Gunman in California wounds policeman, holds hostages in suburban home

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A gunman shot and wounded a police officer responding to a domestic violence call in the Los Angeles suburb of Inglewood on Wednesday and the shooter barricaded himself inside the home with a number of hostages, police said. The officer, who was shot several times, was hospitalized in critical but stable condition, said an Inglewood police desk officer. The wounded policeman was accompanied by a woman officer and was shot as he approached the home. "Before they could even get to the front door, they were under fire," Inglewood police Captain James Madia told reporters. "The male officer was struck in the chest. The female officer also, in trying to scramble and help the male officer and protect him, fell down, was slightly injured but not hit by gunfire." The gunman and the hostages, believed to be the residents of the home, were still inside the house, police said. (Reporting by Alex Dobuzinskis; editing by Christopher Wilson)