Vernie Martello was 40 years old when he died on Thursday, Feb. 8, 2007, after being stabbed in San Pedro, the harbor community at the southern end of the city of Los Angeles. According to the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner-Coroner, he died of stab wounds, and the location recorded for the case is the corner of 11th and South Mesa streets. His death was ruled a homicide, and it is listed as a Torrance Police Department case.
That agency listing is unusual. San Pedro is part of the city of Los Angeles and is normally patrolled by the Los Angeles Police Department's Harbor Division, not by the police of neighboring Torrance. The listing may reflect where the case was first reported, or simply a records error; the public record does not say which.
The Los Angeles Times Homicide Report gave only a brief entry. It said that Martello, "a 40-year-old white male, died Thursday, Feb. 8, after being stabbed in San Pedro, according to Los Angeles County coroner's records."
No longer article followed, and no statement from detectives of either department about the case appears in the public record.
Beyond his name, his age and the place where he died, almost nothing about Vernie Martello 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. Unlike most names in the coroner's files, his is rare. Searches for it return no news stories, no obituaries and no other people of the same name, which means that anyone who recognizes it is likely to have known him.
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.
San Pedro is a neighborhood with a strong identity of its own, built around the Port of Los Angeles, one of the busiest container ports in the country. The community is known for its waterfront, the Point Fermin Lighthouse, Cabrillo Beach and the Korean Bell of Friendship overlooking the ocean.
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 Vernie Martello 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 40-year-old man named Vernie Martello, who saw him in the days before Feb. 8, 2007, or who was near 11th and Mesa streets in San Pedro around that time, 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 Torrance Police Department, or leave an anonymous tip with Crime Stoppers at 800-222-TIPS (8477). Information can also be given to the Los Angeles Police Department at 877-527-3247 (877-LAPD-24-7).
