Good morning! On April 15, 2023, Officer B. Jerry Sandoval was killed in a traffic collision. Please consider donating to the Blue-Ribbon account established for Jerry to support his wife, Christine and twin sons, Logan and Jacob. Click here for more details.

Police agencies are desperate to hire. But they say few want the job.

The San Francisco Police Department is down more than 600 officers, almost 30 percent of its allotment. Phoenix needs about 500 more officers to be fully staffed. The D.C. police force is smaller than it has been in 50 years, despite troubling gun violence and carjackings, as officers leave faster than they can be replaced. Police departments across the country are struggling to fill their ranks, creating what many current and former officials say is a staffing emergency that threatens public safety.

Washington Post

Man Killed In Harbor Gateway Attack

A man was killed when he was attacked by a teenage boy and a female in Harbor Gateway, authorities said Monday. The attack was reported about 10:30 p.m. Sunday at 709 W. 129th St., according to a dispatcher at the Los Angeles Police Department’s Operations Center. Officers found the man unconscious when they arrived and he was pronounced dead at the scene, she said. The suspects were described as a 17-year-old boy and a female and they remained at large, she said. The motive for the attack was not available.

MyNewsLA

Driver In Fatal Hit-and-Run In Tarzana Surrenders To Police

The motorist in a fatal hit-and-run that killed a woman in Tarzana has surrendered to police, authorities said. The crash occurred around 10:10 p.m. Tuesday on Reseda Boulevard near St. Moritz Drive, the Los Angeles Police Department reported. The location is near the Braemar Country Club. Rosa Zareaseisan, 45, of Los Angeles died at the scene, the Los Angeles county coroner’s office reported. A dark-colored vehicle — possible a Range Rover — was going southbound on Reseda when it struck the woman and fled the scene, police said. The vehicle was last seen making a U-turn and continuing north on Reseda. The motorist surrendered to police the following day, according to the LAPD’s Valley Traffic Division. It was not immediately known what time he surrendered to police or what charges he might face. Anyone with information on the case is asked to call Valley Traffic Division Detective Ortega at 818-644-8035 or Officer Reyes at 818-644-8114. Tipsters who choose to remain anonymous can contact Crime Stoppers at 800-222-8477.

Los Angeles Daily News

LAPD Seeks Help In Finding Additional Victims In Sexual Assault Case

A 40-year-old Los Angeles man has been arrested on suspicion of sexual assault, and police are seeking the public’s help in identifying additional victims. Terrance Hawkins was arrested in downtown Los Angeles on April 26 and was booked on multiple counts of forcible rape, intimate partner violence, and stalking, according to an advisory issued by the Los Angeles Police Department. Police described Hawkins as a “serial” domestic violence and sexual assault suspect, saying he has “a long history of briefly dating women, abusing them and filming them during sexual intercourse.” Detectives believe there are additional unidentified victims, and have circulated Hawkins’ photo in an effort to find them and speak with them. The case is being handled by the LAPD’s Operations-Central Bureau and the District Attorney’s Office of Family Violence. Those who have information on additional victims may contact Officer J. Roman at the LAPD’s Operations-Central Bureau Family Justice Center at (213) 709-9017 or 1-877-527-3247 after hours and on weekends.

Los Angeles Times

Motorcyclist Killed After Hit-and-Run Crash In Northridge

The Los Angeles Police Department's Valley Traffic Detectives are investigating a fatal hit-and-run crash that killed a motorcyclist Saturday in Northridge. The accident took place around 5:40 p.m. when a dark colored BMW sedan that was traveling eastbound on Roscoe Boulevard made a left turn at Yolanda Avenue and crashed into a motorcycle. The driver of the BMW failed to stop and left the motorcyclist with fatal injuries. First responders from the LA Fire Department responded and pronounced the motorcyclist dead at the scene. The motorcyclist's identity remains unknown at this time. According to police, a reward of up to $50,000 is available to community members who provide information regarding the hit-and-run accident. This is made possible by the Hit-and-Run Reward Program Trust Fund created by the LA Administrative Code in 2015. Anyone with information about this collision is asked to contact Valley Traffic Division Detective Ortega at (818) 644-8035 or Officer Reyes (818) 644-8114.

NBC 4

Arson Suspect Arrested After String Of Suspicious Fires In Sunland-Tujunga

An arson suspect was arrested by Los Angeles police Monday following a string of car fires in the Sunland-Tujunga area that put residents on high alert. The latest car fire happened Sunday morning at Jardine Avenue and Apperson Street. Firefighters quickly extinguished the flames that engulfed the black sedan, and arson investigators were called to the scene to determine the cause. According to the Los Angeles Fire Department, there have been about 20 vehicle fires in the area dating back to February. Police have not confirmed whether the arrest Monday is connected to their ongoing investigation. Recently, a vehicle was found burned on Plainview Avenue and neighbors fear they're all being intentionally set on fire. "After it was put out, the fire department said, 'Well, it looks suspicious,'" said resident Nonna von Sonn, who told Eyewitness News she lost two of her vehicles. The first incident occurred on Monday, May 1, in which her family's Camaro was burned.

ABC 7

Illegal Marijuana Grow Operation Catches On Fire In Van Nuys

An illegal marijuana grow operation, disguised as a Van Nuys upholstery shop, went up in flames Monday afternoon. According to the Los Angeles Fire Department, the fire started at about 6:28 p.m. inside an upholstery and auto body shop at 14735 Bessemer Street. Crews said the grow operation was located in a backroom. It took 40 firefighters about 23 minutes to extinguish the flames. No one was injured and no adjacent buildings were involved or damaged, according to LAFD. The fire damaged about $50,000 to $100,000 worth of property. While the fire is still under investigation, firefighters initially believed the blaze started from a generator. The scene has been turned over to the Los Angeles Police Department. 

CBS 2

Woman Arrested For Hitting Man With Laptop Bag Outside LA City Council Meeting

A woman arrested for allegedly striking a man with a laptop-loaded bag outside a Los Angeles City Council meeting was released on bail early Saturday. Camile Lewis, 44, was released from a Los Angeles Police Department jail at 2:52 a.m. after posting a bond against $30,000 bail, according to sheriff's inmate records. Lewis was arrested for suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon before Friday's council meeting, LAPD Officer Drake Madison told City News Service. She allegedly became involved in a verbal argument with a man before pushing him and hitting him in the left cheek with a bag that had a laptop in it, causing a laceration, Madison said. Lewis frequently protests at City Council meetings, according to the Los Angeles Times. Other recent examples of unruly behavior at City Hall cited by the Times included anti-police graffiti outside the Council chamber and disruptions of activities involving Council Member Kevin de León. An audio tape was released in October secretly recorded during a conversation between de León others in which racist and derogatory remarks were made, but he refused to resign, leading to protests.

Westside Current

Man Found Guilty Of Vehicular Homicide In Crash That Killed Georgia Officer

A driver who was involved in a 2020 crash that killed a Smyrna police officer was found guilty this month of vehicular homicide, among other charges, officials said. A jury found Robert Lorenzo Cox, 38, guilty on four of his five indicted charges, Cobb County District Attorney Flynn D. Broady said in a statement Thursday. Cox is scheduled to be sentenced in a hearing next month. The crash, which took place April 20, 2020, fatally injured Officer Christopher Ewing, who was working traffic enforcement the night of the incident. According to Broady, Ewing noticed Cox’s Chevrolet Tahoe speeding on South Cobb Drive and attempted to make a traffic stop. Before Ewing caught up to the Tahoe, Cox tried to make a left-hand turn in front of the police car, Broady said. Ewing attempted to avoid the SUV, but the two vehicles collided and sent the patrol car into the parking lot of a nearby gas station. Ewing was trapped inside until emergency medical personnel were able to extract him. The officer died from his injuries.

Atlanta Journal Constitution

Watch: Florida Law Enforcement Officials Condemn Violence Against Police Officers

Throughout the past few months, there has been an uptick in violence against officers in the Jacksonville area. Jacksonville Sheriff T.K. Waters, neighboring sheriffs Robert Hardwick, Scotty Rhoden and Bill Leeper, along with Mayor Lenny Curry and Mayor-Elect Donna Deegan, State Attorney Melissa Nelson, and other local leaders and law enforcement officials, took time to address the ongoing violence. "Since I took office in November 2022 there has been three officers that have been shot in our community, one was brutally beaten, and one in October just before I took office," Waters said. “I think it is important for people to understand that it’s not as easy as you think it is. We have officers out here that are doing things and putting their lives in jeopardy, and we all signed up for it. I’m never going to say we didn’t,” Waters continued. “We recognize the dangers that are involved, but you don’t go in expecting someone to try to beat you to death. You don’t go expecting someone to take a shot at you. So my job is to raise awareness, to talk to our media, to talk to our community and say, ‘Let’s cut it out and let’s move forward.’ “When State Attorney Nelson took the podium, she denounced the violence against officers, acknowledging that it might not make officers safer but educating the public about the alarming trend is important. 

PoliceOne

LA County’s COVID Numbers Showing Slow Decline

Los Angeles County’s coronavirus numbers continue to gradually decline, according to the latest weekly update provided by the county’s health department. Officials reported 2,157 new cases of COVID-19 and 35 additional deaths associated with the virus for the week ending May 22, although some of the deaths occurred earlier. Those numbers bring the county’s cumulative totals to 3,745,379 cases and 36,338 fatalities since the pandemic began, according to the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health. The actual number of cases in the county is believed to be much higher due to people who don’t report the results of at-home tests or don’t test at all. A majority of people who die with COVID-19 are elderly or have an underlying health condition such as diabetes, heart disease or hypertension, health officials have said. The seven-day average test positivity rate was 3.95%, up from about 3% a month ago.

MyNewsLA

California Health Officials Confront Threat Of ‘Disastrous’ New Street Drug

When San Francisco’s medical examiner announced in February that four people who had recently died of overdoses had the animal sedative xylazine in their systems, public health workers across the state sprang into action. Drug dealers on the East Coast have in recent years begun mixing xylazine, which can have devastating effects on people, with the opioid fentanyl, causing a surge in emergency room visits in Philadelphia and other cities. But there had not been much evidence of it in California. Now state and local officials are ramping up efforts to combat xylazine, commonly called tranq, by monitoring its spread, distributing test strips, and pushing to “schedule” it, meaning classify it as a controlled substance. Still, some worry it will be hard to prevent the pernicious drug — which has also begun appearing in Los Angeles, Santa Clara, and San Joaquin counties — from worsening the state’s overdose epidemic.

San Francisco Chronicle

LA City Council Honors Mexican Regional Band Grupo Firme

The Los Angeles City Council honored Grupo Firme, a Latin Grammy Award-winning Regional Mexican band on Friday, just one day ahead of the group's sold-out performance at SoFi Stadium. Councilman John Lee led the presentation and welcomed the famous banda group into the Council Chamber. Amid loud and festive music, members of the public and city staff gathered to get close to the stars as Grupo Firme took their place next to the councilman. “Grupo Firme is a banda that has been breaking barriers by reaching success that is comparable by few,” Lee said. “They've crossed over genres and fan bases because they don't go about things following a very linear path.” "They carve out their way forward, and their success has explained the name. Grupo Firme, beyond Mexico, is making huge waves in the United States and beyond to the point where they causally enjoy over 16 million monthly listeners on Spotify.'' Lee noted the music group combines traditional music with pop and urban elements. Grupo Firme is the third musical Mexican act to have a song in the Billboard Hot 100, and the first banda to play Coachella.

NBC 4

About the LAPPL: Formed in 1923, the Los Angeles Police Protective League (LAPPL) represents more than 9,200 dedicated and professional sworn members of the Los Angeles Police Department. The LAPPL serves to advance the interests of LAPD officers through legislative and legal advocacy, political action and education.