News & Commentary

By Hector Villagra, @OHectorV

The Los Angeles Police Protective League (PPL) has, as a "public service," published an announcement concluding "that when you are detained by a police officer, you must provide identification when asked to do so, or face arrest for obstructing or delaying a police officer." This conclusion is incorrect, and we want to set the record straight on this important issue that has recently been at the center of public debate.

By: Peter Bibring, @PeterBibring Today, the LA Times reported that “the number of cases with unanalyzed fingerprint evidence has more than doubled in the last two years” — to 5,455 — “hampering efforts to solve thousands of burglaries, thefts and other property crimes.”

By: Peter Bibring and Jennifer Lynch In a ruling that will harm the public’s ability to engage in an informed debate over the use of automated license plate readers (ALPR) in California, a judge late last week rejected EFF and the ACLU Foundation of Southern California’s argument that the Los Angeles Police Department and Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department should hand over a week's worth of license plate data.

By: Peter Bibring

Last week, Pasadena Police Chief Phillip Sanchez announced that shootings involving officers of the Pasadena Police Department will be investigated by the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department from now on, rather than by PPD’s own investigators. This move was hailed in some quarters as an improvement in oversight of the department. Sadly, it is a step backward.

Since a federal court ruled the NYPD’s practice of aggressively stopping and searching residents unconstitutional, New York Mayor-elect Bill de Blasio has been looking for someone to lead and reform the NYPD. He’s now tapped Bill Bratton, who steered the LAPD out from under a federal consent decree.

As the mother of an African-American boy, the tragic, unnecessary death of Trayvon Martin and the trial and subsequent acquittal of George Zimmerman have me heartbroken and filled with unanswerable questions.

Police department policy manuals are public documents that should be readily available to citizens on municipal websites, pursuant to public document requests, or at the very least at public libraries.