Law Enforcement News

LAPD Officer Stabbed While Responding To Barricaded Suspect
A Los Angeles police officer was stabbed Sunday morning while responding for a report of a barricaded suspect in South Central. Officers from the Los Angeles Police Department responded to the 300 block of East 52nd Street in South Park around 6:20 a.m. Dispatch received a report of a person who was barricaded inside a home and making criminal threats. The suspect also was linked to an assault with a deadly weapon, LAPD said. At some point while police were at the scene, an officer was stabbed, possibly in the leg. The severity of the injury was not immediately made clear by law enforcement, but the officer was treated and has already been released from the hospital. No suspect description was immediately available and the LAPD said the incident was still ongoing.
KTLA 5

Man Shot And Killed At Westlake Bus Stop
A man was killed early Saturday morning in a shooting at a bus stop in the Westlake area of Los Angeles. The man was sitting at a bus stop at Eighth Street and Union Avenue at 12:05 a.m. when someone walked up behind him and shot him, according to Officer J. Chaves of the Los Angeles Police Department. The suspect ran away on Eighth Street, Chaves said. Paramedics rushed the victim to a hospital where he was pronounced dead at about 12:45 a.m. Police did not provide a suspect description. Broadcast news reports said the man was shot in the face at point-blank range. The victim's name has not been released pending notification of relatives.
FOX 11

1 Person Arrested After Woman's Body Was Found Behind Library In Woodland Hills
One person has been arrested after a woman's body was found with severe injuries behind a library in Woodland Hills. The woman' body was found Friday afternoon in the parking lot of the Platt Branch Library on Victory Boulevard, according to police. The woman was in her 40s and died from blunt force trauma, police said. Investigators conducted a search of the area and took one person, whose identity has not yet been released, into custody. It's unclear what led up to the woman's death and details on the relationship between the woman and the suspect remain unknown. The investigation is ongoing. Anyone with information is urged to contact police.
ABC 7

‘We Are Not Trying To Scare You.’ In California, Fentanyl Now Behind 1 Out Of Every 5 Youth Deaths
Jan Blom knew little about fentanyl when his 17-year-old son, Linus, went to take a nap in their Los Gatos home in July 2020. By mid-morning, Blom discovered Linus’ lifeless body in bed. The cause of death? A Percocet pill laced with the powerful synthetic opioid that has fueled an unprecedented rise in drug-related deaths across California, and now is targeting its young people. Last year, fentanyl was responsible for an astounding one-fifth of the deaths in the 15-to-24 age group, with a total more than six times the number it killed a mere three years earlier. For most of his life, Linus had been a stellar student and avid high school wrestler who aspired to compete for the national team in his native Finland. But he started taking pills he found online, his father believes, as a way to handle the intense pressure to succeed academically in Silicon Valley. Suddenly, Linus had become a casualty of a drug 50 times stronger than heroin that has exploded across the country in the last half-decade but largely spared the West Coast during its initial surge.
Mercury News

Sylmar Elementary School Teacher Accused Of Molesting Student
An elementary school teacher in the San Fernando Valley was arrested Thursday on an allegation he sexually assaulted a child, and the Los Angeles Police Department is asking any other potential victims to come forward. The Harding Street Elementary School teacher, 57-year-old Giancarlo Corsi, was accused on Tuesday of inappropriately touching the student of a neighboring class multiple times during the 2004-05 school year, the LAPD said in a press release. Corsi, who is accused of committing the lewd act with a child in a school classroom, taught at schools in the San Fernando Valley from 1992-2006, then took an 11-year hiatus before returning to teaching in 2017, police said. He eventually took a post-hiatus role at Harding Street Elementary. Corsi faces a charge of committing a lewd act with a child, and he is being held in lieu of $2 million bail. Anyone with information is asked to call detectives at 818-374-5415. Outside of business hours, call 877-LAPD-24-7 (5273).
KTLA 5

City Leaders Gather To Condemn Spike In Antisemitic Crimes
A number of city leaders and law enforcement officials gathered on Friday to condemn a disturbing spike in antisemitic crimes throughout Los Angeles County. "Make no mistake, if you commit a hate crime in this city, we will join with every law enforcement agency and every prosecutor possible to hold that individual responsible," said LAPD Chief Michel Moore. Moore was joined by Rabbis Abraham Cooper and Marvin Hier from the Simon Wiesenthal Center, FBI leaders and interfaith leaders, all of whom stood in solidarity with the Jewish community during a press conference at the Museum of Tolerance near Beverly Hills. “What we've been experiencing and hearing from members of the Jewish community from coast to coast is, they feel the threats. The reaction is not so much fear but pure anger and a sense of helplessness," Rabbi Cooper said. In recent weeks, antisemitic fliers have been distributed throughout several neighborhoods, including Beverly Hills, Brentwood and Westwood, just 24 hours after demonstrators held a sign over the 405 Freeway stating, "Kanye was right about the Jews."
CBS 2

North Hollywood Arson Suspect Just Got Out Of Prison — For Arson
A man arrested on suspicion of igniting several fires in North Hollywood Wednesday morning had just been released from state prison after serving part of a five-year sentence for arson, according to court records and law enforcement sources. David A. Rivas, 35, was detained by police near the scenes of fires and was charged Friday with seven counts of arson for the North Hollywood area fires, according to the LA County District Attorney's Office. Rivas made a brief court appearance Friday afternoon, entered not guilty pleas, and was being held with no bail, according to booking records. LA Superior Court records show Rivas was charged with 16 counts of arson in early 2021 and pleaded guilty to some of those charges. He was sentenced in April, 2021 to five years in state prison and was released on October 7, 2022, according to multiple law enforcement sources. The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation declined to provide public record information on Rivas' last prison term or the reason for his release after approximately 18 months in custody.
NBC 4

Police Break Up 3 Street Takeovers In L.A. Area, Including One Involving A Blowtorch
The familiar sight of burning rubber, lasers, and cheering spectators at a street takeover in Santa Fe Springs went next-level Thursday night when someone brought a blowtorch to the party. Cameras captured video of the takeover at the intersection of Shoemaker Ave. and Excelsior Drive. Cars doing doughnuts came within inches of the crowd. One spectator was seen firing a blowtorch into the air. Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies broke up the takeover after about 25 minutes. It was unclear if anyone was arrested. There were at least two other street takeovers Thursday night, one at Magnolia and Crescent in Buena Park, and another at Hoover St. and Trask Street in Westminster.
KTLA 5

Los Angeles Man Arrested For Allegedly Breaking Into Chase Bank In Arcadia
A 34-year-old man from Los Angeles was arrested on suspicion of commercial burglary for allegedly breaking into a bank in Arcadia on Saturday night, authorities said Sunday, Oct. 30. Officers were sent to Chase Bank, 60 E. Huntington Drive, at about 10:20 p.m. Saturday regarding a report of glass being broken at the location and spotted a man inside the bank, the Arcadia Police Department reported. The suspect fled through the front doors upon seeing police and ran to a nearby commercial building. Officers located him in a nearby parking lot and he was taken into custody. He was arrested on suspicion of commercial burglary. No further information was released.
LA Daily News

SoCal Couple Arrested For Alleged Murder Of 4-Year-Old Girl
An Apple Valley couple was arrested for the alleged murder of a 4-year-old girl. The child’s father, Isaiah Rumph, 24, and his girlfriend, Charity Staffieri, 22, were taken into custody on Tuesday, confirmed the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department. Apply Valley deputies first received a call reporting a 4-year-old girl had stopped breathing around 9:35 p.m. inside her home. When authorities arrived, they found the girl unresponsive and observed “numerous injuries indicative of child abuse” on her body. The girl was transported to a local hospital. Despite lifesaving measures, she was later pronounced dead. Both suspects were arrested on suspicions of “assaulting the child, causing death,” according to arrest documents. The couple was booked at a detention center where they remain in custody on $500,000 bail. The investigation remains ongoing. Anyone with information is asked to call the Homicide Detail at 909-890-4908. Anonymous callers can contact the We-Tip Hotline at 800-782-7463 or submit an online tip at wetip.com.
KTLA 5

Death Sentence Sought For Man Accused Of Killing Indiana Officer
A prosecutor wants the death penalty for a man charged with killing an Indiana police officer. Wayne County Prosecutor Mike Shipman made the request Friday in the case of Phillip Matthew Lee, 47, of Richmond, who's now charged with murder in the death of Richmond Police Department Officer Seara Burton. Burton, 28, died Sept. 18 from her gunshot wound to the head after she was taken off life support Sept. 1. She was shot Aug. 10 after other officers stopped Lee, and Burton was called to the scene to assist with her police dog. Court documents allege Lee pulled out a gun and fired shots toward the officers, striking Burton. Other officers returned fire, and Lee was apprehended following a foot chase. Online court records do not show Lee entering a plea on the murder charge. He earlier pleaded not guilty to three counts of attempted murder as well as drug and weapons charges. Lee is being held at the Miami Correctional Facility in Bunker Hill on a parole violation.
Associated Press

‘I Wanna Be A Serial Killer Of Cops.’ Kentucky Man Faces Federal Charge Over Online Comments
A Lexington man is facing a federal charge over allegations that he made comments on YouTube threatening to kill police officers. The comments, traced by the FBI to Wyakee Ansaran Vinegar, include a statement Oct. 4 that “we going to have to start shooting and executing cops.” A special agent with the FBI wrote in an affidavit filed in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky that the investigation began after Google reported to the FBI Wednesday that a YouTube user going by the name Wyakee Douglas had been making comments that led them to believe that there was an “emergency involving imminent death or serious bodily injury to a person or persons.” The email address for Wyakee Douglas was associated with the same Android device as that of Wyakee Vinegar, the FBI said. On Oct. 2, he wrote, “We don’t have these problems in Lexington Kentucky ... I wish sum cops would shoot and kill sum black people here. Especially our kids. Were not pulling up to just to protest we are coming to kill.”
Lexington Herald-Leader

Public Safety News

COVID Hospitalizations Drop Below 400 In LA County
The number of coronavirus patients in Los Angeles County hospitals has fallen below 400 again, decreasing by 42 people to 365, according to the latest state numbers. Of those patients hospitalized as of Saturday, 43 were being treated in intensive care, up one from the previous day. County officials have said that roughly 40% of COVID-positive hospital patients were admitted specifically for COVID-19, while the others were hospitalized for other reasons but tested positive upon admission. Saturday’s numbers come one day after the county reported 1,220 new COVID infections and 11 additional deaths associated with the virus, bringing its cumulative totals to 3,485,787 cases and 33,951 fatalities since the pandemic began. The seven-day average daily rate of people testing positive for the virus in the county was 3.9% as of Friday, according to the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health.
MyNewsLA

DEA Hosts National Prescription Drug Take Back Day Across SoCal
The Drug Enforcement Administration held its semiannual National Prescription Drug Take Back Day Saturday at locations across the Southland and around the country, allowing people to turn in expired, unused prescription medications for disposal. "I encourage everyone across the country to dispose of unneeded medications to help keep our communities safe and healthy," DEA Administrator Anne Milgram said in a statement. "The Take Back campaign is part of DEA's continued efforts to combat the drug poisoning epidemic and protect the safety and health of communities across the United States." The major focus of the event was to prevent unused prescription medications from falling into the hands of children or other people who may ingest them. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, at least 107,622 people died as the result of a drug poisoning in the United States last year. This suggests that someone in the U.S. is dying of a drug poisoning every five minutes, the DEA added.
ABC 7