Juan Romero, the busboy who aided wounded RFK in ’68, dies

LOS ANGELES — Juan Romero, a hotel busboy who came to the aid of Robert F. Kennedy after the New York senator was shot in Los Angeles, died Monday after a heart attack. He was 68.

Romero was a teenager in June 1968 when Kennedy was shot while walking through the Ambassador Hotel kitchen.

A photograph of the teen struggling to hold the mortally wounded Ken- nedy became an iconic image that haunted Romero for most of his life. He wondered if he could have done something to prevent the shooting or if Kennedy might have survived if he had not stopped to shake his hand.

Eventually Romero overcame his guilt, thanks in part to the support of Kennedy fans who told him that he was an example of the type of people Kennedy sought to help.