The Homicide Report

A story for every victim

The Homicide Report

Richard Chavez, 33

April 26, 2010, 4:55 p.m.

Richard Chavez, a 33-year-old Latino, was shot and killed Sunday, April 25, in the 600 block of West Romulo Street in Cypress Park, according to Los Angeles County coroner's records.

Ed Winter, spokesman for the coroner's office, said Chavez and another person were standing outdoors about 1 a.m. when someone fired at them from a vehicle that was driving by. Both Chavez and the other individual were wounded in the shooting.

Chavez was taken to County-USC Medical Center where he died at 4:03 a.m., according to coroner's records.

The other victim was taken to Huntington Memorial and later released from the hospital, said Det. P.J. Morris, who works in the LAPD's Northeast division.

Investigators do not have any leads on the shooter or a description of the vehicle involved, Morris said.

Anyone with information about the incident is asked to contact Northeast Homicide Dets. L. Burcher or L. Lenchuck at (213) 847-9998. Police said tipsters who wish to remain anonymous can call Crimestoppers at (800) 222-TIPS.

-- Sarah Ardalani

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71 reader comments

People, people! What's this all about here!? Here is what Syscom's entire entry was: "Alicia chavez, can you provide more information on the circumstances of your brothers murder?" That's all of it. What in the heck has you guys all jacked up about that? It seems like a perfectly reasonable and sensible thing to ask and I don't see the slightest disrespect in it. Yet some of you jump down his throat calling him racist (CALI) and all these horrible accusations. What in the world is up with you? Man that's some kind of chip on the shoulder you got. Now as far as the whole shaved head tattoo thing goes, may I suggest that if you're not a gang banger, perhaps you might live longer if you quit trying to look like one. Just pass on the shaved head, the tattoos on you neck, the baggy pants on the ground etc. And one more thing, I recommend you go inside and stay inside once the animals come out. It's a lot safer and then we won't have to read about another latino with shaved head and tattoos out at 1 in the morning who gets killed in a case of mistaken gang affiliation.

— Citizenjohn Aug. 4, 2010 at 12:13 p.m.

check this out because individuals who pass on from gun shootings does not mean your in a gang .all it takes is to have a shaved head driving down the wrong block and there you go some dsfunctional little individual trying to prove a point to a crowd that they are tuff and there tou go someone loved one would be gone over a mistake .to bad this life has nothing but violence all around you .so before anyone has something to say i dont care because no matter how classy or getto you are the time comes for everyone .all we need is to focus more on education god and love the ones who love you .what makes me sick is here you have these people who want to act like there life is perfect when they need to look in the mirror and realize that nobody lives forever ,people pass on all the time and in this situation a innocent person life was taken by a person who is trash .well enough said on my behalf it pisses me off when certain people think they can talk about things that they know nothing about so to the ones who believe that good luck and let tme know what world your living in

— angie May 10, 2010 at 12:07 p.m.

To my best friend and family i want to say that i undersatand the loss of your brother .and my heart is with you and the family for ever .fyi to all the nasty comments i just read on behalf of this hard time that my friend and her family are going through i dont appreciate that .first of why i dont is because look around you everyone is stereo typed in this world and you dont need to be in a gang to be mistaken for someone else also look around you it does not matter were you live everone has there time in life to go ,ricky is with the angels now and who ever has done this will pay the price the way god will handle it .so please whoever has nothing nice to say just keep quiet because you dont know when your time is in life ..just be thankful you can make it to the next day I love you alicia you are my best friend forever .god bless the chavez family

— angie May 10, 2010 at 11:55 a.m.

It is a shame that people like syscom are so igorant. It is people like you that allow racial biases and generalizations of minorities to live on. Not every Mexican who is bald, full of tattoos, etc., is a gangster. There is such a term as innocent bystander and thats what he was. Richard Chavez was a loving father and husband who was not in a gang. Unfortuantely your ignorance will never go away but learn to have compassion as a human being. The title of this blog is "Share a Memory of Richard Chavez" and not "Post ignorant comments." This family has lost a loved one...kids have lost their father...respect that. If you want more information on this homicide, go down to the Northeast Police Station and inquire...dont ask through a blog. I work in conjunction with police and they are human and do make mistakes. Their classification of this homicide was truly a mistake. The pieces will fall into place once a thorough investigation is conducted. To the family, my heart goes out to you...I know what it feels to lose someone to senseless violence on our streets.

— B.C. May 7, 2010 at 12:43 p.m.

@ Paul619, I am humbled by knowing my comments triggered some thinking threw for Syscom. W/ respect to him/her I try to identify from his/her point of view although often times I do not agree.

Secondly, I really don't take the criticizms from those outside of our grief stricken communities to heart so much. Especially when they offer more "rhetoric" then "action". People who tend to sympathize w/ certain things usually do because they too have encountered or experienced a situation relative to the issue. I think it can be beneficial to experience certain things because it brings about humility and an understanding a "broad understanding" of what takes place socially, economically & fundamentally. We can't be one track minded when it comes to these types of things. We cant expect everyone to grasp it either though Paul619. Thats what is so unfortunate.

— CJ May 5, 2010 at 10:12 a.m.

Jason Patron, this is a political forum. Thats why people like me like it so much.

As for being called a "rightwingers"; that's a mighty big assumption you make. You know nothing about the people you criticize, and react in name calling as if you know you have lost the debate and dont know how to react.

Tell you what Mr. Patron; where would you rather live - a boring conservative neighborhood where the leading cause of death is old age. Or to live in a liberal dominated neighborhood where murder and violence is the norm.

Its quite obvious that the deceased was a gangster or had some association with them that put himself into harms way. Many people have said how wonderful and loving he was. Yet they also deflect talking about the root cause of his death. As if they think that remaining silent about it would make it all right.

Sorry, but the first part of healing is to tell the truth about him and ask for forgiveness from the public.

— syscom3 May 2, 2010 at 10:54 p.m.

@ syscom, I can understand your view from where you can see things. But I think there a bit impartial. From where you sit, I can also understand why. Know though that the intricate issues often times go deeper then what you can see. I think in another blog I mentioned there is some ignorance (meaning lack of knowing) on the part of the communitys and even those like yourself who view the issues within these types of communitys from somewhere else. True, politicians should be held accountable, people especially that live there should also be held accountable. Those w/ opinions like yourself also should be held accountable. Do you recognize that the revenue generated for a community is brought by that community? Where you have a oppressed community that lacks revenue because of lack of jobs, lack of businesses to employ them creates a havoc in itself. The government only provides so much to each state and it is split between the different citys within that state. Your tax dollars generally go majority to your community,, especially when you buy from specific stores etc.. that stays there. It does not go to South Central. Syscom there are so many things to touch on when it comes to these types of issues and it goes well beyond politics. When I asked you if you had suggestions I meant moreso OUTSIDE of these HR blogs? By it affecting you so much as it does all of us, what are you willing to do for our community other then attacking the slain on these blogs? Ok, suggesting a arena to discuss these issues is wonderful but also,, what ideas do you have that you can volunteer yourself away from your computer screen in the community that has the misfortunes your does not have? Do you care that much? Perhaps you can motivate the community by educating them on the importance of studying political candidates and voting. Are you willing to create a arena outside of these blogs? If so, I commend you. If not, I question your motives. I must say though.. the way to change does not include negative thoughts displayed on blogs like this were famliys of lost loved ones can read. And also were people who happen to live in these types of communitys can also read the criticisms. It creates more anger... there is a better approach. -CJ

— CJ April 29, 2010 at 8:42 a.m.

I wanted to address the complaint by A that this post contained only one sentence. The Homicide Report is able to provide at least basic information in each homicide based on the coroner's reports we get weekly. By publishing that information as soon as it is made available to us we create a page for each homicide victim where readers can post comments and share information. After that a reporter works to get additional details about the cases and we publish those as they are ready. In this case a more complete post had been published on Mr. Chavez even prior to A's comment being approved this morning, another task that is done by editors and reporters at this paper. As frequent readers of this report know, in late 2008 this effort -- which began as a blog in January 2007 -- was put on hiatus for months due in large part to staffing issues. Ultimately, The Times chose to continue and improve the report, which is now a searchable map and database as well as a blog. We appreciate readers patience as we do our best to report each case.

— Megan Garvey/Los Angeles Times April 29, 2010 at 8:36 a.m.

I did not know Richard Chavez personally; but my deepest condolences go out to the family for your loss. Unfortunately, I live a few houses down from where the senseless murder happen and I am disgusted at some of these post, as for syscom3 you are a waste of time, I agree with jag. I'm not going to give any details about what happen? For what? you have already judged our dearly departed because of his ethnicity and demographic, just rest assure that not all of us are gang members, however, we are all victims of their senseless acts of violence and this was to close to home, and because of narrow minded people like some individuals on this blog an innocent life was lost, it shouldn't have taken 45 minutes for the police and ambulance to arrive but it did because of where we live, so there you go syscom3 and followers you can rest assure that "our" tax money isn't being used for the proper resources in our neighborhood. So why don't you go whine and complain about how "your" tax dollars are being spent to the true criminals, you present yourself to be educated I'm sure you know whom I'm referring to....
I can't even fathom the pain the family must be going through, I am truly sorry for your loss and I hope your family gets justice and peace of mind.... it’s well deserved.

— L.C. April 28, 2010 at 6:11 p.m.

CJ, Over the past couple of years, I've asked some of the various editors of this blog to make it a forum where we can debate all the aspects of homicides and the social pathologies that seem to incubate in the gang ridden dysfunctional cities and neighborhoods.

But, that takes resources and time, and its up to the LA Times to see if it can be accommodated by their newspaper.

One thing I constantly point out, is for people to stop reelecting do nothing politicians if they cannot solve problems. What do the people in these neighborhoods do every election cycle? Complain about schools and then reelect the same school board members. Complain about jobs and then reelect the same politicians who run business out of state or the country. Complain about crime and then reelect the same politicians who belong to the ACLU. Complain about deteriorating public services and then reelect the same politicians who encourage illegal aliens to come here and have children.

And you're right about one thing; I am on the outside looking in. And my life (neighborhood) is normal, uneventful and violence is quite rare. That is normality. And hopefully, one day the law abiding people in these gang plagued killing fields will also enjoy something like it.

— syscom3 April 28, 2010 at 5:58 p.m.

While I do not condone Syscom's actions, I can understand both sides. Ideally, when it comes to a loved one,, regardless of the specific choices he/she may make in their lives; they are still LOVED by their family and friends. The politics involved really does not matter more then the lesson involved. What can WE learn by this? How can WE whether family, friend or Blog contributor learn from this tragedy? What can I do better to inhance a better outcome for these types of situations? True, by the decesed being blogged under the HR makes the incident more public to people outside of those who knew him personally. Realistically it would be hurtful for one grieving to read posted assumptions.. theorys and be questioned about someone that they Loved. I noticed alot of people ASSUMED SamDooby was affiliated. But if you read his comment thoroughly he never implicates affiliation. I understand his fury. There truly is a time and place for everything... that is even biblical. I think that the majority of critics likes Syscom usually dont reside in the citys that such violence takes place. He/She are on the outside looking in. Perhaps have had some involvement but at the most mediocre. Tragedys such as these cant be analyzed at the surface... it goes deeper. To bash that person in the presence of those that love them insights more anger in an instance where enough negativity has already occurred. The truth can be told in other manners and in different ways w/o implicating the bad decisions the person has made in his or her life.

— CJ April 28, 2010 at 3:01 p.m.

Like I said, there is a time and place for everything. Syscom, Just Sayn, and whoever else that feels its the 1st amendment right or public tax-paying right or whatever, these clowns have no clue about timing and respect. There is no need to badger or question the family when they are grieving. If these busy-body nobodies really were interested in cleaning up the streets and helping, then they would join the police force. But as it stands, its easy to be a coward and sit-back behind a computer and be an arm-chair bandit. Let these clowns fish and disrespect. What comes around goes around and these clowns will get theirs Guarantee....

My final words are to the Chavez familia. Although I did not know your loved one, may he rest in peace...

— Samdooby April 28, 2010 at 2:45 p.m.

Samdooby,

Have you looked at the homicide statistics?,and the average age of homicide victims?, Do you care?, Well, we do!!, so until these cowardly gang-bangers stop killing our families, and friends, then you wouldn't have to worry about bad things been said about gangsters like yourself. Are you getting sensitive on us?, because the playing field is leveled on HR blog, so the only weapon you have here is your brain, so use it constructively. Is that brain getting a beat down, or what? That same rage, and energy you use to defend a gangster is the same rage, energy and anger we use to bash these cowardly gangsters, that couldn't stand on their own two feet to fight a fight on their own without a weapon if they were taken out of their so called 'Hood'. Gang-bangers terrorize our communities daily, so why can't we say something about it, maybe if more of you gangsters would get more of your 'Homies' to do more productive things with their lives, instead of killing innocent people, then we wouldn't have anything to say about them, and the terror, and heartaches they give us, then we wouldn't need the "Homicide Report", because we wouldn't have all of these senseless killings taking our youth, Right? Which would be fine by me if innocent lives were saved...

— Just Say'n April 28, 2010 at 9:43 a.m.

And who are all the side-liners that ride Syscoms tail coming to his defense? You guys look pathetic and lame. There is a time and place for everything and Syscom is more interested in making assumptions and accusations than anything else. Sine when is it okay for people on HR to become the judge, jury, and executioner? If someone has something coming, one day the man "upstairs" will deal with it. But for Syscoms nosey tail to be poking and prodding and making accusations, that doesnʻt fly. You say he speaks truth? Truth? Hardly! The only thing "truthful" is the fact that he is LUCKY no one can set him straight! Its easy to throw stones while living in a glass house. And no I am not a gang member. I am well rounded and have friends and family from all sides of the spectrum. I donʻt put myself in a "box" or certain group. So go pound sand or kick rocks and keep that side line business outta here...

— Samdooby April 28, 2010 at 9:17 a.m.

Sheba,

There is no guaranty that there is a heaven no guaranty that there is a place our souls go to that is wonderful, I hope that there is such a place but there are no guaranties. Now with that in mind our actions here on this earth dictate our thoughts and memories of those killed or dead. What is unfortunate is that people can't be honest with themselves or each other about a life unlived. And by that I mean if someone was lucky enough to have been given a life and then this person did nothing with his/her life WHY should we then sit around a pretend that this person meant anything to anyone? Why does being dead make all the bad stuff go away? Since when does speaking the truth make the alive person wrong? I have a father who became only a sperm donor. He took off soon after my 5th birthday or right about that time. Now when he dies, I'm going to that funeral...I'm going to stand up there and testify about his life, the one that in which he left three kids. If his new family doesn't like that very much too bad...it is the truth. We take the good and the bad of each of our lives and let God sort it out. I don't think any of us are going to get a free pass just because we say we are saved especially if our actions are completely opposite of that. So we can come on this site and bash someone like Syscom and take shots and him and say nasty things to him...he is a big boy and certainly does not need me to defend him but to all those that don't want anyting bad said about your loved ones and friends...what gives each of you the right to "promise" to say bad things about him when he is dead? Should the same offer of don't speak badly about the dead extend to syscom? Or is that statement some how only "saved" for the truly bad?

— JSP April 27, 2010 at 11:05 p.m.