Shootout involving LAPD officers in downtown LA sends possibly armed suspect to hospital
Law Enforcement News
Did LA City Council President Harris-Dawson Violate the Law?
The Los Angeles Police Protective League formally requested that District Attorney Nathan Hochman and Los Angeles City Attorney Hydee Feldstein Soto investigate credible reports of a possible violation of California Penal Code 148(a)(1) by LA City Council President Marqueece Harris-Dawson during a recent traffic enforcement stop. California Penal Code 148(a)(1) makes it a crime to willfully resist, delay or obstruct any…peace officer…in the discharge or attempt to discharge any duty of his or her office or employment.
The Los Angeles Police Protective League formally requested that District Attorney Nathan Hochman and Los Angeles City Attorney Hydee Feldstein Soto investigate credible reports of a possible violation of California Penal Code 148(a)(1) by LA City Council President Marqueece Harris-Dawson during a recent traffic enforcement stop. California Penal Code 148(a)(1) makes it a crime to willfully resist, delay or obstruct any…peace officer…in the discharge or attempt to discharge any duty of his or her office or employment.
News reports indicate that Mr. Harris-Dawson was stopped by a Los Angeles Unified School District police officer on Wednesday, March 4, 2026, for an officer-observed moving violation near a high school during morning drop off. The area is designated by the city as a high-injury network corridor. News reports also indicate that during the stop, Mr. Harris-Dawson apparently phoned a friend who is an elected member of the Los Angeles School District Board of Education in what has been characterized as “…an apparent effort to get out of the citation."
Harris-Dawson discussed the traffic stop during testimony on Friday, March 6th before a joint city council committee that was deliberating over pre-textual car stops. His testimony was highly selective and failed to disclose he was pulled over for a moving violation.
Shootout involving LAPD officers in downtown LA sends possibly armed suspect to hospital
An investigation is underway following a shootout involving Los Angeles Police Department officers and a possibly armed suspect in downtown Los Angeles early Thursday morning. The incident happened around 4:10 a.m. near Seventh Street and Ceres Avenue. According to the LAPD, a person called 911 reporting a man living in an RV was armed with a gun and pointing it at people in the Skid Row area. When officers arrived at the scene and surrounded the vehicle, they attempted to negotiate a peaceful surrender. The suspect eventually got out of the RV armed with a firearm and opened fire on the officers, officials said. Police returned fire, hitting the suspect. Video from the scene shows a heavy police presence and a cruiser stopped with its front end on the sidewalk. The suspect was seen being loaded into an ambulance and taken to a local hospital.
Serial arsonist connected to five "significant" Los Angeles area fires arrested, firefighters say
An alleged serial arsonist connected to "no fewer than five significant fires" across Los Angeles was arrested this week, authorities say. Though they didn't name the suspect or note any of the fires that they are allegedly responsible for, Los Angeles Fire Department officials said that the "alleged actions placed both civilians and firefighters at serious risk. "At least one of the fires is expected to be prosecuted at the federal level through the United States Attorney's Office," the LAFD release said. The investigation was a coordinated effort between LAFD's Arson/Counter-Terrorism Section, Los Angeles Police Department's Major Crimes Division and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. "Serial arson puts lives at risk on both sides of the fire line," said a statement from LAFD spokesperson Stephanie Bishop. "This arrest is the product of disciplined, coordinated work across the LAFD, LAPD and ATF. It reflects our shared commitment to holding those who endanger our communities and our firefighters fully accountable."
Loved ones search for missing 78-year-old Southern California man
Loved ones are searching for a missing elderly man who disappeared after going on a routine walk in Van Nuys. Aleksander Dadayan, 78, was reported missing on March 18, according to the Los Angeles Police Department. Dadayan, who is considered critically missing, was last seen going for a short walk around his residential complex on the 13800 block of Sherman Way. When he did not return home, his family members searched the area and discovered that the rental car they were using was also missing. Dadayan is 5 feet 8 inches tall and weighs 165 pounds. He has brown eyes and balding gray hair. He was last seen wearing a beige shirt with an unknown pattern, dark blue jogging pants with a white stripe and navy-colored tennis shoes. The rental car is a dark gray 2019 Kia Forte with California license plate 8LRC726. Dadayan’s family noted that he is diabetic and requires daily insulin injections, which he does not have with him. “His condition places him at risk, and his family is concerned for his safety,” LAPD said. Anyone who knows Dadayan’s whereabouts or has information on his disappearance is urged to call LAPD’s Missing Persons Unit at 213-996-1800.
Koreatown rideshare driver arrested for allegedly using $2M in COVID business loans for crypto investment
A rideshare driver from Los Angeles’ Koreatown neighborhood has been arrested for allegedly using more than $2 million in fraudulently obtained COVID-19 pandemic business loans to buy cryptocurrency, according to the Department of Justice. The DOJ said that Bruce Choi, 34, was arrested on Tuesday at San Francisco International Airport after arriving on a flight from Japan. He’s being charged with four counts of wire fraud affecting a financial institution and one count of transactional money laundering. According to the indictment, which was unsealed on Wednesday, Choi represented himself as the CEO and owner of a business called Premier Republic and applied for a $1,995,000 PayCheck Protection Program (PPP) loan. He reportedly claimed that this business had an average monthly payroll of $798,000 and was in operation in mid-February while paying salaries and payroll taxes. However, the DOJ said that Premier Republic had neither business operations or employees.
Beverly Hills police warns of thieves intercepting mail checks to IRS
Scammers are intercepting large checks made out to the IRS during tax season and when that happens, those stolen funds are typically unable to be recovered, the Beverly Hills Police Department warns. Taxpayers are sending the IRS tax payments ahead of the April 15 deadline, but police warn that sending such payments through the mail poses a risk for theft. Beverly Hills police said there have been instances where IRS payment checks were intercepted, altered and deposited into the thief’s bank account. “Victims often do not discover the crime until several months later, when they receive notice from the IRS that their tax payment was never received,” BHPD said in a statement. “By that time, the altered check has already cleared, the funds have been withdrawn in cash, and the suspect account has been closed.” Police also stressed that once those funds are withdrawn, the loss is typically permanent. For that reason, BHPD encourages the public to submit IRS tax payments electronically through its official website. If a physical check is required to be mailed, taxpayers should regularly check their bank statements to ensure those funds are not intercepted.
LA County leaders increase rewards for information on Carson and Compton cemetery metal thefts
Los Angeles County Supervisors on Tuesday renewed and increased the rewards being offered for information that leads to the identification, arrest and conviction of the people who vandalized cemeteries in Compton and Carson in 2024, stealing dozens of plaques and memorial markers made of precious metals. The series of crimes began in early January that year and continued for months, targeting both Lincoln Memorial Park in Carson and Woodlawn Celestial Gardens cemetery in Compton, which supervisors acknowledged as "one of the oldest operating cemeteries in Los Angeles County" since it began operating back in the 1880s. "The cemetery contains the gravesites of numerous prominent figures and many local military veterans dating back to the Civil War and the Spanish-American War," said a motion from Supervisor Holly Mitchell, which requested that the reward be renewed and increased.
BWC shows Florida officers pull suspect from burning cruiser after shootout that wounded cop
The Volusia County Sheriff’s Office released body camera footage showing the aftermath of a shootout with a suspect that left a 23-year-old South Daytona Police officer wounded, Spectrum News 13 reported. The March 15 incident unfolded when officers responded to reports of a road rage shooting. Officers received a description of the suspect vehicle, quickly located it and pursued it over a short distance, South Daytona Police Chief Joseph LaSata stated. The suspect crashed his vehicle before getting out and attempting to flee on foot. The man fired shots at South Daytona Police Officer Jake Fessenden, who then returned fire. As other officers on scene worked to pull Fessenden from the line of fire, the suspect entered Fessenden’s cruiser. Body camera video shows Volusia County Sheriff’s deputies arriving on the scene as an officer helps a limping Fessenden take cover behind a group of cruisers. Officers can be seen ordering the suspect out of the police cruiser from a distance.
Video: Man accused of beating woman, forcing her to drive him flees Florida LEOs at 120 mph before arrest
The Flagler County Sheriff’s Office released body camera footage showing a high-speed pursuit of a man who allegedly beat a woman and ordered her to drive him around. The March 15 incident began when a woman, who was reportedly bruised and had a black eye, entered a gas station and asked the attendant to call 911. The woman later told officers that the suspect had hit her repeatedly, threatened her life at gunpoint and struck her with a gun, according to the release. When officers arrived at the scene, a vehicle parked at a gas pump quickly drives away. Dashcam video from the pursuit shows the suspect running red lights and weaving through traffic as he fled. After entering Interstate 95, the suspect vehicle reached speeds of more than 120 mph, according to the sheriff’s office. A Florida Highway Patrol cruiser is shown taking the lead in the pursuit. Video shows the trooper performing a PIT maneuver on the suspect vehicle after the pursuit exited the highway, causing the vehicle to spin, but the suspect continued to flee. An additional maneuver caused the vehicle to spin rapidly off the roadway, but the suspect was able to reenter the road and continue fleeing.
Public Safety News
Fire Destroys RV in Sun Valley
A recreational vehicle in Sun Valley was destroyed in a fire Wednesday evening which also damaged an adjacent utility pole. Los Angeles Fire Department crews responded at approximately 9 p.m. to the 8700 block of Sharp Avenue, near Sheldon Arleta Park, the department reported. Firefighters extinguished the fire at 9:15 p.m.
Man found in downtown Los Angeles last week remains a mystery
Los Angeles health officials asked the public for help Wednesday in identifying a man who has been hospitalized since last week. The patient was found on the 500 block of South Alameda Street in downtown Los Angeles on Friday, according to the Los Angeles County Department of Health Services. No additional information about the patient or how he was injured was released, but officials said they have been unable to locate any family members or friends who could help identify him. The patient is described as a Black man with short black hair that is balding and a normal build. Officials believe he is in his mid-40s, about 5 feet 6 inches tall and weighs approximately 150 pounds. Anyone with information about the patient’s identity is asked to contact Clinical Social Worker Jonathan Evanculla at 323-409-3859 or the Los Angeles General Medical Center Department of Social Work at 323-409-5253.
Dangerous heat wave breaks records across Southern California as temperatures still expected to peak
The dangerous winter heat wave that is shattering records across Southern California is going to continue through Friday, but a cool down is coming soon. The National Weather Service says satellite imagery shows a thin line of marine layer clouds that are starting to make their way into the region. If this persists, temperatures could be about 5 degrees lower than the forecast in coastal communities. Weather officials say the slight cooling down will likely not affect the valleys and the mountains, which will continue to see hot conditions. "It continues to be very hot with temperatures 20-30 degrees above normal, and spanning 90-106 degrees away from the coast and 80s to 90s at the coasts," the NWS says. An extreme heat warning will remain in effect until 8 p.m. on Friday for much of Southern California.
