1 Dead After Shooting At South Los Angeles Burger King

A man was killed after a shooting outside of a Burger King in South Los Angeles Friday afternoon. The victim is a 48-year-old man, according to the Los Angeles Police Department. His identity has not been released. Officers responded to reports of an assault with a deadly weapon at the fast food restaurant located on Vernon and Figueroa Street around 3:20 p.m. When police arrived, the victim was found in the parking lot, unconscious and not breathing, said LAPD. He was transported to a local hospital where he later died from his injuries, police said. Two teenage suspects were seen running westbound from Figueroa, police said. The suspects are described only as Black and Hispanic males around 18 to 19 years old. Police say the victim parked his SUV in front of the eatery and walked across the drive-thru to a bus stop where the suspects were located. They engaged in some sort of verbal dispute that eventually escalated into a shooting. Anyone with information is asked to call the LAPD South Bureau Homicide Division at 323-786-5100.

KTLA 5

Angeleno Arrested After Man Found Fatally Shot In Palms

Police arrested a man in his 30s after an older man was found fatally shot in Palms on Thursday night. Los Angeles police officers responded to reports of a shooting on the 3600 block of Military Avenue around 8:34 p.m. When police arrived, they found a man in his 60s suffering from multiple gunshot wounds. The victim, who was initially identified by police as being in his 50s, was unconscious and not breathing at the time, authorities said. The man was transported to a local hospital where he was later pronounced dead, said LAPD. The victim’s identity has not been released. Authorities identified 35-year-old Andrew Conaway of Los Angeles as the suspected killer. He was booked on a murder charge and is being held in lieu of $2 million bail. 

KTLA 5

Violence Against Black Women In L.A. Remains High, Even As Serious Crime Drops

Even as the rate of serious crime in Los Angeles trends downward, Black women and girls remain at higher risk of victimization than any other demographic, according to a report by the city’s civil rights department. At the same time, the report said, their deaths and disappearances receive far less attention from law enforcement and the news media than other races. The findings reflect the additional burdens placed on Black women, who are forced to overcome “financial instability, income inequality, housing insecurity, and a myriad of other potential social safety risks,” even as they navigate the disproportionate impact of the pandemic on communities of color, according to the report. “Black women experience a unique position of precarity as a result of decades of discrimination, grounded both in racism and sexism,” the report said. Councilmembers Curren Price and Marqueece Harris-Dawson commissioned the study last year after the killing of Tioni Theus, a 16-year-old Black girl who was fatally shot and left alongside a South Los Angeles freeway. Citing LAPD statistics, the report found that while Black women make up about 4.3% of the city’s population, they often account for 25% to 33% of its victims of violence.

Los Angeles Times

Investigation Underway After Woman In Her 60s Killed In Highland Park Hit-and-Run Crash

Police are seeking the public's help in identifying the driver who hit and killed a woman who was crossing the street in Highland Park. According to the Los Angeles Police Department, the incident happened around 9 a.m. Friday in the 5600 block of Aldama Street. Investigators say the woman in her 60s was found lying in the street in front of her house. The woman, whose identity has not been released, was pronounced dead at the scene. The suspect fled the scene in what is described as a black Chevy Tahoe. No other details were available. 

ABC 7

Authorities Seeking Info On Fatal Hit-and-Run In Palms

Authorities are seeking the public's help Thursday to find the hit-and-run motorist involved in the death of a man in the Palms area of Los Angeles. The man, in his 30s, was injured about 1:15 a.m. on Feb. 26 at Venice and Robertson boulevards and died at a hospital, according to the Los Angeles Police Department and the Los Angeles County coroner's office. Information on his identity was not available. "A compact SUV, possibly blue in color, was traveling westbound on Venice ... when it struck a pedestrian lying on the roadway outside a marked crosswalk at Robertson Boulevard," the LAPD said in a statement. "The suspect ... fled the scene and did not stop to render aid and/or ID themselves." A standing reward of up to $50,000 has been offered by the city of Los Angeles for information that helps solve a fatal hit-and-run. Anyone with information on the case was urged to call LAPD West Traffic Division detectives at 213-473-0234, or the police tipline at 877-LAPD- 247. Tipsters may also call Crime Stoppers at 800-222-TIPS, or use the website www.lacrimestoppers.org.

Westside Current

After Ditching Stolen Truck, Suspect Flees LAPD On Skateboard - Doesn't Get Far

Southern California has its share of wild police chases - but rarely do they end up on a skateboard. Los Angeles police bodycam video shows a chase involving a stolen truck in which the suspect jumped out of the vehicle after spinning out and hopped on a skateboard in front of officers standing just feet away with their guns drawn. The incident happened Feb. 13 around 6 a.m. in downtown Los Angeles. A Chevy Silverado with a trailer attached was reported stolen near Flower Street and Jefferson Avenue. Officers soon spotted the truck at Exposition Boulevard and Western Avenue and tried to pull the driver over, but he fled, at one point hitting a parked vehicle but continuing. Officers briefly chased the truck, with trailer still attached, but he soon lost control and spun out. The LAPD officers drew their weapons and approached the truck, shouting repeatedly at the driver: "Stop, stop! ... Let me see your hands." Instead, he hopped out of the truck and jumped onto a skateboard. He was wearing a reflective vest that made him easy to see in the early-morning darkness. Six officers took off after him on foot.

ABC 7

LAPD Veteran Makes ‘Karaoke Comeback' 2 Years After A Devastating Spinal Cord Injury

A veteran Los Angeles police officer and spinal cord injury survivor is grateful to those who contributed to his recovery. Not only did he defy all odds, but he's working to help patients just like him. On the two-year anniversary of his accident, he surprised his supporters with a karaoke comeback. Throughout Police Sergeant Ruben "Trini" Martinez' home, a caped crusader adorns every corner. "I've always loved Batman. That may or may not have been part of the reason why I became an LAPD officer," said Martinez. For 25 years, he called LAPD's 77th division his home. But when Martinez wasn't on patrol, he pursued another passion: karaoke singing. Even on vacation, Martinez, his wife Carmy Mejia and best friend Jennifer Cortez would find places to sing. "It's kind of a fantasy of mine to be in a band or be a lead singer, drummer. And it just motivates me. It motivates me to keep going," he said. But two years ago, the music stopped. "You know, your life changes in a split second," said Mejia.

ABC 7

Two Men Shot To Death Near Pool At Newhall Apartment Complex

Two men were found shot to death Saturday at the pool of a Newhall apartment complex. Authorities were notified at 10:51 a.m. of a shooting at the Village Apartment Homes at 23700 Valle del Oro, just north of Newhall Avenue, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. The two men were pronounced dead at the scene, the Sheriff’s Information Bureau reported. Paramedics dispatched at 10:55 a.m. regarding two possible gunshot victims cleared the scene at 11:17 a.m., according to a Los Angeles County Fire Department dispatcher. KeyNews.tv reported that county paramedics dispatched to the scene arrived to find one person on the floor of a community pool and the other victim lying on a pool chair. No motive or suspect information was immediately available. The sheriff’s Homicide Bureau urged anyone with information about the deaths to call them at 323-890-5500. Tipsters may also call Crime Stoppers at 800-222-TIPS, or use the website www.lacrimestoppers.org.

MyNewsLA

Man Sentenced To 6 Years In Prison For Multiple 7-Eleven Robberies

A Los Angeles County man was sentenced today to 77 months behind bars for committing multiple armed robberies of 7-Eleven stores and another business during a two-week crime spree in 2021. Colin Lacey, 29, of the Hyde Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, pleaded guilty in August to one federal count of conspiracy to commit interference with commerce by robbery, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office. In November 2021, Lacey participated in the robbery of six businesses, five of which were 7-Eleven convenience stores. During the robberies, Lacey typically entered the stores, pointed a handgun at the store's cashier and stole money. In one case, Lacey and Kyle Richard Williams, 26, of Inglewood, traveled together to a smoke shop located in the Mid-City area of Los Angeles. Williams entered the store, pointed a handgun at the cashier and stole $442 while Lacey waited outside the store before fleeing with Williams, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.

CBS 2

Members Of LAPD Disciplinary Panels Say They’re Excluded Because Of Policing Views

The Rev. Najuma Smith-Pollard expected to be a lot busier when she was picked to serve on the hearing panels that review discipline recommendations for Los Angeles police officers accused of serious misconduct. But after more than a year, she has yet to hear a single case. Smith-Pollard thinks she knows why. The secretive and powerful boards are picked much like a trial jury, so accused officers and their attorneys have a say in “who to invite on,” enabling them to get a more sympathetic panel, she said. The Los Angeles Police Protective League, which represents rank-and-file officers across the city, has long argued that the traditional panels were unfair because the LAPD officials serving on them had an interest in supporting their boss, the chief of police. Tom Saggau, a spokesman for the league, said officers’ due process is often overlooked in the current debate about revamping the department’s disciplinary system. Before the passage of Charter Amendment C, there was unspoken pressure on sworn examiners to go along with past chiefs’ decisions, he said, pointing out that the common thinking within the LAPD has long been that an officer who crosses a superior is unlikely to get promoted. “We think civilian oversight is the most transparent way to get fairness,” Saggau said. He disagreed with the suggestion that the union was somehow packing boards with more sympathetic examiners. Because so many of the chief’s decisions are being overturned, he said, it raises the question of whether discipline should have been meted out in those cases at all.

Los Angeles Times

Prosecutors Present Reasons To Seek Death Penalty In Killing Of Pennsylvania Officer

Prosecutors say they plan to seek the death penalty if they win a first-degree murder conviction against a man charged in last month's shooting death of one police officer and the wounding of another in McKeesport, Pennsylvania. Johnathan Jermia Morris, 31, of McKeesport is charged in Allegheny County with criminal homicide, attempted homicide and assaulting a law enforcement officer, as well as firearms crimes in the Feb. 6 shootings about 12 miles (20 kilometers) south of Pittsburgh. In a notice filed with the court Friday, prosecutors said capital punishment would be warranted for several reasons, including that the victim was a police officer, the crime was committed during another felony and it created a grave risk of death to another person. Pennsylvania hasn’t executed anyone since 1999. Authorities have said officers were called to a home over a dispute involving a man having a mental health crisis. When they caught up with Morris, he “ suddenly produced a handgun ” and fired, killing Officer Sean Sluganski, 32, and wounding another officer, authorities alleged. Wounded by return fire, Morris ran to a parking lot and sought help. A person putting a tourniquet on his leg reported seeing Morris pull a handgun and point it at a third approaching officer, sparking another exchange of gunfire, authorities said.

Associated Press

Video: Florida K-9 Deputy Walks Out Of Hospital After Being Ambushed, Shot 3 Times

A Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office K-9 deputy walked out of the hospital on Friday, five days after he was shot three times by a burglary suspect. Cpl. Matt Aitken, 40, walked out of Bayfront Health St. Petersburg slowly and gingerly but without help as a crowd of family, friends and fellow law enforcement officers clapped and cheered. Aitken’s fellow K-9 deputies and K-9 officers from other agencies held the leashes of their partners, some barking along with the applause. With his right hand, Aitken held the hand of his 9-year-old daughter as a smiling Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri walked beside them. A cast on Aitken’s left arm and hand bore the red signatures of well-wishers. He gave a thumbs up to the crowd, then got into a waiting, unmarked SUV, its blue-and-red lights flashing. Aitken pumped the air with his fist through the open window as the driver pulled away. It was a welcome development in a case that Gualtieri said might have turned out differently if another deputy wasn’t backing up Aitken that night.

Tampa Bay Times

Panorama City Apartment Building Fire Extinguished On Tobias Avenue

Firefighters were battling a fire at a four-story apartment building in Panorama City Monday morning. Firefighters responded to the fire at 9010 N. Tobias Avenue at about 6:53 a.m. near Nordhoff and Tobias. Multiple patients outside the building were being treated for injuries at about 7:30 a.m., the Los Angeles Fire Dept. said. The fire was extinguished by about 7:45 a.m. The cause of the fire was under investigation.

CBS 2

COVID-19 Hospitalizations Continue Falling In LA County, Statewide

The number of COVID-positive patients in Los Angeles County hospitals has fallen to 456, down from 460 the previous day, according to the latest state numbers. Of those patients hospitalized as of Saturday, 46 were being treated in intensive care, up from 44 on Friday. Meanwhile, the statewide total of hospitalized patients fell below 2,000 for the first time since November, declining by 52 people to 1,974. Some patients were admitted for other reasons and learned they had COVID after a mandated test. The latest numbers come one day after the county reported another 15 COVID-related deaths and 968 new infections. That brought the cumulative totals to 3,719,362 cases and 35,890 fatalities since the pandemic began, according to the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health. A majority of people who die with COVID-19 are elderly or have an underlying health condition such as diabetes, heart disease or hypertension, health officials have said.

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.