The fight began over a large silver cross and turned deadly after an act of brotherly devotion.
Agustin Contreras, 17, described by teachers and police as a good student who was not involved in gangs, was shot to death at Venice High School as he tried to protect his younger brother Alejo from gang members bent on stealing the cross from around the 16-year-old's neck.
It was the first fatal shooting on a Los Angeles Unified School District campus in more than a decade, and fueled worries about gangs and racial tensions in Venice. Police and community leaders called for calm and organized tolerance meetings in hopes of heading off retaliatory attacks.
Detectives were searching for the black Venice gang member who they believe pulled the gun on Agustin, one of four brothers. It was only natural, family members said, that Agustin intervened when gang members accosted Alejo as he left his final class Monday about 3 p.m.
"They came out of nowhere and said something like 'I like your chain, homie,' " Alejo said in an interview Tuesday, describing the incident that led to his brother's slaying Monday afternoon.
Alejo said the assailant grabbed for the chain, and that he and another brother, 14-year-old Andres, fought back. One of the attackers yelled out the name of a local black gang.
Agustin saw the fight and came to their aid, police said. Students who witnessed the fight said the attackers were apparently provoked by Latino gang members who tried to turn the altercation into a racial dispute.
Others joined the fight, which moved from inside the school to the faculty parking lot. There, one of the attackers drew a gun and shot Agustin once in the chest.
"He just hit the floor and I saw him turning pale," Andres said.
Venice has a history of violence between black and Latino gangs, largely centered in the tough Oakwood neighborhood. In the early 1990s, racially tinged gang violence claimed dozens of lives.
Although Venice has seen a reduction in gang homicides in recent years, some community activists fear Agustin's slaying could cause an escalation in tensions as Latino gangs seek payback.
"There are all-black gangs, there are Latino gangs that have black gang members," said Oscar de la Torre, founder of the Pico Youth and Family Center, a facility for at-risk youths on the Westside. "Still, that doesn't keep them from retaliating. It's gang-related, it's race-related. There's a lot of layers to it. It's not just one thing."
