Robert Martinez

On July 8, 2009, Robert Martinez, a 52-year-old resident of Oakland, was shot and killed in what was part of a string of violent incidents in the city that year. Martinez was found in East Oakland, one of the neighborhoods that had seen heightened levels of gun violence. This particular year, Oakland was dealing with a significant wave of homicides—over 100 by the end of 2009—which was consistent with the city’s ongoing struggle against violent crime, particularly in neighborhoods affected ...