Man sentenced to prison for shooting death of Long Beach passerby

A man was sentenced Feb. 21 to 50 years to life in prison for shooting a passerby in 2015, according to the Los Angeles County district attorney’s office. 

On Nov. 15, 2017, Jorge Luis Rodriguez Cruz, 28, was found guilty of first-degree murder in the killing of Douglas Jerome Wilson, 37. Jurors also found true a special allegation that he used a handgun to commit the crime. 

On the morning of June 22, 2015, Cruz was making a commotion in a Long Beach alleyway when two women confronted him. At some point during the exchange, Cruz shouted at Wilson as he walked by, prosecutors said. 

Cruz continued to antagonize Wilson until a fight almost began, but the two women separated them, prosecutors added. Cruz then pulled out a gun and shot Wilson, who died at the scene, according to coroner’s records.

More than two months after the killing, Long Beach police pulled over a car, and the officer recognized Cruz in the passenger seat. Cruz jumped out of the vehicle and ran, according to a department news release, but officers tracked him down, and he was arrested in connection with the shooting. 

Contact the Homicide Report. Follow @jeromercampbell and @latimeshomicide on Twitter.