Law Enforcement

New End of Watch Memorial Wall honors LAPD officers who died in line of duty
Officer James Choquette was searching for a robber when his unmarked LAPD patrol car was slammed by a drunken driver on Aug. 2, 1979. Los Angeles Police Chief Charlie Beck, who held Choquette as he died, memorialized him with a shiny plaque on the department's new End of Watch Memorial Wall, a first-of-its-kind structure unveiled Monday at the Gardena manufacturer where the 7-ton structure was built out of steel, acrylic crystal and 10,000 LED lights.
Torrance Daily Breeze

2 dead, 1 injured after apparent murder-suicide in Valley Village
One woman was killed and another critically injured Monday in a Valley Village apartment complex, where police say a man apparently cut one of the women with a hatchet and shot both of them before turning the gun on himself. Officers responded to the 12400 block of Weddington Street about 10:30 a.m. after receiving a call about a domestic violence incident involving someone armed with a gun, said Los Angeles police Sgt. Frank Preciado.
Los Angeles Times

Man accused of nearly 60 Los Angeles County robberies arrested
The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department announced Monday that they arrested a man dubbed the Plaid Shirt Bandit who they believe committed nearly 60 robberies between 2012 and 2013. Deputies from the Major Crimes Bureau arrested Jermaine D. Shepherd, 37, in Bakersfield in February, nearly a year after the final robbery in a string that lasted from April 2012 to June 2013.
Long Beach Press-Telegram

Prisons

State counts empty medical beds to cut prison crowding
Gov. Jerry Brown's administration states that California has already met a court-ordered limit on the state prison population, but inmate lawyers argue that is because the state is counting a half-filled medical prison closed to new admissions. A panel of three federal judges gave California until June 30 to reduce crowding to a statewide average of 143% of what its prisons can hold, the first of a series of increasingly lower population limits. In an April update to the court, lawyers for Atty. Gen. Kamala Harris said the system is now at 141% of capacity.
Los Angeles Times

Smart Cars

Google: Driverless cars are mastering city streets
Google says it has turned a corner in its pursuit of a car that can drive itself. The leader of the tech giant's driverless car project wrote in a blog post Monday that test vehicles are becoming far more adept at city driving. They already can comfortably handle freeways. City driving presents a virtual obstacle course of jaywalkers, bicyclists and blind corners. Google says the cars can now negotiate thousands of urban situations that would have stumped them a year or two ago.
Associated Press

Legislation

Senate OKs workers' comp claim extension for law enforcement survivors
The state Senate on Monday approved a measure that would give families of deceased firefighters and police officers more time to file for workers' compensation death benefits when the death resulted from cancer, tuberculosis or other diseases. Assemblyman John Pérez (D-Los Angeles) wrote the measure that would give families an extension of 420 weeks from the date of injury but no more than one year from the date of death to file claims.
Los Angeles Times

Calif. Senate acts on websites seeking fees to remove booking photos
The state Senate on Monday approved a measure that would crack down on the growing number of Internet websites that post booking photos of those arrested until a fee is paid to take them down. The legislation, which next goes to the state Assembly for consideration, would outlaw the charging of fees in exchange for removing mug shots from the Internet, taking away the incentive for such sites. State Sen. Jerry Hill (D-San Mateo) said he introduced the bill after learning of websites sending emails to people offering to take down booking photos for a fee even though more than half of the people arrested and booked are not convicted or have charges dropped.
Los Angeles Times

Another Uber, Lyft regulation bill enters regulation fray
Democratic Assemblywoman Susan Bonilla of Concord has introduced legislation that would impose new insurance rules on online transportation companies such as Uber and Lyft. The bill will be heard Monday afternoon in an Assembly utilities committee. The bill is distinct from legislation authored by Assemblyman Adrin Nazarian, a Los Angeles Democrat, Assembly Bill 2068, which would mandate that the so-called transportation networking companies provide full-time commercial liability insurance to their drivers. Nazarian's bill is backed by the taxi industry.
Sacramento Business Journal

City Government

L.A. Council president wants third-party review of Donald Sterling
Los Angeles City Council President Herb Wesson called Monday for a third-party independent review to determine whether Clippers owner Donald Sterling violated any nondiscrimination laws as part of his tenure with the team. In a letter to NBA Commissioner Adam Silver, Wesson warned the league may have a conflict of interest as it investigates racist remarks attributed to Sterling in an audio recording posted Friday by TMZ.
Los Angeles Times