During a SWAT team standoff in Arleta Tuesday night, a young woman stole a police squad car and enjoyed a brief joy ride. Police officers and a SWAT team had barricaded an assault suspect in a home around 7pm when the woman hopped into a patrol car, which was being used by an officer guarding the perimeter of the barricade.
Woman Steals Police Car During SWAT Standoff, Goes For Quick Joy Ride
Long Beach Motel Gunman Arrested for Murder of Stepson
The gunman who barricaded himself inside a Long Beach motel room Monday morning was in fact the prime suspect in the shooting death of a man in Arleta the night before, says the LAPD. Following a standoff with Long Beach police and LAPD SWAT officers, 58-year-old Antonio Meza was taken into custody and transferred to the LAPD and charged in the murder of his stepson, 31-year-old Marco Hernandez, who had been shot multiple times in the living room of a residence on Canterbury Avenue the night before. The case is expected to be brought to the DA tomorrow.
About that Car Chase on the 405 this Morning...
If you saw that car chase going up the 405 this morning, here's what happened, according to the California Highway Patrol. Officers attempted to pull over a man driving northbound on the 405 freeway in the Carson area around 8:45 a.m. But the man fled, going up to speeds of 90 miles per hour (he was going opposite of rush hour traffic at times). He made his way to the San Fernando Valley, hooked a right onto the 118 Freeway before heading back south on the 5 Freeway, exiting at Roscoe Boulevard in the Los Angeles neighborhood of Sun Valley. The chase ended around 9:40 a.m. in the driveway of a house on a side street in neighboring Arleta when police surrounded and arrested him. His name has not been released yet, nor the reason why officers initially wanted to pull him over.
Bloody, Bloody Weekend
For the Los Angeles region this weekend, it was a deadly one. At least ten people died by CBS2's count, four of them within Los Angeles:
Crime Blotter: Murders, Road Rage & Cockfighting
Have you seen Santa trying to cross the street this holiday season? Did you yield to him or were you naughty? Those who are bad are getting tickets in the LAPD's Santa Claus Crosswalk Enforcement Detail. You may have also seen a rise in DUI Sobriety Checkpoints, and heard of the free MTA riding this Christmas and New Year's. It's been a busy week for the LAPD and here is some blotter info: A 20-year...
LAPD v. Rotweiler
On Monday afternoon in Arleta, LAPD's Foothill Division was called to a house for a "burglar there now" call from a neighbor. Three officers responded with two entering through the garage in the back and one through a side gate from the front. As the first two officers walked through the backyard, a rotweiler charged at them. The officers fired their guns and the dog ran down the side of the house towards the third...
The Valley Gets Tough on Shopping Carts
Maybe you've seen them. They might be congregated like an ominous gang in the shadows of the parking lot at the Jons. Maybe a lone one watches you get off the bus while leaning up against a palm tree. Or perhaps you'll see and old one wading in the LA River, frozen, like if it doesn't move you won't notice it. Shopping carts are loved by small children and the homeless alike, but Van...

