LBPD Nab Cell Phone Thiefs

Long Beach Police Department (California) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

12/12/2013

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

PRESS RELEASE #2012

Subject :	LONG BEACH POLICE ANNOUNCE ARRESTS IN CONNECTION WITH RECENT CELL PHONE THEFTS AND ENCOURAGE PUBLIC TO REMAIN VIGILANT
Contact :	Media Relations Detail    (562) 570-5273

Long Beach Police arrested a total of five suspects in connection with one attempt robbery and three robberies, which occurred in the East and West Divisions. Robbery detectives recognized an increase of incidents over the past few weeks and developed a strategy with the East Patrol, West Patrol, and the Gang and Violent Crimes Divisions.  Residents were encouraged to report suspicious persons and activity, while police focused saturation patrol efforts throughout the area. On December 11, 2013, around 7:30 p.m., police responded to the 1700 block of East Second Street regarding an attempted armed robbery. One suspect approached the victim, demanded his cell phone, and fled on foot.  At approximately 8:00 p.m., another robbery occurred in the area of 4th Street and Rose Avenue.  The armed suspect approached two victims and demanded their cell phones and cash.  During the course of the investigation, two suspects were arrested and the investigation is ongoing.  At this time, the suspects are only being described as an adult male resident of Los Angeles and an adult male resident of Bellflower. On the morning of December 12, 2013, Long Beach Gang Enforcement detectives arrested three juveniles for robberies that occurred in the 3900 block of East Broadway on November 23, 2013, and a robbery that occurred on November 22, 2013, in the area of Division and La Verne.  Pursuant to the arrests, detectives executed four search warrants and recovered jewelry, cell phones, and additional evidence. Robbery detectives are in the process of determining if those arrested may be responsible for other incidents that occurred in the area south of 5th Street and east of Alamitos Avenue during the past few weeks.  Those robberies were crimes of opportunity where the suspect spotted a potential victim who was distracted, approached the victim, displayed a handgun, snatched the victim’s cell phone, and then fled.  The suspect(s) have been described as male African American(s), ranging in age from teens to mid-twenties, and armed with a handgun, which may be a real or replica firearm. The Long Beach Police Department is asking for the public’s help in identifying the individual(s) responsible and encourages community members to increase their awareness and to diligently practice the following safety tips: ·    Always be alert and aware of your surroundings and the people around you ·    Whenever possible, avoid using your IPOD, cell phone, or portable game system while walking in public areas ·    Don’t “advertise” that you have valuables in public view (money, jewelry, electronic devices, etc.) ·    Be aware of locations and situations, which make you vulnerable to crime, such as dark parking lots, walkways, ATM machines, and alleys ·    Whenever possible, travel with a friend - there is safety in numbers ·    Stay in well-lighted areas as much as possible ·    Walk close to the curb and avoid doorways, bushes, and alleys where someone could hide ·    If you feel you are being followed or targeted, move to a well-populated and well-lighted area ·    Report suspicious persons or activity by calling 9-1-1 ·    If you are the victim of a robbery, call 9-1-1 immediately to provide a good description of the suspect(s), the mode of transportation, and direction of travel. Anyone with information regarding recent robberies is urged to call the Long Beach Police Department Robbery Detail at (562) 570-7464.  Anyone wishing to remain anonymous may call 1-800-222-TIPS (8477), or text TIPLA plus your tip to 274637 (CRIMES), or visitwww.LACrimeStoppers.org.

Related articles

• Police arrest five in Long Beach cell phone thefts (ocregister.com)
• Cellphone thefts hit Alamitos Beach (ocregister.com)

10 Breath Taking Reasons Why Only One Member of Council Stood Up for Taxpayers And Voted Against Spending Yet Another Million Dollars on Yet Another Consultant

On Tuesday, December 3, the Long Beach City Council on a 7-1 vote (Schipske voting “no”) approved spending over $1 million to hire a consultant to put together a “Request for Proposal” that will be sent to developers for the demolition and rebuild of the City Hall and Main Library that were built in 1976. The demolition and rebuild are projected to cost at least $435 million. ($12.8 million x 34 years). City staff has already told prospective developers that the project could be financed with “either taxable financing, tax-exempt financing or any combination.” The current City Hall is valued at $86 million.

 10.    The City Council wasn’t even shown the proposed contract with the consultant so we didn’t get to review what over $1 million was buying in terms of services, number of hours for the services,etc.  It’s just money, right?  We still don’t have a fire engine in Belmont Shores or a rescue unit in North Long Beach. But we’ve got consultants.

9.       The Council has not been given an extensive seismic report, as requested from City Management, that details why the current buildings are: a) unsafe and/or b) cannot be retrofitted. So if the buildings are so unsafe that they need to be torn down, why are they still occupied and will be for the next several years while this project gets put together?

8.       The Cities of San Francisco, Los Angeles and Pasadena have all retrofitted their City Halls instead of tearing them down, even though their buildings were constructed in: 1912 – San Francisco; 1928 – Los Angeles; 1927 – Pasadena. And, the shock of it all, these cities involved their City  Council and their taxpayers.
 

7.        The City Council was told it will not be allowed to read the “Request for Proposal” before it is sent to the developers. Only city staff will get a look at it. Ergo – a consultant will determine what type of financing, what size of the buildings, what other buildings will be on City property, etc. Is this so elected officials can say “gosh we didn’t know" if the project goes bad?

6.        The Council removed a large portion of funding for “public outreach” efforts that would ask the taxpayers for their opinions on this mega project. Seems only fair? If the elected City Council doesn’t get to give input on this project, then why should taxpayers...
 

5.        The developers responding to the “Request for Proposals” will be compensated with up to one-half million dollars each for just responding because it takes a lot of effort to put plans together – even plans that might not be accepted by the City Council. Nice work if you can get it.
   

4.        Part of the proposal that has already been given to developers for a “new main library” calls for a much smaller structure of 50,000 – 70,000 square feet down from its current 135,000 square feet. When City staff was asked where the smaller figure came from, the staff person responded “I made it up.” Amazing. Perhaps the entire reasoning that this project has to go forward was “made up” as well.
 

3.     The City Attorney has indicated that the City might need to ask the State Legislature to pass legislation to allow the City to set up a special financing of this project with a private developer. That’s because there are limits to on-going financial obligations. But heck, just maybe we can get them waived.
 

2.         The City Council would not even discuss a proposal by Councilwoman Gerrie Schipske to prohibit campaign contributions from developers, contractors or anyone doing or bidding to do business with the City of Long Beach. So watch the campaign contributions start flowing in on this project that has no direction from City Council, minimal input from the taxpayers and no documentation as to why the buildings can’t be retrofitted instead of torn down and rebuilt. Merry Christmas.
 

1.        Five council members currently serving in office will be out of here, when the final proposal is given to City Council next July 2014. So a brand new Mayor and Council and City Attorney will be handed a project they didn’t review or approve but which already had cost the City several millions of dollars and may cost the taxpayers hundreds of millions more. Now that’s political planning.

A note of gratitude....

Giving Thanks (Photo credit: mRio)

Dear Friend,

I just wanted to say thanks.

As I wrapped up my Council work for this week and started to focus on Thanksgiving, I started thinking about how grateful I am for so many things and what this holiday means for me.

My mother especially loved Thanksgiving.  She made the day special for our family.  Days before she would prepare and bake pumpkin pies. On Thanksgiving day, she would get up at 6 am to prepare the turkey and stuffing. Then over the course of hours she would transform the house with the warmth of smells of a feast that would provide left-overs for a week. To this day, a Thanksgiving isn't complete without her recipes for lima beans, baby onions and candied yams. (I skip the giblet dressing...sorry Mom).

I remember my first Thanksgiving away from home when I worked in Washington, D.C. and the kindness of relatives of a co-worker who took me in to their crowded apartment and shared their meal and the excitement of their young children who decorated the table with brightly colored tracings of their hands which make funny looking turkeys.

But the very best memory is the year I celebrated my first Thanksgiving as a mom. As Flo and I expanded our family to include three children, it just got better and better. More hectic and exhausting but wouldn't trade it for anything else.

There are so many things for which to be thankful.  Good friends. Good health. A great opportunity to teach at CSULB.  And I'm still thankful I have the ability to play the guitar with friends.

I am especially thankful for the chance to serve on City Council these past seven years and to try and make my neighborhoods safer and cleaner and our local government more open and responsive . 

But I didn't do it alone. With the help of outstanding city employees and involved residents we were able to make these changes happen.

 I want to extend a special thanks to the many people who call, email or talk to me when they see me out and around Long Beach and who give me advice or their opinions on the issues facing Long Beach. Thank you. Your support, kind words and guidance are much appreciated.

So with much gratitude, I wish you and yours a Happy Thanksgiving.

Gerrie Schipske 

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Schipske Moves Quickly to Consider Replacement for Commissioner Fields

English: Long_Beach_CA_Photo_D_Ramey_Logan please provide photographer credit if used outside Wiki projects (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

SCHIPSKE CALLS PERSONNEL COMMITTEE TO FACILITATE QUICK CONSIDERATION OF MAYOR’S PICK TO REPLACE PORT COMMISSIONER THOMAS FIELDS – Says important to put politics aside for the good of the City

Long Beach, CA, November 25, 2013 – Councilwoman Gerrie Schipske, who chairs the Council Committee on Personnel and Civil Services today announced that she has scheduled a meeting on December 3^rd in order to review Mayor Bob Foster’s recommendation for a replacement for Thomas Fields, who was removed by a 6-3 vote.

All City Charter Board and Commission appointments must go through the Council Committee which in turn makes its recommendation to the full Council.

Schipske, who voted against Fields’ removal, says she quickly scheduled a meeting of the Committee to facilitate the Mayor making an appointment before the end of the year. “It is important that everyone put politics aside for the good of the City and for the future of our Port,” adding that she has supported each and every appointment of Mayor Foster. 

“While I strongly disagreed with the removal of Mr. Fields, I support our City Charter which gives the Mayor the right to make appointments and will continue to do so.”

Schipske says that the Council needs to also move expeditiously to confirm the commissioner appointment so that the Port can move forward on numerous important issues, including hiring a new Executive Director.

#30

Please join us at this touching holiday tradition at Rosie the Riveter Park "Some Gave All Memorial"

Schipske Invited to Join LA Jobs Defense Council To Fight to Keep Boeing

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Councilwoman Gerrie Schipske Joins LAEDC Jobs Defense Council
Long Beach, CA – November 20, 2013 – Councilwoman Gerrie Schipske, in her ongoing effort to advocate for Boeing to continue to keep assembly work in the City of Long Beach, and to fight for good paying jobs in the City, today announced that she was invited to join the Los Angeles Economic Development Corporation (LAEDC) Jobs Defense Council.

Schipske is the only representative from the City of Long Beach to serve on the council and attended today’s meeting which focused on ways to attract aerospace and related industries to stay, expand, or set up operations in the region.

“I feel that it’s extremely important that Long Beach does everything it can to maintain Boeing’s presence in our city and to do everything we can to support the businesses that depend on Boeing for their success,” stated Schipske, whose council district includes the aerospace corporation, “It’s important that someone on Council is participating on this county-wide council to ensure that Long Beach is represented.”

The Los Angeles County Economic Development Corporation (LAEDC), is a private, non-profit 501(c)3 organization established in 1981. Its mission is to attract, retain, and grow business and jobs for the regions of Los Angeles County. The L.A. Jobs Defense Council, an LAEDC project, is a group of regional and local electeds, agencies, aerospace related business representatives, and labor leaders.

Councilwoman Gerrie Schipske represents the 5^th Council District in which The Boeing Company is located. She has launched a Facebook page where readers can indicate their support for this effort: www.facebook.com/keepboeinginlongbeach 

and authored two pieces of legislation at City Council which call for a City Council resolution in support of retaining and expanding Boeing in Long Beach as well as funding an economic impact study that can be given to the Governor of California as evidence of what a loss of Boeing would mean to Long Beach and to the region. Both pieces of legislation passed unanimously last night in City Council.

#30

Related articles

• Long Beach pushes for Boeing to bring 777X jetliner assembly to town (scpr.org)
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Schipske Continues Fight to Keep Boeing In Long Beach

English: Commandant of cadets flies new C-17 Globemaster III home: Brig. Gen. Susan Y. Desjardins flies a newly accepted C-17A Globemaster III over the U.S. Air Force Academy cadet area Oct. 2 in Colorado Springs, Colorado General Desjardins accepted the aircraft into the United States Air Force's inventory at Boeing's facilities in Long Beach, California, and flew it from the Boeing facility to its new duty station with the 436th Airlift Wing at Dover Air Force Base, Delaware. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

BREAKING NEWS

Schipske Says Long Beach Needs Economic Impact Study on Potential Boeing Loss So that Governor’s Office of Jobs and Business Development Can Assess What Incentives Can Be Offered  -- Suggests Costs of Study Be Borne by City, Local Union and LB Chamber of Commerce

Long Beach, CA – November 14, 2013 – After a series of telephone calls and meetings to determine what the City of Long Beach can do to keep The Boeing Company in Long Beach, Fifth District Councilwoman Gerrie Schipske today stated:

“My office staff and I have been in contact with the Governor’s Office of Jobs and Business Development, the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corporation and the leadership of United Aerospace Works Local 148 about what can be done to keep the Boeing Company here in Long Beach – either with the C-17 program or the ‘wing work’ for the 777x. It is clear that with the announcement that the International Association of Machinists in Puget Sound, Washington rejected a contract deal with Boeing, and the subsequent statement from Boeing CEO, Ray Conner, that the company will open the process competitively and pursue all options for the 777x, that the Long Beach needs to step up and make the case why Boeing should remain here.

Governor Brown signed into law last July three pieces of legislation that include hiring credits for companies in areas blighted with the highest jobless rates, a sales tax exemption on tools for manufacturing and research and development equipment and tax incentives for companies that create jobs and pay the highest wages.

The City of Long Beach faces the highest unemployment rate in the State as well as a growing poverty rate amongst adults and young people. The loss of Boeing would mean our second largest employer would be gone which could have catastrophic results on our local economy.

I have been told that in order for Governor Brown’s Office of Jobs and Business Development to determine what if any incentives can be offered to retain Boeing in Long Beach, an ‘Economic Impact Study’ needs to be prepared detailing the exact economic loss Long Beach would suffer should Boeing leave. The Los Angeles County Representative for the Governor’s Office of Jobs and Business Development recommended that such a study be commissioned with the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corporation.

The Los Angeles County Economic Development Corporation (LAEDC), a private, non-profit 501(c)3 organization established in 1981. Its mission is to attract, retain, and grow business and jobs for the regions of Los Angeles County.

The study is estimated to cost $15,000 which could be borne equally by the City of Long Beach, the United Aerospace Workers Local 148 and the Long Beach Chamber of Commerce.

Long Beach needs to fight to keep these jobs here. What we do in this instance sends a strong message to Boeing and any other company that would consider locating here, that the City of Long Beach will stand by them and that we will do what it takes to protect our local economy.

I am submitting a council agenda item requesting that the City fund the ‘Economic Impact Study’ and that the City Manager request the participation of UAW and the Long Beach Chamber of Commerce in this critical effort.”

Councilwoman Gerrie Schipske represents the 5^th Council District in which The Boeing Company is located. She has launched a Facebook page where readers can indicate their support for this effort: www.facebook.com/keepboeinginlongbeach

Related articles

• Boeing union contract rejection sets stage for 777X bidding war (ocregister.com)
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Long Beach Needs to Do Whatever It Takes to Keep Boeing

English: Commandant of cadets flies new C-17 Globemaster III home: Brig. Gen. Susan Y. Desjardins flies a newly accepted C-17A Globemaster III over the U.S. Air Force Academy cadet area Oct. 2 in Colorado Springs, Colorado General Desjardins accepted the aircraft into the United States Air Force's inventory at Boeing's facilities in Long Beach, California, and flew it from the Boeing facility to its new duty station with the 436th Airlift Wing at Dover Air Force Base, Delaware. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Schipske Calls for City to Do Whatever It Takes to Convince Boeing to Build 777x Airline” in Long Beach

Long Beach, Ca – November 5, 2015 – Responding to a column appearing in Forbes magazine yesterday which discusses the possibility that Boeing officials are considering utilizing workers at the Long Beach plant for the wing work associated with its 777x , Fifth District Councilwoman Gerrie Schipske today called upon City Manager, Pat West, to “do whatever it takes to convince Boeing to stay in Long Beach.”

“Boeing currently accounts for 2.89% percent of the jobs in Long Beach,” says Schipske, whose council district includes Boeing. “We cannot afford to lose these jobs. Boeing’s announcement that it would close the C-17 facility in 2015 and that we would lose over 5,000 jobs was devastating news for Long Beach. Yesterday, the news that Boeing was considering bringing the wing work for the 777x to Long Beach means that the door is not closed and sends the signal that the City needs to do whatever it takes to convince Boeing that Long Beach is the right place for this work.”

According to the Forbes article, Boeing is looking at several sites, including Long Beach and that the work will provide 20 -25 years of employment wherever it is located.

Upon reading the Forbes column, Schipske submitted a council agenda item asking for a council resolution in support of efforts to encourage Boeing to remain in Long Beach and to direct the City Manager to determine what steps can be taken by the City to convince Boeing to bring the 777x wing work to Long Beach.

The Forbes article was written by Loren Thompson and is titled: Boeing Eyes Long Beach C-17 Plant For 777X Airliner Production: http://www.forbes.com/sites/lorenthompson/2013/11/04/boeing-eyes-long-beach-c-17-plant-for-777x-airliner-production/

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Long Beach is ethically ahead of Los Angeles...

Seal of Los Angeles, California. On March 27, 1905 Ordinance 10,834 authorized and described the City Seal still being used today http://cityclerk.lacity.org/cps/pdf/cityseals.pdf. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Los Angeles Times columnist, Steve Lopez, wrote a column about how the City Council of Los Angeles was increasing the value of the gifts its members could receive from lobbyists: " And with the holiday shopping season about to get under way, the council lifted the limit on gifts from $100 to $150."

Long Beach should be proud that its City Council cannot receive gifts of any value from lobbyists. Nada...nothing, zero.

This was my legislation which I had been advocating for several years. Didn't make sense to me why elected officials should accept anything from anyone wanting to do business with the City. (In fact, I had a policy in my office from the start -- No Gifts Period.

One of my colleagues complained that he should be able to get a Christmas gift. I pointed out that these people weren't our friends and that the gifts would stop once the council member left council.

I would like to see the ban on gifts to elected officials expanded to include contractors or anyone seeking a license or permit from the City.

Hey, I know the economy is tough. But City Councilmembers in Los Angeles make $180,000 a year. Long Beach councilmembers make $16.90 an hour or @ $31,000 a year. They need to give up the gifts. Their voters will appreciate it.

5th District Student Named to City Youth Commission

Patrick Henry Student Appointed to Long Beach Commission on Youth and Children 

I am pleased to announce that  Eighth grade Patrick Henry middle school class president, Emma Parsons, has been appointed to represent the Fifth Council District on the Long Beach Commission on Youth and Children. Parsons is also active on her school’s volleyball and track teams, and is a council member on the Patrick Henry sign language choir. 

"I am excited about serving on the commission because Long Beach has been my home since I was three years old."  Parsons explained, “I love living here and am excited about being involved with a group that makes Long Beach a great place to live and grow up.”

Her family had moved to Lima, Peru from 2008-11. When her family returned to the United States, she entered the 6^th grade at Patrick Henry, able to speak Spanish fluently. Always conscious of giving back to her community, Parsons contributes wherever she can, including volunteering to mentor elementary school students in a morning running club.

Emma Parsons is an outstanding young woman and I believe she will be a terrific Youth and Children commissioner representing the best of our community and the City of Long Beach.

For more information about the Fifth District, contact the Office of Councilwoman Gerrie Schipske at 562-570-6932 or district5@longbeach.gov.

#30

Long Beach Needs to Show Its Checkbook

Sunlight Foundation (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

A couple of years ago I brought an item to the Council agenda asking that we "sunshine" our city website and post a number of things, including our "checkbook" -- listing what we pay out and to whom. The Sunlight Foundation evaluates government websites for being open and transparent.

Management gave a resounding "no" to the checkbook idea and so once again, the City of Los Angeles has beaten us to the punch.

This past week the new City Controller, Ron Galperin, launched Control Panel LA https://controllerdata.lacity.org/ which posts a variety of data so taxpayers can see where their money is going.

But wait, not only is Long Beach behind Los Angeles, but also New York, Chicago, Philadelphia and other cities that have embraced the “open data” movement to make government more transparent.

So let's try it again. Taxpayers have the right to know not only what city government budgets, but what it really spends.

Related articles

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Why I pushed for help for Long Beach

The number one task of our Mayor and City Council should be finding ways to assist in the growth and development of business and jobs in our City.

That's why I am pleased to announce that the City Council unanimously adopted my proposal to direct the City Manager to contact Governor Brown to request that the Los Angeles Area Specialist from the State Office of Business and Economic Development (GO-BIZ) assist the City of Long Beach in attracting, expanding and retaining businesses and developing capabilities to become an Innovation Hub (IHUB).

Governor Brown has named three field specialists to the California Business Investment Services branch of the Governor's Office of Business and Economic Development ( www.business.ca.gov)

These specialists are charged with developing efforts to aid San Diego, the San Francisco Bay area and San Diego in attracting, expanding and retaining businesses. Go-Biz is the state office dedicated to serve as California's single point of contact for economic development and job creation efforts.

GO-Biz offers a range of services to business owners including: attraction, retention and expansion services, site selection, permit streamlining, clearing of regulatory hurdles, small business assistance, international trade development, assistance with state government, and much more.

GO-Biz also administers the state Innovation Hub (iHub) program which includes 12 iHubs stretching from Chico to San Diego. These regional innovation clusters bring together government, academia, and business to further enhance California's entrepreneurial ecosystem thru the promotion of innovation as a community building and job creation tool. In 2011, three of the 12 iHubs opened their first Innovation Incubators. Long Beach is not yet listed as one of the iHubs.

Long Beach continues to experience high unemployment and our job base needs to be expanded beyond its current major employers of government, education and healthcare.

Long Beach would greatly benefit from the Governor's assistance, particularly in directing the Specialist from Go Biz assigned to the Los Angeles area to assist the City in attracting, expanding and retaining businesses and in developing capabilities to join the list of iHubs.

I have attached a report on the latest economic incentives provided by the State of California for businesses. Feel free to download the report.

We need to continue this push to get City Hall to focus on encouraging and attracting businesses so that Long Beach can get back to work.

The City Council has approved several of my pro-business initiatives such as exploring creating a "Clean Tech Zone" to attract  new age manufacturing and "Prime Time for Business" which publicly acknowledges the contributions of our local small businesses. There is so much more we can do.

Let me know what you think.

Gerrie

Kiddie Halloween Karnival - October 26th

You are invited to a Halloween Kiddie Karnival (for children up to 10) at El Dorado Community Center from 1 - 5 pm on October 26th.. A-Scary-Um costume contest for kids and adults who dress as their favorite Aquarium creature.

Bring your carved or decorated pumpkin for our contest. Enjoy crafts, games, halloween laser show, face painting and bounce house.

At 2pm El Dorado Library will show the movie Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein.

At sunset in Ghoul (Good) Neighbor Park we will show "Young Frankenstein" and provide free popcorn.
Open to the public.

Time to Sunshine our Labor Contracting Process -- School Districts Do It -- Our City Government Should Do No Less

Government_Transparency_Six_Strategies-cover (Photo credit: Knight Foundation)

Sunlight Foundation (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I said this several years ago and I will say it again: Schools districts are required by law to be open and transparent in the collective bargaining process. Just take a look at the Long Beach Unified School District’s website and you will find public information on the progress of negotiations 

(http://www.lbusd.k12.ca.us/Employees/bargaining_updates.cfm). There are no surprises for the public when the contracts are brought to the Board of Education in a public session for ratification. Our City government should do no less.

Schools districts are required by Government Code Section 3547 to “sunshine” collective bargaining proposals and to give the public an opportunity in an open meeting to provide input on the proposals. Our City government should do no less.

We can either make this an amendment to our City Charter and let the voters approve or the Council can pass an ordinance and make it law immediately before the next round of negotiations begin.

In either case, the public should know what we are doing. And the public should have been told that proposed contracts with three bargaining groups had been voted on by their members before the City budget was approved. (By the way, when an employee association has a public vote to ratify a proposed agreement – that isn’t and should not be considered a secret to be kept from taxpayers.)

These contracts will come back to City Council for its public ratification but well after the City budget was approved. That’s not open and transparent and the process must be changed.

Related articles

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• OpenGov Voices: 3 simple ways cities can improve access to online information (sunlightfoundation.com)
• Public Open Data: The Good, the Bad, the Future (blogs.berkeley.edu)

Webinar on Human Trafficking Cases Available on September 27

Responding to Intimidation in Human Trafficking Cases

Webinar  Click http://www.aequitasresource.org/trainingDetail.cfm?id=101 to register.

September 27, 2013
From 2:00 PM to 3:30 PM

Presented by Audrey Roofeh, Polaris Project and Jennifer Long, AEquitas (Prosecutors’ Resource on Violence Against Women)

This webinar is designed to raise awareness, for prosecutors and other criminal justice professionals, about the dynamics and indicators of human trafficking as well as intimidation, and will challenge participants to reevaluate their approach to detecting and prosecuting these crimes. The webinar will explore the complex issues faced by prosecutors in identifying, investigating, and prosecuting human trafficking and intimidation while balancing offender accountability with the impact of criminal prosecution on victims. 

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Schipske Says US DOJ and CAL Attorney General Link Sex Trafficking to Gangs -- So Council Should Restore Gang Unit

Long Beach Police Department (California) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

As a member of the Council Public Safety Committee, I am very concerned about the cuts that were made in the Long Beach Police Department's Gang Unit in the Mayor's Budget.

I am concerned that our police do not have the resources they need to target the gangs that are often linked to the violent crimes being committed in some Council Districts (not the 5th). 

And because the politicians in Sacramento (even our own representatives) voted to release prisoners and send them back home, we are experiencing an increase in property crimes on the east side of Long Beach.

Now we learn that there is an increase of sex trafficking in Long Beach which is directly tied to gangs.

Sex trafficking is the third biggest criminal industry after drugs and arms trafficking and involves the exploitation of mostly young women and girls through forced prostitution. 

Street gangs operate commercial sex rings which make profits from the sale of young women. Attorney General Kamala D. Harris has called human trafficking a low-risk and high-reward crime for gangs.

If we are really interested in combating this crime we need to fully restore the gang unit in the Long Beach Police Department to give them the resources they need to combat this horrendous crime. 

A fully restored gang unit can gather critical intelligence on the methods of recruiting, transporting, harboring, marketing, buying, and selling involved in gang-related human trafficking. It can help target gang-related trafficking in addition to other criminal charges.

The current "gang unit" in the LBPD has been funded at half-strength since the Mayor proposed cuts in the FY 13 budget. I proposed the restoration of the gang unit but it was opposed by the Chair of the Public Safety Committee, Robert Garcia.

It's time to restore those cuts. We need to get the scourge of all gang-related activity out of Long Beach. All of our neighborhoods deserve to be safe. All of our children deserve to be protected from these sexual predators. 

I have worked in Long Beach for so many years on public safety issues. I am a life time honorary member of the Long Beach Police Chief's Women's Advisory Committee because I helped establish it and worked diligently to start the Sexual Assault Response team and the Domestic Violence Response team. Because of my work, I was appointed to the United States Attorney General's National Advisory Committee on Violence Against Women. 

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