Humberto Gomez Jr. was 18 years old when he died on Saturday, May 31, 2003, in Inglewood. According to the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner-Coroner, he died of stab wounds at 4069 W. Century Blvd. His death was ruled a homicide, and it is listed as a case of the Inglewood Police Department.
The Los Angeles Times Homicide Report recorded his death in a single sentence drawn from coroner's records. It described him as "a 18-year-old Latino male" who "died Saturday, May 31, after being stabbed in Inglewood." The entry gave an address on West Century Boulevard, one of the city's busiest commercial streets, but it did not say whether he was attacked there or was simply found there. No follow-up story about his death appears to have been published in the Times.
One later news story may refer to him, though it cannot be confirmed.
In December 2006 the Marin Independent Journal wrote about Five 4 Five, a Northern California group that sponsored promising students, and reported that "one alumnus, photographer Humberto Gomez, was killed by gang members in Los Angeles in 2003." A founder of the group remembered him as "a baseball player, a photographer," and said, "He was on his way back from receiving the California Art Scholar award when the gang intercepted him. There was an element of jealousy there." The group later gave cameras to young people in Marin and the Los Angeles area so they could photograph how violence had touched their lives, as a way to honor him. The article did not give that young man's age, the date of his death, where it happened or how he was killed, so it is not certain that it describes the same person, though the name, the year and the city fit.
Humberto Gomez is a common name, and searches also turn up other men who share it, including a resident of the Central Valley and men whose obituaries ran in other states. No obituary or memorial page for this young man could be found.
The coroner's record does not say what time of day he was hurt, whether he died at the scene or later at a hospital, or whether anyone saw what happened.
He was only 18, an age when many young people are finishing high school, starting college or a first job, and making plans for the future.
Inglewood is a city of about 110,000 people southwest of downtown Los Angeles, next to Los Angeles International Airport. Century Boulevard runs west toward the airport and is lined with businesses, motels and apartment buildings. In 2003 the city was still home to the Forum, the arena where the Lakers once played. Inglewood has its own police department, which investigates homicides inside the city limits.
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 Humberto Gomez 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 an 18-year-old named Humberto Gomez in Inglewood, or who was near the 4000 block of West Century Boulevard at the end of May 2003, 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 Inglewood Police Department, or leave an anonymous tip with Crime Stoppers at 800-222-TIPS (8477).
