Ana Lizarraga was 49 and a well-known gang counselor in East Los Angeles when she was killed on May 13, 1992. Known as The Gang Lady, she worked with at-risk youth in the Ramona Gardens housing project and was preparing to attend a relative’s funeral in Utah when two masked gunmen ambushed her outside her home and shot her execution-style. A police officer witnessed the shooting but retreated after the gunmen pointed their weapons at him and called for backup.

The investigation led to the arrest of Jose Gilbert Gonzales, a known gang member with the street names Lil Joe and Joker, who had been released from state prison about a month before the killing. Gonzales was charged with first-degree murder; in May 1993 a Superior Court jury found him guilty and he was sentenced to life without parole.