$50,000 Reward Offered in Killing of 15-year-old

I joined LAPD Capt. Anita Ortega and Hollenbeck detectives today to announce a $50,000 reward for the arrest and conviction of the person or persons responsible for the Dec. 7, 2009 shooting death of a 15-year-old boy in Boyle Heights. According to detectives, the shooting took place at about 7:30 a.m. as the Mendez Learning Center student was standing on the north side of East Cesar Chavez Avenue near St. Louis Street when he was approached by a suspect who fired multiple shots at him with a semiautomatic handgun. The person suspected in the shooting was caught on video fleeing the scene with a gun in his or her hand wearing a gray hooded sweatshirt and blue jeans. The reward motion was introduced in Council today, and our hope is the public responds to this plea so we can get this extremely dangerous individual off our streets.

Calls may be directed to LAPD Hollenbeck Homicide Detectives Marin or Negrete at (323) 342-8961. Afterhours and on weekends: 1-877-LAPD-24-7 (527-3247). Anyone who prefers to remain anonymous may call “Crimestoppers” at 800-222-TIPS (800-222-8477). Tipsters can also contact Crimestoppers by texting 274637 (C-R-I-M-E-S on most keypads) with a cell phone. All text messages should begin with the letters “LAPD.” Tipsters may also go to LAPDOnline.org, click on "webtips" and follow the prompts.

Census Count Begins in March

I joined the Mayor and Census LA Director Jamey Christy for a press conference today hoping to get the word out that the 2010 Census is coming soon and all Angelenos need to participate. This year’s Census will have implications that will be felt for an entire decade. My office is working on creating a CD 14 Counting Committee to make sure we do all we can to get people to fill out the Census' easy 10-question survey.