Family members say Flor Medrano lived for her 3-year-old daughter Marianna. But what happened inside her Cochran Avenue apartment has changed the toddler's life forever. Medrano's family is just beginning to cope with their profound loss.
"She was always there for me no matter what. Sorry, I can't talk no more," said Diana Medrano, Flor's sister.
Cleanup crews and the victim's family members helped to clean out the apartment Friday afternoon, where 30-year-old Medrano was fatally stabbed, allegedly by her estranged boyfriend, two nights ago. He was killed by Los Angeles Police officers who were outside the home.
Medrano had just filed a domestic dispute complaint and officers were staking out her apartment, looking for the boyfriend. LAPD officials said Thursday the officers acted responsibly and had no way of knowing the boyfriend would sneak into the home from the rooftop.
"The suspect was able to scale down from the rooftop of the apartment building and make his way into the rear window of a bathroom. I reiterate: scaled down from the rooftop of an apartment building and made his way into the apartment building. This is no small feat," said LAPD Captain Eric Davis.
Police have not released the identity of the suspect yet, but Medrano's sister Diana says he was several years younger than Flor was and they had been dating on and off for years.
"Yeah, he was violent, but never to the point of him doing that," said Diana Medrano. "I guess he did it, because I think he was going to kill himself as well. I guess she broke up with him. ... Everybody loved her, she was there for people she didn't know and needed her. They asked for help and she would be there. She was -- there's nobody perfect, but for me she was."
Davis said that the officers are traumatized by what happened. They have been placed on leave pending an investigation of the shooting.
