At least one officer fired a Taser or beanbag gun at Hill as he went over the edge. The suspect was immediately detained.
The LAPD confirmed at approximately 7:50 p.m. Saturday that Stephen Hill died. More details were expected later in the evening.
A SWAT team surrounded the West Hills home and a barricade was set up around the premises at around 9:30 a.m. Authorities established contact inside with 34-year-old Stephen Clancy Hill.
Later in the day, the suspect reportedly climbed a hillside near the house and threatened suicide. At 4:15 p.m., the standoff continued. Hill was standing at the edge of a high cliff as police personnel nearby tried to negotiate with him.
Investigators said when police arrived on the scene, there was a short foot pursuit as they chased Hill to the edge of the cliff. He remained at the edge as police surrounded him. He threatened to kill himself with a sword he was holding against his torso, or by jumping over the edge.
Given Hill's location on the edge of the cliff, the LAPD said they did not want to use any methods other than negotiating for fear that non-lethal methods could push Hill over the edge.
Crisis negotiators and SWAT officers were trying to convince Hill to surrender peacefully. Police said Hill would be hospitalized due to probable dehydration from being out on the cliff for about seven hours. He would then be arrested and charged with one count of murder and two counts of attempted murder.
"They threw him some water a little while ago," said local resident Tom Sprague. "He sat down. That's the first time I've seen him sit down. He drank the water and then he got back up and when the SWAT team moves in, he pulls the knife to his chest and then threatens that he's going to fall on it."
At approximately 5:30 p.m., police moved in. They could be seen in close proximity to the suspect as he turned around and attempted to jump. At least one officer fired a Taser or beanbag gun at Hill as he went over the edge.
The suspect was immediately detained, but his condition was not released.
Hill allegedly attacked his colleagues at about 10:30 p.m. Tuesday at Ultima DVD Inc.'s distribution and production center at the Hayvenhurst Airport Business Park near Hayvenhurst Avenue and Saticoy Street in Van Nuys. There was allegedly filming going at the adult-video distribution business and Hill was working on the set.
Hill was charged Friday with murder and attempted murder. Ultima DVD Inc.'s Eric Jover offered a $2,000 reward on the company's website for information leading to the arrest of Hill.
Hill allegedly attacked one man near the back of the facility and turned on two others when they tried to intervene, police said. A 30-year-old man who tried to help suffered a stab wound to the torso and died at a hospital. The other two victims were expected to survive.
Surveillance photos show Hill apparently leaving the crime scene with the sword still in his hand.
Apparently the weapon was a prop used in porn films. One man who didn't want to be identified told Eyewitness News that Hill always carried weapons and swords in his vehicle.
Hill was living in the building where the attack took place. He was reportedly about to be fired for inappropriate behavior and was told he would have to move out.
Hill appeared in some Ultima films and is credited with having appeared in 13 adult films and went by the stage name "Steve Driver." He had also worked on Ultima film's website, according to police.
According to several reports, Hill has had a history of violence. In 1998, he attended the University of Maryland, where he was arrested for threatening a teaching assistant with a gun in order to get an "A" on a test.
