Law Enforcement

Crime alerts for Shadow Hills and 11 other L.A. neighborhoods
Crime reports are up significantly for the latest week in 12 L.A. neighborhoods, according to an analysis of LAPD data by the Los Angeles Times' Crime L.A. database. Seven neighborhoods reported a significant increase in violent crime. Shadow Hills was the most unusual, recording three reports compared with a weekly average of 0.2 over the last three months. Sunland topped the list of five neighborhoods with property crime alerts.
Los Angeles Times

Ex-school police officer to pay $309,000 in shooting hoax
Jeffrey Stenroos, the former Los Angeles school police officer who staged his own shooting last year in a bizarre hoax that caused three schools to be locked down and forced the closure of streets across the western San Fernando Valley, will pay the city a lump sum of $309,000 in restitution, authorities said Monday. In exchange for the restitution, Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Richard Kirschner agreed to let Stenroos post bail from Los Angeles County jail pending the outcome of an appeal.
Los Angeles Times

LAPD officer profiled Latinos in traffic stops, internal probe concludes
A white police officer has been targeting Latino drivers for traffic stops because of their ethnicity, a Los Angeles Police Department investigation concluded - marking the first time the department has found that one of its officers had engaged in racial or ethnic profiling. The finding is a milestone for the department and was met with praise from John Mack, a member of the department's civilian oversight board and a longtime civil right activist who has been critical of the department's handling of such cases.
Los Angeles Times

Sharpshooters coax out man in Van Nuys after reports of gunfire
A man will be booked for discharging a gun in city limits after police officers and sharpshooters coaxed him out of a residence in which he had barricaded himself on Monday. Police were called to the 14700 block of Erwin Street, one block east of Kester Avenue, in Van Nuys around 1:40 p.m., said Los Angeles Police Department Officer Karen Rayner. He fired a weapon into the air and then sought to barricade himself, Rayner said.
Los Angeles Daily News

L.A. nightclub performer in critical condition after confronting vandals
A Los Angeles nightclub performer suffered a critical head injury early Monday morning when he confronted vandals who had been tampering with his car in the Jefferson Park area, police said. The violence took place outside a club on Adams Boulevard east of La Brea Avenue around 12:30 a.m., said Sgt. C. Brown of the Los Angeles Police Department's Southwest Station.
Los Angeles Daily News

Bomb squad investigates WWII-era device at Hollywood storage unit
The Los Angeles Police Department bomb squad responded Monday afternoon to a report of a suspicious WWII-era device found at a Hollywood self-storage center. The device was discovered in a storage unit in the 6600 block of Lexington Avenue around noon, according to LAPD Officer Wendy Reyes. The device turned out to be a rusted 30-inch-by-10-inch movie prop and was found to be inert, police officials said.
Los Angeles Times

LAPD bolsters anti-bullying campaign
When asked at an anti-bullying assembly Monday morning who had ever been bullied, more than three-fourths of the elementary school students' hands shot up. Next, the bullies were asked to identify themselves, and a few hands rose apprehensively. "We are going to help you know what to do and change your behavior," said Monica Harmon, a public safety advocate and long-time Los Angeles Police Department volunteer who sought LAPD's support last year to begin an anti-bullying campaign.
NBC4

Police-teen advisory board bridges the gap in L.A.
Ten o'clock in the morning is still considered early for most college students. Isaiah Alexander, a founding member of the Los Angeles Police Department's Teen Community Police Advisory Board, is no different. The inception of the Teen Community Police Advisory Board, or Teen CPAB, stemmed from Councilman Joe Buscaino's hope to break down barriers between police and local youth.
Neon Tommy

Immigration

S.F. slayings suspect avoided deportation in 2006
The suspect in last week's slayings of five people in San Francisco was ordered deported in 2006 after he served a prison term for robbery and assault, but immigration authorities had to let him go free because his native Vietnam would not take him back, officials said Monday. Binh Thai Luc, 35, of San Francisco was released under the terms of a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that said undocumented immigrants must be released after six months if their country of origin won't allow them to return, according to officials with the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency.
San Francisco Chronicle

Pensions

More municipalities betting on pension bonds to cover obligations
Struggling to pay employee pensions, local governments are increasingly borrowing money to cover their obligations - exploiting a loophole in federal law that allows them to issue taxable bonds without seeking voter approval. Oakland took a bet on its pension fund that ended up costing the city an estimated $245 million - nearly a quarter of its annual budget. That hasn't stopped the city from looking to try its luck one more time.
Los Angeles Times

U.S. Census

L.A. more densely populated than N.Y.C.? Believe it
When it comes to density, Southern California is No. 1. U.S. Census figures released Monday peg the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim area as the most densely populated area in the country. By comparison, the New York-Newark, N.J., area is fifth when it comes to overall density.
Los Angeles Daily News