Letters to the Editor

New Police Chief

Translation of Modica’s statement [stonewalling details on the hiring process]: The LBPOA has selected the next chief of police. The “search” and public input are just for appearances; y’all don’t need to worry your pretty little heads about this.

Carlos Ovalle

It’s now or never. Long Beach’s long-awaited deliverance from its rule by treacherous, mercenary, unethical government officials has come. In simple terms each and every Long Beach citizen who cares must rise up forcefully and unequivocally object to Tom Modica’s nefarious attempt to totally undermine Long Beach’s recruitment process for police chief because it’s truly mislabeled.

Each concerned citizen and every Long Beach Neighborhood Association, civic group and club must loudly demand by phone, email, text and letters and graffiti, that Stephen Downing’s list of ten asks be answered immediacy, totally and comprehensively by the city manager.

[Modica’s] published response to that request is a smug insult to every Long Beach taxpaying citizen and business. If Long Beach’s citizenry accepts his response it will effectively be handing the keys to the city and its finances to the profiteering mob at City Hall. Take responsibility! Don’t hesitate, it won’t happen [unless] you act.

Joe Viola

Long Beach needs to appoint former Los Angeles Police Department Deputy Chief Stephen Downing as its next chief. He will be by far the most qualified person. And the two primary reasons he should be appointed to the job are: first, he probably doesn’t want the job and second, there would be nobody more feared by the Long Beach Police Union.

Michael Ruehle

 

District 5 Crime

Dear Councilwoman Mungo: The east side of Long Beach, your district, is having an avalanche of crime and the police, and you are doing nothing about it.

NO! Don’t tell me that the police are understaffed. The police are always understaffed regardless of what city or district we are talking about. Don’t tell me that we need more social programs or more pup-tents for the vagrants who infest our streets. I have heard these predicable and insulting excuses for inaction for many years. These excuses don’t work anymore. I am sick and tired of seeing the eastside being a feeding ground for criminals and transients. We even had an arson crime recently; a car was set on fire!

Where are the police? No staffing excuses will be accepted. Many of these crimes occur during the hours of 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. A “task force” of a few officers dedicated to patrolling this area during these hours could result in arrests and will discourage further crimes. This is a standard method for police to address a continuous problem area.

Most of these crimes are misdemeanor property crimes but that is no reason to ignore them. Many of us in this district are retired and have worked very hard to acquire whatever property that we can afford. We shouldn’t be considered food for these criminal vultures nor should we be ignored by the city.

Several years ago, when William Bratton was the New York Police Commissioner, he initiated the “broken windows” method of police work. He had his patrol officers concentrate on misdemeanor crimes that plagued an area and found that crime dropped. Not only were arrests made but the continuous presence of black and whites in the area discouraged criminal activity.

Increase patrol during the hours that I mentioned; show a police patrol presence; use the California Vehicle Code to stop suspicious cars prowling our neighborhoods. That is your probable cause that can lead to an arrest.

The east side of Long Beach is now the feeding grounds for thugs, and we need the LBPD to do something about it. The people of this district may not shout and scream, may not block intersections while swinging vulgar signs but we need help anyway. No, we don’t desecrate our city or set fire to buildings, but don’t mistake our civility for acceptance of the status quo: we remember and we vote!

Craig Miller

 

SB 9 & SB 10

Well folks, the time has come. We all wanted to be rich, own big homes, drive around in expensive cars and enjoy life to its fullest. Our good governor, whom we had the audacity to try to recall, along with our local state senator Gonzales have slid SB9 and SB10 under home plate and got them signed sealed and delivered. It’s a little more complicated than grabbing a grasshopper from my hand, but amounts to the same thing.

We are now legally able to tear down our 1 story dwellings housing our family and yourself to replace with up to three stories and 8 apartment units without worrying about providing parking for these deserving otherwise Section 8 tenants who may be paying your mortgage now since the remodel will likely use up all your stimulus and unemployment check incomes combined.

Can it get any better?

Knowing cities (the way Long Beach is run), expect higher street sweeping fee violations charges and more. But there’s still nowhere to park our cars now. After all Sen Gonzales wants us all to have a shot at the American dream while living in Long Beach, where the debris hits the sea! Incidentally, the, “where the debris hits the sea” is the new accepted motto for Long Beach since we have too many illegals living here on our pocketbooks to brag to only encourage many more of these less fortunate to relocate here. That’s ok too because Long Beach has an overabundance of hotels from the war days when the sailors came into town to the overbuilding of downtown when there was the threat of Disney prosperity.

Thank you, City Council, for not putting the brakes on these two bills! One wonders what other tricks senators like Gonzales or Governor Newsome have up their sleeves socialize the democracy of America!

Ward Johnson

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