Chief De Ladurantey said he receives as many citizen complaints from whites as minorities. Please include the number of officer-involved shootings resulting in discipline. Please feel free to try again. Gascn said the texts are proof that some Torrance officers hate the communities they were hired to serve. The grand jury found that Torrance was one of only two police departments among those it reviewed that warned complainants that filing a false claim against a Three years into De Laduranteys tenure, though, critics question whether much has changed. James Queally writes about crime and policing in Southern California, where he currently covers Los Angeles Countys criminal courts and the district attorneys office. Service of the Summons and Complaint were executed upon V. Padila- Desk Officer in compliance with Federal Rules of Civil Procedure by personal service. district attorneys office memo that determined the fatal shooting was justified. 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Torrance did indicate it would comply with most recommendations made by the grand jury though, including: Five of the police departments surveyed Torrance was not one of them did not use complaints to identify potential problems, which the grand jury concluded was the entire point of an effective complaint system. Please include documentation regarding how many of these officer-involved shootings involved disciplinary action. Grand jury investigation spurs Torrance to, Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window), Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window), Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window), Grand jury investigation spurs Torrance to change police-complaint forms, Hermosa Beach Police arrest 2 men suspected in shooting attempt, LAPD union wants to hand nonviolent calls over to to unarmed responders, Lunafest returns as a live event in Redondo Beach on March 5, Retired LA Kings star Dustin Brown honored in Hermosa Beach, grand jury report titled Policing the Police, Alpine Village, for decades a German American hub, faces unknown future, Real snow falls at Disneyland not the fake soapy stuff, Is there a problem with paying cash for a car? Then, twice in three months, came federal civil rights lawsuits by citizens claiming that they were wrongfully stopped. WebUtilize judgment in screening and maintaining the confidentiality of concerns or complaints presented by students, faculty, staff, applicants, vendors or the general public. This isnt just a lone wolf, this is a huge group.. The inquiry is an expansion of a probe that began in 1993, when the government sued Torrance to stop what it described as racially biased hiring practices in the citys police and fire departments. It is really a surprising abdication of their responsibility as elected officials to respond to their constituents and to express the will of their constituents, said Jody David Armour, a lawyer and professor at the University of Southern California Gould School of Law in an interview Friday. The city has doled out millions of dollars in recent years to settle lawsuits charging officers with everything from using excessive force to orchestrating massive cover-ups. Records operates on a round-the-clock basis, performing We catch em (criminals), and the community likes that.. You dont hang the star, someone wrote back. I would prefer the request filled electronically, by e-mail attachment if available or CD-ROM if not. . Tomsic filled out a California Highway Patrol form attesting that the vehicle had not been vandalized, and had it towed by driver Chris Dunn to the impound yard at Van Lingen Towing. Civil rights activists and police watchdog groups claim that the department is among the most racially biased and militaristic in Southern California. A lot of times people complain about the lack of local control and how other decision makers far removed are trying to call the shots, Armour said. Community Lead Officer: 310-618-6389. Katz said the text messages call into question the credibility of the officers accounts of any past use-of-force incidents involving Black or Latino suspects. And its not new., De Ladurantey flatly denies that his officers pull over motorists because of the color of their skin, but acknowledges that part of a police officers job is to sense deviation. Plaintiff. Lacey cleared the officers of wrongdoing in all three deaths, but Gascn has reopened the investigation into Mitchells killing . Records operates on a round-the-clock basis, performing numerous tasks aiding our department, other law enforcement agencies, and the general public to gain access to necessary records. The sum was upped to $9 million by a judge and the case finally was settled for $6.5 million. Complaints were filed directly with the department because, unlike a number of Southern California cities, including Los Angeles, Torrance has no citizen commission overseeing its Police Department. For assistance A knife was recovered at the scene. The Justice Department filed a lawsuit against Torrance--as well as others against El Monte, Alhambra and Pomona--claiming that the police and fire departments discriminated against minorities during hiring. Which of the above data are published publicly? Jose Esparza, 19, Luis Ortiz, 20, and Jose Rodriguez, 21, described similar comments by police in a federal civil rights lawsuit filed against the department last month. We have a group of officers who, apparently in addition to harboring very biased and racist beliefs, also may be engaging in inappropriate force that could be illegal in some cases, he said. Part of our responsibilities includes interpreting federal and state laws, as well as departmental policy in determining the release and retrieval of confidential criminal information. Although the officers actions were found to be justified in each case, experts say those cases should be reexamined in the context of the hateful messages. The Records Division public counter is located in the main lobby of the Police Department. Web47 6 thatphanom.techno@gmail.com 042-532028 , 042-532027 According to an investigation by The Times, the theft of 44 guns from an L.A. gun store has spurred a cascade of allegations against LAPD officers and a roiling department scandal. One of the suspects arrested there owned a Silver Hyundai Elantra parked on Maricopa. . At certain levels noises are The invisible line arcs southeast across the top of Torrance, a theoretical border separating the crime-addled heart of Los Angeles County from the relative peace of its coastal suburbs. Gascn has hired a special prosecutor to review for possible criminal charges. After a grueling six-week trial, a jury awarded the family of a young motorcyclist $5.9 million after he was struck and killed by an off-duty sergeant who had been drinking. According to a Times review of public records, Concannon has shot only one person during his career: Christopher DeAndre Mitchell. The cost for an oversight commission in Torrance varies heavily depending on what type of model the city would opt for. WebTorrance Police Department Internal Affairs. The officers described the weapon, later determined to be a break barrel air rifle, as pinched between Mitchells legs, though neither alleged he grabbed it or pointed it at them before they opened fire. Katz, the former independent police auditor, described those statistics as concerningly low.. The pair allegedly spray-painted a swastika and a happy face inside the vehicle, according to a criminal complaint. Non-Emergency Police Response: (310) 618-5641 3300 Civic Center Drive, Torrance CA 90503 Animal Control: 310-618-3850 Community Affairs : 310-618-6392 The following services are available at the public counter without an appointment: Additional services available only by appointment, or mail-in / drop-off options: 3031 Torrance Blvd, Torrance, CA 90503 | P: (310) 328-5310 | Contact | Login. Torrance, CA 90503-5056. Pursuant to the California Public Records Act (California Government Code 6250), I hereby request the following records: We are Economics Professors in the College of Business at Ferris State University, and are engaged in an empirical research project on police behavior and citizen complaints. Dunn said he was frustrated that he was getting blamed for the vandalism. Former Daily Breeze reporter and columnist Nick Green retired in 2021 after more than two decades with the newspaper covering Torrance, Lomita, Carson, the Palos Verdes Peninsula, soccer and the craft beer industry. For example, some departments do not count misses while others count all discharges; some include shots at animals. WebCurrent Announcements for Positions. The tape showed them continuing to choke and beat Tice, who is white, well after he became unconscious. Minutes later, firefighters on scene noted Ross pulse was beginning to weaken. Daniels, who is black, moved to Torrance from Michigan this summer to pursue an acting career, and claims that he was pulled over seven times in three months yet never cited. And new officers, according to claims in the court papers, are often instructed by their training supervisors to stop and question black motorists without cause. WebNon-Emergency Police Response: (310) 618-5641 3300 Civic Center Drive, Torrance CA 90503 . The Times identified 13 officers in its investigation, including Tomsic, Weldin and Schroeder, meaning there are an additional five Torrance officers under investigation whose identities remain unknown to the public. California Atty. I dont want to have a board that is nothing more than a place that people come and give their complaints.. A key purpose for receiving and investigating complaints is to identify law enforcement personnel that frequently or habitually engage in inappropriate behavior, the report said. There are no results that match your search. The answer, according to the caption, was to break a tail light on his car so the police will stop him and shoot him., Someone else sent a picture of a candy cane, a Christmas tree ornament, a star for the top of the tree and an enslaved person.. Another officer then sat on Ross legs before others were able to bind Ross arms and legs with a hobble restraint.. Ross fled from Torrance police when they responded, and became violent when they tried to arrest him, district attorneys records show. What is the total number of citizen complaints (allegations of misconduct) made against your departments officers annually for the last 10 years? All the while, the city contended officers were innocent and that all the allegations were fabricated, including one that officers had squeezed the testicles of three teenage Latino detainees. Gavin Newsom declares state of emergency for LA, San Bernardino counties due to severe winter storms, Alpine Village, for decades a German American hub, faces unknown future, Real snow falls at Disneyland not the fake soapy stuff, Is there a problem with paying cash for a car? . If I were a citizen, youre damned right Id want people stopped . The Times did not independently view documentation of racist text messages sent by any of those four officers, though the newspaper did review a document that showed Concannon sent messages that are part of the investigation. The officers did not necessarily testify in each case, so its unclear how many of those cases could be affected. Such claims represent one of the most sensitive areas of police-citizen relations and were cited as a fundamental cause of both the 1965 Watts riots and the broader 1992 Los Angeles riots. If your department logs complaints in a database, spreadsheet, or other log, a copy of those logs is fine instead. Torrance is no stranger to allegations of racist conduct by its police officers. The governments current inquiry into allegations of racial harassment of the public is simply an effort to bolster its discriminatory hiring case against Torrance, one Justice Department official said. SB 2 is far reaching and it is another model towards police accountability that we didnt have before in the state, Hart said. Admonitions/warnings on complaint forms that may intimidate or discourage persons from completing complaints should not be used. They were stopped, they say, because two of them are black. If you wish to file a formal complaint, it will be necessary for you to complete a personnel complaint form (provided below). . MuckRock is a non-profit collaborative news site that gives you the tools to keep our government transparent and accountable. He eventually went into cardiac arrest and was pronounced dead at a hospital a short time later. A Torrance police officer has been charged with assault for his role in a 2018 shooting. California Atty. One (Torrance officer) said, The white people pay us to keep Mexicans out, said Esparza, a night student at Inglewood High School. 3300 Civic Center Dr. Lopez had been fleeing police in a truck, and the officers said he attempted to ram them when they opened fire, according to a district attorneys office memo that determined the fatal shooting was justified. I am writing to ask for some clarification regarding the data on officer-involved shootings you provided us with. A Long Beach police spokesman said Schroeder was assigned to desk duty pending the outcome of an internal investigation, but would not say why. WebGARDENA POLICE DEPARTMENT - 20 Photos & 43 Reviews - 1718 W 162nd St, Gardena, CA - Yelp Restaurants Home Services Auto Services Gardena Police Department 43 reviews Unclaimed Police Departments Edit Write a review Add photo Save Photos & videos See all 20 photos Add photo Review Highlights Prior to joining the Press-Telegram, she served as the Daily Breeze's lead city hall reporter. However, Jackson rejected the grand jurys request to initiate an appeal process if the complainant is dissatisfied with the disposition of an investigation. County prosecutors had tossed 35 felony cases as of mid-November, and the Torrance city attorneys office has dismissed an additional 50, officials said. maybe its something else. The complaint form and process should not in any way intimidate or discourage potential complainants, the report said. From 2016 to 2019, Torrance police upheld just three citizen allegations of police misconduct and zero allegations of racial profiling made against officers, according to data submitted to the California attorney generals office. From what I can tell . His work has been recognized by the National Headliner Club, the Associated Press Sports Editors, the California Newspaper Publishers Association, the Orange County Trial Lawyers Association and the Orange County Press Club. Weldin and Tomsic got the call and rushed to the scene. What got them pulled over, the three allege in their suit, was not erratic driving or outstanding warrants. While I am understanding of the pressures borne by the police, I do not wish my son to live in a world in which he and his friends are confronted and ordered about by two officers at gunpoint, in which he is intimidated and traumatized by uniformed thugs . with conspiracy and vandalism for allegedly spray-painting a swastika inside a vehicle. The Times identified 13 officers in its investigation, including Tomsic, Weldin and Schroeder, meaning there are an additional five Torrance officers under investigation whose identities remain unknown to the public. 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Compton, with a population of just 96,000, recorded 62 killings during the same period. We had to [expletive] her up because we knew he wouldnt, one officer wrote in one exchange about an altercation with a female suspect. Although the Rastello case shocked much of Southern California, equally startling was a string of other cases--long kept in private police files and brought up at the trial--that offered a rare peek into disciplinary procedures at the department. The text messages might have remained hidden if not for the alleged bizarre actions of Tomsic and Weldin in January 2020. Two years later, the city agreed to pay $1.9 million to a construction worker shot in the neck by an officer during a 1988 traffic stop, and $1.1 million to a Carson man who claimed that officers broke his neck with a billy club. Morgan Ricketts, the attorney for Pesikov and White, said the councils vote was deeply disappointing., The city of Torrance doesnt even want to know what its own residents think about this issue, she said, and I think that was a fair compromise between the parties.. Ponegalek argued that The Times analysis was incomplete, as it did not include statistics involving complaints filed by other officers. But the blow that many believed would force change in the department came in 1989. Collecting this information is very important to our research, so we would like to emphasize, if you have questions about my request or suggestions, we would be happy to discuss them with you. The department has refused to identify them. But theyve hit a snag, Review: A reimagined Secret Garden fails to flower anew at the Ahmanson Theatre, A $150,000 executive protection dog? Please explain to us how your department classifies the OIS included in the numbers you sent to us. . Kristy Hutchings covers all things Long Beach including local government, politics, and the environment. . He said, You little ----, you went to my watch commander and made a complaint against me. Share & Bookmark, Press Enter to show all options, press Tab go to next option, National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES), Consolidated Plan: HOME, HOME-American Rescue Plan (HOME-ARP), Candidate Registration & Qualification Form, Torrance Police Department Quarterly Reports, Trust Building Campaign - Torrance Police Department Strategic Plan, Property Release from stored/impounded vehicle. Hutchings holds a B.A. Community Affairs: 310-618-6392. The panel also found Torrance was the only city it studied that indicated a police officer may bring a civil action against a complainant who falsely accuses a police officer of misconduct, criminal conduct or incompetence. Good job sticking to the script, he wrote. LMAO, thats what they call a W.. The caption read hanging with the homies.. The city also pointed towards Harts recently established Chiefs Advisory Board which aims to serve as a forum for discussion to foster understanding between the police department and the community as another means of oversight as the city awaits the investigation results and the official establishment of the state oversight board. SB 2 would create a nine-member Peace Officer Standards Accountability Advisory Board within the existing Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST). Without that officer, you couldnt prove that case.. City officials say they are highly skeptical of both stories. Daniels claims that one officer made racial threats during such a stop, and Daniels made a formal complaint against him. 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