The family and friends of Frederick Martin have put together a $10,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of whoever shot and killed the 28-year-old Inglewood father as he shielded his 8-year-old son from gunfire.
Martin, 28, was shot about 7 p.m. April 3 in the 3200 block of West 109th Street, and died at a local hospital.
Inglewood Mayor James Butts announced the reward at a City Hall news conference attended by Martin’s family.
“Fred Martin was a loving father, a college graduate, employee of Kaiser, a homeowner,” Butts said. “And he died a hero, protecting his son from individuals who walked up and fired into him in his garage as he was doing things a homeowner would does …”
Family friends say Martin was cleaning the garage of his grandmother’s Inglewood home, along with his son, Fredrick “Tre” Martin III, and his son’s godfather, Joseph Hickman.
Police officers arriving at the small, single-family home that night found Martin had shoved his son to the pavement when gunfire erupted, and he took bullets to the abdomen and upper body.
The boy had a minor graze wound. Martin’s best friend, Hickman, was shot in the ankle.
Inglewood police Lt. James Madia today offered his condolences to the family members.
“This senseless and tragic act has had a profound impact on many people in the community, not the least of which are our own personnel, who have been involved in the investigation,” Madia said. “We have mustered a significant amount of resources to try to bring these folks to justice.”
According to police, it was one of three unrelated shootings in Inglewood that night.
“Fredrick Martin was killed shielding (his) son from gunfire,” family spokeswoman Jasmyne Cannick said earlier, adding that his family is now on a mission to find his killers.”
According to the victims’ families, neither Martin nor Hickman was affiliated with gangs. Jaaye Person-Lynn, a high school friend of Martin, told the Los Angeles Times that there had been recent problems between gangs in the neighborhood, and Martin could have been mistakenly targeted. Martin’s widow, Amanda, is expecting their second child.
Anyone with information on the case is urged to call (310) 412-5246; or the anonymous tipline, (888) 412-7463.
City News Service contributed to this story.
