Two 1st Dist. Shootings In First Two Days of MLK Weekend: (1) 7th/Cedar: Man Is Shot Trying To Prevent Two Suspects (One Believed Known To Him) From Allegedly Stealing His Car (2) 1500 block Chestnut: Two People Shot-At (Rounds Miss)
If LBREPORT.com didn't tell you, who would?
No one in LBREPORT.com's ownership, reporting or editorial decision-making has ties to development interests, advocacy groups or other special interests; or is seeking or receiving benefits of City development-related decisions; or holds a City Hall appointive position; or has contributed sums to political campaigns for Long Beach incumbents or challengers. LBREPORT.com isn't part of an out of town corporate cluster and no one its ownership, editorial or publishing decisionmaking has been part of the governing board of any City government body or other entity on whose policies we report.
LBREPORT.com is reader and advertiser supported. Support independent news in LB similar to the way people support NPR and PBS stations. We're not non-profit so it's not tax deductible but $49.95 (less than an annual dollar a week) helps keep us online.
(Jan. 19, 2020, 1:30 p.m.) -- A man (adult) was shot/wounded at about 6 a.m. Sunday (Jan. 19) in the area of 7th St./Cedar Ave. while struggling with two suspects (a man and a woman, both adults and one believed known to him) allegedly in the process of stealing his car. The shooting/car theft victim managed to get himself to a hospital with a minor laceration to his upper body.
A little less than 24 hours earlier in the 8 a.m. hour on Saturday morning Jan. 18, two individuals (males, ages not provided) allegedly shot at two other individuals (males, ages not provided) in the area of of Henderson Ave./Cowles St. The rounds missed hitting the two victims but LBPD officers found a parked vehicle in the area had been damaged by gunfire. Officers set up a containment perimeter; called the suspects out of a residence, and a man (adult) and a juvenile were arrested.
LBPD Public Information Officer Arantxa Chavarria says the Sunday morning shooting is believed gang related, and the Saturday morning shooting is being investigated as possibly gang related.
The two shootings are the fifth and sixth in LB's 1st Council district (the fourth in the Washington School neighborhood, including a homicide/1500 block Henderson) since early November when Mary Zendejas was elected to succeed Councilwoman (now state Senator) Lena Gonzalez.
[Scroll down for further.]
The maps below show cumulated fatal, non-fatal and no-person hit shootings cumulated from Jan. 1, 2018 to date.
Jan 1, 2018 to date: Red Xs=homicides; Blue Xs= shootings, person wounded; Brown Xs=shots fired at victim(s), not hit; Purple Xs=shots at occupied residence/vehicle; Green Xs= shots at unoccupied vehicle/residence; Grey Xs=shots fired (no hit, no target identified); Orange X's=non-fatal stabbings; Blue * asterisk=victim hit, police unable to locate crime scene. Map is unofficial.
For context, the second map shows shootings cumulated from Jan. 1, 2014 through Dec. 31, 2017.
Sponsor
Sponsor
The two shootings come less than a week after LB Mayor Robert Garcia told a Terrace Theater audience in his 2020 State of the City message (LBREPORT.com coverage here) that LB "citywide" data showed crime was down and attributed public perceptions to the contrary to heightened awareness of some crimes on social networks. Mayor Garcia declined to urge the Council to restore 150+ police officers that the Council hasn't restored for taxpayers despite the 2016 Measure A General Fund ("blank check") sales tax increase now bringing City Hall roughly $60+ million each year. A March 2020 ballot measure sought by the Mayor/Council asks LB voters to make the "tempoary" Measure A sales tax permanent. The measure is supported by LB's police and firefighter unions.
Sponsor
Sponsor
In the November 2019 no-runoff special election that put Ms. Zendejas on the City Council (through Dec. 2022), she was financially boosted by Mayor Garcia, former 1st dist. Councilwoman Gonzalez and the LB police officers union PAC. All three bypassed LB's limits contributions to candidate campaigns by giving $10,000 each to the LB Firefighters Ass'n PAC which ran an "independent expenditure campaign" to support electing Zendejas. (LBREPORT.com coverage here). Ms. Zendejas' candidate-run campaign separately collected over $100,000 in contributions from entities prominently including development interests and organized labor. (LBREPORT.com coverage here.)
Sponsor
Sponsor
In 2019, LB's 1st Council district had LB's highest number of shooting crime scenes, highest number of shooting victims, and highest number of homicides. (The second highest was LB's adjacent 6th Council district.)
During her campaign, Ms. Zendejas made no commitment to restore any portion of 150+ police officers that LB had but not longer has, including LBPD's former field anti-gang unit, despite 2016 LB voter approval of the Measure A General Fund ("blank check") sales tax. (A March 2020 LB ballot measure sought by the Mayor and Council asks LB voters to make the 2016 temporary Measure A sales tax permanent.)
Support really independent news in Long Beach. No one in LBREPORT.com's ownership, reporting or editorial decision-making has ties to development interests, advocacy groups or other special interests; or is seeking or receiving benefits of City development-related decisions; or holds a City Hall appointive position; or has contributed sums to political campaigns for Long Beach incumbents or challengers. LBREPORT.com isn't part of an out of town corporate cluster and no one its ownership, editorial or publishing decisionmaking has been part of the governing board of any City government body or other entity on whose policies we report. LBREPORT.com is reader and advertiser supported. You can help keep really independent news in LB similar to the way people support NPR and PBS stations. We're not non-profit so it's not tax deductible but $49.95 (less than an annual dollar a week) helps keep us online.
