Email from Los Angeles Police Protective League Daily News & Updates Law Enforcement News LAPD chief warns of dire consequences without additional staffing funds After Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass asked the city council to find over $4 million for the Los Angeles Police Department to ramp up hiring, the LAPD chief warned Thursday that not having the additional funding would significantly affect public safety and preparation efforts. A day after Mayor Bass sent a letter to council members, calling on them to identify and allocate funding for the LAPD to hire 410 officers by the end of the fiscal year in June 2026, Chief Jim McDonnell held a news conference Thursday, warning fewer officers would lead to "a public safety crisis." No new recruits will enter the academy in January," Chief McDonnell said, explaining if a new academy doesn't start next month, the department lose the opportunity to gain dozens of more officers. "Fewer officers mean longer shifts, increased overtime, and a greater strain on all our personnel," the chief said. LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell said without the additional $4.4 million, the number of officers and employees of the nation's third largest police department will drop to the lowest level in three decades, ahead of several major events coming to the region next year, including the 2026 Olympics. The LAPD chief said when New York City and Chicago have about four officers per 1,000 residents, LA currently has two officers per 1,000 residents. McDonnell added that the LAPD has been making progress in recruiting new officers, and not have the additional $4.4 million would stop the momentum. "I joined Mayor Bass in urging the City Council to act now: Fund the hiring of 410 officers this fiscal year," he said. NBC 4 2 men sentenced to life in prison for 2015 murders of 2 teenage girls Two men were sentenced Thursday to life in prison for the brutal 2015 murders of two teenage girls at a park in Montecito Heights. Los Angeles Superior Court Judge George Lomeli imposed the maximum sentence on both Jose Antonio Echeverria and Dallas Stone Pineda. The two men were convicted in September for the killings of 19-year-old Gabriella Calzada, who was seven weeks pregnant when she was killed, and 17-year-old Brianna Gallegos. The Los Angeles Police Department and the prosecution said Echevarria and Pineda, two gang members, lured the girls to a park on October 27, 2015. One was shot in the head, and both were beaten to death and left near a hiking trail. Their bodies were discovered by a hiker the following day. "This court is of the opinion that the sentence of life without the possibility of parole is an appropriate and justified sentence which should be imposed," said the judge. Attorneys for Echevarria and Pineda asked the judge to consider sentencing the two to something less than life without the possibility of parole, arguing that because the men were teenagers at the time of the murders, there was a chance of rehabilitation. Echevarria was 18 and Pineda was 17 at the time. ABC 7 2 suspects sought after woman fatally shot in South LA The search is on for two suspects after a woman was shot and killed in South Los Angeles late Thursday night, officials said. Officials with the Los Angeles Police Department said officers responded to a shots fired call around 10:30 p.m. Thursday, near Avalon Boulevard and 113th Street in the Green Meadows neighborhood. Arriving officers learned the victim was reportedly in an argument with two men when one of them pulled out a gun and shot her. The victim did not survive. Police say the suspects ran away from the scene. The name of the victim has not been released and a description of the suspects was not available. FOX 11 Gunmen fire 20 rounds on parked car in Los Angeles, injuring 2 people Police are searching for two gunmen who opened fire on five people sitting in a parked car in the Glassell Park neighborhood of Los Angeles early Friday, striking two of them. The shooting occurred just before 1 a.m. when the suspects pulled up in a silver sedan alongside the victims’ vehicle in the 3200 block of North Fletcher Drive, according to the Los Angeles Police Department. Someone in the sedan asked the front passenger in the victims’ car where he was from, police said. As the victims tried to flee, the suspects fired about 20 rounds, hitting two of the rear passengers. A 21-year-old man was transported in critical condition. A 16-year-old boy suffered a broken femur and was taken to a hospital in stable condition. The other three victims, all adults, were not injured. Police said the victims were cooperating with investigators. The shooting appears to be gang-related. KTLA 5 Over $100,000 in gold stolen from home in San Fernando Valley A homeowner in the San Fernando Valley had about $130,000 in gold stolen from his home Thursday afternoon, according to the Los Angeles Police Department. Officers responded to a burglary call at a home on the 12000 block of Stagg Street in Van Nuys. The homeowner told police that he had just returned home and went to the back house of his property when he found out the gold was stolen. He told officers that he had last seen his items about a month ago. No arrests have been made. Detectives are reviewing security footage as the investigation continues. NBC 4 Man targets Spanish-speaking communities to steal identities and forge signatures, LAPD says Detectives are looking for additional victims after a man tricked elderly people into signing up for long-term solar panel lease agreements by using victims' identities and forging their signatures, the Los Angeles Police Department said Thursday. Detectives named Kevin Eduardo Cristofer Esperanza as the suspect, saying that he has targeted older people with limited computer literacy, especially Spanish speakers. According to the LAPD, Esperanza would approach his victims, pretending to sell solar panels. While speaking with the elderly people, the suspect would convince them to provide personal information. Esperanza then used the sensitive information and forged their names to sign them up for long-term solar panel lease agreements without their knowledge of consent. Investigators believe the crimes happened between July 2021 and February 2022. The LAPD urged anyone who knows a victim or who may have been victimized to contact Detective Juan Campos at 213-486-5995 or email [email protected]. NBC 4 LAPD addresses jaywalking traffic enforcement sting in San Fernando Valley The Los Angeles Police Department addressed its San Fernando Valley operation that targeted drivers who failed to stop for jaywalking pedestrians along Ventura Boulevard. Officers carried out the operation at "High injury Network" intersections to reduce vehicle versus pedestrian collisions, according to the LAPD. So far this year, the department's Valley Bureau has recorded 39 deaths and 150 serious injuries from the crashes. LAPD said deadly collisions surpass the number of homicides, 35, in the San Fernando Valley. "The increase in pedestrian-related traffic fatalities underscores the urgency of the issue," LAPD wrote. The department added that the operation aimed to "educate motorists, raise awareness, and ultimately enhance the safety of pedestrians throughout the San Fernando Valley.” LAPD addressed the issue after a person posted a video of an officer in Woodland Hills chasing after drivers who did not stop for pedestrians. The department said that under California law, drivers must stop for pedestrians who are crossing the street in both marked and unmarked crosswalks. CBS 2 Nine indicted on drug, conspiracy charges in shooting death of Oakland officer A federal grand jury in Oakland indicted nine people on a slew of drug and conspiracy charges related to a series of burglaries at a marijuana grow facility in 2023 that led to the death of an undercover police officer, according to court documents unsealed Thursday. Federal prosecutors allege that over the course of about four hours on Dec. 29, 2023 the group burglarized a waterfront grow facility located on Embarcadero in Oakland, leaving with at least 100 marijuana plants. Allen Brown, Sebron Russell and Marquise Cooper allegedly organized the armed burglaries, recruiting Janiero Booth, Jowaun Jones, Shawn McGee and Salvador Munguia to help them throughout the morning, according to the indictment. Brown, Russell, Cooper, Booth, Jones, McGee and Munguia are charged with conspiring to distribute, possession with intent to distribute, and attempting to possess with intent to distribute more than 100 marijuana plants, the indictment states. Brown is also charged with discharging a firearm in connection with a drug trafficking crime. Russell is charged with brandishing a firearm. Jasmine Kumar, the suspected gunman’s girlfriend, and his mother Felicia Sanders, were charged with accessory after the fact for allegedly helping to prevent his apprehension, including providing him with a one-way plane ticket, according to the Department of Justice. Los Angeles Times Video: Va. State Police trooper rescues man from burning Tesla Virginia State Police say a state trooper and multiple civilians on Friday saved a Maryland man from a burning vehicle in Caroline County. Foday Kanu, 34, of Upper Marlboro, Maryland, was driving a 2024 Tesla Model Y northbound on Interstate 95 early Friday morning when he veered off the road and struck a tree, police said. Sgt. S. Page, who was also traveling on I-95, stopped to check on the driver just as the Tesla burst into flames. Police said the vehicle doors were locked and could not be opened, forcing Page to break a window, cut the airbag and pull Kanu to safety. Multiple motorists also stopped to assist Page, police said. Kanu was transported to a local hospital with serious injuries that are not considered life-threatening. Police said road conditions from winter weather are considered a factor in the crash, which remains under investigation. Page, in an interview after the fact, said he went back to the vehicle afterward to ensure that there was “nobody else in the car.” “I think it literally happened seconds before I pulled up,” he said. “If I hadn’t gone northbound, I don’t know if anybody else was going to stop.” Richmond Times-Dispatch Public Safety News L.A. fire crews knock down San Fernando Valley structure fire Crews with the Los Angeles Fire Department knocked down a structure fire in Valley Glen Thursday night, fire officials confirmed to KTLA. Firefighters responded to reports of the blaze around 9:45 p.m. and spotted heavy smoke and fire coming from the L-shaped commercial building in the 6300 block of North Woodman Avenue. Aerial footage of the scene captured by Sky5 showed a heavy presence of first responders at the scene, where the fire appeared to be mostly limited to the building’s exterior. Fire officials said the blaze might have spread from a nearby dumpster fire and that first-arriving companies quickly coordinated to protect the strip mall’s interior spaces. Fire crews and equipment were spread across the property’s parking lot, as well as on the structure’s roof, by the time Sky5 arrived around 10:15 p.m. Officials said it took 63 firefighters working on the scene 45 minutes to knock the blaze down. KTLA 5 Los Angeles hospital asks for public’s help identifying patient found after an accident A local hospital is seeking the public’s help in identifying a man who has been hospitalized since Tuesday. The unidentified patient, listed as “John Doe,” was found down and unresponsive due to an accident at West Sixth Street and Oxford Avenue in Los Angeles. He was brought to Dignity Health – California Hospital Medical Center around 7:20 a.m. Tuesday. The patient is a Caucasian male aged 35-45. He has blue eyes, brown hair, is about 5 feet 11 inches tall and weighs 140 pounds. Hospital officials said the man has multiple tattoos, including leaves on his chest, “Jo Jo,” and the Grim Reaper standing on a tombstone on his left arm, along with others also on his left arm. Anyone with information that may help identify him is asked to call (213) 742-5511 or (213) 507-5495. KTLA 5 Local Government News LA Council to Grant Final Approval on New Rent Control Caps The Los Angeles City Council Friday is expected to give final approval on a proposal updating the Rent Stabilization Ordinance, capping annual rent increases between 1% and 4%, and removing additional charges for utilities. On Friday’s agenda, council members are set to vote for a second time on changes to the RSO, which would be the first major overhaul to regulations governing rent control for apartments built on or before Oct. 1, 1978, in more than four decades. The updates would establish a new formula to set annual allowable increases for roughly 650,000 rental units, calculating 90% of the Consumer Price Index. The changes would establish a 1% floor and a 4% ceiling, and remove additional charges for electricity and gas. Council members are likely to approve it, and after it will be sent to Mayor Karen Bass for her signature or veto, which is required before the RSO update can be enacted. MyNewsLA About the LAPPL: Formed in 1923, the Los Angeles Police Protective League (LAPPL) represents more than 8,700 dedicated and professional sworn members of the Los Angeles Police Department. 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