HERMOSA BEACH : Palmdale Man Held in Woman’s Shooting

A Palmdale man has been arrested in connection with the shooting of a Hermosa Beach woman who survived for up to four days with three bullets in her head, authorities said.

Previously, Linda M. Dillon claimed she had tried to commit suicide, but now says Jeffrey Ray Locke, 41, shot her, said Hermosa Police Capt. Mike Lavin.

As a result, police arrested Locke on Sunday on suspicion of shooting Dillon, 57, several days before police found her semiconscious Oct. 3 on her apartment floor.

Dillon, a computer consultant who works at home, was in critical condition after the shooting, but her health has improved in the last week, Lavin said.

Police believe the shots were fired through a pillow, which was found soaked with blood in Dillon’s car a block away from her apartment. No gun was found.

During a search of Locke’s home, police found two .22-caliber rifles, one AK-47 assault weapon and a 30-30 Winchester rifle. No handgun was found, but police seized ammunition in Locke’s home and car, Lavin said. The car was impounded.

Lavin said Locke and Dillon once worked together at Hughes Aircraft before she retired and he was laid off. To earn money, Locke recently did handy work for Dillon in her apartment, Lavin said.

Locke was arraigned Tuesday in Torrance Municipal Court and is being held in lieu of $500,000 bail.

Doctors discovered Dillon had been shot after X-rays revealed three bullet fragments in her head.