Charles Bonner was 46 years old when he died on Sunday, Jan. 13, 2008, in South Los Angeles. According to the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner-Coroner, he died of stab wounds near South Main and West 53rd streets, in the South Park neighborhood. His death was ruled a homicide, and it is listed as a Los Angeles Police Department Newton Division case.
The Los Angeles Times Homicide Report said that Bonner, "a 46-year-old black man, was stabbed in an alley between 52nd Place and 53rd Street off Main Street in South Los Angeles about 8 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 13. He died at the scene." It said that "Newton Division's homicide bureau is investigating." No longer article followed.
A memorial listing at Rose Hills Memorial Park and Mortuary in Whittier records a Charles Antoine Bonner who was born on May 23, 1961, and died on Jan. 13, 2008. The date of death and the age match this case, and the listing is very likely his.
It gives no other details about his life, his work or the people he left behind.
Charles Bonner is also a fairly common name. It is shared by a well-known civil rights attorney, a former student activist from Alabama, a Kansas fossil collector and many men whose obituaries appear in other states, none of whom has any connection to this death.
The record does not say why he was in the alley that Sunday evening, whether he lived nearby, or whether he was stabbed during an argument, a robbery or an attack by someone he knew. It does not say who found him or called for help, whether anyone saw what happened, or whether detectives ever identified a suspect. An alley off a busy street at 8 p.m. is a place where people pass by, which suggests that someone may have seen or heard part of what happened, but no witness account has been made public.
South Park is a neighborhood in South Los Angeles, east of the Harbor Freeway, with Main Street running north and south through it. Its blocks hold a mix of small homes, apartment buildings, churches and shops, with alleys running behind many of the lots. Many families there have lived in the area for generations.
Homicides in Los Angeles fell steeply in the late 2000s and early 2010s, yet many killings from those years were never solved.
No arrest, criminal charge or court case connected to the death of Charles Bonner 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 knew Charles Bonner, who was near Main Street between 52nd Place and 53rd Street on the evening of Jan. 13, 2008, or who heard later talk about what happened in that alley, 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 (877-LAPD-24-7), or leave an anonymous tip with Crime Stoppers at 800-222-TIPS (8477).
