Law Enforcement News

At Least 1 Killed In Violent Brentwood Crash Involving Car, Motorcycle
At least one person was killed in a violent crash at an intersection in Brentwood Thursday night. The crash was reported around 10:30 p.m. in the area of Bundy Drive and Santa Monica Boulevard. Aerial footage from AIR7 HD captured a mangled motorcycle and a severely damaged car, with debris scattered over the area. Police and firefighters responded to the crash, and crime scene tape cordoned off the intersection. At least one other person was injured in the crash. They were hospitalized in unknown condition.
ABC 7

Watch: Santa Trades In His Sleigh For An LAPD Chopper
St. Nick temporarily traded in his usual mode of transportation to take flight in style – hovering over California in a Los Angeles Police Department helicopter before making gift deliveries to a local children’s hospital. FOX Los Angeles reported the LAPD’s SWAT team helped Santa deliver presents to The Luskin Orthopaedic Institute for Children as part of its annual "Toys and Joys" celebration. Video footage shows Santa sitting on the chopper’s landing skid before being dropped off on the hospital’s rooftop. Santa then repelled down the side of the hospital building to greet kids before taking photos and delivering toys.
PoliceOne

Pursuit Suspect Nabbed In Koreatown After Bicyclist, Vehicles Struck
A stolen-vehicle suspect was arrested in Koreatown shortly after leading LAPD officers on a pursuit from Westlake, where the suspect allegedly struck a bicyclist Thursday morning. LAPD officers were in pursuit of a stolen vehicle that reportedly struck a bicyclist near 2nd St. and Beaudry Ave. in the Westlake area at approximately 9:30 a.m. The vehicle, a gray Audi SUV, was reportedly occupied by a single driver, described as a man about 30 years old. The vehicle reportedly struck three other vehicles in the Koreatown area. The suspect bailed on foot and was quickly apprehended at Normandie Ave. and 6th Street, about 3 miles from the scene of the pedestrian crash. The condition of the bicyclist was unknown. LAPD confirmed the rider was the victim of a hit-and-run collision.
CBS 2

LAPD To Retrain Thousands Of Officers In Crowd Control Tactics In 2023
The Los Angeles Police Department says it’ll begin retraining thousands of officers in crowd-control tactics and new rules for using less-lethal weapons adopted following protests in 2020 that saw the agency heavily scrutinized for its response. Chief Michel Moore and other commanders who presented LAPD’s tactics at the Los Angeles Police Academy on Thursday, Dec. 8, said around 8,000 officers, from the lowest levels to the chief himself, are still being retrained this year. But starting in 2023, officers will get trained in those tactics all over again. The retraining and change in tactics are “a direction reflection of lessons learned in 2020,” Moore said.
LA Daily News

Toluca Lake Neighbors Fed Up With Squatters After Fires Set In Vacant Homes
Neighbors in Toluca Lake said they are in a battle to get their block back after squatters have taken over vacant homes. In the 10,000 block of Moorpark Street, a few homes have been taken over by the homeless population, according to neighbors. One person said three fires have started inside the homes and over the weekend, a homeless man died from smoke inhalation and burns. "As we saw somebody got in and started a fire and somebody died," said Carolyn Abdon, a neighbor. In March, city officials promised that something would be done. Better fences were put up around the houses but people are still able to get inside. Edward Escobar used to live in one of the properties, which is now gated up too.
CBS 2

Jury Deliberates, But No Verdict Yet, In Weinstein Sex Assault Case
Jurors in the sex assault trial of former film producer Harvey Weinstein gathered for a fifth day of deliberations Thursday but left without reaching a verdict. The panel has deliberated for nearly 20 hours over a five-day span, beginning when they were handed the case last Friday. Thus far, the jury has not submitted any evidentiary questions to the court during its deliberations, nor has it requested any read-backs of trial testimony. The jury will return Friday morning to continue deliberating. Weinstein, 70, is charged with seven sex-related counts involving four women, including Gov. Gavin Newsom’s wife, Jennifer Siebel Newsom, who told jurors she still lives with the trauma of being raped and sexually assaulted by Weinstein in a Beverly Hills hotel room 17 years ago. During the trial, jurors also heard from four other women who were allegedly sexually assaulted by Weinstein, but are not listed as charged victims in the case.
MyNewsLA

Thieves Ransack 3 SoCal Crumbl Cookies Stores On Same Day
Thieves ransacked three Crumbl Cookies locations in Southern California, all on the same day. Surveillance video shows three thieves breaking into the location in Industry on Tuesday. Two other stores were as well, all within a 10-mile radius. Employees at the industry store said they called 911 when they got to work and saw broken glass outside. "It was a really scary scene," said a store employee who did not want to share their name due to safety concerns. "We haven't witnessed anything like this. After the sheriffs came they all had the guns drawn and they went inside, did their thing to see if it was cleared and it was all cleared." According to employees, the Industry location was hit around 3:30 a.m. Then, about 45 minutes later, the Brea location on Birch Street was burglarized.
ABC 7

Thieves In SoCal Targeting Semi-Trucks For Costly Computer Components
Authorities in the Inland Empire are warning truck drivers about a rise in thefts from semi-trucks, saying thieves are targeting costly computer components that help the trucks run. The relatively new crime trend, according to law enforcement, has been costing victims thousands of dollars, not just in replacing the part, but in the business lost while their trucks are inoperable. “I’ve heard about them being stolen, but you know, like everything, you think it’s not going to happen to you,” Mike Bledsoe, the owner of Professional Site Solutions, told KTLA’s Shelby Nelson. Surveillance video captured the moments a thief smashed the window of Bledsoe’s semi-truck, pulled out a drill and in less than two minutes, stole the common powertrain controller, which sends communications between the engine and other parts of the vehicle.
KTLA 5

NYPD Union Head Blasts Policies That Let NYC Murder Suspect Out On Parole
State parole officials could have prevented two deaths if they’d done their job and revoked the parole of a convicted criminal newly accused of two murders, a stray-bullet shooting and other crimes, the outraged head of the NYPD’s biggest union said Wednesday. “This perp is living proof of the dangers of our broken justice system — especially the watered-down parole standards,” Police Benevolent Association President Patrick Lynch said of repeat offender Sundance Oliver. “Two people are dead and another injured because this violent recidivist was put back on the street.” Oliver, 28, surrendered Tuesday at Brooklyn’s 77th Precinct stationhouse to end a wild four-day crime rampage that allegedly included a gun robbery, an assault on his ex-girlfriend, the pair of cold-blooded murders and the stray-bullet shooting of a 96-year-old man.
New York Daily News

Public Safety News

L.A. Hospital Seeks Help To Identify Patient Found In Wheelchair
A local hospital is asking for the public’s help to identify an unknown patient who was found on the streets of downtown Los Angeles. The unidentified man was discovered on Nov. 3 while sitting in a wheelchair on Hope Street, according to Dignity Health. He was taken to a local hospital for treatment. Health officials say he had recently suffered from a stroke. He is unable to speak and was observed with a weakness affecting his right side. The man was found on the street with no identification or documents, said hospital workers. He is described as a Hispanic man in his 40s-50s with brown eyes and dark brown/black hair with some gray. He stands around 5 feet 6 inches tall and weighs about 150 pounds. He has a dark beard streaked with gray.
KTLA 5

Harbor-UCLA Medical Center Officials Need Help Identifying Homeless Woman
Harbor-UCLA Medical Center officials are asking for the public’s help identifying a patient who was brought to the hospital by Los Angeles County’s homeless outreach team last month. The woman, believed to be 70 to 80 years old, was found in Carson without any identification and has been homeless for many years, officials said. “Her health has started to deteriorate and she is now gravely disabled,” the hospital said in a news release. She is 4 feet 8 inches tall, weighs 130 pounds, has blue eyes, short medium brown hair and no eyebrows, teeth or dentures. Hospital officials also indicated she is “very forgetful.” Anyone with information that may help to identify the woman is asked to call the hospital at 424-306-6310.
KTLA 5

As Flu Surges, L.A. Faces Shortages Of Kids’ Medications. Stockpiling Can Make It Worse
As flu season approached, Antonieta Garcia knew it was time to replenish her supply of cough suppressants and fever reducers. But this year, she often walks into a store and finds only empty shelves. The 44-year-old East Los Angeles mother of two tries to keep a fully stocked medicine cabinet because her 2-year-old is immunocompromised and her 12-year-old has asthma. One cold or flu could mean a trip to an ER, and with a surge in respiratory illnesses driving up demand for kids’ medicine, Garcia said she feels like she’s fighting a war on all fronts. “As soon as the RSV [respiratory syncytial virus] and the flu season started, that’s when I saw there was hardly any cough medication, there’s hardly any Tylenol or ibuprofen,” she said. “I don’t want to exaggerate, but I decided I had to stock up.”
LA Times

A Mask Mandate May Be Coming Back To LA County Amid ‘High' COVID Activity
As expected, Los Angeles County moved Thursday into the federal government's "high'' COVID-19 activity category, sparking stepped- up warnings of widespread transmission of the virus and moving the area closer to another indoor mask-wearing mandate. The county had been in the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's "medium'' COVID activity level. But that changed Thursday when the county's average rate of new infections rose to 258 per 100,000 people -- well above the threshold of 200 per 100,000 to qualify the county for the "high'' activity level. County Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer said the move will not trigger a return to any lockdowns or business closures that were imposed at the height of the pandemic. But she warned that being in the "high'' category means the virus is rampant in the area, and the odds of being exposed are growing. She noted that with the current infection rate, there's an 80% to 90% chance that at least one person is infected with the virus at an event or gathering of 200 people.
NBC 4

Local Government News

Los Angeles Mayor-Elect Karen Bass To Take Office Amid Homeless Crisis
Los Angeles Mayor-elect Karen Bass is preparing to take office this weekend amid growing concerns over the city’s homeless crisis. The inauguration for the first woman to be elected mayor of Los Angeles will be held Sunday. Bass’ inauguration ceremony was moved indoors to the Microsoft Theater due to weather concerns. Forecasters are calling for a chance of rain downtown Sunday. The Microsoft Theater seats more than 7,000 people and doors are slated to open at 11 a.m. The ceremony is free and open to the public but attendees must register online at mobilize.us/karenbass. Bass is expected to be sworn in by Vice President Kamala Harris, who endorsed Bass during her campaign.
KTLA 5