A story for every victim

Lawrence A. Bressler, 50

Larry Bressler, a 50-year-old white man, was fatally stabbed Monday, Oct. 13, in the 200 block of North Madison Avenue in Pasadena, according to Los Angeles County coroner’s records.

After being stabbed, Bressler called 911 about 6:20 a.m., said Lt. Tracy Ibarra, spokeswoman for the Pasadena Police Department. Officers and paramedics who arrived at the scene found Bressler and his wife, 64-year-old Denise Bressler, with stab wounds.

Detectives found a knife in the apartment where the stabbing took place. About a block away, police found Jacob Mallory Bersson, 29, covered in blood. Bersson, who was implicated in the 911 call, is a cousin of Larry Bressler, police said.

Police do not know a motive behind the attack.

Bersson was charged Oct. 15 with two counts of murder with a special circumstance of multiple murders and an allegation that he used a knife in the attack, according to the Los Angeles County district attorney’s office.

Prosecutors said that Bersson was living with the Bresslers. That morning, prosecutors said, Bersson forced his way into the couple’s bedroom.

Larry Bressler was an instructor at Le Cordon Bleu and the director of operations at Chefs Center, a restaurant incubator that helps launch new eateries and provides kitchen space for up-and-coming chefs.

David Katzberg, a co-worker at Chefs Center, said Bressler helped a number of companies get off the ground.

“Larry was a wonderful person and great friend who will be truly missed by the countless people he touched as a chef, teacher and music lover,” Katzberg said.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Pasadena Police Department at (626) 744-4241; anonymous tipsters may call (800) 222-8477.

-- Nicole Santa Cruz

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