Law Enforcement News
Family Of Slain California Deputy Calls For Judge To Resign
It’s every judge’s nightmare: San Bernardino County Superior Court Judge Cara D. Hutson reduced bail for a career criminal awaiting sentencing on a third strike, allowing him to secure his release and then go on to allegedly kill a sheriff’s deputy. Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco lambasted Hutson after the Dec. 29 killing of Deputy Isaiah Cordero and called for the judge to resign. So, too, did Cordero’s mother, Rebecca, receiving thunderous applause at the fallen deputy’s memorial service on Friday. “Judge Cara Hutson,” she said, “my family is devastated. My son was a good man. My family, Isaiah’s brothers and sisters and his community demand your resignation.” But an analysis of court documents and interviews with legal experts shows there’s more to the story. Law experts say Hutson made a legally plausible decision to reduce bail, although probably not a practical one. And they don’t believe Hutson should surrender her robes. They also found fault with the prosecution in the case.
LA Daily News
18-Month-Old, 13-Year-Old In Grave Condition Following Hit-and-Run Collision In South L.A.
Three minors and a woman were hospitalized following a two-car hit-and-run collision in South Los Angeles Monday morning. A two-car collision was reported just before 8 a.m. at 110 E. 111th Place in the Broadway-Manchester area of South Los Angeles. Four patients were extricated from an SUV at the scene. Three pediatric patients were reported at the scene, with ages listed as 18 months old; 13 years old; and 16 years old. A 35-year-old woman was also injured. LAFD Captain Erik Scott said a high-speed collision occurred in the intersection of Main Street and 111th Place, pushing the vehicles southbound. At least one vehicle made contact with a building. LAFD and LAPD officers responded just before 8 a.m. Monday. A silver Mercedes sedan and a silver SUV were involved in the crash. The sedan was engulfed in flames upon firefighters' arrival, and it was quickly extinguished, Scott said.
CBS 2
Gascon To Be Deposed In Retaliation Lawsuit Against County
District Attorney George Gascon can now be deposed in a lawsuit brought about by a veteran prosecutor, who is suing Los Angeles County for alleged retaliation by the DA's office after complaining about directives set forth by Gascon's after his 2020 election. Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Terry A. Green issued the ruling Thursday in Deputy District Attorney Shawn Randolph's case. He had ruled Oct. 25 that Randolph's lawyers also could depose Gascon's chief of staff, Joseph Iniguez, whose session took place Dec. 9. Green delayed ruling on the Gascon deposition until this week. Randolph's retaliation lawsuit, filed in October 2021, states that at the time of Gascon's election, the plaintiff was the head prosecutor in charge of the District Attorney's Office's Juvenile Division, in which she supervised about 50 lawyers and 50 civilian workers. But in February 2021, Randolph was transferred to the parole division, a ``dead-end position for a head deputy,'' and denied transfers to head the District Attorney's branch offices in Torrance and Long Beach Superior Courts even though she was the most qualified applicant for each position, the suit states.
WestSide Current
East Hollywood Hit-and-Run: Woman In Critical Condition
A woman was struck in a crosswalk by a hit-and-run driver Monday morning. The Los Angeles Police Dept. said a female in her 60s was struck in a crosswalk at the intersection of Sunset Blvd. and Serrano Ave. in East Hollywood. The incident was reported at approximately 7:30 a.m. The victim was hospitalized in critical condition. The woman was reportedly alone and there were no witnesses to the scene, according to the LAPD.
CBS 2
Christmas Trees Set On Fire During South L.A. Street Takeover
Several Christmas trees were set on fire during a street takeover in South Los Angeles early Monday. Video from the scene shows vehicles doing donuts at the intersection of Wilmington Avenue and East 103rd Street in the Watts neighborhood. At least three Christmas trees were piled on top of each other in the middle of the commotion and one person can be seen pouring lighter fluid on the trees before setting them on fire. Drivers continued doing stunts around the flames while people watched and recorded video. One person could be seen hanging out of the side of a red pickup truck. In another street takeover early Monday at the intersection of Manchester Avenue and San Pedro Street in the Florence neighborhood, drivers and spectators blocked the area to traffic before Los Angeles police officers responded to the scene. It is unclear if any arrests were made.
KTLA 5
Authorities Offer $20K Reward To Catch 19-Year-Old’s Shooters
A $20,000 reward was offered up Monday for information leading to the arrest of the suspects responsible for the fatal shooting of 19-year-old Michelle Diaz in Westmont. Diaz was killed on Nov. 22, 2020, about 7:45 p.m. in the 1400 block of West 106th Street, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. Diaz and her boyfriend were in outside when four suspects drove by them in a blue four-door sedan that appeared to be a newer model Kia Forte or Kia Optima, according to investigators. The suspects fired multiple shots, killing Diaz. The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors offered a $20,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the suspects. Anyone with information regarding the case was encouraged to contact the LASD Homicide Bureau at 323-890-5500. Anonymous tips can be made by calling 800-222-8477.
MyNewsLA
Harvey Weinstein Sentencing Set For Feb. 23 By Judge
A judge Monday set sentencing for Feb. 23 for former film producer Harvey Weinstein, who was convicted in December of sexually assaulting a woman in the Los Angeles area. Superior Court Judge Lisa B. Lench agreed to allow the defense additional time to file a motion for a new trial for Weinstein, who was convicted Dec. 19 of one count each of forcible rape, forcible oral copulation and sexual penetration by a foreign object. All three of those counts related to a woman identified as Jane Doe #1, with the crimes occurring on or about Feb. 18, 2013. "I expect it will go forward that day," the judge said. Jurors acquitted Weinstein, 70, of a felony charge of sexual battery by restraint involving an alleged attack on a masseuse -- Jane Doe #3 -- in 2010, but deadlocked on a lesser count involving the same woman. The judge noted that the misdemeanor count was not charged, and the prosecution said last month that it didn't intend to move forward involving that alleged victim.
CBS 2
Robbery Accomplice In Deadly Southern California Crime Spree Targeting 7-Elevens Pleads Guilty, Gets 7 Years
A 44-year-old Los Angeles man who claimed to be along for the ride during a deadly crime spree last year targeting convenience stores and fast food restaurants across Southern California pleaded guilty to robbery charges on Monday and was immediately sentenced to seven years in prison. Jason Payne pleaded guilty to three felony counts of robbery for hold-ups in Santa Ana, La Habra and Brea, as well as a felony count of attempted robbery for another incident in Santa Ana, according to the Orange County District Attorney’s Office. Payne was arrested last year along with his neighbor — 20-year-old Malik Patt — following a string of robberies, killings and attempted killings at 7-Eleven, Subway and donut stores in Orange, Los Angeles, Riverside and San Bernardino counties. Three people were killed during the crime spree, which authorities have said is believed to have encompassed more than a dozen incidents over four separate mornings in July.
LA Daily News
'Thankful To Still Be Alive': North Carolina Deputy Shot During Struggle With Suspect Continues To Recover
A North Carolina deputy is still grappling with the devastating impact of a July 2022 shooting that ultimately changed her life. Sampson County Sheriff’s Deputy Caitlin Emanuel was responding to a report of a stolen vehicle when she was hit by gunfire shortly after making contact with the burglary suspect. “An individual came up and she approached the individual to start questioning … and he put a [stranglehold] around her neck. Her weapon went off,” Sheriff Jimmy Thornton told WRAL.com last year. When another deputy arrived after Emanuel called for backup, they discovered she’d been shot in the leg. According to FOX 8 News, Emanuel has been sharing new details about her recovery journey on Facebook, stating that she will soon face two more surgeries: “Even though challenges will come with these surgeries, we’re praying this is what it will take to get me back to my normal everyday life,” Emanuel wrote. She also spoke about where she is mentally nearly a year after being shot.
PoliceOne
Law Enforcement News
Hikers, Including 5 Kids, Rescued With Makeshift Zipline As Storm Rolls Into Angeles Forest
Five kids and three adults were rescued with a makeshift zipline in the Tujunga Canyons area of the Angeles Forest after a storm trapped them between two river crossings Sunday night. The LA County Sheriff’s Department’s Montrose Search and Rescue Team responded Sunday night at 8:40 p.m. after one of the hikers activated an emergency beacon. “This rescue of 8 came at the perfect time, reminding us why we volunteer to do this,” a tweet from the rescue team said. The team was lowered from a truck down to the canyon bottom, near Big Tujunga Cyn Road and the La Paloma flat area. They found the group trying to find a way out. The children were 10-12 years old, the rescue team said. After a deputy was able to secure a rope across the rushing waters, a volunteer with the rescue team was able to climb a tree and secure another anchor, creating a makeshift zipline.
NBC 4
Massive Sinkhole Swallows 2 Cars In Chatsworth, Prompting Rescue As Storm Pummels LA County
As a relentless storm wreaked havoc on roadways throughout Los Angeles County on Monday night, a massive sinkhole in one neighborhood swallowed two cars, leading to a dramatic rescue by firefighters. A pickup truck drove into a large sinkhole on a street in Chatsworth and landed on top of another vehicle that had already fallen in. The incident was reported about 7:15 p.m. in the 11000 block of Iverson Road and prompted a rescue operation by 50 Los Angeles firefighters. Two people were inside each of the two vehicles, which were swallowed by the 15-foot-deep sinkhole. The two occupants of the pickup truck were able to escape on their own. The initial rescue attempt of the two occupants of the bottom vehicle -- a teenage girl and a woman -- "involved bringing ground ladders and laying them down to span the hole so crews could try to reach the victims but this was not successful," the Los Angeles Fire Department said in a statement.
ABC 7
LA County Records Nearly 5,200 New COVID Cases, 61 Deaths
Los Angeles County logged nearly 5,200 new COVID-19 infections during a three-day period ending Monday, along with 61 more virus-related deaths. According to the county Department of Public Health, which doesn’t release COVID numbers over the weekend, another 2,668 infections were logged Saturday, 1,337 on Sunday and 1,179 Monday. Sunday and Monday figures have traditionally been low due to delays in reporting from the weekend. Official case numbers overall are also believed to be undercounts of actual virus cases due to the number of people who rely on at-home tests without reporting the results to the county, and the people who don’t test at all. The 5,182 new COVID cases reported by the county lifted the overall total from throughout the pandemic to 3,652,052.
MyNewsLA
L.A. County Poised To Declare State Of Emergency Over Homelessness Crisis
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass was the first to act, last month declaring the homelessness crisis a citywide state of emergency, one as calamitous as any earthquake or hurricane. Long Beach Mayor Rex Richardson asked his staff to draft a similar declaration hours after he was sworn in. It’s now the county’s turn. The Board of Supervisors is expected to approve a motion Tuesday from Supervisors Lindsey Horvath and Kathryn Barger declaring a countywide state of emergency on homelessness, aiming to dramatically speed up the time it takes to provide services to the tens of thousands of people sleeping on the streets. Horvath, who was elected in November and sworn in last month, called the declaration overdue. She said in an interview Sunday that she believed a poor partnership between the city and county was partly to blame for the past inaction. With new leaders at the helm, the two oft-bickering jurisdictions — each with massive roles to play in getting people off the streets — have pledged to press “reset” on their fractured relationship.
LA Times
Local Government News
LA City Council Set To Return From Recess As Scandal Looms
After three weeks off for winter recess, the Los Angeles City Council will be back in session Tuesday, with fallout from the racism scandal roiling City Hall expected to continue impacting the meetings. Councilman Kevin de Leon has responded to widespread calls to resign over his participation in a racist conversation with two of his colleagues and a top county labor official — in which they sought to manipulate the city’s redistricting process — by refusing to step down and attempting to return to the chamber for meetings. De Leon’s attendance at the last two meetings before the recess led to raucous objections among protesters who have shown up regularly at council meetings since the scandal broke in October to demand that de Leon resign before the council resumes city business. The other officials who took part in the conversation have either resigned or left office.
MyNewsLA
