Tramel Laqune Kerl, 39, was shot and killed in Westmont, California, on February 21, 2015. The shooting happened about 1:43 a.m. in the 9900 block of South Budlong Avenue while Kerl sat in the driver’s seat of a parked sedan. Two men approached the vehicle and opened fire; they fled on foot, heading north on South Budlong Avenue. Kerl was pronounced dead at the scene at 1:54 a.m. by the Los Angeles County coroner’s office.

The motive remains unclear, and no words were exchanged between Kerl and the attackers before the shooting. The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department opened a homicide investigation and has sought public help; no arrests or publicly identified suspects have been announced. Family and friends remember Kerl as kind-hearted and courageous, and his death has had a deep impact on his community.

If anyone has information about that early-morning shooting or the two men seen fleeing north on South Budlong Avenue, please contact the Sheriff’s Homicide Bureau or Crime Stoppers.