Law Enforcement

Crime alerts for Carthay, Bel-Air and six other L.A. neighborhoods
Crime reports are up significantly for the latest week in eight L.A. neighborhoods, according to an analysis of LAPD data by the Los Angeles Times' Crime L.A. database. Six neighborhoods reported a significant increase in violent crime. Carthay was the most unusual, recording three reports compared with a weekly average of 0.5 over the last three months. Bel-Air topped the list of two neighborhoods with property crime alerts.
Los Angeles Times

Fund set up to assist family of LAPD Foothill Div. detective
A donation account has been opened at the Los Angeles Police Federal Credit Union to assist the family of an off-duty police detective who was killed while riding a motorcycle on a downtown freeway. Jesus Ravega, 48, of West Covina, was fatally injured on the northbound Hollywood (101) Freeway near the junction with the Harbor (110) Freeway about 11 a.m. Sept. 2. He was buried Tuesday, Sept. 13, at Rose Hills Memorial Park and Mortuary in Whittier, following a funeral held in the Faith Community Church in West Covina, attended by dozens of family members, friends and fellow officers.
San Fernando Valley Sun

LAPD fatally shoots man after foot chase
An investigation was under way Monday into the death of a man who police said was shot by an LAPD officer in South Los Angeles after pointing a weapon at him at the end of a foot chase. The officer and his partner were in the 1100 block of West 53rd Street in response to an unrelated trespassing complaint when, around 10:45 p.m. Sunday, they came upon several men who immediately ran away, said Sgt. Mike Flannigan of the Los Angeles Police Department's 77th Street Station. The officers chased the men, one of whom pointed a gun at one of the officers, prompting him to open fire, he said.
Los Angeles Daily News

Men beaten, stabbed in attack in Westlake area
A man was stabbed and critically wounded in the Westlake section of Los Angeles this morning and another man was bloodied with a stick about a block away some 10 minutes later, police said. The stabbing was reported around 2:45 a.m. outside 439 Union Drive, said Lt. Darryl Ito of the Los Angeles Police Department's Rampart Station. A man between the ages of 35 and 40 was stabbed with a knife several times in the chest and abdomen, Ito said. He was transported to a hospital, where he is in critical condition.
Los Angeles Daily News

Woman escapes when kidnapper takes her to breakfast, police say
Los Angeles Police arrested a Van Nuys man accused of kidnapping his former girlfriend after an hours-long standoff on Sunday, police said. Police said Wember Ernesto Servellon, 32, kidnapped his ex-girlfriend at knifepoint Sunday and forced her into his apartment, where he allegedly tied her up and assaulted her. Then, police said, he took the woman to eat breakfast, where she managed to escape and call police. Servellon returned to his apartment in the 14600 block of Saticoy Street and holed himself inside. Police arrived at 9 a.m. and evacuated surrounding apartments.
Los Angeles Times

U.S. crime rates fell again in 2010, FBI reports
Violent crime in 2010 dropped 6% from the year before, the FBI reported Monday, the fourth consecutive year of such declines. Property crime fell 2.7% from 2009, marking the eighth consecutive annual decrease, the agency said. The government's annual report, called "Crime in the United States," is based on data from more than 18,000 city, county, university and college, state, tribal and federal law enforcement agencies from around the nation and presents the most complete picture of what residents do to other residents in the way of crime.
Los Angeles Times

Graffiti artist makes his statement on the LA sky
A Los Angeles graffiti artist has taken advantage of a massive, blank canvas to protest against the city's crackdown on tagging and street art. The artist, who goes by the name Saber, says he hired five pilots to sky write his political statements in a cloudless sky over city hall on Monday. The messages read "End Mural Moratorium" and "Art Is Not A Crime" and could be seen for miles.
Associated Press

City Government

L.A. building inspector gets prison for taking bribes
A city of Los Angeles building inspector who pleaded guilty to accepting bribes during an FBI sting operation was sentenced Monday to 21 months in prison. Raoul Germain, 60, of Altadena was "very remorseful" about his deeds but also did not cooperate with federal investigators trying to determine the extent of corruption within the Department of Building and Safety, said his lawyer, Steven Cron. Asked why Germain did not help with the FBI probe, Cron responded: "What do you think happens to someone who cooperates? "There is certainly the possibility of danger to oneself or one's family," the lawyer added.
Los Angeles Times

Los Angeles seeks millions of dollars in penalties from outdoor ad firm
The city of Los Angeles is demanding millions of dollars from a Beverly Hills-based outdoor advertising company, saying the company's top executive lied to a judge and illegally wrapped 17 buildings with towering supergraphic advertisements. In court documents filed Friday, City Atty. Carmen Trutanich accused SkyTag president Michael McNeilly of depriving the city of fees, endangering the public and committing perjury during a recent legal fight over the city's billboard laws.
Los Angeles Times

The Economy

California won't slip back into recession, UCLA study predicts
The national economy is in "far worse" shape than it was just three months ago, but neither the U.S. nor California is expected to slip back into recession, according to UCLA researchers. The U.S. economy has "stalled," the job market is "horrible," and even a "modest shock" could trigger a full-blown recession, according to a quarterly economic forecast released Tuesday by UCLA's Anderson School of Management.
Los Angeles Times