Westmont homicides

December Diefear stands next to a warning sign posted on a fence along Vermont Avenue in the Westmont area of South Los Angeles.  (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)

Pedestrians make their way along Vermont Avenue in the Westmont area.  (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)

Brian Sanders, left, a manager with the Gang Alternative Program, watches as one of his charges paints over gang graffiti on a nearby storefront along Vermont Avenue in the Westmont area.  (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)

A German shepherd stands sentry in the front yard of a home in the Westmont area of South Los Angeles.   (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)

“I’m just fed up in this area,” said Aaron Eden, 38, about crime in his neighborhood. His house has been broken into twice, the Westmont resident said.  (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)

People hang out in front of a pawn shop along Vermont Avenue and 83rd Street in the Westmont area of South Los Angeles.  (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)

Twins Eiljah, left, and Eli Mott walk back from the store with their father Dwane Mott along 99th Street in the Westmont area.  (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)

A family photo shows Isaiah Gray, 28, right, with his sons Noah Gray, 2, left, and Elijah Gray, 3. Isaiah Gray, 28, was shot and died from his wound in the Westmont area.  (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)

Jackie Pineda, 27, holds the hand of her son Noah Gray, 2, in her Westmont apartment where her fiance Isaiah Gray, 28, Noah’s father, died after being shot.  (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)

Jacky Pineda, 27, holding her son Noah Gray, 2, watches as her son Elijah Gray, 3, plays on the balcony of her apartment where her fiance Isaiah Gray, 28, was shot to death. Gray’s brother was arrested as the suspect in his killing.  (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)

Elijah Gray, 3, rests his head against his forearms below photos of his father Isaiah Gray, 28, who was shot to death at this apartment in the Westmont area of South Los Angeles.  (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)

A woman and child walk down an alley between 93rd and 94th streets in Westmont. The 1.8-square-mile area has seen 100 homicides in the last seven years.  (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)

Roy Clark sweeps up broken glass on a street near his home along 104th Street in the Westmont area of South Los Angeles. “The shootings start on the next street over -- 105th,” Clark said. “It’’s gang violence. It’s been a lot of shooting lately.”   (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)