Man Killed, Toddler Injured After Shooting Outside Granada Hills Recreation Center

Police are continuing to investigate the circumstances surrounding a late-night shooting on Wednesday that killed a man in his 30s and wounded a 2-year toddler at the Granada Hills Recreation Center. Los Angeles Police Department officers responded around 11:20 p.m. to the recreation center at Petit Avenue and Chatsworth Street regarding a shots fired call. Upon their arrival officers found the man, who was pronounced dead at the scene. The young boy is in stable condition. Police said he was on the recreation center's playground with his mother when he was shot. Police think the shooting might be gang-related, but the LAPD could not immediately confirm that. 

CBS 2

Driver Of Stolen Truck Surrenders After Slow Pursuit In Canoga Park

The driver of a stolen truck with a concrete pump surrendered in Canoga Park after leading police on a nearly four-hour pursuit across the San Fernando Valley on Wednesday. The chase began after officers were sent to DeSoto Avenue and Lassen Street about 7:20 a.m. on a report of a hit-and-run crash involving the truck, which was pulling a trailer, according to the Los Angeles Police Department. The vehicle belongs to the Atomic Concrete Company. Officers set up several spike strips, but the driver continued the pursuit at slow speeds through Northridge, Canoga Park and Woodland Hills areas. News Chopper 4 was over an intersection in Canoga Park when the driver stopped and surrendered. No injuries were reported.

NBC 4

Police Arrest Driver Who Stole 3 Vehicles And Led Dangerous High-Speed Chase In Ventura And LA County

Police arrested a man suspected of stealing at least three vehicles and leading a high-speed chase in Ventura and Los Angeles counties Wednesday. The driver is suspected of stealing a vehicle in Ventura County, then started a pursuit that led to a crash that injured two officers in Toluca Lake. News Chopper 4 showed images of the moment when the driver carjacked two vehicles at two different gas stations. It was unclear exactly when and where the series of auto thefts began, but around 11 a.m., a pair of Los Angeles Police Department officers who were pursuing the suspect were injured in a traffic crash in the 10500 block of Riverside Drive, according to the LAPD. The officers were both taken to a hospital in unknown condition, while the suspect fled the scene. Early Wednesday afternoon, the suspect was spotted driving a white minivan through the San Fernando Valley, traveling at high speeds on the 118 Freeway, at times narrowly avoiding collisions with other vehicles. An officer eventually managed to successfully deploy a spike strip that disabled at least one tire on the van.

NBC 4

Search Underway For Man Linked To Multiple Assaults In Los Angeles Area 

Authorities are searching for a man who is considered “a threat to the public” after he was linked to several separate assaults in Los Angeles. According to the LASD, 21-year-old Sergio Andrew Garcia is wanted in connection with six assaults across the L.A. area, including a 67-year-old woman who was brutally beaten in her garden in East Los Angeles on Saturday. The woman, identified as Rosalina Martinez, was working in her yard at 6:15 a.m. Saturday when Garcia punched her in the face several times and pulled down her pants and underwear. In an interview with KTLA, Martinez said that she believes Garcia tried to rape her. The assault spree Garcia is connected with began on July 10, when he sexually assaulted a victim and attempted to remove her clothing as she was walking under the 110 Freeway near Olympic Boulevard and L.A. Live Way, police said. The following morning, Garcia approached another female victim from behind, slapped her back and fled the area near Chick Hearn Court and Georgia Street in South Park, police said. He is alleged to have committed several more assaults on Saturday. At 9:20 a.m. Garcia knocked a female victim unconscious and robbed her as she walked home from church in the 1300 block of South Alvarado Street in Pico Union, officials said.

KTLA 5

Man Reported Missing From South LA Area

Authorities sought the public’s help Wednesday to find a man who went missing from the South Los Angeles area. Dominick Magana, 27, was last seen at about 4 p.m. Thursday in the 3100 block of South Hoover Street, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. Magana is Hispanic, 5-feet-9 inches tall, weighs 180 pounds, and has brown eyes, long black hair and a beard. He may have a foot injury. He was last seen wearing a black T-shirt, tan pants, a black baseball cap and red shoes. “Mr. Magana (was) diagnosed with depression and has a possible destination of (a) homeless encampment near Exposition Park,” a sheriff’s statement said. “Dominick’s family is concerned for his well-being and are asking for the public’s help.” Anyone with information on his whereabouts was urged to call the sheriff’s Missing Persons Unit at 323-890-5500, or Crime Stoppers at 800-222-TIPS. Tipsters may also use the website lacrimestoppers.org.

MyNewsLA

Tupac Shakur Killing: Vegas-Area Search Linked To Man Who Claims He Was In Car With Killer

A home in a Las Vegas suburb searched Monday night by Las Vegas police in connection with the unsolved slaying of Tupac Shakur is tied to a man who previously said publicly he was in the car with the shooter, sources have told The Times. In a renewed investigation into the 1996 shooting death of the hip-hop legend, Las Vegas detectives obtained a search warrant from a judge, and along with a SWAT team, pulled up in a procession of law enforcement vehicles to the Henderson, Nev., home. Using a bullhorn, a supervisor with the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department ordered the residents to come out with their hands up — and empty — according to security camera footage from a neighboring home. Investigators then entered the house, where they sought computers, files and other items potentially related to Shakur’s killing, according to a source familiar with the investigation who was not authorized to comment on it publicly. A statement issued Tuesday by Las Vegas police is the first time in years that any law enforcement agency has publicly revealed it is actively pursuing inquiries in the Sept. 7, 1996, shooting.

Los Angeles Times

2 Officers Remain In Critical Condition After Man Launched ‘Murderous Barrage Of Fire' On Fargo LEOs

A man armed with 1,800 rounds of ammunition, a grenade and other explosives in his car unleashed a "murderous barrage of fire” as he ambushed officers who were investigating a routine crash, killing one and wounding two before a fourth stopped him and thwarted what authorities described as plans for further mayhem, officials said Wednesday. Mohamad Barakat, 37, shot Officers Jake Wallin, Andrew Dotas and Tyler Hawes from inside his car on Friday, from about 15 to 20 feet away, before they could even reach for their guns, North Dakota Attorney General Drew Wrigley said at a news conference. Wallin was killed while Dotas and Hawes remain hospitalized in critical condition. Wrigley said Barakat also shot and injured a bystander, who was trying to run away when she was hit twice. But Officer Zach Robinson, who just happened to be nearby, “disabled” Barakat's .223 -caliber rifle with a difficult shot from his own 9 mm handgun from about 75 feet (22.86 meters) away. Wrigley said Barakat — who was on the ground — then picked up a handgun and waved it around. As Robinson moved closer, he ordered Barakat to drop the gun 16 times, then killed him in a confrontation that lasted about two minutes, Wrigley said.

Associated Press

FBI Offers $50K Reward For Fugitive In 2011 Shooting That Seriously Wounded Oregon Police Officer

The FBI is offering a $50,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of the man who slipped an extensive manhunt after being sought in the shooting and serious wounding of a Lincoln City police officer during a traffic stop 12 years ago. The FBI also is adding investigators to find David Anthony Durham, 56, accused of attempted aggravated murder in the 2011 shooting of Officer Steven Dodds. Durham is suspected of shooting Dodds after the officer stopped him for speeding in his 1984 Dodge Ram at the south end of Lincoln City before leading police officers on a chase on U.S. Route 101 to Waldport. Durham shot at pursuing officers much of the way until his SUV was disabled by spike strips and he ran away from the scene, authorities said at the time. Officers never found another trace of Durham, despite a massive search in the days and weeks that followed. Police set up roadblocks and searched cars and SWAT teams went through more than 100 houses. For weeks, they searched with dogs, on horseback and by boat, scouring beaches, dunes and forest along the coast where he disappeared.

PoliceOne

34-Year-Old Chatsworth Man Drowns In Pool After Dinner With Visiting Family Members

A 34-year-old man is dead after an apparent drowning in Chatsworth. Police say it happened just before midnight on Tuesday at a home near Steven Place and Hiawatha Street. Authorities say family members were visiting from out of town and they had all gone out to dinner the same night. After they got back, the man got in the pool alone. Family members later found him in the pool and called 911. The cause of the drowning is under investigation and the man's identity has not yet been released.

ABC 7

Los Angeles Man Collapses, Dies At Death Valley

A 71-year-old man from Los Angeles collapsed and died Tuesday at a trailhead in Death Valley National Park as temperatures reached 121 degrees, authorities announced. Other visitors to the park noticed the man outside the restroom of the popular Golden Canyon hiking trail and called 911 at around 3:40 p.m., according to a news release from park officials. Park rangers arrived just seven minutes later, performed CPR and used an automated external defibrillator (AED), but were unable to save the unidentified 71-year-old. Rangers believe the man, who was wearing a sunhat and hiking clothes, and was also carrying a backpack, had likely been hiking the Golden Canyon trail. “The Inyo County Coroner’s Office has not yet determined the man’s cause of death. However, park rangers suspect heat was a factor,” the release noted. “The official temperature at nearby Furnace Creek was 121°F around the time of his death. Actual temperatures inside Golden Canyon were likely much higher, due to canyon walls radiating the sun’s heat.” 

KTLA 5

Attic Fire In One-Story House In Hollywood Knocked Down In 19 Minutes

An attic fire in a one-store house in Hollywood that was being used as a business was extinguished in 19 minutes by 32 firefighters Wednesday evening with no injuries reported. Firefighters responded to the fire in the 1400 block of North Las Palmas Avenue, near Sunset Boulevard, shortly after 8:55 p.m., according to Margaret Stewart of the Los Angeles Fire Department. A “well-developed” attic fire prevented firefighters from extending down into the structure, prompting them to instead conduct salvage operations to protect the belongings inside the structure, Stewart said. The cause of the fire is under investigation.

MyNewsLA

LA County Beachgoers Warned To Avoid Water Contact Due To High Bacteria Levels

The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health has issued warnings cautioning residents and visitors to avoid swimming, surfing and playing in ocean waters due to high bacteria counts. This includes Topanga Canyon beach in Malibu, Malibu Lagoon at Surfrider Beach, Mother's Beach in Marina Del Rey, and Santa Monica Pier. The warnings were issued due to bacterial levels exceeding health standards when last tested. Recorded information on beach conditions is available 24-hours a day on the County's beach closure hotline: (800) 525-5662. The warning comes as an oppressive heat wave continues to blanket Southern California, with even hotter conditions returning by later in the week. National Weather Service forecasters expect "a little better warming on Thursday, especially in the valleys, where the weaker onshore push from the south will reduce the effects of the afternoon sea breeze." Another potentially dangerous heat wave is expected to arrive in the region by the end of the week, sending temperatures into triple digits again through the weekend.

ABC 7

Did You Get COVID But Never Feel Sick? New Study Hints At Why

As the coronavirus emerged, so did a mystery: Why did some who got infected never develop symptoms? One likely explanation is it may be a person’s lucky genes. A new study published Wednesday in the scientific journal Nature suggests people with a specific version of a gene were far more likely to experience an asymptomatic infection than those without. The relevant set of genes is known as the human leukocyte antigen, or HLA. “This is the first time where, in a really rigorous and robust way, anybody has shown that there is a clear, definitive genetic underpinning to asymptomatic disease [from the coronavirus] — not all asymptomatic disease, but some subset of people who stay asymptomatic,” said UC San Francisco neurology professor Jill Hollenbach, a co-author of the study. Hollenbach and other researchers recruited some 30,000 people for the study — all of whom already had genetic data on file because they had registered as potential bone marrow donors with the National Marrow Donor Program. Scientists asked those individuals to join the COVID-19 Citizen Science study, organized by researchers at UC San Francisco, and to use a smartphone app to track their coronavirus test results and any symptoms.

Los Angeles Times

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.