Tomas Ramirez was 35 years old when he died on Wednesday, Sept. 19, 2007, in Lakewood. According to the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner-Coroner, he died of stab wounds at 21420 Pioneer Blvd. His death was ruled a homicide, and it is listed as a Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department case.
The Los Angeles Times Homicide Report described him as a 35-year-old Latino man who died after being stabbed in Lakewood, according to coroner's records. It added one detail about the setting: "Ramirez was in a public place at the time." The entry did not say what kind of place that was, whether it was a sidewalk, a parking lot or a business, or whether he was found there or died later at a hospital.
His case also carries a small record-keeping puzzle. The Times noted in a correction that "this homicide was originally reported as a John Doe with no age." Because of that, the paper's older blog had listed him as an infant, an error it later fixed.
The correction shows that at first the authorities did not know who he was. That may mean he carried no identification, or that he was not known in the area where he was found, but the record does not say how or when he was identified.
Beyond his name, his age and the place where he died, almost nothing about Tomas Ramirez has been made public. No obituary, memorial page or family fundraiser could be found for this story, and no news outlet appears to have reported on the death. He surely had family, friends or neighbors who remember who he was, but none of that has entered the public record. Tomas Ramirez is also a common name, shared by many unrelated men.
Because so little has been released, even the basic circumstances 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 he was hurt, whether he died at the scene or later at a hospital, whether anyone saw what happened, or whether investigators ever identified a suspect.
Lakewood is a suburban city in the southeastern part of Los Angeles County. It grew almost overnight in the early 1950s as one of the country's best-known planned postwar communities, with thousands of nearly identical tract homes, wide streets and a large regional shopping center. Like many small cities in the county, it contracts with the Sheriff's Department for policing, which is why sheriff's homicide detectives handle killings there.
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 Tomas Ramirez could be found in news archives or public records. More than 18 years later, there is no public sign that anyone has been held responsible. Anyone who knew a 35-year-old man named Tomas Ramirez, or who was on or near Pioneer Boulevard in Lakewood in September 2007 and saw a fight, an injured man or someone leaving in a hurry, 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 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).
