Garcetti's New Emphasis on North Atwater Village

FOLLOWING THE successful Toonerville gang raids in July, City Councilman Eric Garcetti has been focusing all kinds of love on North Atwater Village. This Wednesday was a "job readiness" workshop at Chevy Chase Park helping citizens figure out how to get construction jobs. And last Saturday morning saw a neighborhood walk where Garcetti's roving gang was repeatedly thanked for LAPD efforts to crack down on other less desirable roving gangs.

LAPD Dubs Atwater Village "Very Clear"

FROM THE LATEST Northeast LAPD crime update, Captain Bill Murphy says Atwater Village "continues to be very clear ... especially since the Toonerville gang takedown."

Toonerville Gang Raid: By the Numbers

Toonerville, originally uploaded by KID DEUCE.

JULY 9 gang raid in North Atwater Village is being hailed, not least of all by the raiders themselves, as an unqualified success. The numbers, from Northeast LAPD:

• 21 locations searched
  
• 19 suspects arrested (murder, attempted murder, narcotics trafficking, weapons violations)
• 2 additional arrests on scene (weapons violations)
• 63 firearms confiscated (48 in one house alone)
• 3 ounces of meth/cocaine confiscated
• 32 ounces of marijuana confiscated

Authorities sell the raid as the beginning of a turnaround for the residential area around Chevy Chase Park. Expect continued patrols, anti-gang programs and community outreach, similar to post-gang Drew Street in Glassell Park. Maybe even a street party.

Key to the long-term success of the raid will be preventing rival Rascals gang from filling gaps where Toonerville once reigned.

Involved agencies were Los Angeles Police Department, LA County Sheriff’s Department, City Councilman Eric Garcetti, Glendale Police Department and Drug Enforcement Agency.

Raid! Toonerville Gang Taken Down in North Atwater Village

FROM THE LAPD: "Today, the Northeast Division of the Los Angeles Police Department conducted a focused and deliberate raid on the Toonerville Gang in the Northern part of Atwater Village including the Chevy Chase Park Areas surrounding the Community Center.

"Your NOE LAPD Officers and Detectives were able to arrest suspected gang members that were recently served with warrants since the Toonerville Gang Injunction was enacted into law in Los Angeles County."

• LA Times reports police made 20 arrests, including 4 murder suspects, confiscating 58 weapons.
• Glendale News-Press quotes LAPD Capt. Bill Murphy saying Toonerville had "terrorized" Chevy Chase Park and that ongoing police programs are going to "turn that neighborhood."
  
• 89.3 KPCC also says police will remain in the area – as they did when they targeted the nearby Drew Street Gang.

And at least one reader of this blog was caught in the fray. Via email: "I heard gunshots at 4:00 am and a helicopter was circling my street with the spotlight shining into my windows. Then, when I went to leave this morning, the freaking SWAT team was on my lawn. They told me the whole neighborhood was on lock down and that I couldn't leave... They finally let me leave around 9am..."

Tonight officials from LAPD, City Council President Eric Garcetti's office, and the LA City Attorney's office will discuss the raid and ongoing anti-gang activity in the neighborhood. Atwater Village Community Meeting:

• Thursday July 9, 2009, 6:00pm
• New Hope Chapel
• 2861 Los Feliz Blvd.

LAPD: Atwater Village Shootings on Decline

LATEST NEWS from LAPD Northeast Division Captain Bill Murphy: Atwater Village: "We had several shootings between the Toonerville gang and the Rascals gang over the past couple of months. We have increased gang deployment in the area and have seen the number of shooting incidents decline (none in last couple of weeks). We are serving Toonerville gang members with permanent gang injunctions. "Only other issue is with Medical Marijuana Dispensaries (MMD) in the area. We have received some complaints regarding how they operate. We have been involved in several meetings with council district staff from CD 13 and CD 14 and they are aware of the problems associated with these MMD locations." And LA City Council is taking its own steps to change how MMDs operate.

Shooters 'n' Smokers: LAPD Update for Atwater Village

ATWATER VILLAGE update from LAPD  Captain Bill Murphy: "We had several shootings between the Toonerville gang and the Rascals gang over the past couple of months. We have increased gang deployment in the area and have seen the number of shooting incidents decline (none in last couple of weeks). We are serving Toonerville gang members with permanent gang injunctions. "Only other issue is with Medical Marijuana Dispensaries (MMD) in the area. We have received some complaints regarding how they operate. We have been involved in several meetings with council district staff from CD 13 and CD 14 and they are aware of the problems associated with these MMD locations." The good captain adds that LAPD's Northeast area "currently ranks first in crime reduction City-wide (out of 21 police stations)" and that "we are down 576 actual crimes (murders, rapes, car break-ins, etc.) compared to last year." LAPD Northeast includes Atwater Village, Cypress Park, Eagle Rock, East Hollywood, Echo Park, Elysian Park, Elysian Valley, Franklin Hills, Garvanza, Glassell Park, Highland Park, Los Feliz, Mount Washington, Silver Lake and Solano Canyon.

Message from the Captain: We're On It

FROM THE Northeast LAPD newsletter by Capt. Bill Murphy: Atwater Village: The long-time gang conflict between Toonerville and Rascals continues. We had a murder in this area approximately one month ago and there have been several shootings back and forth between these gangs. Our NOE gang units have been spending a lot of time in this neighborhood and we have implemented several other crime strategies to reduce the violence. Also, the Captain reports, "numerous complaints" have come in regarding medical marijuana dispensaries in Atwater Village, Highland Park and Eagle Rock. Armed suspects have robbed 2 dispensaries in the last month.

Help a Neighbor Get Clean

I HAVE TO admit I'm a little washed up on this topic. We scored with in-home washer/dryer. Can anyone else help? "I don't know who else to turn to. I'm staying with my girl in Atwater Village, but she's out of town and her laundry machine is busted. Has been for about a week. I HAVE to do laundry tonight as it's my only free night this whole week. Do you know of a laundromat in Atwater? Preferably one where the Toonerville gang won't cut holes in the crotches of all my shorts/undershorts, but really, any old laundromat will do." Help him in the comments section or email me. UPDATE: Reader responds, "Awesome. For real. I got the post and the responses and am on my way out the door! I'll probably hit the one next to Dinah's because...well...DINAH'S. But also, Sepan Chicken.

LA Times Commenter Would Split Atwater Village 3 Ways

THE NEIGHBORHOOD mapping project produced by the LA Times has solicited healthy debate about where Los Angeles communities begin, end and overlap. But this comment on the Atwater Village neighborhood map is an interesting study in micro-geography: Toonerville (Los Feliz Blvd., L.A. River, San Fernando Rd. and Colorado Blvd.) Glenfeliz (I-5, Los Feliz Blvd., San Fernando Rd., and Glendale Blvd.) Atwater (Glendale Blvd., Fletcher Dr., I-5 and San Fernando Rd.) Never mind the wisdom of associating a neighborhood with the Toonerville gang (or the fact that the train tracks, not San Fernando Rd., are the natural eastern border of both city and neighborhood). But is there something to this 3-way split? What are the differences, perceived or real, between the 3 Atwater Villages?

Judge to 'Monster' of Atwater Village: Die!

A SUPERIOR COURT judge today honored a jury's recommendation and sentenced to death the LA gang leader known as the Monster of Atwater Village: Timothy Joseph McGhee, 35, sat handcuffed in an orange jail uniform as Superior Court Judge Robert J. Perry said McGhee treated killing "as some kind of perverse sport, as if he was hunting human game." [LA Times]

Starts with Broken Windows, Ends in Jail

A COUPLE OF key pieces of news this week, very much related to the car-smashing thuggery last night in Atwater Village: 1. Broken Windows Theory Bolstered by New Study - "A provocative study... lends support to the controversial 'broken windows' theory behind crime and anti-graffiti prevention programs." 2. Atwater Village Gang Member Gets 75-to-Life "A Los Angeles judge on Friday sentenced Timothy McGhee for taking part in a January 2005 disturbance at the downtown Men's Central Jail.... Authorities say the 35-year-old McGhee was the leader of a gang in the Atwater Village area."

Toonerville Gang: No Chevy Chase Park After 10 PM

THIS WEEK'S lawsuit from Los Angeles and Glendale, the cities' first joint injunction against Toonerville gang members, includes a city park ban. From the Glendale News-Press: "They would also be barred from Chevy Chase and Palmer parks, and be placed under a 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. daily curfew with few exceptions. Those found to be in violation of the order would be subject to immediate arrest and prosecution, officials said." I'm sure North Atwater Village families will be pleased to know they only have to wait till 3 or 4 hours past sunset each night to let their kids play safely in Chevy Chase Park. (UPDATE: Scott notes that the park ban as worded may be 24/7.) Complete coverage: Lawsuit targets Toonerville gang [Glendale News-Press] Gang Injunction To Be Filed Against Toonerville [Tropico Station] Gang Injunction To Be Filed Against Toonerville in North Atwater Village [Atwater Village News]

Jury Wants Death for 'Monster of Atwater'

TODAY A LOS ANGELES County jury recommended a death sentence for an Atwater Village gang leader. Timothy McGhee was convicted last November of murdering 2 rival gang members and a woman in 1997, 2000 and 2001. He was also found guilty of four attempted murders. He will be sentenced Nov. 21.

Monster of Atwater Says God Speaks Via Earthquake

FROM THE COMEDIAN formerly known as the Monster of Atwater, via last week's LA Weekly court blog: "God has spoken!" Timothy McGhee jokingly quipped to a downtown Superior Court room when the earthquake struck at 11:40 a.m. today. McGhee, the convicted triple murderer and Atwater Village street-gang leader, was testifying on the witness stand about his role in a 2005 jail riot...

Atwater Chatter: Post-Diwali Edition

INDIAN SWEETS (and spices) found their way into our home this weekend. We hope they did yours too. Some news from in and around this banana-shaped hood in northeast Los Angeles: Mistrial on Fate of Convicted Killer - Atwater Village gang leader Timothy McGhee will still do time, but this jury couldn't decide how long [LA Daily News] New Noodle House! New Hipster Shop! But where's the new wine bar? [MilesThink] Yes, People Live Down There - Tour of residences along garbage islands of Los Angles River [Nature Trumps] Heckuva job, LABSM, Bike Path Still Dark - Is there a single crooked metals-buyer somewhere in Atwater Village who knows exactly what's going on...? [Metroblogging LA] Happy Diwali to All - First LA City Council presentation marking festival of lights for Hindu new year [CD13 Garcetti]

Atwater Chatter: Not-So-Scary Neighborhood Edition

NEWS FROM IN AND around Atwater Village, one LA neighborhood happy to have taken in a few evacuees from the latest California fires. Gang leader convicted - Timothy McGhee, 34, leader of Atwater Village's Toonerville gang, is found guilty of three counts of first-degree murder, four of attempted murder ... Verdicts were welcome news here, where "residents feared McGhee would get off after an almost six-year wait." [LA Daily News] Glendale Boo-levard - Fourth annual "trick or treat fall festival," 3100 block of Glendale Blvd., Friday, Oct. 26, 4:00pm to 5:30pm. [AVNC] Neighborhood Council Election Final Report - Ouch! "In observation of the numbers of votes (398) that were cast in this election, the Human Relations Commission hopes that the Neighborhood Council will not be satisfied with a voter turnout for this election in a neighborhood council that represents over 20,000 stakeholders." Right, City, call us back when you empower neighborhood councils to actually do something. [City of LA] The carp are biting - "Yesterday I came across these dudes fishing in the Glendale Narrows ... Here's Jon and Dean with their carp 'Double Header,' around 4-5 lbs. each." [Nature Trumps] Jim not really a Field Deputy... just a lowly Case Worker - Someone must really hate this guy. [The CD14 Enquirer]

http://www.stoppopandroll.com/rss/ http://www.stoppopandroll.com/index.php Episode 2: "Sounds of Atwater Village." Aaron & Paula give listeners a taste of what goes on outside their windows on a daily basis and, folks, it ain't always pretty. Featured music: Rooftop Suicide Club, Timothy Monger, Paula Kelley. Background Music: "The Drunken Organ-Grinder" by Paula Kelley. http://media.stoppopandroll.com/podcasts/Podcast_05-02-05.mp3 [MP3 audio file]

The Monster of Atwater

A TIMELY RECAP OF EVENTS, four years in the making, as opening statements begin today in the trial of Timothy Joseph McGhee.

From the LA Daily News:

"A Latino homie with an Irish name, he goes by the street handles 'Huero' and 'Eskimo.' His tattoos include an eagle eating a snake - symbolic of the Mexican flag - emblazoned on the back of his shaved head, a place that skin artists say is the most painful spot to be tattooed.

"His spiral notebook of rap lyrics depicts McGhee as a 21st century American psychopath, devoid of conscience, who used the Atwater Village area as an urban killing field...

"McGhee, after all, is believed to have killed one young man - 16-year-old Ryan 'Huero' Gonzales in 2000 - simply because he thought Atwater Village wasn't big enough for two people with the same nickname.

"It is the kind of violent rampage for which McGhee came to be called in his neighborhood 'the Monster of Atwater.' Some cops even compared his murderous nature to that of Charles Manson..."

'Pinoy Real' is Not Some Trendy Red Wine

Speaking of gentrification, I noticed this recent addition to Atwater Village's Wikipedia page: As middle-class Armenian and Filipino immigrants surged into the area, the Los Angeles Police Department managed to crack down on gang activity [including] The Rascals gang and Pinoy Real gang. Despite LAPD crack-down, Pinoy Real (PR) lives on, with its own sloppy Wikipedia page: Atwater (LA side) PR has a long history of continued rivalry between Hispanic gangs ToonerVille Rifa (TVR) and Temple St (TST) along with other Filipino gangs. Thee Rascals Gang (TRS) and PR kept mutual respect and shared the same Atwater village torritory. PR and TRS has fought side by side to keep rivals out of Atwater. It's good to see people out tagging Web pages - instead of storefronts - with gang territory info. And with clues on how to spot gang members: PR members are known to sport Pittsburgh Pirates apparel. Oh, but there I go, proving right those smart, ambitious kids over at 50mm Los Angeles who post about "Ratwater" being full of, you know, "sniches."