Law Enforcement

How can you trust the judgment of a Police Commission that applies the wrong legal standard?
The Los Angeles Board of Police Commissioners' act of finding one officer in the Ezell Ford shooting case “out of policy” for shooting Ford as he tried to take the officer's gun is a bizarre, ill-considered decision that demonstrates the Commission's complete misunderstanding and erroneous application of case law, and will have terrible public safety consequences. When an officer has to choose whether or not to be proactive at the risk of possibly losing his or her career, we can only assume there would be a negative impact on public safety.
LAPD.com

LAPD Union: Ezell Ford Ruling Places Police Work In Jeopardy
The Los Angeles Police Commission's recent findings on the shooting death of Ezell Ford may place future "proactive" police work in jeopardy, Los Angeles Police Protective League President Craig Lally said. The union, which represents rank-and-file officers, has received calls that officers plan to pull back their work, Lally said. "They're very worried about doing police work. It's safer to them -- this is what they're telling me -- to just answer the radio calls, when a citizen calls, and go from call to call to call."
ABC 7 , NBC Los Angeles , KTLA 5

VP of LA Police Commission Speaks on Ezell Ford Case
The vice president of the Los Angeles Police Commission strongly defended the panel's finding in the Ezell Ford shooting case, saying that a 2013 California Supreme Court decision required them to look at the circumstances that led up to the incident and not just the shooting itself. Paula Madison, a former executive at NBCUniversal, cited the state high court's ruling in the case of Hayes vs. San Diego as the reason why LAPD officer Sharlton Wampler was found to have violated department policy in Ford's death. The "Hayes" decision allowed panels revising use of force issues to take the totality of an officer's conduct into account.
NBC Los Angeles

Some criticize Garcetti's low-key approach to police shootings
Mayor Eric Garcetti met with Ezell Ford's mother at First AME Church. It was a historically resonant setting for a talk about Ford, a mentally ill black man killed by police. Founded in the late 19th century by some of Los Angeles' earliest black residents, the church stands amid streets laid waste in riots that followed the 1992 acquittal of the officers who beat Rodney King.
Los Angeles Times

Boy, 15, Declared Brain-Dead After Being Struck by Hit-and-Run Driver in Echo Park
A 15-year-old boy was declared brain-dead Sunday as a result of injuries he suffered two days earlier, when he and a 13-year-old relative were struck by a hit-and-run driver in Echo Park, authorities said. The family of the older boy, Christian Donis, was at his bedside, said Rosa Soca, a spokeswoman for Los Angeles County-USC Medical Center, who confirmed his condition. Christian and his cousin, Adam Donis, were crossing Alvarado Street at Montrose Street, just south of Sunset Boulevard, about 10 p.m. Friday when the collision occurred, according to the Los Angeles Police Department.
KTLA 5

Police Officer Injured in Long Beach Shootout
A police officer was hospitalized in stable condition following shootout in Long Beach on Sunday night, police said. Two officers were responding to a report of a disturbance when they were shot at, Long Beach Police Department officials said. Officers returned fired and struck the gunman, who was also hospitalized in stable condition.
NBC Los Angeles

'Snowbird Bandit' robs third bank in southern Orange County
The “Snowbird Bandit” has struck again, robbing a third bank in three months in southern Orange County, the FBI said Friday. In his latest robbery, which occurred Thursday, the aging, heavy-set bandit carried a white pouch with the word “medic,” and demanded cash while brandishing a revolver. He wore sunglasses and a baseball cap. The Snowbird Bandit is believed to be white, in his late 50s, is 5 feet, 9 inches tall and weighs 180 to 200 pounds. He is the suspect in the following robberies.
Los Angeles Times

Gunman dead after firing on Dallas police outside headquarters
A crazed gunman armed with an automatic weapon and a shotgun fired on officers outside Dallas Police Headquarters early Saturday morning before being shot by a police sniper following an hours-long standoff. Authorities later confirmed the suspect was dead. Dallas Police Chief David Brown said at a press conference that the gunman-- who self-identified as being James Boulware, though police could not confirm that identity as of Saturday evening-- ranted in a 911 call after the attack about killing cops and came within seconds of doing so in the case of several officers in the line fire.
Fox News

City Government

Mayor Garcetti Signs Measure Increasing Minimum Wage in L.A. to $15 Per Hour by 2020
Minimum wage will increase to $15 per hour by 2020, according to a measure signed into law Saturday by Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti that is expected to impact more than 600,000 Angelenos. “Today is a major victory for our city, our communities and working Angelenos across Los Angeles,” Garcetti said in a statement announcing the signing.
KTLA 5