Los Angeles considers letting civilian workers enforce traffic violations

LAPD Detective Jamie McBride discusses 'reckless' L.A. traffic stop plan to allow civilians to make traffic stops despite the knowledge that traffic stops can lead to violent attacks from suspects or be the start of larger investigations.

Fox News

LAPD Motorcycle Officer Injured During “Possible Hit-and-Run" Collision On I-10 In Downtown LA

A Los Angeles Police Department motorcycle officer was injured during a "possible hit-and-run" collision on the I-10 Freeway in downtown Los Angeles on Thursday. According to California Highway Patrol, the crash happened at around 3:15 p.m. in eastbound lanes near the freeway transition to the southbound I-110, when the officer was reportedly struck by a black Tesla. Lanes were closed as investigators surveyed the scene of the incident and took the officer to a nearby hospital with injuries that are not considered life-threatening. All lanes have since been reopened. The cause of the crash remains under investigation. 

CBS 2

LAPD Makes Arrests In Benedict Canyon Triple Slaying

Los Angeles police detectives have taken into custody several suspects in connection with a triple slaying outside a Benedict Canyon home earlier this year, law enforcement sources told The Times. After months of investigation that led detectives to a Beverly Hills high-rise, where a getaway car had been spotted, police have taken into custody those they say were involved in the Jan. 28 attack, which left three dead and four others critically wounded, according to law enforcement sources. Three suspects have been identified, sources told The Times. An LAPD news conference is scheduled for 9 a.m. Capt. Jonathan Tippet, who leads the Robbery-Homicide Division, is expected to provide details of how the crime unfolded and how the suspects were captured. The deadly attack occurred outside a short-term rental home in the 2700 block of Ellison Drive, a street of large hillside homes north of Beverly Hills. Neighbors reported seeing several cars driving away minutes after gunfire rang out around 3 a.m., police said. Detectives released a crime alert with information they had received from both witnesses and surveillance video from the scene. They said the suspects were last seen driving a blue, four-door Tesla with damage to its right front fender and no license plates. That vehicle was tracked to a condo complex in the 8600 block of Wilshire Boulevard, where one of the apartments was searched in March for forensic evidence connected to the shooting.

Los Angeles Times

LA Man Arrested For Causing Triple Fentanyl Overdose Of Local Students

Local law enforcement agencies marked National Fentanyl Awareness Day by announcing multiple arrests for fentanyl-overdose related crimes, including a suspect responsible for the triple overdose of a group of Santa Monica teens last year. Officials announced the arrest of 22-year-old Los Angeles resident Adrian Benavides-Schorgi on May 9 in connection with a 2022 incident. The three female students, who were all enrolled in the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District, were transported to the hospital from a Santa Monica apartment on May 24 of last year after experiencing a fentanyl overdose. The following morning two of the girls were in critical but stable condition, while the third was conscious and alert. Benavides-Schorgi, 22, of the Jefferson Park neighborhood is accused of selling counterfeit pills containing fentanyl that led to the girl’s life-threatening overdoses who thought they were buying ecstasy. Benavides-Schorgi was charged by a federal grand jury with one count of distribution of fentanyl resulting in serious bodily injury for the alleged narcotics sale. He was arrested on April 27, and he was ordered held without bond at a hearing the following day. A trial is scheduled for June 20.

Westside Current

Search For Driver Underway After Deadly Hit-and-Run Crash In North Hollywood

Authorities are searching for a hit-and-run driver after a person was struck and killed in North Hollywood. The deadly incident happened just before 4 a.m. Thursday near Saticoy Street and Laurel Canyon Boulevard, according to the Los Angeles Police Department. When officers arrived, they found a man dead. The victim has not yet been identified. Authorities have not been able to provide a description of the suspect or the vehicle involved. Anyone with information is urged to call the police. 

ABC 7

Stolen French Bulldog Reunited With Owners Day After Violent Dognapping In Ladera Heights

A French bulldog that was stolen during a violent kidnapping in Ladera Heights early Wednesday morning has been reunited with his owners. Bruno was taken just a block from his home during a morning walk on Wooster Avenue. "Just no regard for the human being," said Stefan Becker, Bruno's owner who was brutally attacked while his beloved pup was being dragged away by his leash. "No regard for the item — the dog." Becker says that a car pulled up next to them as they walked down the street at around 5:45 a.m. Two people wearing ski masks jumped out of the car and began shouting at him to give them Bruno. He was punched in the mouth and kicked several times while he was down, helpless as Bruno was being forced into the stranger's vehicle. "I care about my dad a lot, and I care about my dog a lot," said Becker's 11-year-old daughter the day that Bruno was taken. "Now, I forgive you, but, what you've you done to my dad, it's really hard to forgive you, for what you've done to my dog."

CBS 2

Search Continues For Missing 14-Year-Old Girl From Paramount

Authorities are still searching for a 14-year-old girl who was last seen walking away from her Paramount home over the weekend. Jaqualine Ramos Espinoza was last seen by family at around 1 a.m. Saturday in her bedroom at her family home in the 8400 block of Fairton Street, according to a press release from Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department. Family members did not realize that she was gone until 8 a.m. Deputies say that there are no signs of foul play, and all indications suggest that Espinoza left on her own accord. This is supported by camera doorbell footage from a neighbor, which shows the girl walking away from the home at 3:30 a.m. the same day. She was wearing a gray hooded sweatshirt and black-and-white spotted pajama pants, as well as black Converse shoes. Espinoza has never run away from home before, deputies say, and due to the fact that she's just 14, they are considering her to be an at-risk missing person. 

CBS 2

Man Indicted On 98 Charges Including Hate Crimes For 2022 Shooting At Taiwanese Church In California

A man accused of fatally shooting one person and wounding five others at a Southern California church luncheon last year has been charged with dozens of federal hate crimes in connection with the attack, which investigators said was motivated by political hatred of Taiwan. The indictment announced Thursday by the U.S. Department of Justice charges David Chou, of Las Vegas, with 98 counts including weapons and explosives charges and forcefully obstructing the free exercise of religion. Messages seeking comment from attorneys who have represented Chou, 69, in a separate case in state court were not immediately returned. Authorities said Chou chained and nailed shut exit doors before launching the attack on a gathering of older parishioners from the Irvine Taiwanese Presbyterian Church in Laguna Woods on May 15, 2022. Chou had two handguns, bags of ammunition and four Molotov cocktail-style devices, and was motivated by hatred of Taiwan, where he grew up, investigators said. Among the charges were 45 counts of obstructing free exercise of religious beliefs by force, “which resulted in the death of one person, included attempts to kill 44 others, and involved the use of a firearm and attempted use of explosives and fire,” the Justice Department said in a statement.

KTLA 5

Phoenix Mourns After Back-to-Back Deaths Of Officers

The Phoenix Police Department is in mourning after the deaths of two officers in as many days. Officer Mark Aker died from a medical emergency while on duty Wednesday evening. Sgt. Phil Krynsky told KTVK that the death did not occur on a call. “The Phoenix Law Enforcement Association is heartbroken over the unexpected loss of Officer Mark Aker yesterday. For nearly 30 years, Officer Aker served the citizens of Phoenix with the utmost integrity and dedication,” police union spokesperson President Darrell Kriplean said. Aker served with the department since 1994 and was assigned to the Maryvale Estrella Mountain Precinct. On Tuesday Sgt. Tim Wheeler died from a medical emergency at home, KTAR reported. Wheeler joined the department in 2007 and was assigned to the Desert Horizon Precinct. Officials said an investigation into Aker's death is ongoing. 

PoliceOne

‘I've Been Shot In The Throat!': BWC Shows Horrifying Moment Florida Officer Is Shot By Suspect

Body-worn camera footage shows the violent moments that led up to a Jacksonville officer being shot in the neck by a suspicious person. The Jacksonville Sheriff's Office released BWC footage from an investigation and pursuit on April 18 that ended with the suspect fatally shot outside Baptist Medical Center South, First Coast News reported. An off-duty officer working at the hospital noticed a suspicious vehicle circling in the parking lot continuously for more than 10 minutes. The officer attempted to stop the car, but the driver, Jeffrey Alan Martin, fled as officers responded to the scene. Another officer attempted to stop the car, but Martin refused. The video shows Martin yelling "shoot it," while slowly driving by a police vehicle and firing at it once. A PIT maneuver was attempted in the parking lot but failed. Martin rammed one of the police vehicles and then collided head-on with another. Other police vehicles pinned the driver in. In the video, Officer Taylor Smith approached the passenger side of Martin's car.  

PoliceOne

L.A. County Hospital Seeks Help Identifying Patient

Officials at a Los Angeles County Hospital are asking for the public’s help in locating family or friends of a patient who was admitted without any identification. The approximately 70-year-old patient was brought to Harbor-UCLA Medical Center by the Los Angeles Police Department for evaluation on April 27, according to a news release from the hospital. He is described as white, 5 foot 7 inches tall, weighing around 100 pounds, with blue eyes, white-gray hair and a beard. He has a slim build with no visible tattoos. The patient has told staff that he is British but does not have a driver’s license or any other form of identification. Anyone with information that may help identify the man or locate his family is asked to contact the hospital at 424-306-6851. 

KTLA 5

LACo: COVID Vaccines, Medications Remain Available As Emergencies End

With federal emergency declarations stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic ending, Los Angeles County health officials reminded residents Thursday that vaccinations remain readily available, along with approved therapeutics and testing kits. In a statement, the county Department of Public Health noted that COVID-19 “continues to be one of the leading causes of death in Los Angeles County, requiring ongoing efforts to reduce severe illness through readily available vaccinations, testing and treatment.” Health officials said the federal government will continue to make its supply of the therapeutic medications Paxlovid and Molnupiravir available at no cost regardless of insurance coverage, while state law requires insurance plans to cover the costs of vaccines, testing and Paxlovid through Nov. 11. “We are grateful that Los Angeles County is in a better place and that emergency declarations are no longer needed,” county Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer said in a statement. “I am aware that each day thousands of people throughout Los Angeles County continue to be impacted by COVID-19, whether they need to miss work due to illness, require hospital care, or are experiencing the effects of long COVID.

MyNewsLA

About the LAPPL: Formed in 1923, the Los Angeles Police Protective League (LAPPL) represents more than 9,200 dedicated and professional sworn members of the Los Angeles Police Department. The LAPPL serves to advance the interests of LAPD officers through legislative and legal advocacy, political action and education.