S A N TA M O N I C A
REFLECTING THE CONCERNS OF THE COMMUNITY smmirror.com
INSIDE
SANTA MONICA FIRE DEPARTMENT PUT OUT TWO FREEWAY BLAZES OVER WEEKEND
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October 22 – October 28, 2021 Volume CXI, Issue 116
Charges Filed Against Woman for Attacking Former Survivor Contestant in Santa Monica Michelle Yi, two other unnamed victims attacked in area of 2nd and Arizona By DoloreS Quintana anD Sam Catanzaro Michelle Yi, a former contestant on the television show “Survivor”, and two other unnamed victims were attacked in Downtown Santa Monica recently by a Fresno woman who has been charged with three counts of assault with a deadly weapon. In addi The assault occurred on October 14 at 6 a.m. when Yi was outside the Platinum Pilates Studio where she works near 2nd Street and Arizona Avenue. According to SMPD Public Information Officer Rudy Flores, a woman struck Yi with a metal pipe and poked her with a reciprocating saw blade. The assailant was identified as Alexandra Diaz, a woman listed as being
missing from her home in Fresno, CA. According to Flores, “there is no indication whatsoever that this was a hate crime. Unfortunately, the suspect suffers from mental illness and it appears she was off her medication.” Yi had a cut on her right eyebrow that required stitches and a bruise on her right eyelid. She drove to a nearby hospital for treatment. The other two victims had minor injuries and refused treatment. As reported by The Sun, one of the unnamed attack victims “attempted to call 911, but apparently received a message that all operators were ‘busy.’ A few minutes later, they flagged down a passing patrol car on the street.” The Santa Monica Office of Emergency Management–the agency in charge of 911 calls–provided the following statement regarding these reports: “A passerby placed the first call to 9-1-1 before the injury occurred, which was received by dispatchers at 5:56 a.m. with SMPD units arriving at 6:01 a.m. Dispatchers received a second report by a City employee at 6:00 a.m. and a third from the pilates studio at 6:02 a.m. at which time
Michelle Yi.
SMPD was on scene.” “If a large volume of calls occur at the same time, it can cause someone to get a
Photo: Facebook
message indicating that dispatchers are
Downtown Attack, see page 4
E-Bike Company Wheels Settles Consumer Protection Lawsuit With Santa Monica Company agrees to pay $300k for operating without a license in 2019 By Sam Catanzaro
E-bike company Wheels recently settled for $300,000 with the City of Santa Monica in a consumer protection lawsuit. On October 6, Santa Monica officials announced that the City Attorney’s Office and Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office settled a jointly filed consumer protection lawsuit with Wheels Labs, Inc. Wheels is a shared mobility company that operates a fleet of 200 no-pedal e-bikes in the
City of Santa Monica. Under the settlement, Wheels agreed to pay in the amount of $300,000, with a portion of those funds to go to the street safety organizations Sustainable Streets and Los Angeles Walks. While Wheels is now a permitted operator in Santa Monica, the company operated in the City without licenses and permits from February to June 2019. “Like many burgeoning technologies, shared mobility has rapidly changed the transportation sector. But, like all companies operating in Santa Monica, shared mobility operators must comply with all local laws so that the City can provide safe streets and sidewalks for all, and ensure fair competition among companies,” said Eda Suh, Chief of the Public Rights Division of the Santa Monica City Attorney’s Office. When Santa Monica-based Bird launched the scooters in 2017, the city was thrust into the center of the shared-mobility boom. Soon the City established an initial sharedmobility pilot program with four operators: Bird, Jump, Lime and Lyft. On July 1, 2021, the City’s second shared-mobility pilot
Photo: Morgan Genser
A man rides a first-generation Wheels e-bike in Westwood Village.
program went into effect. Initially officials selected three company’s–Veo, Spin and Lyft–to provide both e-bike and e-scooter service in Santa Monica. Wheels, who was not initially selected for inclusion, filed an appeal arguing their devices offer a unique seated scooter device. The City granted the company permission to operate 200 devices in Santa Monica. Wheels did not respond to a request for comment for this article.