Man Convicted in Homeless Woman’s Death

A San Fernando Superior Court jury took less than a day of deliberation to convict a Pacoima man Tuesday in the 1993 shooting death of a popular homeless woman.

Guillermo Cervantes Jr., 28, was found guilty of second-degree murder, negligent discharge of a firearm and two counts of assault with a deadly weapon in connection with the death of Olivia Little Divers, 49. Cervantes faces a maximum sentence of 36 years to life in prison.

Prosecutors alleged Cervantes chose Divers for target practice.

“I’m glad that the jury followed my reasoning in this case and that justice was served,” said Deputy Dist. Atty. Jacquelyn Lacey.

During the two-week trial, witnesses testified that Cervantes had been drinking heavily on Oct. 12, 1993, and that he had recently purchased a semiautomatic rifle.

Lacey said Cervantes shot at Divers--who had become a fixture in the 11500 block of Bradley Avenue--for target practice. According to police, Cervantes fired nine shots at Divers, hitting her four times. One bullet struck her in the heart, three others in the head.

Divers’ death stirred frustration among her friends, some of whom held a memorial march eight days after her death to call for an end to street violence. More than 100 mourners had gathered at Divers’ favorite neighborhood spot, a wall decorated with fading flowers.

Divers regularly parked her shopping cart next to an alley on Bradley Avenue and cleaned the area as if it were her home, according to residents. She swept the sidewalks every day and placed boxes on both sides of the street to collect trash.