Robert Curtis Fortenberry was 43 years old when he died on Thursday, February 7, 2002, in San Pedro. According to the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner-Coroner, he died after sustaining blunt force trauma on South Bonita Street in San Pedro. His death was ruled a homicide, and it is listed as a Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department case.
He was a Black man in his early 40s. Beyond his name, his age and the place where he died, almost nothing about Robert Curtis Fortenberry 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 the death. He surely had family, friends or neighbors who remember who he was, but none of that has entered the public record. Searches for his name turned up only other men who share it, most of them in Mississippi and Louisiana, in other years.
Because so little has been released, even the basic circumstances remain unknown to the public. The record does not say whether he was beaten in a fight, attacked by a stranger, assaulted indoors or on the street, or struck by a vehicle, all of which can lead to a finding of blunt force trauma. It does not say what time of day he was hurt, whether he died at the scene or later at a hospital, whether anyone saw what happened, or whether investigators ever identified a suspect.
One detail in the record is unusual. San Pedro is part of the city of Los Angeles, and most crimes there are handled by the Los Angeles Police Department's Harbor Division. The Homicide Report nonetheless lists the Sheriff's Department as the agency on this case. The record does not explain why.
San Pedro sits at the southern tip of the city of Los Angeles, on the edge of one of the busiest port complexes in the world. For more than a century it has been a working waterfront town, home to fishermen, longshoremen and their families, with its own downtown, its own neighborhoods and a strong local identity that sets it apart from the rest of the city. Its landmarks include Point Fermin and its historic lighthouse, Cabrillo Beach, the Korean Bell of Friendship in Angels Gate Park and the battleship Iowa, which later became a museum on the waterfront. Many residents have lived there for decades, and neighbors tend to know one another.
Hundreds of people are killed in Los Angeles County every year, and a large share of those killings end without an arrest. The death of a 43-year-old man from blunt force injuries in San Pedro in early 2002 does not appear to have been reported by any news outlet, and no follow-up about the case has ever been made public.
No arrest, criminal charge or court case connected to the death of Robert Curtis Fortenberry could be found in news archives or public records. More than 23 years later, there is no public sign that anyone has been held responsible. Anyone who lived on or near South Bonita Street in San Pedro in February 2002, or who knew Robert, may hold information that could help investigators. 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 Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department Homicide Bureau at 323-890-5500, or leave an anonymous tip with Crime Stoppers at 800-222-TIPS.
