On May 9, 2023, at about 11:32 p.m., 12-year-old Eric Gregory Brown III was walking with two friends along the 2200 block of Lewis Avenue in Long Beach when a vehicle containing at least two male occupants approached and, without provocation, opened fire on the group. Eric suffered a life-threatening gunshot wound to the upper body and died at a local hospital. A 14-year-old girl with the group was shot in the lower body and treated; a 13-year-old girl was unharmed.

Detectives used security camera footage and Automatic License Plate Reader technology to identify the suspect vehicle and two suspects: 20-year-old Reshawn Strother of Cypress and 21-year-old Destenee Sheree Scipio of Long Beach. Strother was already in custody on unrelated charges when identified. Both were charged with murder, attempted murder, and conspiracy to commit a crime; Strother’s bail was set at $5,000,000 and Scipio’s at $4,000,000. Authorities say the shooting grew out of an earlier gang-related confrontation that did not involve the victims, suggesting Eric and his friends were innocent bystanders.

Vigils and memorials have been held as Eric’s family and the community mourn his loss. Anyone with information is asked to contact LA Crime Stoppers by phone, the P3 Tips app, or www.lacrimestoppers.org.