Aaron David Whatley was 43 years old when he died on Thursday, December 8, 2016, in Long Beach. According to the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner-Coroner, he died of stab wounds in the 4900 block of Ferro Court. His death was ruled a homicide, and it is listed as a Long Beach Police Department case.
The Los Angeles Times Homicide Report said that "about 6:30 a.m., Long Beach police were called about a stabbing." Officers "found Whatley, who had been stabbed in the chest." He was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 9:04 a.m., according to coroner's records. The Long Beach Press-Telegram, which identified him as a Long Beach resident, reported that the street lay near East Los Coyotes Diagonal, and the Long Beach Post described the spot as being near the Traffic Circle.
The most striking detail in the early reports concerned the person believed to have stabbed him.
Police said in a news release that "the subject who was responsible for the stabbing, also a male adult, remained at the scene and has been detained by officers while they conducted their investigation." The Press-Telegram added that police had made no arrests and that "the relationship between the two hasn't been determined." The Times later reported that the man "was detained, but police released him pending further investigation," and that "no arrests have been made."
Whatley's friends appear to have rallied quickly. A GoFundMe page titled "In Memory of Aaron Whatley" was created on December 10, 2016, two days after his death, and it raised $4,160 toward a $7,000 goal from 47 donations. The page's timing makes it very likely that it was set up for him, though the saved copy does not include the organizer's own story. Beyond that, little about his life has been made public. Aaron Whatley is not a rare name, and searches turn up other men who share it in Kansas, North Carolina and elsewhere, none of whom can be connected to this death.
The record does not say what led to the stabbing, whether the two men knew each other, why the man was released or whether prosecutors ever reviewed the case. Because he waited for police instead of fleeing, he may have given his own account of events, but that account has never been released.
Ferro Court is a short residential street in east Long Beach, not far from the Traffic Circle, the large roundabout where Pacific Coast Highway, Lakewood Boulevard and Los Coyotes Diagonal meet. The surrounding area is a mix of apartments, houses, shopping centers and busy commuter roads.
Hundreds of people are killed in Los Angeles County every year, and a large share of those killings end without an arrest.
No arrest, criminal charge or court case connected to the death of Aaron David Whatley could be found in news archives or public records. More than nine years later, there is no public sign that anyone has been held responsible. Anyone who was near Ferro Court early on the morning of December 8, 2016, or who knew Aaron Whatley and the people in his life at that time, 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. The Long Beach Post said homicide detectives Shea Robertson and Oscar Valenzuela could be reached at 570-7244. Anyone with information can contact the Long Beach Police Department's Homicide Detail at 562-570-7244, or leave an anonymous tip with Crime Stoppers at 800-222-TIPS.
