19 killings occurred last week in Los Angeles County

Coroner's officials reported 19 killings in Los Angeles County between Feb. 7 and Sunday night, bringing the year-to-date total to 82, according to data collected for The Times' Homicide Report database. During the same time period last year, 12 people were killed, one more than in 2009.

The county saw two double homicides last week and one quadruple killing.

On the afternoon of Feb. 11, police responded to a report that a woman in a Whittier home had been shot. Believing the assailant was still inside, police did not enter right away and called the SWAT team. Authorities later found the bodies of two men and a woman inside: Raul Escobedo, 67, his wife, Debra Escobedo, 60, and their son, Mario, 31. Coroner's officials said Mario committed suicide with a gunshot wound to the head, while Debra and Raul Escobedo’s deaths were deemed homicides. Records show that they were both shot in the chest and head.

Later that day, brothers Anthony, 24, Angel, 25, and Luis Jimenez, 26 were with their cousin Martin Haro, 25, in a Willowbrook backyard when they were all shot, Los Angeles County sheriff's officials said.

Anthony Jimenez was the only shooting victim not pronounced dead at the scene. He was taken to St. Francis Medical Center, where he died a short time later.

Lt. Don Slawson said the incident is believed to be gang-related. Two men were seen fleeing the area in a black sport utility vehicle after the shooting, but it was unknown whether the vehicle was related to the killings.

Two days later, Diego Garcia, 25, and Alfonso Nava, 26, were fatally shot in Exposition Park.

The men had returned from a party and were shot in a friend's frontyard. Nava was pronounced dead at the scene, while Garcia was taken to a hospital, where he died about 35 minutes later.

"We suspect [the shooting] is gang-related," said Det. David Garrido of the Los Angeles Police Department's Southwest Division homicide unit.

The Times' Homicide Report provides an interactive map and database of all homicides in Los Angeles County reported by the coroner since Jan. 1, 2007.

-- Sarah Ardalani

Photo: Diego Garcia, left and Alfonso Nava.

Credit: Mary Slosson / For The Times

Map shows 17 of 19 homicides in L.A. County last week.

Credit: Homicide Report

Comments

[Jay]

Way to go La if we keep seeing those numbers each week we will hit a 1000 murders by 2012.

[aces928]

Snitches get stitches. LA is nothing more than a big sewer where perfectly healthy law abiding citizens are ground up like hamburger. This State could care less about it's citizens. Just look at how it genuflects for it's murderers, rapists and child molesters.

Look how in LA more innocent Americans were killed by Americans than US Soldiers in combat in the same amount of time. We really don't give a damn about the victims. The proof is how we leave no stone unturned to keep their admitted, convicted, cold blooded killers alive.

The people of LA should be congratulated. They worked hard to create the environment where people are routinely slaughtered. The body count is nothing more than a trophy to the success of their efforts. Congratulations.

[Dillpickles98]

I thank God twice a day I was able to live long enough to retire, & move not only outside of the U.S. but in particular outside L.A. I won't name the Asian country I moved to,the crime in L.A. exceeds the crime rate for the entire country of 65 million people. Schools here have no high fences, no armed police, no metal detectors, no graffiti anywhere. Any stranger would help a child across the street. I don't miss all the freedoms of L.A., free to be a crime victim, which I have been on several occasions, free to be a victim of the police who are suppose to protect you, who can't yet you cannot protect yourself, free to have your child kidnapped, molested & murdered,free to be killed by a DUI driver. I read the L.A. news just to remind myself how fortunate I am not to have to live there, & feel sorry for those who do.

[Michael]

Crips, Bloods, Sureno 13 gangs doing alot of killings.

[uncle_charlie]

LA is a cesspool of crime. Glad I do not have to live in it.

[jode]

LA WILL HIT BOTTOM AND HAVE THOUSANDS OF MURDERS IN A FEW YEARS

[Hakatau]

As you can see, the police have far more productive things to do than prosecute the War on Drugs.

Help catch a murderer; legalize cannabis.

[crazy legs]

TO LIVE AND DIE IN L.A., IT IS THE PLACE TO BE, AND YOU KNOW IT IS BECAUSE THERE IS NO OTHER CITY IN THE WORLD BETTER.

[Artemis]

why is peace so hard? why do people find it impossible to have respect for one another? why are people so ignorant and angry? how do we let our emotions rule over us? cant we evolve from the animal?

"Be the change you wish to see in the world"