Law Enforcement

2nd suspect in Hollywood beating of transgender woman is identified
A second suspect arrested in connection with the beating of a transgender woman in May on Hollywood Boulevard was identified by police Thursday as 21-year-old Samuel Garunts. Los Angeles police Officer Drake Madison said Garunts, who was arrested Wednesday afternoon, had been a person of interest for some time in the investigation of the early-morning attack on May 31. Madison said it was unclear whether there would be more arrests in the case.
Los Angeles Times

Fighting for officers' rights
We are encouraged by a Court of Appeal decision this week reinstating the LAPPL's lawsuit challenging the unfair policy of Chief Beck to issue "involuntary conditional Official Reprimands" to officers accused of disciplinary actions. Justice Walter Croskey, on behalf of a unanimous panel of justices, agreed with the League's strongly-held belief that its lawsuit sufficiently stated grounds for injunctive and declaratory relief where the complaint alleged that conditional reprimands violate officers' rights by imposing "a predetermined minimum disciplinary penalty which will be imposed in the event of a future commission of the same or similar misconduct by the officer."
LAPPL Blog

Suspects arrested after allegedly firing at policed
Two suspects accused of shooting at Los Angeles police officers in Highland Park were in custody today, a department official said. The suspects - one in his late teens, the other in his early 20s - were arrested about 1 a.m., Los Angeles police Lt. Richard Parks said. The weapon said to be used in the alleged shooting, a 9mm semi-automatic handgun, was recovered, Parks said.
City News Service

Death of man in LAPD custody probed
A man who complained he was struggling to breathe died in Los Angeles police custody last month after officers ignored his repeated pleas for help, according to multiple law enforcement sources who reviewed a videotape of the incident. Two officers taking 26-year-old Jorge Azucena to an LAPD station were dismissive of his "numerous, numerous statements about trouble breathing and [needing] help," said one source.
Los Angeles Times

Bomb squad clears second fake grenade in two days in NoHo
Part of Radford Avenue in North Hollywood was closed for three-and-a-half hours Thursday afternoon as the bomb squad investigated a report of a suspicious device. "They cleared it about 4:30 p.m.," said Officer Forsberg of Los Angeles Police Department's North Hollywood Division. "It wasn't a grenade, but it looked like it. It was a dud." Police officers from the division were conducting a separate investigation in the area just before 1 p.m., and saw the device, Sgt. Todd Bogart said at the time of the street closure.
Los Angeles Daily News

Tarzana Vons robber who brandished knife remains at large
Police are looking for a man who wielded a knife and robbed a Vons supermarket in Tarzana Wednesday night. According to police, the man entered the store at 18439 Ventura Blvd., just before 11 p.m., with a bandanna over his face. "He comes up to an employee, armed with a knife, and demands money from her. He takes the money and leaves," said Lt. Paul Weber of the Los Angeles Police Department's West Valley Division. Weber said the man remains at large.
Los Angeles Daily News

Sylmar event aims to bridge gap between law enforcement, autism community
More than 90 Los Angeles police officers gathered Thursday in Sylmar for an event aimed at bridging the gap between law enforcement and the autism community. Mission Possible, which took place at Los Angeles Mission College, was designed to help officers learn more about people with autism, and vice versa. "They come away with such a love and feeling for how beautiful these kids are," said Judy Mark with the Autism Society of Los Angeles.
CBS LA

LAPD unveils next-gen Ford Police Interceptors
The Los Angeles Police Department showed off versions of Ford's Police Interceptor sedan and P.I. Utility at a police chiefs' conference in Philadelphia this week with an in-dash display that would de-clutter a patrol car's cockpit. The agency partnered with Ford and several police equipment suppliers to add the in-dash touch display to help an officer manage lights and sirens, communication gear, and a video system that includes a thermal camera.
Government Fleet

San Diego officer is shot four times; vest may have saved life
A San Diego police officer was shot four times -- in the chest, arm and leg -- after chasing a felony suspect, police said Thursday evening. "It's very likely the ballistic armor [vest] saved his life," Capt. Terry McManus said. The suspect, a gang member wanted on a warrant for assault with a deadly weapon, was taken into custody by other officers, McManus said. San Diego Police Chief Bill Lansdowne went to the hospital where the officer was undergoing surgery. Lansdowne said doctors predicted the officer would make a full recovery.
Los Angeles Times

Prisons

Gov. Brown wants Supreme Court to allow private-prison deals
Gov. Jerry Brown is back on the doorstep of the U.S. Supreme Court, seeking an order to let him go ahead with contracts that would send thousands more inmates to private prisons out of state. The governor notified federal judges in California on Thursday that he is appealing their order temporarily blocking those contracts while the judges force California to explore other possible solutions to prison crowding. The governor's lawyers at the same time announced a similar appeal with the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals that would be taken up only if the Supreme Court refuses to hear Brown's case.
Los Angeles Times

Traffic

California joins seven other states to put 3.3 million zero-emission vehicles on road by 2025
California leads the nation in electric vehicle sales, and now is joining forces with Oregon and several Northeastern states to put 3.3 million zero-emission vehicles on the road by 2025. Gov. Jerry Brown and his counterparts in Connecticut, Maryland, Massachusetts, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island and Vermont signed a set of agreements Thursday that includes adding zero-emission vehicles to public fleets and harmonizing building codes to make it easier to install electric-vehicle charging stations.
San Jose Mercury News