Law Enforcement

Crime alerts for Adams-Normandie and nine other L.A. neighborhoods
Crime reports are up significantly for the latest week in 10 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. Adams-Normandie was the most unusual, recording six reports compared with a weekly average of 2.5 over the last three months. West Los Angeles topped the list of three neighborhoods with property crime alerts.
Los Angeles Times

Predicting events such as Connecticut school shooting not easy
It happened after Columbine, Virginia Tech, Aurora, Colo., and now Sandy Hook: People figure there surely were signs of impending violence. But experts say predicting who will be the next mass shooter is virtually impossible - partly because as commonplace as these calamities seem, they are relatively rare crimes.
Associated Press

Starbucks robbery suspects in police custody
Two men suspected in the armed robbery of a Starbucks coffee shop in Hollywood and two possible female accomplices were in police custody Saturday after their capture in an unincorporated area of Florence-Firestone. The two women, one of whom drove the suspects from the scene in a getaway car, were arrested in connection with the 11:45 robbery of the Starbucks at 6102 Sunset Blvd., at the corner of Gower Street, said Sgt. Mark Ro, watch commander at the Los Angeles Police Department's Hollywood Station.
City News Service

Police shut down northbound 110 Freeway in search of robbery suspects
Police shut down the Harbor (110) Freeway in South Los Angeles on Friday, causing a massive traffic backup, while they conducted an unusual car-to-car search for suspects wanted in a Moreno Valley credit union robbery. A GPS device contained within the stolen money allowed sheriff's deputies and California Highway Patrol officers to zero in on the freeway, where officers performed a roadblock and went vehicle to vehicle until they pulled two suspects from a car.
Los Angeles Daily News

Motorist sought in fatal hit-and-run of bicyclist
Authorities are seeking the public's help in identifying a motorist who struck and killed a bicyclist Friday and fled the scene without helping the victim. The bicyclist, whom authorities identified as a Latino in his 20s or 30s, was travelling westbound near the 900 block of East 43rd Street about 8:50 a.m. when the driver of a red late-model pickup truck struck him, according to a statement from the Los Angeles Police Department.
Los Angeles Times

California still awash in guns despite pioneering gun regulations
Despite being ranked ahead of every other state on gun controls, California still faces enormous challenges in how to reduce gun violence as a result of the millions of weapons already in circulation in the state and the complexity of laws intended to regulate them. These are the stark figures: Since 1991, close to 9 million guns were sold legally in California alone. Only about 1 percent of people seeking to buy them were unable to do so because of background checks.
EdSource

ICE excludes minor offenses from deportation program
Illegal immigrants who are arrested in minor crimes will no longer be targeted for deportation, the Obama administration announced Friday in an apparent concession to the increasing number of jurisdictions pushing back against its Secure Communities program. Immigrant advocates as well as some police chiefs and sheriffs have complained that detention orders under the program were being issued indiscriminately, snaring people who were driving without a license or selling tamales on private property.
Los Angeles Times

Public Safety

LAFD probes response time in death of teen playing soccer at Wilmington Middle School
Los Angeles fire officials said Friday they are investigating why it took paramedic units 15 minutes to respond to a call of a 16-year-old boy who collapsed last weekend while playing soccer at Wilmington Middle School and later died. Although privacy laws prevented fire officials from releasing the teen's name or other information, Wilmington residents and obituary and coroner records identified the boy as Jesus Alonso Zambrano, a student at Lakewood High School who lived with his family in Carson.
Los Angeles Daily News

Flawed data stall California's 911 upgrades
A three-year effort by California to improve 911 emergency service has been stymied by flawed data and aging computers at local fire departments and rescue agencies across the state, a Times investigation has found. Since 2009, the state Emergency Medical Services Authority has been seeking to centralize reports on millions of emergency medical responses, a project that officials see as critical to improving life-saving practices.
Los Angeles Times

Prisoner Realignment

Realignment's unintended consequence: No supervision, rehabilitation for criminals
The first wave of felons sent to county jails instead of state prisons under Gov. Jerry Brown's public safety realignment plan are back on the streets after serving their sentences, and local law enforcement officials are worried they will trigger a spike in crime. Almost all of the felons are under no obligation to report to a parole agent or probation officer, and many did not get job training and other rehabilitation services while behind bars.
Los Angeles Daily News

Pardons

Jerry Brown grants pardons for 79 convicted criminals
Gov. Jerry Brown announced pardons for 79 individuals Monday, from convicted marijuana growers to drunk drivers, who served their sentences and committed no other crimes for at least a decade. Most of the pardons - 61 - involved drug crimes, many of which carried no prison sentence. One of the pardons involved involuntary manslaughter, four grand theft, four robbery and three felony driving under the influence.
Sacramento Bee

City Government

Antonio Villaraigosa's mayorship enters twilight
With the end of the year, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa is beginning the first of the lasts as he winds up his two terms in office. As most of the attention shifts to the crowded field of those who want to succeed him, Villaraigosa is expected to be out promoting what he tried to accomplish in his eight years in office. Aides say he is serious about taking time off after he leaves office to write about politics, but also in landing a job that will compensate him well and allow him to remain active.
Los Angeles Daily News