Gary Burks, 43

July 9, 2012

Gary Burks, a 43-year-old black man, died Monday, July 9, in the 5700 block of Santa Monica Boulevard in Hollywood, according to Los Angeles County coroner's records.

Officers responded to a call at an apartment building about 4:30 p.m., according to an LAPD news release.

When authorities arrived, they discovered Burks in his apartment with a gunshot wound to the head. Paramedics were called and the victim was pronounced dead at the scene, officials said.

Investigators said there was neither a motive for the shooting nor a description of the shooter at this time.

Anyone with information about the fatal shooting is asked to contact West Bureau homicide detectives at (213) 382-9470. Those wishing to remain anonymous can call Crime Stoppers at (800) 222-8477.

-- Los Angeles Times

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16 reader comments

This is a terrible, horrible loss of a wonderful, kind, amazing human being. What a horrible, stupid waste.

Gary, who I knew as Crow, was one of the most unique and interesting people I have ever known. He was smart. No, in his way Crow was brilliant. He was smarter than most of the attorneys and judges who are my colleagues or the university professors who were once my colleagues. … Because Crow had this absolutely intuitive and profound understanding of human beings, how they worked, their motives, their foibles, their secrets and their lies. He had a startling command of nuance and poetry in the English language. He was profoundly interested in everything, highly analytical, incisive, intuitive, but always with wit, charm, and humor.

He grew up in very mean streets. He learned early about surviving. He made his mistakes. His life could have made him cruel, but it didn’t. With all his gifts, his intelligence, his charm, his profound sweetness, I really thought he would make it.

Had he been born in a different place, or a different time, Crow would have been an immensely successful psychotherapist, a celebrated radio personality, the genius behind a successful presidential candidate, a personal success coach, a famous songwriter. I always thought he should have his political commentary in the newspaper or his own radio talk show or advice column. Because he was just so scary right on when it came to understanding people and how society works. He was fascinating to talk to, with a hungry and incisive mind that cut so easily to the heart of things. And he had the heart of a poet, and a facility with the language I have never encountered in anyone else. Sometimes he just spoke in poetry.

From what I heard, Crow had his life together. Maybe it was mistaken identity, maybe it was someone with old, imagined grievances that amounted to nothing but murder and loss. What a colossal, terrible wrong.

I lost touch with Crow a number of years ago but kept up with him a bit through mutual friends. I hope he achieved the things in his life he set out to do. I hope that his death was not for nothing. I hope that whoever did this to him is caught and punished. I hope he knew that he was loved. He will not be forgotten.

— A Larkin July 30, 2012 at 12:03 a.m.