Laterian Tasby, 17

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Laterian Tasby, 17, a black youth, was shot and killed at a party at 572 W. 11th St. near Pacific in San Pedro at about midnight on Oct. 28. He was attending a Halloween party with other students at San Pedro High School, where he played both football and basketball. Uninvited guests turned up, and there was a fight. Gunfire erupted in the backyard, hitting Laterian, who died at the scene.

There were many witnesses--teenagers and students at San Pedro High School, according to police. Very few have cooperated with the investigation, said Det. Sid Rodriguez of LAPD Harbor Homicide. Some cite fear; others say ‘snitching’ is frowned upon, he said. ‘Even the good kids now won’t snitch,’ he said.

San Pedro High School principal Bob Di Pietro said school staff had launched a ‘big outreach’ to help students deal with their grief, including organized meetings in the school library with counselors. He said he was not surprised that students were not coming forward, but said he had no plans as yet to deal formally with the problem. ‘Detectives are handling it,’ he said. Detectives are at (310) 522-2036.