On September 14, 2016 the body of 59-year-old Bruce Bernard Johnson was discovered in an alley near Normandie and Slauson Avenues in Los Angeles. According to official records, firefighters responded and the victim was pronounced dead at the scene at approximately 6:55 a.m. An autopsy found Mr. Johnson had been badly beaten — sustaining broken ribs and a fractured jaw — and showed signs of strangulation.
Bruce Bernard Johnson was a 59-year-old Black man whose death was investigated by Los Angeles Police Department detectives from the 77th Division. Investigators believe Johnson was likely killed at a different location and his body was dumped in the alley where he was found. The brief public records and homicide-archive entry list cause of death as strangulation and identify the case as a LAPD 77th Division homicide investigation; no further biographical details about his life or family were published in the sources located.
The Los Angeles City Council considered and moved to authorize a reward to encourage public tips: a motion filed February 7, 2017 proposed a $50,000 reward for information leading to identification, arrest and conviction of the person responsible. The motion notes detectives had not identified suspects at that time. There are no public records located in the reviewed sources indicating any subsequent arrest, charge or closure of the case.
As of the latest public records found, the case remains unsolved with no arrests reported. Anyone with information should contact the Los Angeles Police Department, 77th Division, or the City Clerk's office regarding the reward notice referenced in the council motion.
