University Park Blotter: March 20 – March 26, 2019
Our weekly Crosstown University Park Blotter is a rundown of crimes in one neighborhood. University Park is unique in that there are two law enforcement agencies patrolling the area – the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) and USC’s Department of Public Safety (DPS).
Here is the blotter from March 13 – 19, 2019 and March 6 – March 12, 2019. In the style of newspaper police blotters, we choose a selection of incidents, some criminal and some not, reported to the LAPD and DPS.
March 20, 2019
From DPS:
Suspicious circumstances | 7:49 a.m. | Grand Ave. Structure (3401 S. Grand Ave.)
“An empty box in which a gun had previously been packaged was found on the fifth floor of the location and it was determined to belong to a staff member. The staff member was contacted and officers confirmed that he did not possess the gun on campus.”
Injury response | 9:13 a.m. | Tuscany Apartments (3770 S. Figueroa St.)
“A student was examined and released to seek medical treatment on his own after swallowing a Bluetooth earpiece.”
Battery | 3 p.m. | Hazard Park (2230 Norfolk St.)
“A student reported that her roommate hugged and kissed her without her consent.”
Suspicious circumstances | 7:12 p.m. | 37th St. and Vermont Ave.
“A juvenile reported that a suspect began following her while she was jogging near the location. Fearing for her safety, the juvenile ran onto campus and the suspect did not pursue her.”
Suspicious circumstances | 7:30 p.m. | Ronald Tutor Hall of Engineering (3710 McClintock Ave.)
“A staff member reported that while she was cleaning inside the cafe at the location after hours one of the cash registers printed out a receipt that contained a hate message.”
From the LAPD:
Trespassing | 12:30 p.m. | 32nd St. and Royal St.
A suspect snuck into the victim’s home. The victim was a 46-year-old Asian male and a security guard.
March 21, 2019
From DPS:
Suspicious circumstances | 10:19 a.m. | Virginia Ramo Hall of Music (830 W. 34th St.)
“A faculty member raised concerns about students associating with a stranger on WeChat.”
From the LAPD:
Rape | 9 p.m. | 29th St. and Figueroa St.
While victim was asleep or unconscious and possibly under the influence of drugs or narcotics, a suspect raped her. The victim was a 20-year-old white female.
March 22, 2019
From DPS:
Recovered property without a crime | 7:16 a.m. | Heritage Hall Weight and Dining Facility (3501 Watt Way)
“A staff member discovered a BB gun magazine inside a storage closet at the location and turned it over to DPS officers.”
Hate/Bias Incident | 9:14 a.m. | Jill and Frank Fertitta Hall (610 Childs Way)
“A suspect used an unknown object to scratch a swastika into a restroom stall wall at the location.”
Trespassing | 2:22 p.m. | Royal Street Structure (672 W. Jefferson Blvd.)
“Four suspects who were observed drinking alcohol on the top level of the location were detained for questioning, advised against trespassing on University [sic] property and released.”
March 23, 2019
From DPS:
Disturbance | 12:33 a.m. | 700 block of W. 28th St.
“Officers responded to a report of unidentified males throwing bottles from the roof of the location, but the suspects left the scene prior to their arrival and could not be located during a subsequent search of the premises.”
Suspicious Circumstances | 4:50 a.m. | Trojan Residence Hall (631 Childs Way)
“Two students reported that a suspect defecated on the floor of their dorm room.”
From the LAPD:
Other miscellaneous crime | 3:55 p.m. | 600 block of Exposition Blvd.
Suspect used bodily force on victim. Victim was on the MTA transit platform. Suspect was homeless or transient. Victim was 18-years-old.
March 24, 2019
From DPS:
Battery | 3 a.m. | 600 block of 28th St.
“A student who confronted a group of unidentified males near the location was punched in the face after he attempted to punch one of them. The student sustained unspecified injuries and was transported to a local hospital for medical treatment.”
Narcotics | 6:58 a.m. | Troy Hall (3025 Royal St.)
“A bike theft suspect was arrested for possession of a controlled substance.”
From the LAPD:
Aggravated assault | 11:30 a.m. | 3700 block of McClintock Ave.
Victim, who was a 52-year-old white caregiver or nanny, had her hair pulled and was knocked to the ground by the suspect, who was an Uber or Lyft driver.
March 25, 2019
From the LAPD:
Battery | 3:10 p.m. | 22nd St. and Ellendale Pl.
Victim was knocked to the sidewalk and spit on by suspect in a hate-related activity. The suspect used racial slurs against the victim. The victim was a 47-year-old Hispanic male.
Vandalism | 10:23 p.m. | 3300 S. Figueroa St.
Multiple suspects vandalized university property valued at less than $400. The suspects were wearing wigs and gloves.
March 26, 2019
From DPS:
Vandalism | 6:30 a.m. | George F. Bovard Administration Building (3551 Trousdale Pkwy.)
“A suspect used an unknown chemical to damage the counter tops in a restroom at the location. The suspect also set fire to the paper towels in a towel dispenser.”
From the LAPD:
Theft | 7:40 p.m. | 600 block of Exposition Blvd.
Multiple suspects overwhelmed victim, snatched the victim’s property and ran. The suspects were juveniles and were known to the victim. The victim was a passenger on a train.
Intimate partner assault | 10:40 p.m. | 2100 S. Union Ave.
Victim was knocked to the ground in the yard of her residence and her hair was pulled by someone who was her former or current partner. She was also physically battered by the suspect. The victim was a 24-year-old Indian female.
Burglary | 11:45 p.m. | 2300 S. Hoover St.
Suspect entered victim’s residence while the victim was still in it and removed his property. The victim left their residence open or unlocked. The victim was a 24-year-old Asian man.
How we did it: We looked at both publicly available LAPD data and the daily log DPS of reports of incidents and crimes in the University Park neighborhood of Los Angeles. For neighborhood boundaries, we rely on the borders defined by the Los Angeles Times. Learn more about our data here.
LAPD data and DPS logs only reflect incidents that are reported to the department, not how many crimes actually occurred. In making our calculations, we rely on the data that the LAPD makes publicly available through the Open Data Portal and the logs DPS makes publicly available on its website. On occasion, LAPD or DPS may update past crime reports with new information, or recategorize past reports. Those revised reports do not always automatically become part of the public database.
Want to know how your neighborhood fares? Or simply just interested in our data? Email us at askus@xtown.la.
