CommentsRANTZ & RAVEZ-I recently attended the League of California Cities and Board of Directors Installation Ceremony and Dinner at the Calabasas Civic Center.
The celebration and installation of newly elected officials drew a wide range of elected and appointed officials and community members from different cities throughout the Southern California region. Calabasas Mayor Janes R. Bozajian was installed as President of the League of California Cities, Los Angeles County Division, at the event.
I ran into many former political colleagues and friends, including LA City Controller Ron Galperin who has announced he is running for the seat on the LA County Board of Supervisors currently held by Sheila Kuehl. As a sidenote, Kuehl needs a map to find her way to and around the San Fernando Valley since she has avoided and neglected the region since elected to public office years ago. I have a $50 bill for the first person who can send me a recent photo of themselves and Supervisor Kuehl at a PUBLIC event held in the Los Angeles City Region of the San Fernando Valley between January 1, 2021, thru July 31, 2021. You can email me a copy of the photo with the event information attached to [email protected].
The winner will be announced in a future RantZ & RaveZ column along with the photo receiving the $50. If the money is not claimed within 10 days after this column is published, I will donate the funds to a local San Fernando Velley charity. There are plenty of local charities that need funds to continue operating and serving people. A recent report showed that contributions to charities have been significantly reduced in the past year.
Rick Caruso (photo above) -- developer, businessman, and former Police Commissioner -- addressed the gathering and discussed his family history and success as a local businessman. The expanding homeless population was addressed along with other serious community concerns including crime. Mr. Caruso displayed both compassion and concern about the many critical issues facing Los Angeles. There was a point during the presentation that questions were welcomed from the audience. I asked him if he had any intention of running for Mayor. He was very direct in his response, stating that HE IS CURRENTLY EXPLORING THE POSSIBILITY OF ENTERING THE RACE for Mayor of Los Angeles. It was refreshing news for me as well as many others in attendance. We will see what happens in the upcoming months. The mayoral election is scheduled for November 8, 2022, with the primary scheduled for June 7, 2022.
The San Fernando Valley Business Journal list of the 200 most influential leaders in the Valley Area 2021.
I am honored to be listed among the 200 Most Influential Leaders in the San Fernando Valley for 2021. I join a list of many dedicated and respected Valley Leaders including advisors in Business, Education, Finance, Government, Health Care, Organizations and Real Estate. Joining in with this honor is Kathleen Sterling the Valley News Group publisher. Congratulations to the entire list of Valley Leaders.
If you have any concern about Public Safety for yourself, family, or community, LA County DA George Gascón must be RECALLED.
I am sure most of you have already read and heard about the current RECALL campaign of District Attorney George Gascón. The movement is continuing with thousands of signatures being collected from those who care about being safe in Los Angeles County, including all of its 88 cities. Among them are the City of Los Angeles, Long Beach, Pasadena, Burbank, Beverly Hills, San Fernando, Calabasas, Manhattan Beach, Santa Monica, and a host of others. The District Attorney is responsible for the prosecution of ALL felony and some misdemeanor crimes in some of the cities.
You can download the Recall Petition by going to www.RecallGeorgeGascon.com. Fill it out and mail it in. It is that simple. Your safety and that of your family and friends are critical.
The Latest LAPD Citywide Crime Profile
As if July 31, 2021, the LAPD has 9424 sworn members on the books. This is a slight increase from the previous months. The 9424 includes all personnel working, in training, on vacation, off sick and away for a variety of reasons. The actual number of police officers and detectives has been reduced and many functions have either been curtailed or eliminated. The bottom line is that there are fewer police officers on the LAPD “To Protect and Serve” all of us.
The city budget for 2021-2022 finally took effect on July 1 and the Department is once again hiring and filling vacancies. It will take time to show a significant increase in the number of officers due to continuing retirements and resignations. Remember the Spinless Mayor and majority of LA City Council members, three of which are facing voter recalls, caved in to the DEFUND the Police movement. We are all paying the price for that foolish action with the increasing crimes of violence that we see on our local news broadcasts. As of July 31, violent crimes are as follows:
Murders in Los Angeles are up 23.1% with 224 victims. 840 people have been shot with a 41.7% increase. Shots fired are up 42.9% with 1941 reports. I invite you to review the LAPD crime stats that all listed on-line.
That’s it for this edition of RantZ and RaveZ.
(Dennis P. Zine is a former and retired LAPD Supervisor, former and retired 12-year Los Angeles City Councilman and current General Manager at Bell Canyon in Ventura County.) Photo: Getty, Photo illustration by the Real Deal. Edited for CityWatch by Linda Abrams.
