Jeremy Burrell, a 17-year-old black youth, was shot Monday, August 3, at 63rd Street and Victoria Avenue in Hyde Park after he was confronted that morning by a group of men, authorities said. He was taken to a hospital where he was pronounced dead.
Burrell was walking near the intersection about 10:35 a.m. when a group of men came up to him and opened fire, Los Angeles police said.
Investigators say Burrell was shot multiple times by more than one assailant. Detectives say the suspects fled in a van and that circumstances suggest the gunmen may be affiliated with a gang.
Investigators are asking anyone with information to call 77th Street Division homicide detectives at (213) 485-1383 or (877) 527-3247. Callers may also text “Crimes” or log on to www.lapdonline.org and click on Web tips. When using a cellphone, all messages should begin with “LAPD.” Tipsters may remain anonymous.
-- Richard Winton
Thomas Eugene Pearson Jr., a 29-year-old black man, was shot in the head and died July 20 in the hospital. Pearson was shot at the corner of Leimert Boulevard and Sutro Avenue July 16 in Leimert Park, according to the Los Angeles County coroner's office.
Pearson, of Compton, was found on a bus bench about 4 a.m. after someone saw him and called 911, said Ed Winter, a spokesman for the coroner's office.
Dae'von Bailey, a 6-year-old black child, died July 23. Dae'von was found in the 800 block of East 87th Place in Green Meadows.
His injuries suggested blows or other trauma over an extended period of time, said Lt. Vincent Neglia of the Los Angeles Police Department's Abused Child Section. Police are searching for the boy's stepfather, Marcas Fisher, 36, as a "person of interest" in the case.
Dae'von's death appears to fit a pattern in which children have been killed after their cases had come to the attention of county child welfare officials.
Department of Family Services Director Trish Ploehn, who since taking office two years ago has made better accountability of social workers a top priority, said she's launched "a full and comprehensive internal investigation."
"This was a tragic and senseless death," Ploehn said. "I've had a full team of people looking at it all day."
On Friday, neighbors on South 87th Place tried to make sense of what had happened to Dae'von, whom they described as a sweet, well-behaved child. Relatives found him dead on the floor after being alerted by a frantic call from an unidentified person in his home. Fisher was not in the house when officers arrived. Neglia said that Fisher has "no history of violent crime" but that he does have a history of property crimes. The coroner's office had not determined the cause of death.
The county official, who was not authorized to comment on the case and therefore spoke on condition of anonymity, said the dozen calls reporting abuse or neglect occurred at various times in Dae'von's life. The source said county officials had opened an investigation after each call. But it remained unclear Friday whether social workers had concluded that abuse had occurred or whether the county had an active case file on Dae'von at the time of his death.
The boy's mother, Tylette Davis, 28, said Fisher had been with her when she was pregnant with Dae'von, but he wasn't the boy's biological father. She separated from him some time ago.
Davis said she never witnessed Fisher abuse Dae'von, but she said that about three years ago, Fisher "whipped" one of her older sons until "his butt was all red."
Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas, whose district includes South Los Angeles, called on the Board of Supervisors on Friday to appoint an independent investigator to thoroughly review Dae'von's case. Thomas said the probe should include looking at the boy's contact with Family Services and any other government agencies to identify any breakdowns that might have contributed to his death. The inquiry, if approved, would be the first of its kind since 2006.
"We need to get to the bottom of this," Ridley-Thomas said. "To have a county that has a stain on its image, to have children dying under these circumstances, is very, very difficult to bear.... The public has a right to have confidence that we are taking care of these matters competently."
The Times had previously reported that 14 children who had been evaluated by the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services died last year. Some of those deaths involved breakdowns in the system in which some agencies knew about potential abuse but had failed to share the information with other agencies. In other cases, investigators found that poor decisions by social workers had contributed to the deaths.
The county Board of Supervisors has repeatedly been warned by auditors and other experts that the child welfare system lacks efficient ways to share information about risks faced by children. After the reports in The Times, the board last month voted to approve a new effort to ensure that agencies share information.
--Hector Becerra and Garrett Therolf
For full times coverage see: South L.A. boy died after previous reports of abuse
Photos: Top: Dae'von Bailey was found beaten to death in his South L.A. home. “He smiled when he would see me,” a neighbor said (Los Angeles Times). Bottom: Stuffed animals and votive candles sit at the front door of the house where Dae’von Bailey died (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times).
Jorge Hernandez, a 30-year-old Latino, was shot several times and died on July 19. He was shot in the 10600 block of Wilmington Avenue in Watts, according to the Los Angeles County coroner's office.
-- Anthony Pesce
Luis Hernandez, a 68-year-old white man, was shot several times July 4 in the 1000 block of West 20th Street in Historic South-Central. He died July 7 at the hospital, according to the Los Angeles County coroner's office.
Craig Harvey, a spokesman for the coroner's office, said Hernandez was sitting in a car when someone drove up, got out of the car and fired several shots. The shooting took place at 3:50 p.m. July 4 and Hernandez was pronounced dead at 8:35 a.m. on July 7, Harvey said.
Arturo Alvarez, a 34-year-old Latino, was shot and died on July 7. His body was discovered in the 700 block of West 56th Street in Vermont-Slauson, according to the Los Angeles County coroner's office.
Craig Harvey, a spokesman for the coroner's office, said Alvarez's was found in the trunk of a car after police pursued and eventually stopped the vehicle. Alvarez had been kidnapped earlier that day and was pronounced dead at 1:30 a.m., Harvey said.
Christobal Perez, a 23-year-old Latino, was shot several times and died on July 9. He was shot in the 2800 block of South Central Avenue in Historic South-Central, according to the Los Angeles County coroner's office.
Perez was standing in front of a phone booth when an unidentified person approached and shot him several times, said Craig Harvey, a spokesman for the coroner's office. He was shot at 9:30 p.m. July 8 and taken to a hospital, where he died at 12:14 a.m. July 9, Harvey said.
Dennis Rodgers, a 19-year-old black man, was shot in the chest and died on July 8 in the 3700 block of South Normandie Avenue in Exposition Park, according to the Los Angeles County coroner's office.
Rodgers was sitting on a car outside his home when three people drove up and opened fire, KTLA Los Angeles reported. He was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
KTLA also reported that Rodgers' father was shot on the same day 20 years earlier.
Read the full KTLA account: Father and Son Gunned Down 20 Years Apart
Lindval Baptist, a 28-year-old black man, was bludgeoned to death with a hammer on July 11 in the 3100 block of 6th Avenue in Jefferson Park, the Los Angeles County coroner's office said.
According to the Los Angeles Police Department, one of Baptist's relatives found him in his home lying in a pool of blood. The relative called 911 and Baptist was pronounced dead at the scene.
The LAPD arrested Brian Wright, 54.
Anyone who has information is asked to call LAPD Southwest Division homicide detectives at 213-485-1383.
Jeffrey German, a 31-year-old black man, was shot in the chest and died on July 1 at 6:24 a.m. in the 700 block of East 25th Street in Historic South-Central, according to the Los Angeles County coroner's office.
German was found shot in the street and was taken to a hospital, where he died, said Ed Winter, a spokesman for the coroner's office.
Jessie Jackson, an 18-year-old black man, was shot about 9:40 a.m. on June 25 in 1700 block of West 55th Street in Harvard Park. He died at 6 p.m. June 26, according to the Los Angeles County coroner's office.
No other information was immediately available.
Steve Moore, a 39-year-old black man, was stabbed in the chest in the 4700 block of South Hooper Avenue in Central-Alameda at 1:51 p.m. on Tuesday, June 2. He died in the hospital the same day at 2:25 p.m., according to the Los Angeles County coroner's office.
John Jordan, a 54-year-old black man, has been charged in Moore's death as well as "assault by means likely to produce great bodily injury," according to the Los Angeles County district attorney's office.
Moore and Jordan allegedly got into an argument which escalated from the men exchanging blows to the stabbing, officials said.
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