Law Enforcement

No clear motive in slaying of East Hollywood man, police say
Police were asking for the public's help Monday in finding the person who killed a 62-year-old man found dead in his apartment. An autopsy performed last week showed that Cornelius Rich, also known as Andre Dupree, died from blunt force trauma in his East Hollywood apartment. Police were called last Tuesday to check on Rich in the 500 block of Kingsley Drive and discovered his body. There was no clear motive for the slaying, police said.
Los Angeles Times

Police warn about thefts from vehicles in San Pedro
Police in San Pedro alerted residents Monday to remember to lock their vehicles and not leave any valuables visible for thieves. The caution followed an increase in thefts from vehicles in an area bounded by Palos Verdes Drive North, Western Avenue, Gaffey Street and 18th Street, Los Angeles police Detective Teresa Dougherty said.
Torrance Daily Breeze

Child molestation suspect arrested after skipping court
A North Hills man charged with molesting his stepdaughter was arrested for a second time last week after failing to show for a court hearing, prosecutors said. Regino Murrillo-Martinez, 54, remained in jail this morning. Murrillo-Martinez faces 21 misdemeanor counts, including sexual battery with restraint, statutory rape and child abuse causing mental suffering, according to the City Attorney's Office.
Los Angeles Daily News

Sun Valley pursuit of female DUI suspect ends in freeway crash
The three-minute pursuit of a woman suspected of driving while impaired ended when the woman's car struck two concrete barriers in a construction zone on the Hollywood (170) Freeway in Sun Valley, a Los Angeles police official said Monday. The pursuit started at 10:02 p.m. Sunday when officers noticed a suspected impaired driver in a 2001 Toyota on Vena Avenue, according to LAPD Sgt. Jim Bender.
City News Service

Gang member gets 40 years for killing man in front of his son
A South Los Angeles gang member was sentenced to 40 years in federal prison Monday for executing a man in front of his child simply because the man was of Mexican descent. Anthony Gabrourel, 23, also known as "Bandit" in the Pueblo Bishop Bloods gang, was convicted for his role in a racketeering plot that ultimately led to the slaying of Francisco Cornelio, 24. Cornelio, who was not affiliated with any gang, died after Gabrourel shot him in the back with a shotgun.
Los Angeles Times

North Hollywood man gets prison for shining laser at police helicopter, private plane
A North Hollywood man who pointed a laser at a business jet and a police helicopter was sentenced Monday to 2 years in federal prison. Adam Gardenhire, 19, pointed a green laser beam at a Cessna Citation and later at a Pasadena police helicopter that was investigating the first incident, said Thom Mrozek, a spokesman for the U.S. attorney. The Cessna pilot, who was about to land at Bob Hope Airport in Burbank when the laser beam struck his eyes multiple times, suffered vision impairment for several hours, Mrozek said.
Los Angeles Daily News

Riverside won't pay $100,000 pledge
As the manhunt for Christopher Dorner gripped Southern California last month, Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa announced a $1 million reward for the capture of the fired LAPD officer. Two claims have been made on the money since Dorner's death Feb. 12 - by a couple near Big Bear who were tied up and whose car was stolen and by a man whose pickup Dorner later hijacked. Now, some groups that pledged money are reconsidering and Riverside, who lost an officer in the Feb. 7 shooting attributed to Dorner, won't pay the $100,000 it promised.
Riverside Press-Enterprise

Law enforcement sounds alarm on cell phone theft epidemic
Law enforcement officials from San Francisco to Washington, D.C., are again sounding an alarm over mobile phone thefts, demanding that the wireless industry, resellers and lawmakers take new steps to quash the thriving black market for boosted devices. San Francisco District Attorney George Gascón recently held an acrimonious conference call with the nation's largest wireless carriers and their lobbyists.
Time

City Election

Bill Clinton backs Wendy Greuel in L.A. mayoral race
Former President Bill Clinton on Monday endorsed Wendy Greuel for Los Angeles mayor, saying the city controller's proven track record makes her the right candidate to confront the city's problems. "In her many years of public service in Los Angeles ... Wendy has personified good, honest and effective government,
improving the lives of countless Angelenos while saving millions of their tax dollars," Clinton wrote in a letter obtained by the Los Angeles Times.
Los Angeles Times