A woman was found dead inside a parked car at an East Long Beach shopping center Friday morning, after a 911 caller reported a vehicle emitting a strong odor. Long Beach police say they do not currently suspect foul play, while the county Medical Examiner is investigating her cause of death.
Officers Called to Spring Street Retail Center
Officers responded at about 9:33 a.m. Friday to the intersection of Palo Verde Avenue and East Spring Street, according to the Long Beach Post. The call brought police to the shopping center near that intersection, where they found the woman dead inside a parked car. Her name and age have not been released.
Police spokesperson Bradford Stein wrote in an email that officers had no reason to believe the woman was the victim of a crime, per the outlet's reporting. Investigators with the Los Angeles County Department of Medical Examiner are looking into her cause of death.
A Formal Ruling Could Take Weeks
An official cause of death is not likely to come quickly. The medical examiner's office routinely marks such cases as “deferred” when an initial autopsy is inconclusive, with toxicology and other lab work continuing, according to the department's fact sheet for families.
The retail plaza at the 6400 to 6536 block of East Spring Street is known locally as the Spring Street Shopping Center, anchored by a Fresh & Easy, Rite Aid, Dollar Tree and Auto Zone, according to a property listing for the site. It sits less than two blocks from Millikan High School, one of East Long Beach's main public high schools, per the Los Angeles Times. The lot has also been the site of a reported 2021 shooting, according to the outlet's reporting.
Vehicle Living a Growing Reality in Long Beach
The circumstances of Friday's discovery arrive against a backdrop of rising vehicle habitation in Long Beach. The available account does not provide a citywide total, a year-over-year comparison, a trend dating to 2019, or a comparison of Long Beach's census practices with those of other Los Angeles County cities.
The police account does not discuss whether the woman was unhoused, and officials have not offered any details about who she was or how long the car had been parked at the shopping center. Long Beach police direct residents with immediate safety concerns to call 911, while non-emergency vehicle or quality-of-life reports can be made through the department's dispatch line.
