Denise Louie was a 21-year-old urban planning student at the University of Washington who was killed September 4, 1977, in the Golden Dragon massacre in San Francisco’s Chinatown. The attack took place inside the Golden Dragon Restaurant when members of the Joe Boys opened fire intending to target leaders of the rival Wah Ching gang. No gang members were hit; instead five innocent people, including Denise, were killed and eleven others were wounded.

The shooting was tied to an escalating summer-long feud between the two gangs and was carried out as retaliation for a July 4, 1977, shootout at the Ping Yuen housing project that left a Joe Boys member dead and another wounded. The San Francisco Police Department launched a major investigation that led to the formation of an Asian Gang Task Force and ultimately to convictions of seven Joe Boys members.

Anyone who knew Denise or who can add detail about her life in Seattle or her time in San Francisco is urged to come forward.