Bryan Keith Beecher 1 2
- Born: 8 Apr 1991, Monterey, Monterey, CA 1 2 3
- Died: 16 Dec 2009, Salinas, Monterey, CA at age 18 2
- Buried: Salinas: Queen of Heaven Cemetery, Monterey, CA
Another name for Bryan was Brian Keith Deadman.3
FamilySearch ID: L81Q-R4D.
Noted events in his life were:
1. Cause of Death: Murdered near Hartnell College, shot 7 times in a suspected gang-related killing., 16 Dec 2009, Salinas, Monterey, CA.
2. Newspaper: Associated Press, 17 Dec 2009, Salinas, Monterey, CA. SALINAS, Calif. \emdash Salinas police are treating the fatal shooting of an 18-year-old outside a local college as another gang-related killing.
Police say Brian Beecher died after being shot multiples times around 7 p.m. Wednesday in front of Hartnell College.
Investigators say Beecher was not a student at the college, but was known to associate with gangs.
Beecher's death is the 29th homicide in Salinas this year, four more than the city's previous record set last year.
Investigators have not identified any suspects. They say they only have a vague description of two men in dark clothing seen running from the area.
Police believe all the homicides in Salinas this year have been gang-related.
3. Obituary: Struve and Laporte Funeral Home on 22 Dec 2009 in Salinas, Monterey, CA. Bryan "Lil Keith" Beecher-Deadman, 18, of Salinas, passed away on December 16, 2009. He was born April 18, 1991 to Tammy Beecher and Brian "Keith" Deadman in Monterey CA.
He is survived by his father and step-mother, Keith and Yolanda Deadman; mother, Tammy Beecher; siblings, Jeanette Vargas, Charmaine Deadman, Derek Stevens, Kori Wherry, Kristen Stevens, John Stevens, Brandon Deadman; niece, Natalie Stevens. He is also survived by his "Granny", Elizabeth Deadman; grandparents, Bill and Diane Beecher; numerous aunts, uncles, cousins and loving friends.
He was preceded in death by Auntie Pam "PD" Deadman-Allen; granddad, Lera Deadman; and great-grandfather, Ballesteri.
Lil Keith was a devoted son, brother, uncle and friend.
Visitation will be held from 5:00pm to 9:00pm Tuesday, December 22, 2009 at Struve & Laporte Chapel, 41 West San Luis Street, Salinas, CA 93901.
Funeral Service will be held at 10:00am on Wednesday, December 23, 2009 at Struve & Laporte Chapel.
Burial will follow at Queen of Heaven Cemetery, 18200 Damian Way, Salinas, CA 93907.
4. Newspaper: The Monterey County Weekly, 23 Dec 2009, Salinas, Monterey, CA. CEASING FIRE
THE MONTEREY COUNTY WEEKLY, DECEMBER 23, 2009
Salinas cops try offering soft services to gangbangers, as well as more tough talk.
With Salinas surpassing its highest body count on record in 2009 -29 gang-related homicides -police officials have set pressing New Year's resolutions: focus on proven peace strategy Ceasefire and target the gangs carrying out the latest violence.
It's become tragically clear that Salinas' policing approach is ineffective at stopping gunfire - last weekend a man on a bike was shot near a peace vigil in Closter Park. Police Chief Louis Fetherolf recently reassigned two key personnel to lay groundwork for Ceasefire, where service providers hold a call-in, offering jobs and alternatives to gang members willing to put down their arms.
"What law enforcement has been doing for the past several decades just isn't working," says Sgt. Sheldon Bryan, program manager for Ceasefire in Salinas. "This is not just another social program being thrown at a problem."
"WHAT LAW ENFORCEMENT HAS BEEN DOING FOR THE PAST SEVERAL DECADES JUST ISN'T WORKING."
Bryan emphasizes that simply arresting criminals and locking them in prison is one dimensional: "[Police] can't be on our own island," he says. "We have to be working shoulder to shoulder with other agencies to help these guys, who don't have a way out, get out."
Bryan now manages Ceasefire full-time; Deputy Police Chief Kelly McMillin says half his time will now be committed to the strategy. "If we're going to do this right, we need to commit a lot more to it early on," McMillin says.
Bryan wants to include more stakeholders in January's call-in, including church members and trauma workers. "I want to have people that are so comfortable with this, so bought into it, ythat if we have an uptick in violence like we had over the last couple weeks, we do a call-in right away," he says. The next time violence breaks out, McMillin says, the specific gang suspected of the crime will be targeted, instead of just boosting patrols, as in past responses to shooting spikes.
From the first call-in November, at least one gang member took advantage of services offered by the county Office of Employment Training, says Director Lynda Dunn. "He's still here," Dunn says. "It's a struggle. This kid has been in prison. To come out and go from that lifestyle to this lifestyle, it's very traumatic."
Although it's a challenging transition for gang members, Bryan says having a job could get them off the hook from doing the gang's bidding. "If they got a job, they're not on the street committing crimes," he says. Still, giving up the gang lifestyle can be dangerous, as evidenced by the latest homicide victim: 18-year-old Brian Beecher, who was shot and killed Dec. 16 behind Hartnell College. Dunn says Beecher had turned his life around and was in a state-funded program that finds jobs for troubled youth. "He was changed," she says. "He was working and was enrolling in college coming up. It's just so heartbreaking."
Bryan says resources will be available for call-in participants "as long as they or the associates that they hang out with are not shooting and/or killing people," adding that if they do carry out violence, police will seek federal prosecution and sentence them out of state. "They are going to go to the state of Maine or the state of Colorado or to Leavenworth, Kansas."
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