Author: City News Service

LOS ANGELES – Hoping to combat an increase in violent crime, the Los Angeles Police Department Wednesday released a “Step Away LA” public service announcement urging residents to actively de-escalate confrontations to avoid violence. The roughly two-minute video released by the department features members of the LAPD, the City Attorney’s Office, stakeholders, residents and community partners urging people to step away from arguments and disputes that can potentially lead to violence. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hs94imC9q_E In the video, an officer holding a police report says, “You know, most of these reports you read where a violent assault occurred began with a simple argument…

LOS ANGELES – A pedestrian was killed and a driver was injured Wednesday in an accident in the El Sereno neighborhood of Los Angeles. The crash was reported just before 1:50 p.m. in the area of 4927 S. Huntington Drive, near Ernest E. Debs Regional Park, according to the Los Angeles Fire Department. The pedestrian was pronounced dead at the scene. The victim’s name was withheld pending notification of next of kin. The LAFD reported that the vehicle rolled over, but the driver was able to exit without assistance and was taken to a hospital in fair condition. The cause…

LOS ANGELES – With Los Angeles’ pandemic-era rental protections likely to expire soon, City Councilman Mitch O’Farrell said Wednesday he wants to establish a $3 million rental aid program for tenants and landlords in the 13th District. Several council committees are discussing a potential end date for the city’s rental protections, with the Los Angeles Housing Department recommending that the eviction moratorium and other measures be lifted at the end of the year. The council’s Ad Hoc Committee on COVID-19 Recovery and Neighborhood Investment was set to take up the item later Wednesday and potentially issue its own recommendation for…

WESTMINSTER, Calif. – A 20-year-old woman was scheduled to be arraigned next month on a murder charge for allegedly running down a man in Cypress she believed was trying to kill a cat with his car. Hannah Star Esser was charged Tuesday with one count of murder, and she faces up to 25 years to life in prison if convicted. Esser is accused of killing 43-year-old Luis Anthony Victor Sunday night, according to Kimberly Edds, a spokeswoman for the Orange County District Attorney’s Office. Esser and the victim got into a conflict about 8:20 p.m. in the 9700 block of…

LOS ANGELES – Attorneys representing the husband of former Los Angeles County District Attorney Jackie Lacey in a lawsuit alleging he pointed a gun at Black Lives Matter demonstrators outside the family home in 2020 state in new court papers that their client has died. David Lacey’s death occurred Sept. 5, according to the court papers his lawyers filed Tuesday with Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Theresa M. Traber. Mayor Garcetti, Amy Elaine Wakeland, Jackie Lacey, and David Lacey in 2015.Credit: Wikimedia Commons. The confrontation occurred when members of the group showed up at the couple’s Granada Hills home early…

LOS ANGELES – A woman and a 17-year-old boy were in custody Wednesday and a man believed to be the teen’s father was being sought in connection with the killing of rapper PnB Rock during a robbery at a restaurant earlier this month. Shauntel Trone, 32, and a boy “under the age of 18” were arrested Tuesday, according to the Los Angeles Police Department. Trone was arrested in Gardena and was booked on suspicion of being an accessory to murder. The boy was arrested in Lawndale and booked on suspicion of murder, police said. His name was not released due…

POMONA, Calif. – A bicyclist was injured in a hit-and-run collision in Pomona, and police Wednesday sought the public’s help to find the motorist, authorities said Wednesday. The crash was reported about 10:50 p.m. Tuesday at Towne Avenue and Bangor Street, according to the Pomona Police Department. The victim, described only as a male, was taken to a hospital in unknown condition. No description was available of the vehicle or the motorist involved in the crash. Traffic was routed away from the area while an investigation was conducted. Anyone with information on the case was urged to call police at…

SANTA MONICA – A judge has denied a new trial for Bill Cosby in a Riverside County woman’s lawsuit, in which a jury found that the comedian sexually abused her when she was a teenager at the Playboy Mansion in the 1970s and awarded her $500,000 in damages. “(Cosby) has failed to establish he received an unfair trial or that insufficient evidence existed to establish his liability for plaintiff’s harm,” Santa Monica Superior Court Judge Craig D. Karlan wrote in his ruling Tuesday. The suit was brought in December 2014 by Judy Huth. Huth’s lawyers produced evidence that Cosby “intended…

LOS ANGELES. – A man is in the hospital Wednesday after he was stabbed by another man in MacArthur Park in the Westlake District. Officers from the Rampart Division of the Los Angeles Police Department were called at 12:23 a.m. to South Park View and West Sixth streets regarding an argument between two men, according to reports from the scene. Witnesses said the man who was stabbed initially drew a knife and tried to stab the second man but the second man was able to wrest the knife away and stab the victim. The victim was taken to a hospital…

HOLLYWOOD – A woman is in the hospital Wednesday after being injured in a drive-by shooting in Hollywood. Officers responded at approximately 12:10 a.m. to Sunset Boulevard and Laurel Avenue where they found the victim suffering from gunshot wounds, said LAPD Officer Lizeth Lomeli. Witnesses told police the woman was walking on Sunset when a car drove up and fired several shots at her before driving away. The victim was taken to a hospital in stable condition. Lomeli said there was no suspect vehicle description.

NORTH HOLLYWOOD – A man was shot by two assailants in North Hollywood, police said Wednesday. Los Angeles Police Department officers responded at 11:40 p.m. Tuesday to Sherman Way and Varna Avenue where they learned two suspects approached the victim and after a brief altercation shot him and took his property. The victim drove himself to a hospital where he was in stable condition, Lomeli said. The suspect ran away.

LOS ANGELES – Two people are hospitalized Wednesday after stabbing each other  during an altercation in the Jefferson Park neighborhood of South Los Angeles. Officers from the Southwest Division of the Los Angeles Police Department responded to reports of a stabbing at approximately 11:41 p.m. Tuesday at the intersection of Crenshaw Boulevard and 28th Street and located a man and a woman, both suffering from stab wounds, according to reports from the scene. Both were taken to a hospital in serious condition.

REDONDO BEACH, Calif. – A man suspected of shooting a rifle into the air in Redondo Beach was arrested Tuesday evening. Officers from the Redondo Beach Police Department were called at approximately 6:47 p.m. to the intersection of Artesia Boulevard and Blossom Lane regarding reports of a person firing shots with a rifle, said Lt. Michael Martinez. Police took the man into custody and after a search of the area officers did not find anyone who had been shot, Martinez said. An investigation into the shooting is underway and anyone with information regarding it was asked to call the Redondo…

LOS ANGELES – A man in his 20s was shot and killed in downtown Los Angeles Tuesday evening while a woman was wounded. Officers responded to a shots fired call at approximately 6:45 p.m. to Ninth and San Julian streets, west of San Pedro Street, near the Flower District, where they found a man suffering from gunshot wounds. The victim was pronounced dead at the scene. Lopez said he had no details regarding the wounded woman’s condition. The suspect fled the scene on foot.

LOS ANGELES – The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors approved a motion Tuesday to explore the possibility of offering supplemental paid sick leave for people who contract confirmed or suspected monkeypox, and potentially future infectious diseases that require isolation and quarantine. Sponsored by Supervisors Hilda Solis and Sheila Kuehl, the motion directs county attorneys to report back to the board in three weeks on how the county could implement a paid sick leave policy for people who contact monkeypox, or other new and emerging infectious diseases. The motion also urges Gov. Gavin Newsom to sign legislation that would extend…