Thomas Cochran was 20 when he was killed in Oakland on October 23, 2012, one of roughly 100 homicide victims that year in a city then enduring one of its deadliest recent periods. His death took place amid a long-running pattern of concentrated violence in about 100 blocks of East and West Oakland, where shootings and homicides disproportionately affected young men of color.

The case sits against broader problems cited at the time: strained community–police relations, under-resourced prevention programs, and low homicide clearance rates as investigators faced heavy caseloads and limited cooperation from residents. Those combined challenges left families such as Cochran’s struggling to get answers or a sense of justice.

If anyone knew Thomas, his routines, or what happened in Oakland on or around October 23, 2012, please share information that might help solve this homicide.