Deadly LA Road-Rage Shooting On 5 Freeway In Boyle Heights; Search For Suspects Continues

An apparent road-rage incident led to a deadly shooting, multiple chains of car crashes and the 5 Freeway shut down for at least seven hours in Los Angeles. According to the California Highway Patrol, the alleged road-rage incident happened between a gold Cadillac and a group of alleged gunmen on surface streets on Thursday, October 10. The feud spilled onto the 5 Freeway near Boyle Heights and then the gold Cadillac ended up rear-ending a car that was nothing to do with the alleged road-rage incident. After the Cadillac crashed, the suspects got out of the car they were in and started shooting at the people inside the Cadillac, CHP said. "You have vehicles stopped in traffic at four or five o’clock in the afternoon on a major artery with people getting out and walking up on a car and shooting other people. It’s just detrimental to public safety," said CHP Lt. Bob Purvis during a press conference on the incident Thursday night. CHP said the driver of the Cadillac was able to flip a U-turn against traffic in the northbound lanes and ended up getting into another crash with other cars that also had nothing to do with neither the shooting for the alleged road-rage incident.

FOX 11

Man Pleads Not Guilty In Triple-Murder Case

A 20-year-old man pleaded not guilty Thursday to murder charges stemming from the killing of a man during a robbery along Angeles Crest Highway and the shooting deaths of two people inside a parked car during an attempted hold-up in Rancho Palos Verdes two days later. Marco Antonio Hernandez is charged with the July 22, 2023, killing of Jesse Munoz along Angeles Crest Highway and the July 24, 2023, deaths of Jorge Ramos and Taylor Raven Whittaker, who were shot inside a parked Subaru in the 7000 block of Palos Verdes Drive. Hernandez — who had initially been charged with robbing 32-year-old Munoz and his female companion — and co-defendants Luis Ventura, 25, and Abraham Ernesto Alvarenga Cortez, 22, were charged last September with the killing of Munoz, 32, who was shot multiple times along Angeles Crest Highway. Hernandez was charged in January along with Rossel Jose Hernandez-Ponce, 23, and Wendy Sarai Cerritos, 21, in the killings of Ramos and Whittaker. All four of those defendants also pleaded not guilty Thursday in a downtown Los Angeles courtroom.

MyNewsLA

‘Bad Boys’ Actor Theresa Randle Detained By LAPD After Suspected Felony Assault Incident

Theresa Randle, the actor who long played the devoted wife of Martin Lawrence‘s Marcus Burnett in three “Bad Boys” films, was taken into custody in Los Angeles earlier this week on suspicion of felony assault with a deadly weapon, but was not charged. Randle, 59, was detained Monday over an incident that happened Saturday, Officer Charles Miller, a public information officer for the Los Angeles Police Department, said Friday. Miller said there was an argument Saturday between Randle and another person in the 500 block of 7th Street. Randle allegedly struck the victim, Miller said, and returned to the downtown L.A. residence two days later. That’s when the alleged victim called officers to report the earlier incident, and officers detained Randle on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon. Details about the victim and the weapon were not immediately available. Randle was detained at 4:30 p.m. Monday and booked later that day, according to the L.A. County Sheriff’s jail records. She was released Wednesday after the Los Angeles County district attorney’s office declined to pursue the case. As such, the detention does not actually qualify as an arrest since she was released without a formal charge, per the California Penal Code.

Los Angeles Times

‘New Evidence’ Being Considered In Marilyn Manson Sexual Abuse Case, L.A. County D.A. Says

Amid criticism of his handling of the case, Los Angeles County Dist. Atty. George Gascón announced this week that he is considering new evidence in the sexual abuse probe of singer Marilyn Manson. “New evidence has emerged within the last few weeks, adding to an already extensive case file presented to our office” by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, Gascón said in a news release Wednesday. “It is our office’s responsibility to ensure that we have a complete picture of the admissible evidence available before making a filing decision.” Gascón said that prosecutors from his office’s sex crimes division are still reviewing new leads and additional evidence. Staff members have met with victims, he said, and his office is expected to make a decision soon on whether to bring charges against Manson, whose legal name is Brian Warner. “Game of Thrones” actress Esme Bianco accused Gascón at a Thursday news conference of mishandling the case against Manson. Bianco sued the musician in 2021, alleging sexual assault, sexual battery and human trafficking. They settled the lawsuit in 2023. Bianco said that she has waited for more than two years for Gascón to decide whether to file criminal charges against Manson. She also said that Gascón has refused to speak with her about the case.

Los Angeles Times

Compton Man Charged In Roadway Death Of Manhattan Beach Police Officer

A Compton man has been charged with vehicular manslaughter for the death of a 35-year-old Manhattan Beach Police Department officer who died in a motorcycle crash while on his way to work last year. Officer Chad Swanson was riding his department motorcycle on Oct. 4, 2023, in the early morning on the 405 Freeway when a multi-vehicle accident caused him to crash. Raymond Eugene Sanders, 69, is accused of improperly securing boxes of lighting fixtures to his truck, causing several to fall onto the roadway. Investigators determined improper securement as a key factor in the crash, according to the District Attorney's Office. Sanders is charged with one count of vehicular manslaughter without gross negligence. Law enforcement said last year that the 13-year-department veteran was thrown from his motorcycle after a vehicle unsafely changed lanes. Paramedics rushed the critically injured officer to the hospital where he later died. Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón said this case is a grim reminder of the devastating consequences of negligence on roads.

CBS 2

Meth Smuggler’s Ruse Fails To Trick Border Agents In California

U.S. Customs and Border Protection on Thursday announced the seizure of over $3.2 million worth of methamphetamine found inside a tractor-trailer at the California-Mexico border. On Oct. 3, CBP officers encountered a 40-year-old man attempting to enter the U.S. from Mexico in an empty commercial tractor-trailer. The driver, who holds a valid border crossing card, was referred for secondary inspection after initial checks raised concerns, officials said. During the inspection, “non-intrusive screening technology” scanned the trailer and revealed anomalies in the floor frame. According to CBP, a K-9 unit then alerted officers to the presence of narcotics. A physical search of the trailer uncovered 265 packages concealed within the floor frame of the vehicle. The packages contained approximately 2,686 pounds of methamphetamine, with an estimated street value of over $3.2 million, CBP said. “I am extremely proud of our dedicated workforce,” said Rosa E. Hernandez, port director for the Otay Mesa Port of Entry. “Our officers are always vigilant and work hard to ensure our border security is not compromised and to protect our communities from dangerous drugs.”

KTLA 5

Man Runs Over Deputy While Fleeing Arrest On S.C. Sheriff’s Office Station Parking Lot

Lexington County Sheriff’s Department deputy was run over Tuesday by a man who was trying to evade arrest, according to the Lexington Police Department. Hours after assaulting the deputy and running over him with a car, 36-year-old Cayce resident Antwan Martel Jeter was arrested on multiple charges, police said in a news release. The deputy was taken to an area hospital, but police said his injuries are not believed to be life threatening. Further information on the deputy’s condition was not available. No other injuries were reported in the incident that happened outside the Lexington County Sheriff’s Department headquarters. At about 4 p.m., Jeter went to the sheriff’s department to complete court ordered registration as a sex offender, according to the release. Information about the past sex crime was not available, but Lexington County court records show that in 2021 Jeter pleaded guilty to a domestic violence charge. During Tuesday’s sex offender registration process it was found that Jeter had an outstanding warrant for his arrest, police said. Information about that pending charge was not available. When approached by deputies, Jeter ran to a car where he struggled with the law enforcement officers as they attempted to take him into custody, according to the release. During this struggle, Jeter backed up the car and drove over a deputy as he fled from the parking lot, police said.

The State

Fire At East Hollywood Craftsman

A fire at an empty, Craftsman-style home in East Hollywood was extinguished by Los Angeles Fire Department firefighters Friday. Fire crews were called at 1:34 a.m. to 4867 W. Melrose Ave. east of Western Avenue where they found the home engulfed in flames, LAFD spokeswoman Margaret Stewart said. It took 50 firefighters 39 minutes to extinguish the fire. No injuries were reported and fire crews will remain at the scene conducting overhaul operations, Stewart said.

MyNewsLA

8 People Injured After Car Slams Into Tarzana Strip Mall

Eight people, including a driver, were injured after a car rammed into a strip mall in Tarzana Thursday afternoon, Los Angeles fire officials said. After the car crashed into the first floor of the two-story mall on Ventura Boulevard and Yolanda Avenue, the coffee shop sustained most damage, according to officials. Seven of the injured were either in a car or in the parking lot of the mall when the crash happened. They decided not to be taken to a hospital for their non-life-threatening injuries, fire officials said. The driver was also injured in the incident but declined to be transported to a hospital. Officials with the Los Angeles Fire Department's Urban Search and Rescue team will evaluate the building for any safety concerns.

NBC 4

4th Human Case Of Bird Flu Reported In California

The California Department of Public Health has confirmed the fourth human case of bird flu in the state. The latest case involves an individual in the Central Valley who had contact with infected dairy cattle, officials said. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has tested and confirmed the diagnosis. All four known cases of bird flu in humans that have been reported in California have been linked to infected animals, and no human-to-human transmission has been identified, CPHD said. “While the risk to the general public remains low, additional human cases of bird flu are expected to be identified and confirmed in California among individuals who have contact with infected dairy cattle,” said CDPH officials. The known affected individuals have so far experienced only mild symptoms such as eye redness; none have required hospitalization.

KTLA 5

LA County Measure A Asks Voters To Approve Sales Tax To Fund Homeless Programs

Voters in Los Angeles County will consider a new sales tax with significant ramifications for resources dedicated to the largest homeless population in California. If approved, Measure A would provide the county with about $1 billion annually by repealing an existing quarter-cent sales tax and replacing it with a half-cent sales tax. Money raised would go toward combating the homeless crisis by providing shelters, housing and other services. If it fails, the tax that currently funds many county homeless services would expire in 2027. Here's what to know about LA County Measure A. In 2017, Los Angeles County voters passed a quarter-cent sales tax called Measure H with 69 percent of voters supporting the measure. Money from the tax was poured into programs designed to address the regions homeless crisis, such as getting people out of homeless encampments and into shelters. Funds from Measure H have helped move more than 42,000 people in permanent housing and 80,500 into temporary housing, according to the county’s Chief Executive Office. Measure A would repeal and replace the Measure H-approved tax with a larger one that would be used to fund a wider range of resources, like building new affordable housing.

NBC 4

About the LAPPL: Formed in 1923, the Los Angeles Police Protective League (LAPPL) represents more than 8,900 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.