Suspects in dismemberment of man in L.A. hotel room 'armed and dangerous'
A Pennsylvania couple wanted in the slaying and dismemberment of a Hollywood man, whose limbs were removed in a downtown hotel, are at large and considered armed and dangerous, Los Angeles police said. Los Angeles Police Department officials are asking for the public's help tracking down Edward Garcia Jr., 36, and his wife, Melissa Hope Garcia, 25, said LAPD Homicide Det. Richard Arciniega. A maid at the Continental Hotel told police she found body parts Nov. 29 tucked inside a backpack that was left behind in a room at the East 7th Street hotel, where the couple was staying.
Los Angeles Times |
Fugitive robber-parolee arrested in SoCal
A parolee at large, wanted for three robberies in Pacoima and in connection with a battery on an officer, was arrested today by a combined force of United States Marshals Service Regional Fugitive Task Force and Los Angeles police. Juan Miguel Diaz, 24, a known gang member who lived in Sun Valley, was pulled over Oct. 25 by Los Angeles Police Department officers from the Mission Division while driving a car with suspended registration, police said. Diaz initially seemed to cooperate, but while talking with the officers, he shoved one of them in an attempt to run away.
Los Angeles Daily News |
Police want to question 'person of interest' in Sampras trophy theft
Los Angeles Police want to question a "person of interest" in the theft of nearly all of legendary tennis champion Pete Sampras' trophy collection from a public storage facility. The 14-time Grand Slam titleholder learned that 51 of his 64 championship trophies -- including those marking his first Australian Open cup, five season-ending ATP World Tour titles, two Davis Cup wins and other memorabilia -- were among the coveted items stolen. The theft occurred about one month ago, police said.
CNN |
State renews lethal drug supply, execution ban remains
California has amassed a stockpile of a key lethal injection drug, making the state medically capable of resuming executions, though not legally permitted to do so. That duality is likely to persist. The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation is tangled in multiple lawsuits over the constitutionality of its capital punishment procedures.
California Watch
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Masks so realistic they're arresting the wrong guy
They're not just for Halloween anymore. Expensive, realistic masks - the kind that are the hit of the costume party - are increasingly being used out of season, and not always for laughs. A white bank robber in Ohio recently used a "hyper-realistic" mask manufactured by a small Van Nuys company to disguise himself as a black man, prompting police there to mistakenly arrest an African American man for the crimes. Authorities are even starting to think that the so-called Geezer Bandit, a Southern California bank robber believed for months to be an old man, might actually be a younger guy wearing one of the disguises made by SPFXMasks.
Los Angeles Times
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Sacramento traffic tickets being dismissed after cops failing to testify
For weeks now, it's been a traffic-ticket holiday for scores of drivers in Sacramento County. By the dozens, traffic court judges have dismissed violations in recent months because police officers who cited drivers failed to show up to press their cases. The no-shows appear to be the result of a dispute between the District Attorney's Office and the Sacramento, Elk Grove and Folsom police departments over who's going to pay for the prosecutor's traffic court services.
Sacramento Bee
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Crime victims' fund has 45th birthday, $2 billion payout
Forty-five years, $2 billion and seven governors later, the nation's first government fund to ease the financial plight of crime victims remains in place, helping thousands of people in a program that is relatively little known but has had a dramatic impact. "California became the first state in the nation to do this and today continues to be the model of compensation programs. Other states followed, we are still recognized nationally as the leader," said Julie Nauman, executive director of the Victims Compensation and Government Claims Board.
Capitol Weekly |
L.A. might allow residents to park in front of their driveways
It's a situation that many Angelenos have faced: You're trying to park. It's your own residential street. Home turf. But there are too many cars, so you end up half-blocking your own driveway. Then you get a ticket. Reacting to constituents annoyed with that scenario, Los Angeles City Councilman Bill Rosendahl will bring a motion before the Transportation Committee meeting Tuesday to investigate the viability of allowing residents to park in front of their own driveways.
Los Angeles Times |
Brown says state budget worse than ever; mum on proposed solutions
Gov.-elect Jerry Brown and his supporting cast of fiscal players delivered their first performance Wednesday of "Budget Gloom and Doom" on the Memorial Auditorium stage. Brown's message: California's budget deficit is awful. No, really awful. "What we're looking at today is much worse than it's ever been before, and our opportunities to fix it are very limited," Brown told a crowd of about 400 state lawmakers and local government officials.
Sacramento Bee
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Bill to help some illegal immigrants passed house, but may be doomed in Senate
The House passed legislation Wednesday to give hundreds of thousands of foreign-born youngsters brought to the country illegally a shot at legal status, a fleeting victory for an effort that appears doomed in the Senate. The so-called Dream Act, which passed the House 216-198, has been viewed by Hispanic activists and immigrant advocates as a down payment on what they had hoped would be broader action by President Barack Obama and the Democratic-controlled Congress to give the nation's 10 million to 12 million undocumented immigrants a chance to gain legal status
AP
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Some San Diego city workers, retirees could face big pension bill
About 2,200 current and retired San Diego city workers find themselves in a financial bind because of a seven-year-old decision they made to pad their pensions through a special program that allowed them to buy additional years of service that they never actually worked. Now each of those workers - including roughly 500 who have already retired and live on fixed incomes - may be forced to accept significantly reduced pensions or pay a lump sum of as much as $50,000 to keep their current pension.
San Diego Union-Tribune
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About the LAPPL Formed in 1923, the Los Angeles Police Protective League (LAPPL) represents the more than 9,900 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. The LAPPL can be found on the Web at:
www.LAPD.com |
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