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On March 9, 70-year-old Katan Khaimov went for a walk. He started at his West Hollywood apartment and was later found dead with stab wounds near Poinsetta Park, which is in Los Angeles at the WeHo border. For over an hour, Khaimov cried for help, according to the LA Times.
The fact that Khaimov was slain has been hard enough for his neighborhood to accept. But the awful coda of his life has added to the soul-searching. Neighbors, it turns out, heard him dying -- crying for help after being stabbed in the stomach -- for more than an hour before anyone called the police. Officials say several residents in Khaimov's neighborhood, which straddles the cities of West Hollywood and Los Angeles, believed his moans were the sounds of a vagrant. Cars also passed by while he was lying next to the street, still alive, his head and one arm flopped over the curb.
A lesson can be learned here for all: it never hurts to call the police to do there job. Information is power, right? So give the police information of what's happening on the streets and they'll assess what to do. The more intel the public gives police, the better they can do to help a neighborhood. A good first step for Los Angeles residents? Get to know your Senior Lead Officer (SLO) -- every neighborhood has one. Call 3-1-1 and say you're looking for your LAPD Senior Lead Officer for your neighborhood. They'll ask you questions and direct you to the right place. If they don't, leave a comment here.
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