Man sentenced to 162 years in prison for shooting at LAPD officers

The man convicted of shooting at two Los Angeles Police Department officers during a traffic stop in 2024 has been sentenced to 162 years to life in state prison. 

A jury convicted Malcom Darnell Guss Jr., 32, last month on two counts of assault on a peace officer with a machine gun, two counts of felon in possession of a firearm, one count of shooting at an occupied vehicle and a final charge of possession of a machine gun. 

Court records showed that the jury acquitted him of attempted murder with a special allegation of personal and intentional discharge of a firearm. 

The shooting happened on July 3 when the two officers attempted to pull over Guss near the intersection of Broadway and Rosecrans Avenue. Videos from the officers' body cameras and dashcam showed Guss stopping his car before unleashing a hail of automatic fire on the officers. 

The officers, Stefan Carutasu and Joshua Rodney, miraculously survived with minor wounds and cuts from their shattered windshield. They tried to follow Guss, but he sped away from the scene and lost police near the area of 135th Street and Broadway. 

The LAPD arrested Guss after a week-long manhunt. Court documents showed that Guss had seven prior convictions, including burglary and attempted burglary.