Law Enforcement

Protecting officers and the public with LPR technology
Since our country's founding, personal freedoms have been in constant battle with the protection of the greater good. That battle continues today in Los Angeles as some privacy rights groups attempt to limit the tools that law enforcement uses every day to keep the public safe. LPR technology does nothing more than what officers have been doing manually since the creation of the license plate: writing down license plate numbers, or radioing license plates in for checks against criminal databases. LPR simply makes the process more efficient, allowing the officer to look at all license plates equally and better focus on his or her surroundings.
LAPPL Blog

Man killed in gang-related shooting in North Hills apartment building
A 21-year-old man was fatally shot early Wednesday in the lobby of a North Hills apartment building in what police said was a gang-related attack. The unidentified man was killed about 4 a.m. in the apartment foyer in the 8500 block of Columbus Street. "One thing is clear -- this is gang-related and the oft tragic consequence when gang rivals meet," said Lt. Paul Vernon, commanding officer of the Mission Detective Division.
Los Angeles Daily News

Caught on video: Do you know the man who shot a Woodman Avenue store owner in Arleta?
Do you recognize this man wielding a shotgun outside a wireless phone store in Arleta? He is wanted in the July 8 shooting death of store owner Nester Hernandez on the Woodman Avenue sidewalk. The man, seen on surveillance video outside the cell-phone story at 8940 Woodman Ave., apparently confronted 34-year-old Hernandez around 8:40 p.m. and shot him to death, say Los Angeles police.
Los Angeles Daily News

Second attacker sought in beating death of Army Ranger
Police have arrested one man and were searching for another in connection with the beating death of an Army Ranger at a Los Angeles nightclub. Authorities have issued an arrest warrant for Luan Thin Lam, who police say along with Steve Hong, 27, beat to death 24-year-old Albert Song inside ICON Club in downtown L.A. in June.
Los Angeles Times

Second man re-arrested in connection with medical marijuana dispensary robbery, pursuit
A 23-year-old man who allegedly robbed a medical marijuana dispensary and then led police on a pursuit in which his accused accomplice fired at officers was back in custody Thursday, two days after being released on $50,000 bail. Tyler Gilson, 23, of Peoria, Ariz., was arrested in his home state in connection with the criminal complaint filed Wednesday, a day after his release on bail, according to Jane Robison of the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office.
City News Service

Clippers' Lamar Odom investigated in paparazzo confrontation
Los Angeles Clippers forward Lamar Odom is being investigated in connection with a reported battery and grand theft incident involving a paparazzo in Hollywood, L.A. police said Thursday. The incident, which was captured on video, took place around 4:45 p.m. Wednesday on El Cerrito Place near Franklin Avenue. The video shows a photographer questioning Odom about whether he was having a relationship with a woman other than his wife, Khloe Kardashian.
Los Angeles Times

Residents greet new captains at Hollenbeck "Coffee with Cops" event
The new captains of the LAPD Hollenbeck Police Station on Tuesday attended "Coffee with Cops," a community meet and greet event at El Rinconsito del Mar in Boyle Heights. Captain III Martin A. Baeza, who replaces Captain Anita Ortega, is the latest addition to Hollenbeck's new leadership. He joins Captain I Gina Sanders who moved to the Hollenbeck Station earlier this year. Captain Baeza, a Mexican immigrant who migrated to the US as a toddler, has been with the LAPD for over 28 years.
EGP News

Cyberattacks are the bank robberies of the future
Bank robbers don't rob banks anymore. They don't need guns, and they don't wear masks. Instead, they hide behind their computer screens and cover their digital tracks. In today's world, there are multiple ways for cybercriminals to make money long before cash is actually transferred out of a bank account. Robbing a bank has become one of the last cogs in a much broader operation. Online theft is almost always part of a much grander scheme.
CNN Money

The Courts

Supreme Court ruling on property seizures affects Westside
A decision by the nation's highest court not to review an appeal by Los Angeles to allow city officials to confiscate belongings left on the street by homeless persons was aimed at those living on Skid Row, but will reach beyond downtown Los Angeles all the way to the city's coastline. The Supreme Court denied the petition for review June 24 of the case Lavan vs. City of Los Angeles, forbidding the city from taking possession of clothing and others items of homeless individuals left behind on streets.
Argonaut News

Prisons & Parole

Arsonist from 1981 fire denied parole
A convicted arsonist from a 1981 blaze in North Hollywood that claimed the life of a Los Angeles firefighter was denied parole earlier this month following heavy opposition from fire officials and Councilman Paul Krekorian. Mario Catanio was found guilty more than three decades ago of igniting Cugee's Restaurant at 5300 Lankershim Boulevard for hire by the business owners. While battling the blaze on Jan. 28, 1981, firefighter Thomas G. Taylor lost his life.
North Hollywood Patch

Federal judge expands prison oversight to state hospitals
Citing "significant and troubling evidence" that inmates are not receiving adequate mental health care, a federal judge Thursday expanded court oversight to include the Department of State Hospitals. Judge Lawrence Karlton said prisoners' lawyers said severe staffing shortages, wait lists and even "denial of basic necessities including clean underwear" may be harming mentally ill prisoners. His order requires a court-appointed monitor to
report back in 75 on those conditions.
Los Angeles Times

Some prison inmates have ended meal strikes, officials say
As meal strikes and work stoppages continue in most of California's prisons, 10 inmates at one facility have ended their protests and resumed eating, officials said. Those who were on strike at the High Desert State Prison in Susanville, in northeastern California, are no longer under medical observation, said the federal overseer of healthcare in the corrections system. Other officials said they had not met any of the strikers' demands.
Los Angeles Times