Marcos España was 45 years old when he was found dead on Tuesday, January 23, 2018, near the northbound off-ramp from the 101 Freeway to Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood. According to the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner-Coroner, he died after sustaining blunt force trauma. His death was ruled a homicide, and it is listed as a Los Angeles Police Department West Bureau Homicide case.
According to police and coroner's records reported by the Los Angeles Times, España was discovered face down at about 7:30 a.m. by a contractor clearing brush for the California Department of Transportation. He had blunt head trauma and was pronounced dead at the scene at 8:16 a.m. "It's unclear whether España was staying in the area or just passing through," said Los Angeles Police Det. John Lamberti. Police said they were looking for any witnesses.
His sister, Helen Parker, told The Times that her brother grew up in Westlake and was one of eight children. He had worked as a pharmacy technician before he began living on the streets. España "made sure to keep in touch with family," especially his mother, by using pay phones in the areas he frequented.
Parker remembered once picking him up from the same area where he was later killed. He told her then that he had gotten into a disagreement with another person and was glad his family was around. He sometimes told relatives that he was bullied on the streets, but he tried not to make them worry. After his death, Parker wondered whether her brother was killed because he was gay, or simply because he was homeless. When she asked him about the way he lived, he once told her, "Just let me be a bird; let me be free."
A Facebook post about the discovery of his body included a comment that named him and said his family was asking for prayers that the LAPD would find the person responsible. The comment also said his head had been smashed while he slept, a detail that police did not publicly confirm.
Hollywood is one of the best-known neighborhoods in Los Angeles, home to the Walk of Fame, historic theaters and studios, but it also has one of the city's largest unhoused populations. The 101 Freeway cuts through the neighborhood, and the brushy embankments beside its ramps are places where people without homes sometimes sleep, out of sight of the street. Westlake, where España grew up, lies a few miles to the southeast, around MacArthur Park.
Los Angeles recorded about 260 homicides a year in 2018 and 2019, among the lowest yearly totals in more than half a century, yet many of those killings still went unsolved.
No arrest, criminal charge or court case connected to the death of Marcos España could be found in news archives or public records. More than seven years later, there is no public sign that anyone has been held responsible. Anyone who knew him from the streets of Hollywood, who saw him near the Sunset Boulevard off-ramp, or who heard talk of a fight there in January 2018 may hold information that could help detectives. 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 call the Los Angeles Police Department at 877-527-3247 or leave an anonymous tip with Crime Stoppers at 800-222-TIPS.
