The murder of Stephanie Kuhen (October 4, 1991 – September 17, 1995) in Los Angeles, California created significant media attention in the United States and led to crackdowns on Los Angeles street gangs.Pelisek, Christine.
Avenues of Death
" ''

LA Weekly ''LA Weekly'' is a free weekly alternative newspaper in Los Angeles, California. It was founded in 1978 by Jay Levin, who served as president and editor until 1991. Voice Media Group sold the paper in late 2017 to Semanal Media LLC, whose paren ...

''. July 14, 2005. Retrieved on February 15, 2009.

Incident

Around 1:45a.m. on September17, 1995, along Isabel Street in the

Cypress Park Cypress Park is a densely populated neighborhood of 10,000+ residents in Northeast Los Angeles, California. Surrounded by hills on three sides, it sits in the valley created by the Los Angeles River and the Arroyo Seco. It is the site of the Rio ...

neighborhood, a street nicknamed "Avenida . . . assecinos," an incorrectly spelled Spanish phrase meaning "Street of Killers" or "Avenue of the Assassins," members of The Avenues gang shot at a vehicle containing a family returning from a cookout; according to the prosecution the vehicle made a wrong turn into an alley. A 3-year-old girl named Stephanie Kuhen died, and Kuhen's stepfather and younger brother sustained injuries. The perpetrators were arrested and convicted.Wrong turn costs a child's life
" '' CNN''. September 18, 1995. Retrieved on February 15, 2009.Gang Members Sentenced in ‘Wrong Way’ Shooting
" '' Los Angeles Times''. August 2, 1997. Retrieved on February 15, 2009.Community Law Enforcement And Recovery (CLEAR)
" '' The Los Angeles Police Department''. Accessed August 27, 2008. Retrieved on February 15, 2009.

Legal action

On August 1, 1997, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Edward Ferns sentenced 28-year-old Anthony Gabriel Rodriguez, 22-year-old Manuel Rosales, Jr., and 18-year-old Hugo David Gomez to 54 years and eight months to life in state prison. At that point, 17-year-old Augustin Lizama was to be retried. During the sentencing of the three convicted murderers, Margaret Fregoso, Rodriguez's grandmother, defended him and said that people outside of the court speculated that the Kuhen automobile traveled through the neighborhood so one or more occupants could purchase

recreational drug Recreational drug use indicates the use of one or more psychoactive drugs to induce an altered state of consciousness either for pleasure or for some other casual purpose or pastime by modifying the perceptions and emotions of the user. When a ...

s. Robynn Kuhen, the mother of Stephanie Kuhen, said that her family was trying to find a shortcut home and said that Fregoso's statements were not true. The defense in the trial suggested that the Kuhen family knew the layout of the area and would not have found themselves lost in their car. On Friday, August 29, 1997, Lizama agreed to a plea bargain in which he received a conviction for assault. Rodriguez, California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) #K65397, was booked into the CDCR system on September 2, 1997. As of 2014, he is incarcerated at

Chuckawalla Valley State Prison Chuckawalla Valley State Prison (CVSP) is a male-only state prison located south of Interstate 10, in a detached section of Blythe, California in Riverside County. CVSP is adjacent to Ironwood State Prison. The prison is scheduled for closure. ...

. Rosales, CDCR#K65037, was booked on August 29, 1997. As of 2014, he is incarcerated at CSP-Los Angeles County. Gomez, CDCR#K65384, was booked on September 2, 1997. As of 2014, he is incarcerated at Pelican Bay State Prison.

Aftermath

Several days after the incident, President of the United States Bill Clinton condemned the killing and said that the United States Federal Government would give money to anti-gang efforts. After the Kuhen incident,

Mayor of Los Angeles The mayor of the City of Los Angeles is the official head and chief executive officer of Los Angeles. The officeholder is elected for a four-year term and is term limit, limited to serving no more than two terms. (Under the Constitution of Califo ...

Richard Riordan asked the Criminal Justice Planning Office (CJPO) to create recommendations regarding gang crime. Several months after the Kuhen incident, the task force's suggestions lead to the creation of the Los Angeles City/County Community Law Enforcement and Recovery (CLEAR) program. Kuhen was buried in a private ceremony on Monday September 25, 1995. About 100 people attended the ceremony.

Analysis

George Ramos Latinos is a 27-part newspaper series on southern California's Latino community and culture of the early 1980s. The ''Los Angeles Times'' won the 1984 Pulitzer Prize for Public Service for the series. The winning team of two editors and 11 repo ...

of the '' Los Angeles Times'' reported that many

residents were angered by the negative portrayal of their community in the media. Specifically mentioned were concerns that there was a perceived lack of attention to gang issues from the municipal government and their council member, Mike Hernandez. There was also anger about the ''Los Angeles Times'' posting large images of Stephanie Kuhen and her brother on the front page of the newspaper, stating that the media does not do this with ethnic minority children. Ramos said that the editor of the newspaper had asked for the images of the children to be posted before learning that they were white.Ramos, George.
Getting Past the Anger in Cypress Park
"

'' Los Angeles Times''. September 25, 1995. Metro Part B Page 3. Retrieved on February 17, 2013. Ramos also stated that many Cypress Park residents believed that if one is not from Cypress Park, one should be concerned with crime in his or her own neighborhood rather than in Cypress Park. Allan Parachini of the American Civil Liberties Union said that the media focused attention on the Kuhen case because the victim was white.

George Cotliar George may refer to: People * George (given name) * George (surname) * George (singer), American-Canadian singer George Nozuka, known by the mononym George * George Washington, First President of the United States * George W. Bush, 43rd Presiden ...

, a '' Los Angeles Times'' managing editor, said that race was not the reason why the media focused attention on the case.

Bill Lord Bill(s) may refer to: Common meanings * Banknote, paper cash (especially in the United States) * Bill (law), a proposed law put before a legislature * Invoice, commercial document issued by a seller to a buyer * Bill, a bird or animal's beak Pla ...

, a director at NBC affiliate

KNBC KNBC (channel 4) is a television station in Los Angeles, California, United States, serving as the West Coast flagship of the NBC network. It is owned and operated by the network's NBC Owned Television Stations division alongside Corona-licens ...

, also stated that race was not a factor in why the media covered the Kuhen case. Larry Elder, a

politically conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization ...

African-American talk show host, stated that law enforcement ignored the gangs in Cypress Park since most of the residents were Hispanic and Black.Noble, Kenneth B.
Child Is Slain, and a Neighborhood Voices Its Frustrations
" '' The New York Times''. September 22, 1995. Retrieved on February 15, 2009.

Notes

References

External links

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Three more arrested in toddler's shooting
"

CNN. September 23, 1995. {{DEFAULTSORT:Kuhen, Stephanie 1991 births Murdered American children 1995 in California 1995 deaths 1995 murders in the United States Deaths by person in Los Angeles Deaths by firearm in California People murdered in Los Angeles Crimes in Los Angeles 1995 in Los Angeles Female murder victims Incidents of violence against girls