Parole Hearing August 6, 2024

Update – John Anthony Torres Denied Parole for 3 Years

Virtual Parole Hearing, August 6, 2024, 830 AM

On January 17, 1979, John Anthony Torres murdered my daughter, Louarna Gillis, in the city of Los Angeles. Torres wanted to move up the hierarchy of the Mexican Mafia and the quickest way to move up in the organization was to assault a police officer, or a member of a police officer’s family. At the time of Louarna’s murder I was a member of the Los Angeles Police Department, Public Disorder Intelligence Division, assigned to investigate gang activity including the Mexican mafia. Louarna had acquired substantial information from high school friends and associates regarding the Mexican mafia and was considering testifying in a pending trial regarding very serious criminal activity. Torres arranged, with the Mexican mafia, to be the executioner in exchange for promotion within the organization. One week before Louarna’s birthday Torres called her multiple times asking to take her on a date, but she refused. Approximately one week after her birthday, Torres called and stated Louarna’s friends were giving her a surprise birthday party and had asked him, Torres, to pick her up and bring her to the party. On the evening of January 17, 1979, Torres picked Louarna up from her residence, drove her directly to an alley in East Los Angeles and shot her once while she sat in the vehicle. And as she fled the vehicle, he fired multiple shots into her back then, while she was on the ground Torres shot her in the head. At trial, this death penalty case ended with a hung jury, eleven for first degree murder and one not guilty. As we prepared for the second trial Torres pled guilty to second degree murder to avoid the death penalty.

I will not discuss all of the problems my family and I encountered as we moved through the criminal justice system, but the aggravation was enough to cause me to dedicate my time and energy to ensure that crime victims are afforded rights throughout the system.

John W. Gillis