June 10, 1957
Los Angeles
Elsa Klumbis O’Neil saw no hope. The 37-year-old woman wanted a divorce
from her husband, Mark, who was due back in a few days from a voyage with the
merchant marine. But since she wasn’t a U.S. citizen, she
was afraid of being deported to Lithuania.
Officer T.R. Norris (at right in 1948, with a robbery suspect) arrived at O’Neil’s apartment, 1821 S. Crenshaw Blvd.,
after landlord Eugene Smith reported a disturbance. Norris had been
called to the apartment once before for the same reason and after
talking to O’Neil, he went out to the hallway to speak with Smith while
Smith’s wife kept an eye on O’Neil to keep her from killing herself.
Seeing her chance, O’Neil ran to the bathroom, locked the door and
jumped from the second-story window. She was pronounced dead at Georgia
Street Receiving Hospital.
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