Good Afternoon. Los Angeles County residents, click here to register for a free COVID-19 test. Law Enforcement News Kentucky Officer Wounded In Gunfire Exchange With Suspect A Kentucky police officer and a man were wounded in a shooting early Tuesday during an investigation of a suspicious vehicle near an apartment complex, authorities said. Two Louisville officers approached the vehicle about 1:45 a.m. and “were met with gunfire,” police spokesman Lamont Washington told news outlets. One officer was hit; the other was not. “Both officers returned fire and struck the subject,” Washington said. “The subject fled on foot and at one point appears to have fired at officers again during the foot pursuit.” The man continued to flee from officers until he collapsed, Washington said. Both the man and the officer were taken to the University of Louisville Hospital, authorities said. Further details weren’t immediately available. Associated Press After Recovering From COVID-19, LAPD Commander Becomes Plasma Donor To Help Others Cory Palka is an LAPD commander who tested positive for COVID-19 in March. He's since recovered and is trying to help others by donating plasma. Palka visited the Red Cross donation center in Woodland Hills recently to answer the call to serve in a different way. "I became ill in mid-March in the first wave of Los Angeles police officers," he recalled. "Had all the symptoms - fatigue, fever, shortness of breath. Massive fatigue hit me hard." The 56-year-old is now a COVID-19 survivor whose plasma, like that of others who have recovered from the disease, is now in demand. It's still considered an experimental treatment, but convalescent plasma - rich with antibodies that can fight the coronavirus - is taken from a recovered person and given to a sick patient to help them fight off the virus. ABC 7 Tattoo Artist Charged With Murder In Crash Of McLaren Sports Car That Killed YouTube Personality In L.A. A tattoo artist has been charged with murder in the crash of his McLaren sports car in Valley Village, which killed YouTube personality Corey La Barrie on his 25th birthday. Daniel Joseph Silva, 26, of North Hollywood, was allegedly behind the wheel of the luxury sports car when it crashed May 10, killing La Barrie, who was a passenger in the vehicle, Los Angeles County prosecutors said Tuesday. Silva was driving the 2020 McLaren 600LT at high speed eastbound on Huston Street when he lost control, ran off the road and hit a stop sign and tree on the northeast corner of Huston and Carpenter Avenue, police said. Silva was injured in the crash but did not suffer life-threatening injuries, according to TMZ. Los Angeles Daily News Body Matching Description Of Missing Former WWE Wrestler Found Near Venice Pier A body matching the description of former WWE wrestler who disappeared Sunday in rough waters off Venice Beach has been found near a lifeguard tower. Shad Gaspard, 39, disappeared while swimming when a wave crashed over him about 50 yards from the shore. His 10-year-old son was rescued from the water by lifeguards. A law enforcement source said Gaspard told rescuers to help his son first. The boy was evaluated by LAFD paramedics but did not require hospitalization. A jogger found the body washed up near Venice Pier around 1:30 a.m. Wednesday. Los Angeles police and county firefighters said they responded to a report of a body that matched the description of Gaspard early Wednesday. NBC 4 Former Long Beach Teacher Charged With Lewd Act On 13-Year-Old Girl A former Long Beach high school teacher pleaded not guilty Monday to committing a lewd act on a 13-year-old girl who was a family friend. Los Angeles County prosecutors alleged the crime occurred in 2015 at Mark Anthony Santo’s home in La Mirada. Santo, 51, was arrested Monday by Long Beach police and remained jailed in lieu of $100,000 bail, according to jail records. Santo — a former teacher at Jordan High School — is expected back in court June 30 to determine whether there is sufficient evidence to require him to stand trial on one count of committing a lewd act on a child under the age of 14. Santo could face up to eight years in state prison if convicted as charged, according to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office. CBS 2 Couple Charged In Plot To Kidnap SoCal Men For Ransom After 2 Were Found Dead In Mexico A former Colton resident and her boyfriend are in custody to face charges in a kidnapping-for-ransom plot that spanned the U.S.-Mexico border and left two men dead, federal prosecutors said Monday. Leslie Briana Matla, 20, a U.S. citizen living in Mexico, and her 25-year-old boyfriend Juan Carlos Montoya Sanchez of Tijuana tried to collect $25,000 from the abducted victims’ families before they were found dead, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Los Angeles. One of three kidnapped victims was able to escape death. The men — residents of San Diego, Norwalk and Pasadena — were in Tijuana on business or to visit family when they were abducted on March 28, April 13 and April 22, authorities said. Their families then got a call from a Mexican phone number, ordering them to leave ransom money at a designated location in California, where Matla would retrieve it, officials said. KTLA 5 Ammunition Background Checks Lead To Dozens Of Firearms Seized Across State, Including In SoCal, In Recent Operations Ammunition background checks led to the recent seizure of dozens of weapons across the state, including in Southern California, from individuals deemed unfit to posses them, authorities announced Tuesday. Operations in April and May across 12 jurisdictions resulted in the confiscation of 51 firearms, including four assault weapons and two untraceable “ghost guns”; 123 magazines, including 33 large-capacity magazines; 28,518 rounds of ammunition; and 120 grams of methamphetamine and heroin, according to the California Attorney General’s Office. Authorities executed search warrants after the offenders tried to purchase ammunition but were denied through ammunition background checks, which currently remain in effect after a federal judge’s decision to block them in April and rule in favor of the California Rifle & Pistol Association. The judge said the checks violate Californians’ Second Amendment rights. KTLA 5 100 MPH Speeding Soars As Freeways, Roads Empty Out For Coronavirus Lockdown Traffic volume and DUI arrests have declined as Californians observe stay-at-home orders during the COVID-19 pandemic, but the number of motorists cited for driving more than 100 mph increased by nearly 50%, authorities said Tuesday. “People are … eliminating non-essential travel, and as a result, there has been a significant reduction in the number of commuters on the highways,” California Highway Patrol Commissioner Warren Stanley said. “Resist the temptation to speed; drivers are easier to spot when they are on a nearly empty roadway,” Stanley said. “Remember, taking care of one another goes beyond wearing a face covering and physical distancing. As communities in California move into the next phases of reopening, continue to slow down, pay attention to the road, drive sober, and keep yourself and those around you from becoming a grim statistic,” Stanley said. MyNewsLA.com People Keep Shooting Each Other Over Coronavirus Restrictions Since March, state and local governments across the country have instituted a slew of public closures to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. The policies have shuttered businesses and prevented public gatherings, but have also engendered a new category of gun violence. We’ve spotted at least nine shootings related to these restrictions since the first statewide lockdown went into effect on March 19. According to an analysis of news clips and Gun Violence Archive data, at least four people have died and seven have been wounded in incidents that run the gamut from disputes over coughing in public to anger at businesses refusing service to customers who aren’t wearing masks. Flint, Michigan, is the only place so far with two cases, both disputes involving security guards. In the list below, we’re including actual shootings with a strong connection to pandemic-related public health restrictions, like social distancing and mask requirements, occupancy limits, and business closures. The Trace Public Safety News 4 More Firefighters Released From Hospital After Weekend Explosion In Downtown L.A.; 4 Still Hospitalized Four firefighters injured in the powerful explosion that gutted a smoke-shop supply store in downtown Los Angeles on Saturday have been released from the hospital, officials said. That makes a total of seven firefighters, out of 11 initially hospitalized, who have been released since Saturday. One other firefighter was treated and released for a minor injury. All were among the firefighters who raced to get away from the store — Smoke Tokes, located at 327 E. Boyd Street at the north edge of downtown’s Toy District — as the flames fueled by chemicals inside intensified and produced a blast that rocked the area. Another four firefighters were still recovering at L.A. County-USC Medical Center. Capt. Erik Scott, a spokesman for the Los Angeles Fire Department, said the still-hospitalized firefighters were in serious condition, but were improving. Los Angeles Daily News Los Angeles County Reports A Total Of 39,573 Coronavirus Cases With 1,913 Deaths Los Angeles County on Tuesday reported 1,183 new coronavirus cases and 76 additional deaths, bringing the county's totals to 39,573 cases and 1,913 deaths. Of the newly reported deaths, 52 were individuals over the age of 65, 48 of which had underlying health conditions. Nineteen individuals were between the ages of 41 and 65, 14 of which had underlying health conditions. Two people with underlying health conditions who died were between the ages of 18 and 40. The data on the remaining cases was not immediately available. Approximately 92% of all county residents who died from the virus had underlying health conditions. FOX 11 LA County Aims For July 4 Reopening Date, Some Leaders Say Only If Data Supports It Los Angeles County officials announced Tuesday that they are aiming for a "safe reopening" of the county as early as July 4, but some county leaders say that will only happen if the data supports doing so.Earlier in the day, county Supervisor Kathryn Barger expressed the goal during the second Los Angeles County Economic Resiliency Task Force meeting, during which a collection of elected officials and business leaders assembled to recommend steps for creating jobs and returning the county to full employment. Task Force sector leaders voiced their concerns over the significant financial crisis each industry is facing, emphasizing that prolonged closures will continue to deteriorate the ability of most small businesses to reopen and will cause permanent loss of jobs and wages for millions throughout the county. FOX 11 Local Government News Councilwoman Seeks Review Of Combustible Material Enforcement After L.A. Fire Councilwoman Monica Rodriguez introduced a motion Tuesday to have the city review its enforcement of the safe handling of combustible materials following Saturday’s explosion in downtown Los Angeles that injured 12 city firefighters. “My prayers are with these injured firefighters and their colleagues that were deployed to the Boyd Street incident. I wish all a full recovery,” said Rodriguez, who is also the chair of the council’s Public Safety Committee. “As we’ve seen with this tragic event and other similar incidents across the nation, the improper storage and use of highly flammable chemicals present a grave danger to our community and we must enhance safety protocols to prevent these incidents from happening again.” Rodriguez’s motion would direct the Los Angeles fire and police departments, the city attorney and the department of building and safety to review the city’s investigative and enforcement efforts of hazardous combustible material and provide recommendations to prevent injurious incidents. MyNewsLA.com Los Angeles Councilman Asks To Allow Businesses To Expand To Sidewalks, Streets Businesses in Los Angeles may soon be able to temporarily expand into public right-of-ways, so they can operate while maintaining social distancing and help prevent the further spread of the coronavirus. LA City Councilman Joe Buscaino, whose southernmost District 15 includes San Pedro, introduced a motion Tuesday, May 19, that would request the City Attorney to write an ordinance creating a “low-cost permit process.” That would allow for businesses to offer al fresco dining, exercise classes and other outdoor operations on nearby land and public property; the nearby land would include sidewalks, streets and parking lots. There is no set date for the item to come before the full City Council, but Buscaino said he hopes it will be heard within the next two weeks. Los Angeles Daily News ‌ ‌ ‌ Visit our website LA Police Protective League | 1308 West Eighth Street, Los Angeles, CA 90017 Unsubscribe [email protected] Update Profile | About Constant Contact Sent by [email protected] in collaboration with Try email marketing for free today!