Good Morning. The COVID-19 pandemic has created a shortage of a safe and adequate blood supply. Please join us for the LAPPL Community Blood Drive on February 14, 2021, from 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM. Click here to schedule a COVID safe appointment to donate blood with the American Red Cross and help us save lives. Law Enforcement News Capitol Flags To Half-Staff To Honor LAPD Officers Who Died Of COVID-19 Flags at the state capitol will be flown at half-staff to honor two Los Angeles Police Department officers who died last week of COVID-19, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced Thursday. Officer Philip Sudario died Jan. 25 and Sgt. Patricia Guillen died Jan. 28. They were the sixth and seventh department employees to die of complications from COVID-19. “Jennifer and I were devastated to learn two more dedicated public servants had their lives cut short by this virus” Newsom said. “Their deaths are a painful reminder of the risk first responders face daily. “We send our heartfelt condolences to the family, friends and colleagues of Officer Sudario and Sergeant Guillen as they cope with these tragic losses.” A 22-year veteran of LAPD, Guillen, 59, was assigned to the 77th Community Police Station in South Los Angeles. Sudario, 53, a 25-year veteran officer, was assigned to the Southeast Community Police Station in South Los Angeles. The day after Guillen’s death, Security Officer Dexter De Los Santos died after working more than eight years in that position within the Security Services Division, LAPD said. MyNewsLA.com Sherman Oaks Man, 39, Booked For Murder In Hesby Street Shooting A man was shot and killed in Sherman Oaks before sunrise Thursday, and the 39-year-old alleged gunman was arrested and booked for murder. The shooting was reported about 5:30 a.m. Thursday on the 12900 block of Hesby Street, near Magnolia Boulevard, according to the LAPD. Officers who arrived at the scene found a man in his 50s suffering gunshot wounds lying in the street outside a vehicle that had crashed into a tree, police said. He died at the scene. Police said the suspect, identified as Ethan Grant of Sherman Oaks, told them “the decedent had brandished a gun at him, which caused him to shoot the decedent.” Surveillance footage from the area showed the victim driving “at a very slow speed” before being approached by Grant. “[T]hen a shooting occurred that was not captured on video,” LAPD said. Investigators recovered two handguns from the scene. Grant was arrested and booked on suspicion of murder, police said. According to Fox11, a man described as the son of a homeowner told police he shot “a possible burglary suspect or auto thief” who was armed with a gun. The department urged anyone with information on the incident to call Detective Steve Castro at 818-374-1925. Los Angeles Daily News 450 People Arrested, 39 Victims Rescued During Statewide Anti-Human Trafficking Operation: L.A. Officials Authorities made hundreds of arrests and rescued dozens of adult and juvenile victims during an annual statewide operation to combat human trafficking, Los Angeles law enforcement agencies announced Thursday. More than 100 federal, state and local agencies, and task forces participated in “Operation Reclaim and Rebuild” across California, between Jan. 26 and Feb. 1, according to the Los Angeles Police Department. The statewide effort resulted in 450 people arrested, 51 of which were for an alleged felony crime. During the weeklong operation, 39 victims were rescued, including 13 children. Those figures were announced during a joint news conference late Thursday morning involving LAPD, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department and the L.A. County District Attorney’s Office, among others. Officials emphasized that the number of arrests and rescues during the operation represent just a fraction of the total made during the year. “There are still operations that take place 365 days out of the year as well,” L.A. sheriff’s Capt. Michael Hannemann said. The captain recounted several cases from the most recent operation. Jan. 26, LAPD vice officers rescued three young female individuals after seeing them “engaging in possible commercial sex activity” near 76th and Figueroa streets, in the Vermont Knolls neighborhood of South Los Angeles, the captain said. A vehicle approached them and the three drove away. A traffic stop was conducted on the vehicle and officers detained three males and the three females, two of whom were underage, according to Hannemann. Investigators determined that one of the men had been trafficking the females, leading to his arrest. KTLA 5 Man Sought After Being Caught On Video Sucker Punching Victim In Venice A man who was caught on video last month sucker punching another man in Venice is being sought by police. The incident occurred about 5 p.m. Jan. 16 at the intersection of Washington Boulevard and Speedway Boulevard, according to a LAPD news release. The two men were involved in an argument when the assailant punched the victim in the jaw, causing the victim to lose consciousness and fall backwards. The assailant is seen in the video talking to the victim after the victim fell to the ground. Several people appear to have witnessed the attack, including the driver of a car that stopped next to the assailant as the victim fell back, the video shows. The victim was taken to a hospital where he was treated for serious injuries he sustained during the incident. Police called the attack “brutal.” The assailant is described as being white or Hispanic, is about 25 to 30 years old, with black hair and a black beard, police said. He is about 5 feet, 7 inches tall and weighs about 180 pounds. He was wearing a white Kenley Jansen Dodgers jersey with the number 74, dark pants and white shoes and was carrying a skateboard, police said. KTLA 5 Police Pursuit That Started In LA Riverbed Ends After A Three-Hour Barricade A driver leading a chase in the San Fernando Valley, initially in a riverbed wash, then on freeways, got stuck on the side of a sloped road and barricaded himself for hours Thursday evening. After initially being spotted in a wash chased by four police cars with lights flashing, the driver exited and got on the 101 Freeway in the Woodland Hills area. The driver exited southbound lanes at Glade and Clarendon. The driver then got stuck on the side of Ventura Boulevard near a vacant parking lot of a bowling alley. Officers were in a standoff with the driver around 5:30 p.m. with both sides of the boulevard blocked near Woodlake and Royer avenues. An LAPD SWAT team was called to the scene, and eventually got the driver to exit the car by deploying a gas inside the vehicle, about 8:30 p.m. The person then ran out and was apprehended by authorities, who used a stun gun and police dogs on him, bringing the three-hour barricade to an end. The driver was said to be wanted for assault with a deadly weapon. NBC 4 Man Apologizes, Returns Handcuffs He Took From LAPD More Than 60 Years Ago Grandparents can pass along powerful life lessons to the next generation. One man is trying to do just that by teaching his grandchildren that it's never too late to make amends. On Thursday, the Los Angeles Police Department posted on social media that its West Valley Station received an interesting package: a pair of handcuffs, $100 and a heartfelt letter of apology. The person who sent it? A 74-year-old grandfather from Vista in San Diego County. More than 60 years ago when the man was a teen, he was at a local Bob's Big Boy restaurant when he witnessed a scuffle involving an LAPD officer. He ended up with the officer's handcuffs after they flew off and slid toward him. He picked them up, took them home and held on to them for all this time. "I have felt a little guilty each time I saw the hand cuffs over the years, but did nothing about it," the man wrote in the letter. Recently, his grandsons - ages 6 and 9 - visited him and were playing with plastic handcuffs. That's when the grandfather showed him the handcuffs he had and shared the story of how he got them. "They were aghast and asked me why I stole the handcuffs from a policeman. I, of course, had no good explanation and I told them it was the wrong thing to do and I wasn't proud of it and then I danced around the subject," the letter says. Feeling guilty, he sent back the handcuffs to the LAPD, along with the donation and the apology that LAPD later posted on social media. "The note is addressed to you, but is partly intended for my grandsons," the grandfather wrote. The letter ends with one more apology: "I am sincerely sorry." ABC 7 Authorities Arrest Kidnapping Suspect After Chase Across South LA A kidnapping suspect is in custody after leading authorities on a chase across South Los Angeles neighborhoods. The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department responded to a call of a domestic violence kidnapping call in an unincorporated South LA neighborhood around 8 p.m. When deputies spotted the suspect vehicle, the suspect drove off, prompting a pursuit. At one point during the chase, a female passenger got out of the suspect's white Dodge muscle car. LASD did not specify the female passenger's involvement in the crime or if she was a victim. The female passenger was not hurt, LASD told FOX 11. The suspect continued driving as LASD dropped the pursuit due to the suspect driver's high speeds and erratic driving. CHP picked up the chase as the suspect got on the freeway. The suspect eventually got out of the car in Gardena, running on foot before authorities placed him into custody. At one point during the foot chase, the suspect tried to jump on the back of a moving semi-truck, LASD told FOX 11. FOX 11 Sketch Released Amid Search For Man Who Sexually Assaulted Woman Inside Her West Hollywood Home The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department has released a sketch of a man who allegedly sexually assaulted a woman after sneaking into her home in West Hollywood last month. Deputies responded to the report of a burglary/sexual assault between 11 and 11:55 p.m. on Jan. 21. at a residence in the area of Fountain Avenue and North Olive Drive, the Sheriff’s Department reported earlier this week. The victim, a 28-year-old woman, was inside her home when her attacker got in through the patio sliding door. “The suspect grabbed the victim by the neck and shoulders and forced her onto the couch in the living room,” sheriff’s officials said in a news release. “The suspect pulled down the victim’s pants and sexually assaulted her, she screamed and was able to break free by hitting him with a candlestick.” After the assault, the man fled the home on his bicycle in an unknown direction. He was described as a white or Hispanic male in his early 30s, with short black hair and brown eyes. He was about 5 feet 7 to 11 inches tall, normal build with a possible gut and light complexion. The assailant may have a tattoo on his right arm and was last seen wearing a black T-shirt and dark blue jeans. The man’s bicycle was described as a black crossover/hybrid type bike with medium size tires. Anyone with information about this incident is asked to call the LASD’s Special Victims Bureau at 877-710-5273, or by email at [email protected]. KTLA 5 Felon With Loaded Shotgun Arrested After Traffic Stop In Glendale A traffic stop in Glendale Thursday morning led to the arrest of a 62-year-old felon after police found an unregistered shotgun in the vehicle he was driving. Just after midnight, an officer in the area of Colorado and Jackson streets spotted a vehicle’s registration that was expired as of 2016 and stopped the vehicle, according to the Glendale Police Department. A records check of the driver, Stephen Barlow of Burbank, showed his license had been suspended and he had multiple warrants, including a no-bail warrant, out for his arrest, police said. Officers arrested Barlow after they searched the vehicle and found an unregistered, loaded 12-gauge shotgun, police said. Barlow was booked for being a felon in possession of a firearm and his outstanding warrants. MyNewsLA.com Northern California Father, Stepmother Arrested In 11-Year-Old Boy’s Death The father and stepmother of an 11-year-old boy who was found dead in Northern California a year ago have been arrested in his death and are accused of torturing and poisoning the child, authorities announced Thursday. Jordan Piper, 36, and Lindsay Piper, 38, were arrested Wednesday and are facing child abuse, poisoning and torture charges in the death of Roman Anthony Lopez, Placerville Police Chief Joseph Wren said. "Although an autopsy revealed no obvious signs of trauma, Roman was found to be severely malnourished and dehydrated at the time of his death," Wren said. Jordan Piper is charged with an additional count of willfully failing to provide food and water to the boy. Lindsay Piper is charged with a separate count of poisoning, Wren said. Wren said he couldn’t give more details on the abuse Roman endured because the investigation is ongoing. "I can tell you we have evidence that proves each of the crimes beyond a reasonable doubt that they were arrested for," he said. The Pipers were arrested in Calaveras County and have been booked into El Dorado County jail in Placerville. It wasn’t immediately clear if they have an attorney who can speak on their behalf. FOX 11 New Mexico State Police: Officer And Suspect Shot, Killed On Highway A New Mexico State Police officer was fatally shot on a highway Thursday and authorities chased the attacker, killing him in a shootout, officials said. The officer who was killed has been identified as 28-year-old Darian Jarrott, reported KVIA-TV El Paso. Authorities also released the name of the attacker who was killed, 39-year-old Omar Felix Cueva. State Police said one of its officers was shot in Luna County between Las Cruces and Deming in a confrontation along Interstate 10 in southern New Mexico. They said multiple agencies then pursued the suspect’s vehicle to the Las Cruces area before there was an exchange of gunfire. The suspect was killed and a Las Cruces police officer was shot. The officer was taken to a hospital in El Paso with injuries that were not life-threatening, according to Las Cruces police spokesman Danny Trujillo. State Police had said they had limited information and two separate shooting scenes 30 miles apart to investigate.New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham has ordered all flags at state buildings lowered to half-staff from Friday to Tuesday to honor the State Police officer killed in the line of duty. Associated Press Public Safety News COVID-19 In L.A. County Finally On A Sustained Decline After Catastrophic Winter The numbers of new coronavirus infections and hospitalizations are nosediving in Los Angeles County, welcome news following a catastrophic winter wave that pummeled the region. Officials stress, however, that the county is far from out of the woods. Though those figures have tumbled in recent weeks, they remain well above their pre-surge levels — and are still too high for the county to unlock additional sectors of its battered economy or to provide the long-term relief hospitals desperately need. And the final, most devastating consequence of the pandemic — the number of people losing their battle with the disease — remains high. About 201 Angelenos, on average, have died from COVID-19 each day over the last week. L.A.'s coronavirus-related death toll is now above 17,300. Statewide, more than 42,000 Californians have died from the disease throughout the pandemic. Dr. Christina Ghaly, the county’s director of health services, did say Wednesday that it appeared daily COVID-19 deaths had finally peaked. Los Angeles Times California Reported 440 Fewer Hospitalizations Wednesday The downtrend of hospitalizations and new cases continues. According to Wednesday’s end-of-day totals from California public health websites, there were 440 fewer hospitalizations from the previous day, lowering the total number of hospitalizations to 14,138, a 38% decrease from the Jan. 6 high of 22,853. California communities reported 12,574 new cases of the coronavirus on Wednesday, bringing the total number of cases to 3,335,654. The 14-day average of 19,683 daily new cases is down 53.7% from the Jan. 1 high of 42,468. There were 587 new deaths reported Wednesday, for a total of 42,468 people who have died from the virus. 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