Law Enforcement News

10 Treated For ‘Possible Cannabis Overdoses' At Middle School In Van Nuys
Firefighter-paramedics responded Thursday to a medical emergency involving possible cannabis overdoses at a middle school in Van Nuys. Los Angeles firefighters received a report regarding patients with medical complaints at Van Nuys Middle School in the 5400 block of Vesper Avenue. Seven students were transported to hospitals, the LAFD said. Their symptoms were described as mild to moderate, the LAFD said. The patients ranged in age from 13 to 14, the LAFD said. Details about the medical complaints were not immediately available. LAFD Public Information Officer Erik Scott said the overdoses possibly involving edible cannabis products. The Los Angeles Unified School District issued the following statement: "Today, we were made aware of a group of students who suffered a medical incident at Van Nuys Middle School. In an abundance of caution, we requested medical assistance. Medical professionals and the Los Angeles School Police Department have responded.
NBC 4

89-Year-Old Woman Killed In Hit-and-Run Crash In Green Meadows, Search Underway For Driver
An 89-year-old woman is dead after a hit-and-run crash in the Los Angeles neighborhood of Green Meadows. The incident happened just after 11 p.m. Thursday near the area of 109th Street and Central Avenue, according to the Los Angeles Police Department. Authorities say the woman, who has not been identified, was struck by a driver in a dark Chevy SUV, who then drove off. Additional details were not available, but a search is on for that driver.
ABC 7

Los Angeles Police Department Officers Involved In Crash
Multiple Los Angeles Police Department officers were involved in a crash in South Los Angeles Thursday evening but none were injured. The crash was reported around 8:10 p.m. near the intersection of Adams Boulevard and Flower Street, said Officer Jader Chavez. No further information was immediately available.
MyNewsLA

Police Tackle, Arrest Pursuit Suspect After He Tries To Carjack Three People
Police were in pursuit of a man possibly armed with a gun driving 140 mph on CA-60. The Los Angeles Police Department began the pursuit in downtown L.A. after seeing the suspect with a gun get into a car and drive away. The California Highway Patrol took it over after the suspect got onto the I-10 Freeway. The driver entered the CA-60 Freeway going at speeds of about 140 mph. He continued going blazing fast speeds despite being in a construction zone and officers dropping back. The suspect exited the freeway once he got to Ontario and pulled over. With no police around him at the time, he got out of the car and tried to carjack a passerby. Luckily, the driver locked the car's doors and drove away. The suspect tried to carjack two more people before police caught up with him and tackled him to the ground.
CBS 2

Smash-and-Grab Burglary Targets Upscale San Pedro Sneaker Shop, Over $100k In Stolen Goods
A San Pedro couple is left devastated after their sneaker shop was ransacked in a smash-and-grab burglary, losing $100,000 in merchandise. The heist happened on Wednesday around 6 a.m. while security cameras captured the perpetrators in the act. Video shows the thieves smashing their way into the San Pedro shop, grabbing handfuls of expensive sneakers and upscale streetwear. They’re seen repeatedly exiting and placing the stolen items into a vehicle parked on 6th Street. The owners of Street Sole, Mary and Jean Grisard, are now left devastated over the loss of their business and livelihoods. The thieves managed to get away with hard-to-find collector’s items, the owners said. This was not the first break-in targeting the shop either — the owners tell KTLA back in 2019, their store was also burglarized.
KTLA 5

Caught On Video: Thieves Steal Holiday Gifts From Unlocked Car In Westlake Village
Video captured outside a Westlake Village home is a stark reminder to never leave anything of value in your car, including your holiday gifts. The family who lives there learned that the hard way after thieves stole all of the kids' Christmas presents earlier this week. The parents had left them in the car so their children wouldn't see them. But they also left the doors unlocked so thieves wouldn't break the windows. As it turns out, some thieves did show up and they made off with everything they could carry. "The crime is getting worse... with COVID and the holidays are coming around.. Just everything squeezing, we're going to have more people doing what they're doing," said Mark Heninger. If you do have to leave your holiday presents in the car, police recommend hiding them out of sight and making sure to lock your doors.
ABC 7

Sylmar Man Sentenced To 89 Years To Life For Killing Innocent Bystander In Long Beach
Exactly four years after a 24-year-old woman was shot and killed as an innocent bystander in a crowded downtown Long Beach parking lot, her family and friends addressed her killer in court. They remembered Anna Perez as a bubbly young woman with a lively sense of humor. They admonished Thomas Terrell McCreary of Sylmar for bringing a gun with him to celebrate a relative’s birthday and destroying their family. “If you needed to bring a loaded gun with you, you shouldn’t have gone out that night,” Perez’ friend, Sylvia Plata, said during victim impact statements in Long Beach Superior Court. Judge James D. Otto sentenced 46-year-old McCreary, to 89 years to life in prison. A jury found him guilty in August of first-degree murder and being a felon in possession of a firearm.
LA Daily News

Body Of Man Found In Malibu Area; Investigation Underway
A man’s body was found Thursday at the side of a roadway in the Malibu area, and an investigation was underway. The body was discovered about 7:30 a.m. near the 33000 block of Mulholland Highway, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. Information was not immediately available on the identity or cause of death, although investigators said there were “no obvious signs of trauma.” Sheriff’s officials originally reported the body was a woman, but they said Thursday afternoon it was that of a man. A section of Mulholland Highway was closed in the area while an investigation was conducted. Anyone with information on the case was urged to call the Sheriff’s Homicide Bureau at 323-890-5500, or Crime Stoppers at 800-222-TIPS.
MyNewsLA

VIDEO: Suspects Wanted After Stealing Cash From Culver City Gas Station
Culver City police investigators sought the public’s help with identifying two men who were seen on surveillance footage committing an armed robbery at a Chevron gas station. On Tuesday, Nov.29 officers with the Culver City Police Department were notified about an armed robbery that occurred at the gas station located at 11197 Washington Place around 11:30 p.m. The gas station employee told arriving officers the suspects entered the store, brandished a semi-automatic handgun and demanded money from the cash register. The victim said the suspects got away with $200 in cash and immediately left the scene. The first suspect was described by authorities as a Black man in his 20s who stands at 5 feet 7 inches tall with a thin build. He was last seen wearing a black hoodie with red accents, black pants, a black mask, and red and black slippers. Surveillance footage shows he was the one armed with a handgun.
FOX 11

California Man Accused Of Throwing Motolov Cocktail Toward Police
A California man is accused of throwing a Molotov cocktail toward a police officer, not once but at least two times. According to police in Corning, California, officers were investigating a loud banging noise coming from just outside the department's building. When they checked outside, officers tried to contact 32-year-old Cassidy Russ, who was walking away from the police department's building. While trying to walk away and ignoring the officers trying to stop him, Russ began "fumbling with an item near the front of his waistband," Corning PD said in a press release. As the officers gave the suspect verbal commands, Russ lit a Molotov cocktail and threw it toward police. The Molotov cocktail missed the officer and blew up near a parked vehicle. Following the explosion, Russ led police on a foot chase before being tackled to the ground. Russ was eventually placed into custody and booked into jail after resisting baton strikes, Corning PD said in a press release. The fire started by Russ was eventually extinguished and as of Thursday evening, no injuries were reported.
FOX 11

California PD Launches Crime-Mapping Tool To Create Transparency, Prevent Crime
In an effort to increase transparency and awareness in the community, the Oceanside (Calif.) Police Department launched a crime-mapping tool to help prevent crime and reduce fear. The department is using FirstWatch, which shows calls for service over the previous 12 to 48 hours, Fox5SanDiego.com reported. “It activates the community as a whole to be vigilant and to take care of not only themselves but their neighbors,” Oceanside PD Cpt. Sean Marchand said. The map also informs community members about what kind of incident is taking place. The technology was funded by the half-cent Measure X sales tax revenue, an initiative passed in 2018 to enhance public safety, according to the report. For officers’ safety, incidents do not populate on the map until they have left the scene and confidential information is not included.
PoliceOne

New York Police Sergeant Killed In Head-On Crash
A 24-year veteran of the Yonkers (N.Y.) Police Department died in a multi-vehicle crash Thursday afternoon. The sergeant, who has not yet been named, was on duty driving an unparked police vehicle when a BMW lost control and crossed into the opposite lane, striking the sergeant’s vehicle and a bus. The officer was transported to a hospital and later died from his injuries, the department said on Twitter. “It’s a time for mourning here for us in Yonkers,” Yonkers Mayor Mike Spano told ABC7.com. “We lost a member of our family. We lost a member of our law enforcement community. The men and women in this department are hurting.” The driver of the bus and BMW suffered non-life-threatening injuries, according to the report. The crash is under investigation. We will update this article once more information becomes available.
PoliceOne

Public Safety News

Where To Get Fentanyl Testing Strips In L.A. And How To Use Them
Fentanyl overdose deaths in Los Angeles County are up more than 1200% since 2016, according to the L.A. County Department of Public Health. The opioid is 50 to 100 times stronger than morphine, according to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration. The federal government says the drug has become the deadliest in the country. The problem has led to thousands of deaths on the street over the last several years, with additional deaths slowly appearing in the local school system. The biggest issue facing users, is that many seemingly unrelated drugs are being tainted or cut with fentanyl. “The proliferation into prescription drug lookalikes show that four out of 10 pills that are recovered today by the Los Angeles Police Department, and across this country, contain a deadly and fatal amount of fentanyl,” LAPD Chief Michel Moore said during a downtown news conference earlier this week. Officials said the pills are cheap to make and easy to slip into the country over borders, causing devastating results.
KTLA 5

With Rise In COVID Cases, Could Indoor Mask Mandates Return To LA County?
New numbers show a sharp increase in COVID cases this week just as hospitals are also dealing with a surge in Flu and RSV patients. But does that mean indoor mask mandates could return in LA county? LA county public health director Dr. Barbara Ferrer says right now, with this the current surge in COVID cases, the county is not at a point of reinstating the indoor mask mandate. But if things get worse at hospitals, it could happen by the end of the month. She says the important thing is to start wearing our masks again to protect against what is now a triple threat. More people are getting sick and getting sick earlier this winter according to doctors in the ER and ICU who had expected a jump in patients just not so soon. “These are typically not the type of numbers we see till end of December early January so the fact that we’re starting the season so early is an ominous sign,” Dr. Thomas Yadegar, ICU director at Cedars Providence Tarzana hospital, said.
NBC 4

Local Government News

LA City Council To Vote On Banning Oil Drilling
The City Council will vote Friday on an ordinance that bans oil drilling in Los Angeles. Two committees had approved the item before it came before the council, which voted 10-0 last week to request that the city attorney prepare an ordinance to prohibit new oil and gas extraction and phase out all oil drilling activities in the city. “We’re sending a clear message to big oil: The city of Los Angeles will no longer tolerate oil and gas extraction,” Councilman Mitch O’Farrell said last week. “Families, no matter where they live, deserve to breathe clean air, have safe neighborhoods and lead a healthy life free from the harmful impacts of dirty energy.” The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors approved a similar ordinance earlier in October. The City Council in January unanimously approved a series of recommendations aimed at banning new oil and gas wells. The ordinance would phase out all such oil and gas extraction activities by immediately banning new oil and gas extraction and ceasing existing operations within 20 years.
MyNewsLA