Law Enforcement

Crime alerts for Westchester and 13 other L.A. neighborhoods
Crime reports are up significantly for the latest week in 14 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. Westchester was the most unusual, recording five reports compared with a weekly average of 1.4 over the last three months. North Hollywood topped the list of eight neighborhoods with property crime alerts.
Los Angeles Times

Critics slam LAPD for easing illegal immigrant deportations; others praise
The Los Angeles Police Department has come under criticism from some corners after Chief Charlie Beck announced that hundreds of illegal immigrants arrested by his officers each year for low-level offenses would no longer be turned over to federal authorities for deportation. "What the LAPD is doing is making federal law enforcement decisions, usurping federal law," said Janis Kephart, national security policy director at the Center for Immigration Studies.
Los Angeles Times

GPS bracelet leads police to Sylmar burglary suspect
A Southland registered sex offender was in custody Monday on burglary charges after police traced his location using his GPS bracelet. Wilbert Matheney, 48, was charged in a hot-prowl burglary in Sylmar after the ankle bracelet he wore as a registered sex offender showed he was in the home he claimed never to have entered. "The fruit of the crime was a laptop, but the whole situation could have been much worse," said Lt. Paul Vernon, commanding officer of the Mission Detective Division.
CBS2

LAPD looking for suspect after fatal shooting in Sylmar
A 29-year-old man who moved to California five months ago and worked on television commercials was shot and killed early Friday as he walked down the street in Sylmar, police said. Later Friday, detectives still didn't know whether the shooting was random and were unsure of any possible motivation. The victim, whose name hadn't been released Friday afternoon, described the shooting to officers before he died, Los Angeles police Lt. Paul Vernon said.
Los Angeles Daily News

Prostitution sting in Sun Valley nets 32 arrests, LAPD says
The arrests of seven women and 25 men came Thursday in an industrial area off Lankershim Boulevard, which police say is one of the busiest areas in the San Fernando Valley for prostitution. The problem dates back to the 1970s. It had gone away after police targeted the area five months ago, but came back in earnest a few weeks ago, detectives and area business owners said. Thursday's police operation included 50 officers, some of them women posing as prostitutes.
Los Angeles Daily News

LAPD officer injured in car crash
A Los Angeles Police Department officer was injured when his squad car collided with a dark-colored sedan Friday night in Encino. The collision occurred around 7:10 p.m. at the intersection of Ventura Boulevard and Hayvenhurst Avenue, near the Encino and Balboa golf courses, said Los Angeles police Officer Cleon Joseph of the Media Relations section. The officer was headed westbound on Ventura Boulevard and the sedan driven by a woman was eastbound, turning left onto northbound Hayvenhurst Avenue, when the collision occurred, said Officer J. Kang of the Valley Traffic Division.
Encino-Tarzana Patch

New LAPD headquarters' grounds going to seed with no money set aside for lawn care
The city spent some $437 million to build the new downtown headquarters for the Los Angeles Police Department that opened in 2009. But city leaders apparently neglected one thing when they planned the Police Administration Building: grounds maintenance. It wasn't until trees recently started falling over and sinking into the ground, that they realized they had a problem. Dying vegetation and weeds sprouting on the lawn were another sign. The problems were caused by a combination of two factors, LAPD officials said.
Los Angeles Daily News

Marijuana only for the sick? A farce, some Angelenos say
One year after federal law enforcement officials began cracking down on California's medical marijuana industry with a series of high-profile arrests around the state, they finally moved into Los Angeles last month, giving 71 dispensaries until Tuesday to shut down. At the same time, because of a well-organized push by a new coalition of medical marijuana supporters, the City Council last week repealed a ban on the dispensaries that it had passed only a couple of months earlier.
New York Times

Public Safety

LA City Fire Dept. urges fire awareness in Hollywood Hills
The weather may have cooled a bit, but the fire danger is far from over. In the Hollywood Hills, fire officials have a new approach to fire safety. The Los Angeles City Fire Department says that as we head into the most dangerous months for fire danger, they need the community's help preventing the worst from happening. Firefighters say there is an abundance of extremely dry brush throughout the Santa Monica Mountains and the Hollywood Hills to fuel a massive fire.
ABC7

Death Penalty

Death penalty delays built into system
If there's one thing on which supporters and opponents of California's death penalty agree, it's that inmates spend too much time on Death Row. When Clarence Ray Allen was put to death in January 2006, the last execution conducted in the state, more than 23 years had lapsed since he had been sentenced to death for ordering three murders from prison. Michael Morales is probably the first in line among a dozen prisoners to have exhausted all appeals except a challenge to California's lethal injection procedures.
San Francisco Chronicle

City Government

Bill Rosendahl won't run for re-election next year, Los Angeles councilman cites health concerns
L.A. City Councilman Bill Rosendahl Los Angeles City Councilman Bill Rosendahl, who has been fighting cancer, announced Monday he is giving up plans to seek a third term on the City Council and will step down from office next June 30. Rosendahl, 67, who recently returned to work, said he believes he needs more time to care for his health - even as he has seen improvement.
Los Angeles Daily News