Police Probe Fatal Shooting Of Man In His 20s Near Koreatown

Authorities Sunday were asking for the public's help in identifying the suspect responsible for killing a man near the outskirts of Koreatown. The incident was reported around 3:30 a.m. Sunday in the 1900 block of South Orchard Avenue. There, officers arrived and located a man who had been shot inside a vehicle. The man was taken to a hospital where he was pronounced dead. He was believed to be in his 20s. His name has not been released pending notification of his loved ones. Police said the suspect, believed to be a man, fled in a light-colored car. Anyone with information was asked to contact West Bureau Homicide detectives at (213) 382-9470. 

CBS 2

Search Continues For Suspects In San Pedro Beach Shooting That Left 5 Wounded

Los Angeles police on Sunday were searching for two suspects who opened fire the evening before on a group gathered for a San Pedro beach barbecue, wounding five, two of them critically. The two male suspects approached the group of 10 to 20 people at Royal Palms Beach near Paseo del Mar and Grayby Avenue at about 5:45 p.m. Saturday, police said. There was a physical altercation, and at least one of the suspects flashed a handgun, fired multiple rounds and fled in a car, said Officer Drake Madison, a spokesman with the Los Angeles Police Department. All five male victims were taken to the hospital. Two were listed in critical condition, two in serious condition and one was stable, police said. A motive for the shooting has not been established. LAPD spokesman Warren Moore on Saturday said that one suspect fled the scene in a gray sedan, driving along Paseo del Mar. Moore said the suspect was a man in his 20s with a buzz haircut, wearing all black, including a black mask, and was believed to have fired a semiautomatic handgun.

Los Angeles Times

Suspect Arrested After 6 Stabbed In Downtown Los Angeles

Multiple people were stabbed and several were hospitalized after a fight spilled into the street in downtown Los Angeles early Saturday morning, according to video footage from the scene. The Los Angeles Police Department reports that a fight broke out between two groups of people on the street when a man produced a knife and stabbed six people around 2:15 a.m. All of the victims were Hispanic men in their 20s and 30s, as was the assailant. Another video shows the attack left one man with a deep laceration across his face. All victims were transported to a local hospital in stable condition. A suspect was later arrested without incident.

KTLA 5

$50K Reward Offered For Information In Fatal Hit-and-Run Crash In South Los Angeles

Authorities on Friday announced a $50,000 reward for information in a fatal hit-and-run crash that occurred in South Los Angeles last year. Kimela “Kim” Monique Franklin, 47, was pushing a shopping cart near Western and Slauson avenues around 2:25 a.m. Nov. 23 when she was struck by a light midsize sedan, according to the Los Angeles Police Department. The driver then made a U-turn, but did not stop to help Franklin, or to identify him or herself. They were last seen heading south on Western Avenue, police said. A black SUV is believed to have chased the suspect vehicle, and police want to speak to that person in case they may have witnessed the crime. Franklin suffered broken legs, a shattered pelvis, cracked ribs, punctured lungs and a fractured back before succumbing to her injuries on Dec. 8, loved ones said in a GoFundMe page set up for funeral expenses. The impact of the crash threw her almost 200 feet, the fundraising page noted. Franklin was a mother who was described as “fun loving” and “strong,” who had a “courageous soul.”

KTLA 5

Three Teens Shot In South LA, Hospitalized

Three teens were hospitalized Saturday after being shot on the same block as a police station in South Los Angeles. The victims — an 18-year-old man and two girls, ages 15 and 16 — suffered gunshot wounds to their extremities and were transported in moderate condition to local hospitals, according to the Los Angeles Fire Department spokesperson Nicholas Prange. The shooting occurred around 10:15 p.m. at 130 W. 76th St., Prange said. That location is on the same block as the Los Angeles Police Department’s 77th Street Community Police Station. There was no suspect or motive information immediately available.

MyNewsLA

Police Looking For 4 Suspects In Alleged Racially-Charged Koreatown Metro Station Beating

Authorities released images of the alleged attackers involved in a brutal beating at a Metro station in Koreatown last week. The Los Angeles Police Department posted a community alert showing images of the suspects on Twitter. All four men are reportedly in their 20s, according to police. They allegedly approached the victim while he was waiting for a train and punched him in the face and body until he lost consciousness. The victim said he remembers the attackers yelling racial slurs at him. "They didn't give me enough time to run. As soon as I came down the steps at the platform, they came up to me," said the man, who did not wish to publicly disclose his name during an interview with ABC7 last week. The man said the incident happened as he was going to catch a Purple Line train at the Wilshire/Western station.

ABC 7

Man Indicted On Hate Crime, Firearms Charges In West LA Jewish Shootings

28-year-old Jaime Tran, who is suspected of shooting two Jewish men after they left synagogues in the Pico-Robertson district, was indicted Friday by a federal grand jury. The charges were hate crime and firearms possession that could put him behind bars for life. Tran, previously of Riverside, was charged with two hate crime counts for allegedly willfully causing bodily injury and attempting to kill his victims. The grand jury in downtown Los Angeles further charged Tran with two counts of discharging a firearm in relation to a crime of violence. The suspect has been in federal custody since his February 17 arrest on a criminal complaint in the case. His arraignment is scheduled for next Thursday in Los Angeles federal court. According to the indictment, Tran developed and espoused antisemitic beliefs and made violent threats toward Jewish people. For example, in 2018, he left dental school after making hate-filled statements about other students whom he perceived to be Jewish, the indictment states.

Westside Current

3 SoCal Women Arrested, Allegedly Stole Nearly $1 Million In Federal Student Loans

Three women were arrested Friday for the alleged theft of nearly $1 million in federal student loans. The suspects were identified as Nyisha Ramsey, 43, of Lancaster, Dionne Ramsey, 36, of Las Vegas, (Nyisha’s sister) and Sharyn Barney, 62, of Lancaster, (Nyisha’s mother-in-law), by the U.S. Attorney’s Office. The three women are accused of obtaining around $980,000 in student loans using stolen identities, some of which belonged to California inmates, authorities said. From January 2012 to August 2017, the suspects obtained stolen names and Social Security numbers to fraudulently enroll in an Orange County community college. The suspects posed as fake students while applying for funds through the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) program. They directed all stolen funds to their personal bank accounts which were used for personal expenses and not college tuition, authorities said. All three defendants were arrested on one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud affecting a financial institution and bank fraud.

KTLA 5

Indiana Trooper Hit, Killed While Trying To Stop Pursuit

An Indiana State Police trooper is dead following a Friday evening crash on I-69 south of Auburn. Master Trooper James R. Bailey, 50, Auburn, who served with the ISP for more than fifteen years, was assisting other troopers on I-69 with traffic backup as a result of weather-related vehicle crashes near the 326 mile marker south of Auburn, an ISP news release stated. The crash took place at approximately 4:30 p.m. "At that time, Trooper Bailey became aware of an individual driving at a high rate of speed evading an officer from the Fort Wayne Police Department on I-69 approaching his location," the release stated. "Trooper Bailey attempted to de-escalate that vehicle pursuit by deploying stop sticks. Trooper Bailey was struck by the suspect vehicle and critically injured. Emergency medical care was rendered at the scene and he was rushed to a nearby hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries." The suspect driver involved in this incident, Terry Dewaine Sands II, 42, Marion, was taken into custody and has been incarcerated in the DeKalb County Jail on a preliminary charge of resisting law enforcement causing death to law enforcement officer, a Level 2 Felony.

PoliceOne

Video: Man Arrested After Waving Rifle At Nearby Cruiser, Threatening Cop

Vernon Kelson might have believed he was well within his First Amendment rights when he posted an Instagram video of himself in a car waving an AK-47 and threatening the police officer in the patrol car next to him. But Miami-Dade Police didn’t. In the video posted under the name Getbackgang.Hank, Kelson, 22, while holding the rifle outside the passenger seat window, repeats, “If they pull this b---- over, it’s going to go down.” On Monday, it went down. Two days after Kelson’s social media post, police with the help of license plate readers tracked him in South Miami-Dade and took him into custody. Speaking to homicide detectives at Miami-Dade Police headquarters in Doral, police said Kelson admitted that the rifle was real — but laughed as he told them he had no intention of harming any police officers. That didn’t matter much to police, though, who charged Kelson with four felony counts including a written threat of bodily injury, displaying a firearm while committing a felony, open carry of a weapon, and being wanted on a separate warrant. He remained jailed at the Turner Guilford Knight correctional center on Tuesday.

Miami Herald

Hiker Found Dead On Pacific Palisades Trail

Authorities are investigating after a hiker was found dead on a Pacific Palisades trail Saturday afternoon. The hiker is an adult male, but his identity has not been released by the Los Angeles Fire Department. Emergency crews responded to the 1500 block of Bienveneda Avenue around 12:58 p.m. When they arrived at the scene, bystanders had been performing CPR on the victim. Fire crews took over resuscitative measures for about 20 minutes before the man was declared dead at the scene. The cause of death has not been released and remains under investigation.

KTLA 5

Fire Damages Attic At Three-Story North Hollywood Apartment Building

Fire damaged an attic of a three-story apartment building in North Hollywood Sunday. A total of 38 firefighters dispatched at 12:06 p.m. to 12650 W. Oxnard St. had the fire out within 15 minutes of their arrival, the Los Angeles Fire Department reported. No injuries were reported. The cause of the fire remained under investigation.

MyNewsLA

LA County's New Housing Projects Open For Homeless College Students In Boyle Heights

Los Angeles county’s newest housing projects have finally launched, making 100 bed spaces available to college students who experience homelessness or are at risk of becoming homeless. The Dunamis House is one of the two housing projects who had their grand opening in Boyle Heights. Dozens gathered to celebrate and share their excitement on this new project including Mayor Karen Bass and City and County Officials. “We have to build the housing that is needed and this is such a beautiful example,” Mayor Karen Bass said. Sam Prater, LA Room and Board Founder, wanted these houses to be different from previous transitional housing. The Dunamis House has the looks of a fancy hotel along with beautiful artwork, candles and furniture. Prater made it clear that he wanted residents of this new housing project to feel safe and comfortable. “They deserve the best and we try and create spaces that are conducive to success and grow,” said Prater.  

NBC 4

Los Angeles County Holds Stable COVID-19 Hospitalization Rate

The number of COVID-positive patients in Los Angeles County hospitals has decreased to 649, down from 658 the previous day, according to the latest state numbers released Saturday. Of those patients, 77 were being treated in intensive care, down from 81 on Friday. Some of the patients were initially hospitalized for other reasons and learned they had COVID after a mandated test. The latest figures come one day after local health officials reported another 14 virus-related deaths and 1,343 new positive cases. The new fatalities brought the county's cumulative total from throughout the pandemic to 35,734, while the county's case total now stands at 3,708,022, according to the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health. Daily case numbers released by the county are undercounts of actual virus activity in the county, due to people who use at-home tests and don't report the results, and others who don't test at all. The county's test positivity rate was holding steady at 5.6%, about the same as a week ago.

NBC 4

Los Angeles Councilmembers To Announce New Sanctuary City Legislation This Week

Los Angeles city councilmembers are expected to announce new sanctuary city legislation this week. Councilmembers Eunisses Hernandez, Nithya Raman and Hugo Soto-Martinez will host a press conference on Tuesday, March 7, along with immigrant rights' advocates announcing legislation "to direct the city to report back" on an ordinance that would establish L.A. as a "sanctuary city." The ordinance would also prohibit any city resources, property or personnel from being used for any federal immigration enforcement. L.A. is home to more than 1.3 million immigrants, according to the city. However, a significant amount of them live in fear of being detained and deported by federal authorities.

ABC 7

About the LAPPL: Formed in 1923, the Los Angeles Police Protective League (LAPPL) represents more than 9,200 dedicated and professional sworn members of the Los Angeles Police Department. The LAPPL serves to advance the interests of LAPD officers through legislative and legal advocacy, political action and education.