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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

May 16, 2019
Law Enforcement News

2nd Suspect Charged In Death Of Texas Sheriff's Deputy
Authorities say the girlfriend of a man charged in the fatal shooting of a Texas sheriff's deputy during a traffic stop has also been charged in the officer's death. An arrest affidavit alleges that 20-year-old Arlene Pina can be heard on police video saying "beat that expletive" in Spanish after her boyfriend, Facundo Chavez, started striking El Paso County Sheriff's Deputy Peter Herrera following the gunshots. Pina was charged with capital murder on Saturday and is jailed on $1 million bond. Online jail records don't list an attorney for her. Chavez was charged with capital murder after being accused of firing 15 shots at Herrera in March after the deputy asked Chavez to exit a car in San Elizario, about 25 miles (40 kilometers) southeast of El Paso. Herrera died two days later.
Associated Press

Police Officer, Firefighter Injured In Wisconsin Shooting
A police officer and a firefighter have been injured in a shooting in Appleton, Wisconsin, and several others have been taken to a hospital. Appleton police Officer Meghan Cash says first responders went to a downtown location following a call that someone needed medical assistance about 5:30 p.m. Wednesday. It is not yet clear what happened after they arrived but Cash says there was a shooting and the firefighter and officer were injured. She did not give their condition. Cash says she does not know how many other people were injured but several were taken to a local hospital. Asked if a suspect had been apprehended, Cash did not respond directly, but said: "There is no threat to the community." Appleton is about 120 miles (193 kilometers) north of Milwaukee.
Associated Press

Man Charged With Firing Nail Gun At LAPD Officers
An ex-con accused of firing a nail gun at four Los Angeles police officers responding to a disturbance at an El Sereno home was charged Wednesday with assault and other counts. Bruce Edward Stiff, 58, is scheduled to be arraigned Thursday in a downtown Los Angeles courtroom on four counts of assault upon a peace officer with a weapon likely to produce great bodily injury, two counts of resisting an executive officer and one count each of assault with a deadly weapon and vandalism causing more than $400 in damage. Stiff allegedly fired a nail gun at Los Angeles police officers and a woman who lived at the home where he was staying when the officers responded to a call of an altercation Monday, but no one was hit. He also allegedly damaged windows and items in the home before being arrested after a five-hour standoff. 
NBC 4

LAPD Seeks Woman In Attempted Child Kidnappings
Detectives reached out to the public Wednesday for help in tracking down a woman they say tried to kidnap two 4-year-old boys in two separate incidents in Los Angeles on Tuesday and Wednesday. The crimes took place about 11:15 a.m. Wednesday at Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and San Pedro Street, as well as about 3:15 p.m. Tuesday at a McDonald's restaurant at Olympic Boulevard and Central Avenue, the Los Angeles Police Department said in a written statement. In the most recent incident, "The suspect approached the victim, pulled his hand and attempted to walk away with the victim," according to the statement. The child was with family members at the time, police said. A witness intervened and the woman ran off. A similar incident took place Wednesday at the McDonald's, officials said.
KTLA 5

LAPD closed its Pacific Station jail due to bed bug infestation
" Los Angeles Police Department says it closed its jail facilities located at the Pacific Station due to a bed bug infestation. Exterminators on site confirmed the bed bug infestation and will spray the facility and re-inspect later Wednesday to determine if a second spraying is necessary. Along with the extermination, an extensive cleaning is expected to take place Thursday morning. Dustin DeRollo with the Los Angeles Police Protective League explains why this closure is not just a health concern, but a drain on the department's resources. "When our officers are unable to book arrestees at their home division, they have to travel further to book those folks ... officers are out of service for a longer period of time, that means they miss 9-1-1 calls," DeRollo said. 
ABC 7

Pedestrian Killed In Hit-And-Run Collision In Fairfax District
A pedestrian was fatally struck by a vehicle in the Fairfax District Wednesday night in a hit-and-run collision. LAPD responded to the area of Melrose and Genesse Avenue around 10:15 p.m. Paramedics tended to a male victim found on the street and later pronounced him dead. A suspects vehicle was reportedly seen driving from the scene on Melrose Avenue towards Fairfax Avenue.
CBS 2

Suspect Arrested 6 Months After Violent Hollywood Hit-and-Run
Police have arrested a suspect in a hit-and-run in Hollywood in November that left a man with a brain injury and a collapsed lung. Corentin Villemeur, a French photographer, was left in critical condition when he was struck by a driver near Hollywood and Vine. The driver took off and for six months the crime has remained unsolved. Villemeur suffered a broken leg, broken ribs, collapsed lung and a brain injury. Police say the driver of the car that struck him was Elvis Guevera. After the crash, another witness followed him and surveillance video also helped identify him. But it wasn't until an unrelated incident on May 5 that he was finally arrested by Los Angeles police.
ABC 7

Street Racing Suspects Sought After South L.A. Crash Leaves 1 Dead, 1 Injured
Investigators on Sunday are looking for a group of suspected street racers who fled after one of their two vehicles crashed into a third car in South Los Angeles, killing an innocent victim and injuring another. The California Highway Patrol received a call about the collision in the 300 block of 131st Street just before 10:30 p.m, Officer Patrick Kimball told KTLA. Officers arrived to find a white Toyota Camry and a grey Infiniti SUV, Kimball said. A woman was pronounced dead at the scene and another person suffered major injuries, according to CHP. Video from the scene at South L.A.'s Willowbrook neighborhood shows firefighters wheeling a male individual into an ambulance as the officers assessed the two mangled vehicles involved. Investigators learned two drivers were speeding west on 131st street when one of them ran a stop sign and slammed into a vehicle in an intersection, CHP said. The victims' car had been heading south on Towne Avenue, according to officials.
KTLA 5

Encino Man Pleads Guilty To Making Violent Threats Against Newspaper
An Encino man pleaded guilty Wednesday to federal charges for making violent threats against Boston Globe employees last summer in retaliation for the newspaper's editorial response to political attacks on the media. Robert D. Chain, 68, pleaded guilty in Boston to seven counts of making threatening communications in interstate commerce. U.S. District Judge William G. Young scheduled sentencing for Sept. 23, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office in Massachusetts. On Aug. 10, the Boston Globe announced that it was requesting that other newspaper publications around the country publish a coordinated editorial response to political attacks on the media. The editorial response was to be published nationally six days later. Immediately following the announcement, Chain began making threatening calls to the Boston Globe's newsroom, in which he referred to the Globe as “the enemy of the people” and threatened to kill newspaper employees.
Los Angeles Daily News

Public Safety News

LA Firefighters Show Why They Wear Protective Gear As They Extinguish Stubborn 170 Freeway Car Fire
Los Angeles firefighters extinguished a stubborn car fire Wednesday afternoon on the 170 Freeway, providing a demonstration of how important it is to wear the right gear around gasoline-fueled flames. Firefighters responded to the scene of a burning Hyundai Sonata on the northbound 170 Freeway just north of Sherman Way. The driver, who was not injured, told firefighters that he had just filled the Hyundai's gas tank, which ruptured while the firefight was underway, sending flames soaring over the freeway, said a photographer on the scene. It took the LAFD about 20 minutes to extinguish the blazing sedan, and the flames can be seen enveloping one of the firefighters' turn-out gear, which along with his helmet and mask protected him from harm in the fire. 
Los Angeles Daily News

PG&E Caused Camp Fire, Cal Fire Says

The deadliest and most destructive wildfire in California history, which killed 85 people and wiped out almost an entire town of 27,000, was caused by PG&E power equipment, state officials announced Wednesday. Pacific Gas & Electric Co. had admitted months ago that one of its transmission lines probably sparked the Camp Fire in rural Butte County. But the announcement by state fire investigators removes any doubt. It also smooths the path for lawsuits that have piled up against the utility and opens the door for possible criminal prosecution. The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, or Cal Fire, forwarded its report to Butte County District Attorney Mike Ramsey, who said Wednesday that charges could include recklessly causing a fire or manslaughter. The decision by Cal Fire “doesn't change the arc or the scope of the ongoing investigation,” said Ramsey, who estimated it would be “weeks to months” before prosecutors decide whether there is sufficient evidence to pursue criminal charges against PG&E.
San Francisco Chronicle

Local Government News

Councilwoman Wants Task Force To Keep Cannabis From Minors
A Los Angeles City Council member proposed Wednesday that the city develop an enforcement program or form a task force focused on preventing the sale of cannabis to minors and cracking down on retailers suspected of selling to minors. The program or task force would operate in a similar manner to the Tobacco Enforcement Program run by the City Attorney's Office, according to a motion introduced by Councilwoman Nury Martinez. "It is my responsibility to serve not only the Angelenos who voted in favor of cannabis legalization, but also the children of my district who could not vote yet are targeted by cannabis billboards and flavored products every single day," Martinez said.
NBC 4

LA Leaders Demand Plan To Target Northeast San Fernando Valley And Other Areas Prone To Census Undercount
A group of Los Angeles City Council members this week called for a comprehensive outreach and education plan for the 2020 Census to target chronically undercounted communities in the city. Council members Monica Rodriguez, Nury Martinez, Gil Cedillo, Jose Huizar, and Curren Price introduced a motion Tuesday which said Los Angeles is home to the largest hard-to-count population in the nation, and an undercount can cost the city millions of dollars. “Communities like mine have been historically undercounted — in the 2010 Census, neighborhoods in the northeast San Fernando Valley scored among the highest in low census participation. Further, the transition to the online survey and the proposed immigration question will further inhibit low income communities from being tallied in the Census,” Councilwoman Monica Rodriguez said. “We must correct this failure to ensure that we get the public safety resources we deserve and that all Angelenos are counted in 2020.”
Los Angeles Daily 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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