Photos: L.A.’s Crisis Response Team comforts the relatives of victims

Joseph Avalos, right, leader of the Crisis Response Team, speaks on his cellphone at the scene of a fatal car accident in Wilmington. “We’re dealing with people at the worst moment of their lives,” he says.   (Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)

Bystanders react at the scene of a street race in Wilmington in which two people were killed and three injured. Volunteers help family members sort out details, such as contacting the city attorney’s office, or notifying the school district that kids won’t be attending class the next day.   (Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)

Joan Davis, a longtime member of L.A.’s volunteer Crisis Response Team, goes through paperwork at the scene of a fatal car accident in Wilmington. One of the program’s earliest members, Davis, 71, used to wear a badge with “#2” next to her name.   (Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)

Joan Davis, center, and Barbara de Lima confer before talking to the family of the victims of a fatal car accident in Wilmington. Davis says it’s gratifying to help people when they’re at their most vulnerable.

Michelle Paravicini, center, consoles a family member of a person killed in a car accident in Wilmington. Though they’re right in the middle of everything, team members prefer to disappear into the background. And they do.

At UCLA Medical center, family members are consoled by Natalyn Levin of the Crisis Response Team as Los Angeles County coroner officials remove the body of a person shot dead outside a Century City nightclub.   (Stefano Paltera / For the Times)

Crisis Response Team members examine skid marks where two pedestrians were killed by a driver who was drag racing in Chatsworth. Police who’ve arrived at a crime scene struggle to walk away from people who are suffering, says LAPD Capt. John Romero.   (Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times)

Members of the L.A. Crisis Response team mull their next move after a family member is notified of a person’s death in a car accident in Wilmington. Most major cities on the West Coast have similar programs. The oldest, in San Diego, predates Los Angeles’ by a few years.   (Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)

The Crisis Response Team performs all kinds of tasks besides providing support to victims at crime scenes. The volunteers often prepare family members for what they call the “death squad,” the detectives who march up to relatives to confirm the identity of the body.   (Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)

“Go Bags” for Crisis Response Team members include jackets and ID. At a recent graduation of new responders, L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti praised the program, saying he thinks it strengthens the city’s civic fabric.   (Lawrence K. Ho / Los Angeles Times)