Good Morning. Retired LAPD Officer Monika Rehder Reinhardt has been battling ovarian cancer since May of 2017 and is in need of medical treatments that cause much financial strain. Click here to donate to Officer Reinhardt’s campaign. Demand a Plan to Keep L.A. Safe Murders and shootings are up dramatically in L.A., yet our city leaders do not have a plan to keep us safe. Rather, they're looking to cut up to 1,000 police officers. Click below to tell our city leaders to create a plan to end the violence now. Take Action Now Law Enforcement News Police: Man Accused Of Shooting Pennsylvania Cop While Handcuffed Is Arrested In West Virginia The man accused of shooting a McKeesport police officer was nabbed Tuesday evening by U.S. Marshals, bringing a nine-day manhunt to an end at a West Virginia apartment complex. Koby Lee Francis, 22, of McKeesport was found at a Clarksburg apartment and arrested shortly after 6 p.m. in connection to the Dec. 20 shooting of Officer Geriasimo Athans, 32, outside the McKeesport police station. Francis will remain at the North Central Regional Jail and Correctional Facility in Doddridge County until his extradition to Pennsylvania, Allegheny County Police Lt. Venerando Costa said. Francis faces charges of aggravated assault, criminal attempt homicide, person not to possess a firearm, flight to avoid apprehension trial or punishment and escape. Authorities had offered up to $15,000 in reward money for help leading to the apprehension of Francis, who was wearing handcuffs when he escaped. According to court documents, Athans and another McKeesport officer took Francis into custody at about 4 p.m. Dec. 20 when Francis was accused of violating a protection from abuse order served little more than an hour earlier. The Tribune-Review, Greensburg Prosecutors’ Association Plans To Fight DA Gascon’s New Directives A union representing Los Angeles County prosecutors plans to ask a judge on Wednesday, Dec. 30, to issue a temporary restraining order barring newly seated District Attorney George Gascon from carrying out directives to eliminate three-strikes allegations and some sentencing enhancements. An attorney for the Association of Deputy District Attorneys for Los Angeles County wrote in a letter delivered to Gascon and other county officials that portions of the district attorney’s new directives require prosecutors to “violate the law, violate their oaths, … and violate their ethical duties as officers of the court,” according to NBC4. The revised policy came after extensive discussions with crime victims, their advocates, members of the community and career prosecutors in his office, the county’s top prosecutor said. The Los Angeles Police Protective League issued a blistering statement in response, calling Gascon a mere “politician” rather than an experienced prosecutor. “George Gascon is providing a MasterClass on the dangers of a politician running the D.A.’s office instead of an experienced prosecutor,” the statement read. “It took a national outcry for him to understand that child rapists, human traffickers and perpetrators of violent hate crimes should spend some more time behind bars. Yet he’s still willing to go easy on gang members who terrorize our neighborhoods or criminals that shoot cops in the back of the head. He still doesn’t get that crime victims need an authentic voice for justice, not a politician that says one thing and does another — we have enough of those.” Los Angeles Daily News Gascón adviser accused of offering 'sweetheart' deal to gang murder suspect behind back of prosecutor A special adviser to L.A. District Attorney George Gascón is being accused of going behind the backs of the prosecutor and victim family in a gang murder case to offer a secret "sweetheart" plea deal to the defendant in the case via his public defender, who serves of Gascón’s public policy committee. Dominguez, an alleged gang member, was charged with murder in the alleged gang retaliation shooting of 26-year-old Fernando Rojo in South Los Angeles in 2016. When Judge Arnold was told the deal is invalid…we’re told he said quote "It’s a good thing…because there’s no way I could look at myself in the mirror with a plea bargain of seven years on this case." Fox 11 2 People Shot, Wounded While Sitting In Car In Westlake A man and woman were shot and wounded while sitting in a car in the Westlake District early Wednesday morning. The shooting was reported at 1:13 a.m. at the intersection of Wilshire Boulevard and Little Street, according to Los Angeles police. When the two victims tried to drive away after the gunshots erupted, they crashed into a parked car, police said. They were both rushed to local hospitals and were last reported to be stable, police said. A motive for the shooting was not confirmed. It’s unclear if it was gang-related. The numbers of suspects being sought and the circumstances leading up to the gunfire were also not known. CBS 2 Crime In L.A. Looked Far Different During Pandemic, LAPD Stats Show When Los Angeles went silent in March 2020 amid citywide lockdown orders, so too did reports of many types of crimes. Among the most notable dips, law enforcement officials say, were reports of child abuse and domestic violence. That didn’t mean there were fewer abuse victims. In fact, advocates say, the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic trapping people in their homes meant more victims were sequestered with their abusers for longer periods of time: Researchers with the National Domestic Violence Hotline said calls decreased 6% that month compared to the same time the year before. Abuse reports to LAPD reflected an even steeper decline, falling by more than a third that month. But while reporting to services like hotlines returned to normal in April, and actually surged above the average, crime reports still weren’t making it to police. For all of 2020, reports of child and spousal abuse are down more than 10.5% in L.A. And that’s a sign public services cut off during the pandemic aren’t reaching victims who still need support. “We know that most crime is underreported,” said LAPD Chief Michel Moore. “Sexual assaults and family violence fall into that category.” Los Angeles Daily News Drivers At Deadly Street Races, Takeovers Unfazed By COVID-19 Shutdowns Drivers taking over intersections or racing high-revving, tricked-out cars aren’t fazed by pandemic shutdown orders. If anything, wide-open roads are an enticement. Sideshows, as they’re called, are an ongoing hazard throughout Southern California. Some police officers have even noticed an uptick in street takeovers since the coronavirus pandemic began. “Part of it is just what’s going on with the times, with COVID and lockdown,” said Los Angeles Police Sgt. Mark Guardado, supervisor of the San Fernando Valley bureau’s street racing task force. “They’re antsy and bored. I think that has a lot to do with it. Obviously, the weekends are busier, but with no one working and with school closed, they have the time.” In the Valley, street takeovers happen about six to eight times a month, police say, and a team responds to reports of someone driving recklessly, whether it’s spinning doughnuts at intersections or sliding sideways through lanes with their tires peeling, nearly every day. Those scenes are playing out across Southern California. “It’s everywhere,” California Highway Patrol Sgt. Joe Zagorski said. “If you want to know where the hotspots are, check Google Earth and look for the intersections covered with burnout marks.” Los Angeles Daily News Police Respond As Maskless Protesters Force Their Way Into Erewhon Market In Fairfax Los Angeles police responded after a mass of maskless demonstrators forced their way into an Erewhon Market in the Fairfax district Tuesday afternoon in protest of coronavirus restrictions. Officers responded to the store on Beverly Boulevard around 3:30 p.m., according to the L.A. Police Department’s Wilshire Division. Video captured by bystander Ira Brian Miller shows staff trying to keep the maskless people out amid pushing and shoving. “They were pushing their way in,” Miller told the Los Angeles Times. “They were trying to push the workers out of the way for them to enter the store.” About 50 people protested safety guidelines by either taking off their masks inside the store or entering without a face covering, LAPD said. Sky5 was above the grocery store around 4:40 p.m., as several maskless people remained scattered outside the store. One man was seen holding a sign that read “#No vaccine against tyranny.” Organizers say they showed up because they feel coronavirus restrictions have gotten out of hand. KTLA 5 San Fernando Valley Chase Suspect Eludes Arrest Two people in a stolen SUV led police on a chase Tuesday evening in the West San Fernando Valley, with one eluding arrest. Police began chasing the Toyota 4Runner about 7 p.m. It was on Victory Boulevard about 15 minutes later when it slowed near Canby Avenue when one person got out. He was apprehended by police, said Officer Mike Lopez of the Los Angeles Police Department. The other person in the vehicle continued driving, getting onto the Ventura (101) Freeway before exiting on De Soto Avenue. At least four patrol vehicles chased the SUV as the driver eventually pulled off into bus lanes from Vanowen Street. He then got out of the vehicle and fled on foot, entering a tunnel near the Los Angeles River. Lopez said the vehicle was reported stolen. Details on the events that led up to the chase were not immediately available. Authorities had not apprehended the man as of 8:45 p.m., Lopez said. MyNewsLA.com Woman Identified In Fatal Compton Shooting Deputies identified a woman who died this month from injuries in a November shooting. Alesha Palmer, 40, was shot November 10 in a home in the 600 block of West School Street, near North Matthisen Avenue, said Lt. Barry Hall of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. Palmer was taken to a hospital with a gunshot wound to her back. She died on December 14, Hall said. The shooter has not been identified by authorities, he said. Anyone with information on the shooting can call the Sheriff’s Homicide Bureau at 323-890-5500 or submit a tip anonymously at 800-222-8477. CBS 2 Detectives Seek 2 Men Who Shot At Couple Inside Carson Home In Caught-On-Video Incident Detectives are looking for two men who shot at a couple in their Carson home last week. The caught-on-video incident occurred about 6 p.m. Dec. 21 when one of the men approached the home in the 1800 block of Turmont Street, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. The couple’s doorbell surveillance camera captured the incident, and officials shared it with the public Tuesday in hopes of finding the gunmen. The Ring footage shows one of the men knocking at the door while the other peered toward the doorway. When a woman answered, the men “spontaneously opened fire at her, and her husband, who was standing nearby,” officials said in a news release. The men are then seen running away, while a voice is heard saying, “You got the wrong house!” Detective Glenn Greathouse said five shots were fired that night, but neither of the victims were struck by gunfire. Officials believe this is an isolated incident, but the motive is unknown. The man seen clearly in the video is described as being about 6 feet tall. He was wearing a blue hoodie with a red left sleeve and a gray right sleeve, light-colored sweatpants and a blue surgical mask. KTLA 5 Killings Spike In NYC Amid Pandemic, Unrest Heralded as the safest big city in America in recent years, New York City is closing out its bloodiest year in nearly a decade, grappling with a surge in homicides and a pandemic authorities say has helped fuel violence. The city had recorded 447 killings as of Tuesday, a 41% increase over last year and the largest number since 2011. The number of people shot has more than doubled last year’s total, nearing a 14-year high. Among the victims: a 1-year-old boy sitting in his stroller at a summer cookout; a 53-year-old teacher walking his dog; and a 43-year-old mother looking out the window of her child’s third-floor bedroom. All three were killed by stray bullets. The carnage, however startling, pales in comparison to the bullet-riddled years of the early 1990s. Still, 2020 marked the third consecutive year of rising homicides after New York City recorded a modern-era low of 292 killings in 2017. Police leaders are eagerly anticipating the turn of the calendar, pointing to unprecedented challenges officers faced as COVID-19 brought the city to its knees. Associated Press Public Safety News LA County Reports 12,979 New COVID-19 Cases, 227 Deaths; 7,181 Hospitalizations The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health Tuesday reported 12,979 newly confirmed coronavirus cases and 227 deaths, bringing countywide totals to 746,089 cases and 9,782 deaths. Health officials said the high number of new deaths was due in part to the backlog associated with a Spectrum outage and holiday reporting delays. Additional backlogged reports are expected over the next few days. Of the new deaths reported, 89 people who died were over the age of 80, 70 people were between the ages of 65 and 79, 40 people were between the ages of 50 and 64 and 18 people were between the ages of 30 and 49. Eighty-five of those who died had underlying health conditions. Health officials also reported a new daily record in hospitalizations, with 7,181 COVID-19 patients admitted into local hospitals — an increase of 267 from Monday and a nearly 1,000% increase from two months ago. Of those currently hospitalized, 20% are being treated in intensive care units. CBS 2 California Hits New 1-Day COVID-19 Death Record As Hospitals Prepare To Ration Care California broke the single-day record for COVID-19 deaths yet again Tuesday, logging 442 fatalities in a Times county-by-county tally of local health jurisdictions — a number equivalent to someone dying of the disease every three minutes. More than half of those deaths — 242 — were of Los Angeles County residents, according to The Times’ survey. That’s a record high in a single day for the nation’s most populous county, a count boosted in part by a backlog of reports from the Christmas weekend. At that rate, cumulative COVID-19 deaths will likely exceed 25,000 in California on Wednesday and 10,000 in L.A. County by New Year’s Day. As of Tuesday night, California had a cumulative 24,987 deaths and L.A. County, 9,806. Over the past week, the state averaged 240 deaths a day, and L.A. County, 111. The climbing death toll has changed daily life throughout Los Angeles. In East L.A., the Continental Funeral Home has seen its typical caseload more than quadruple, with 80% of its services honoring people who died from COVID-19. KTLA 5 Data Shows California’s Coronavirus Surge Is Worst In Nation — By A Big Margin California’s coronavirus case rate now far outpaces every other state in the nation, and it is one of just a handful of states where cases per day are still increasing. As of Dec. 28, California had 99.7 cases per 100,000 people over the past seven days, according to data compiled on the New York Times coronavirus tracker — far exceeding all other states including No. 2 Arizona and No. 3 Tennessee, with 84.9 and 78.8, respectively. By contrast, California was recording just about 8 cases per 100,000 people at the beginning of October. While the nation is still suffering the effects of the latest pandemic surge, with at least 1,899 deaths and 189,044 new cases recorded Dec. 28, average cases per day have decreased nationwide by about 13% from two weeks earlier. But California is among the half-dozen states where past-week average cases per day have increased — and its rate of 24% is by far the highest. Texas and Maine grew by 18%, Georgia by 12%, South Carolina by 11% and New York by 10%. San Francisco Chronicle ‌ ‌ ‌ Visit our website LA Police Protective League | 1308 West Eighth Street, Los Angeles, CA 90017 Unsubscribe [email protected] Update Profile | About our service provider Sent by [email protected] powered by Try email marketing for free today!