Community, Diversity, Sustainability and other Overused Words
Sorted by date Results 201 - 225 of 496
9/23: Santa Monica Police called on the LAPD Special Weapons and Tactics Unit (SWAT) and the Unmanned Aerial Systems Team (Drone Team) to arrest Eliott Ferrando, 24 of Los Angeles. Los Angeles County District Attorney filed charges against Ferrando for two counts of attempted murder stemming from a shooting on September 6, 2021. Santa Monica Police Department (SMPD) Officers responded to a report of 'Shots Fired' in the area of Yorkshire and Pico at 1:21 pm on Sept. 6th, Sgt. Erika Akulfi wrote...
September 23, 2021 - At approximately 3:00 am on Wednesday morning, Santa Monica police received multiple calls regarding the sound of shots fired. Shortly thereafter, the victim himself called police, reporting he'd been shot in the face. The victim had been sleeping in his car in the area of Ocean Avenue and Pacific Street. Two suspects approached his car, demanded he give them the keys to the vehicle, and then abruptly shot him. Following this assault, they fled in another vehicle at a high...
A Santa Monica business executive pleaded guilty on Thursday to a federal charge of conspiring to make and conceal conduit and excessive campaign contributions during the U.S. presidential election in 2016 and thereafter, court officials said. Stevan Hill, 70, of Santa Monica, conspired with his business associate, Ahmad "Andy" Khawaja, and others, between March 2016 and June 2018, to make unlawful contributions to several political committees, thereby circumventing contribution limits and causi...
Courts & Rulings Ninth Circuit denies bid by California DAs to challenge death penalty moratorium In a divided opinion, a Ninth Circuit panel upheld a lower court decision that prevented a group of district attorneys from intervening in a case where Governor Gavin Newsom stayed all executions in the state of California via executive order. "The district attorneys have no authority to choose the method by which California will execute condemned inmates," U.S. Circuit Judge William Fletcher, a...
9/21/21 - A registered sex offender who was preying on homeless women on the Santa Monica beach was charged yesterday with one count of Assault to commit rape and 1 count of Sexual Battery for two incidents reported to Santa Monica Police this month. Jarvis Mathias Newman, 26, is also known as Marquis Perkings. His residence was not given in the official press release. The first incident allegedly involving Newman occurred on September 12. A female victim had been sleeping in the 1700-1800...
Courts & Rulings Federal court upholds ban on seizure of oversize items in public areas by LAPD, sanitation workers A federal appeals panel on Thursday affirmed a ruling prohibiting Los Angeles police and sanitation workers from seizing and tossing oversized items stashed in public places, frequently by the homeless. The split decision by the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in Pasadena upholds last year's lower court decision that bans the city from enforcing an ordinance stopping people from...
September 10, 2021 - Shortly after midnight this morning, a victim was held up at gunpoint outside La Condesa restaurant at 1519 Wilshire Boulevard, and then driven around the block in their own car while they were robbed. At least two suspects then fled in their own vehicle at high speed, crashing at 26th Street and Wilshire Boulevard. Santa Monica Police arrived on the scene, set up a perimeter, and with the help of dogs and a drone, caught one of the suspects. The Beverly Hills police and San...
Culver City police have arrested two people on attempted murder charges and one man on accessory charges in connection with an ambush shooting last month. One of the suspects was apparently shot by the victim and ended up in a local hospital, according to Culver City Police Department. The shooting occurred around 2:40 a.m. on August 24 in the area of Mentone Ave. and Culver Blvd., said CCPD in a press release. Witnesses told police that they heard gunshots and saw a black man drop a handgun in...
Los Angeles police are looking for a sexual predator who broke into a Westwood apartment and groped a sleeping woman Friday morning. The assault occurred around 4 a.m. in the 11000 block of Strathmore Drive, near UCLA, according to Los Angeles Police Department. The victim reported that she was awakened by movement in her bedroom. "She saw a white male standing over her," LAPD said in a press release. "He groped her over her clothes before she jumped up and pushed him out of the apartment."...
In an example of the consequences of Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascon's zero bail policy, a suspect was able to break into and rob the same restaurant on the Third Street Promenade three times in one week. Jason Tyrone Strickland, 42, allegedly homeless, was observed on surveillance footage breaking into the CULT restaurant on the Third Street Promenade on August 20, 22, and 26. He was issued citations and let go about his business on the first two occasions, which is current protocol...
California Supreme Court rejects attempt to make it harder to impose death penalty California's top court rejected an attempt to make it harder to impose the death penalty, ruling Thursday in favor of the current system where jurors need not unanimously agree on aggravating factors used to justify the punishment. Jurors already must unanimously agree to impose a death sentence, and to do so must decide that aggravating factors outweigh mitigating circumstances. AP--Judge has immunity even if he...
Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón announced today that adult film star Ron Jeremy has been indicted on more than 30 sexual assault counts involving 21 victims dating back more than two decades. "Far too often, survivors of sexual assault suffer in isolation," District Attorney Gascón said. "We must ensure that survivors have all options available to help with recovery, including trauma-informed services for healing and support to report such crimes." Ron Jeremy Hyatt (dob 3...
Courts & Rulings California Supreme Court rules prison inmates not allowed to have marijuana The California Supreme Court ruled Thursday that the state's law allowing the use of recreational marijuana does not apply to prison inmates, overturning a 2019 appellate court ruling that allowed prisoners to possess up to 1 ounce of pot. In a 5-2 decision, the state's high court ruled that "it seems unlikely" voters sought to decriminalize possession of marijuana in prisons. Courthouse News Service...
A woman cyclist reportedly riding in circles in the middle of a Venice intersection was struck and killed by a hit-and-run driver last Friday and Los Angeles police are asking for the public's help in finding the suspect. The deadly accident occurred around 3:05 a.m. on August 20 at the intersection of Pacific Avenue and Rose Avenue, according to Los Angeles Police Department press release. The cyclist was struck by a vehicle traveling northbound on Pacific Avenue, police said. "The vehicle...
Courts & Rulings Removing boy from mother's custody appropriate despite lack of blameworthiness on her part The Court of Appeal for this district declared yesterday that a suicidal and aggressive teenager suffering from traumatic brain injury was appropriately removed from the custody of his mother toward whom he displays animosity, notwithstanding a lack of fault on her part. Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Michael E. Whitaker expressly found that the mother, "Sharon M.," had not abused,...
A man who describes himself as a homeless outreach advocate was arrested last Thursday on charges of selling drugs to the transients near the "Venice Bridge Home," sheriff's officials said. Garry Featherstone, 65, was charged with possession of phencyclidine (PCP) for sale and possession of methamphetamine for sale, according to statement from the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department (LASD). Investigators from the Narcotics Bureau conducted the search warrant operation on tent near 3rd Avenue...
Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón announced that a fund manager at UCLA's history department pleaded no contest today to stealing more than $300,000 from the university through fraudulent purchase orders and travel reimbursements. "Public employees have a financial responsibility to the people they serve," District Attorney Gascón said. "This criminal conduct drained resources from the history department that could have been used to benefit students and fulfill the u...
Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascon condescended to add a sentencing enhancement to a defendant accused of assaulting and attempting to rob a Korean woman in the middle of the day in downtown Santa Monica. The defendant made the mistake of adding racial slurs as he tried to coerce money from the woman. According to Gascon, that makes the crime of pinning the woman by her car door, striking her, and grabbing her phone and her purse sufficient to actually press charges. Below are...
Santa Monica police deployed a Taser to subdue a homeless man who allegedly stabbed another man at the beach last Sunday, authorities said. The incident occurred at 6:35 p.m. on July 18 in the block of the beach, according to the Santa Monica Police Department (SMPD). The victim told police officers he was stabbed in the back with an unknown object and provided the description of the suspect and where he was headed after the violent incident. "Officers were then flagged down by other witnesses...
CIW administration didn't think it through. They gave condoms to prisoners. Men could now rape women and leave no evidence behind. Amid the controversy and questions swirling around the California Institution for Women for giving out condoms to prisoners, the Warden promptly suspended the PRISONER CONDOM PROGRAM. "Until further notice." '''The spot is hot. Everybody involved has strong feelings and strong opinions about this big prison transgender mess caused by Scott Weiner. The senator who...
Jenna Grigsby has been appointed as Chief of the Criminal Division of the Santa Monica City Attorney's Office, civic officials announced this week. Grigsby has served for more than 10 years as a Deputy City Attorney, including two stints as the interim chief of the division, which is responsible for prosecution of only misdemeanor crimes committed in Santa Monica. These includes family violence, drug possession, driving under the influence, burglary, assault, and quality of life crimes. "We are...
Three women were arrested in downtown Los Angeles this week on charges of selling counterfeits. Not fake leather products or art forgeries or faux designer watches. The counterfeited items were contact lens. The suspects operated and sold counterfeit contact lenses out of stores located within the downtown area and were caught for allegedly “selling counterfeit contact lenses to undercover officers.” LAPD said in a statement. Detectives also confiscated counterfeit make-up and illegal fir...
As I write this, a team of technicians are at work installing cameras in my housing unit. For the first time ever here at CIW. So, all activities will now be able to be monitored and used to prove and disprove things. I'm cool with it. It makes us safer. It keeps people honest. Since I've been here 8 years, many male officers have lost their jobs over relationships with female inmates. I personally saw some of this happening. CIW is known for having a breed of male cops willing to have a...
Courts & Rulings Thomas slams 'One-Size-Fits-All' immunity approach Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas used a college campus First Amendment case to sound off Friday about jurisprudence that affords school officials the same immunity give to police officers. "But why should university officers, who have time to make calculated choices about enacting or enforcing unconstitutional policies, receive the same protection as a police officer who makes a split-second decision to use force in a...
For 19 months prior to the rape attempt, carjacking, and violent assault in Santa Monica's Parking Structure 8, property owner John Alle had been sounding the alarm to public officials and Downtown Santa Monica, Inc. about unsafe conditions in the parking garages that line the Third Street Promenade. In emails to Kathleen Rawson, CEO of DTSM, to the city council, and to Henry Servin, Traffic and Parking Manager for the City of Santa Monica during this time period, Alle begged for help in solving...