Salon.com > Thomas Watkins

Wall of Shame: Police chief may post DUI mug shots on Facebook

Tue, 18 Jan 2011 18:37:00 +0000

Police in a city ranked top in the state for alcohol-related traffic fatalities might soon be trying a new tactic to keep drunken drivers off the road: Electronic shaming on Facebook.

In a contentious move that has raised the hackles of privacy advocates and been met with resistance from a police department fearful of alienating residents, a councilman in Huntington Beach wants police to begin posting the mug shots of everyone who is arrested more than once for driving while under the influence.

"If it takes shaming people to save lives, I am willing to do it," said Devin Dwyer, the councilman behind the proposal. "I'm hoping it prevents others from getting behind the wheel and getting inebriated."

Dwyer initially wanted the police department to post on Facebook photographs of everyone arrested for DUI in the bar-laden beach town just south of Los Angeles. He has watered down his proposal -- now only repeat offenders would be featured on the virtual wall of shame -- in hopes of winning support from the rest of the seven-member council, which is set to vote on the issue Tuesday.

L.A. school district confirms 2 wounded in accidental shooting

Tue, 18 Jan 2011 11:01:00 +0000

A gun in a 10th-grader's backpack accidentally discharged when he dropped the bag, wounding two students at a Los Angeles high school, the campus principal said.

Gardena High School Principal Rudy Mendoza said the student dropped the bag as he walked between classes at midmorning. The boy who brought the gun was apprehended, Mendoza told The Associated Press.

Los Angeles Fire Department Capt. Jamie Moore said two victims were transported to a hospital, one in serious and one in critical condition.

Police initially reported that three people were shot and the shooter was at large.

Numerous law enforcement agencies responded to the shooting at the 2,400-student campus located in the city of Los Angeles adjacent to the city of Gardena.

Gardena police Lt. Steve Prendergast said a teacher called 911 at 10:41 a.m. and Gardena officers initially responded. The investigation was being turned over to Los Angeles city and school district police.

A handful of frantic parents rushed to the school after hearing about the shooting on the news. They paced nervously as they waited behind police tapes for word from their children.

Video shows sexual assaults on disabled women

Thu, 06 Jan 2011 23:30:00 +0000

Los Angeles sheriff's investigators have uncovered shocking video showing a group of men sexually assaulting at least 10 severely handicapped women.

The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department said Thursday that an anonymous individual dropped off DVDs copied from a computer hard drive containing over 100 hours of video depicting a sequence of sexual assaults on women, all of whom appear to be disabled.

Authorities say the footage was shot at several locations, including one that appears to be a residential care facility.

Investigators are seeking the public's help in identifying where and when the video was shot, as well as the identity of the suspects who were captured on tape.

The video is not being released, but composite drawings of four of the suspects have been created based on the video footage.

Police: Ex-con acted alone in Ronni Chasen slaying

Thu, 09 Dec 2010 16:49:16 +0000

Hollywood's whodunit about the wealthy publicist gunned down driving home from a movie premiere now appears to be more of a garden-variety crime gone wrong.

Police on Wednesday said preliminary ballistics tests showed the gun a man used to kill himself as officers went to talk to him about Ronni Chasen's killing was the same weapon that was used to kill her.

Harold Martin Smith, 43, a down-on-his-luck ex-convict with a rap sheet spanning at least 25 years, had apparently ridden his bicycle to a dark intersection on Sunset Boulevard then attempted to rob Chasen.

"This was a random act of violence. With Mr. Smith's background, we believe that it was most likely a robbery gone bad," Beverly Hills police Sgt. Mike Publicker said. "Through the interviews and the information we received, that leads us to believe that he was at a desperate point in his life, and was reaching out and doing desperate measures."

Smith committed suicide Dec. 1 as police, acting on an anonymous tip left with the TV show "America's Most Wanted," went to speak with him at a seedy Hollywood apartment building from which he had recently been evicted. Before police could talk to him, he pulled out a revolver and shot himself in the head.

L.A. police move to quell more shooting protests

Wed, 08 Sep 2010 22:19:00 +0000

Police mobilized Wednesday to avoid more mayhem on the streets after being taken by surprise at consecutive nights of violent protests sparked by the fatal shooting of a knife-wielding man.

The police chief, city officials and consuls general from three Latin American countries scheduled a community meeting as senior officers tried to reach out to residents of the central Los Angeles neighborhood where the man was shot.

Sunday's killing of Manuel Jamines, 37, has turned into a rallying point as community members, aided by outsiders, have taken to the streets for two nights running and used the death to highlight past injustices and vent ongoing frustrations.

Police have defended the killing and said they've been taken aback by the level of protest for a case that seemed like a clear-cut case of justifiable use of force. Each year, the LAPD is involved in up to about 40 shootings -- those that typically cause controversy involve unarmed or surrendered suspects.

Residents outraged over the killing have said police should have handled the situation differently and say the surprise by department brass shows that the force is out of touch with the people.

L.A. authorities plan to use heat-beam ray in jail

Thu, 26 Aug 2010 22:52:00 +0000

A device designed to control unruly inmates by blasting them with a beam of intense energy that causes a burning sensation is drawing heat from civil rights groups who fear it could cause serious injury and is "tantamount to torture."

The mechanism, known as an "Assault Intervention Device," is a stripped-down version of a military gadget that sends highly focused beams of energy at people and makes them feel as though they are burning. The Los Angeles County sheriff's department plans to install the device by Labor Day, making it the first time in the world the technology has been deployed in such a capacity.

The American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California criticized Sheriff Lee Baca's decision in a letter sent Thursday, saying that the technology amounts to a ray gun at a county jail. The 4-feet-tall weapon, which looks like a cross between a robot and a satellite radar, will be mounted on the ceiling and can swivel.

It is remotely controlled by an operator in a separate room who lines up targets with a joystick.

The ACLU said the weapon was "tantamount to torture," noting that early military versions resulted in five airmen suffering lasting burns. It requested a meeting with Baca, who declined the invitation.

Tampering found at deadly L.A. blast

Fri, 30 Jul 2010 18:58:00 +0000

Authorities say a tampered gas line has been found at the scene of a commercial building explosion that killed two people in South Los Angeles.

Southern California Gas Co. spokeswoman Denise King says the meter was shut off and someone hooked up an illegal line that sent natural gas into the building at dangerously high pressure.

Leaking gas is suspected of igniting the blast at 6:15 a.m. Friday in a metal-fabricating firm.

Fire Capt. Stephen Ruda says the blast collapsed and shattered the front of the wooden building.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below.

LOS ANGELES (AP) -- A suspected natural gas explosion Friday shattered a metal-fabricating business and killed two people, including one worker who was hurled across the street by the blast and another man who was electrocuted by a downed power line, fire officials said.

The explosion at about 6:15 a.m. turned the front of the wooden building into a mass of downed, shattered wooden beams. The building caught fire and 100 firefighters doused the blaze in about 25 minutes, fire spokesman Erik Scott said.

A worker was thrown into the street and died from his blast injuries, fire Capt. Stephen Ruda said.

Official: 2 dead in Los Angeles explosion

Fri, 30 Jul 2010 18:30:00 +0000

A fire official says a second man has died after an apparent gas leak explosion shattered an industrial building in South Los Angeles.

Fire Capt. Stephen Ruda says one man died when hurled from the building by the 6:15 a.m. blast Friday, and a second man died at a hospital after he was hit with 34,500 volts from a downed power line whilr trying to move his truck away from the wreckage.

Ruda says dogs were sent in to search the building after reports that a third person might be trapped, but they found nothing. Ruda says heavy equipment will now move debris as the search continues.

The business manufactured security doors and fences. Ruda says leaking natural gas or some industrial gas may have collected in the building overnight.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below.

LOS ANGELES (AP) -- A suspected natural gas explosion Friday at an industrial plastic-coating shop collapsed part of the building and hurled two workers into the street, killing one and leaving the other in critical condition, fire officials said.

1 dead, 1 critical after L.A. explosion

Fri, 30 Jul 2010 17:30:00 +0000

A suspected natural gas explosion Friday at an industrial plastic-coating shop collapsed part of the building and hurled two workers into the street, killing one and leaving the other in critical condition, fire officials said.

The two-story wooden building in South Los Angeles was shaken by the violent explosion about 6:15 a.m. that turned the front of the structure into matchsticks. The building caught fire and 100 firefighters doused the blaze in about 25 minutes, fire spokesman Erik Scott said.

One of the workers thrown into the street was wedged under a car and had to be freed by firefighters.

There were unconfirmed reports that another person might be trapped in the building, Scott said.

Daniel Ibarra, who works at the building, said he was taking out the trash when the blast hit. The 27-year-old man appeared in shock as he leaned against a wall with a bruised leg surveying the damage.

"I was very lucky," said Ibarra, whose thick black hair was singed on top.

Jonathan Apol, 20, a welder who works in a building next door, said he was putting on his work clothes when he heard the explosion.

"I thought it was like an earthquake or something," he said.

Calif. police department on alert for deadly traps

Fri, 19 Mar 2010 14:25:00 +0000

Police in this picturesque city in rural Riverside County have been on edge in recent weeks. Someone is trying to kill them.

First, a natural gas pipe was shoved through a hole drilled into the roof of the gang enforcement unit's headquarters. The building filled with flammable vapor but an officer smelled the danger before anyone was hurt.

"It would have taken out half a city block," Capt. Tony Marghis said.

Then, a ballistic contraption was attached to a sliding security fence around the building. An officer opening the black steel gate triggered the mechanism, which sent a bullet within eight inches of his face.

In another attempted booby trap attack, some kind of explosive device was attached to a police officer's unmarked car while he went into a convenience store.

"There's a person or people out there, a bunch of idiots, trying to do damage to us," Hemet Police Chief Richard Dana said. "We can't expect our luck to hold up, we need help."

Since New Year's Eve, there have been several other booby trap attempts to kill officers, Dana said.

"The only reason they haven't killed an officer yet is because we've been observant enough to see devices planted around the station and in cars and different places," he said.

Jackson’s doctor arrives in Los Angeles

Tue, 02 Feb 2010 22:02:00 +0000

Michael Jackson's physician has arrived in Los Angeles in anticipation of a decision from the district attorney's office on whether to charge him for the singer's death, a spokeswoman said Tuesday.

Dr. Conrad Murray, who practices in Houston, arrived in Los Angeles last weekend and one of his lawyers, Edward Chernoff, plans to join him, spokeswoman Miranda Sevcik said.

"Dr. Murray is in Los Angeles for a dual purpose -- on family business and to be available for law enforcement," Sevcik said. "We're trying to be as cooperative as we can."

There is no official word on when an announcement about any charges might come. David Walgren, the deputy Los Angeles County district attorney handling the case, declined to comment Tuesday.

The district attorney's office has for weeks been working closely with Los Angeles Police Department investigators to build a case against Murray. Two law enforcement officials have told the AP that Murray is likely to be charged with involuntary manslaughter in Jackson's June 25 death from an anesthetic overdose.

The officials spoke only on condition of anonymity because they are not authorized to speak publicly about the case.

Use of Twitter, Facebook rising among gang members

Tue, 02 Feb 2010 15:02:00 +0000

When a gang member was released from jail soon after his arrest for selling methamphetamine, friends and associates assumed he had cut a deal with authorities and become a police informant.

They sent a warning on Twitter that went like this: We have a snitch in our midst.

Unbeknownst to them, that tweet and the traffic it generated were being closely followed by investigators, who had been tracking the San Francisco Bay Area gang for months. Officials sat back and watched as others joined the conversation and left behind incriminating information.

Law enforcement officials say gangs are making greater use of Twitter and Facebook, where they sometimes post information that helps agents identify gang associates and learn more about their organizations.

"You find out about people you never would have known about before," said Dean Johnston with the California Bureau of Narcotics Enforcement, which helps police investigate gangs. "You build this little tree of people."

In the case involving the suspected informant, tweets alerted investigators to three other gang members who were ultimately arrested on drug charges.