Ricardo Cortez was 40 years old when he died on Friday, May 9, 2008, after he was stabbed in Bell Gardens, in the southeast area of Los Angeles County. According to the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner-Coroner, he died of stab wounds at 7715 Eastern Ave. His death was ruled a homicide, and it is listed as a case of the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department.
The Los Angeles Times Homicide Report said that Cortez "was stabbed in the 7715 Eastern Ave. in Bell Gardens about 3:45 p.m." that Friday, and that he "was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead." Bell Gardens police officers were the first to arrive, and sheriff's homicide detectives took over the investigation.
Sheriff's officials gave an account of how the fight began. They said a 15-year-old girl had been walking on Eastern Avenue when a man made what they called "sexual advances." According to the report, "the girl ran home and told her family."
Officials said Cortez was then "confronted by the father and son of a teenage girl who told them that he had allegedly accosted her," and that "a fight ensued, during which Cortez was stabbed." The report added that "it was unclear how the father and son identified Cortez as the one who accosted the girl." That accusation was never tested, because Cortez died.
Deputy Luis Castro said "no arrests were made because investigators had not determined who stabbed Cortez." No later report says whether that question was ever answered, or whether the case was presented to prosecutors.
An obituary posted by Risher Mortuary appears to describe him. It said that Ricardo Cortez was born on Sept. 5, 1966, in Mexico and died on May 9, 2008, in Lynwood, which suggests that he died at a hospital there. The obituary gives his age as 41, one year older than the age in the coroner's report. It said he was survived by his mother, two sisters and a brother, most of them living in Bell and Bell Gardens, and by his father in Mexico. A visitation was held at the Risher Montebello Mortuary chapel on May 18, 2008, and he was buried the next day at Evergreen Cemetery in Boyle Heights.
Bell Gardens is a small, densely settled city southeast of downtown Los Angeles, part of the chain of working-class communities sometimes called the Gateway Cities. It is best known for the Bicycle Hotel and Casino. Eastern Avenue is one of its main north and south streets, lined with homes, apartments and small businesses.
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 Ricardo Cortez could be found in news archives or public records. More than 17 years later, there is no public sign that anyone has been held responsible. Anyone who was on Eastern Avenue in Bell Gardens on the afternoon of May 9, 2008, who saw the fight, or who knows who held the knife, may hold information that could help detectives settle what happened. 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 (8477).
