Danny R. Smith's Blog, page 8

Ineffective Policing

There are daily examples in the news or on the internet of the ineffective policing that now plagues many law enforcement agencies throughout our country.

Anarchy in the Cities [image error]Photo credit: ZACH GIBSON/AFP/Getty Images

In some cities, police are ordered to stand down while terrorist groups like ANTIFA destroy property and assault citizens.In New York, police were seen turning their backs on out-of-control “youths” while being doused with buckets of water.

[image error]In other instances, cops have...

The Disgraceful NFL

Did anyone see that vicious assault last week in the NFL? The one that should have resulted in an arrest and prosecution, but won’t even get the player banned from the NFL?

[image error]Cleveland Brown’s Myles Garrett Assaults Steeler’s Quarterback Mason Rudolph

No Longer a Fan of the NFL

First, let me be clear: I no longer watch the NFL, and I don’t miss it one bit. Raised as a Rams fan, I switched to the Packers when the Rams left Los Angeles. I’ve been to more than a dozen NFL games in Los Angeles and...

The Murder Memo Anniversary Blog

We’ve just passed the two-year anniversary of The Murder Memo.

Origin of the Name

[image error]A murder memo is a document used at the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Homicide Bureau. It contains the particulars of a case: identification of the victim, the date, time, and location of occurrence, and suspect information if there is any. The team lieutenant prepares a murder memo for each homicide case to be used for administrative purpo...

The Murder of Deputy Michael Hoenig

[image error]During the early morning hours of October 30, 1997, Deputy Michael Hoenig was killed by gunfire as he attempted to stop a suspicious man on a bicycle in the City of Lynwood.

Last week, I received a message from a colleague who had been reading the reflections posted on the Officer Down Memorial Page of Deputy Hoenig, remembering him on the anniversary of his death. The colleague asked if I had known Deputy Hoenig, or if I knew the details surrounding his death, suggesting it might make an interesting blog i...

The Plymouth Speech

[image error]“The Plymouth Speech” came about one night in Chinatown over gin and tonics while I sat with two of my best friends, Mac and Johnny B., lamenting a failed weekend with a high school sweetheart I’ll call Linda.

“Sweetheart” might be a bit of an exaggeration, but there were obvious feelings each of us had for the other. There were awkward, adolescent endeavors over time, but a meaningful relationship never developed—much to the dismay of many of our mutual friends, who had predicted we would someday...

Open Carry

I’m no fan of open carry, much to the dismay of some of my gun-loving brethren.

[image error]Although I am an ardent supporter of the second amendment, and a lifetime member of the NRA, I believe this is one of those topics that should be carefully examined by all gun rights advocates.

For me, this comes down to civility, and I would ask those who disagree to try to consider a cop’s perspective.

Open Carry of Military-style Weapons

As a cop, I would not have been comfortable with civilians walking down th...

The Day America Changed

[image error]By September 11, 2001, I had become accustomed to my phone ringing at all hours of the day and night. But on that Tuesday morning, it was my wife’s phone that rang at 5:50 a.m., not mine. It wasn’t the office calling. It wasn’t my partner, nor my lieutenant, nor an informant, witness, or a victim’s loved one checking in. It was one of our dearest friends spreading the news. Her usually jovial voice was subdued, dark, quivering as she reported that an airplane had crashed into the World Trade...

The Deterioration of Law Enforcement: A Guest Post by Robert Harris

Robert Lee “Bobby” Harris has been a close friend since 1984. We worked together at several assignments on the sheriff’s department, including Firestone patrol and Homicide Bureau. We’ve been roommates, radio car partners, riding (motorcycles) partners, and drinking buddies.

Bobby spent 33 years in law enforcement, working as a police officer for the cities of Sierra Madre and Culver City before he was hired by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. His career was a colorful one, to say...

Ghettoside: Part II

Ghettoside: A True Story of Murder in America

[image error] As they walked him out of the building, Devin was back to whining. He wanted something—a soda. Skaggs turned, and for an instant, the calm, imperturbable patina he had maintained for two decades of working homicides slipped. Farell caught his look, surprised; he had never known Skaggs to be anything but easygoing and in control.

“F#@# you,” Skaggs told Devin. “You killed a cop’s kid.”

* * *

In case you missed it, click here for PART I. Part II –...

Ghettoside: An Interview with Author Jill Leovy

[image error]I just finished reading New York Times Bestseller Ghettoside: A True Story of Murder in America, by former Los Angeles Times reporter Jill Leovy. It is the story of homicide in South Los Angeles, more specifically the seemingly endless epidemic of blacks murdering blacks. It is provocative, brutally honest, a story I believe should be read by every cop.

To write the book, Leovy embedded herself with LAPD’s South Bureau Homicide. She focuses primarily on the work of Detective John Skaggs, a ma...