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Daily Local & Regional NewsWatch
LA Police Protective League

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Los Angeles
Police Protective League
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the union that represents the
rank and file LAPD officers

  Daily Local & Regional NewsWatch

Daily News Digest
from LA Police Protective League

June 4, 2018
 

Law Enforcement News

No death penalty for accused killer of KCK police captain
Prosecutors said Friday they will not seek the death penalty for the man accused in the 2016 killing of a Kansas City, Kan., police captain. Jamaal Lewis is charged in Wyandotte County District Court with capital murder in the fatal shooting of Robert David Melton. On Friday, he waived his right to a preliminary hearing and pleaded not guilty to the charges. During the brief hearing, prosecutors said they had agreed to not seek a sentence of death. In return, defense attorneys agreed to not pursue a defense of mental disease or defect when the case goes to trial. With the death penalty no longer an option, Lewis, 22, could face a sentence of life with no chance of parole if convicted of capital murder. District Judge Wes Griffin scheduled the trial for Nov. 5.
Kansas City Star

Charges Pending as LAPD Attacked During Funeral Reception
Additional charges could be filed Saturday against nine people arrested in South Los Angeles after bottles were thrown at police officers sent to break up a gathering of more than 100 people, many believed to be gang members. The gathering was for the funeral after-party for Cassandra Brown, who died of cancer on Mother's Day. She was 47. Her funeral was at a church near the street where LAPD ultimately declared an "unlawful assembly," police said. "Sadly, it culminated into people spitting on my officers and throwing bottles," said LAPD Capt. Louis Paglialonga.
NBC 4

Man shot and killed outside South Park Recreation Center
A man was shot and killed outside a Los Angeles recreation center after an argument on Sunday evening, police said. The victim, who was approximately 48 years old, was killed after a verbal dispute near the South Park Recreation Center at Towne Avenue and E. 51st Street, according to Officer Norma Eisenman, a Los Angeles Police Department spokeswoman. The suspect opened fire with a handgun outside near the park surrounding the recreation center, Eisenman said. It was not immediately clear if the shooting was gang-related.
Los Angeles Times

Man on bicycle shot and killed in South L.A.
A man riding a bicycle was shot and killed after an assailant drove up alongside him and opened fire in South L.A. early Sunday morning, police said. The victim, who was not immediately identified, was riding his bicycle in the 200 block of East 95th Street shortly after midnight when he was shot, according to Officer Norma Eisenman, a Los Angeles Police Department spokeswoman. The suspect or suspects drove up alongside the bicyclist and fired several rounds from inside the vehicle, she said. The victim, who was in his late 20s, was pronounced dead at the scene.
Los Angeles Times

Two gunmen kill man in Arleta
A man was shot dead by two gunmen in the overnight hours Sunday in Arleta. The shooting occurred about 1:50 a.m. at Osborne Street and Laurel Canyon Boulevard, said Norma Eisenman of the LAPD's Media Relations Section. That location is just east of the Golden State (5) Freeway interchange with Osborne Street, in the eastern San Fernando Valley. The shooting victim, a man about 25 to 30 years old, was standing at a street corner when the gunmen walked up and fired the fatal shots, Eisenman said.
Los Angeles Daily News

Stabbing at Echo Park supermarket leaves man wounded; assailant sought
An assailant is being sought after a man was stabbed and wounded in the neck Friday night at a supermarket in Echo Park, authorities said. Los Angeles police said the stabbing attack took place about 11 p.m. inside a Von's in the 1300 block of N. Alvarado Street. The unidentified victim suffered a wound to the neck but is expected to recover. He was transported to a nearby hospital and reported to be in stable condition Friday night. The suspect was described as a 5 feet, 8-inch man in his 20s, who weighs about 130 pounds. He was last seen wearing a green shirt and black pants, police said.
ABC 7 News

Sentencing for Ex-Fugitive L.A. Gang Member Who Murdered Black Motorist
A Latino gang member from Highland Park who spent more than 15 years on the run in connection with a racially motivated murder could be sentenced Monday to 20 years in federal prison if the judge is convinced that survivors and witnesses approve. Merced “Shadow” Cambero, 39, pleaded guilty in February to felony counts of conspiracy against rights, interference with federally protected activities, and use or discharge of a firearm during a crime of violence causing death. The case against Cambero and his co-defendants marked the first time the federal hate crime statute had been used to combat racial violence by members of a street gang, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.
MyNewsLA.com

42-year-old man with diminished mental capacity reported missing in Northridge
Los Angeles police are asking for the public's help in finding a missing 42-year-old man from Northridge, authorities said. Ramon Velez — who police said has a diminished mental capacity and a health condition that requires medication — was last seen about 10 p.m. Friday, June 1, while walking outside his house in the 18500 block of Prairie Avenue in Northridge, the Los Angeles Police Department said in a news statement Saturday, June 2. Velez is described as a Hispanic man who weighs about 120 pounds and stands at about five feet, two inches. He has black hair and brown eyes, police said.
Los Angeles Daily News

Wounded Veterans to Walk From Long Beach to Newport Beach
A group of six American and British wounded veterans will walk from Long Beach to Newport Beach Sunday on the second day of the Walking With The Wounded's Walk of America. The 14-week, 1,000-mile walk began Saturday with the group walking from the Dockweiler Youth Center in Playa Del Rey to the Battleship Iowa, which is docked at the Port of Los Angeles in San Pedro. The walk is an effort to raise awareness of issues veterans face and more discussion about mental health issues and a fundraiser for veterans charities in both the U.S. and United Kingdom, organizers said.
NBC 4

Two former LA County sheriff's officials hope to replace Jim McDonnell
Two former Los Angeles County sheriff's officials are challenging Sheriff Jim McDonnell in an effort to take the department's reins as Tuesday's primary election draws near. Robert “Bob” Lindsey, a retired sheriff's commander who lives in the San Gabriel Valley, and Alex Villanueva, a retired lieutenant who lives in La Habra Heights, vow to improve morale in the nation's largest sheriff's agency and say they are better equipped to usher in needed reforms. Each served more than three decades with the agency. Before McDonnell became sheriff as an outsider, he previously served as Long Beach's top cop after rising through the Los Angeles Police Department ranks to become former LAPD Chief William Bratton's second-in-command. The Boston native was elected sheriff in late 2014 on a platform of change amid federal allegations of department corruption and abuse in the jails.
Los Angeles Daily News

L.A. Supervisors Support Bill to Automatically Expunge Some Cannabis Convictions
It's not news that pot legalization in California also means that those who've been found guilty of cannabis felonies and misdemeanors can now reduce or expunge their convictions. Despite this opportunity, however, relatively few people have taken advantage of it to clean up their criminal records. So far, fewer than an estimated 5,000 people statewide have petitioned the courts for relief. Meanwhile, nearly a million people could be eligible, according to Eunisses Hernandez, policy coordinator for the Drug Policy Alliance. Assembly Bill 1793 could remedy this discrepancy altogether by automatically expunging certain cannabis convictions without a petition.
LA Weekly

Atlanta police: Cyberattack erased dashcam archive
The Atlanta Police Department's archive of dashboard camera video was wiped out in a March cyberattack, the police chief said. The loss might compromise a drunken driving case, Chief Erika Shields told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution and WSB-TV , but she's not greatly worried. “That's a tool, a useful tool, for us,” she said. “But the dashcam doesn't make the cases for us. There's got to be the corroborating testimony of the officer. There will be other pieces of evidence. It's not something that makes or breaks cases for us.” Shields said police body camera and other video is still available, and she remains sure that files for criminal investigations remain.
Associated Press

Local Government News

Los Angeles tenants increasingly engaging in rent strikes amid housing crisis
A few dozen tenants from a working-class neighborhood here hopped into their vehicles, creating a caravan that would head to affluent Orange County. After the hour-long drive in late May, the group converged on the sidewalk in front of a two- ­story house with Spanish-tile roofing belonging to Gina Kim — their landlord's daughter. Chung Suk Kim had purchased the ­seven-building apartment complex in Los Angeles for $8.5?million in September. Eviction notices for all 80 residents — almost all of them black or Latino — went up a few weeks later, indicating that the owner wanted to convert the units, located near the University of Southern California, into student housing.
Washington Post

Historic Core Readies for Version 2.0
The Historic Core was an unlikely spark of the Downtown Los Angeles renaissance. At the turn of the 20th century the neighborhood that borders Skid Row was filled with aged, defunct structures. A set of government office buildings emptied after 5 p.m. The corner of Fifth and Main streets was an open-air drug bazaar. The change in two decades has been stark. The area now teems with high-priced apartment buildings and restaurants from star chefs. The sidewalks remain lively well after dark as people flock to area bars and nightspots. Fifth and Main is a destination. A related issue is crime. Violent and property crime increased in 2017 in Downtown, according to the Los Angeles Police Department. The intersection of Fifth and Broadway has long been known as a trouble spot due to the drug dealers who operate there. The LAPD's Central Division has responded by increasing foot and bike patrols in the Historic Core.
Los Angeles Downtown News

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About the LAPPL Formed in 1923, the Los Angeles Police Protective League (LAPPL) represents the more than 9,900 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. The LAPPL can be found on the Web at:

www.LAPD.com


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