Troy Green Jr., 23

Troy Green Jr., 23, a black young man, was shot and killed at the intersection of 75th Street and Parmelee Avenue in an unincorporated area of Florence about 9:50 p.m. Saturday, April 26.

No one reported the shooting when it happened. Later, someone found Green's dead body on the street and called 911. According to L.A. County Sheriff's Det. Robert Harris, a Latino man walked up to Green, who was on foot, shot him, then fled.

Green was homeless and had recently moved from Clearwater, Fla. He was a paranoid schizophrenic whose symptons had surfaced only a few years before, Harris said. He had a partner and child in Florida, pictured at right. But with the onset of his illness, he had begun to wander. His family begged him to come home. Instead, he made his way to Los Angeles with a companion for unknown reasons, arriving here in February.

Green is typical of many mentally-ill murder victims. Living on the streets, or in group homes, they are exceptionally vulnerable to homicide. Exposed to some of society's most dangerous people, they have little means of protecting themselves, and their erratic behavior sometimes provokes violent responses--something which may have occurred in Green's case, said Harris. Harris described Green's family as devastated. Anyone with information is asked to call Sheriff's Homicide: (323)890-5500. --Jill Leovy/LAT

Comments

[jacob green]

p.s. that is not my brothers child but he has a nother kid named troy green the 3

[jacob green]

thank you for supporting our family i am troys younger brother and i wanna thank u for being consurned

[Derrick]

I agree with everyone comments, this is a very sad story. The poor guy never had a chance in that area. He is just one of many homeless/mentally disturbed on the streets of LA and the surrounding communities. I can see this getting worse. Alot of veterans will be returning home in the future with mental health issues that need to be addressed. The state of California and the Government have to do more.

[james joyce]

on avalon this hurts my heart

[Cynthia]

I was deeply sadden when I read your editoral on this young man. I have a very close relative with bi polar. If I was not here to help and take care of him then he would be just like Mr. Troy Green. I am so very sadden for his sister who made the promise to her Mother to take care and watch over him. We have had so many cut backs in the Mental Health Departments it is so unhummanly unfair. We can Thank are Governor for this. I wish Mr .Green's Family only the very best wishes. I hope now Mr. Green may be at peace with himself.

[me]

This is so sad to hear, that someone would kill someone this way, especially being mentally ill. It's also sad that he just came from Florida in February, and he just came to get kiiled!!! My condolesence(how ever you spell it) go to his son, wife, and family, I hope this guy gets caught. R.I.P

[Peter]

One of the measures by which a society is properly judged is the manner in which it treats those of its members who are mentally disabled. Neglect is the kindest way to describe how ours treats them.

Apologists claim this neglect is a necessary recognition of their civil liberties; I think it is more the product of an unwillingness to provide public funds for their treatment and care.

More and more over the past four decades we have seen the mentally disabled wandering our public streets. What kind of liberty is it that puts them in constant danger of losing their lives?

I had a mentally disabled friend who was murdered, Harriett McKinley, a black woman strangled at age 32 at Sinclair Paints on Pico Boulevard just east of La Brea late one night in 1993. The Times didn't even bother to report her death, another indication of our society's indifference to the plight of those least able to care for themselves. At the same time it did report a purse-snatching near the Westwood Mall, several miles west on Pico Boulevard.

I suppose this blog report is an improvement on that score. I remember Harriett and I hope some of us remember Troy Green Jr..

[Patrick]

I was really sad to read about this in Thursday's Times. Troy seemsd to be a man with a good heart with the best of intentions.

My condolensces to go out to his daughter, the baby's mother and especially his caring sister back in Florida.

[J. Jorquez]

From experiences in the Phoenix are, l, the possible explanation is so true... mentally ill people are very vulnerable to violence. Sad situation all across America.

Brown on Black racist hatred is anopther possibility?

[Truth hurts sometimes]

This is one of the saddest stories I've seen on this blog in the 8 or 9 months I've been following it.

This poor guy, I'm assuming, hopped on a Greyhound bus, made his way to Los Angeles, and eventually wandered into Florence-Firestone, an area known to be rife with racist gangbangers and street punks like the Florencia-13 gang.

Being mentally ill, I'm guessing the black people near that area couldn't tell him he was in a dangerous part of town.
The poor guy never had a chance when the street punks stumbled onto him.

I REALLY hope they catch the scumbag who killed this poor guy. This is really an eye-opener about mental illness and schizophrenia.

[KWinn]

My condolences to the family of this young man. It's always hard to lose a loved one but when it's something like this it's even worse. I will keep this family in my prayers..so sad.

[A Fan]

This is always sad to hear. He was mentally disabled and the streets had no compassion for him. I write this in his memory that people may take a moment and think about the mentally handicapped and the consequences of no treatment programs. California is making all sorts of budget cuts - mental health will be one of them.