2 LAPD Officers Shot In Lincoln Heights Released From Hospital

Two Los Angeles Police Department officers injured during a gun battle with a parolee in Lincoln Heights were released from a hospital, while an investigation continued Friday into the police operation that led to the gunfire and left the suspect dead. Three LAPD officers were shot and wounded by the gunman during a search for a parolee at large in the Lincoln Heights neighborhood on Wednesday. The Los Angeles Police Department Headquarters confirmed in a tweet that two officers were set to be discharged from LAC+USC Medical Center on Thursday. A third officer injured in the shootout is expected to remain in the hospital to receive additional medical treatment. “We thank the L.A. City Fire Department and hospital staff who have provided the best possible treatment to the injured officers,” according to a headquarters’ statement. One of the police officers was shot in the arm, another was shot in the leg and the third was shot in the torso, but body armor probably deflected the round, according to authorities.

MyNewsLA

LAPD Identifies Suspect In Shooting Of 3 Officers In Lincoln Heights

Three Los Angeles Police Department officers were shot by a suspect during an incident in the Lincoln Heights neighborhood of Los Angeles Wednesday night. According to the police department, officers with the Hollenbeck division received a call around 3:50 p.m. regarding a parolee at large in the area of N. Mission Road and N. Broadway.

Fox 11 Video

2nd Suspect Sought In Stabbing Death Of El Sereno Teen

A suspect accused of fatally stabbing a 17-year-old boy in El Sereno and injuring another man was taken into custody Wednesday morning following an hours-long standoff with authorities at his home in Alhambra. The suspect, identified as 32-year-old David Zapata, spoke to crisis negotiators on the phone, who were eventually able to convince him to come out of the house and surrender. Zapata is accused of stabbing Xavier Chavarin, a straight-A student at Woodrow Wilson High School, on March 3. In a GoFundMe campaign, family said that attack occurred when Chavarin walked from school to King Torta after class to wait for his mom, stepfather and sisters to pick him up. Chavarin died at the scene. A second outstanding suspect is being sought by police in connection with Chavarin's death, the LAPD said during a press conference Thursday. This second suspect was a passenger in the getaway car that Zapata drove from the first scene, police said. No further details on the suspect were released.

FOX 11

Pair Of Shootings Occurring Within 15 Minutes Of Each Other Under Investigation In South LA

Police are investigating a pair of shootings that occurred just minutes apart from each other in South Los Angeles Thursday evening. The first shooting, which occurred at around 8:04 p.m. in the area of Imperial Highway and Hoover Street, resulted in three people suffering from gunshot wounds. All have been hospitalized, according to Los Angeles Fire Department. One is said to be in critical condition, while the other two are expected to survive. Just about 15 minutes later, at 8:17 p.m. a second shooting occurred in the 10900 block of S. Figueroa Street. One person was hospitalized after suffering a gunshot wound. Their condition was unavailable. The shootings occurred less than a mile away from each other. There is no suspect information available in either shooting. Los Angeles Police Department officers investigating the incidents say that other than the close proximity and time of the shootings, it is unclear if they are connected. 

CBS 2

Suspect In Shooting Of 2 Jewish Men In L.A. Pleads Not Guilty

A man who allegedly shot and wounded two Jewish men as they left synagogues in Los Angeles last month pleaded not guilty Thursday to federal hate crimes, authorities said. The shootings Feb. 15 and Feb. 16 brought fear into LA’s Jewish community after officials said the victims were targeted because they wore clothing that identified their faith, including black coats and head coverings. Both survived the violence. Jaime Tran, 28, is charged with two counts of hate crimes and two counts of using, carrying and discharging a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence. He entered his not-guilty plea Thursday in federal court. He remains held without bail. Kate Corrigan, one of Tran’s attorneys, said she expects to receive discovery-hearing evidence within the coming days as she prepares his defense. “We’ll be looking at the overall scenario in this case and addressing the charges,” she said Thursday. Tran told law enforcement that he looked online for a “kosher market” and decided to shoot someone nearby, according at an affidavit filed by the FBI. He also admitted to shooting someone the previous day, the affidavit said.

KTLA 5

Second Man Behind Bars In Armed Robberies Linked To LA’s Chesapeake Bandits

A second Los Angeles man charged for his alleged involvement in the armed robberies of several armored vehicles over the past year is behind bars Friday. James Russell Davis, 34, was arrested late Wednesday in Rancho Cucamonga by the FBI’s Fugitive Task Force and ordered detained by a federal magistrate judge, according to Donald Always, the assistant director in charge of the FBI’s Los Angeles office. A federal arrest warrant was issued for Davis last month after he was charged in a criminal complaint with conspiracy to interfere with commerce by robbery. The robberies have been linked to a group nicknamed the Chesapeake Bandits since investigators believe the group is meeting and staging the robberies at a home on Chesapeake Avenue in the West Adams neighborhood of Los Angeles.

MyNewsLA

$100,000 Reward Offered In Fatal Carson Hit-and-Run

Authorities on Thursday were hoping that a $100,000 reward would help generate clues to find the hit-and-run motorist involved in the death of a pedestrian in Carson earlier this year. Jamaal Freeman, 34, was injured on Jan. 3 at about 5 a.m. at 220th Street and Avalon Boulevard, and he died at the scene, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department and the Los Angeles County coroner's office. At a news conference Thursday morning at the Carson Sheriff's Station, authorities announced the reward for information leading to the identity, arrest and conviction of the driver involved in the fatal hit-and-run. “Jamaal was such a good man,” Freeman's mother, Jestina Jones, said at the news conference. “I want to have closure for my son. Please, please, if you're a mother, if you know your son has done something, please let him turn himself in.” A GoFundMe page set up on behalf of the family had raised about $15,000 as of Thursday morning. 

NBC 4

DEA Seizes 1 Million Fentanyl Pills During Sting Operation In Southern California

Federal authorities have arrested three Mexican men who were allegedly in possession of one million fentanyl pills that were seized during a sting operation in El Monte. The suspects, all of whom are from Sinaloa, Mexico, face federal counts of possession with intent to distribute controlled substances. They have been identified as: Florencio Camacho Allan, 28, Gerardo Gaixola-Patino, 29, and Alex Valdez Oroz, 25. They were expected to make their first court appearance in Los Angeles Thursday afternoon. According to a statement released by the United States Attorney's Office, the suspects met two buyers at a restaurant in El Seguno on Tuesday, where they discussed a deal in which 10,000 fentanyl pills were sold. The deal was supposed to precursor in order to set up a million dollar transaction at a later time. "After the meeting, Allan allegedly confirmed with one of the buyers that they were interested in doing the 1 million pill deal later that day and showed the buyer the pills," the statement said. 

CBS 2

Man Convicted In Murder Of California College Student Kristin Smart Faces Sentencing

The former California Polytechnic State University student convicted of killing Kristin Smart on the Central Coast campus more than 25 years ago will be sentenced Friday in his murder trial. Flores was found guilty of first-degree murder in October. He faces 25 years to life in state prison. Smart was 19 when she disappeared after an off-campus party in 1996. Her remains have never been found, leaving her grieving family with questions for decades. She was declared legally dead in 2002. Paul Flores, 46, as the last person seen with Smart on May 25, 1996, as he walked with her to her dorm after a party off campus, witnesses said. Prosecutors said he killed Smart while trying to rape her in his dorm room. Flores and his father Ruben were arrested in 2021. Ruben Flores, 81, was charged in a separate trial as an accessory for allegedly helping to bury the body. He was found not guilty at his trial.

NBC 4

Video: Man Opens Fire On New Mexico Police Helicopter Forcing Pilot To Maneuver To Avoid Being Hit

A 30-year-old man was arrested after being accused of firing a handgun at a New Mexico police helicopter, officials said. Around 8:45 p.m. on March 6, Albuquerque Police Department personnel responded to calls of gunshots, according to a news release by the police department. A man “was seen firing a handgun from his balcony,” police said. Officers arrived and saw the man step out onto his balcony, where he started to fire multiple rounds of ammunition toward the law enforcement helicopter above, officials said. The helicopter had been called in to investigate the reports of gunshots, KOB reported. The helicopter’s pilot “had to make maneuvers” to dodge the gunfire, according to police. The pilot shut off the chopper’s lights to get his crew to safety, according to KOAT. No one was injured. Officials said Air Support was able to get in touch with the officers on the ground to arrest the man. Albuquerque police told KOB they got the man’s “information from his landlord, and compared his MVD photo to a picture a police drone operator took of him outside while responding to the shots fired call.”

Charlotte Observer

Seattle voters support hiring bonuses, incentives to attract more officers

With seven of nine positions on the Seattle City Council up for election in November, a new poll gauging the sentiments of likely voters shows homelessness and crime remain top concerns and that nearly 80% of respondents lack confidence in the current council's approach to improving public safety. A majority of respondents think Seattle needs more police officers and that the city's Police Department needs more money to adequately address public safety, according to poll results released Wednesday. Respondents also overwhelmingly support signing bonuses and other incentives to attract new cops, as well as the creation of a public-safety force staffed with unarmed officers to respond to nonviolent incidents and lower-priority 911 calls.

Seattle Times

Video: Wisconsin Deputies Revive Unconscious Driver Of Out-of-Control Car

Good Samaritans and a Racine County deputy came to the aid of an unconscious driver on the highway that resulted in an arrest. An out-of-control car was seen on Wisconsin Department of Transportation video striking the median several times and crossing lanes before coming to a stop, WISN reported. Good Samaritans approached the car and found the driver unconscious. They used a shovel to break a window and remove the driver. A Racine County Sheriff’s Office deputy arrived on the scene to assist. WISN reported that the driver was showing signs of a drug overdose and deputies administered Narcan. The revived driver was arrested on multiple charges, including operating a vehicle while intoxicated.

PoliceOne

Dramatic Video Shows 4 Americans Being Kidnapped In Mexico

Dramatic video of four Americans being kidnapped in Matamoros, Mexico shows the violence that caused the US State Department to implement travel warnings in a region of Mexico south of the Texas-Mexico border. Two Americans were found dead after they were kidnapped. The other two, who survived, were rushed to a hospital on the U.S. side of the border. Mexican officials believe a drug cartel may have hit the Americans by mistake. The four were visiting from South Carolina. A family member says one of the victims had planned to get a tummy tuck. "Attacks on US citizens are unacceptable no matter where or under what circumstances," said White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre. The State Department issued Do Not Travel advisories for six Mexican states and Reconsider Travel advisories in a number of others. "You have to be very careful about that Do Not Travel because if you don’t target a specific geographic area you’ll be so afraid you won’t go anywhere," stated travel expert Peter Greenberg.

FOX 11

Pilot Injured When Small Aircraft Overturns At Van Nuys Airport 

A 28-year-old pilot was injured after her plane flipped upside down at Van Nuys Airport on Thursday afternoon. The Cessna 172 overturned into a safety area near runway 15 Left around 4:15 p.m., according to the Los Angeles Fire Department. The female pilot, who was the only occupant on board, was transported to a local hospital in stable condition. The airport remained operational as the accident was investigated. 

KTLA 5

Xylazine In Illicit Drugs Increasing Overdose Risk 

The Los Angeles Department of Public Health has issued a health alert that warns residents of the increased risk of overdose and death associated with xylazine, which is becoming more present among illicit drugs in California. Xylazine is a sedative and muscle relaxant used by veterinarians to anesthetize animals. It can be cooked down into a powder form and mixed with illicit opioids such as heroin or fentanyl or pressed into counterfeit pills or sedatives. When mixed with opioids and depressants, xylazine’s effects, which include sedation and respiratory depression, can lead to a fatal overdose. Xylazine was detected in San Francisco and San Diego drug samples in 2023, which may indicate that it is “most likely present within the drug supply in Los Angeles,” according to the Department of Public Health. The Department of Public Health warns that most people purchasing illicit drugs are not seeking xylazine and that they will most likely not know that it is present in the drugs they are trying to take. 

KTLA 5

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.