Through compliance checks, the LAPD uncovered 290 pounds of street lighting wire stolen from the Los Angeles Bureau of Street Lighting and an additional 290 pounds from the Los Angeles Department of Transportation. 

Over 3,300 pounds of copper and aluminum wire that belonged to Caltrans were discovered in addition to a bronze plaque for the city of Burbank.

The estimated value of the recovered metal parts was $46,000, the LAPD said.

East Los Angeles Jun 11

Thieves steal miles of copper wire, leaving LA's Sixth Street Bridge in the dark

Los Angeles Aug 27

Los Angeles' new target in combating copper wire theft: metal dealers

The compliance check resulted in the arrest of the owner of a Sun Valley recycling center for receiving stolen property.

The checks were carried out last Friday by the Metal Theft Unit of the LAPD in conjunction with the office of Los Angeles City Council President Paul Krekorian. 

Police released the clear pictures of people who allegedly stole from the automotive shop on the 600 block of West Century Boulevard after someone tore down the store’s security gate.

The flash-mob burglary happened while hundreds of people attended or performed dangerous stunts in the street takeover with cars and spectators illegally blocking traffic near Century Boulevard and Hoover Street, police said.

“The suspects have shown a complete disregard for the safety and property of others,” the Los Angeles Police Department said in a statement, explaining 50 to 75 people stole about $67,000 worth of items. “There is a wide range of suspect descriptions, but the suspects are believed to belong to street takeover groups.”

At least one man, 24-year-old Danny Sanchez was taken into custody following a pursuit, and officers recovered approximately $1,200 of stolen merchandise from his car, the LAPD said. 

Video of the break-in showed dozens of people entering the store with items from the shop scattered in the parking lot.  

“I saw somebody with rotors, brakes, gaskets, jump-starts, anything with value. Tool kits, power tools, everything,” said witness Christian Magna.

LAPD Aug 19

LAPD street takeover crowd turns on fire hydrants

Downtown LA Jul 1

Street takeovers escalate in downtown LA with cars set ablaze, bus vandalized

Anyone with information regarding these types of incidents is urged to contact the LAPD Organized Retail Crime Task Force at 818-374-9420 or to email ORC@lapd.online.

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Through Operation Online Guardian, suspects were arrested for various child sexual exploitation charges, including continuous sexual abuse of a child, lew acts with a child and contact or attempted contact with a minor for sex. 

The operation involving the Los Angeles Police Department and more than 100 agencies in Los Angeles, Orange, San Bernardino, Ventura and Santa Barbara counties was conducted from Aug. 12 through Aug. 23 as part of the Los Angeles Regional Internet Crimes Against Children (LA ICAC) task force led by the LAPD.

“Together we continue to stand strong in the face of predators who seek to sexually exploit children working tirelessly to create a safer environment for all,” Alan Hamilton, the LAPD Chief of Detectives, said in a news conference Monday.

The task force reminded parents of internet safety and the importance of keeping an open dialogue with their children.

“Parents and caregivers can help protect their children by educating themselves and their children on the dangers of the internet by monitoring your children’s internet usage,” LAPD Capt. Jay Mastick said. “By reporting potential child sexual abuse activity – you’re giving a potential victim a voice.”

Technology Aug 27

Telegram ignored outreach from child safety watchdogs before CEO's arrest, groups say

Crime and Courts Aug 20

Fugitive known as ‘ChrisLewd' charged in Southern California child sex crimes investigation

 Hamilton said the operation was executed in two phases:

• The first phase included proactive undercover investigations on a variety of Social Media platforms.
• The second phase included the service of multiple residential search warrants throughout the five counties, in addition to arrest warrants, which focused on child predators.

The LA ICAC Task Force included personnel from the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services, the LAPD’s Gang and Narcotics Division, and various LAPD Vice Units.

Arrests were made for offenses that included:

•  Sodomy of a child under 10 years of age
• Continuous sexual abuse of a child
• Continuous sexual abuse of a child
• Lewd acts with a child
• Meeting a minor for lewd purposes/sex
• Contact/attempt contact with minor for sex
• Sending obscene matter to a child for sex
• Penetration with a foreign object by force or fear
• Sodomy
• Possession of child sexual abuse material
• Distribution of child sexual abuse material
• Child annoying
• Failure to register as a convicted sex offender
• Violation of conditions of parole
• Violation of conditions of probation

Hamilton said specific arrest figures for individual counties were not immediately available. 

Although Operation Online Guardian has concluded, Hamilton vowed that the LA ICAC Task Force would remain vigilant and continue their mission to protect children.

More information is available at www.Missingkids.org/NetSmartz for educational internet safety tips and activities. 

The community may report potential child sexual abuse activity and have the harmful matter removed via the service “Take it Down” that is hosted on the websitewww.takeitdown.ncmec.org.

City News Service contributed to this report.

The men were stopped after a short pursuit along Coldwater Canyon Avenue south of Mulholland Drive, and investigators told NBCLA items believed to have been stolen from the home were found inside an Audi sedan the pair was driving.

The LAPD has been increasing patrols and focusing investigative efforts on residential burglary cases, which Department data shows have been on the rise.

Crime reports filed over the last four years show the number of burglaries in homes and apartments rose by nearly 40% from 5,173 in 2020 to 7,219 in 2023, according to the data.

Residential burglaries continued to rise in 2024, according to Chief Dominic Choi, but at a much lower rate, around 4%, as of August.

The overall burglary rate, which includes business and commercial burglaries, began to drop at the end of August, the LAPD said.

Los Angeles County Aug 28

George Gascón discusses Sherman Oaks break-in, stance on handling crime

Sherman Oaks Aug 27

Robbers tied to Sherman Oaks home invasion are arrested in Compton

The nature of the investigation that led to Wednesday’s detainments were not immediately available.

The operation involved officers and detectives from other law enforcement agencies, officials said.

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The Figueroa Corridor Human Trafficking Initiative will target sex traffickers who often exploit girls as young as 11 years old with violence, intimation and psychological abuse along the Figueroa Corridor, a 3-and-a-half-mile stretch of Figueroa Street between Gage Avenue and Imperial Highway, U.S. Attorney Martin Estrade said while standing next to Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, Los Angeles Police Chief Dominic Choi, Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón, Los Angeles City Attorney Hydee Felstein Soto.

‘Outdoor bordello’ in South Los Angeles

The Figueroa Corridor has been plaguing the neighborhood made up of businesses and residences for years, according to Estrada.

“There are 23 churches in the area and five middle schools and elementary schools. But this area is also ground zero for human trafficking where children and women are exploited and abused each and every day,” the U.S. Attorney said.

Conditions in the Figueroa Corridor are so horrendous, Estrada said, as young girls and women are being forced into commercial sex work even during daytime. And at night, the area turns into an “outdoor bordello,” Estrada explained.

“We see underage girls walking around and next to nothing, regardless of the weather, with pimps lurking nearby in cars supervising everything,” he described.

Through the initiative, Los Angeles authorities coordinate with federal investigators, aiming to identify, arrest and prosecute human traffickers.  

Targeting foster children for sex trafficking

Among the recent arrests and indictments, two people are accused of luring a 13-year-old girl who lived in a group home before forcing her to engage in prostitution. 

Nanci Jasmin Castillo, 31, and Jonathan Gonzalez-Reyes, 38, both of Anaheim, befriended the teen by first providing her with alcohol, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said. Then they allegedly sexually assaulted her before filming and taking pictures of the attack.

The collaboration between the federal and Los Angeles agencies has also led to the conviction of 33-year-old Donavin Dwayne Brandford, who is now serving a life sentence in federal prison for recruiting teenage girls from group homes and forcing them to work as prostitutes along the Figueroa Corridor and other places. 

Trafficking victim as young as 11 years old

Mayor Bass welcomed the success of the multi-agency initiative to clean up the Figueroa Corridor, which “has been a problem for many, many years,” as she highlighted many of the victims are young girls, who were already abused and neglected by their family before being put in the foster care system.

“What is common is 12 years old is the common age that girls are brought into trafficking,” Bass said. “With the launch of this effort, I know that we will be able to bring the scourge to an end.”

She also applauded federal and local authorities for recognizing the young girls on Figueroa Street are victims. 

“ I was just extremely proud to hear the officers refer to the children as trafficked and as victims. That is a cultural change,” Bass said. “It’s taken many years to get society to view the girls as victims and not as criminals, and to understand that it is a failure of our society.”

In the last six months alone, Los Angeles Police have rescued 84 minors from the area, including one as young as 11 years old, LAPD Chief Choi said.

Naked people on the street

As those who live near the Figueroa Corridor have been complaining about prostitution in their neighborhood, one woman said her concerns have deepened as her 5-year-old daughter becomes older. 

“My child couldn’t come outside and play because somebody might be up and down the street naked,” Helen Elaine Lee said. 

Lee said, as her daughter gets older, she’s asking more questions about what she’s seeing in her neighborhood.

“She would see someone young like her niece or younger cousins. Now she’s wondering why that girl gets to walk down the street with that type of outfit on, (saying) ‘Isn’t that for the swimming pool or the beach?’” 

Officers with the Los Angeles Police Department responded to the 9800 block of Tujunga Canyon Place to reports of a burglary at around 1:48 a.m.

Residents called 911 after they said a man was knocking on doors and was seen running through the back yard of at least two homes.

Officers found the man inside one of the homes where the homeowners were inside at the time. 

He was taken into custody and no injuries were reported.

Amoria Brown, 14, her newborn daughter Omoria Brown, who has been diagnosed with a heart condition and requires daily medication, and Sanaii Brown, 15, had last been seen around 10 p.m. Sunday in the 5200 block of East Huntington Drive, according to the Los Angeles Police Department.

This Ebony Alert has been deactivated.
The subjects have been located.
****************************************************************
Ebony Alert – BROWN, Amoria, Sanaii and Omoria – LAPD
Ebony Alert – Los Angeles, Riverside and San Bernardino Counties. pic.twitter.com/WDmyuyWhrn

— CHP – Alerts (@CHPAlerts) August 30, 2024

The CHP reported around 6 p.m. Thursday that the three had been found but did not provide further details.

The law creating the Ebony Alert went into effect New Year’s Day. It covers Black children, teenagers and young adults 12 to 25 years old who are reported missing under unexplained or suspicious circumstances, at risk, developmentally disabled, cognitively impaired or who have been abducted.

Through compliance checks, the LAPD uncovered 290 pounds of street lighting wire stolen from the Los Angeles Bureau of Street Lighting and an additional 290 pounds from the Los Angeles Department of Transportation. 

Over 3,300 pounds of copper and aluminum wire that belonged to Caltrans were discovered in addition to a bronze plaque for the city of Burbank.

The estimated value of the recovered metal parts was $46,000, the LAPD said.

East Los Angeles Jun 11

Thieves steal miles of copper wire, leaving LA's Sixth Street Bridge in the dark

Los Angeles Aug 27

Los Angeles' new target in combating copper wire theft: metal dealers

The compliance check resulted in the arrest of the owner of a Sun Valley recycling center for receiving stolen property.

The checks were carried out last Friday by the Metal Theft Unit of the LAPD in conjunction with the office of Los Angeles City Council President Paul Krekorian. 

Fourteen-year-old Amoria Brown and her 3-week-old daughter Omoria were last seen at about 9 p.m. Sunday in the 5200 block of East Huntington Drive. They were believed to be traveling to the high desert north of Los Angeles with family, the LAPD said in a news release that included photos of the missing girl.

An Ebony Alert was issued by authorities Tuesday.

Ebony Alert – Los Angeles, Riverside and San Bernardino Counties.
Last seen: Huntington Drive N, and Almont St., Los Angeles.@LAPDHQ

IF SEEN, CALL 9-1-1. pic.twitter.com/dnrySIqwBT

— CHP – Alerts (@CHPAlerts) August 27, 2024

Omoria, the newborn, suffers from a heart condition and requires daily medication, police said. Brown’s family said the young mother left without taking the infant’s medicine.

“It’s just a lot right now; trying to take it all in, trying to process it,” said Raquel Brown, Amoria’s guardian. “I just want the baby to be OK. She’s not a bad mom. I’m not going to say that she’s bad. She’s young. I can’t just expect her to change overnight, so I do want to make that clear, but I’m here to help.”

According to Raquel, the girl called her family to let them know she and the baby were OK. Their whereabouts remain unknown, although relatives believe she’s heading for the high desert.

When police initially released the notice of the disappearance, it included a missing 15-year-old girl who was described as Brown’s sister-in-law. She has since reunited with her relatives, according to her family.

Authorities asked anyone with information to contact detectives at 213-479-2827, 911 or L.A. Regional Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.

Year to date in 2024 LAPD Chief Dominic Choi said this week the number of residential burglaries rose by at least 4 percent compared with this time last year.

“Every family deserves to feel safe in their homes and in their communities,” Mayor Karen Bass said Friday in a news release addressing the recent series of home burglaries in the San Fernando Valley.

“I’ve directed urgent action in relation to recent incidents in the Valley,” she said.

Arrest data from the LAPD shows that in the same four-year period, from Jan. 1, 2020 through Dec, 31, 2023, relatively few people were booked on suspicion of residential burglary.

There were 104 arrests for residential burglary in 2020, 187 in 2021, 146 in 2022, and 172 in 2023 — or if compared with the number of crime reports, the arrests were made in less than 3% of the reported crimes.

Encino Aug 22

Encino homeowners hold virtual meeting after string of recent burglaries

san fernando valley Aug 14

More LAPD patrols added to San Fernando Valley areas amid spike in burglaries

In July a series of home burglaries took place in Encino, Tazana, and Sherman Oaks, and authorities told the I-Team they suspected several different groups of thieves had been working the neighborhoods.

The LAPD said it increased the number of patrols in the area, met with residents, and assigned detectives from specialized units to track-down the burglars.

Statistical crime report data was not available for 2024 because the LAPD is upgrading its reporting systems. Department officials said this week they expected public access to the data would be restored in the next few months.

Through compliance checks, the LAPD uncovered 290 pounds of street lighting wire stolen from the Los Angeles Bureau of Street Lighting and an additional 290 pounds from the Los Angeles Department of Transportation. 

Over 3,300 pounds of copper and aluminum wire that belonged to Caltrans were discovered in addition to a bronze plaque for the city of Burbank.

The estimated value of the recovered metal parts was $46,000, the LAPD said.

East Los Angeles Jun 11

Thieves steal miles of copper wire, leaving LA's Sixth Street Bridge in the dark

Los Angeles Aug 27

Los Angeles' new target in combating copper wire theft: metal dealers

The compliance check resulted in the arrest of the owner of a Sun Valley recycling center for receiving stolen property.

The checks were carried out last Friday by the Metal Theft Unit of the LAPD in conjunction with the office of Los Angeles City Council President Paul Krekorian. 

The takeover was reported at 12:30 a.m. at Jefferson Boulevard and Figueroa Street where water from at least two hydrants was seen spraying onto the intersection. 

The Los Angeles Fire Department arrived at the scene to shut off the fire hydrants. 

LAPD said there was no evidence of a shooting but there were possible stolen vehicles. 

No further details were immediately available. 

The search warrants led to the arrest of 18-year-old Robert Barceleau of Huntington Park, 18-year-old Leonel Gutierrez and 18-year-old Sergio Estrada of Los Angeles County as well as Frank Olano, age 22, of South Los Angeles.

NewsChopper4 was overhead when the search warrant for Olano was conducted in his South Los Angeles home Thursday morning.

“They can’t tell you anything. It’s frustrating but understandable,” Wactor said, explaining the officials with the Los Angeles Police Department thanked her for her patience as the investigation into her son’s death has been underway for nearly three months since the “General Hospital” actor was gunned down in late May in downtown Los Angeles.

“I feel that they would not have made the arrest, had they not felt like they had good evidence, strong evidence,” she said. 

As her son’s birthday approached on Aug. 31, Wactor remembered her “caring, compassionate” son.

“They robbed us of a wonderful person,” the mother said. “We miss him dearly.”

Wactor, who held a news conference Tuesday to criticize public officials, including Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón, for creating a “pro-criminal atmosphere,” once again pleaded with the public to be involved and demand change.

“When they do come up for the preliminary hearing, show up. Make sure that they know that we expect the strongest, stiffest penalty,” she said.  

Wactor, who died at the age of 37, was shot while trying to stop a group of three men attempting to steal his car’s catalytic converter.

Catalytic converters are popular targets for thieves because they are rich in precious metals that can be resold.

Wactor starred on “General Hospital” for two years and appeared in numerous TV shows and films.

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A 41-year-old woman reported to authorities that Olds raped her at her home in Los Angeles on Jan. 19, 2023. Two additional women came forward with similar reports of violent sexual assaults dating back to 2013.

Olds, a New York native who graduated from Yale University, works as an actor and screenwriter. The 52-year-old has credits as for being in multiple movies and TV shows like NCIS: Los Angeles, The Rookie, and FBI: International.

Victims reported that the Olds used his status as an actor and Ivy League Alumnus to arrange dates and meet women through dating applications. Initial encounters were of consent and turned violent shortly after, according to some of the victims.

The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s office charged Olds with seven felony sexual assault charges and the Los Angeles Superior Court issued a warrant for his arrest for $3.5 million.

The alleged perpetrator was arrested on Aug. 7, 2024 by West Bureau investigators in the area of Norway Lane and and Norman Place.

“We heard the same story again and again,” said Detective Brent Hopkins, a Special Assault Section supervisor. “Mr. Olds started off charming, but then used brutal violence to carry out these rapes. Some of these survivors suffered in silence for years before finding the strength to speak up. Now that he’s off the streets, we want to make sure everyone has a chance to be heard.”

Detectives believe there may be more victims nationwide due to Olds’ traveling career as an actor.

Anyone with information on additional victims or witnesses is urged to contact LAPD’s Operations West Bureau, Special Assault Section Det. Hopkins at 213-473-0417 or by email at 39343@lapd.online. 

The shooting happened in the 3000 block of Wabush Avenue, according to the LAPD.

The deceased is believed to be in his 20s.

The other shooting victim was transported to a hospital where his condition is unknown.

No arrests were made and a suspect description was not immediately available.

The incident happened during a traffic stop on July 28 when officers at the intersection of 113^th Street and Graham Avenue said they saw Mitchell’s car double-parked and facing against traffic. Police said they ordered Mitchell to exit the vehicle and claimed he resisted being handcuffed by “refusing to place his hands behind his back and grasping his front waistband/pocket area with his right hand.”

“An officer then struck Mitchell on the right side of his face, enabling the officers to complete the handcuffing,” LAPD said in a statement.

Richard Mendoza with the Police Protective League said the body cam footage shows that officers tried to get Mitchell to comply with their orders several times.

“He right away is uncooperative with officers,” said Mendoza. “2 weeks prior within the same geographical division officers made a traffic stop and they were ambushed.”

Mendoza said that the body cam footage also shows a crowd gathering, putting officers “in a disadvantage.”

According to Mendoza, the officers used the appropriate force to get the situation under control.

“They used a one distraction punch to the face they were able to get him into handcuffs,” said Medoza.

Mitchell’s attorney, Bradly Gage, said that the footage of the punch and the body cam video shows that his client’s civil rights were violated.

“I saw unnecessary escalation right from the beginning,” said Gage. “They immediately go to handcuff him and search him for weapons. This is not how white people are treated by the police and it’s not how black people should be treated by the police.”

Gage believes the offices racially profiled Mitchell by approaching him in the first place.

“I am confident that if Alex was white we wouldn’t be here today,” said Gage.

The LAPD said the two officers in the video have been taken off of street duties while the department investigated the incident.

This story uses functionality that may not work in our app. Click here to open the story in your web browser.

Through compliance checks, the LAPD uncovered 290 pounds of street lighting wire stolen from the Los Angeles Bureau of Street Lighting and an additional 290 pounds from the Los Angeles Department of Transportation. 

Over 3,300 pounds of copper and aluminum wire that belonged to Caltrans were discovered in addition to a bronze plaque for the city of Burbank.

The estimated value of the recovered metal parts was $46,000, the LAPD said.

East Los Angeles Jun 11

Thieves steal miles of copper wire, leaving LA's Sixth Street Bridge in the dark

Los Angeles Aug 27

Los Angeles' new target in combating copper wire theft: metal dealers

The compliance check resulted in the arrest of the owner of a Sun Valley recycling center for receiving stolen property.

The checks were carried out last Friday by the Metal Theft Unit of the LAPD in conjunction with the office of Los Angeles City Council President Paul Krekorian. 

LAPD said the encounter happened on Sunday during a traffic stop. A video taken by a witness showed two officers handcuffing a man in the street. The man is heard asking officers, “What did I do,” with one officer responding by striking the man with a closed fist across his jaw.

Video of the encounter is circulating social media with people calling for criminal charges against the officer. A coalition of Los Angeles civil rights leaders and organizations are demanding the LA District Attorney file assault charges against the officer.

“This video speaks for itself, and we do believe he should be criminally prosecuted and brought to justice and that’s the only way we can stop police abuse,” said civil rights activist Najee Ali.

Ali spoke at a press conference Monday regarding the incident.

“We have to hold these bad officers accountable cause at the end of the day, the Black community, the Black activists, we are not anti-police,” Ali said. “We want police in our community, good police. We want officers to come in and protect us, not abuse us.”

LAPD said the two officers involved in the arrest have been taken off street duties as the department investigates the case. It did not release the names of the officers involved.

The Los Angeles Police Department announced that detectives are investigating several hot prowl home burglaries in the aforementioned areas. According to law enforcement, the burglaries occurred Saturday and one of them included the sexual assault of a woman.

Authorities did not disclose exactly how many burglaries occurred on Saturday.

“Residents are encouraged to turn on all exterior lighting, lock all windows and doors, and be aware of any suspicious persons or vehicles,” LAPD said in a statement.

A description of the individual or party involved in the crimes was not available.

Anyone with information on the case is urged to contact LAPD Detective Bridges at 323-561-3465. Anonymous tips can be made by contacting Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS.

Through compliance checks, the LAPD uncovered 290 pounds of street lighting wire stolen from the Los Angeles Bureau of Street Lighting and an additional 290 pounds from the Los Angeles Department of Transportation. 

Over 3,300 pounds of copper and aluminum wire that belonged to Caltrans were discovered in addition to a bronze plaque for the city of Burbank.

The estimated value of the recovered metal parts was $46,000, the LAPD said.

East Los Angeles Jun 11

Thieves steal miles of copper wire, leaving LA's Sixth Street Bridge in the dark

Los Angeles Aug 27

Los Angeles' new target in combating copper wire theft: metal dealers

The compliance check resulted in the arrest of the owner of a Sun Valley recycling center for receiving stolen property.

The checks were carried out last Friday by the Metal Theft Unit of the LAPD in conjunction with the office of Los Angeles City Council President Paul Krekorian. 

The more than 11-minute video, including dashcam and body-worn camera footage, captured some of the events that followed the July 3 traffic stop in the southern Los Angeles County community.

At about 9 p.m. that night, officers pulled a driver suspect of DUI over near Broadway and Rosecrans Avenue, but before officers got out of the patrol vehicle, a barrage of rounds were fired from the suspect’s’ Chevrolet sedan, police said.

Authorities later determined the rounds were fired from a fully automatic AR-style rifle, a self-loading rifle that continuously chambers and fires rounds when the trigger is held down. The officers’ in-car camera captured the harrowing sound of rapid gunfire coming from the sedan and striking the patrol vehicle.

One officer can be heard asking, “What’d he hit us with, dude?”

One officer was struck by two rounds, resulting in graze wounds to the head. Both officers suffered cuts from shattered glass fragments from the patrol vehicle windshield. Several rifle casings from the fully automatic weapon were recovered at the location of the traffic stop, police said.

The driver left the scene. Officers attempted to chase down the car, but lost sight a few blocks later.

The suspect was arrested July 12.

Malcolm Darnell Guss Jr. was charged this week in the shooting. He faces one count of attempted murder of a peace officer; two counts of assault with a machine gun upon a peace officer; one count of shooting at an occupied motor vehicle; one count of possession of a machine gun; and two counts of possession of firearm by a felon.

Guss was arraigned Friday and pleaded not guilty to all charges. A preliminary hearing was scheduled for July 29,

Bond was set at $2 million. If convicted, Guss faces up to life in prison.

It was not immediately clear whether he has an attorney.

“The heinous attack on two law enforcement officers in what should have been a routine traffic stop is absolutely horrific,” LA County District Attorney Gascón said. “This unprovoked attack is a stark reminder of the dangers our law enforcement officers confront. This act of violence is not only an assault on the officers, but also on the values of safety and justice of our community. Our thoughts and prayers are with officers Stefan Carutasu and Joshua Rodney, and the Los Angeles Police Department during this time.”

When officers with the LAPD Topanga station responded to their house in the 20000 block of Sherman Way Thursday at around 11:20 a.m., they found the two 3-year-old boys unresponsive. 

After the children were taken to a hospital, one of the twins was pronounced dead while the other remained in critical condition, the LAPD said. 

Chris Burko lives nearby and said he rushed into the apartment to help when he heard screaming.

 “Trying to save two kids, one died, it sucks, really sucks. I would have loved to have saved both of them,” said Burko.

He performed CPR until the Los Angeles Fire Department paramedics arrived around 11:20 am.

Investigators believe the children had ingested some sort of substance.

The mother, who was identified as 22-year-old Jestice James, appeared to have shared the home with other residents. She along with her roommates were questioned by the LAPD.

James, who was later arrested and booked for murder, was being held for $2 million bail Friday.

Investigators are expecting to see the toxicology report on Monday, to gain a better idea of what happened to the two twin toddlers.

Anyone with information was urged to contact the LAPD. 

Los Angeles May 3

Murder increase in Los Angeles appears to slow

LAPD Sep 15, 2023

LAPD asks for help in case of 31-year-old woman found dead in downtown LA apartment

Investigators believe three masked men tried to break into the home on Addison Street near Colfax Avenue, but they were stopped by the property owner.

The homeowner fired his weapon, injuring one of the three suspected burglars.

While the injured suspect was conscious and breathing when officers responded to the scene, the other suspects ran away.

Carlsbad Jul 1

3 with ties to foreign burglary scheme sentenced for Carlsbad home break-in: DA

Santa Barbara Jun 26

Gardeners find hidden camera in front yard of Santa Barbara home

This is a developing story.

The children were found with another adult family member in South Los Angeles, according to Sgt. S. Blackman of the Los Angeles Police Department’s 77th Street station. They were not found with their mother, and Blackman said police are not looking for her at this time.

The children went missing around 9 a.m. Saturday in the 2000 block of West Florence Avenue, according to the LAPD.

Police said the mother, Timberly White, does not have custodial rights of the children, who are ages 6, 12 and 14.

No further information was immediately available.

Officers attempted to run a traffic stop at 135th Street and Broadway Avenue around 9 p.m. when the driver of a vehicle opened fire. The officers returned fire on the assailant but it’s unknown if the suspect was wounded.

One of the officers suffered a graze wound during the shootout. A second officer was also injured, the extent of his injury is unknown.

Both officers were transported to a hospital to be treated for their injuries.

The driver fled the scene. A description of the driver and vehicle were not immediately available.

This is a developing story, check back for details.

The settlement is expected to be distributed to 19 people, with the highest single check to an individual being $2.8 million, according to city records.

On June 30, 2021, the LAPD bomb squad overloaded a containment vessel to destroy illegal fireworks confiscated on 27th Street near San Pedro Street. But the detonation rattled the neighborhood, destroying over 20 homes and injuring at least 17 people. 

The explosion has also displaced 80 people and upended their lives.

The victims have been residing at the Level Hotel in downtown LA since the explosion while waiting for their homes to be repaired or looking for new affordable places to live. The city has been covering their living expenses. 

“They’ve been waiting for this for a long time,” said Ron Gochez of Union Del Barrio, a community group that has been representing the explosion victims. “It’s really unfortunate and really shameful that the city has forced these people to wait for three years to resolve this situation.”

The city council also approved an amendment authored by councilmember Curren Price, who represents the area, to extend the hotel stays for the victims until the end of February of next year. 

South LA Jun 30, 2022

One Year Later: A Timeline of the South LA Illegal Fireworks Explosion

South LA Jul 12, 2021

Community Forum Being Held for Residents Impacted by South LA Illegal Fireworks Explosion

The victims had said earlier this week that they were on the verge of homelessness as the contact the city had signed with the hotel expired last Friday. Some residents reported their hotel keys have stopped working, and one resident was told to vacate the room by hotel security.

“I’m a senior citizen and unemployed. I don’t have money to pay rent. Where am I supposed to live? Karen Bass promised us that the city would not evict us,” resident Geraldyne Hairston said.

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After an 18-year-old reported he was sexually assaulted by 49-year-old William Thomas in March 2023, LA County authorities issued a warrant for his arrest for $1.5 million. Detectives ended up tracing Thomas to a different state, arrested him and extradited him back to LA.

Authorities said Thomas used his alleged connections to the modeling industry to lure his victims, promising them that he could build their careers. But when his victims tried to reject his advances, he allegedly threatened to ruin their careers. 

“The manner in which Thomas carried out the offenses indicates planning, sophistication, and professionalism,” the DA office said in a statement.

Prosecutors said Thomas sexually assaulted the first victim, who was 18 years old at the time. The sexual battery started in 2017 and lasted through 2020. 

The second victim was 19 or 20 years old at the time of the assault in 2020. 

Then in 2022, Thomas allegedly began working with his third victim, 19 years old at the time, before sexually assaulting him until 2023.

Police said they have identified at least six men allegedly victimized by Thomas, and they believe there may be more victims. 

“He preyed upon young men by promising them jobs and monetary opportunities he never delivered,” said Detective Brent Hopkins, a Special Assault Section supervisor. “Once he made them reliant upon him, the abuse began. Now that he is no longer able to harm these victims, hopefully more will be able to tell their story.”  

Koreatown Jun 28

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Thomas is being held on $1,525,000 bail. 

If convicted as charged, Thomas faces a maximum sentence of life in state prison.

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“Nothing that is before us today will diminish any current power of the chief,” said Council president Paul Krekorian.

“The only thing that is before us is — to what extent — to expand the powers of the chief,” he said, urging a “yes” vote more than a year after he and Councilmen Hugo Soto-Martinez and Tim McOsker introduced plans for major reforms to the secretive discipline system used to punish officers for violating the law or department policies.

Soto-Martinez, however, was one of two “no” votes, saying the language of the measure isn’t specific enough, and the changes could create unintended loopholes that could derail punishment in some cases.

“I don’t think that it gets us what we had originally wanted,” Soto-Martinez said.

“We had wanted for there to be the ability to terminate police officers when they create misconduct, that is not happening today,” he said. “It’s going be a two-tiered system, some folks may be fired, many folks who create misconduct, will not.”

The Charter change as approved Tuesday would give the chief the authority to “directly” terminate officers who’d committed serious misconduct, as defined by new statewide regulations on police officers, including sexual misconduct, excessive force and fraud.

Police misconduct

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Fired officers would be able to challenge their terminations, and officers accused of other wrongdoing that didn’t meet the serious misconduct standard would be subject to the current LAPD system, in which the chief may only recommend termination or other punishment to an internal trial board, called a Board of Rights.

Those Boards, which almost always meet in secret, decide whether an officer is guilty of the violation and may reduce or eliminate the chief’s recommended punishment.

The Council’s proposed Charter amendment would also rescind a change pushed by the officers’ union in 2017 that allows officers to opt for a trial board of three civilian hearing officers, and would instead require the Boards be composed of one member of the LAPD command staff and two civilian hearing officers.

The all-civilian boards tended to reduce punishment more often, according to an analysis by the LA Police Commission’s investigative arm released last year.

The Council has to vote a second time next week in order to finalize the action and place the measure on the ballot.

Read the LA City Attorney’s discussion of the proposed changes here:

“This was a recommended finding only, not an adjudication,” the Commission’s Office of Inspector General emailed the I-Team, after former Commissioner William J. Briggs II said earlier this month that the OIG had cleared Moore of wrongdoing.

Crime and Courts Jun 11

‘Not a scintilla' of evidence ex-LAPD Chief ordered investigation of Mayor Karen Bass' USC scholarship

LAPD Feb 29

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“In fact, there’s not a scintilla of evidence to suggest that he [Moore] provided any type of order whatsoever,” Briggs announced at the Commission’s June 11 meeting.

The OIG’s representative at that meeting, assistant Inspector General Florence Yu, appeared to concur.

“Our investigation, uh, would show that we would recommend an unfounded finding for those allegations,” Yu said.

A law enforcement source familiar with the investigation said while Moore’s retirement precluded the Commission from making a final adjudication, the inquiry wasn’t dropped or closed because of Moore’s departure, and said enough information was gathered that supported the conclusion Briggs shared publicly June 11.

Moore has denied he gave an order to investigate the Mayor, and the LAPD said last year the LA Times story that first reported the existence of the complaints, was false.

News Release: Department Statement pic.twitter.com/MfTf3xT4gI

— LAPD PIO (@LAPDPIO) December 20, 2023

“I did not initiate, request, or authorize an investigation as alleged in any fashion,” Moore said in the statement.

In the complaint filed by 2 internal affairs detectives, reported first in December, 2023 by the LA Times, the detectives said they had received orders through their chain of command, but believed they’d been given by Moore, to open an investigation into the scholarship Karen Bass had received in 2011.

Here with ⁦@MayorOfLA⁩ Karen Bass and ⁦@tavissmiley⁩ addressing ⁩ global warming. This is about the ugly impact of environmental injustice on communities of color. ⁦@casciencecenter⁩ ⁦@kbla1580 ⁦@cspan⁩ ⁦@SierraClubCA⁩ ⁦@CornelWest⁩ pic.twitter.com/haoMPQmU3j

— Mark Ridley-Thomas (@MRTempower) June 19, 2024

That, the complaints said, followed the federal indictment of former LA County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas, who was later convicted of bribery, conspiracy, and fraud for a scheme with USC to provide a full scholarship for his son in exchange for the award of a County social work contract.

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Ridley-Thomas was sentenced last year to more than 3 years in prison.

He’s maintained his innocent and is free on bond while he appeals the conviction.

Bass has denied wrongdoing in accepting the scholarship, which she said was approved by a Congressional ethics panel, and said she did not author any bills while in Congress that benefited USC.

Her office declined to comment on the Moore investigation.

Lawyers for the detectives who filed the complaint were dismissive of the OIG’s findings, and said they thought the matter was closed without a thorough investigation.

“It appears that they are protecting his image as opposed to investigating wrongdoing,” said attorney Greg Smith.

The shooting happened on April 6 at around 8:45 p.m. when the victim, Luis Hernandez, was closing his bookstore along with his wife on South Alvarado Street near 7th Street. He had parked his vehicle in front of the shop with his three children inside, ages 2, 4 and 8. 

As Hernandez noticed two females arguing between his vehicle and a silver Toyota Camry that was double parked alongside his, he walked to the car to check on the situation and ensure his children’s safety, police said.

Then he saw the rear passenger side window from the Camry come down with a “firearm pointed directly at him,” according to Officer Christian Marroquin.

After the shooter fired his weapon, causing Hernandez to collapse, the suspect’s car sped off, traveling northbound on Alvarado Street then eastbound on 7th Street, the LAPD said.

“We don’t know if they are witnesses or if they are involved,” police said. “We just know that they were in the immediate area where the shooting occurred.”

According to the images released by the LAPD, the suspect’s Silver Toyota Camry, likely manufactured between 2008 and 2015, had four doors, a sunroof and tinted windows.

The male person of interest, who was described to be about 5 feet and 10 inches and 180 pounds, was seen wearing a black hat and gray shirt.

The female person of interest stands 5 feet and 6 inches, weighing about 140 pounds, police said. 

Anyone with information is urged to call the LAPD Rampart division.

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Westlake Jun 5

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“After careful consideration and a thorough review of all available evidence, we have decided not to pursue charges against USC student Ivan Gallegos,” the county prosecutor’s office said. “We believe that Mr. Gallegos’s actions were driven by a genuine fear for his life and the lives of others. Our heart goes out to the deceased’s family, friends and everyone impacted by this tragic incident.“

USC Jun 19

Coroner identifies man killed in stabbing at USC's Greek Row during car break-ins

LAPD Jun 17

USC student arrested in fatal stabbing of man breaking into car at Greek Row, police say

Xavier Cerf, 27, died at the scene Monday night in the 700 block of West 28th Street, east of University Avenue. The man, who investigators said appeared to be homeless, was found with stab wounds in an alley outside a fraternity house.

USC student Ivan Gallegos was arrested on suspicion of murder in connection with the stabbing.

Prosecutors said Thursday that Gallegos’ acted with reasonable belief that deadly force was necessary to protect himself and others after Cerf claimed to be armed with gun.

In a charge evaluation document provided by the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office, authorities said Cerf was seen on security camera video entering a 2010 Mercedes Benz parked near the rear of the fraternity house where Gallegos lives. Shortly after the car alarm activated, Gallegos, armed with a knife, and two others — one of whom was carrying a large wooden stick — went outside to investigate.

As they approached the car owned by one of their friends, the man refused to get out of the car and locked the door, claiming the car was “calling him” and “had his name,” according to the document. A few seconds later, he opened the driver’s door and appeared to be getting out when he told Gallegos he had a gun and reached for his waist, both witnesses told investigators.

Gallegos then grabbed the man’s hands with his left hand and stabbed him in the chest with the knife in his right hand, authorities said. A struggle ensued and Cerf was stabbed three more times, according to prosecutors.

It was later determined the man did not have a gun.

Gallegos was arrested at the scene without incident. He told officers he was armed with the knife because of safety concerns in the area, according to the charge evaluation document. He said there had been several recent car break-ins and violent crimes and that he was acting in self defense, believing that Cerf was armed.

Cerf, who moved to Southern Califronia from Texas, was a dancer and comedian, his mother told NBCLA. She said he had been hospitalized for 20 days, being treated for mental health before his release Monday — the same day he died.

Cerf’s mother said she does not defend the car break-in, but that her son did not need to die.

“I’m lost. I’m confused. I’m hurt,” she told NBCLA. “You took my son. You took my baby. You took my baby.”

Xavier Cerf, 27, died at the scene in the 700 block of West 28th Street, east of University Avenue. The man, who investigators said appeared to be homeless, was found with stab wounds in an alley outside a fraternity house.

USC student Ivan Gallegos was arrested on suspicion of murder in connection with the stabbing.

Police said Gallegos apparently saw someone breaking into cars in the neighborhood and confronted Cerf. LAPD interim Chief Dominic Choi told the Police Commission Tuesday morning that the man allegedly told the student he had a gun before the stabbing.

“The person reporting advised that he confronted the suspect, and the suspect told him he had a gun,” Choi said, adding that the man ran from the scene into the nearby alley

Gallegos, who was arrested at the scene without incident, was being held on $2 million bail, according to the Los Angeles Police Department and jail records. It was not immediately clear whether he has an attorney. Jail records did not indicate an initial court date.

Although USC is let out for summer, some students said they remain at their fraternity and sorority houses.

Through compliance checks, the LAPD uncovered 290 pounds of street lighting wire stolen from the Los Angeles Bureau of Street Lighting and an additional 290 pounds from the Los Angeles Department of Transportation. 

Over 3,300 pounds of copper and aluminum wire that belonged to Caltrans were discovered in addition to a bronze plaque for the city of Burbank.

The estimated value of the recovered metal parts was $46,000, the LAPD said.

East Los Angeles Jun 11

Thieves steal miles of copper wire, leaving LA's Sixth Street Bridge in the dark

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The compliance check resulted in the arrest of the owner of a Sun Valley recycling center for receiving stolen property.

The checks were carried out last Friday by the Metal Theft Unit of the LAPD in conjunction with the office of Los Angeles City Council President Paul Krekorian. 

The council’s 13-0 vote marks the beginning of a research project to collect information about how far the city can go to stop police officers from enforcing state traffic laws.

In particular, the council wants to halt “pretextual” traffic stops during which someone suspected of a crime is pulled over for breaking a less serious traffic law. Many of these pretextual stops have been used to recover illegal guns around the city.

The council said, with the intent to preserve a climate of trust in public institutions, it intends to create a new unarmed agency that will stop drivers and write tickets. These agents would be tasked with finding ways to help the city’s poorest communities, so they avoid facing fines or jail for car-related incidents.

“Implementing unarmed traffic response leads to reductions in violent incidents and increases trust in public institutions,” said Councilmember Eunisses Hernández.

Crime and Courts Jun 11

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Since 2020, some members of the city council have held discussions about removing police from traffic stops and some other traditional roles, often citing this 2019 study on Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) stops that showed relatively few stops led to discoveries of illegal guns or more serious crimes.

In 2022, the police department adopted new more restrictive rules for pretext stops, requiring a higher threshold of suspicion and specific documentation by officers before and after.

“If done properly, they are valuable tools. If done improperly, it jeopardizes public trust, and I’m against that part of it,” LAPD Chief Dominic Choi said.

Those restrictions have reduced the number of traffic stops. 

Choi said he has supported the idea that fewer stops make intervention more successful, saying that since the restrictions were implemented in 2022, officers have been finding more illegal guns while making fewer stops. 

“Last year, we had one of the highest years in number of guns that were recovered and arrested, so I would say no., That policy has not thwarted that effort,” Choi said.

Some on the council say the success rate of the pretext stops shouldn’t matter.

“I know the amount of people that they catch – burglars and many other things through traffic stops,” Councilmember Marqueece Harris-Dawson said. “That doesn’t make it a just or rational policy.”

The council’s vote Wednesday directs various agencies, departments, and officials to report back in the next few months on how all of this could work.

“In fact, there’s not a scintilla of evidence to suggest that he [Moore] provided any type of order whatsoever,” Police Commissioner William J. Briggs, II announced during a meeting of the Board of Police Commissioners.

The findings were confirmed by the Police Commission’s Office of the Inspector General, which conducted the investigation into the allegations of wrongdoing by the former Chief.

The claims about the alleged order, which Moore denied as soon as they were published in the LA Times in December, 2023, were contained in complaints filed by 2 detectives who worked in the LAPD’s internal affairs unit, known as the Professional Standards Bureau.

In the complaints the detectives objected to LAPD investigators being used to pursue information that, they wrote, could have been used by Moore in his effort to win a second term as Chief, and one complaint said it would be unethical for City resources to be used on such an endeavor.

The lawyer who represents the detectives was dismissive of the findings, as he said the Inspector General failed to thoroughly investigate the matter and never interviewed his clients.

“I can think of no instance when the IG or the Commission found any wrongdoing by Moore,” said attorney Greg Smith.

“It appears that they are protecting his image as opposed to investigating wrongdoing,” he said, and added other officers had raised similar concerns about the alleged Bass order in addition to his clients.

The Moore allegations surfaced after a former USC dean had been sentenced to federal probation, after she admitted to her role in a scheme to bribe former LA County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas with a scholarship and other benefits for his son.

Ridley-Thomas was convicted at trial and sentenced to 42 months in prison. He’s appealing the case.

Los Angeles Aug 28, 2023

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Bass received the scholarship to the USC school of social work while she was serving in Congress, and has said the House ethics committee had approved her receipt of the award, valued at around $95,000.

Bass’ office did not respond to a request for comment Tuesday.

At the Commission meeting Briggs appeared to confirm that the detectives who made the complaints are now themselves the subjects of an inquiry.

The motivations of those officers who made these false allegations are the subject and will be the subject of a continuing investigation,” he said.

Smith said that appeared to be an effort to silence whistleblowers.

“Now the Commission intends to retaliate against those officers in a blatant attempt to chill the rights of employees who wish to file complaints against high ranking LAPD officials who commit misconduct and abuse their positions,” Smith said.

The Inspector General’s office said it was not able to share its reports but said in a statement it had concluded its investigation into this allegation against former Chief Moore.

“The OIG recommended a finding of ‘Unfounded’ to the BOPC, meaning that a preponderance of the evidence showed that the investigation determined the allegation did not occur as described,” the IG said.

The victims, a man between the ages of 17 and 20, a man in his 20s, and an 18-year-old woman, were stopped in a car along Maple Avenue and 12th Street when a suspect vehicle pulled up beside them.

A person emerged from the sunroof of the suspect vehicle and fired multiple rounds, striking all three occupants, one of them fatally, according to the Los Angeles Police Department.

The suspect vehicle fled in an unknown direction and there is no vehicle description.

One of the men was transported to a hospital where he was pronounced deceased, the other man is in critical condition and the woman is in stable condition.

The motive for the shooting is unknown, and it is unclear if it is gang-related or connected to any nearby events.

The LAPD is asking anyone with information on the shooting to come forward.

Officers responded to reports of an assault with a deadly weapon on the 8600 block of Belford Avenue.

The off-duty officer was identified as Richard Podkowski. He is no longer in custody and is currently on administrative leave. 

According to LAPD, Podkowski has been employed by the department since 2018 and is assigned to the West Bureau.

No further details were immediately available.

The shooting occurred at about 6:40 p.m. when officers in the Southeast Division responded to a report of an assault with a deadly weapon. Responding officers arrived on the 100 block of Colden Street and encountered a man who was armed with a knife, LAPD said.

The department said officers exited their patrol car and immediately gave the man orders to drop the knife. He instead “advanced toward the officers,” prompting them to open fire, according to police.

LAPD said the man was struck by gunfire and taken to an area hospital, where he died of his injuries. LAPD did not identify the man officers shot, nor did they identify the officers who opened fire.

As per protocol, the shooting will be under investigation by LAPD detectives and the District Attorney’s Office.

Through compliance checks, the LAPD uncovered 290 pounds of street lighting wire stolen from the Los Angeles Bureau of Street Lighting and an additional 290 pounds from the Los Angeles Department of Transportation. 

Over 3,300 pounds of copper and aluminum wire that belonged to Caltrans were discovered in addition to a bronze plaque for the city of Burbank.

The estimated value of the recovered metal parts was $46,000, the LAPD said.

East Los Angeles Jun 11

Thieves steal miles of copper wire, leaving LA's Sixth Street Bridge in the dark

Los Angeles Aug 27

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The compliance check resulted in the arrest of the owner of a Sun Valley recycling center for receiving stolen property.

The checks were carried out last Friday by the Metal Theft Unit of the LAPD in conjunction with the office of Los Angeles City Council President Paul Krekorian. 

The updated anti-theft protection software is meant to deter thieves from stealing Hyundai vehicles.

In 2023, Hyundai vehicles were among the most stolen in Los Angeles, accounting for 13% of total vehicle thefts. Only second to Kia, which accounted for 17%.

The free event occurs at Eagle Rock Plaza at 2828 Colorado Boulevard, beginning Friday, May 17 through Sunday, May 19 from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.

The process takes approximately 30 minutes to update the anti-theft protection software.

Attendees will also receive a complimentary steering wheel lock and have the option to have their vehicle’s VIN etched to their catalytic converters, an added safety measure to prevent the sale of stolen parts.

Around 5:10 a.m. on April 6, police officers approached the gray 2019 Lamborghini Huracan after noticing the driver fell asleep behind the wheel near the intersection of Sherman Way and Reseda Boulevard.

Officers learned that the Lamborghini was reported stolen. The driver, 51-year-old Elliot Dugan, had multiple felony warrants, according to the Los Angeles Police Department.

Dugan was instructed to get out of the car and refused. After a few questions from officers, Dugan took off and sped west on Sherman Way.

The driver was going over 100 mph when he lost control and crashed into the center median on Vanalden Street.

Police searched for Dugan in the wreckage and his body was located several hundred feet away on a nearby sidewalk. He was ejected from the car on impact and died.

Multiple vehicles parked along Sherman Way were also damaged from the wreckage.

Commanding Officer of Media Relations of the LAPD, Kelly Muniz, said the investigation is still in the early stages.

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The LAPD is seeking the public’s help in locating the driver of a silver SUV believed to have struck and killed a man in his early 40s who was riding his bicycle. The crash happened shortly after 8 p.m. Friday near Woodley Avenue and Victory Boulevard.

According to police, the driver hit the bicyclist so hard that he was thrown from his bike and onto the roadway. The vehicle then took off southbound on Woodley Avenue toward Burbank Boulevard.

The bicyclist died at the scene. Law enforcement did not release the name of the victim.

Anyone with information on the case is encouraged to contact LAPD’s Valley Traffic Division Investigator Hansen at 818-644-8115 or Investigator Reyes at 818-644-8022.

The LAPD said nine officers were injured in the 2023 shootings. Of those struck by police gunfire, 16 people were killed and 14 were wounded. Police bullets missed the other four people.

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The report, made public Friday and set for discussion at the Board of Police Commissioners meeting next week, showed 12 of 2023’s police shootings took place in the department’s Central Bureau, followed by nine shootings in the San Fernando Valley, six in South Bureau, and five in West Bureau.

Officers fired far more rounds during all of the 2023 shootings than in prior years, with a total of 327 shots, compared with 215 in 2022 and 175 in 2021. Officers fired and missed three, hitting the person they were aiming at three fewer times in 2023.

Thirteen of the people shot by police were armed with guns, and four were holding replica or pellet guns. Twelve people shot were armed with knives or edged weapons, seven more than in 2022.

Four fewer people were shot by officers who thought they saw a weapon in 2023.

The report did not include information about whether reviews of the 2023 police shootings found they were within department policy, as the cases were still being reviewed.

In recent years, more LAPD officers have been found out of policy in shootings, including in 19 uses of lethal force in 2022, or about 34 percent of that year’s shootings.

Overall violent crime declined in 2023 in Los Angeles.

The LAPD review noted that few of the 1.1 million contacts between officers and the public, or the 42,373 arrests made in 2023, involved any use of force

Less serious uses of force, called “non categorical uses of force,” declined sharply in 2023 to 1,560 from 2,213 in 2022. Part of this was due to a reclassification in early 2023 of what is considered non categorical.

These incidents include officers grabbing people, using their body weight during an encounter, punching, striking, or knocking a person to the ground, and using less lethal weapons, such as Tasers, beanbag shotguns, or a 40mm launcher that fires a foam projectile.

Police responded at about 8:30 a.m. to the building in the 900 block of east Pico Boulevard after receiving a report of a person armed with a gun.

Four men were seen leaving the scene in the LA Fashion District in a white work van, according to police. Evidence markers could be seen on the ground at the entrance to the two-story building.

The business appeared to be a shipping company, police said. It was not immediately clear whether the victim who died at the scene was an employee.

Detailed descriptions of the men were not immediately available. A motive for the shooting was not immediately clear.

911 calls are handled at a different facility and have been unaffected by the trouble.

The business phone system’s servers went down during a power test March 28, and the city’s Information Technology Agency has not been able to resolve the problems, city officials told the I-Team.

“The ITA’s response team is working around the clock to fix the phones,” said Clara Karger, a spokesperson for Mayor Karen Bass, adding that a fix was expected “within days.”

“The phone lines that have been down at the LAPD Administration Building do not affect public safety,” an LAPD spokesperson emailed, and said the department, “continues to work with our City partners to rectify the technical issue as soon as possible.”

Offices in the building that regularly receive calls from the public include the Police Commission’s regulatory units that issue a variety of permits and manage the City’s official tow yards, Robbery-Homicide Division and other specialized detective units, and the records and identification bureau that provides copies of reports and other documents.

When the headquarters opened in 2009 former Chief Bill Bratton called it the, “most expensive, state-of-the-art police headquarters in the country,” and officials boasted about its fiber optic data networks and ultra-low flush toilets.

The City said the Recreation and Parks Department experienced a similar outage last week but ITA was able to restore service within days.

Authorities responded at about 11 a.m. to Redondo Boulevard and Apple Street, where they found the U-Haul truck parked on the street in a residential neighborhood. The man found dead inside the truck was identified by the coroner as 50-year-old Henry Jernigan.

A woman noticed the truck had been parked in the neighborhood for some time and decided to call the company. U-Haul sent an employee to check out the vehicle and it was then that the grisly discovery was made. The employee lifted the truck’s rear gate and discovered a tarp wrapped around what appeared to be a decomposing human body, police said.

“We’re recovering the van, which was reported stolen earlier this month,” said Lt. Robert Peters. “(The employee) found something in the back of it; he felt it might be remains, so he called police.”

On Friday, Los Angeles police issued a statement requesting help in finding the person “responsible for the murder.” Detectives determined the man suffered a gunshot wound to the head. The death was determined to be a possible homicide because the body was wrapped tightly under a tarp, police said.

The discovery has left residents in the immediate area feeling uneasy.

“I feel so bad for that person,” said Nuvia Recinos, who made the call to U-Haul that led to the investigation. “I say a prayer for him or her.”

Anyone with information on this incident is urged to contact West Bureau Homicide detectives at 213-382-9470.

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Attorney General Rob Bonta’s office concluded that no charges will be brought against the officer because he did not intend to kill her.

Valentina was killed Dec. 23, 2021 when she was shopping with her mother at the Victory Boulevard store. Valentina was trying on holiday dresses in a changing room when a bullet fired at an assault suspect by the officer ricocheted off the floor, went through a dressing room wall and struck the teen.

Valentina Orellana-Peralta’s family said their pursuit of justice was not ending.

“This is a crushing and devastating response from the AG,” said Sennett Devermont, the family advocate.  “This avoids all oversight all accountability that needs to be had.”

Devermont said Valentina’s family filed a civil lawsuit against the LAPD in continued pursuit for justice.

“This is a slap in their face for what is already a living nightmare,” Devermont said. “No family should have to go through this.”

North Hollywood Apr 17

California AG won't charge LAPD officer in shooting that killed teen in store dressing room

North Hollywood Jan 4, 2022

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Bonta’s office said in a statement that it was a “challenging” case for state investigators.

“This case was a particularly challenging one to process as this involved the loss of two lives,” Bonta said in a statement. “Any loss of life is a tragedy, and my heart goes out especially to the family of Valentina Orellana Peralta, who tragically lost her life and whose only involvement in this incident was by being at the wrong place at the wrong time. The California Department of Justice remains steadfast in our commitment to working together with all law enforcement partners to ensure an unbiased, transparent, and accountable legal system for every resident of California.”

Police released body-camera video of the encounter inside the store. That footage included images showing the suspect attacking a woman, beating her with the bike lock as officers arrived.

The video also captured the sound of police gunfire as officers found the suspect, still with the cable lock in his hand. The injured suspect was taken into custody and died at the scene.

The video released by the LAPD included audio from a series of 911 calls. In one call, a store employee tells a dispatcher a suspect is in the store attacking people with a bike lock. In another, a woman reports the sound of shots being fired in the store, saying there’s “a guy with a gun.”

No gun was found at the scene.

Through compliance checks, the LAPD uncovered 290 pounds of street lighting wire stolen from the Los Angeles Bureau of Street Lighting and an additional 290 pounds from the Los Angeles Department of Transportation. 

Over 3,300 pounds of copper and aluminum wire that belonged to Caltrans were discovered in addition to a bronze plaque for the city of Burbank.

The estimated value of the recovered metal parts was $46,000, the LAPD said.

East Los Angeles Jun 11

Thieves steal miles of copper wire, leaving LA's Sixth Street Bridge in the dark

Los Angeles Aug 27

Los Angeles' new target in combating copper wire theft: metal dealers

The compliance check resulted in the arrest of the owner of a Sun Valley recycling center for receiving stolen property.

The checks were carried out last Friday by the Metal Theft Unit of the LAPD in conjunction with the office of Los Angeles City Council President Paul Krekorian. 

Data from the Los Angeles Police Department shows, as of mid-March, the murder rate had climbed to about 30% above the same period in 2023, and the number of people shot, comprising both murders and people who survived shootings, also crept above early 2023 numbers.

LAPD Chief Dominic Choi told the Board of Police commissioners this week, that since mid-March, the 30% increase had “dropped” to about 9.5% with the city recording 81 murders compared with 74 during the same period in 2023.

“I’m happy to say though, for this prior week, we had zero homicides,” Choi said, referring to the week ending April 6.

Within this year’s murders, crime reports analyzed by the I-Team show most of the victims were men between 19 and 29 years old, guns were the most frequent weapon used, and the majority occurred in Central and South Los Angeles.

During the same time period other large cities in California recorded fewer murders, including a near 31% drop in San Francisco, a 47% drop in San Diego, and a 17% drop in Oakland, according to a data dashboard assembled by AH Datalytics, a firm that provides crime and other data analysis.

Jeff Asher, one of the company’s founders and a former CIA analyst, said his review of data from 202 cities nationwide showed an average decline of nearly 20% in 2024.

“I wouldn’t expect necessarily that figure holds up through the year, but even half as large of a decline would be the largest 1 year decline ever recorded,” he told the I-Team.

“A place like Los Angeles, which saw a big decrease in 2023, and this year is not seeing a decrease, it’s kind of early in the year to understand that, and there’s so many factors that come into play that it’s really difficult to necessarily ascertain the exact reasons why,” he said.

Mayor Karen Bass’s office said her Office of Community Safety is focused on trying to prevent violence through partnerships with community groups and organizations and investments in more intervention strategies.

Downtown LA Mar 28

2 charged with murder in shooting death of man at LA Live restaurant

LA County Feb 15

2 gang members charged in southeast LA murder spree

“We will do everything we can to keep Angelenos safe, such as working with the Los Angeles Police Department to increase patrols, supporting the homicide division’s efforts to monitor and mitigate loss of life,” said spokesman Zach Seidl.

“During her first year in office, both violent crime and homicides decreased compared to the year before she was elected,” he said.

Violent crime began to drop nationally after the abnormal peaks recorded during the Covid-19 pandemic, with more significant reductions in 2023, according to data from California’s Department of Justice and the national Bureau of Justice Statistics.

Statewide data from California showed that in 2022, the most recent year for which a full accounting was available, the number of murders declined by about 5% compared with 2021, and the murder rate dropped to about 5.7 per 100,000 people, significantly below the peaks of 10 and 9 per 100,000 that were recorded in the 1980s and 1990s.

“It’s unclear how they accessed the vault itself inside the building. There were no obvious signs of entry into the vault,” said LAPD Chief Dominic Choi, raising questions about whether the vault was unlocked or someone involved with the break-in knew how to open it.

The burglary at the building on Roxford Street first reported to the LAPD around mid-day Sunday, March 31 is being investigated by the FBI as the cash facility is insured by the FDIC, police said.

The FBI declined to comment on the chief’s remarks.

Several law enforcement sources told the I-Team the amount of cash stolen was “in the $20 millions,” slightly less than the $30 million widely reported in early news accounts.

Choi confirmed publicly that the warehouse is owned by the Canadian private security firm GardaWorld that provides armored truck cash pickup services to retail businesses.

GardaWorld did not immediately respond to email or phone messages requesting comment on the burglary.

Sylmar Apr 4

‘They knew what they were doing.' Heist expert weighs in on Sylmar cash theft

Sylmar Apr 4

Easter cash heist: Burglars steal millions from money storage facility in Sylmar

An LAPD crime report on the theft said the thieves made access to the building by “tunneling,” and a small section of an exterior wall on the building had been boarded-up or repaired, but it was not clear if the damaged wall was related to the burglary.