George Griffin Jr. was 60 years old when he died on Wednesday, December 10, 2003, in the Historic South-Central neighborhood of Los Angeles. According to the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner-Coroner, he died of stab wounds at 146 W. 32nd St. His death was ruled a homicide, and it is listed as a Los Angeles Police Department case handled by the Newton Division.
The Los Angeles Times Homicide Report described him as "a 60-year-old black male" who "died Wednesday, Dec. 10, after being stabbed in Historic South-Central." That short entry is nearly all that has been made public about how he died.
One other public record appears to concern him. A memorial listing from Rose Hills in Whittier, one of the largest cemeteries and funeral providers in Southern California, records a George Griffin Jr. who "was born on May 29, 1943 and passed away on December 10, 2003."
The date of death matches, and the birth date fits his age of 60, which suggests that this is the same man and that his family arranged his funeral through Rose Hills. The listing does not include an obituary, a photograph or the names of relatives.
Beyond that, almost nothing about his life has been made public. No news story, family tribute or fundraiser could be found. George Griffin is a common name, and searches turn up many unrelated men, among them a National Guard helicopter pilot killed in a 2015 training crash, a Maryland man charged in an unrelated attack, and men remembered in obituaries across the country. None of them can be connected to the man who died on 32nd Street.
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.
The address on West 32nd Street lies in one of the oldest parts of South Los Angeles, just south of downtown. Historic South-Central is a densely populated neighborhood of older houses, small apartment buildings, churches, auto shops and small factories, and in the early 2000s its residents were mostly Latino, with a long-established Black community as well. The neighborhood is patrolled by the LAPD's Newton Division.
Los Angeles still recorded roughly 480 to 520 homicides a year in the mid-2000s, and many of those killings were never solved.
The record gives a street address, which suggests he may have been hurt at or near a home, though it does not say whether he lived there.
No arrest, criminal charge or court case connected to the death of George Griffin Jr. could be found in news archives or public records. More than 22 years later, there is no public sign that anyone has been held responsible. Anyone who knew George Griffin, or who was on or near West 32nd Street in Historic South-Central in December 2003, may hold information that could help investigators. 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).
