December 2008 Archives
No one would talk to me about it. They were nice enough, and said they were OK when I asked if they were all right. They just weren't talking.
Business did not seem to be affected. Six customers were waiting and two were getting haircuts. Seemed like a decent enough place to get a haircut.
But yesterday at about 4:30 p.m., a gunman walked in and fired five or six rounds at two guys in the barber chairs.
Detective Randy Oviedo at the Lomita station told me this morning that he did not yet know the motive, but one of the two victims appeared to be targeted. The shooter opened fire without saying a word.
Oviedo still has to talk to one of the victims, who remains hospitalized.
show is the best of its kind.But Charles! C'mon man...What's the matter with you?
Charles got nabbed by the Scottsdale-area DUI task force early this morning. (We got our own here in the South Bay, you know.)
This from AP:
Charles Barkley was arrested on suspicion of drinking and driving early Wednesday in Scottsdale.
An officer with a law enforcement task force that targets drunken driving saw the former NBA star run a stop sign around 1:30 a.m., said Gilbert police Lt. Eric Shuhandler.
Barkley declined to submit to a breath test but was given a blood test. The results weren't
immediately available.
After Barkley was processed, he was cited and released. He left in a cab, Shuhandler
said.
A gunman walked into a Lomita beauty salon Tuesday and shot two men getting haircuts, deputies said.
The shooting at Ryan Roots, 1844 W. Lomita Blvd., occurred about 4:30 p.m., Lomita sheriff's Sgt. David Ward said.
"One suspect came in and fired possibly five to six rounds," Ward said.
Both victims were sitting in the barber chairs. They were taken to County Harbor-UCLA Medical Center. Ward said their wounds were not considered life-threatening.
The only description of the gunman was black and wearing a black sweat shirt.
The motive for the shooting was under investigation.
Detectives were working Tuesday evening at the scene.
The Los Angeles Police Department's Harbor Division was evacuated for more than an hour today while the bomb squad investigated a suspicious package. Officer Ana Aguirre said the call came in just after noon about a box left in the lobby of the station at 221 N. Bayview Ave. in Wilmington.
The station was evacuated "as a precaution," Aguirre said, while an X-ray machine on a robot was sent in. The box's contents were determined to be harmless, and everyone returned just after 2:40 p.m., Aguirre said.
Don't know what's best about this story - that the suspect's fake gun fell apart during the heist, how the carwash worker fought back or the cliches the newscasters used in filming this report. (Make sure to watch the video).
This is the jailhouse booking mug of Shawn Shelton, a former Manhattan Beach police sergeant once considered a rising star on his force.
Shelton is awaiting trial in the killing of a 19-year-old man in Louisiana. I learned today he was transferred two days before Christmas from the Natchitoches Parish jail to the Caddo Correctional Center in Shreveport.
This booking mug is up on the jail's Web site.
Calvin McFerrin, the chief of corrections in Natichitoches Parish, said Shelton was moved because of his medical status and financial reasons.
Apparently it costs quite a bit for the medications and care for an inmate who is HIV positive and the city of Natichitoches didn't pay the parish's bill.
So, the parish transferred Shelton off to the larger facility in Shreveport.
Shelton, who already could spend the rest of his days in prison for kidnapping and sexually assaulting a 14-year-old boy in Las Vegas, is charged with drugging and killing Justin James in Natchitoches.
(By the way, if you go to that Caddo Web site, just click on the names and check out the mugs. That can keep you busy on a boring day.)
Previous Shelton entry
LAPD Officers Attacked 527 Times in 2008
Los Angeles, December 29, 2008 - Los Angeles police officers continued to be the targets of violence in 2008 as officers were reported to be attacked in 527 instances during the past 12 months.
Included in that figure is the first murder of a SWAT officer in the department's history. Officers were shot at a total of 14 times during the year.
"There are not exchanges of gunfire between criminals and officers," said Paul M. Weber, president of the Los Angeles Police Protective League. "These are cold-blooded attempts to murder unsuspecting officers without any warning."
Los Angeles SWAT Officer Randal David Simmons, a 27-year veteran of the department, was shot and killed when he entered the home of an armed man during a standoff in February.
In addition to the shootings, LAPD officers were also assaulted by suspects wielding deadly weapons in 168 cases and were the victims of battery (physical altercation) 358 times in 2008.
"Los Angeles is a city protected by dedicated LAPD officers, who deserve all the tools and all the support the community can possibly provide," Weber said. "The LAPPL asks the public and our community leaders to continue to support our officers and make sure that criminals do not deter them from doing their work to make Los Angeles the safest big city in America."
"Public safety requires a strong two-way partnership. We need to make it clear that Los Angeles is a city in which violence on law enforcement is never tolerated, and that those who threaten our police officers threaten our own communities," Weber said.
From City News Service this morning:
Federal authorities nabbed two suspected stowaways aboard a Los Angeles-bound containership, it was reported today.
A multi-agency team on a Coast Guard cutter intercepted the containership Zenit at 6:30
a.m. Sunday and took a pair of Nigerian nationals into custody.
The stowaways had been discovered during an earlier port call, after which the authorities were notified.
Earl "Duke' Bourdeau, the first husband of Sonia Rios, was finally buried in a U.S. cemetery on Friday. His remains had been hidden for 21 years in the Philippines, where the retired Marine was murdered in 1987 while visiting his wife's family. The Lomita woman was long-suspected in the killing.And with all the suspicion on her, Sonia Rios Risken was found shot to death in her Lomita home in 2007.
Merry Christmas with this reminder: There's no checkpoints today, but the police are out cracking down. Don't drink and drive!
It began on Dec. 3 when a process server left a subpoena for me at the front desk at the Daily Breeze for Ricky Sisneros' hearing the next morning. Sisneros is a Torrance gang leader who was convicted of being a felon in possession of weapons. I didn't know what the subpoena was about, but my new attorneys at Davis Wright Tremaine sent a letter to Sisneros' attorney, Caree Harper, and the prosecutor informing them I would not be coming to the hearing and the subpoena was improperly served.
The next day, the prosecutor asked Torrance Judge Steven Van Sicklen to contninue the hearing on Sisneros' motion for a new trial because Harper filed a 50-plus page motion the day before. Apparently, the issue of my subpoena was brought up and, since I wasn't there, Harper asked Van Sicklen to issue a body attachment (basically, an arrest warrant) for me. Since the prosecutor had my attorney's letter, the issue was moot and nothing more came of it.
In the coming days, Harper contacted one of my attorneys, Kelli Sager, to see if she would accept service for me. When Sager asked what this was all about, Harper hung up the phone after telling her I had "opened the door" by publishing articles about her client's case.
On Dec. 15, around 7 p.m., as I unloaded my family from a weekend away in my driveway, a baseball-capped figure appeared with a poinsettia, a bottle of champagne and a subpoena. She told me she had a delivery for me and "it was nothing personal." I took the subpoena - but not the plant and booze.
Last week, my attorneys attempted to get from Van Sicklen's courtroom Harper's motion for a new trial, but was told the judge had it in chambers. They were able, however, to get the prosecution's opposition to the motion - and we were finally getting an idea of what the subpoena was about.
Among the contentions in the new trial motion was that Deputy District Attorney Jeff Stodel engaged in prosecutorial misconduct by giving me Sisneros' rap sheet. In his opposition, Stodel included a sworn and signed declaration in which he said I inquired about Sisneros' criminal history and he directed me to the Information (the filing complaint) filed in court in June.
Which is exactly what happened.
Sexual
Assault Suspect Arrested, Additional Victims Sought
Los Angeles: Los Angeles police believe there may be more victims who have yet to come forward after a 23-year-old Wilmington man was arrested and charged in connection with the sexual assault of three minor females.
On December 17, 2008, detectives executed a search warrant at the home and business of Carlos Aguirre Jr. and charged him with lewd act on a child, rape of an unconscious person, criminal threats, and possession of narcotics for sale.
All of the alleged assaults are believed to have occurred at the "Simplemente Beatriz" wedding store located at 922 North Avalon Boulevard in Wilmington. The business is owned by Aguirre's mother and provides weddings, proms, quinceneras, first communions, and baptisms services.
All three victims were minors. Aguirre apparently used alcohol and the illicit drug Ecstasy to sedate his victims and then he sexually assaulted them. He remains in custody on a $1.5 million bail.
Sgt. Gene Tomatani, on leave pending allegations he embezzled from his police union, posted $30,000 bail and was released from the county jail shortly before midnight, records showed Wednesday.
The District Attorney's Office arrested Tomatani while serving a search warrant at Tomatani's apartment in Torrance.
The fact he has bailed out of jail gives investigators more time to develop a case against him. Tomatani is scheduled to return to court in Los Angeles on Jan. 14.
Investigators are looking into allegations that Tomatani stole possibly tens of thousands of dollars from the Redondo Beach Police Officers Association. He served as the association's president until the discovery late last month.
If you know where she is, call Detective Rich Tomlin at 323-890-5500.
EL MONTE (CNS) - Detectives today identified a 38-year old Hawthorne
murder fugitive who took his 6-year-old son hostage at gunpoint, barricadedhimself and the child inside an El Monte restaurant bathroom, and then
triggered a bloody standoff that left the suspect dead and the boy wounded.
The hostage-taker was identified as Manuel Benitez of Hawthorne, who's
also known as Mark Everett, Mike Evers, Manuel Velasco, and Manuel De Velasco,
according to the FBI's Web site.
Benitez worked as a child actor under the stage name, Mark Everett. He
had acting roles in the movies ``Stand and Deliver'' and ``Pee Wee's Big
Adventure.'' Everett also appeared in the television series ``Galactica 1980''
and ``Highway to Heaven.''
According to the FBI, Benitez spoke several languages, including
Cantonese, German, Spanish, French and English.
Benitez was wanted in connection with the June 21, 2004, murder of his
girlfriend, Stephanie Spears, that occurred at 13026 Florwood Avenue, Deputy
Derrick Thompson of the Sheriff's Headquarters Bureau said.
According to the Web site of the Fox series ``America's Most Wanted,''
Benitez/Everett allegedly bludgeoned his girlfriend to death with a dumbbell
inside their home during a fit of rage over a bad break-up.
After the break-up Benitez allegedly tried to take their son Benjamin,
who was 3 at the time, while Spears was asleep. When she woke up and confronted
him, he became enraged and attacked her, the Web site reported.
Benitez then reportedly took off with his son and was believed to have
fled with his mother Elizabeth Velasco to Cuba or Mexico, where Velasco has
family ties, the Web site reported.
On May 11, 2005, a state warrant was issued by the Superior Court of
California, County of Los Angeles, for Benitez's arrest after he was charged
with murder.
He was also charged federally with unlawful flight to avoid prosecution
and an arrest warrant was issued by the United States District Court, Central
District of California, on March 21, 2006, according to the FBI's Web site.
In June 2007, the FBI offered a $20,000 reward for information leading
to his arrest.
Thompson said detectives were now seeking the public's help in locating
Velasco, whose picture on the FBI's Web site shows a woman wearing eyeglasses
with short white hair. Anyone with information on her whereabouts was asked to
call (323) 890-5500.
The events that culminated with Benitez's death began about 2:30 p.m.
Tuesday when El Monte police responded to a call of a suspicious person with a
child near the intersection of Ramona Boulevard and Santa Anita Avenue,
sheriff's Sgt. David Infante said.
When officers arrived at the scene, they found Benitez armed with a
handgun. Benitez then reportedly grabbed his son -- Benjamin, who is biracial,
Black and Latino -- and positioned him between himself and police, Infante
said.
Benitez then took the boy inside Tai Pan Chinese Food, at 3580 Santa
Anita Ave., and locked himself and the child inside a bathroom, threatening to
kill himself, Benjamin, and any responding officers, Infante said.
Crisis negotiators entered the restaurant, establishing communication
with the man for roughly two hours, but he refused to comply with their
requests to surrender or release the child, Infante said.
Hours into the standoff, the bathroom door opened, and the Special
Weapons Crisis Entry Team deployed a flash-bang device inside the room. The
team then entered the bathroom, attempting to rescue the boy and take the
suspect into custody, he said.
Then, ``an officer-involved shooting occurred,'' Infante said, adding
that the suspect suffered a gunshot wound, and was pronounced dead at the
scene. Two handguns in Benitez's possession were recovered following the
shooting, he added.
Shortly after that, officers emerged from the restaurant carrying the
boy, who suffered a non-life threatening gunshot wound to his leg, according to
the sheriff's department. It was unclear whose gunfire he was wounded by.
at a T-Mobile store in Hawthorne tonight, but no one was injured and the
suspects were detained, authorities said.
Two officers responded to a takeover robbery in progress at the store at
Rosecrans and Ocean Gate avenues about 8:50 p.m. Upon arrival, they were
confronted by a group of six male suspects, triggering the officers to open
fire, Hawthorne police Sgt. Joel Romero said.
Three bandits then fled, but police took the trio into custody a few
blocks away from the location, Romero said.
Originally, the three other suspects were believed to have been wounded
by the gunfire inside the store, but they were not hit, he said. They were also
detained by police, Romero said.
Romero said it was unclear whether the suspects returned fire, but no
officers, employees or customers were hurt.
During the attempted holdup, the robbers held the store's employees in a
back room, Romero said.
The names of those in custody were not immediately released.
for allegedly sexually assaulting three girls.
Carlos Aguirre Jr. was arrested Wednesday and charged Friday with two
counts of lewd acts on a child, one court of rape of an unconscious person, one
count of criminal threats and one count of possession of an illegal substance
for sale, according to Jane Robison, a spokeswoman for the Los Angeles District
Attorney's Office.
The girls were allegedly assaulted at the Simplemente Beatriz wedding
store at
Officer Julianne Sohn. The business is owned by Aguirre's mother, Sohn said,
and offers dresses and accessories for weddings, proms, quinceaneras, first
communions and baptisms.
Aguirre apparently used alcohol and the drug Ecstasy to sedate his
victims and then sexually assaulted them, Sohn said. All of his victims were
minors, she said, but she could not provide their ages.
Aguirre's arraignment was continued to Dec. 30, Robison said.
He remains in custody in lieu of $1.5 million bail.
Hawthorne police have an officer-involved shooting with "multiple suspects down" at the T-Mobile store on Rosecrans Avenue at Oceangate....It happened at 8:51 p.m.
Just before 10 p.m. on Sunday, two men held up the 52 Market in the 12000 block of Santa Monica Boulevard in West LA. No one saw their getaway car. So, whoosh, they got away.
About 15 minutes later, some guys held up Tochma Market at 74th and Main streets in Los Angeles.
In that one, they were seen leaving in a red vehicle. I guess the cops figured out who the car belonged to and the fact he was on parole with orders to wear a global positioning device to monitor his whereabouts.
It didn't take long for officers to follow the electronic signal to a motel in the 11700 block of Aviation Boulevard near LAX. Yeah, they found the dude.
Police took Chelminski Walker, 29, of Inglewood to jail, found the handgun and recovered his red Chevrolet Monte Carlo. (Chelminski?)
And, they linked him to the earlier holdup.
He's held on robbery without bail.
Sometimes, this job's got its perks. Occasionally, news reporters get to do something they might not otherwise do. Some of my colleagues, in recent years, have done exciting things like take rides in luxurious new airplanes, experience zero gravity or view the South Bay from the Goodyear Blimp. Once in a while, we'll have a reason to brush closely with greatness - watch a dignitary make a speech or interview a V.I.P. These aren't the reasons we do what we do, but these little moments kinda make up for the other days when you feel like you're working in a stagnating industry.
My moment came last week. The e-mail landed quielty in my inbox from a U.S. Army public information officer. He had seen my story several weeks ago about thieves thwarting Torrance Army mom Linda Ferrara's efforts to collect clothes and blankets for wounded soldiers overseas. And, he wrote, so had actor Ricky Schroder.
Without giving away too much about my age, you have to know that my mind immediately flipped to the old flower wallpaper-covered wall of my preteen bedroom. It was the early 80s, and most the frilly bouquets were covered up by ripped-out pages from Tiger Beat and Teen, showing photos of the usual suspects: Tom Cruise, Simon LeBon, C. Thomas Howell and, of course, The Ricker.
So, without revealing my excitement, I calmly called the Army back and said, yes indeed, an interview with Ricky Schroder would be JUST the thing for my follow-up on the theft (which, coincidentally, I was already planning to write for the weekend).
- 2,000 motorists checked
- 102 citations, primarily for unlicensed drivers
- 96 cars impounded
- 13 DUI arrests
- 5 arrests for other offenses
Los Angeles: The Los Angeles Police Department, Harbor Area Community Police Station, is announcing its 2008 "Helping Badge" Christmas Toy and Food Giveaway Program. The event is scheduled for (today) from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. This year's theme is a "Harbor Winter Wonderland." The event will be held at the Harbor Pistol Range, 2981 North Gaffey Avenue, in San Pedro.
The Harbor Area Community Relations Office developed the "Helping Badge" Christmas Toy and Food Giveaway Program" as a means to provide for less fortunate families in the Harbor Area during the Holiday Season.
"The best part of the holiday season is the giving," said Captain William P. Hayes, Commanding Officer Harbor Area. "And for years Harbor Division police officers have given away toys and food to local youngsters who might otherwise see the New Year without receiving a gift."
350 families (nearly 2000 people) from Harbor Gateway, Harbor City, San Pedro and Wilmington communities will receive toys, food baskets, clothing and goodie bags, distributed by members of the LAPD's Community Relations Office and Harbor Area Volunteer programs.
The event includes activities for the children such as a train ride through "Reindeer Forest," pictures with Santa Claus, toboggan down a real snow hill, Christmas Movies, live carolers and plenty of Christmas Refreshments.
For additional information contact Harbor Community Relations at (310) 522-2042.
Suspect: Christopher Brown Porterfield
44 Years old, white male
Hermosa Beach resident
Charge: Grand Theft- 487 PC
Possession of Stolen Property- 496 PC
Bail: $20,000
Suspect Vehicle: 1997 White Volkswagen Vanagon
Synopsis:
The suspect claims to be a delivery man while attempting to steal a package from a resident's porch. The suspect leaves without the package. The suspect is later stopped in the area by HBPD officers. Other stolen packages are discovered in his vehicle.
Details:
On 12-19-2008 at approximately 10:30 a.m. HBPD officers responded to a possible theft of mail packages in the area of Circle Drive in Hermosa Beach. According to a witness, the suspect was loading an unattended mail package from the porch of a nearby residence. When confronted by the witness, the suspect said he was a contract delivery man. The suspect fled without taking the package. Witnesses were able to obtain the license plate off the suspect's vehicle.
HBPD officers stopped the suspect in the area near his vehicle a short time later. Officers discovered other stolen packages inside the suspect's vehicle. The suspect was arrested and booked at the HBPD jail without incident. The suspect is currently out on $20,000 bail.
The holiday season increases the number of package thefts. Many times, these thefts go unreported to the police. This suspect may be responsible for a series of package thefts that have been occurring in the South Bay Area. Anyone with information is encouraged to call Detective Mick Gaglia at (310) 318-0360.
The "Gift for Guns" program gives $100 gift cards to Target, and Ralphs and Food 4 Less supermarkets, in exchange for handguns and rifles. An assault rifle is worth $200.
"The hope is to take guns off the street and make the holidays safer for our communities, Lennox sheriff's Lt. Valentine Rosario said.
The promotion is Tuesday, Dec. 23 and Wednesday, Dec. 24 at Lennox Middle School, 11033 Buford Ave. in Lennox.
The Compton station did this recently and took in 965 weapons.
The crime occurred about 8:30 p.m. in the 400 block of John Place, Manhattan Beach police Lt. Tony DiGenova said.
The men drove up in a sport utility vehicle, got out and confronted the couple. One held a knife and the other carried a handgun.
They made off with the couple's property, including jewelry.
No one was hurt.
This just in:That El Segundo woman charged with stalking Lakers forward Luke Walton pleaded nocontest today at the Torrance courthouse and was ordered to stay away from him for three years.
Stacy Elizabeth Beshear, 35 of El Segundo, entered the plea to one count of misdemeanor stalking. Judge Hector Guzman sentenced her to three years probation, ordered her to attend weekly counseling sessions for one year and ordered her to stay away from Walton's Manhattan Beach home, and the Lakers practice facility in El Segundo. She also can't go to any games.
Beshear was arrested Sept. 18 after she pulled up to his car and pretended to fire gunshots at Walton with her hand, officials said.
Deputy District Attorney Ann Ambrose handled the case.
So here's something I just found that's pretty amusing. The Web site, The Smoking Gun, has its 2008 Mug Shots of the Year. Enjoy. Apparently this is what happened when the jailer took this guy's teeth out. Make sure you read the stories......
HOLLYWOOD, Fla. (AP) -- Authorities in South Florida plan to announce that they've finally
solved the 1981 killing of a little boy whose father later gained fame as the host of "America's Most Wanted."
Hollywood police have scheduled a news conference this afternoon to close the case of the abduction and homicide of 6-year-old Adam Walsh.
Adam's parents, John and Reve Walsh, long ago derided the investigation as botched. Both were expected to attend the news conference.
The boy went missing from a Hollywood mall on July 27, 1981. Fishermen discovered his severed head in a canal 120 miles away two weeks later. The rest of his body was never found.
Monday, Dec. 8: A large man stole a towel from Macy's at the Galleria about 8:15 p.m. Dec. 8. When loss prevention officers attempted to stop him, he threw the towel at them, acted like he wanted to fight, and continued walking, police said.
A uniformed police officer tried to stop him, but the man made aggressive moves toward the officer. Back up officers arrived and used a Taser to subdue him.
Tuesday, Dec. 9: A police sergeant saw a van driving recklessly in the Galleria parking lot and stopped it in front of TJ Maxx.
Two women ran, but police stopped the driver. Police found three large bags of stolen Victoria's Secret and Abercrombie & Fitch clothes.
The driver was arrested.
A woman called police about 9:40 p.m. Sunday to say her boyfriend was beating her.
"He also made threats that he was going to commit great bodily injury against her," the report said.
When officers got there, the boyfriend split out the back door and jumped over a rear fence. Oops.
Unfortunately for him, it had a 20 to 25 foot drop onto a driveway on Ruhland Avenue.
"When the suspect landed on the pavement he appeared to have temporarily lost consciousness," the report said.
He was taken to a hospital.
A Westminster man who allegedly stole enough holiday decorations to fill several trucks and displayed them in various rooms of his home was arrested today, police said.
Vuong Pham, 48, was taken into custody around 11 a.m. at his home in the 8400 block of Heil Avenue, Westminster police Officer Cameron Knauerhaze said.
Police recovered stolen holiday decorations and other landscape items, including water fountains, trees, garden statues and small lights used for walkways, Knauerhaze said.
UPDATE: On Friday, December 12, 2008, Detectives obtained an arrest warrant for Noe Rodriguez, a 21-year-old man, with no known address. Rodriguez has numerous aka's and is a federal deportee. Rodriguez is wanted for the shooting death of the 50-year-old homeless man, whose identity is being withheld until his family can be located and notified.
A Westminster man has been arrested on suspicion of theft for allegedly stealing
outdoor holiday decorations from about 16 of his neighbors.
Westminster police Officer Cameron Knauerhaze says Vuong Pham, 48, was arrested when police were called to his home in response to a disturbance and saw an unusual number of decorations inside and in the backyard.
Investigators said that there had been many reports of theft in the area of
Newland Street and Heil Avenue, which borders Westminster and
Huntington Beach, Knauerhaze said.
Maybe you heard it or saw it. I'm told it was quite a crash.
A guy driving along Island Avenue in Wilmington blew through a stop sign at 10:30 a.m. and struck a car at C Street.
That was unfortunate. It contained three Harbor Division officers on their way to an investigation in an unmarked car.
LAPD Sgt. Michelle Santillan told me it looked worse than it appeared. The officers were taken to Little Company of Mary Hospital- San Pedro for treatment of minor injuries and were released.
The other motorist was treated at County Harbor-UCLA Medical Center and released.
CHiPs is handling it, but I couldn't find out if the dude got a ticket.
- Weaving/swerving in and out of the lane
- Traveling at slow speeds
- Braking erratically, stopping in the lane, making sudden stops for signals and remaining at the signal lights once they turn green.
- Making wide turns and/or cutting the corner and striking the curb
- Driving without headlights or straddling the center line of the road or lane lines
- Driving aggressively with tailgating or making numerous lane changes.
Yesterday he was ordered to stand trial. Here's what happened at the Airport courthouse, according to a City News Service report:LOS ANGELES (CNS) - A former emergency room doctor was ordered today to
stand trial on reckless driving and battery charges for allegedly skidding his
car to a stop on a narrow street in Brentwood, causing two fast-moving
bicyclists to crash into the rear of his vehicle.
Christopher Thomas Thompson, 59, is charged with one felony count ofreckless driving causing injury, and two felony counts of battery with serious
bodily injury, as a result of the July 4 incident.
The bicycle-versus-car crashes in the 3400 block of Mandeville Canyon
Road nearly severed one bicyclist's nose, and seriously hurt the other, police
and witnesses testified during a preliminary hearing.
George Stephanopolous and Gov. Blago
*UPDATE COMING SHORTLY
This is on the San Pedro High School Web site. Thanks to the reader who let us know it was there. Neither the police nor the School District gave us a call to spread the word.
A female student of San Pedro High School was approached by two males that tried to grab her and pull her toward their vehicle. The student was able to fend off the attack. School Police have been notified and an investigation is underway.
On Tuesday, December 9, 2008, at approximately 3:50 p.m., two males, driving in a two door, black pick-up truck with a gray cargo shell, approached a female student of San Pedro High School near the corner of Leland Avenue and 14th Street. The male passenger was described as bald, with light colored eyes and a mustache. No further description was given of the males or the vehicle. The student reported that after the truck pulled behind her, the passenger jumped out, grabbed her, and then pulled her towards the truck. She was able to fend off the attack.School police were notified and a report was filed. An investigation is under way.Please remind your child to be vigilant on their way to and from school. All students walking home should do so in a group.If you have any information, questions, or concerns, please feel free to contact Aadil Naazir, Assistant Principal at (310) 241-5807.
"A CNS story slugged Scientist Sentencing that was transmitted Monday incorrectly stated that the defendant, Abraham Lesnik, admitted during the sentencing hearing that he had a drinking problem when he took classified documents from Boeing's El Segundo plant to his Valley Village home.
In fact, Lesnik never referred to anything involving alcohol. Instead, he told the judge that he was a "workaholic."
Howard Harman, 52, of Redondo Beach and Jesus Munoz, 42, claimed self-defense and police said there was a "possibility and a probability" that their account was accurate.
The stabbing occurred just before 2 a.m. Saturday in the 2200 block of Artesia Boulevard. The men had been inside Bogey's Sports Bar & Grill, where the trouble began, Redondo Beach police Sgt. Phil Keenan said.
The victims left the bar, drove away and returned.
"We believe that (the victims) possibly came out of the car with a pipe and we did recover a pipe at the scene," Keenan said.
Harman and Munoz also told detectives the stabbing occurred because the victims were assaulting one of them, police said.
The victims' account of the incident was "vague and non-commital," and they did not want to seek charges, Keenan said.
Prosecutors reviewed the matter and rejected it.
Dec. 1:
100 block of Paseo De La Playa: Officers responded to the location regarding a disturbance. The suspect threatened to cut off his and his girlfriend's fingers. Officers arrived at the location and contacted the suspect's girlfriend outside. Officers eventually coaxed the suspect to exit the residence and he was arrested and transported to Harbor General Hospital for a psychiatric evaluation.
Dec. 3:
1615 South Pacific Coast Highway: officers responded to a report of a commercial burglary at a business. Unknown suspect(s) entered the business, a restaurant, via the roof, ransack the interior and steal cash and tools.
Dec. 7:
1200 block of Esplanade: Officers responded to the location regarding suspicious circumstances. The reporting party indicated that she had received a call from a male friend who was going to visit her. When the friend did not show up as expected, the reporting party went outside to the security entrance to see if he was there. In the parking structure, she saw a pool of blood next to her vehicle and her friend's cell phone on her car, but he was not present. Officers requested that Hermosa Beach Police Department officers check the friend's residence in Hermosa Beach. Although no one was home, the front door was open and there was additional blood in front of the residence. Further investigation revealed that the reporting party's friend was being treated for a broken wrist and a head laceration at a local hospital. Apparently, the friend tried to scale a fence at the reporting party's residential complex and fell which caused his injuries.
1815 Hawthorne Bl.: Galleria Mall security officers observed a strong arm robbery of a "Sidekick" cellular phone. The security officers notified a nearby police officer of the crime. The officer was able to stop a vehicle that the suspects had entered and four people were detained.
Two of the suspects were juveniles and were positively identified by witnesses and the victim as participating in the crime. The two suspects were arrested for attempted robbery as it was determined that the theft of the phone did not actually occur. The suspect couldn't remove the phone from the victim's hands. During the search of the suspects' vehicle, additional "Sidekick" phones were recovered, possibly belonging to additional unidentified victims.
Linda Ferrara, whose attempt to collect clothes and blankets for wounded U.S. soldiers at a German hospital was thwarted by thieves last week, wrote to say that she has received tremendous response from the community after the Daily Breeze reported the crime. We ran a story about her efforts and burglary last week, and several other news agencies followed suit.
The Torrance mother of five, including a soldier killed in Afghanistan last year, sent this along:
"The response has been terrific, and if we get what we have been promised it will be a bonanza for the boys at Landstuhl."
Landstuhl is the hospital in Germany, and Soldiers' Angels Germany overseas the donations for the sick and injured troops who arrive with nothing but the clothes on their backs. The drive to collect sweatshirts, boxers, pajamas, socks, etc. is ongoing. For a complete list of needed items and to find out how you can help, e-mail lindaferrara@aol.com or visit Soldiers' Angels Germany.
And to everyone who wrote me asking how to help, a big thank you. I've passed your contact information on to Linda.
Previously: "Those guys are over there putting their lives on the line, even for the thieves."
The Los Angeles Times' look at 9th Circuit Judge Alex Kozinski's e-mail group, called Easy Rider Gag List, includes some of the jokes and such that the well-respected leagle eagle sent to friends, colleagues and others.
This was one of my favorite lines from the article:
"Other jokes, labeled "P&T" in the subject heading to indicate they were "puerile and tasteless," were cruder and more sexually explicit and used language that defies quotation in a general circulation newspaper. "
One of the wounded victims was a 13-year-old girl.
The woman killed was identified as Stephanie Latrice Smith, 37, of Wilmington. She died shortly after the 9 p.m. shootin gSunday at 102nd Street and Denker
Avenue.
The suspect was in a champagne-colored car, possibly a Nissan Maxima or Altima, police said.
Info from City News Service
about vehicle burglaries at cemeteries.I knew that theft and robbery are some of the largest crimes that occur on a day to day basis. However, before reading your article I have never even imagined that criminals would act so low as to break in citizen's cars and steal when they are mourning with their lost loved one. I was taken aback when I read the story of the young woman and her mother who visited the grave of her father and realized her car
has been broken into.
As a child, my parents taught me to always have respect for anyone, let alone the dead. Ever since my grandmother passed, I too visit her resting ground at Green Hills Memorial Park, and not once have I ever thought of our car being broken into. While visiting a grave or burial ground, I believe the visitors are in a state of peace, reconnecting with their loved ones while everything is off their mind except the deceased family or friend.
Los Angeles: An off-duty LAPD Officer stands accused of sexual assault following a holiday celebration at a hotel near Los Angeles International Airport.
Police Officer Eduardo Bermudez, 29 years of age, assigned to Pacific Area Patrol Division, two years on the Department, was arrested Sunday morning, December 7, 2008, at around 8:00 a.m. by detectives assigned to Internal Affairs Division. Officer Bermudez was booked for California Penal Code Section 664-261, Attempt Rape. Officer Bermudez was booked at Men's Central Jail and was held on $100,000 bail.
Based on preliminary information, it appears that a sanctioned LAPD Pacific Area holiday party had concluded and several Department employees were participating in an unofficial "after party" at the hotel. When allegations of criminal activity came to light, proper notifications were made and on-duty police supervisors and Internal Affairs Division investigators were dispatched.
Internal Affairs Division has assumed responsibility for the investigation.
Anyone with information regarding this incident is asked to Internal Affairs Division at
(213) 473-3870. After-hours and on weekends calls may be directed to the 24-hour, toll-free number, 1-877-LAPD24-7 (527-3247) or texting CRIMES (274637) and beginning the message with LAPD. Tipsters may also submit information on the LAPD website, and can remain anonymous.
On December 6th at approximately 4am, Hawthorne Police Officers responded to a Burglary alarm call in the 5400 block of W. Rosecrans Ave. Several suspects (who were armed with handguns) entered the business, overpowered and physically beat the security guard, and proceeded to load several large pallets containing consumer electronics into an awaiting bobtail truck.
Officers arrived at the location and saw a large (30ft+) bobtail truck leaving the parking lot of the business. The suspects evaded police in a pursuit which eventually ended at the intersection of Inglewood Ave and Manhattan Beach Ave, Lawndale. Two suspects (both males in their 20's) were arrested at the scene.
The 64 yr old Security guard was treated at a local hospital for his injuries. He is expected to make a full recovery.
Later on December 6th and December 7th, Hawthorne Police Detectives and SWAT served several Search Warrants in Inglewood, Los Angeles, and Torrance. Two additional suspects (both males, in their 20's) were arrested
Detectives are continuing their investigation to see if the suspects are responsible for additional crimes.
From City News Service
A man was killed in a drive-by shooting this morning in the unincorporated community of
The victim was standing in front of a building in the 10500 block of
a.m. when a light-colored vehicle pulled up, sheriff's Deputy Aura
Sierra said.
Someone inside exchanged words with the victim and then opened fire,
shooting him in the chest, Sierra said.
The man, whose name was withheld, died at a local hospital.
Clark County Judge Jackie Glass said her sentence was for his crimes there, and nothing to do with what may have occurred in the past. While some may disagree with that jury's vedict in the murder case, that doesn't matter to her, she said.
She said the evidence against Simpson, 61, was taped and overwhelming.
Simpson, his hands chained to his waist and wearing blue jail clothes, apologized for the events in a Las Vegas hotel room on Sept. 13, 2007, during which he and some buddies used weapons in an attempt to steal memorablia he claims was stolen from him and his family.
Here's the details on the case.
With an emotional tinge in his voice, the former actor and football hero said he didn't mean to break the law or hurt anybody.
"It was the first time I had an opportunity to catch the guys red-handed who had been stealing from my family," Simpson said. "I thought I was confronting friends and retrieving my property."
Before the sentence was pronounced, Simpson's attorneys did their best to prolong the proceedings. They asked for a bail pending appeal. When that was denied, they asked to postpone the sentencing to appeal the bail ruling. They took issue with a pre-sentencing report.
Here you go for your drinking planning:
Carson
Deputies will conduct sobriety and driver's license checkpoints from 7 p.m.
Hermosa Beach
Police officer and the South Bay Driving Under the Influence Task Force will conduct a sobriety and driver's license checkpoint from 9 p.m. Saturday to 3 a.m. Sunday in the eastbound lanes of Pier Avenue at Bard Street.
The task force, comprised of officers from 12 South Bay agencies, including the Sheriff's Department and the California Highway Patrol, will patrol the South Bay from December 19-31.
Ricky Sisneros' sentencing hearing was postponed from today until Dec. 23. He is the gang leader convicted by a jury of having weapons in his possession. Here's some of our previous entries about the case.
Yesterday afternoon, a process server left a subpoena for me to appear at the hearing this morning. According to my attorney, Kelli Sager, I was improperly served because it wasn't handed to me personally and it was not served in compliance with the law that requires five days notice for journalists. When, and if, I am served properly, then we'll have to fight it.
No, it's not clear why Sisneros' attorney, Caree Harper, has subpoenaed me to appear at the hearing.
For now, though, Sager has advised that the subpoena issue is moot until properly served. Since I've learned that no warrant was issued for my arrest for failing to attend the hearing this morning, I now feel safe to go run some errands on my lunch break!
However you feel about the U.S. involvement in Iraq and Afghanistan, the bottom line is there are young men and women over there sacrificing life and limb for the cause. Just over a year ago, on Veteran's Day 2007, we learned about the death of South Torrance High School graduate Matthew Ferrara, who was posthumously promoted to captain in the U.S. Army. That day, I went to the Ferrara home and spoke with family. A couple days later, I attended his memorial service. I learned a lot about a brave, funny, adventurous and smart person I never knew, and felt nothing but gratitude to him and his very nice friends and family.
So when I got a call this week that his mother's efforts to collect clothes and blankets for wounded soldiers in Germany was thwarted by thieves, I knew I wanted to do all I could to get the word out. I spent some time with Matthew's family again at their bakery - his dad, mother, sister and 2-year-old niece, where I learned that, in the year since Matt's death, the family has received a huge outpouring of support from friends and family. Most of that contact has come from within the military by those touched by Matt and his brothers. Linda Ferrara was collecting the items to support these people that remain overseas, fighting the fight. "Those guys are over there putting their lives on the line, even for the thieves," she said. Here's today's story.
This is one of the blankets Linda Ferrara and other volunteers made, along with a thank-you note they signed:
Here is Linda Ferrara (front row, second from left) and other volunteers working on the blankets.
They are donating the items through Soldiers' Angels Germany. Check out that link for a blog with more information about the soldiers the organization helps, how you can help and more about the Ferrara family. Also, there is a Nov. 9, 2008, post called "Heroes Remembered" that documents about four minutes of the more than 30-hour rescue and extraction operation performed for Matt and his troops on a treacherous mountainside. A search of Matthew's or Linda's name will lead you to more information on the Soldier's Angels Germany site.
Someone calls Dish owners regarding Direct TV saying they are from the Dish company. The caller tells you that your present system will not work for digital TV. The caller says they will need a credit card number to set you up with a new account and arrange to deliver the "new" equipment needed to convert to digital. It is a hoax!
Direct TV knows nothing about this activity. The present equipment Dish provides will receive the new signals. Direct TV is conducting an investigation on this illegal activity of phone calls.
The red flag to this scam was the callers' insistence on requesting a social security number to set up the account. (It is against the law to ask/insist on anyone's social security number).
They also insisted on two months advance payment. It is unknown how the callers are selecting people to call. Once again, never give your personal information, bank information, or credit card information to anyone over the phone.
This just in:
Date: 12/3/2008 10:44 AM
Judge gives terrorist Ressam same 22-year term
By GENE JOHNSON
AP Legal Affairs Writer
SEATTLE (AP) _ A federal judge on Wednesday re-imposed a 22-year prison sentence for terrorist Ahmed Ressam, an al-Qaida-trained terrorist convicted of plotting to bomb Los Angeles International Airport at the turn of the millennium.
An appeals court had told U.S. District Judge John Coughenour to recalculate the 22-year term he handed down three years ago, but Coughenour kept the same sentence. Prosecutors earlier had sought a 45-year term for Ressam, but on Wednesday recommended a life term because they said Ressam has stopped cooperating on other cases.
Ressam told Coughenour that he recanted statements he made earlier implicating other alleged terrorists.
"I did not know what I was saying," Ressam said. "I have escaped my words, finally. ... Sentence me to life in prison or anything you wish. I will have no objection to your sentence. Thank you."
This from the Associated Press in Seattle:
Date: 12/3/2008 2:48 AM
US prosecutors seek 45 years for would-be bomber
By GENE JOHNSON
Associated Press Writer
SEATTLE (AP) _ U.S. prosecutors want to nearly double the original prison sentence of would-be millennium bomber Ahmed Ressam, saying he has stopped cooperating with them and still poses a "serious threat."
Ressam was sentenced to 22 years behind bars in 2005 for plotting to bomb Los Angeles International Airport during the millennium holiday travel rush.
On Wednesday, federal prosecutors planned to ask a judge to re-sentence Ressam to 45 years, citing the problems he has caused by halting his cooperation.
Reichle was hit by a passing car Thursday after he parked at 7:35 a.m. on 232nd Street at Cerise Avenue. A motorist struck him when he got out of the driver's seat.
He suffered a serious head injury and was treated at County Harbor-UCLA Medical Center.
Torrance police Sgt. Bernard Anderson said investigators are calling what happened an accident.
Previous story.
It's a problem. California citizens and lawmakers want strict punishments to deter crime, but then what's a state to do with all the scofflaws serving long-term prison sentences.
A three-judge federal panel is set to take on the issue this week.
A Redondo Beach man, whose nefarious business dealings likely made him the victim of a brutal home-invasion robbery, will spend more than three years in prison. William Spalding's Torrance Superior Court trial was about to begin on Nov. 20 when he pleaded no contest to felony counts of grand theft and obtaining money, labor or property under false pretenses, prosecutors said Monday.
Spalding, 44, was then sentenced to three years and four months in prison. A self-proclaimed movie producer with criminal convictions for fraud, Spalding was attacked Nov. 6, 2007, in his home in the 700 block of Irena Avenue. The invaders beat him and taped him, naked, to a bed post before leaving with a television, digital cameras, a computer, his two Mercedes-Benz cars and other items.
Two people, Amadi Zaid and Paula Hattar, are charged for the alleged crime. They return to court Jan. 28. During their preliminary hearing in February, there was evidence that the two were ripped-off by Spalding, who lied about his Hollywood connections and success.
A man who collected rent for a Torrance apartment he didn't own was sentenced Monday to more than three years in prison.
Steven Michael Kelley, 32, of Torrance, previously pleaded no contest to two theft charges.
He was sentenced to three years and eight months in prison, according to a court clerk.
Kelley was arrested Oct. 14 for collecting a $1,275 deposit from someone who answered his rental advertisement on Craigslist for a unit in a complex in the 2100 block of West 182nd Street, according to police.
The story of the missing Silah boys, who were abducted by their fathers and have been missingsince July, will be on Dr. Phil's show today.It airs at 4 p.m. on Channel 2.
Alex and Zaven Silah, and their cousin, Greg, have
not been heard from since their fathers, George and John Silah of Westchester, failed to return them to their mothers following summer custody visitations. Both men have been charged with kidnapping.Alex and Zaven's mother, Zanni Meguerian, and Greg's mother, Christine Jeanbart, will appear on the show. Here's a link to the Dr. Phil show's story
About the Blogger
Larry Altman has covered crime in the South Bay since 1990. He's seen it all - the missing model who turned up dead in the desert, the wives found dead in trunks, the high-school coaches who get a little too close to their players. He drives his young colleagues nuts with his "I remember when" stories. He welcomes your tips and observations about the present, and you can mix in a little Lakers basketball talk if you like.
E-mail Larry at larry.altman@dailybreeze.com.
ADVERTISEMENT
|
|
ADVERTISEMENT
|
|
Recent Comments
Sher on Search for teen burglars prompts lockdown at San Pedro schools: San Pedro
Andy on Man, woman found shot to death in Lawndale: Are we see
Anonymous on Secondhand smoke lawsuit reinstated: I live
Another Victim on Torrance and San Pedro cosmetic surgeon Dr. Lawrence Saks operates deep in the legal system: I was also
Clemson DUI Attorney on BREAKING: Male, female shot to death on Wilmington street: Unbelievab
Martin on Three charged in Lowe's robbery in Torrance: Damn yall
CAS on Secondhand smoke lawsuit reinstated: Same situa
Maurice honore on BREAKING NEWS: No parole for El Segundo cop killer: Ok Alexand
don on Three charged in Lowe's robbery in Torrance: WHO EVER K