Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department

2 Teens Charged In Murder Case That Led To Upscale Rancho Palos Verdes

Two teenagers have been charged with the murder of 42-year-old Long Beach man Christopher Waters, whose body was found April 23 in a burned out SUV in Rancho Palos Verdes. The second of the two suspects, 18-year-old Jose Angel Martinez of Compton, was arrested Wednesday, the L.A. County Sheriff's D ... More >>

Hakop Kaplanyan, UCLA Water Polo Player, Arrested For Alleged On-Campus Rape

Updated at the bottom with the suspect's lawyer saying he had consensual sex with the woman. First posted at 5:25 p.m. Monday. A UCLA water polo player has been arrested on suspicion of rape, according to a university statement. The suspect, 19-year-old Hakop Kaplanyan of Glendale, and the victim ... More >>

Weekend DUI Checkpoints Start Tonight In Hollywood, Silver Lake

April showers bring May flowers. Sure. But an April DUI will only bring you misery for months and years to come. The AAA of Southern California now estimates that the cost of a DUI conviction is $15,649. At the same time, cops across the Southland are giving you an easy out. They're giving you a vi ... More >>

John Clarke Gable, Film Legend's Son, Arrested In Alleged DUI Destruction In Malibu

One way to get cops' attention is crash into six parked cars. In Malibu. Yeah, that's what deputies say John Clarke Gable, the 52-year-old son of Hollywood legend Clark Gable (1901-1960), did yesterday afternoon on Pacific Coast Highway near Malibu Pier. It landed the suspect in jail:

No More Jails Coalition Says New Women's Jail is Sheriff Lee Baca's Latest 'Boondoggle'

The Los Angeles chapter of No More Jails Coalition is taking it to the streets today, telling L.A. County supervisors Zev Yaroslavsky, Mark Ridley-Thomas, Gloria Molina, Don Knabe, and Mike Antonovich that the plan for embattled Sheriff Lee Baca to build a new women's jail is a crazy way to spend mi ... More >>

Rape Attempt At UCLA's Theta Chi Fraternity; Suspect Paul Meyer Arrested

Cops over the weekend alleged that a UCLA student choked a woman with the intent to rape her. The crime at Theta Chi fraternity was reported about 2:30 a.m. Friday. A suspect, 20-year-old Paul Meyer, wasn't booked until 8:13 p.m. that day, according to L.A. County Sheriff's Department inmate data. ... More >>

Humongous Mall Project Sparks Controversy in West Hollywood City Council Race

WEHOville recently broke a jaw-dropping story that's causing a major stir in West Hollywood and could possibly impact any driver passing through that city on Santa Monica Boulevard, which is already a rush hour nightmare. Developer Charles Cohen, who owns the Pacific Design Center and recently adde ... More >>

Have You Seen Molly? Cops Say SGV Gangsters Denis Lam And Ruoyu Mike Dong Have

Madonna last year famously asked, "Have you seen Molly?" The L.A. County Sheriff's Department might have just answered that question. Deputies say they broke up a deal involving 1,000 molly-style ecstasy pills. Two members of an Asian American gang in the San Gabriel Valley were arrested in connect ... More >>

DUI Checkpoints Tonight, Tomorrow For L.A., West Hollywood, Long Beach

As a small warm-up for the massive DUI crackdown scheduled to harsh your mellow New Years Eve, police around the L.A. area are planning DUI checkpoints. Locations include West Hollywood, Long Beach and the San Gabriel Valley. Think of this as practice for Monday, the ultimate amateur night. We'll ... More >>

Victor McClinton Murder Preceded Death Of Two In Pasadena Chase Christmas Night

Updated at the bottom with IDs. City News Service says an FBI agent was involved in the chase. Headline has changed. First posted at 8:01 a.m. Two people were killed on Christmas night when a minivan was hit by an SUV being chased by police in Pasadena, according to reports. One report indicated t ... More >>

Swatting Celebrities, Political Enemies Is High-Tech Vengeance

Swatting is officially a thing. It made the front page of the Los Angeles Times today. Not that the Times hasn't covered the phenomenon before, but this time it's real. The report on people who call the police and say horrible crimes are in progress at the homes of celebrities like Simon Cowell, J ... More >>

Teflon Sheriff Lee Baca, Undersheriff Paul Tanaka Slammed For Jail Violence

We call him the Teflon Sheriff because, despite more than a decade's worth of serious problems inside the L.A. jail system, woes that include gang-like cliques of tatted-up deputies, you keep electing Lee Baca as the county's top cop. Nothing seems to stick. Well, that might have changed today:

Marijuana Crackdown by Feds Targets ALL Downtown, Eagle Rock Pot Shops

See also: *Medical Weed's Stay of Execution in L.A. *How to Grow Weed in Los Angeles If Dispensaries Go Away. Federal authorities today moved to shut down all marijuana dispensaries in the downtown area and Eagle Rock as well as one in the city of Huntington Park. The move is part of an ongoing ef ... More >>

DUI Checkpoints Across L.A. For Memorial Day Weekend: Here's Your Cheat Sheet

Memorial Day weekend is the traditional kick-off for summer. Don't start it $10,000 in the hole, which is about what you will pay in fines and legal costs if you get a DUI -- not to mention a likely night in jail. The CHP, the LAPD and the L.A. County Sheriff's Department will be testing you this ... More >>

Cop Watcher Jailed Twice

Video destroyed by Lee Baca's deputies

Amanda Bynes DUI: Nickelodeon Star Clips L.A. Sheriff's Vehicle While Allegedly Wasted

Is Amanda Bynes the new Lindsay Lohan? Her hair is looking extra fried and face extra puffy these days. But more importantly, the former child star (and up-and-coming West Hollywood party girl) was arrested last night for drunk driving, according to Sergeant Arthur Famble at the West Hollywood Sher ... More >>

Kim Kardashian Only Celebrity in History to Reject White Powder: VIDEO

When some celebrities have a night on the town in West Hollywood and white powder comes their way, it's more than all good: It's a party. When it happens to Kim Kardashian, it's an international incident -- enough to get the tight-lipped L.A. County Sheriff's Department to issue an official statem ... More >>

Ted Nishihara is Latest School Sex Scandal Suspect: Lewd Act Alleged in La Mirada

January's Miramonte Elementary School sex abuse scandal has unleashed a torrent of accusations against area teachers. The latest involves Ted Nishihara, a substitute educator at Los Coyotes Middle School in La Mirada. The 29-year-old was arrested yesterday after a student said he touched her inappr ... More >>

Mark Berndt's $40,000 Payoff

Arrested as sex pervert, former LAUSD teacher settles into retirement

Mark Berndt, Miramonte Elementary School Teacher, Reportedly Took Photos of Kids Bound, Gagged, Crawling With Cockroaches in Sick 'Sex Game'

Update: "'Sex Game' Teacher Mark Berndt Went Free for Over a Year: How Did LAUSD, L.A. Sheriff Let This Happen?" Updated at the bottom: DNA tests show that Berndt spoon-fed the students his own semen. A longtime South L.A. elementary school teacher was fired about one year ago, in January 2011, wh ... More >>

L.A. City Council Silences Public Commenter for Saying 'Pussies' (VIDEO)

About an hour into another snoozeworthy L.A. City Council meeting yesterday morning, a female public commenter injected a little color into the conversation. Antonia Ramirez told her elected officials that some sheriff's deputies in East L.A. had been acting like "unethical corrupted pussies." (OK, ... More >>

Drunk Driving Holiday Arrests Number 1,028 in L.A: Checkpoint Cheat Sheet For This 'Maximum Enforcement' Weekend

Jeremy​The L.A. County Sheriff's Department today boasted that cops have taken down 1,028 alleged drunk drivers since Dec. 16, when a massive drunk-driving crackdown for the holidays launched throughout the region. That number is 104 more than for the same period last year. The operation is ... More >>

Natalie Wood Murdered? Husband Robert Wagner 'Not a Suspect,' Says L.A. Sheriff

Trouble in paradise?​Could Hollywood darling Natalie Wood's fatal drowning in 1981 have been darker than the simple accident it was once ruled to be? Wood and her husband Robert Wagner (truly L.A.'s royal couple at the time), along with their actor friend Christopher Walken, were night-boatin ... More >>

Photography is Not a Crime: ACLU Suing L.A. Sheriff's Department For Detaining Photogs Simply Because They Took Pictures

Jonathan CastilloStop or we'll shoot.​Updated at the bottom with juicy details about how this anti-photog movement in policing actually grew out of an LAPD policy. First posted at 1:29 a.m. We got a lot of attention when we scolded Long Beach police Chief Jim McDonnell for declaring that deta ... More >>

Kenneth Alexander, Sheriff's Deputy, Arrested For Allegedly Molesting 15-Year-Old Girl He Met On-Duty

​Updated at the bottom with charges. (Just posted). A Los Angeles County Sheriff's Deputy assigned to the Marina Del Rey station was arrested for allegedly molesting a 15-year-old girl that authorities say he met while on-duty. A sheriff's statement indicates a phone tip to the Los Angeles ... More >>

Shawne Fletcher, L.A. County Jail Inmate, Sues Sheriff Lee Baca for Another Brutal Beating

Courtesy of Dawn FletcherShawn, after the beating.​Allegations of abuse have been raining down on the L.A. County Sheriff's Department since springtime. LA Weekly writer Chris Vogel's "Men's County Jail Visitor Viciously Beaten by Guards" opened the floodgates for more testimonies, and lawsuit ... More >>

Marie Shipley, DUI Suspect, Arrested for Dragging Grandkids From Car in Apollo Park

The Apollo Park playground.​What was 55-year-old granny Marie Shipley doing in Apollo Park yesterday afternoon? Taking her three small grandkids for a nice Columbus Day cruise in the back of her ride, according to L.A. County Sheriff's Department officials. But not before downing a fair amou ... More >>

Rembrandt Drawing Worth a Quarter Million Stolen From Ritz-Carlton Marina Del Rey

A self-portrait of Rembrandt.​Updated at the bottom: Rembrandt recovered (but no suspects were in custody). First posted at 7:04 a.m. Monday. It sounded like a scene out of a high-intrigue film about white-gloved burglars, something with the tone of a James Bond caper or The Thomas Crown Affa ... More >>

Brent Zubeck, Convicted Bank Robber, on The Loose After Cops Tried to Track Him Down For Alleged Murder of Chatsworth Couple

LAPDBrent Zubeck.​Cops today were looking for a reputed robber in the double homicide of a Chatsworth couple. News reports indicated the bodies of the young pair were found decomposing in an alley and that the smell prompted neighbors to call authorities. They guy they're looking for is 43-ye ... More >>

Search for Missing Woman Dawn Viens Has Investigators Digging Inside Lomita Restaurant

Google mapsThyme Contemporary Cafe.​Updated after the jump: Sheriff's officials say David Viens basically confessed. But they said there might not be any remains under the restaurant. In the latest twist in the saga of missing L.A.-area woman Dawn Viens authorities overnight were digging insi ... More >>

Four Manhattan Beach Police Officers Allegedly Involved in Drunk Hit-and-Run One Year Ago Finally Fired (But Still on Paid Leave)

grunionsmb.comJanuary 31, 2010: One expensive boys' night out for the City of Manhattan Beach​We're big fans of the whole "innocent until proven guilty" thing -- and certainly wish it had applied more thoroughly to cases like that of 18-year-old Jeremy Marks -- but in heel-dragging, money-wast ... More >>

Gloria Allred Blasts Army For Losing Track of Palmdale's Daniel Brazelton, Accused of Raping 15-Year-Old in L.A. County

Daniel Brazelton.​The U.S. Army got the Gloria Allred treatment Monday after a suspect in its custody who was wanted for the L.A.-area rape of a 15-year-old Antelope Valley girl escaped before being captured over the weekend. The teenager, identified at a news conference as Jamie, was alleged ... More >>

'East Side Longos,' LBC Latino Gang, Lose 13 Members to SWAT Crackdown at 4 A.M.

rap.matters.comDon't mess with the Longos -- unless you're a cop with a search warrant​Updated after the jump: A Long Beach gang expert gives us the Longo lowdown. The East Side Longos may have been laughing after Marvin "Shy Boy'' Mercado, an ex-leader of rival gang Asian Boyz, was threatene ... More >>

Three Victims, Possibly Taggers, Dead After Amtrak Train Hits Them In Commerce

Amtrak's Pacific Surfliner.​Updated throughout. Third man confirmed dead. First posted at 11:02 p.m. Monday. Three males were dead after an Amtrak Pacific Surfliner train struck them in Commerce Monday night, according to reports. The pair might have been suspected taggers, and the area wher ... More >>

John Wesley Ewell, Suspected In South Bay Murder Spree, Could Have Been Behind Bars At The Time But Had Lenient Prosecutors, Judge

L.A. County Sheriff's Department.John Ewell could have been in jail. Instead he was allegedly killing.​John Wesley Ewell is accused in a serial rampage that took the lives of four South Bay residents in fall. And, given his record and convictions, he could have been in jail during the crimes. ... More >>

Grim Sleeper Probe Expands To Determine If Suspect Lonnie Franklin Jr. Can Be Connected To Unsolved Murders

LAPDLonnie Franklin Jr.​Los Angeles police on Thursday said detectives were looking into several unsolved homicides -- all with women as the victims -- to see if they might be connected to the Grim Sleeper serial murder case. Lonnie Franklin Jr. was arrested at his home in South Los Angeles W ... More >>

'Survivor' Producer Held In Death Of Wife In Mexico

A photo of the couple on the KTLA News site.​Bruce Beresford-Redman, a producer of the CBS television series Survivor, was being held and questioned in connection with the death of his wife, the owner of popular Palms Brazilian restaurant Zabumba. According to a radio report from Cancun, Moni ... More >>

Leif Garrett Arrested For Alleged Heroin Possession Downtown

​Seventies pop star Leif Garrett was arrested on a subway platform downtown after admitting to having heroin stuffed in his shoe, a Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department spokesman told LA Weekly. Garrett posted $10,000 bail and walked away from jail at 1:35 a.m. Wednesday, spokesman Steve W ... More >>

Gold Line Extension Scrap Book: Baby's First Robbery Caper

Gosh, how fast they grow up. It was only Sunday that the public got its first rides on the newborn Metro Gold Line Eastside Extension. Little tyke was so shiny and innocent, chugging along from downtown to East L.A.Metro​ Then, on Monday, baby took her first urban steps. Two teenage suspects ... More >>

Human Smuggling Ring in Los Angeles Busted by ICE

Unites States Immigration and Custom Enforcement officers arrested today eight people, including a couple and their son in Northeast Los Angeles, on drug trafficking and human smuggling charges. The arrestees had close ties to the Drew Street Clique of the Avenues gang. A ninth suspect remains at l ... More >>

Human Smuggling Ring Busted by ICE; Avenues Gangsters Linked

United States Immigration and Custom Enforcement officers today arrested eight people, including a couple and their son in Northeast Los Angeles, on drug-trafficking and human smuggling charges. The arrestees had close ties to the Drew Street Clique of the Avenues gang. A ninth suspect remains at la ... More >>

Jamiel Shaw's Family Sues L.A. County

The parents and brother of Jamiel Shaw, the Los Angeles High School football player allegedly shot dead by an illegal immigrant and purported gang member, are suing Los Angeles County. The suit, which seeks unspecified damages, charges the L.A. County Sheriff's Department with negligence and violati ... More >>

Grim Sleeper's Sole Survivor

Relishing life, a tough churchgoing mom is at the center of the Los Angeles serial-killer mystery

A Pasadena Author Researching Jogging Trails Cracks an Old Serial-Killer Case

Weston Dewalt's amazing year

Unarmed Man Killed by Deputies in Lennox

A deputy shot and killed a 35-year-old Lennox man on Wednesday night. Deputies patrolling the area believed he was a drug dealer who was reaching for a gun, according to police reports. Christian Portillo, 35, was shot twice in the chest and died at the scene. With the fatal shooting of Portillo ... More >>

Bad Rap: How Aspiring Hip-hop Star Herbie Gonzalez Got Pegged as the Manhattan Beach Housekeeper Murderer

Anatomy of a false confession

Second and Long

Retrial in Inglewood’s videotaped beating case is a test for Steve Cooley

But the ''Y'' Looked Cool

Letters

..."From Liberty Hill to the Living Wage" by Robert Gottlieb and Peter Drier [October 2-8], I assume that both authors come from the Mike Davis school of Los Angeles history, in which Chicanos have played no significant part in this city. ...