Not Just Statistics : Behind the Numbers Are Stories and Faces of Tragedy

Murder does not have a familiar face in Los Angeles; it has many faces. It is the street-corner drug dealer, the jilted lover or spouse, the vengeful gangbanger and the stickup thug.

There were nearly three murders every day last year in Los Angeles--991 in all--from Wilmington to Griffith Park, the San Fernando Valley and South-Central. It was a year when the murder rate jumped more than 11% and the best that could be said is that the total was 33 deaths short of the city’s all-time record.

Here are some of the faces that went with the crimes:

Anthony Angarola, May 8.

Shortly before midnight, three men gathered on a street corner in the San Fernando Valley near Burbank Airport. Witnesses said the men were talking and seemed to know each other, but then an argument broke out.

Suddenly, a shot was fired from a handgun into the abdomen of 28-year-old Angarola. The victim staggered back, clutching his belly and falling into the arms of a friend.

“I’m shot!” Angarola screamed. “Oh my God, he shot me! Help me!”

The man died about an hour later, the victim of a drug deal gone bad, police said.

Miguel Diaz, Aug. 10.

Sometimes, murder strikes instantly and without apparent motive.

Diaz, 17, was walking on the street with two friends in North Hollywood on a pleasant summer evening when a white sedan stopped at the curb. A passenger got out of the car and began beating Diaz, striking him with fists and kicking him as he lay on the ground.

Then, as the two friends fled, the assailant produced a gun and fired one shot through Diaz’s chest. The teen-ager died about three weeks later.

Police say they have no idea why Diaz was killed.

“This could have been anyone,” one officer said.

City Councilman Joel Wachs, outraged at the random killing, posted a $15,000 reward for information about the gunman. Police are still seeking the killer.

Jonathon Fabian, Sept. 12.

It was a warm evening in a neighborhood of ranch-style homes in Lynwood. Residents were watering their lawns.

Two-year-old Jonathon was playing with a push toy in his front yard when two gunshots rang out. Horrified neighbors turned to see Lewis Fabian, 27, holding his dead son in his arms, a helpless expression on his face.

They told police that three teen-age boys, one with a gun, ran from the scene.

Even police were moved. They concluded that the toddler was caught in the cross-fire of rival gang members.

“Just when you think you know the limits of the insanity, something like this happens,” one investigator said.

Stanley R. Kolsky, Dec. 6.

Shortly before sunset, L.A. Taxi driver Kolsky, 53, stopped his cab just west of downtown near MacArthur Park. He picked up three or four men and turned north onto Coronado Street when a struggle broke out in the cab.

A witness on the sidewalk heard the pop of a gunshot, then saw a door open and Kolsky’s limp body dumped onto the street. Police say the gunmen only wanted to rob Kolsky of his daily fares.

They abandoned the taxi a couple of blocks away and are still at large.

Jennifer Chase, Dec. 16.

Seven-year-old Jennifer stood at the edge of the curb about midday, preparing to cross a busy street on her way home from school in South-Central Los Angeles.

Two cars stopped to let her cross. But once in the street, Jennifer was struck and killed by two men in a third car, a gray Oldsmobile Cutlass.

The girl died instantly.

The Cutlass sped off. Two witnesses in nearby cars followed the vehicle until it crashed into a utility pole, and they held the passenger for police. The 27-year-old driver fled on foot and is still being sought.

Anthony Russell, Jan. 15.

Police can only surmise what happened to 30-year-old Russell.

His corpse was found on a roadside in Griffith Park shortly after he had been shot once in the chest.

With a history of narcotics arrests, investigators figured it must have been a drug deal gone sour.

It was not an unusual scenario; the huge park’s rugged and sometimes spectacular canyons and hillsides have, historically, been a popular dumping ground for the city’s killers.

The fact that Russell’s body was not thrown over a hillside, where it would likely have been hidden for months, led police to believe his killer gave little thought to being caught.

“I just wonder if today’s murderer even worries about that anymore,” one officer said.