George Roman Kaye was 47 years old when he died on Sunday, April 23, 2006, in Pasadena. According to the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner-Coroner, he died of stab wounds at 1385 El Sereno Ave. His death was ruled a homicide, and it is listed as a Pasadena Police Department case.
The Los Angeles Times Homicide Report described him as "a 47-year-old white male" who "died Sunday, April 23, after being stabbed in Pasadena." That short entry, drawn from coroner's records, is nearly all that has been made public about his death.
Beyond his name, his age and the place where he died, almost nothing about George Roman Kaye 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.
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.
George Kaye is not an especially common name, but searches still turn up several other men who share it, including a jazz bassist in Massachusetts, an audio engineer, and men whose obituaries were published in North Carolina, Virginia and Massachusetts. None of them can be connected to this death. His middle name, Roman, is unusual enough that someone who knew him may recognize it, and a man of 47 likely left behind relatives, friends or coworkers who still remember him.
Pasadena is one of the best known cities in Los Angeles County, home of the Rose Bowl, the Tournament of Roses Parade, the California Institute of Technology and the shops and restaurants of Old Pasadena. Away from its landmarks, much of the city is made up of quiet residential streets lined with houses, small apartment buildings and old trees. The coroner's record places his death on El Sereno Avenue, but says nothing more about the location. Pasadena has its own police department, which is why the case belongs to city detectives. A killing on a quiet residential street would normally draw attention from neighbors, and someone may have noticed a person or a vehicle that did not belong there.
Strikingly, a man named Fernando Lopez was stabbed to death in the Westlake area of Los Angeles on the same Sunday. Nothing in the public record links the two deaths.
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 George Roman Kaye could be found in news archives or public records. More than 19 years later, there is no public sign that anyone has been held responsible. Anyone who was on or near El Sereno Avenue in Pasadena in April 2006, or who knew George Kaye and spent time with him in the days before his death, 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. Anyone with information can contact the Pasadena Police Department, or leave an anonymous tip with Crime Stoppers at 800-222-TIPS (8477).
