Dorothea Beverly Plowden was 40 years old when she died on Saturday, March 3, 2001, in Van Nuys, in the San Fernando Valley. According to the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner-Coroner, she died after sustaining blunt force trauma in front of 6103 Tyrone Ave. Her death was ruled a homicide, and it is listed as a case of the Los Angeles Police Department's Van Nuys Division.
The Los Angeles Times Homicide Report recorded her death in a single sentence drawn from coroner's records. It described her as "a 40-year-old black female" who "died Saturday, March 3, after sustaining blunt force trauma in Van Nuys." The record placed her in front of the address, which suggests she was found outdoors, on the street or sidewalk, but it did not say how she was hurt or whether detectives had identified anyone responsible. No follow-up news story appears to have been published.
Very little else about her life has entered the public record. A people-search listing ties the full name Dorothea Beverly Plowden to Van Nuys, Valley Village and Los Angeles, which suggests she had lived in the area for some time, but it gives nothing about her life. No obituary, memorial page or family fundraiser could be found, and no news outlet appears to have reported on her death. She surely had family, friends or neighbors who remember who she was, but none of that has been made public.
Her name is uncommon. Searches for it are crowded by an English woman of the 18th century, also named Dorothea Plowden, who wrote the comic opera "Virginia" and appears in old English obituary records. Nothing connects that historical figure to the 40-year-old woman who died in Van Nuys.
Because so little has been released, even the basic circumstances remain unknown to the public. The record does not say whether she 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 she was hurt, whether she died at the scene or later at a hospital, whether anyone saw what happened, or whether investigators ever identified a suspect.
Van Nuys is one of the largest communities in the San Fernando Valley, lying in the center of the Valley in the city of Los Angeles. It serves as a civic hub for the Valley, with city and county offices and courthouses, and it is home to Van Nuys Airport, one of the busiest general aviation airports in the country. Its residential streets mix single-family homes with apartment buildings. In 2001 the area was patrolled by the LAPD's Van Nuys Division.
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 Dorothea Beverly Plowden 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. Anyone who lived on or near Tyrone Avenue in Van Nuys in March 2001, or who knew a 40-year-old woman named Dorothea or Dorothy Plowden, 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 call the Los Angeles Police Department at 877-527-3247 or leave an anonymous tip with Crime Stoppers at 800-222-TIPS.
