Alleged ex-con with gun bitten by police dog, arrested near Azusa

Deputies used a K-9 to Tuesday to arrest an ex-convict who allegedly had a gun and fled from them in an unincorporated county area near Azusa, authorities said.
Rafael Garcia, 36, of Azusa was booked on suspicion of being a convicted felon in possession of a gun, Los Angeles County sheriff’s Sgt. Kirk Smith said.
The incident began about 1:30 p.m. a Newburgh Street and Heathdale Avenue, when deputies spotted a man with a gun, the sergeant said.
The suspect, later identified as Garcia, allegedly ran from deputies and was found hiding in the area with the help of a sheriff’s K-9, Smith said.
He was booked at the jail ward of Los Angeles County-USC Medical Center where he was being treated for a dog bite, the sergeant added.
According to sheriff’s booking records, Garcia was being held in lieu of $50,000 bail and is due for arraignment Thursday in West Covina Superior Court.

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Covina twins plead no contest in mom’s murder

From Sandi Gibbons at the DA’s office:

POMONA – Twin sisters pleaded no contest today to elder abuse resulting in the death of their invalid mother and were immediately sentenced to state prison by a Superior Court commissioner in Pomona.

Deputy District Attorney Robin E. Allen of the Elder Abuse Section said Commissioner Wade Olsen sent each sister to prison for three years.

Justine Naomi Rosales and her sister, Jasmine Nicole, each was charged a year ago with one count of elder or dependent abuse resulting in death (Section 368(b)(1) of the California Penal Code). The case was filed after a lengthy investigation of the Feb. 27, 2007, death of 43-year-old Naomi Mendez, the twins’ mother.

Authorities said the victim was found dead at the family’s Covina home. The woman, who weighed 78 pounds at the time of her death, suffered from diabetes and other medical problems that limited her speech and required her to us a walker.

The defendants have remained in custody on $80,000 bail each since their arrests on April 22, 2009, by detectives with the Covina Police Department. The case against them was filed two days later.

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Adios Foothill Cities

As David Allen and LAObserved have already reported, the Foothill Cities Blog has taken its last gasp of air

Here’s the text of its last post:

To all members of the blogosphere:

Greetings and hello. Since 2006, the Foothill Cities Blog has endevoured to bring citizen-journalism to the suburban communities of the San Gabriel Valley that abutt the powerful mountains. We have strived to inform the citizenry not only of events and their duties in the face of them, but also of their awesome power over the government itself.

Each of us had our private motives and sensibilities that guided us. But never was this venture expected to generate revenue or income. Those who supported us, morally, materially or otherwise, may know that they gave aid and comfort to a tribe that wanted to reach out to the community around. Our legacy will be honorable if it is merely a footnote in some greater work.

In short, we’ve had a lot of fun.

But the pressures of domestic life have finally closed in. The enigmatic Centinel and Publius no longer return even my email. Technological problems with the server software impare even my power to post this goodbye. Were I an administrator I could continue this struggle myself. But, as I sit, I deem it time to throw in the towel once and for all.

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Former LAPD Chief Gates “Seriously ill”

This from KTTV, the local Fox affiliate:

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Los Angeles – Police say former Los Angeles police Chief Daryl Gates, who resigned in the wake of the Rodney King beating, is seriously ill.

Current Chief Charlie Beck told the city Police Commission on Tuesday that the 83-year-old former chief has a serious malady and that he visited Gates in the hospital over the weekend. But he provided no details.

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Ontario cop honored by ExtenZe — all natural male enhancement

ExtenZe, The “all-natural male enhancer” will honor an Ontario Cop for heroism at Fontana this weekend.

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STATESVILLE, NC – Because he went above and beyond the call of duty in rendering aid to a young stabbing victim, ExtenZe Racing will honor Ontario Police Officer Mike Gonzales as an “ExtenZe Local Hero” and give him the rare privilege of being an Honorary Crew Chief at next weekend’s NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California.

The ‘ExtenZe Local Hero’ program pays tribute to local heroes who have gone to great lengths to make a difference. Those people selected have faced danger, sacrificed their own safety for others or in some way displayed leadership that changed their community for the better. Each recipient receives a $1,000 award from ExtenZe, the world’s best selling male enhancement product, in recognition of the individual’s selflessness. Officer Gonzales has selected to donate his award to the Ontario Police Officer’s Assoc. Widows and Orphans Fund.

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West Covina PD continues to unravel

This from reporter Thomas Himes. 

It’s the latest in a series of stories detailing questionable conduct by West Covina police officers — including the department’s lead rape investigator Tyler Kennedy.
Here, police Chief Frank Wills’ girlfriend appears to have benefited from preferential treatment on a vandalism case.
Here’s the top of Tom’s story:

WEST COVINA – After Police Chief Frank Wills’ girlfriend reported her Mercedes had been vandalized last year, officers conducted a more than five-hour investigation that was followed by a rape complaint against her ex-husband, according to documents obtained by this newspaper.

At least two police cruisers responded on Feb. 27 to reports that the Mercedes belonging to Wills’ girlfriend was vandalized, police records show.

By contrast, West Covina police averaged 43 minutes per call in all 11 other instances of vehicle vandalism they responded to between Feb. 25 and March 31, police records show.

West Covina Police Officer Tyler Kennedy was assigned to investigate the rape, police records show. Kennedy has since been suspended amid allegations of misconduct involving alleged rape victims, according to sources within the Police Department.

Wills declined to comment when contacted by telephone.

The rest of Tom’s series of stories can be found on the jump

Continue reading “West Covina PD continues to unravel” »

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Driver abandons car after crashing in Rosemead

ROSEMEAD — A motorist abandoned a car after crashing into a carport Sunday, authorities said.
The crash occurred about 4 p.m. in the 7800 block of Garvalia Avenue, Los Angeles County sheriff’s Sgt. Michael Martinez said.
Deputies responded to a report of a car crashing into a carport that was attached to a home, he said, but the driver had walked away from the scene.
The crash knocked the carport loose from it’s foundation, Martinez said.
Officials were seeking the driver of the car late Sunday, he said.

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Norwalk shooting leaves 1 dead, 1 wounded

NORWALK — A man was killed and another man was wounded late Saturday in a shooting at a party, authorities said.
The dead man’s name was not available Sunday, coroner’s officials said.
The shooting was reported about 10:30 p.m. in the 14300 block of Cabrillo Avenue, Los Angeles County sheriff’s Deputy Ed Hernandez said in a written statement.
Two men were shot and taken to a hospital, where one of them died, Hernandez said.
The wounded man was expected to survive, officials added.
No further details were released.

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Worker dies in tree-trimming accident in Pasadena

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PASADENA – A man died in an accident while trimming a tree in a Pasadena backyard Saturday, authorities said.
The man was identified as Artemio Hernandez, 40, of Sun Valley, according to Los Angeles County Department of Coronor Lt. Jerry McKibben.
The incident occured at about 11 a.m. behind a house in the 500 block of South Oak Knoll Avenue, said Pasadena Fire Department spokeswoman Lisa Derderian.
The private contractor was suspended 50 feet in a palm tree when he was pinned by a ring of fronds.
“A large layer of fronds fell on top of him,” Derderian said. “Unfortunately he succumbed to his injuries.”
Gardener Jose Martinez says the trimmer shouted as he was struck by the fronds but then went silent.
Firefighters determined the man was dead and covered him with a sheet as they worked to cut him free from a chain that tethered him to the tree.
It took firefighters using a ladder truck about two hours to lower him to the ground.

– From staff and wire reports

PHOTO courtesy of the Pasadena Fire Department

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