Enforcement

Alex Coolman CITY HALL -- Residents who face peeling paint and leaking pipes in south Glendale apartments may get relief under a program to be considered tonight by the City Council. The city is expected to vote on whether to apply for a state funds to boost code enforcement efforts, a program that could see more than $400,000 of outside money funneled to Glendale over the next three years. The Neighborhood Services Department of the city, which handles code enforcement, would use the cash to target areas of south central Glendale, said Sam Engel, an administrator with the department.

California Highway Patrol officers are out in full force over the holidays with statewide increased enforcement through New Year's Day. CHP Officer Christian Cracraft said the increased enforcement part of the Statewide Traffic Action Response campaign. "We're doing this on top of our regular maximum enforcement period for Christmas and New Year's," Cracraft said. The STAR campaign began Dec. 16. It will end at midnight, Jan. 2. Cracraft said the goal of putting more officers on the road during the more-than two-week period is to cut down on drunk drivers and drunk-driving related accidents over the holiday season.

GLENDALE — When resident Stephen Brown learned last year that the city had enacted citywide smoking restrictions, he looked forward to sitting outside at his favorite coffee shop and breathing in the fresh air. “For the past year I have been looking forward to the day when the patio will be smoke free so that I may enjoy the outdoors. That day has not yet arrived,” he said. The city’s smoking restrictions took effect last November with an emphasis on public education before the officials started hard enforcement.

For the second year in a row, Glendale’s clampdown on secondhand smoke got a glowing endorsement from the American Lung Assn., being named one of just three cities in the state to get an A grade on its annual report card. Last year, Glendale was the only L.A. County city to get the top grade. This year, Calabasas joined the A Club. Certainly, having an ordinance on the books that bans smoking in just about every accessible public space — from most outdoor dining patios to parks and parking lots — is about as comprehensive as a city can get in trying to protect nonsmokers from the unhealthful effects of secondhand smoke.

CITY HALL — A proposed ordinance clarifying the ability of Glendale Police to enforce no-trespassing laws, spurred mostly by a 2-acre public park inside the Americana at Brand, goes to the City Council on Tuesday for introduction two weeks before the 15.5-acre retail behemoth’s grand opening. The “urgency ordinance” comes as the city braces for a May 2 opening that is expected to draw tens of thousands of shoppers and lookee-loos that weekend. While the open space, to be called “The Greens,” is centered on the Americana property, it is owned by the Redevelopment Agency, which could create an enforcement problem for police officers since existing code refers only to “city-owned” property and makes no mention of land owned by the Redevelopment Agency or Housing Authority, city officials said.

During the month of April, Glendale police plan to crackdown on motorists who are illegally using their cellphones, putting on make-up or engaged in other forms of distracted driving. “We all know that talking and texting on our cell phones while driving is distracting, but that doesn't stop some people from continuing to do it,” Glendale Police Chief Ron De Pompa said in a statement on the zero-tolerance enforcement campaign. He added that police enforcement was aimed at educating the community about “the dangers of cell phone use while driving.” Fines for using a hand-held cellphone while driving are at least $159 for the first offense and increase with subsequent violations.

SOUTH GLENDALE — A medical facility that was allegedly performing massages without a permit was ordered Monday to stop soliciting those services. Code enforcement officials had given CHS Health Care Inc. on the 1600 block of East Colorado Street a 72-hour notice Feb. 23 to obtain a conditional-use permit to perform massages after Glendale police arrested an employee on suspicion of offering sex acts to an undercover officer. The facility’s operators submitted a permit application Monday, Code Enforcement Officer Rene Sada said.

GLENDALE ? Glendale, Burbank and La Cañada Flintridge law enforcement agencies are among 244 departments statewide receiving thousands of dollars in grants reserved for seat belt enforcement, state officials announced Thursday. The grants ? ranging from $5,000 to $90,000 depending on the city ? are earmarked for law enforcement agencies to help pay overtime for officers to conduct seat belt enforcement during the California Office of Traffic Safety's Click It or Ticket campaign, which runs from May 14 to June 4, spokesman Mike Marando said.

Alex Coolman CITY HALL -- The City Council on Tuesday postponed making any decision on increasing enforcement of Glendale's rules against fences, a decision meaning more than 1,500 homes violating the rules will be allowed, at least for now, to continue doing so. The council had been scheduled to discuss cracking down on such violators, most of whom are granted immunity under an enforcement moratorium covering fences...

Four motorists were arrested in Glendale on suspicion of driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol during a weekend patrol operation, police said. Officers patrolled the city from 7 p.m. Friday to 3 a.m. Saturday and stopped 49 vehicles. Thirteen field sobriety tests were conducted and two drivers were arrested on suspicion of drunk driving, police reported. Another two drivers were arrested for allegedly driving under the influence of drugs. -- Veronica Rocha, veronica.rocha@latimes.com Follow on Google+ and on Twitter: @VeronicaRochaLA .

During the month of April, Glendale police plan to crackdown on motorists who are illegally using their cellphones, putting on make-up or engaged in other forms of distracted driving. “We all know that talking and texting on our cell phones while driving is distracting, but that doesn't stop some people from continuing to do it,” Glendale Police Chief Ron De Pompa said in a statement on the zero-tolerance enforcement campaign. He added that police enforcement was aimed at educating the community about “the dangers of cell phone use while driving.” Fines for using a hand-held cellphone while driving are at least $159 for the first offense and increase with subsequent violations.

Cracked axles, overweight loads and flat tires were some of the more than 100 violations discovered on large commercial vehicles during Wednesday's specialized enforcement and inspection in Glendale. One of the vehicles was a 40,000-pound truck with two flats a bald tire that was carrying a load of exposed dirt. The truck was traveling on Broadway toward Glendale High School when Lt. Steve Robertson stopped its driver, who he said was also wearing headphones in both ears. The truck's potentially dangerous tires and uncovered load were violations, which Robertson said left unattended could have resulted in a devastating tragedy.

Glendale police will conduct a saturation patrol Saturday night looking for drivers who may be under the influence of drugs or alcohol. The DUI enforcement patrol is slated to take place between 7 p.m. and 3 a.m., the department announced. In the past year, drunk driving has resulted in 113 wrecks in Glendale in which 27 people were injured, police said. The DUI patrol program is funded by the California Office of Traffic Safety. -- Alene Tchekmedyian, Times Community News Follow Alene Tchekmedyian on Google+ and on Twitter: @atchek .  

Here is a traffic regulation violated so often in Glendale that I don't think many know it exists: 10.64.025, bicycle riding on sidewalks: “No person shall ride or operate a bicycle upon any public sidewalk in any business district within the city except where such sidewalk is officially designated as part of an established bicycle route. Pedestrians shall have the right of way on sidewalks. The prohibition in this section shall not apply to peace officers on bicycle patrol.” Not only is it violated often, but daily I see bicyclists traveling at speeds exceeding 20 mph on sidewalks, weaving around pedestrians.

Local police officials, along with the California Highway Patrol, plan to ramp up patrols for drunk drivers this Cinco de Mayo weekend. The so-called "saturation patrols" will begin tonight at 6 p.m. and last through weekend as many people throughout region no doubt celebrate the holiday with a good measure of tequila. Authorities say that's fine, just be sure to designate a sober driver before hitting the road. Police in cities throughout the county will be participating in the "Avoid the 100 DUI Task Force" campaign, which is funded allocated by the California Office of Traffic Safety.

Regional law enforcement agencies performed a sweep of several cities Thursday in response to a recent spike in property crimes, arresting eight people and seizing three weapons. The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department joined forces with Glendale police as well as state parole and probation authorities. During the sweep, which began at 7 a.m., deputies and officers checked 44 locations in La Cañada Flintridge, La Crescenta, Montrose, Sunland, Tujunga, Lake View Terrace, Pasadena and Altadena.

The Glendale Police Department has been awarded a $126,250-grant to operate 12 sobriety checkpoints starting Friday through Sept. 4 next year. With Glendale on a strict budget, Police Traffic and Air Support Lt. Steve Robertson said the grant money “will allow us to staff these checkpoints without detracting from our other core traffic-related enforcement and education responsibilities, and without impacting the city's General Fund.” ...

Don Short and Tamara Mark's encounter with law enforcement hasn't always been positive, especially when they have been trying to care for their two autistic sons. During a family trip in Hawaii, Short had to restrain one of the couple's son's - 10-year-old Harry, who is nonverbal and prone to injuring himself - because he became extremely agitated at a Honolulu airport. But to the public, his actions looked like child abuse. He was reported to airport police. As Short tried to calm his son, police warned him to let go of his son. He reluctantly complied.

We don't have our own police force. As an unincorporated area, we are served by the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department. Furthermore, we're under the rule of the Crescenta Valley sheriff's station. This means that our local captain answers to a commander at Crescenta Valley and 911 calls for service are routed there first. Still, most residents are very supportive of law enforcement: There's a Sheriff's Support Group that raises funds for equipment, a community advisory committee, a clergy council, a volunteer mounted patrol and a Volunteers on Patrol program of unarmed civilians who act as extra eyes and ears for the deputies.