Security Service via AP)

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy, second left, listens to British Defense Secretary John Healey during their meeting in Kyiv, Ukraine, Friday, Jan. 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Danylo Antoniuk)