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JANuAry 31, 2014
Man struck, killed by car while crossing street in wheelchair
A 56-year-old Long Beach man is dead after being struck by a vehicle while crossing the street in his wheelchair, according to the Long Beach Police Department (LBPD). On Monday Jan. 27, at approximately 6:25pm, LBPD officers were dispatched to the area of Pacific Avenue and 29th Street regarding an injury traffic collision. Upon arrival, they discovered an unconscious man lying in the northbound lanes of Pacific Avenue with a wheelchair nearby. The investigation revealed that the victim had attempted to cross Pacific Avenue at 29th Street in his wheelchair when he was struck by the vehicle. Police say he was crossing the intersection on a diagonal, from the northwest corner to the southeast corner, and was struck outside of the crosswalk by a 2005 Infinity FX35, driven by a 42-year-old Long Beach man. The driver of the vehicle had stopped to see if he could render aid to the victim before calling 9-1-1, according to police. Long Beach Fire Department paramedics responded to the scene and determined that Ronnie Wayne Singleton was deceased due to traumatic injuries suffered from the collision. The driver was interviewed at the scene and found to have a valid driver’s license and insurance, and he was released at the scene. An investigation is ongoing. Those with information regarding this incident are asked to call the Collision Investigation Detail Detective Steve Fox (562) 570-7355. Those wishing to remain anonymous may call 1-800-222-TIPS (8477), or text TIPLA plus the tip to 274637 (CRIMES), or visit lacrimestoppers.org .
Source: LBPD
NEWS
5 Signal Hill Police department says violent crime dropped but property crime increased in 2013
Sean Belk Staff Writer
SigNAL TriBuNE
Violent crime in Signal Hill dropped by 25 percent last year over the previous year, but property crime increased by about 3.3 percent, according to crime statistics released this week by the Signal Hill Police Department (SHPD). Lt. Ron Sagmit said in a press release that violent crime in Signal Hill peaked in 2008 with a high of 59 reported incidents and has come down since then. Sagmit told the Signal Tribune there were no homicides in Signal Hill last year, but there was one in 2012. He said the increase in property crime accounts for an uptick of 18 incidents. There have particularly been more larcenies and auto thefts, which have spiked in the last two years, Sagmit said. Sagmit noted in the press release that the police department doesn’t indicate percentage changes in statistics since “the numbers are so low to begin with.” He said that, “it doesn’t make sense to report a 10- to 15-percent change in a particular line item when the actual numbers might differentiate by single digits,” which Sagmit said “doesn’t provide an accurate picture of what is happening locally.” Sagmit cited a December 2013 report by the Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC) that states increasing property crime is a “statewide trend” likely attributable to the court-ordered and State-authorized prison-realignment plan. He said the PPIC report indicates that all three forms of property crime– car theft, larceny and burglary– are on the rise. The report used monthly data published by the California Department of Justice’s Criminal Justice Statistics Center to document how crime trends aligned with the implementation of realignment in 2011. The PPIC report found that the new statewide incarceration policy “increased property crime for each realigned offender who is no longer detained by 1 to 1.5 per year,” according to Sagmit. Statistics, however, “only tell part of the story,” noted Signal Hill Police Chief Michael Langston. “How people feel about living and working here in
The Campaign Trail
The Los Angeles Citizens’ Commission on Jail Violence announced their endorsement of Long Beach Police Chief Jim McDonnell for Los Angeles County Sheriff during a press conference on Jan. 17.
Former Los Angeles County Undersheriff Paul Tanaka has announced the support of Alameda County Sheriff Gregory Ahern and Santa Barbara County Sheriff Bill Brown in Tanaka’s bid to become L.A. County Sheriff.
Long Beach mayoral candidate Damon Dunn has announced endorsements of his campaign from retired Fire Chief Terry Harbour and former Vice Mayor Doris Topsy-Elvord. Long Beach Vice Mayor Robert Garcia announced last week the opening of Robert Garcia for Mayor Headquarters at 210 E 3rd St., with a grand opening on Jan. 25. California State Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones has endorsed 7th District Long Beach Councilmember James Johnson for city attorney, according to Johnson.
Former Long Beach Mayor Beverly O’Neill has endorsed Assistant City Attorney Charles Parkin for the office of city attorney, according to Parkin.
The Long Beach Firefighters Association and the Long Beach Police Officers Association released a joint press release this week announcing their support of the following candidates for Long Beach City Council: Lena Gonzalez for 1st District, Suzie Price for 3rd District, and Roberto Uranga for 7th District.
Signal Hill is the best indicator of public safety,” he said. In a resident-satisfaction survey, which interviewed 259 registered voters in Signal Hill during November through December last year, only 5 percent of the respondents indicated crime as a concern in Signal Hill. The survey, conducted by Fairbank, Maslin, Maullin, Metz & Associates (FM3), was commissioned by the City Council in anticipation of updating the City’s Strategic Plan. The survey also indicates that 49 percent, the highest percentage, of respondents, however, weren’t concerned about anything, didn’t know or were too specific. The survey also found that 8 percent of respondents believe public safety response/police department issues, which was the top concern, to be a problem that needs to be addressed. In addition, results show that most residents in the survey (84 percent) have a positive view of the police department and 72 percent of residents consider it highly important to them, personally, that the department has the funding it needs. In addition, 77 percent of residents want to maintain all current city service levels. “We work hard to provide a very proactive and professional level of public-safety service in Signal Hill,” Langston said. “We have a fast response time to crimes in progress and document every crime that we become aware of, large and small, so that we fully understand what is happening throughout the city and respond accordingly.” Langston added that the police department continually looks for new ways to impact crime. Most recently, SHPD is looking to partner with local businesses that will allow police to remotely view and monitor their security cameras, he said. The police department is also looking into utilizing GPS tracking devices for commonly stolen items of personal property. ß
ives L Lived
Guillermo Sandoval 71 Isabella Bias 88 Richard Lee Howell 64 Anna Pugh 95 Philip Duran 63 Linda Ortiz 72 Lois Wiley 68 Pauline Davis 93 Jeanne Hill 90 Hu Zhang 87 Phyllis Crismon 75 Naomi Henderson 94 Cheryl Scott 69 Salley Sachs 79 Chester Willis 57 Elizabeth Wickey 65 James Goodin 84 Jose Gomez 77
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First District Long Beach Council candidate Ricardo Linarez has announced he has been endorsed by the Mexican-American Democratic Club and the Progressive Democratic Club.
Third District Long Beach Council candidate Suzie Price announced Jan. 27 that she has been endorsed by the Long Beach police and firefighters associations. Carl Kemp, candidate for the 5th District City Council seat, has received the endorsement of former City Councilmember Frank Colonna, according to Kemp.
Rex Richardson, candidate for the 9th District Long Beach City Council seat, has announced the Los Angeles County Democratic Party has endorsed him. Uduak-Joe Ntuk has announced he has garnered the support of the Los Angeles County Democratic Party in his campaign for Long Beach Unified School District Board of Education, District 1.
The Long Beach City College (LBCC) Political Action Coalition has endorsed the following candidates for the LBCC Board of Trustees: Dr. Marshall Blesofsky, District 1; Sunny Zia, District 3; and Gregory Slaughter, District 5.
Stella Ursua, candidate for Long Beach City College Board of Trustees, Third District, will host a fundraiser at Spring Street Farm, 3012 Long Beach Blvd., on Saturday, Feb. 22 from 1:30pm to 3:30pm. RSVP at stella.lbccboardoftrustees@gmail.com . Dr. Marshall Blesofsky, candidate for Long Beach City College Board of Trustees, 1st District, has gained the endorsement of the Los Angeles County Democratic Party, according to a press release from Blesofsky.
Joan Greenwood, candidate for the Long Beach 7th District City Council seat, will host a campaign kick-off on Saturday, Feb. 1 at 10am at 2091 San Francisco Ave. At 10:30am, 1:30pm and 3:30pm that day, and at 11am Sunday, Feb. 2, volunteer precinct walkers will canvas the area. Call (562) 599-0812 or email Joan@Greenwood4Council.org .
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