Law Enforcement

$50,000 reward to be offered in slaying of 7-year-old boy
Los Angeles officials are scheduled to announce a $50,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and prosecution of the attackers who killed a 7-year-old boy last week in a Mid-City drive-by shooting. Taalib Pecantte was sitting in a vehicle with his mother and her friend Dec. 2 when a white car with as many as four men pulled up, police said. One or more of the men inside opened fire, striking Taalib in the back. Police said his mother and her friend received graze wounds in the nighttime attack in the 1900 block of South Corning Street.
Los Angeles Times

Houseguest arrested after 80-year-old woman's death in Mission Hills
A houseguest was arrested on forgery and burglary charges after the death of an elderly woman in Mission Hills. According to detectives, Patricia "Tisha" Rodriguez, 56, had only been living in 80-year-old Phyllis Ciocca's home for about a week and a half when Ciocca was found dead on her bedroom floor on Nov. 15. Ciocca's death did not initially raise any suspicions due to her history of heart problems, according to investigators.
ABC7

U.S. charges 18 sheriff's officers in inquiry into misconduct at Los Angeles jails
Federal prosecutors on Monday charged 18 current and former members of the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department with excessive use of force and obstruction of justice as part of a sprawling investigation into allegations of misconduct and abuse of inmates in county jails, federal law enforcement officials said. All but two of the officers, including two lieutenants, were arrested on Monday; the two deputies who were not arrested were apparently traveling, prosecutors said. The officers all worked in the county's jails in downtown Los Angeles.
New York Times

Prankster who allegedly targeted top coaches arrested by LAPD
Authorities have arrested a Los Angeles man who they say pranked big-name coaches from the NBA, NFL and college football into believing he was offering them jobs with pro or college teams. Kenneth Edward Tarr, 32, was booked Monday morning on suspicion of felony eavesdropping by LAPD Hollywood Division detectives for recording phone calls with sports figures without their permission, according to Los Angeles County Sheriff's booking records and LAPD officials. Under California law, it is illegal to record someone without their consent.
NBC News

Police: Vehicle dent repair scam artists targeting Studio City parking lots
Los Angeles police arrested a man Dec. 4 in a Studio City grocery store parking lot for removing a dent to a vehicle without the owner's permission, with the victim claiming the man threatened harm if he wasn't paid for the service. Senior Lead Officer Michael Lewis said the district attorney's office refused to file criminal charges against the suspect but wants the community to be aware of the scam.
Studio City Patch

San Pedro assault suspect arrested at 3 a.m. Monday after 5-hour standoff
A man suspected of assault with a deadly weapon was taken into custody early Monday morning following a five-hour standoff with the Los Angeles Police Department SWAT team outside a San Pedro home, a sergeant said. The man was taken into custody at around 3 a.m., said Sgt. L. Valdez of the LAPD's Harbor Station. The circumstances of his capture were not immediately revealed.
Long Beach Press-Telegram

Cell phone thief punches victim in face
Three of six robberies committed in the area patrolled by the Los Angeles Police Department's Pacific Division from Nov. 25-Dec. 3 involved the stealing of smartphones, according to the police station's Facebook page. Two of the incidents occurred when victims were using their cell phones. In one instance, the victim was punched in the face while talking on their phone. In another case, the victim was walking, listening to music. LAPD suggests you "Protect yourself and your property by not using your phone in public."
Venice - MarVista Patch

Police crackdown on jaywalking means tickets of up to $250
It's that time of year again: Downtowners have dug out their holiday decorations and are taking to the streets in search of the perfect gift for friends and relatives. It turns out, it's also that time of year for the Los Angeles Police Department: In an effort to enhance public safety, officers have begun an intense crackdown on jaywalking in the Historic Core and the Financial District. The veritable lumps of Christmas coal run usually from $190 to $250, authorities say.
LA Downtown News

Prison Realignment

PPIC: Crime up with realignment
Property theft in California increased in the first year of correctional realignment, according to a new report by the nonpartisan Public Policy Institute of California highlighting the policy's possible effect on future crime rates. Under realignment, the state shifted responsibilities to the counties - including the incarceration of some state prisoners - and gave them money to cover the costs. The program, pushed by Gov. Brown, has been hotly controversial since its inception two years ago.
Capitol Weekly

Gun Control

Senate sends plastic gun restrictions to Obama for signature
The Senate on Monday agreed to extend by another decade a ban on plastic guns that can evade traditional security screening, after an effort to include stronger limits was rejected. The renewed Undetectable Firearms Act, which is due to expire at midnight, now goes to President Obama for his signature. First passed in 1988 and signed by President Reagan, the law requires that plastic guns contain enough metal to set off a metal detector or appear in X-ray scanners.
Los Angeles Times

California has toughest gun control laws in country, study finds
California has the toughest gun control laws in the nation, receiving an A- grade in a state-by-state analysis by the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence and the Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence, officials said Monday. In the year after a gunman killed 20 children and six adults at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut, eight states, including California, passed "major gun reforms," said Amanda Wilcox, the legislation and policy chair for the California Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence.
Los Angeles Times

City Government

DWP plan opposed by six city unions wins backing of council panel
A Los Angeles City Council panel voted Monday to let the Department of Water and Power scale back the cost of hiring away workers from other city agencies, despite objections from workers outside the DWP. The council's Budget and Finance Committee unanimously recommended an end to the DWP's practice of absorbing longtime pension costs of workers who transfer from other departments. The move is designed to resolve a lawsuit filed by representatives of the utility's powerful union.
Los Angeles Times

Los Angeles City Council members get pay raise
Already earning more than most serving in Congress, Los Angeles' 15 City Council members received a pay raise last week. With the 1.4 percent boost, those on the council will now earn $181,292 a year. The salaries come out of the city's general fund, which pays for basic services like police, firefighters and parks. News of the wage hike angered neighborhood activist Edwin Ramirez, a Pacoima Neighborhood Council board member.
Los Angeles Daily News