Keep Bailing

Local police precincts throughout Los Angeles County have said they have already begun preparing for a widespread DUI crackdown on Super Bowl Sunday.   Their message for those contemplating driving while under the influence is simple.

Don’t do it.

NBC Los Angeles reported the Los Angeles Police Department Avoid the 100 DUI Task Force said they will be deploying special roving DUI patrols on Sunday, Feb. 5  in communities throughout the area looking to stop and arrest drivers who are impaired by alcohol or drugs. These DUI patrols are, in addition to regularly scheduled patrol officers, all looking for the tale-tell signs of an intoxicated driver behind the wheel.

In 2010, over 10,000 people were killed in motor vehicle traffic crashes that involved at least one driver or motorcycle rider with a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of .08 or higher, law enforcement officials said.  In California, this led to 791 deaths because someone failed to designate a sober driver.

If you are hosting a Super Bowl XLVI Party, you are asked to:

• Make sure all of your guests Read more »

The LAPD Habitual DUI Offenders Unit (H2O) is on the lookout for DUI offenders who are driving around on a suspended license. According to Mothers Against Drunk Driving, nearly 50 to 75 percent of all convicted drunk drivers will still drive even if their license is suspended.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Commission, it is believed that nearly 8 percent of fatal alcohol-related accidents are caused by repeat DUI offenders. Last year in California, 791 people were killed in alcohol-related accidents. This number has been declining due to increased public awareness and law enforcement.

The H2O Unit arrested 104 of the nearly 500 offenders that they had been monitoring last year. Just in the Valley this year, there have been 962 DUI accidents with four people killed. In 2010, there were 985 crashes with four people killed.

It is estimated that over 300,000 Californians have been convicted of three or more DUI offenses and Read more »

The North Hollywood Division of the Los Angeles Police Department has reportedly given over 1000 gifts at six local schools and the Four Seasons elder care facility this week to deliver toys to needy children.

Santa helped deliver the gifts which donated by area residents and businesses at various donations sites throughout the North Hollywood community.  On Monday, a “community caravan” will also take place in which an “equal number of toys” will be given out to children within poorer neighborhoods serviced by the North Hollywood Station.

The LAPD North Hollywood Police Station serves Read more »

The Los Angeles Times as reported that there has been a “recent upswing” in attempts to hack LAPD websites and computers.   None of the attempts, said police officials, have been successful.

The LAPD has been on heightened alert since the home address, telephone number, cell phone number and email address of the UC Davis police officer who pepper-sprayed student protesters was posted on-line by the hacking group “Anonymous”.

“Anonymous” initiates active civil obedience through “hacktivism” and has made a name for itself through releasing personal, classified and private information of its targets.  CNN has posited the group as being one of the three major successors to WikiLeaks.

The group has recently been linked to attacks launched on the websites of the Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) system and the Fullerton Police Department.  Last summer, “Anonymous” said it would take down the Fullerton PD website entirely if it didn’t submit to demands regarding the August beating death of a homeless man.  Those demands included the resignation of the police chief as well as the prosecution of the five officers involved in the beating.  The attack, which claimed would “remove entirely” the website from the world wide web as well as black-fax and email-bomb every inbox at the Department was not successful. BART, however, was forced to shut down MyBART.org temporarily until the website could be re-secured.

Reportedly, most of the attempted hacks to the Los Angeles Police Department have been an attempt to gain access to Read more »

I didn’t need to see the morning news to find out that the LAPD cleared out the Los Angeles Occupy site. Instead, we were answering calls from family looking to post bail bonds for the protesters.

Apparently, more than 200 Occupy Los Angeles protestors were arrested early this morning in what the Los Angeles Police Department calls a “peaceful sweep”. LAPD Police Chief Charlie Beck addressed the media shortly after the disbandment of the camp, saying that the arrests were “mainly peaceful”.

Arrestees were loaded onto buses and taken to the LAPD Metro Jail to be booked and processed.  Bail for those that called us was set at $5,000. The jailer at the downtown LA Metropolitan Center Jail told us that protestors would not be released on their own recognizance or “cited out” as protesters usually are. We are somewhat skeptical of that given the already overcrowded Los Angeles jail systems. However, each individual will certainly be screened for warrants on a nation-wide basis. So with so many individuals to book in, any release, be it on bail or otherwise will be hours away.

According to  the Los Angeles Times, several hundred police officers arrived at the camp just after midnight and surrounded the encampment and declared it to be an “unlawful assembly”. Occupiers were told Read more »

With the official kick off of the holiday shopping season just a day away, members of the Los Angeles Police Department are urging shoppers to exercise care so as to avoid becoming victims of theft.

Simple things, they say, such as remembering to lock vehicle doors and storing packages in the trunk can go a long way.  Persons who leave packages and gifts in plain sight have a higher likelihood of having their cars broken into and their items stolen.

The message being relayed is relatively simple:
• Lock It: Lock your vehicle every time you leave it unattended and always lock your valuables in the trunk.
• Hide It: If you don’t have a trunk, hide valuables under the seats, in the glove box, or other compartments within the   vehicle.
• Keep It: Personal responsibility is the best prevention to safeguard personal property and to prevent becoming a victim

CBS Los Angeles has reported that owners of American-made sport utility vehicles should Read more »

If you’ve ever picked up an entertainment magazine you’ve likely seen a story or two about an actor diving head first into research for an upcoming role.

Lucy Liu, who first became famous for her role in Ally McBeal; is no exception to that rule. Her newest acting gig  has landed her a recurring part on the TNT drama Southland, where she plays a hardworking member of the Los Angeles Police Department.

In order to better acquaint herself with the part,  Read more »

Many holidays, Halloween included, are oftentimes linked to a spike in DUI arrests. Reporting that sobriety checkpoints will be set up throughout California this weekend to ensure drivers, passengers and pedestrians remain safe while celebrating Halloween.

The Los Angeles Police Department is advising that those who are attending parties to plan a safe way hope prior to arriving and/or to designate a sober driver to get them home at the end of the night. It’s also recommended those who have had a few too many drinks call a taxi, friend, roommate, or family member or to take public transportation to get home.  It’s further suggested that if you see someone who is visibly impaired who is about to get behind the wheel, to take their keys and assist in getting them home safely.

In our experience, most people who are arrested for first time DUI are Read more »

California Gov. Jerry Brown has recently signed a number of bills into law, including one that prohibits Californians from carrying unloaded handguns without a permit.  The new law will go into effect on Jan. 1 2012, reports Southern California Public Radio station KPCC.

The second measure seeks funding for newly mandated prison realignment, which went into effect earlier this month. The mandate requires inmates convicted of “low-level” felonies be transferred from state to local prisons.  It also provides for the release of 30,000 inmates.

Clearly, this impacts the LAPD and Los Angeles jails. Many Los Angelenos, for obvious reasons, are wondering how this will effect their day-t0-day lives. In a recent interview with KPCC, Los Angeles Police Department Chief Beck broke it all down.

• On The New Open-Carry Restriction:  “Carrying guns openly in public is most certainly a recipe for disaster,” Beck told KPCC. “Los Angeles police officers would certainly detain more people with guns which is always dangerous, and I’m glad that doesn’t have to happen.”

• On Prison Realignment:   “This is very much doing something that I don’t like to do, which is building the plane while you fly it. I don’t like Read more »

Operations Valley Bureau Deputy Chief Kirk Albanese has been tapped to head the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) Detective Bureau, said Police Chief Charlie Beck.

According to an Oct. 10 report by the LA Times, Albanese will replace soon-to-be-retiring Deputy Chief David Doan.    Albanese, a 31-year veteran, will be replaced by Commander Jorge Villegas. Albanese will report to  Special Operations Assistant Chief Michel R. Moore.

Although may be considered unusual to put a commander at the head of the reigns for an area bureau, Beck cited city “financial issues” as being a driving force behind that decision.

The LAPD Detective Bureau Read more »