Recently in Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department Category

Students at Kwis Elementary School, Newton Middle School, Los Altos High School and Shadybend Elementary School were kept in classrooms from the start of school until noon while authorities searched for two of the four suspects.
School officials were not fazed.
"This is a very normal situation. They always notify our school district," said Norman Hsu, school board member for the Hacienda-La Puente District. "These happen very often. This is not the first time. This is like the fourth time this month."

Recently, the Federal Signal ALPR network has assisted LASD in solving two key cases. A serial rapist in South Los Angeles approached female pedestrians and forced them into his vehicle at gunpoint. A victim obtained a license plate number and provided police with a vehicle description; however, the address for the registered owner of the vehicle was no longer correct. With the help of Federal Signal's ALPR Back Office System Software (BOSS) by PIPS, investigators pinpointed prior vehicle sightings, which led them to the suspect's workplace. The employer provided a cell phone number for the suspect, which enabled police to locate the suspect and make an arrest.

 

In another case, a shooting left one victim dead. Witnesses provided police with a partial license plate and vehicle description. A query of this data in the Federal Signal BOSS system provided investigators with a full license plate number which enabled them to identify the suspect. Surveillance was established on the suspect's address, and the suspect was in custody less than 24-hours after the shooting. The suspect was also wanted in connection with three other homicides.

 

Sheriff Lee Baca responded to a series of articles that have appeared in this paper over the past week. Here's the top of our story:

LOS ANGELES - The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department is reexamining how it collects towing fees in response to allegations a former traffic sergeant took nearly $500,000 from the city of La Puente in impound revenues, officials said.

"We are doing that now," Sheriff's spokesman Steve Whitmore said. "We are probably going to go to a cashless system. Using something like an ATM card to make it more difficult for theft to occur."

Whitmore also said the department is reviewing several other internal policies and will consult with the Board of Supervisors.

Former Sgt. Joe Dyer, who used to work out of the Industry sheriff's station until he retired in May, has been under investigation since the beginning of the year.

An outlaw motorcycle gang member is led on a perp walk by officers involved in a RICO bust of members of the Mongols Motorcycle gang.

A person is brought in to the Montebello Police Department after many
arrests overnight during an investigation conducted by the Bureau of
Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), L.A. Sheriff Dept.,
Montebello Police and La Vegas Police. Over 160 federal search
warrants and 110 federal arrest warrants were served today on members
and associates of the Mongols Outlaw Motorcycle Gang nationwide.
(SGVN/Staff Photo by Raul Roa/SVCity)

In light of Robert Urteaga's no contest plea to Grand Theft charges back in 1999, I got to thinking about a case that involved Walnut City Councilman Joaquin Lim back in 1997.

Lim was accused of petty theft after he allegedly left a grocery store without paying for $27 in groceries. Ultimately Lim testified in his own behalf and was acquitted in the case. Some of the original reporting is on the jump.

This comes from the Whittier Daily News' new blog, "Whittier Dispatch." Enjoy:

Deputy Donald Naslund was flagged down this morning by a citizen who found six newborn puppies.
The still-wet puppies were behind a Dumpster at the 76 gas station at Fullerton and Colima roads in Rowland Heights, according to Sgt. Thomas Wilson.
Naslund brought the little furballs to the sheriff's Industry Station
at 150 Hudson Ave. in Industry.
"They're being cleaned and fed by the jailer," Wilson said.

*(actual dogs not pictured here)

We heard this call on the scanner about 3 p.m. this afternoon. Draw your own conclusions:

HACIENDA HEIGHTS - A woman who looked pregnant and had a young child waiting in her car swiped a charity bucket on Tuesday from a CVS Pharmacy.

Los Angeles County sheriff's Lt. Mark Relyea said the woman took the bucket from the CVS at 887 Hacienda Blvd. around 3 p.m.

Relyea did not say how much money was in the bucket.

The "heavyset" woman left in a white Toyota Corolla, Relyea said.

A summary of some items we've been covering over the weekend:

1. EL MONTE -- Homicide detectives are investigating the mysterious death of a man whose body was found on the property of an office building Sunday.
2. ROSEMEAD -- The man who died in a fiery crash at the end of a police chase Saturday was driving an SUV that belonged to a woman found shot to death at her Gardena business.
3. LA PUENTE -- A man allegedly shot and wounded two of his roommates during an argument at their house Saturday.
4. SOUTH EL MONTE -- Officials have released the name of a man found who was fatally shot in his car last week.
5. NORWALK -- A man was shot and wounded in the parking lot of a convenience store Sunday.
6. SONORA -- The Montrose Search and Rescue Team rescued a 34-year-old man Sunday after he spent two nights at the bottom of an abandoned mine shaft.

This is a press release from Supervisor Gloria Molina's office. It came just two days after an emotional hearing before the Supes about the deaths of Good Samaritans who try to stop graffiti vandals throughout the county:

Los Angeles County Supervisor Gloria Molina will join Lieutenant Gil Carrillo of the Sheriff's Department Homicide Division to publicize a $25,000 reward for anyone with information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person(s) responsible for the death of Luis Sandoval, a 71-year-old East Los Angeles resident who was shot in the abdomen after witnessing two males spray-painting graffiti on the side of a business located at the corner of East Olympic Boulevard and South Hicks Avenue. 

Mr. Sandoval had been riding his bicycle home and lived just four houses away from the scene of the crime.  Though the shooting took place on February 25, 2007, Mr. Sandoval died approximately four months later on June 13, 2007.  Authorities have since confirmed that his death was due directly to the injuries he sustained as a result of the shooting and are now asking for the public's help to solve this homicide--the third graffiti-related killing to occur in the First District.  (Robert Whitehead of Valinda was shot and killed in March 2006 while trying to stop graffiti taggers from spray-painting his neighbor's garage; Maria Hicks of Pico Rivera was shot and killed in August 2007 while trying to stop graffiti taggers from spray-painting a wall in her neighborhood.) 

Surviving relatives of Luis Sandoval will be available at tomorrow's press conference for interviews and pictures of the crime scene will be on display.
 
"Luis Sandoval was a hard-working, retired steel worker with a large family whose only transgression was being at the wrong place at the wrong time," Molina said.  "The anguish his death has caused his family is indescribable--and it is particularly painful to the community since it is the third graffiti-related homicide to take place in the First Supervisorial District.  It is my sincere hope that this $25,000 reward compels someone to bring information forward that will help us catch the people responsible for Luis Sandoval's murder."

The Board of Supervisors is about to extend the time limit on the $10,000 reward offered for information leading to the arrest and conviction of two men suspected of killing Sammantha Salas in January.

Salas was gunned down in a section of Monrovia known as "No Man's Land." Police believe her killing was the result of a series of escalating gang violence attacks between black and Latino gangs that took on racial overtones.

The reward vote takes place Tuesday.

***

Sheriff's homicide Lt. Dan Rosenberg said Monday that all five juveniles suspected of taking part in the robbery that killed Covina Hills resident Michelle Chien at her home earlier this year will be tried as adults. One suspect, Victor Maurtua, 19, a member of the El Monte Flores gang remains at large in the case.

"This is a pretty vicious case," Rosenberg said. "And it was random basically. These were local kids. One individual orchestrated the whole things and the others followed along."

***

Rosenberg also has a crew working alongside LAPD detectives in hopes that they can solve the slaying of Los Angeles County Sheriff's Deputy Juan Escalante, 27. 

The deputy was slain outside his home two weeks ago, as he left for work at Men's Central Jail.

According to the Los Angeles Times:

A U.S. Army reservist, Escalante had worked for the Sheriff's Department for 2 1/2 years. He was assigned to the "high power" unit, where dangerous inmates -- many of them violent gang members -- are housed in single-man cells. Investigators said this week that the shot that killed Escalante was fired from behind him and that he may not have seen his killer or killers.

Ropsenberg said deputies and officers are working alongside and getting along.

"We're working real well together," he said. "We still don't have a motive, but we're looking at everything." 

This from ABC7:

DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- Funeral services at Our Lady of the Angels Cathedral are held Friday morning for Juan Escalante, an L.A. sheriff's deputy who was shot to death in front of his parents' home.

The reward for his killers is nearing $100,000, but the gunmen have still not been found.

A large law enforcement presence gathered for the funeral set to begin at 9 a.m.

As family and friends said their final goodbye, police are still looking for suspects involved in the 27-year-old deputy's murder.

I didn't understand where the LA Times was going with it's earthquake story this morning. Even though the story had A1 placement, the lede was long and convoluted. The photos were beautiful though. Especially the image of a worker cleaning glass from a broken window at Pomona City Hall.

The story didn't even crack A1 in the New York Times, instead it led with the indictment of U.S. Sen. Ted Stevens, R-Alaska. The quake (and another nice photo of Pomona City Hall) story is on A11.

Interestingly, the NY Times quake story cites Los Angeles County Sheriff's Lt. John Saleeby, of the Walnut Diamond Bar substation as a source.

They should have called him months ago. -- He's known among reporters in this newsroom for famously saying: "Nothing's going on. But I'm waiting for the big one. It's coming any day now. I'm sure you've read about it in Bible."

Well Lt. Saleeby, nice call. But there are those who still claim the temblor wasn't a "Big One" just moderate. 

    The death of retired Pasadena Police Lt. David Richter has highlighted the need for responsible journalism in a time when tabloid reporting and the sentiments of bloggers are confused with news.

    Richter's abandoned car was found by a water-filled pit in Irwindale last January. Police assumed the retired lieutenant had either taken his own life or simply walked away from his financial troubles.

    The later discovery of Richter's corpse and a firearm under a nearby overpass seems to corroborate the theory that Richter took his own life. But then there's the conspiracy theorists, and admittedly the case possesses all the potential of a Law and Order episode.

    Thursday, I read an article by Andre Coleman of the Pasadena Weekly. Buried on page 13, the article uses an unnamed source and anonymous letter to create speculation amongst readers. After a short recap of the facts, Coleman delves into a lengthy digress about an anonymous letter sent to members of the Pasadena City Council.  The letter alleges everything from police malfeasance to racism.

    Coleman's sublimation of this anonymous letter leads to another anonymous source:

"According to an earlier conversation with one coroner's office employee who did not wish to be named, among the factors that may have led authorities to reopen the case (the case was never closed) was that a gun found near Richter's body appeared to have been fired four times, and one bullet remained in the weapon."

    Keeping in mind that they are a tabloid, I find it alarming that the Pasadena Weekly published this story. Had someone in the coroner's office made the statement, a statement that Los Angeles County Coroner Assistant Chief Ed Winter doubts the legitimacy of, I would have written it off as conjecture, rather than present it as news. How would someone in the coroner's office know this information? According to Winter, homicide detectives would have taken the weapon and run ballistics on it, not the coroners office. While the article spends ample time on anonymous sources, it fails to mention Richter's financial possible motives for Richter to commit suicide.

    Prior to writing my article on Richter, I searched for reliable information, unfortunately reliable sources of information weren't permitted to comment.

    Friday I spoke with a psychic who claims the spirit of David Richter awakens her every morning seeking justice for his murder.

    Monday morning I listened to a voice-mail from an anonymous caller who presented himself as law enforcement by using the word "we" often in his rant. I listened to the message several times in an ill-fated attempt to extract meaningful insight.

"You'll never find out what happened, because that's what happens to us good cops when we make promises we can't keep."

What promises? Promises to financial institutions involving adjustable rate mortgages?

    After racking my brain for three days I had an epiphany: there probably isn't any credible information indicating Richter's death was anything but a suicide.

    Let's face it, Richter was a retired cop and retired cops kill themselves. By the age of 55 Richter had spent his entire adult life in law enforcement, and didn't have a spouse or children.

    Police who survive years of service, only to take their own lives after retirement is not a new concept. My own grandfather retired after 30 years as a Philadelphia homicide detective, and spent the next ten years drinking himself to death.

    Sure, it's possible that Richter caught a bullet during an old-west-style shootout with a crooked cop. However, it's far more likely that Richter was lamenting his career, his impending financial doom, and a Christmas without not only kin but comrade, last holiday season when he died.

    Regardless of what happened to Richter, it's important that journalists remember their role: to report the news not create it. That's why I take it as a compliment when bloggers like Aaron Proctor recognize me with a "ham and egger" award for "stealing" a story. So long as the Associated Press continues to recognize the difference between news coverage and misleading narratives, there just might be hope for the media and the role it should play in our society.

The semi-annual report to the Board of Supervisors by Special Counsel Merrick Bobb focuses on the treatment of women inmates and lawsuits against the department. Among those helping prepare the document was Pasadena police Chief Barney Melekian.

It would be interesting to see a similar report done on the Pasadena Police Department -- but then again they are not under a federal mandate to do so.