Law Enforcement

Police seek clues in Van Nuys murder
A 28-year-old man died in Van Nuys on Monday night when he was shot several times by an unknown assailant, and police are asking for the public's help to find the killer. Sevada Aghazarian was sitting in his car in a parking lot behind a row of businesses in the 13640 block of Burbank Boulevard just after 6 p.m. when the unknown assailant confronted him. Aghazarian was shot several times in the torso with a semi-automatic handgun, and the suspect fled the scene.
Los Angeles Daily News

Deadly Koreatown shooting: Victim identified as 49-year-old man
Los Angeles County coroner officials on Tuesday released the name of a man who was killed in a possible gang-related shooting in Koreatown. Clay Allen Casey Sr., 49, of Los Angeles was shot after midnight Sunday near Wilshire Boulevard and Shatto Place, authorities said. Casey and two women were sitting inside an SUV when a man approached and began shooting at them, Los Angeles Police Sgt. Marvin Mancia told The Times. Casey was pronounced dead at the scene.
Los Angeles Times

Caught on camera: LAPD car windows smashed on Hollywood Boulevard
A man who calmly walked up to a Los Angeles Police Department patrol car and took a metal bar to the windows Tuesday afternoon had tourists and superhero-look-alikes puzzled as they watched on Hollywood Boulevard. The incident began to unfold about 1 p.m. when a bar-wielding man approached the parked police car and smashed out all windows but the windshield. He then reached into the car, took out a laptop computer, opened it and began typing, LAPD officials said. Not long after the car's glass shattered, police had the man on the ground and spread out across one of the Hollywood Walk of Fame's gold stars as they handcuffed him.
NBC4

LAPD rolls out "predictive policing" to prevent crime
Sonia Moran has been pleasantly surprised by the increased police patrols in her Pacoima neighborhood lately. She may be noticing the results of a new approach at preventative law enforcement ...being tried here by the LAPD. It's called "predictive policing." In predictive policing, computer algorithms take data from specific kinds of crime -- burglary, auto theft and car break-ins -- then map them out for officers. Areas with the most such crimes will get more attention by cops on the beat ...who can actually see them in 500-square foot "boxes."
NBC4

Man in stolen Escalade leads police on chase to Woodland Hills
Police Tuesday arrested a motorist who led them on a brief chase in a stolen Cadillac Escalade that ended in the Woodland Hills area. The pursuit began at 12:27 p.m. when LAPD Topanga Station officers spotted the stolen SUV, said Richard French of the Los Angeles Police Department. The chase ended about eight minutes later near Topanga Canyon Boulevard and the Ventura Freeway, French said.
City News Service

Pilots, FAA and FBI work to discourage laser strikes
Airline pilots, the Federal Aviation Administration and the FBI are launching a campaign to discourage laser strikes on planes, after the number of incidents reached a record high last year. The FBI is offering rewards up to $10,000 for information leading to the conviction of someone who shined a laser at a plane. The Air Line Pilots Association, a union representing 50,000 pilots, is working with the FAA to promote the campaign of public-service announcements, billboards and press releases focused in 12 cities, including Los Angeles.
USA Today

Report: In final battle with Dorner, officers' deadly force was justified
Law enforcement officers who faced off with Christopher Dorner at a cabin in Big Bear violated no laws and "had no choice" but to engage in a fierce firefight with the fugitive, according to a detailed review of the incident by prosecutors. In a 59-page report released Tuesday, the San Bernardino District Attorney's office formally cleared of wrongdoing the many sheriff's deputies, police officers and game wardens who were involved in the standoff.
Los Angeles Times

Prisons

California solitary confinement changes questioned at hearing
Lawmakers on Tuesday cast doubt on proposed changes to how California prison officials identify gang members and place them in solitary confinement. The issue burst into prominence during a widespread hunger strike this summer, the third in two years, during which convicts and their allies liken prolonged physical isolation to torture.
Sacramento Bee

Crime Prevention

Obama wants to stop 'school-to-prison pipeline' for minorities
President Obama plans to launch an initiative aimed at improving the lives of young black and Latino men by bringing businesses and foundations together with government agencies to change what an administration official called the "school-to-prison pipeline." The initiative, which Obama calls "My Brother's Keeper," is to be unveiled Thursday, the official said. It will mark the latest in a series of efforts by the president to spur social change outside the stalemated legislative process.
Los Angeles Times

Guns

Judge skeptical of bid to block new S.F. gun law
The National Rifle Association challenged San Francisco's ban on high-capacity gun magazines in federal court Tuesday, arguing that it violates a constitutional right of armed self-defense in the home - but had little apparent success in persuading the judge. In 15 years on the bench, U.S. District Judge William Alsup said at the outset of the hearing in San Francisco, "I see precious few cases where a homeowner has warded off an intruder with 10 or more bullets," but many cases in which criminals wielded large-capacity guns."
San Francisco Chronicle

Politics

Atty. Gen. Kamala Harris will launch reelection campaign Wednesday
Kamala Harris will formally announce her plans to seek a second term as state attorney general on Wednesday morning in San Francisco. Her announcement will come at a news conference scheduled for 11 a.m. at City Hall, where she'll be handling paperwork for her reelection campaign. Harris, a Democrat, served two terms as San Francisco's district attorney before winning a tight race in 2010 to become California's first female and first nonwhite attorney general.
Los Angeles Times