the "burn lounge" at crash mansion l.a.

*Crash and burn: A 19-year-old man died after he was shot outside the Crash Mansion L.A. club in downtown Los Angeles early this morning, police reported today. The teen was "shot multiple times" and died at a nearby hospital, according to a Los Angeles Police Department statement. Two other men in their twenties were each shot one time but are expected to recover. The violence appeared to follow a dust up inside the venue in which a female was stabbed in the arm.

It looks like last night's promoters were on a Latin hip-hop tip and allowed those 18 and older to enter. According to a note posted on a nightlife website, the organizers of "The Heist" party had their last event shut down as a result of an alleged lack of permits at another location. This prompted their move to Crash Mansion L.A., an outpost of New York's Crash Mansion.

It's a somewhat new addition to the area's nightlife scene and has hosted many noted live concerts and DJ events, including a recent performance by rocker-turned-DJ Tommy Lee. In fact, the space was the subject of a glowing story in the Los Angeles Times-affiliated Metromix website today. Before the Crash-ers took over, however, the venue was also once a sore spot for the LAPD; it was an after-hours trance mecca with some incidences of violence and a reputation, from what I heard, as an alleged haven for ecstasy and meth. As such, police seem to be observing today's events as part of a continuum of troubles at the address.

"We will be looking closely at the business practices here with our vice unit and the City Attorney’s office," Lt. Paul Paul Vernon, head of LAPD Central Division detectives, says. "We've had other disturbances at this same location before it closed down under the name Grand Avenue."

Having 18-and-up nights mixed with separate alcohol areas for 21-and-overs is always iffy in my opinion. It's probably not worth the trouble for a brand like Crash Mansion, which is clearly trying to be legit in the eyes of serious rock and dance music lovers. It certainly wasn't worth it for the victim, identified as Joseph Cosina of Downey.

*UPDATE: The Los Angeles Times posts its story on the shooting.