Jimy Leonel Reyes Cortez was three years old when he died on Saturday, March 14, 2020, in Bell, a small city in southeast Los Angeles County. According to the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner-Coroner, he died after sustaining blunt force trauma near 4704 East Florence Avenue. His death was ruled a homicide, and it was investigated by the Bell Police Department.
Jimy was a Latino boy, recorded under both of his family names, Reyes and Cortez. Beyond his name, his age and the place where he died, nothing about him has been made public. No obituary, memorial page or family fundraiser could be found for this story, and no news outlet appears to have reported on his death. He was at an age when children are learning new words every day, and somewhere a family still mourns him.
The public record leaves almost every question unanswered. It does not say whether he was hurt at home, in a car or somewhere else, who was caring for him at the time, whether he was taken to a hospital, or how long he lived after his injuries. When the Medical Examiner rules a young child's death from blunt force trauma a homicide, it means another person's actions caused it. The record does not say who, or how.
The deaths of young children are among the hardest cases detectives handle. The only witnesses are often the adults who were present, and a child of three cannot explain what happened to him. Medical evidence can show that a child was hurt but not always who did it or when.
Bell is a city of about 33,000 people along the Los Angeles River, about seven miles southeast of downtown Los Angeles. Its residents are overwhelmingly Latino, many of them immigrant families. The city became nationally known in 2010, when it was revealed that its top officials had paid themselves enormous salaries, a scandal that led to criminal convictions and a complete turnover of city leadership. Florence Avenue is one of its main commercial streets, lined with shops, restaurants and apartment buildings, and busy with families on a Saturday.
Jimy died on March 14, 2020, just as the pandemic was arriving in Los Angeles. Schools across the county closed that week, and days later California issued its stay-at-home order. In the upheaval of those days, a little boy's death does not appear to have drawn any public attention.
No arrest, criminal charge or court case connected to the death of Jimy Leonel Reyes Cortez could be found in news archives or public records, although cases involving young children are sometimes handled quietly. As far as the public record shows, no one has been held responsible. Anyone who knew Jimy or his family may hold information that could help. Even a small detail, such as a name overheard, a vehicle seen nearby or a conversation remembered, can help detectives move a case forward. Anyone with information can contact the Bell Police Department, or leave an anonymous tip with Crime Stoppers at 800-222-TIPS.
