Deputy Involved Shooting in East Los Angeles

At LAT, "Sheriff expresses ‘grave concerns’ over fatal shooting by deputies captured on video":

The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department on Friday evening released footage from body-worn cameras that shows several deputies shoot to death a man who was armed with a knife — an incident that Sheriff Alex Villanueva, in a rare criticism of his own deputies, said has given him “grave concerns.”

The Sheriff’s Department published the footage a day after family members of David Ordaz Jr. held a news conference outside the federal courthouse in downtown Los Angeles to announce they were suing Los Angeles County and the four deputies involved in Ordaz’s shooting. Their attorneys also released a video, recorded by a bystander, that shows the moment Ordaz, 34, was fatally shot.

Villanueva, in a statement issued Friday night, said one of the deputies had been relieved of duty and had his police powers suspended, pending an investigation by Sheriff’s Department homicide detectives. He didn’t specify which of the four deputies had been suspended, and the department didn’t immediately return a request for clarification.

The Sheriff’s Department said it will forward the investigation to the FBI for review.

The Sheriff’s Department released excerpts of body-worn camera footage on Friday, along with portions of the 911 call that brought deputies to Ordaz’s East Los Angeles home in the 100 block of North Rowan Avenue the afternoon of March 14.

“Yes, hello, um, I’m currently with someone who is telling me they’re suicidal,” a woman, who later identifies herself as Ordaz’s sister, is heard saying. “I was just wondering if you could guide me on what I can do to help them.”

She told a dispatcher they were sitting in Ordaz’s car, parked outside their family’s home. The dispatcher asked whether Ordaz had any weapons.

“Yeah,” Ordaz said, “I do.”

His sister said he was carrying a knife. The dispatcher asked whether it was a pocketknife...

“It’s a big-ass butcher knife,” Ordaz said. Asked whether he had a history of mental illness or disability, his sister said Ordaz hadn’t been diagnosed with any conditions but had been having suicidal thoughts “for a while.” “He’s also talked about suicide by cop, so I am afraid for that,” she added...

Still more.

 

'Breakthrough' Cases Show the Power of Shots

So says the Los Angeles Times.

Here, "‘Breakthrough’ COVID-19 cases rising in L.A., but the vaccinated are still protected, data show":

Los Angeles County has seen a rise in “breakthrough” coronavirus cases as of late, but data continue to show those who are vaccinated for COVID-19 enjoy vigorous protection — even from the contagious Delta variant — and are far less likely to be hospitalized should they become infected.

The latest figures underscore how the county’s recent coronavirus surge is different from the pandemic’s earlier spikes, both in terms of who is getting sick and how the virus is spreading countywide.

In June, fully vaccinated residents made up 20% of all confirmed coronavirus infections in those 16 and old

er, according to figures from the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health. However, that same month, they accounted for only 8% of all COVID-19 hospitalizations.

That trend has persisted into July. Over the first half of the month, roughly 26% of all diagnosed cases were in fully vaccinated residents, according to figures county Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer presented this week.

This means unvaccinated residents still accounted for almost three times as many infections, even though they’ve been a minority of the population since the start of the month.

And despite the uptick in post-vaccination “breakthrough” cases, the proportion of those people becoming sick enough to require hospitalization over the early part of this month remained essentially flat from June.

“Although vaccinated people are seeing a rise in new COVID diagnosis, they are primarily experiencing their infections not as severe illnesses that bring them to the emergency room, but as bad colds,” Ferrer said this week.

Those who are unvaccinated, she continued, “simply do not have the same level of confidence if they get infected with this virus that it will lead to mild illness.”

Out of the 504 people who died of COVID-19 countywide from April 1 to June 30, 96% were either unvaccinated or had not completed their inoculation regimen, data show.

County health officials are trying to better understand the factors, such as being immunocompromised, that may put fully vaccinated people at risk of dying from COVID-19, Ferrer said.

The rise of vaccinations is also shifting the trajectory of this summer spike. In previous surges, lower-income, densely populated areas were hardest hit as essential workers got COVID-19 on the job and then spread it at home. Areas such as East Los Angeles, the northeast San Fernando Valley and South Los Angeles saw some of the worst spread.

This time is different.

As of July 17, communities that had high rates of transmission included downtown Los Angeles, West Hollywood, Beverly Hills, Venice, Hollywood Hills and Studio City, Ferrer said.

“These are different communities from those with high case rates during our previous surges,” she said. “So far, it appears transmission in these areas is being driven mostly by community spread among young adults.”

In some areas, she added, “there were several smaller outbreaks among persons experiencing homelessness that also may have contributed, just slightly, to the higher rates. And we also have noted that there have been outbreaks in some of these communities at food and bar establishments that also are contributing to the higher rates.”

More than 53% of Angelenos have now been fully vaccinated, according to data compiled by The Times...

Los Angeles Unified to Mandate Covid Testing Regardless of Vaccination Status

Stupid. 

But this vaccine mandate business is taking off everywhere in California. It's out of control. Perhaps enough people will hate it to get Newsom recalled on September 14th.

At First Street Journal, "Los Angeles Unified School District plans on physically assaulting every student and employee, every week":

Have you ever had a COVID-19 test? I have, and it’s a very unpleasant experience. Basically, a nurse sticks a long, stick-mounted cotton swab — think of an eight-inch-long Q-Tip — up your nose to obtain the ‘material’ to be tested. In every state in the union, if you have not consented to this, it would be considered an assault. Does the Los Angeles Unified School District plan on making public education, something required by state law, to be contingent on consenting to be assaulted?

The Los Angeles Unified School District will require all students and employees who are returning for in-person instruction to participate in weekly COVID-19 testing — regardless of vaccination status, the district announced Thursday.

“This is in accordance with the most recent guidance from the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health,” Interim Superintendent Megan K. Reilly said in a statement.  

Really? The LAUSD employees are unionized. Have the District gotten the OK from the employees’ unions for this? What union is going to approve of this kind of employment condition?

LAUSD, the nation’s second-largest school district, had previously said that fully vaccinated students and employees would not require testing. But as schools district-wide prepare to reopen for in-person instruction on Aug. 16, L.A. Unified said it’s closely monitoring evolving health conditions and adapting its response...

In addition to regular testing, safety measures will include: masking for all students, staff and visitors; maximizing physical distancing as much as possible; continuing comprehensive sanitizing efforts, including frequent hand washing; upgraded air filtration systems; and collaborating with health partners and agencies to support free COVID-19 vaccination.

So, if some parents are concerned about the safety of the vaccines, why would they bother with getting their children vaccinated if they will still be subjected to weekly testing, and all of the other COVID-19 restrictions?

And since the vaccines have not yet been approved for children 11-years-old and younger, that means almost every student through the fifth grade will be unvaccinated. Even if the LAUSD changes its mind, and allows vaccinated students and employees to skip the weekly testing, the District are still planning on physically assaulting every student from pre-school through the fifth grade...

Yeah, I had the covid up-the-nose-test and it was perhaps the most awful (and painful) medical test I've had in my entire life.

Still more.

Evelyn Taft's Weekend Forecast

Ms. Evelyn's such a beauty --- and she's got a degree in political science (and journalism) from USC!

At KCBS 2 News Los Angeles:

Los Angeles Officials Urge Caution Amid New Corona Virus Surge

Following-up, "Angelenos Cave to L.A.'s Renewed Mask Mandate."

At LAT, "Even the vaccinated must take precautions as L.A. coronavirus surge worsens, officials say":

With coronavirus cases reaching levels in Los Angeles County not seen since the waning days of the winter surge, public healt

h officials said Thursday that even those who have been vaccinated should take precautions, given how widely the virus is now circulating.

This surge is predominantly hitting people who have not been vaccinated. But with the highly infectious Delta variant racing through the region, additional measures — like wearing masks inside crowded public places — can further armor everyone against transmission.

“Vaccines are like our umbrella: excellent protection on most rainy days. But when the rain gets really intense, for example during a bad thunderstorm, we might also throw on a raincoat,” said L.A. County Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer.

But, “When you have a more infectious variant that’s circulating and you see what we see now, lots of community transmission, you can expect exactly what we’re seeing: lots more people getting infected, including more people who are fully vaccinated,” she added.

That mathematical reality is now playing out. Out of all coronavirus cases confirmed countywide in June, 20% occurred in residents who were fully vaccinated, according to Ferrer.

The figure is not as alarming as it first appears. At the beginning of June, about 44% of residents were fully vaccinated, with the proportion rising above 50% by the end of the month, according to data compiled by The Times. Currently, 53% of L.A. County residents are fully vaccinated.

In other words, even though half of the county was not fully vaccinated in June, this portion of the county’s residents comprised 4 out of 5 newly diagnosed coronavirus cases.

“While our numbers have been going up, they would be much higher if we didn’t have as many people fully vaccinated,” Ferrer said.

She also noted that, among fully vaccinated infectees, “the vast majority of those folks only experienced either no illness or very mild illness.”

County health officials reported 2,767 additional cases Thursday, the second straight day with more than 2,000 newly confirmed infections.

COVID-19 hospitalizations are also rising. On Wednesday, 655 coronavirus-positive patients were hospitalized countywide — nearly triple the number seen a month ago...

More at that top link.

 

Jodie Foster Steps Out in Los Angeles

She should do more movies --- a spectacular woman.

See, "Jodie Foster cuts a casual figure in jeans and a blue T-shirt as she enjoys a relaxing pamper day in Los Angeles.

I mean, what other top actor has their own army?

Local CBS Station Chiefs Ousted

There are 28 CBS-owned local stations across the U.S. 

Heads rolled in Chicago and Los Angeles (and New York too). 

At LAT, "CBS ousts L.A., Chicago station managers after misconduct probe":

CBS’ stations in Los Angeles have been beset by turnover for years. Current and former employees have long complained about the harsh workplace culture, which they allege has been rife with sexual harassment, favoritism, pay discrimination and ageism.

In the last five years, KCBS has been led by two general managers and three news directors. Last year, Howell navigated the L.A. stations through at least two rounds of corporately mandated staff cuts, resulting in the departures of high-profile anchors Jeff Michael and Sandra Mitchell and meteorologist Garth Kemp.

Workplace complaints have festered for years. In 2018, CBS paid a settlement to former KCAL anchor Leyna Nguyen after she complained to KCBS management about inappropriate comments and unwanted touching by a male colleague, according to several people familiar with the matter.

In separate high-profile incident, described in a 2019 story in The Times, popular sports anchor Jill Arrington was denied a salary increase after she learned she was making $60,000 a year less than her male predecessor.

Then-station manager Steve Mauldin allegedly told Arrington in 2018 to “put on a tennis dress.... We’ll put you on tape, and you can make some extra money.” Mauldin denied making the remark.

Mauldin retired in 2019, and Howell was brought in as L.A.'s general manager after leading CBS’ station in Pittsburgh. He was tasked with modernizing the L.A. stations.

Howell could not be immediately reached for comment.

CBS manages KCBS and KCAL jointly, and the stations’ audience lags in size behind market leaders KABC-TV Channel 7, KNBC-TV Channel 4 and Spanish-language stations KMEX-TV Channel 34 and KVEA-TV Channel 52...

RTWT.

Angelenos Cave to L.A.'s Renewed Mask Mandate

Frankly, I think people should rise up against these renewed mandates --- L.A.'s the only county in the state that's brought back masks, and such mandates are virtually nonexistent around the rest of the country.

I mean, well over half the population in the United States is fully vaccinated, and that's not counting those who've survived the affliction and now have natural immunity. And polls show that Americans' fear of the loss of freedoms is the reason hesitant citizens are getting the jab.

So lame. 

At the New York Times, "Wary and Weary, Los Angeles Largely Accepts Restored Mask Mandate":

SANTA MONICA, Calif. — As the sun began to burn through the morning marine layer, patrons of the Third Street Promenade in Santa Monica, Calif., were still adjusting to the new normal, which was pretty much the old normal — an order from Los Angeles County to wear masks indoors in businesses and public places.

Most customers dutifully took their masks on and off at the entrance of shops, where signs were posted to remind them of the policy and where, in some cases, complimentary masks were offered. Out-of-state tourists found themselves wearing masks for the first time in months, sometimes annoyed but largely compliant, and one restaurant employee who forgot about the mandate was able to secure a mask by running across the street and asking employees at the Starbucks if they had extras.

“Some people think it’s a punishment,” said Lisa Liu, 38, who said she was fully vaccinated. She was shopping on Sunday and was interviewed outside a clothing store called Tazga. “But for me it’s a mask — it’s not a big deal.”

. It was not what people expected when the previous mandate was lifted a month ago, but for the most part people in Los Angeles seemed to react with resigned acceptance, sometimes even weary approval, figuring that rising Covid-19 rates made the policy tolerable, if not welcome.

The decision was greeted cautiously by some store and restaurant employees, wary of going back to having to enforce the policies with mask-resistant customers. Still, some seemed prepared to do it

Anna Ituh, 50, said that her bosses at a local retail store had instructed her to ask customers to put on a mask when they entered, but that she wasn’t allowed to insist that they do so. Still, she described one confrontation in which she asked a customer to leave the store.

“I don’t play games with that,” she said. “I’m that person that will tell them.”

The indoor mask mandate for all people regardless of vaccination status took effect at midnight on Saturday, making Los Angeles County the first major county in the United States to reinstate such a requirement. The policy expands beyond the current state standard and the recommendation by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; both require masks for unvaccinated people but not for those who are fully vaccinated...

L.A's political leadership is quite special, IYKWIMAITYD. *Wink.*

Keep reading.

The Los Angeles Corona Virus Surge

Following-up, "New Covid Cases Surging in California."

At LAT, "L.A. County’s alarming new coronavirus surge: How bad will it get?"

In America's Big Cities, District Attorneys Create More Crime (VIDEO)

It's Rafael Mangual, of the Manhattan Institute, for Prager University:

Armed Citizen Defends Himself in Los Angeles Robbery Attempt

Regular folks are packing heat --- and this is in far-left Los Angeles, dang.

At Fox News, "Would-be robbers shot by armed shoppers in Los Angeles: Victim in Los Angeles was standing in a parking lot when the would-be robbers rolled in."

New Covid Cases Surging in California

And cases in Los Angeles shot up 240% month over month.

I was up in Burbank shopping on Sunday, and I forgot L.A. County reimposed the mask mandate. I stepped into the Barnes and Noble up there and the woman at the counter wouldn't help me without a mask. I'm darn lucky I had a couple in the car, but damn I had to huff it back out the the parking garage to retrieve one. The O.C., so far, ain't going with a new mandate, and thank the Lord for that, sheesh.

At the Los Angeles Times, "California coronavirus hospitalizations hit highest point in months as Delta spreads":

A spate of new coronavirus infections is striking California’s healthcare system, pushing COVID-19 hospitalizations to levels not seen since early spring — lending new urgency to efforts to tamp down transmission as a growing number of counties urge residents to wear masks indoors.

Statewide, the number of coronavirus patients in the hospital more than doubled in the last month, and the numbers have accelerated further in the last two weeks.

Even with the recent increase, though, the state’s healthcare system is nowhere near as swamped as it was during the fall-and-winter surge. And many health experts are confident that California will never see numbers on that scale again, given how many residents are vaccinated.

But with the continued spread of the highly infectious Delta variant, which officials fear could mushroom in communities with lower inoculation rates, the next few weeks are key in determining how potent the pandemic’s latest punch may be.

The recent increases confirm that nearly everyone falling seriously ill from COVID-19 at this point is unvaccinated.

“This is a pandemic of the unvaccinated. And so, if you care about getting back to normalcy once and for all, please get vaccinated,” Gov. Gavin Newsom told reporters Tuesday.

Still, L.A. County Health Services Director Dr. Christina Ghaly said Tuesday that “the individual consequences of a choice not to get vaccinated can be dire for that person and his or her family and friends.”

Ghaly said seeing a continued stream of COVID-19 patients, the vast majority of whom are unvaccinated, triggers a range of emotions in healthcare workers who have long been on the front lines of the pandemic: frustration, sadness and “some level of disbelief that, after all of the pain and suffering that we’ve all seen … there’s still people who either don’t believe it or don’t believe that it can affect them.”

The highest-risk Californians — notably the elderly — have been vaccinated at high rates. But the numbers drop off for younger segments of the population, and children under the age of 12 still aren’t eligible to be vaccinated.

“I think sometimes the mentality is that people think, ‘Well, I’m not going to get that sick. I’m going to be OK. I’m not going to die from COVID; I’m young; I’m healthy,’ ” Ghaly said. “And I can tell you, hopefully that’s the case, but that’s not necessarily the case.”

From June 22 to July 6, the daily number of COVID-19 patients hospitalized in California increased from 978 to 1,228, a nearly 26% bump, state data show...

Still more. 

'Far-Right' Koreatown Protests

Previously, "Koreatown Protests: Cops Fire Rubber Bullets at Violent Demonstrators (VIDEO)."

Now at the Los Angles Times, "How far-right rage over transgender rights at an L.A. spa led to chaos in the streets":

The activists arrived outside the Wi Spa in Westlake Saturday morning, some prepared for the worst.

Several wore bike helmets and vests with extra padding. N.W.A.’s “F— Tha Police” and Kendrick Lamar’s “Alright” filled the air.

They were met by far-right extremists who over the last few weeks had turned a debate over transgender access at a Korean spa into a rallying cry.

It didn’t take long for the dueling protests to dissolve into disarray.

By the end, the LAPD had used projectiles and batons and arrested 40 people — mostly for failure to disperse. Several said they sustained injuries at the hands of police.

“I knew it was going to be violent. I didn’t know it was going to end up like that,” said Jessica Rogers, a 31-year-old who had come to document the event and support transgender rights and was among those arrested.

In the aftermath, the police are facing questions about whether officers used excessive force. But the incident has also exposed the power of a viral video given widespread attention in the right-wing press and social media.

The spa has become the latest hot spot for clashes between far-right groups and the left in L.A., kicked off by the video taken by an irate customer in late June.

The video showed a woman arguing with Wi Spa employees after she said she had seen a customer with male genitalia in an area that is reserved for women. The Wilshire Boulevard facility has some gender-separated areas with changing rooms and Jacuzzis.

The footage was quickly amplified by an international network of right-wing activists, pundits and media outlets, including Breitbart, the Gateway Pundit, RealClearPolitics and TheBlaze, a publication founded by Glenn Beck. Message boards where anti-trans activists gather, including Mumsnet, saw thousands of comments.

The spa told The Times Monday that they are required to follow California law that prohibits businesses from discriminating against customers based on race, gender, sexual identity or expression.

“Like many other metropolitan areas, Los Angeles contains a transgender population, some of whom enjoy visiting a spa,” it said in a statement, adding that the spa “strives to meet the needs and safety of all of its customers.”

Brian Levin, director of the nonpartisan Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism at Cal State San Bernardino, said the protests are indicative of a “democratization of hate” that has allowed far-right groups with a variety of ideologies to come together around flash-point events after they are amplified online and in conservative media...

Still more.

And notice how leftist media outlets like L.A.T. always label mainstream conservatives as "far-Right." *Eye-roll.* 

Koreatown Protests: Cops Fire Rubber Bullets at Violent Demonstrators (VIDEO)

At the Los Angeles Times, "LAPD makes arrests after protesters clash over transgender rights at Koreatown spa":

Dueling protests outside a Koreatown spa over transgender rights Saturday prompted a large police response and resulted in more than a dozen arrests.

LGBTQ activists gathered outside the Wi Spa on Saturday morning to counter a protest against transgender access to the spa’s facilities. The Los Angeles Police Department declared an unlawful assembly in front of the spa near Wilshire and Rampart boulevards around noon when the two groups of protesters began to clash, according to police and videos posted on Twitter.

LAPD Det. Meghan Aguilar said authorities declared the unlawful assembly after protesters began throwing projectiles, including at officers. Videos posted to social media show police in riot gear shooting bean bag rounds and 40-millimeter hard-foam projectiles at protesters.

It was not immediately clear how many protesters were in the area. Protesters demonstrating against the spa’s policy waved signs saying “Save our children” and “Stop defending pedos.”

“Most people did leave the area, but currently there are a number of arrests made for failure to disperse,” Aguilar said.

No injuries have been reported. A reporter from the Guardian US who was covering the protest wrote on Twitter that she was chased and “thrown to the ground by right-wing anti-pedophile protesters.”

The demonstrations, similar to those that occurred at the spa earlier this month, were apparently spurred by a viral video taken by an irate customer at the spa in late June.

The woman in the video, which was posted to Instagram, complains to staff at Wi Spa that a man had allegedly walked into the women’s section and showed his genitals to young girls. The customer the woman complained about reportedly identified as a woman. “He is a man,” the woman can be heard saying. “He is not a female. There are girls down there, other women who are highly offended by what they just saw and you did nothing. You sided with him.”

Wi Spa defended its policy in a statement to Los Angeles Magazine.

“Like many other metropolitan areas, Los Angeles contains a transgender population, some of whom enjoy visiting a spa,” the statement said. “Wi Spa strives to meet the needs of all its customers.”...

Keep reading.

And watch, at ABC News 7 Los Angeles, "Video shows LAPD officer shoot protester with rubber bullet at close range," and "Dozens arrested after LAPD sends alert warning of unlawful assembly during Koreatown spa protests."

Megan Parry's Friday Forecast

I guess the real heat's gonna hit the Southland in August and September, because temps this summer have so far been consistently below average.

Here's the lovely Ms. Megan:

Lame: Los Angeles County Re-Ups the Mask Mandate

I personally hope this doesn't last too long. It's so stupid, and I work in Long Beach, which is, wouldn't you know, in L.A. County. *Eye-roll.*

At the L.A. Times, "L.A. County will require masks indoors amid alarming rise in coronavirus cases."

Of course, L.A."s the only county (or city) in the state reimposing the mandate. It's all so lame. 

The state of California says it will not follow L.A. County with a new indoor mask mandate, so, once again, L.A. County is flying solo & going further than state & CDC guidelines, just like when they were initially the only county that decided to ban outdoor dining last fall.

— Bill Melugin (@BillFOXLA) July 16, 2021

Olga Ospina's Forecast

She's a sweetie.

For KCBS Los Angeles:

Clearing Venice Beach (VIDEO)

Kinda harsh evictions, actually. 

The police and city workers were rousting homeless folks at 2:00am, for supposedly as that time there were few other people around. That said, it seems to me evicting the homeless at that time of morning is a form of harassment and terrorism. 

It's gotta be done, of course, but a little more humanity for these folks, many of whom have psychiatric health issues. Sheesh.

At LAT, "Block by block, tent by tent, city crews remove homeless campers from Venice Beach."

Ursula was asleep on a beanbag under an umbrella on a patch of sand, just feet from the public bathrooms on Venice Beach when three LAPD officers shined flashlights on her and told her to move. It was just after 2 a.m. Thursday.

She told them she’d been given a hotel room the day before and had come back for the shopping carts teeming with possessions she left behind. But the effort left her too tired to return to the hotel.

“You’re going to have to get up and exit this area,” one officer said — as sanitation workers stood off to the side, ready to sort her belongings from trash.

“The park is closed.”

For more than three hours, a crew of about a dozen Los Angeles sanitation and recreation and parks workers accompanied by several officers from the Los Angeles Police Department went to work on Ocean Front Walk, sweeping up detritus from one portion of a homeless encampment that has set Venice on edge for months.

A tarp here, a blanket there. Bottles and cans and other consumer waste. But after all was said and done, after the eastern horizon had begun to glow with the impending dawn, they had moved only two people — Ursula and a man who had been reluctant to leave behind his paintings. The rest had left earlier in the week.

It was a case study in how difficult, and complicated, it can be to move unhoused people when the goal is to avoid the kind of blunt-force dispersal that the city carried out this spring at Echo Park Lake.

The crews had come back for a second consecutive morning, mopping up after last week’s deadline to clear the southern portion of the homeless camps from Windward to Park avenues, a stretch of about 650 yards. St. Joseph Center reported that it moved 72 people from the boardwalk to shelter or housing last week. City Councilman Mike Bonin, who represents Venice, said Thursday that about 90 people had been given shelter of some sort...

Still more at that top link.

 And I guess things didn't go so well. See, "L.A. delays the next phase of removing homeless people from Venice boardwalk."

Los Angles Endures Spike in Homocides

Murders are up since last year.

At LAT, "Los Angles Endures Spike in Homocides":

A bloody Fourth of July weekend that left a dozen people dead across Los Angeles accelerated an already troubling increase in homicides and shootings in 2021, with some of the city’s poorest communities suffering the heaviest toll.

Homicides are up 25% so far this year across Los Angeles, although the brunt of the increase has been felt in South Los Angeles, where killings have jumped 50% over the same time last year.

Shootings citywide, meanwhile, have spiked by half this year. Police and community activists are bracing for tough months ahead as the summer traditionally brings with it a rise in bloodshed.

Like with the COVID-19 pandemic, the rise in violence has not been spread evenly in Los Angeles. Watts, Westmont, downtown Los Angeles, Westlake and other largely poor neighborhoods have endured much of the upheaval, though there have been some exceptions. The Los Angeles Police Department’s Wilshire division had recorded no homicides this time last year. It now has at least 10.

“Black and Latino communities are suffering,” said Najee Ali, a community activist.

The worrisome trend is playing out in cities other than Los Angeles. After experiencing decades of historic declines in homicides, many big cities nationwide saw that crucial bellwether sharply reverse course in 2020 and have been helpless to stop the surge in killings in 2021. Last weekend, at least 189 people were killed in violent incidents across the U.S., according to gun violence archives that gather data from police and media reports.

Los Angeles police officials say guns are fueling the rise here.

The percentage of homicides that involved a firearm has climbed from 66% in 2019, to 70% last year and currently is running at about 75%, said Los Angeles Police Capt. Paul Vernon, who is soon to retire from his job tracking crime trends as head of the LAPD’s CompStat program.

“There are too many guns in too many hands,” said Capt. Stacy Spell, the department’s main spokesman who once oversaw its South Bureau Homicide Division.

Officers are finding guns at significantly higher rates as well. As of last month, the department had seized 661 ghost guns — unregistered weapons that cannot be traced to an owner — compared to 813 in all of 2020. “At that rate, we could collect 1,500 ghost guns in a year,” Spell said.

Spell echoed recent comments by LAPD Chief Michel Moore, who has argued the increased violence is inextricably linked to the pandemic. The lockdown restrictions imposed to slow the spread of the virus, Spell said, further eroded already fraying social safety nets and devastated families’ finances. Gang intervention workers, for example, were unable to break cycles of retaliation by visiting shooting victims or calming mourning family members in hospital emergency rooms.

A man was fatally shot and a woman was wounded in a car-to-car shooting that occurred as their vehicle was being followed through a Venice neighborhood, police said. The incident began about 2:30 a.m. near the intersection of Brooks and 6th avenues. CALIFORNIA

While gangs have undoubtedly played a role in the killings, police point as well to what they say is a newfound willingness to settle disputes with a gun that goes beyond any gang affiliation.

Police say it’s impossible to know where the numbers are going. If the current pace of killings continues, L.A. would end the year with about 433 homicides — a sharp increase over the 254 killings recorded in 2019. Vernon cautioned, however, that 2020 — with 349 killings — was a very unusual year for homicides with a small increase in killings in the first half of the year, followed by a dramatic rise in the second. The volatility makes it difficult to project what might happen in the remaining months of 2021, he said.

And while the ongoing rise is troubling, Spell noted the current numbers still pale in comparison to the early 1990s, when more than 1,000 killings in a year were common.

Police also took some solace and hope in the fact that the spike in homicides has not been matched by a rise in other types of crime. Overall, violent crime is down slightly from 2020 and property crime is up only by a small amount. Violent crime arrests are down by nearly 10% compared to 2019 levels for the same period, while homicide arrests are up for that time by 60%.

So far in 2021 the LAPD’s Southeast Division, which includes Watts, has seen the city’s largest increase in homicides —24 — compared with 10 during the same period last year.

Violence over the last week cut short lives across the city.

Hailey Morinico, 17-Years-Old, Throws Mama Bear Off the Back Fence (VIDEO)

Heh, throwing a bear off the back fence is definitely going on my bucket list, heh.

At ABC News 7 Los Angeles, "Video: Teen fends off bear in Bradbury backyard":