A member of the Los Angeles Police Department's elite SWAT team was shot dead in a gunbattle with a barricaded suspect in the San Fernando Valley this morning. * UPDATE: The suspect was killed in an exchange of gunfire with police around 7:30 a.m., leaving the death toll at 5 (AP). The Mayor has lowered city flags in honor of the officer killed on duty. Randal Simmons, 51, a 27-year veteran officer with the LAPD,......

View Larger Map It's safe to say that the 15 or so mile east-west Sherman Way has been a deadly topic in the news lately. On September 16, Daily News reported in an article about deadly Valley streets for pedestrians that "30 people were killed and more than 90 seriously hurt on just two streets - Sherman Way and Vanowen Street." (link not available, the paper doesn't archive their stories online for very long) An......

If you see the LA City Council around any of these intersections, may we suggest that you honk if you're horny. According to CBS2, they've got the green light to put digital cams in 22 intersections and these 22 are on their radar. -- Griffin Avenue and North Main Street -- Beverly Boulevard and Western Avenue -- Broadway and Vernon Avenue -- Arlington Avenue and Venice Boulevard -- Balboa Boulevard and Vanowen Street --......

A review of this month's LA Police Department crime blotter reveals that the rain hasn't put a damper on mayhem in the city. A. On Sunday, January 9, 2005, at about 1:00 a.m. North Hollywood officers and Fire Department personnel responded to Vanowen Street west of Laurel Canyon Boulevard for a radio call of a "Man Down." The victim was discovered on the sidewalk suffering from a stab wound to his right thigh. He......