Law Enforcement

Crime alerts for Palms and eight other L.A. neighborhoods
Crime reports are up significantly for the latest week in nine 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. Palms was the most unusual, recording five reports compared with a weekly average of 1.4 over the last three months. Palms also topped the list of five neighborhoods with property crime alerts.
Los Angeles Times

Suspect held in Chatsworth woman's slaying
Los Angeles police have arrested a man on suspicion of murder in the death of a woman in Chatsworth. The suspect is the same man who called 911 about 8 p.m. Thursday to report a possible death, said Capt. Kris Pitcher, commander of the Devonshire Division. The woman, whose body was found in a small bungalow on the property, had what appeared to be defensive wounds, Pitcher said, declining to be more specific.
Los Angeles Daily News

Armed invader hits Hollywood Hills mansion
Detectives Friday were searching for the person who carried out an armed home-invasion robbery at a Hollywood Hills mansion. The crime occurred about 7:20 p.m. Thursday in the 1700 block of Doheny Drive, according to Los Angeles police Officer Rosario Herrera of the Media Relations office. The suspect entered through an unlocked door, and fled with an undisclosed amount of currency and jewelry, Herrera said. No description of the suspect was released, and no serious injuries were reported.
City News Service

FBI seeks bandit linked to LA-area bank heists
The FBI is seeking a bank robber dubbed the "make it quick bandit" suspected of a holding up banks inside grocery stores in the greater Los Angeles area. The FBI says the suspect has been linked to eight bank heists since 2009 in the area south of Los Angeles. His modus operandi is to wander the aisles of the grocery store for a while before holding up the bank teller. The robber advises the teller that people are waiting for him outside the store.
Associated Press

1 killed, 2 injured in Pico-Union area shooting
A man was shot to death and two others were wounded Saturday in what police suspect was a gang-related shooting in the Pico-Union area. A man, thought to be 18-20 years old, walked up to the victims, all in their early 20's, in the 1400 block of Alvarado Terrace and opened fire about 12:45 a.m. with a chrome handgun, said Los Angeles police Lt. Wes Buhrmester of the Rampart Station. One was declared dead at the scene, and the others were taken to California Hospital Medical Center with what Burhmester called non-life-threatening leg wounds.
City News Service

Police search for vehicle connected to fatal Westlake shooting
Police were searching for a white sport utility vehicle Saturday in connection with a shooting in Westlake that left one man dead and another wounded. Three suspects, a woman and two men, were seen leaving the scene of the shooting Friday in a white Ford Explorer with black trim, police said. The victims, whom police declined to identify, were standing in front of an apartment building near the intersection of Magnolia Avenue and Leeward Avenue at about 9 p.m. when the assailants approached on foot, said Sgt. Pete Llanes of the LAPD's Olympic Station.
Los Angeles Times

Man killed, boy injured in shooting at South L.A. housing project
A 19-year-old man was shot to death and an 11-year-old boy injured Sunday in a shooting at the Avalon Gardens housing project in South Los Angeles. Three men approached the two victims in the 600 block of East Caliburn Drive about 12:45 a.m. and opened fire, said Los Angeles Police Department Officer Cleon Joseph. Both victims were taken to a nearby hospital. The man was pronounced dead and the 11-year-old boy was in stable condition, Joseph said.
Los Angeles Times

Guest shot to death at South L.A. wedding reception
Police on Sunday were investigating the death of a man who was fatally shot at a wedding reception in South Los Angeles. The shooting was reported shortly after 11 p.m. on Saturday in the 1200 block of East 56th Street, said Sgt. Tonya Dummar of the Los Angeles Police Department's Newton Division. The victim, identified only as a guest at the reception, had been talking to a man in a nearby alley. The man then shot the guest in the torso, Dummar said.
Los Angeles Times

Proposition 32

Proposition 32: A fraud to end all frauds
In this state, we've come to expect ballot initiatives sponsored by business interests to be, essentially, frauds. But it's hard to conceive how one could be more fraudulent than Proposition 32. If there was any doubt left that the initiative process has been totally corrupted by big business and the wealthy, this should put it to rest for all time. Proposition 32 is nothing but an attack by Republicans and conservatives on unions and their members.
Los Angeles Times

Pensions

L.A. police, fire unions angry over call for pay freeze
Los Angeles public safety unions responded angrily last week to a proposal to freeze the pay of firefighters and police if the city's contribution to their retirement benefits reaches a certain amount. The proposal, from a group of business leaders and former Mayor Richard Riordan, came as the city released new budget projections showing that taxpayers would see retirement costs for police officers and firefighters climb by 56% over the next four years.
Los Angeles Times

Prisons

California balks at providing prison release plan
California officials are balking at a federal demand the state come up with a timeline for releasing inmates from its overcrowded prisons. In a legal brief filed late Friday, lawyers for the state called the threat of an inmate release order "unwarranted" and said it oversteps the 2011 U.S. Supreme Court ruling upholding population caps intended to correct horrific conditions within what was then the nation's largest prison system. The state ignores the court's most recent order to provide information on how quickly it could begin releasing inmates.
Los Angeles Times