Thomas John Patchett was 48 years old when he died on Wednesday, June 6, 2001, in the Hollywood Hills. According to the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner-Coroner, he died after sustaining blunt force trauma at 2111 North Cahuenga Blvd. His death was ruled a homicide, and it is listed as an LAPD Hollywood Division case.
More is known about the circumstances of his death than in many cases from that year, because the Los Angeles Police Department issued a press release the next day. According to the LAPD, officers from the Hollywood Area station responded at about 8:40 a.m. on June 6 to a radio call of a "death investigation" on the 2100 block of Cahuenga Boulevard. The department said "the location is a board and care facility administering to the mentally ill." The manager of the facility had discovered his body inside one of the rooms, and Los Angeles Fire Department personnel pronounced him dead at the scene.
The LAPD said that "witnesses reported hearing sounds of a struggle in the early morning hours." The release identified him as Thomas Patchett, "a resident at that location," and gave his age as 49, one year older than the age in coroner's records. At that time, the department said, "the motive is unknown and the cause of death is pending an autopsy."
Detectives said they were looking for the man who shared his room, describing the roommate as "believed to be the last person to see the victim alive" and saying they "would like to question him." The release did not call the roommate a suspect, and no record could be found that he was ever located, arrested or charged. For that reason he is not named here. Hollywood Division homicide detectives handled the investigation and asked anyone with information to call them at 213-485-6410.
Beyond that release, almost nothing about Thomas Patchett has been made public. No obituary, memorial page or family fundraiser could be found. A public records listing shows a Thomas John Patchett born in October 1952, which would fit his age, but it says nothing about his life. The fact that he lived in a board and care home suggests he may have been receiving care or support at the time, though the record does not say why.
Cahuenga Boulevard winds through the hills north of central Hollywood, following the route of the Cahuenga Pass, the historic gap that links Hollywood with the San Fernando Valley.
Homicides in Los Angeles rose sharply in the early 2000s, climbing past 600 in 2002, and detectives carried heavy caseloads. Many killings from those years were never solved.
No arrest, criminal charge or court case connected to the death of Thomas John Patchett could be found in news archives or public records. More than 24 years later, there is no public sign that anyone has been held responsible. Someone who was in or around the board and care home on Cahuenga Boulevard in June 2001 may still remember something about what happened, or about who was with Thomas in his final days. 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.
