Larry Gene Brewer was 53 years old when he died on Monday, October 14, 2002, in Long Beach. According to the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner-Coroner, he died of stab wounds at 2128 Santa Fe Ave. His death was ruled a homicide, and it is listed as a Long Beach Police Department case.
The Los Angeles Times Homicide Report described him as "a 53-year-old black male" who "died Monday, Oct. 14, after being stabbed in Long Beach." A brief news item in the Los Angeles Times the next day added more. It said police were investigating "the stabbing death of a Long Beach man who was found at around 3 a.m. Monday with multiple wounds to his head and torso." According to that report, Brewer "was found unconscious in the area of Hill Street and Santa Fe Avenue and later died at Long Beach Memorial Hospital, police said." The Times added: "Police said the stabbing was not gang related."
The local news site LBReport.com carried a similar account, giving the time as about 3:30 a.m.
and saying Brewer, "of LB," was "found unconscious in the street with multiple stab wounds to his head and torso." Neither report said what led up to the attack, whether he was robbed, whether anyone heard or saw anything, or whether police had a description of a suspect. Police did not publicly suggest a motive beyond ruling out gangs.
Beyond those reports, almost nothing about Larry Brewer's life has been made public. No obituary, memorial page or family fundraiser could be found. Larry Brewer is a common name, and searches return many other men who share it, including men whose obituaries ran in Tennessee, Alabama, Colorado and other states. None of them can be connected to this death. He surely had family, friends or neighbors in Long Beach who remember who he was, but none of that has entered the public record.
Santa Fe Avenue is a main north to south street on the west side of Long Beach, lined with small businesses, homes and apartment buildings. The neighborhoods around it are largely working-class, close to the Los Angeles River and the industrial land that serves the Port of Long Beach.
The Long Beach Police Department, which runs its own homicide detail separate from the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, took responsibility for the case. 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 Larry Gene Brewer could be found in news archives or public records. More than 23 years later, there is no public sign that anyone has been held responsible. Anyone who knew Larry Brewer, or who was near Hill Street and Santa Fe Avenue in the early morning of Monday, October 14, 2002, 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 Long Beach Police Department's Homicide Detail at 562-570-7244, or leave an anonymous tip with Crime Stoppers at 800-222-TIPS (8477).
