Law Enforcement

LAPD SWAT Officers Deliver 2K Toys To Children With Musculoskeletal Conditions
Los Angeles Police Department Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) officers Wednesday delivered 2,000 toys to youth patients. The 20th annual holiday tradition began at 10 a.m. at the Orthopaedic Institute for Children, 403 West Adams Blvd.
CBS2

FBI, LAPD Arrest Dozens of Alleged Gang Members in East L.A. Area; More Sought
Twenty-five members of an East Los Angeles street gang were arrested and five more were being tracked as fugitives as hundreds of agents swarmed the Eastside on Wednesday in an operation authorities said was aimed at weakening a gang that has been rooted in the community for decades. The gang has been active in Boyle Heights for 50 years, officials said, describing the raids as a “day of accountability.”
KTLA5

Parents of man killed by deputies in West Hollywood file suit
The parents of an aspiring television producer taken hostage in a West Hollywood apartment and then killed by sheriff's deputies who mistakenly thought he was a suspect have filed a federal lawsuit alleging the deputies were negligent and used excessive force. The lawsuit offers new details about the killing of John Winkler, 30, who was shot April 7 by deputies responding to a report of a man with a knife at a West Hollywood apartment complex.
Los Angeles Times

LA Co. Sheriff's Deputy Injured In Motorcycle Crash
“Deputy (Timothy) White was riding a department motorcycle when he struck a patch of gravel on the roadway and subsequently collided into the hillside,” Dept. Juanita Navarro-Suarez said. He was transported to a local hospital with non-life threatening injuries.
CBS2

Los Angeles Police Commission Holds Public Meeting After Excessive Force Protests
Protesters who took to the streets of Los Angeles following fatal police-involved incidents in Ferguson, Missouri and New York City voiced their concerns at a L.A. Police Commission hearing Tuesday. Many Angelenos vented their frustration during the meeting, which was the first held since more than 300 people were arrested on the streets of downtown L.A. over three days following a grand jury decision not to indict officer Darren Wilson.
ABC7

Two Hospitalized After South LA Shooting
Two men were hospitalized Wednesday afternoon after a South Los Angeles double shooting that is believed to be gang related. One man in his 20s and one in his 40s were shot around 2:45 p.m. at the corner of Vermont Avenue and 65th Street, according to LAPD.
NBC4

City Government

Los Angeles broadens access to arts development funds
Warning the artistic community should never be underestimated, the Los Angeles City Council on Wednesday approved a plan that opens the use of the Arts Development Fund to more projects through the city. On an 11-0 vote, the council reversed a legal opinion from former City Attorney Carmen Trutanich that the monies paid by developers must be used within one block of a project. Under the new guidelines, they can be used on projects in a reasonable area of a development.
Los Angeles Daily News

In next L.A. City Council election, voters must be wary of clones: Editorial
Nothing about the upcoming Los Angeles City Council elections should be taken for granted, not after memorable upsets in San Fernando Valley races for several other offices the past few years proved that anything is possible. But a few predictions can be made as the fields of candidates take shape for the March 3 primaries in seven of the 15 City Council districts.
Los Angeles Daily News

Protests

Protests against police continue in Bay Area; Oakland websites hacked
After four straight nights of anti-police protesters crowding Bay Area streets — prompting authorities to fire rubber bullets at crowds and arrest 19 people late Tuesday alone — the hacker collective Anonymous on Wednesday apparently sought vengeance. Several websites for the city of Oakland were knocked out in a likely cyberattack. By Wednesday night, the sites for the city and the Fire Department were operating, but the Police Department's website remained disabled.
Los Angeles Times

Black police straddle a line between race and duty
Jorge "Jinho" Ferreira feels the tension between being black and carrying a badge every day as a sheriff's deputy in Alameda County, California. "I feel like you have to prove yourself on every level," said Ferreira, 39, who patrols about 30 miles east of San Francisco. "You have to prove yourself to the black community, you have to prove yourself to all of your co-workers, you have to prove yourself to society."
FOX11

State Government

A more mature Gov. Brown has less to say in speeches, plenty to do
Brown announced Monday that he'll combine his fourth-term inaugural address with his required annual State of the State speech. No two bites from essentially the same apple. And no elegant inaugural balls. No big-name concerts. Maybe a modest little gathering down at the state railroad museum, plugging his bullet train project. But no hitting up special interests to pay for an extravagant soiree. No tuxes, gowns and rear-kissing at swearing-in festivities. Well, amend that. There'll always be plenty of rear-kissing, regardless.
Los Angeles Times