Miguel Moran was 41 years old when he died on Monday, May 21, 2018, in downtown Los Angeles. According to the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner-Coroner, he died of stab wounds near 500 N. Bunker Hill Ave. His death was ruled a homicide, and it is listed as a Los Angeles Police Department Central Division case.
The Los Angeles Times Homicide Report recorded him as a Latino man who "died Monday, May 21, after being stabbed near 500 N. Bunker Hill Ave. in Downtown." The entry gives no further details about what happened, and no news outlet appears to have reported on the killing.
A small trace of his life does survive online. Guerra & Gutierrez Mortuary posted an obituary page for a Miguel Moran who was born on February 18, 1977, and died on May 21, 2018. A listing of the same notice on Legacy.com describes him as "41, resident of Los Angeles, California," who "entered into eternal rest on Monday, May 21, 2018."
The name, age and date all match the man in the coroner's record, which strongly suggests it is the same person. The notice that was saved for this story does not include a life story, the names of survivors or details of services, but its existence shows that family members made arrangements for him and wanted his passing marked publicly.
Because so little else has been released, the basic circumstances of his death remain unknown to the public. The record does not say whether he was stabbed during a fight or a robbery, attacked by a stranger or by someone he knew, or hurt indoors or on the street. It does not say what time of day the attack happened, whether he died at the scene or later at a hospital, whether anyone saw what happened, or whether investigators ever identified a suspect.
Miguel Moran is also a fairly common name. Searches turn up a physician assistant in Los Angeles, a university athlete, a genetic counselor in Chicago and obituaries for other men named Miguel Moran in Texas, Pomona and Torrance, none of them connected to the man who died downtown.
Bunker Hill Avenue takes its name from Bunker Hill, the historic district on the western side of downtown Los Angeles. In the late 1800s the hill was covered with Victorian mansions, and in the second half of the 20th century it was cleared and rebuilt with office towers, apartment high-rises and cultural landmarks such as Walt Disney Concert Hall and the Museum of Contemporary Art. Downtown draws office workers, visitors and residents by day, and like much of the city's core it is also home to many people who live on the streets or in shelters.
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 Miguel Moran 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 was near Bunker Hill Avenue in downtown Los Angeles in late May 2018, who knew Miguel Moran, or who heard later talk about what happened to him, 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.
