Page 8 June 18, 2015 EL SEGUNDO HERALD Crime from front page WE VALUE EL SEGUNDO AS EL SEGUNDO PUBLIC SAFETY PERSONNEL, WE VALUE THE COMMUNITY WE SERVE For almost 100 years, we have sworn our lives to protect those who live, work and visit El Segundo. Dedication, training, professionalism, and excellence in service is how we value this relationship. For the past 7 years, we have endured cuts in staffing, salary and benefits to help balance the budget. We respect tough decisions, but with a budget surplus over $3 million, City Council wants deeper cuts. This has put a low value on the skills, abilities and effectiveness of you police officers and firefighters. SHARE YOUR VALUES WITH YOUR ELECTED OFFICIALS www.elsegundofirefighters.org www.elsegundopoa.org backseat so as not to arouse suspicion,” Tavera explained. “The driver then drops them off in a particular area and they knock on doors to see if anyone is home. If someone answers, they have a fake story ready to go. If the home isn’t occupied, they watch it for a bit and then come back in an hour to break in.” Crimes targeted at garages or carports typically occur after dark or very early in the a.m. The offenders look for unlocked doors and anything of value that is out in the open. “They’ll take iPhones, luggage, bicycles, or anything that isn’t secure,” Tavera said. “We urge citizens to lock their garages, cars and bikes and make sure nothing is visible. These people work fast.” Looking at the remaining Part One crimes, theft/larceny reports also went up 26 percent from 125 from January to May 2014 to 157 this year. On a positive note, several other categories are down. Aggravated assault cases fell 29 percent (from 14 down to 10) and rapes decreased 50 percent (from two reported cases over the first five months of 2014 to one so far this year). Auto thefts have also dropped 40 percent (from 35 to 21) after a major increase last year. Lieutenant Jaime Bermudez attributed much of the downward movement to the deployment of undercover task forces that patrolled the city. “We had a big spike in auto thefts and it was through the roof for awhile, but now the numbers are down dramatically,” Bermudez said, adding that El Segundo hopes to join a County task force devoted to addressing auto thefts—since this type of offense experienced the most notable increase across the state after the passage of AB109 (the legislation that led to early prisoner releases from County jails due to overcrowding and allowed criminals to go back onto the streets with minimal supervision from parole or probation officers). “Virtually all the arrestees in El Segundo come from outside of our community,” Tavera pointed out. “With AB109 and also Prop 47 that drastically reduced the number of crimes that used to be categorized as felonies—such as most cases of drug and firearm possession and also shoplifting--we are getting a lot more people in our community who used to either be in custody or under County oversight. It has really changed how law enforcement is doing business.” Tavera added that crime is on the rise in general throughout the South Bay and that El Segundo is not unique in that regard. However, he admitted that easy access to the Green Line and freeways may be helping bring more criminals into the immediate area. “Last year, we made a robbery arrest from an iPhone theft thanks to a video on the Green Line,” Tavera said. “We traced the suspect back to LA and saw that he got on the Green Line there and came to our city. We found out he was a high school student and we were able to file a case.” The use of video surveillance has also proven to be a huge asset for local police. “There are so many affordable cameras now that the number of people installing them in homes is growing every week,” Bermudez reported. In fact, the El Segundo Police Department (ESPD) now has a database of local homeowners who have cameras and looks to video evidence as a major tool in solving crime. Data captured via camera may also prove crucial as police continue to investigate a “suspicious death” that occurred on June 7 on the 1700 block of Sycamore Street and made headlines across the Southland. Upon arriving at the scene that afternoon, officers found the body of local resident Kevin Carlson, 21, who had died from a gunshot wound in the upper part of his body. “We received a call shortly before 3 p.m. from his mother [who also lives in the same apartment] that the victim was unresponsive,” Tavera said. El Segundo works the case jointly with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, which arrested 19-year-old Hawthorne resident Chance Kellen Kennedy as a suspect for the crime. Officers also discovered the possible murder weapon near the victim. “While interviewing the witness [mother], we learned that the suspect had previous dealings with the victim,” Tavera said. “We are checking on their past connection and backgrounds.” A judge set Kennedy’s bail at $1 million. At the same time, Tavera emphasized that the actual cause of death is still unknown. “There is a great deal of forensics that need to be analyzed at the LA Sheriff’s crime lab,” he said. “Toxicology alone can take up to eight weeks to come back. And there is also DNA, fingerprinting and gunshot residue. Until we get those results, we are at a standstill and are not at liberty to make any additional comments or speculate on the matter.” Upon final review of all the above as well as any video evidence that may shed additional light, the County coroner will make the ultimate determination if the incident was a homicide, accident or suicide. “We don’t make that decision,” Tavera explained. The last confirmed homicide in El Segundo occurred back in 2008 with the fatal shooting of a 24-year-old man at the Pacific Theatres (now ArcLight) that also resulted in gunshot wounds to two local police officers. Another couple of potential homicide cases remain pending, as officials continue to investigate the deaths of two victims this year from automobile-related incidents to determine if those will be classified as vehicular manslaughter or accidents. In the first situation, a motorist struck and killed 62-year-old Susan Cheng on Mariposa Avenue and Sepulveda Boulevard the evening of January 28. Then about a month later, 25-year-old Lawndale resident Ricky Montoya was killed during a collision at Aviation Boulevard and 124th Street while riding his bike home. “These are terrible tragedies, but don’t represent a trend that homicides are suddenly beginning to occur in El Segundo,” Tavera said. “It is truly anomaly for us to have these.” While the department continues to run a bit below its allotted personnel numbers, Tavera hopes to get the go-ahead to hire more officers in the future to help combat rising crime. Yet regardless of how many uniformed people are out there, the Chief emphasized that citizens themselves are more vital than ever. “The residents and businesses are our first line of eyes and ears,” Tavera said. “So if anyone sees something suspicious, call us. We are pushing the mantra, ‘See something, say something…’ and also, ‘Move it or lose it…’ when it comes to leaving valuables where criminals can see them.” These messages as well as updates on crime trends, burglaries and how citizens can be proactive were front and center during the ESPD’s Neighborhood Watch in the Park event at Library Park on June 13. “We hope this also leads to more Neighborhood Watch groups forming in town,” Tavera said about the program in which residents organize into small groups that learn crime prevention techniques and cover a set radius in and around their homes. “We are doing everything we can to get out there and address the crime increases, but we need our local citizens more than ever to help us.” • “Part one crimes are up once again in El Segundo to start 2015, as the combined impacts of prison realignment and reduced penalties for certain offenses continue to wreak havoc on law enforcement.”
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