Carl Elwood Smith was 49 years old when he died on Sunday, September 23, 2001, in Venice. According to the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner-Coroner, he died of stab wounds at 102 Navy St. His death was ruled a homicide, and it is listed as a case of the Los Angeles Police Department's Pacific Division.
The Los Angeles Times Homicide Report recorded his death in a single sentence drawn from coroner's records. It described him as "a 49-year-old black male" who "died Sunday, Sept. 23, after being stabbed in Venice." The entry gave a street address, but it did not say whether that was his home, the home of someone he knew or simply the place where he was found. No follow-up story appears to have been written.
Beyond his name, his age and the place where he died, almost nothing about Carl Elwood Smith 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. Carl Smith is one of the most common name combinations in the United States, and searches turn up hundreds of men who share it, including several with the middle name Elwood in other states, none of whom can be connected to this death.
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.
Venice is a beachside neighborhood on the western edge of Los Angeles, famous for its boardwalk, its canals and its long history as a gathering place for artists, surfers and street performers. Its crowded Ocean Front Walk draws visitors from around the world, while the blocks behind it hold a mix of small houses, apartment buildings and businesses. In 2001 the neighborhood was policed by the Pacific Division, which also covered Westchester, Playa del Rey, Mar Vista and the area around Los Angeles International Airport.
He died less than two weeks after the September 11 attacks, when national news was dominated by events far from the Westside. A stabbing recorded in a single line of coroner's data would have drawn little attention in those weeks.
Homicides in Los Angeles rose sharply in the early 2000s, climbing past 600 in 2002, and detectives carried heavy caseloads. Many killings from those years were never solved.
No arrest, criminal charge or court case connected to the death of Carl Elwood Smith could be found in news archives or public records. More than 24 years later, there is no public sign that anyone has been held responsible. Anyone who lived on or near Navy Street in Venice in September 2001, or who knew a 49-year-old man named Carl Smith in Venice or the surrounding Westside neighborhoods, 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 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).
