Law Enforcement

LAPD seeks 2 men wanted in string of robberies in Fairfax area
Los Angeles police Thursday night warned people in the Fairfax neighborhood to be on the lookout for two men who committed a string of street robberies in area. At least seven robberies occurred within a two-hour period Wednesday night near Fairfax Avenue and Beverly Boulevard, Los Angeles Police Department officials told The Times. People in the area should walk in pairs at night, stay in well lit areas and be vigilant, the LAPD said.
Los Angeles Times

Madonna stalker escapes mental hospital, LAPD says
Police today were searching for the man who allegedly stalked Madonna after he escaped from a Los Angeles-area mental hospital, officials said. Robert Dewey Hoskins, 54, "is a very psychotic man when not taking his medication and has very violent tendencies," the Los Angeles Police Department said in a statement. Hoskins allegedly left the Metropolitan State Hospital in Norwalk last week.
Los Angeles Times

Rooftop-hopping suspect in Westwood subdued by bean bag rounds
A suspected car thief who spent five hours on the rooftop of a Westwood home after threatening authorities Thursday surrendered to police after being hit with at least two bean bag rounds. The suspect, who was not immediately identified, told Los Angeles police officers earlier in the day, "If I could get to my gun, I would kill all of you," according to KTLA-TV.
Los Angeles Times

3 reputed Harbor Area gang members charged
Three reputed gang members have been charged in a crackdown on gangs in the Harbor Area, prosecutors said Thursday. Bruno Pineda, a reputed Rancho San Pedro street gang member, faces one count of receiving stolen property and 10 counts of forgery, Los Angeles City Attorney's Office spokesman Frank Mateljan said. Pineda, 20, of San Pedro allegedly deposited 10 checks he received from his sister into an account at his bank in July.
Torrance Daily Breeze

Research firm: Dash cam going HD
Your next dash cam might be HD, according to a UK research firm that says the trend is on the upswing. IMS Research estimates 20% growth for high-definition video cameras inside police cruisers over the next four years, according to Security InfoWatch. The numbers come from the firm's latest report on mobile video surveillance, which predicts HD cameras will still make up less than 15 percent of the total market in the United States.
Police One

Ford police interceptors roll off Chicago assembly line
Ford is showing final production models of its 2013 Police Interceptor at the Chicago Auto Show, which opens to the public on Friday. The Detroit automaker's replacement to the Crown Vic interceptor began rolling off the line at the Chicago Assembly Plant in January. Ford will offer the 2013 Ford Police Interceptor sedan to agencies in front-wheel and all-wheel, including its EcoBoost V-6 with all-wheel drive.
Police Magazine

Capital Punishment

Death row inmates challenge U.S. FDA on allowing imports of execution drug
Twenty-one death row inmates asked a U.S. judge to order the Food and Drug Administration to block importation and use of a drug administered in executions, saying the anesthesia for lethal injections hasn't been properly vetted by the agency. Lawyers for the inmates argued today in federal court in Washington that the FDA has violated the law by allowing state departments of corrections to import sodium thiopental, a drug used as a first-stage painkiller in the process of executing an inmate with a lethal injection.
Bloomberg

Pensions

Steinberg 'committed' to passing pension reform before budget
Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg said Thursday that a nonprofit group's decision to scrap a proposed ballot initiative targeting public employee pensions does not alter his commitment to tackle that issue. "We are committed to getting pension reform done," the Sacramento Democrat said in a news conference.
Sacramento Bee

City Government

L.A. official says cost cutting has city budget in balance
Los Angeles, which had projected a $72-million shortfall in the current budget, has sewn up the hole halfway into the fiscal year through a series of cost cutting measures, officials said Thursday. "It's showing that we're moving in the right direction. We could start seeing the light at the end of the tunnel here," City Administrative Officer Miguel Santana said, but he warned that city officials cannot become complacent and must continue to rethink the budget because the next fiscal crisis is on the horizon. "The worst thing that we could do is assume that we're done."
Los Angeles Times

Election 2013

Carmen Trutanich will run for L.A. district attorney
Los Angeles City Atty. Carmen Trutanich announced Thursday he will run for district attorney, ending months of speculation. "I love my job as City Attorney, but I can't do my job to protect residents - nor can our local police and sheriffs - without a crime fighting partner in the DA's office," Trutanich said in a statement. Trutanich collected nearly $1 million in donations last year, amassing a campaign war chest that dwarfs those of the declared candidates.
Los Angeles Times