Law Enforcement News

Driver Arrested In South L.A. Hit-and-Run Crash That Killed 13-Year-Old And His Baby Brother
The suspect in a hit-and-run crash in South Los Angeles that killed a 13-year-old boy and his baby brother has been arrested and charged with murder, police announced Thursday, capping a weeks-long investigation that spanned two states. The crash occurred Jan. 9 after the driver of a Mercedes-Benz blew through a red light at Main Street and 111th Place in Broadway-Manchester, smashing into the car driven by Deborah Amaya, who was taking her children to their grandmother, police said. The collision resulted in the death of her two sons, Christopher Amaya-Pineda, 13, and Damian Amaya-Pineda, 18 months. “My kids were everything,” Deborah Amaya told reporters Thursday. “There wasn’t a day I didn’t remind them they were everything to me. It’s sad how I’m never going to see them again.” After striking Amaya’s vehicle, the driver hit two other parked cars before his vehicle burst into flames, said LAPD Det. Ryan Moreno. The driver got out and ran off. “There were some witnesses and some good Samaritans that were there that tried to detain the suspect, but they were unsuccessful,” Moreno said.
LA Times

Meet The Hero Dogs Of The LAPD K9 Division
The LAPD K9 Platoon is 18 patrol dogs and 5 firearm detection dogs strong. These dogs provide critical assistance to officers and work everyday to create greater safety of officers and citizens alike. On Saturday afternoon, February 11, there will be an open house and demonstration at the police academy. It's a great event to meet and learn more about the dogs and the whole program. RSVP by January 28. See flyer below. In November of 1979, two Los Angeles Police Department officers recognized an urgent need for specialized canine work in the City of Los Angeles. In April 1980, approval was given to train two search dogs for a pilot program within the West Bureau of the Police Department. The achievements of these two dogs were so astounding that, after two months, the one-year trial program was declared a total success and now the K9 Platoon gradually grown until the entire City now has rapid access to search dogs on a twenty-four hour basis.
WestSide Current

LAPD Van Nuys Division Teamed Up With A Youth Race Car Organization To Teach An Auto Shop Class
Whether you're an experienced driver or you just received your license, knowing the basic mechanical functions of a car is important. Officers from LAPD's Van Nuys Division teamed up with MotorGospel Ministries to teach the community about cars. "We're an after-school auto club. It's not a formal classroom, we want it to be more of a social environment," said Aaron Schwartzbart, President and pastor of MotorGospel Ministries. "Parents or consumers, they can come here to our MotorGospel Ministries auto shop club to get informed." The auto shop class is an opportunity for the community to learn basic car maintenance such as how to change oil, replace windshield wipers and also how to change a spark plug. "This is basic information I feel like people should know if they own a car. And the fact they are teaching people, especially young people who are getting into cars, I think that's really great," said Los Angeles Police Cadet, Adriana Perez. "I think it will help them a lot when they're older so that way they learn they can do all these things with cars responsibly," said parent Kevin Villalta.
ABC 7

Suspected Arsonist In Police Custody After Fire In Westlake Building
Authorities think a large fire at a Westlake building was intentionally set. The fire in a building in the 2800 W 7th St. was reported just before 5:30 p.m., producing thick, black smoke that could be seen for miles. More than 100 firefighters were able to extinguish the blaze in 53 minutes, the LAFD said. The fire happened during what the LAFD said was a Los Angeles Police Department "operation" at the structure, which houses business on the first floor, as well as what the LAFD said are about eight homes on the second floor. The LAPD said before the fire, a 45-year-old man had barricaded himself in a second-floor apartment. Cellphone video showed him wielding a knife. The man was also throwing items like clothes and furniture at police, LAPD Capt. Aaron Ponce said. He added that the man lit some clothes and trash on fire before tossing them at officers. The department managed to evacuate the building prior to the blaze. The man was hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries and was in LAPD custody. The damage, however, had already been done for people like Caroline Oswalt, who lived or worked at the building.
NBC 4

LAPD Devonshire Invites Public For Neighborhood Coffee
The Los Angeles Police Department’s Devonshire Division will hold a coffee-with-a-cop event next week to give residents a chance to interact with officers. The event will be held at 11 a.m. Tuesday at Starbucks, 17901 Chatsworth St. Residents are invited to attend to ask questions and discuss neighborhood concerns with officers. “The Los Angeles Police Department is committed to serving the community while protecting the rights of all persons,” police said in a statement.
MyNewsLA

High-Speed Chase Involving Motorcyclist Ends With Suspect's Dramatic Takedown In Compton
A chase involving a motorcyclist ended with a dramatic takedown Thursday night in the streets of Compton. AIR7 HD was above the scene as the incident was unfolding just before 11 p.m. The motorcyclist was reportedly speeding down the 105 Freeway when it all came to an abrupt end at Long Beach Boulevard and Louise Street. Video shows the motorcyclist stopping and hopping of the bike as a California Highway Patrol officer approached in their patrol unit. When the motorcyclist got off the bike, an officer is seen running toward him, tackling the suspect and knocking him to the ground. The suspect was then taken into custody. No injuries were reported. The incident remains under investigation.
ABC 7

Pasadena Man Charged With Machine Gun Possession
A Pasadena man who allegedly sympathizes with an anti-government extremist movement has been charged in a federal criminal complaint alleging that he brandished a loaded ghost gun near a South Los Angeles high school late last year, the United States Department of Justice announced Thursday. Isaac Aaron Morgan Loftus, 26, is charged with one count of possession of a machine gun, a felony offense that carries a sentence of up to years in federal prison, according to the DOJ. Loftus, who has been in state custody since his arrest in November, is expected to make his initial appearance in Los Angeles federal court in the coming days. It was not immediately known if Loftus had an attorney. According to an affidavit filed on Monday with the complaint, law enforcement received a call at around lunchtime on November 22 about an armed individual in the vicinity of Thomas Jefferson High School in South Los Angeles who was wearing a tactical vest and cargo pants. A witness told law enforcement that the individual. later identified as Loftus, had pointed a firearm at two passing motorists, according to the DOJ.
MyNewsLA

15,000 Rainbow Fentanyl Pills, 10 Pounds Of Meth Seized In Orange County
Narcotics detectives made a significant drug bust in Orange County. According to the sheriff's department, investigators served search warrants at two locations in North Orange County where they seized two kilograms of fentanyl powder, 10 pounds of methamphetamine, and 15,000 multi-colored fentanyl pills – commonly known as "rainbow fentanyl." The sheriff's department says this is the first time they have encountered rainbow fentanyl in their jurisdiction. Officials say the new candy-colored pills attract young adults and kids. "Rainbow fentanyl—fentanyl pills and powder that come in a variety of bright colors, shapes, and sizes—is a deliberate effort by drug traffickers to drive addiction amongst kids and young adults," said DEA Administrator Anne Milgram. According to the DEA, the rainbow colors could lead children to mistake them for candy and make them more appealing to young people. It takes much less for someone, including children, to overdose or die. Fentanyl is the one of the deadliest drugs. According to the CDC, 107,622 Americans died of drug overdoses in 2021, with 66 percent of those deaths related to synthetic opioids like fentanyl.
FOX 11

Video: North Carolina Officer's BWC Stops Suspect's Bullet From Fatally Wounding Her
Video released by the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department shows the moments leading up to the shooting of a police officer by a woman who was being served with an involuntary commitment order and how her body-worn camera saved her life. According to FOX 5 Atlanta and the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department, officers traveled to the home of suspect Brenda Donahue to transport her to a hospital for evaluation under an involuntary commitment order, which is issued by a court when a person is believed to be a danger to themselves or others. A man answered the door for the officers, but the woman reportedly told the man to tell police she was sleeping. However, officers entered the home, but just as they were walking up the stairs, Donahue fired a shot, as shown in the video. The bullet hit one of the officers in her body-worn camera, prompting officers to dive for cover in the home. "The officers showed a great amount of restraint by not just returning fire into the bedroom," Sgt. Steven Winterhalter, lead firearms instructor for the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department, told FOX 5.
PoliceOne

Rapper Azealia Banks Praises DeSantis Leadership, Says She Feels ‘Way Safer' In Florida Than In Los Angeles
Hip-hop artist Azealia Banks praised Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis for his leadership, revealing that she feels "way safer" living in the Sunshine State than she did in California. During a wide-ranging interview with The Guardian released this week, the controversial "212" rapper, who recently relocated to Miami, chastised the media for demonizing DeSantis' governing style, arguing that she feels "way safer" living in Florida than she did in Los Angeles, where she felt like she needed a gun to protect herself. Banks attributed her newfound comfort in Miami to DeSantis' pragmatic leadership and his commitment to "practical" issues, telling the outlet that the Republican governor is "focused on the basic sh--." Banks said living in Los Angeles left her feeling isolated "and scared" during the pandemic, where she lost faith in the politics of the city she now views as shallow and virtue-signaling obsessed.
FOX 11

Watch: Man Plows Truck Into Colorado Police Station Lobby, Tells Cops He Wanted ‘To Be Heard'
A man is accused of intentionally driving his truck through a Colorado police department’s lobby “in order to be heard,” police said. Nathan Chacon, 45, plowed his 2007 Chevrolet Silverado into the lobby of the Grand Junction Police Department on Wednesday, Jan. 25, causing more than $100,000 in damages, according to a news release from the police department and an arrest affidavit. “When I arrived in the lobby, I was completely shocked and taken aback by the state of the lobby,” an officer wrote in the affidavit. Surveillance video shared by the department shows the truck smashing through “two sets of metal doors with bulletproof window panes” of the lobby before being stopped by a retaining wall, police said. “Miraculously this wall stopped Nathan’s truck and did not allow it to go any further into the offices,” according to the affidavit. The 11 employees working in the building at the time were not harmed, according to police. “Luckily no one had been utilizing the benches or was in the lobby at the time of this crash, which would be normal activity on a weekday around 12:30,” the affidavit said.
The Charlotte Observer

NYPD To Redesign ‘Iconic' Cruisers, Including Addition Of New 360-Degree Cameras
The classic NYPD police car is getting a RoboCop-style reboot. The department is in the process of redesigning its fleet of patrol vehicles, which will now have 360-degree cameras installed in them for constant monitoring of the streets, Police Commissioner Keechant Sewell said Wednesday. The city’s top cop made her announcement during the department’s annual State of the NYPD breakfast in Midtown hosted by the New York City Police Foundation. “The NYPD RMP is iconic,” Sewell said during her remarks. “We are exploring potential design changes as we speak.” RMP stands for radio motor patrol, a name coined decades ago still often used for marked NYPD vehicles. While the design hasn’t been finalized, Sewell showed a brief video of the new vehicle, which will have a green stripe running down the side that connects to the 100-year-old NYPD flag. Each car will also have a QR code printed on the outside of the vehicle that the public can scan and connect to the NYPD’s websites. Sewell said the new design will “ensure the safety of our officers, have a QR code to improve customer service and a revamped interior for more efficient and comfortable work environment for our officers.”
New York Daily News

Public Safety News

1 Person Possibly Injured In Explosion At USC Campus; Science Building Evacuated
A person was being evaluated for injuries after an explosion Thursday, Jan. 26, inside a science building on the USC campus, fire officials said. The explosion occurred around 4 p.m. in a science building near Bloom Walk and Watt Way on campus. One person, whose age and sex were not immediately available, may have sustained injuries, officials with the Los Angeles Fire Department said. It was not immediately clear what the person’s affiliation with the campus is. The Daily Trojan reported that a gas leak caused the explosion at the Neely Petroleum Building. USC said in a tweet shortly after 4 p.m. also confirmed there was a gas leak at the building. The building was being evacuated as of 4:18 p.m., according to the latest alert from LAFD, which said the Hazardous Materials task force will conduct an investigation.
LA Daily News

LAC+USC Seeks Help Identifying Patient
Hospital managers at LAC+USC Medical Center are asking for the public to help them identify a male patient. The man, who has been hospitalized for 12 days with undisclosed health issues, is 49 years old, 5’4” in height, weighs 196 lbs., has brown eyes and black, thinning hair, LAC+USC said in a statement. A photo released by the hospital shows the patient is intubated. Anyone with information is asked to contact one of two licensed LAC+USC clinical social workers, Cristol Perez at 323-409-4317, or Brian Dillon at 323-409-3134.
KTLA 5

LA County COVID Stats Fall Again, But Vigilance Still Urged
On the third anniversary of the first confirmed COVID-19 infection in Los Angeles County, the public health director reported declining overall infection statistics, while continuing to preach vigilance to avoid spreading the virus to vulnerable populations. Barbara Ferrer told reporters Thursday during a briefing that the county over the past week averaged 960 new COVID infections per day, a dramatic drop from the beginning of the month, when 2,400 new cases were being reported. She again warned however, that “with home testing and with people not testing … many cases go uncounted,” meaning there are more infections in the community than the official numbers reflect. COVID-related hospitalizations also continue to fall, with the county averaging 104 new admissions per day aver the past week, a roughly 50% drop from 211 per day in early January. One number that remains elevated, however, are daily virus-related deaths. The county is averaging 19 deaths per day, according to Ferrer, who said the number has hovered around 20 per day for nearly a month.
MyNewsLA

On Third Anniversary Of COVID’s Arrival, L.A. County ‘In A Much Better Place’
Three years to the day after reporting its first confirmed case of COVID-19, Los Angeles County is “in a much better place” in the pandemic — hard-won progress a top health official attributed to vaccination, community immunity resulting from the virus’ rampant spread and development of tools that have blunted some of its worst effects. In the nation’s most-populous county, reported coronavirus cases have fallen to a level — fewer than 1,000 cases a day — not seen since October, when California enjoyed a lull between last summer’s surge and a shorter-lived spike that began in mid- to late November. Coronavirus levels measured in the county’s wastewater, a key barometer as many infections are no longer captured in official counts because of the proliferation of at-home tests, also have plummeted in recent weeks. “These numbers confirm that the decline in transmission is both real and significant,” county Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer said.
LA Times