LAPD Turns North Hollywood Upside Down After Synagogue Shooting
But as one of three finalists hoping to succeed William Bratton as chief of police, Moore surely wanted to pull out all the stops in an incident as fraught with political implications as this one was at first believed to be, one that offered him the chance to take center stage just as Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa is set to make his selection for chief. So it was interesting to watch the LAPD’s machinery grinding and lurching and spinning into overdrive over what will probably turn out to be a fairly routine crime (if indeed any shooting can be said to be “routine”).
Though William Bratton has left town, his resignation isn’t official until Saturday. Deputy Chief Michael Downing, the head of the counter-terrorism bureau, has been designated to serve as interim chief but hasn’t yet been sworn in. Assistant Chief Jim McDonnell, another finalist for chief, was Bratton’s second-in-command and on Thursday was technically in charge of the department. Both Downing and McDonnell were at the command post Thursday, as was Moore, who as the head of Valley Bureau was the incident commander. After Villaraigosa spoke to reporters from the scene, it was McDonnell who next took to the microphones, which must have been galling to Moore, whose craving for the spotlight is surpassed in recent memory only by that of William Bratton.
McDonnell spoke to reporters in his characteristic fashion: confident, but without the superciliousness that so marked Bratton. He spoke for a minute or so before yielding to Moore, who demonstrated his annoying habit of lapsing into multi-syllable cop jargon when plain English would better serve. (The victims, he said, had been shot in the “lower extremities.” What’s wrong with “legs”?)
Given the amount of resources that will be thrown into this investigation, it’s surely only a matter of time before a suspect is identified and an arrest made. Which is all well and good, but it’s a shame the city of Los Angeles can’t make the same commitment to every violent crime victim. I recall an incident from some months back in which seven people were shot, but because none of them died, not a single detective rolled out to the scene.
Nor did any reporters, which in its own way is just as shameful.
Mr. Dunphy:
“(And could you invent a better name for a white supremacist than Buford Furrow?)”
Only if he was arrested by LAPD Deputy Chief Michael Moore.
(It’s as if the jokes are just writing themselves, isn’t it?)
At any rate, hope you catch the perp, whatver his reasons for it, his actions make his deposit in the Man Pound a priority.
Actually, considering that there’s an elementary school on the synagogue property, I’m actually glad the LAPD is taking this incident seriously.
Thugs shooting guns off near kids—not good, whatever said thug’s motivation.
re #2
Shooting guns off at people who aren’t threatening anyone–not good, whatever the location.
Shooting guns off near kids, why not? How else will they learn? A gun locked up isn’t useful for home defense, and nobody is infallable in their routine. It’s better children know what not to do with it and to remove the temptation of mystery. Not small children of course, but I’d say if they’re old enough to play with toy guns they’re old enough to be taught to respect real guns.
This is not a typical shooting! It is a statiscally aberrant crime by any standard. The shooter was likely trying to kill his victims, and he did not particularly give damn about them. He could have just as readily shot a couple of other individuals. This is obviously some sort of hate crime—and the assailant remains dangerous until caught. A dragnet is therefore logically justified.
Uh, Nate, I think you’d better go back and re-read my post. I wasn’t talking about teaching kids to fire guns, or parents owning guns and teaching kids how to use them.
And, no, I don’t think it’s wholesome, or educational, for kids to be caught in the middle of crossfire, or have shooters blasting people away around them.
Speaking of shootings. Just heard Glenn Beck shout, “Somebody shot at Lou Dobbs and his wife! This is how they work!” what he didn’t say is that Mrs. Dobbs was standing in the driveway with the Dobbs’ driver (insert “elitist” here) when they heard a pop. Later, it was found that a bullet had struck the house, though it didn’t penetrate the siding and fell to the ground. Dobbs lives in a semi-rural area where it is small game season.
Now I ask you, which is more likely, a hunter’s errant round fired from a great distance, or an assassination attempt on Mrs. Lou Dobbs? But that won’t stop Beck and the rest of the right wing lunatics from spreading this ridiculous story. Let’s see how Fox handles it, shall we?
David Thomson
I think that deliberately shooting anyone qualifies as a hate crime. This does not seem to me “aberrant” or random. Six o’clock in the morning, in an underground parking area? Random “hate” shooters usually pick a time and place where there is a group – classroom, office, congregation – where they’ll kill somebody no matter which direction they fire. This sounds a lot more like a poorly executed hit job.
There is no such thing as a love crime. it is interesting that the writer pointed out if this shooting had had nothing to do with jewish interests that it would be a complete non-story.
Hmmm…what does that say about our society?
Well, maybe some of the guys hunting game thought that a female LaRaza type was trying to barge into the Dobbs house to do harm. (Dobb’s wife is Mexican, you know)
I might ask the author-any bets the perpetuator of this crime is a follower of ISLAM? AND by the way, since when anyone think the LARAZA lover Villaraigosa will do anything except obstruct the cops, except of course if the perpetuator is white. Then , of course, according to the pinko media, he must be a Rush Limbaugh listener or a secret admirer of Michelle Malkin. My daughter used to live in Long Beach, and left California after her next door apartment got shot up by Hispanic gangs trying to intimidate the neighberhood(MS13?). The Pc baloney is too much. There will someday be a backlash if it doesnt stop.
9. urbanleftbehind:
“Dobb’s wife is Mexican, you know.”
Now what does that have to do with anything?
#10
If the perpetrator is a Black or Middle Easterner, then by god Villaraigosa should catch him ASAP, throw the book at him and say:
1) (Black perp) This is why I wrist-slap the Hispanic gangs. They’re doing us favors in South LA.
2) (Arab/South Asian perp) At least Surenos and MS-13 dont target you Joos!! Take that, Westsiders! Sheesh, thats probably his swing constituency.
#11
It doesnt, but if you had heard Dobbs talk about how he had been receiving death threats AND did not know he was married to who he is married to, you might jump to some conclusions (also, he does hire hispanic support staff on his estate, properly I-9ed of course).
It is unfortunate that the victims were not armed themselves. In Israel, home of Jews that have learned the lessons of life, I suspect that the outcome would have been different. And before all of you liberal, leftwing Jews pile on, a word of advice; the question is not whether or not to arm yourself, the question is what is the most appropriate choice of caliber? Otherwise, last one into the oven please shut off the lights.
7. Anonymous: “David Thomson I think that deliberately shooting anyone qualifies as a hate crime.”
Not really. A hate crime is usually motiveless, except for the race/religion of the victim.
8. maasanova: “There is no such thing as a love crime.”
Of course there is. They far outnumber hate crimes. I think they’re commonly referred to as “crimes of passion.”
Are you claiming the ‘elevated level of gumption’ displayed by the LAPD in pursuit of an assailant who at 6:30am unloaded a semi automatic in the parking lot of a ‘school’ & ‘synagogue’ as students, parents, teachers & others arrived, wounding two, was disproportional because the crimes motive is “fairly routine?”
Dumphy, I’m not certain I understand your point other then the incident was exploited by a few posturing principals with political aspirations.
If your aim is to invalidate the sincerity of the ‘issue’ both yours & Chesler’s articles failed to mention the shooting of five people, and killing of two, an El Al ticket agent and a bystander, at LAX ‘just a few miles away’ 4th of July, 2002: http://archives.cnn.com/2002/US/07/04/la.airport.shooting/
Sir,
How did Furrow escape execution, was it a Federal prosecution? I would like to think the special circumstances would allow for execution under Calif. law, but, sadly, my guess is he would likely die of old age.
Respectfully,
TW in OC
yeah, you’re correct you dumb, ignorant slob. why bother. the whole thing is down the toilet anyway. and what a stench from there. and from you.
this is it for the roman empire, folks. even an inept, toothless, brainless president to help it sink faster. just chaos. with a citizenry like the zombie living dead movies.
don’t worry. we’ll arm ourselves. you won’t have to get up early in the a.m. btw, you’re doin’ a heck of a job.
Waste of time article. Not enough info. Too much speculation.
Lou Dobbs is a bit of a rightwing nutjob, which is why CNN keeps him around… to discredit the Right. I’ll give Dobba a pass on his story, however, because it is hard to remain objective when you get death threats AND the bullets start to fly. Tends to make one a bit paranoid, especially when one is so prone anyway.
For clarification, I’m pretty rightwing, just not a nutjob. I prefer a few more facts before I go off the deep end!
Speaking of lack of police effort or resources, what ever happened to the pro-Obama/union demonstrator who bit off a piece of the Tea Party protestor a month or so ago? With pictures of the perp and tons of witnesses and everything and it just poof’d into absolute nothingness, it’s almost as if word from the top came down not to embarrass The One by finding and arresting his cannibalistic follower. So then the question becomes, who’s protecting the Biting Democrat: Bratton or Hizzoner the Mexican?
P.S. to Mr. Dunphy – you don’t suppose LAPD received any urgent phone calls from well-known Jews in DC who have initials RE, do you?
Great story, Jack. The politics of becoming a police chief. Gag me with a spoon. They don’t really understand what it is they seek, do they?