Occupy L.A. Closure

LAPD evicts Occupy LA protesters
Police officers in riot helmets Wednesday arrested more than 200 protesters and, in an operation free of major violence, dismantled the tent city that sprang up Oct. 1 outside Los Angeles City Hall as a western outpost of the Occupy Wall Street movement. In a slow-moving operation that remained mostly free of violent outbursts, officers from the LAPD's elite Metro Division began moving onto the Occupy L.A. encampment on City Hall's South lawn at 12:14 a.m., arresting those who refused to leave and dismantling tents and other forms of shelter. An estimated 500 helmeted LAPD officers - some in white Hazmat uniforms - burst out of City Hall doors and descended down concrete stairs and into the Occupy L.A. encampment.
Los Angeles Daily News

LAPPL statement on Occupy L.A closure
Amid ever-changing political winds, Los Angeles Police Officers have adhered to the highest standards of law enforcement in dealing with the Occupy L.A. protestors over the past two months. Acting on the commands of the civilian leadership in Los Angeles, the LAPD cleared the Occupy L.A. camp. While there is a place for civil protest, the unsanitary and dangerous conditions of the Occupy L.A. encampment required that the encampment be disbanded. The LAPD officers' training and experience have served them well in dealing with a wide range of individuals with different agendas. We commend the officers for effectively and efficiently ending Occupy L.A. at City Hall with minimum use of force."
Paul M. Weber/LAPPL News Release

Mayor Villaraigosa praises police sweep
As he toured the former Occupy L.A. campsite, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa on Wednesday morning praised Police Chief Charlie Beck and his officers for their professionalism and restraint in clearing the park around City Hall of protesters. Villaraigosa said he was proud of the Police Department for carrying out what was a largely peaceful sweep of the park and surrounding streets. More than 1,400 officers were involved in the operation, and more than 200 arrests reported. "I said that here in L.A. we'd chart a different path, and we did," Villaraigosa said.
Los Angeles Times

Occupy L.A.: Police Chief Charlie Beck is relieved, satisfied
LAPD Chief Charlie Beck took in the scene of hundreds of his officers lining the City Hall lawn early Wednesday with a look of clear satisfaction and relief on his face. "That was the hardest part," he said of the rush of officers into the park. "That first contact, you learn if your officers are going to break ranks and if people are going to get physical," he said. "It went as well as we could have expected." In a matter of minutes, officers poured out of City Hall and rushed in from the east and west. They established control of the park, essentially dividing it into several smaller sections.
Los Angeles Times

Law Enforcement

89-year-old grandmother fatally stabbed in South LA
An 89-year-old grandmother was fatally stabbed in her own home in South Los Angeles Tuesday. Police say her grandson may be the suspect. Authorities were called to the 900 block of West 41st Street and transported the woman to a local hospital at 2:10 p.m. She died soon after she arrived at the hospital. Police say the suspect, her grandson, barricaded himself near the crime scene in South Los Angeles at a residence on West 41st St. and Menlo Ave., near Manual Arts Senior High School.
ABC7

Joseph Wambaugh solves the great UC Davis pepper-spraying incident
In light of the terrible financial crisis at our California universities, I feel the need to rescue UC Davis, whose administrators are, according to The Times, negotiating a price with the Kroll security firm in New York for none other than former LAPD Chief Bill Bratton to fly West and tell us what went wrong on the day that students were pepper sprayed. I can save the university a hefty Kroll consulting fee by suggesting that the administrators carefully peruse a few of the newspaper articles of the past week and all will be revealed to them.
Los Angeles Times

Wal-Mart pepper-spray attack caused 'total pandemonium,' says LAPD
Los Angeles police detectives described a chaotic scene when a woman pepper-sprayed 20 shoppers during a Wal-Mart Black Friday sale. Authorities said they received a call around 10 p.m. Thanksgiving night to report that someone had discharged pepper spray at a videogame display at the Porter Ranch Wal-Mart, where the store was offering games at half their normal $60 price.
Los Angeles Times

LAPD requests your help for holiday toy drive
It is that time of year again where your local North Hollywood Police Station kicks off their annual Holiday Toy Drive. This event helps those families in the North Hollywood area who are less fortunate than us. In an effort to help them have a happy holiday season this is where the partnership between the LAPD and our service communities has an opportunity to make a difference. Listed below are the toy box locations where you can deliver your unwrapped gift. If you wish to personally donate funds to the program or you are part of a business that wishes to be a sponsor as well, you may do so. Please make all checks or money orders to the East Valley PALS.
North Hollywood Patch

Prison Realignment

How will public safety be affected if changes are not made to state's realignment experiment?
The criminal justice realignment governing incarceration and parole is a bold experiment that has many of us in law enforcement more than concerned about the potential consequences - unintended or otherwise - on public safety. Adjustments will undoubtedly need to be made as we learn from experience, but a good start would be eliminating from the list of criminal code sections those crimes that by no stretch of the imagination can be considered 'low level, non-violent.' And because this is a clear matter of the public's safety, we suggest this be done as soon as possible.
LAPPL Blog

Antonovich rails against prison realignment
Los Angeles County Supervisor Michael D. Antonovich said he wants the state to stop dumping violent offenders in Los Angeles County. Speaking against state law AB 109 at Tuesday's Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors meeting, Antonovich called the recently enacted law "reckless." It "is not the way you make the state a better place - by turning loose all these idiots, violent criminals, in our neighborhoods. If you were a governor, you would have to call a special session to say 'I made a mistake. We have to correct this.'"
Santa Clarita Signal