Officer Daryle Wayne Black, 33, of the Long Beach Police Department, was fatally shot in the line of duty on April 30, 2000. He and his partner, Officer Rick Delfin, were stopped in their patrol car in a high-concentration gang area when a passing vehicle opened fire with an automatic weapon. Black was struck twice in the head and died the following day at a nearby hospital. Delfin was seriously wounded — shot in the head and leg — but drove them out of the immediate danger zone.

Investigators determined roughly 15 rounds from an AK-47 were fired. Authorities believed the ambush was retaliatory, possibly linked to a gang sweep the prior night during which an armed suspect had been shot and killed by police. Bullets also penetrated the wall of a nearby home, wounding a pregnant woman; she and her unborn child survived.

Ramon Gumby Sandoval Jr., an 18-year-old gang member from Compton, and four other suspects were identified and charged in connection with the attack. Officer Black was remembered at a large memorial at the Long Beach Performing Arts Center for his community work and dedication to young people.

Did anyone in the community recognize indicators of an escalating threat in that neighborhood before the ambush?