| Tuesday, July 18, 2006 |
 "I told her I was too tired, but only so she'll besurprised when I actually show up." |
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010:56hrs. No rest for the weary. Just as I was getting comfortable on the couch, I got a call about a possible suicide or a possible homicide at the Cielo Hotel. It's this really swanky, high class hotel in Beverly Hills where all the stars go to play discreetly. Oh well, so much for a good night's sleep.
11:27hrs. Arrive on the scene. One good thing about driving at this time of night is the streets are practically empty; it's so much easier to get around. 11:50hrs. After being briefed by Lt. Tao in the courtyard, where the body landed, I inspected the hotel room where the jumper/victim was registered, on the 11th floor. That's a long way down. If the guy was lucky, he was dead before he was thrown, or fell. I hate those dreams were you're falling and wake up as you hit the ground. They're terrifying. One time I actually hit but when I did, my perspective changed to a third person point of view and I was looking down at my own contorted body….pretty strange way to start your day. But back to the case. The victim, who has been identified as Anthony Larsen, age 39, has no luggage or personal items. The room shows no signs of a struggle, or any other occupants. I'm going to talk to the hotel's General Manager, while we wait for the Chief to arrive. 00:02hrs. The Chief arrives with Chief Pope. He seemed to be familiar with the GM of the hotel. I'm sure they just float in the same social circles…yeah, that's it (wink, wink). 01:16hrs. Until the coroner rules the victim's death a homicide, our hands are kind of tied. So in the meantime, we'll let S.I.D. do their thing at the scene and pick up our end of the investigation in the morning. 01:50hrs Arrive back at home. Go straight to bed…after a quick game of video basketball. 07:00hrs. I got up a little early today to go to the gym, but I kept hitting the snooze button and slept in. My body hates me right now but what can I say, I was tired. Plus, I know it's going to be a long day. 08:27hrs. Arrive at Parker Center. 09:13hrs. After a few phone calls we obtain a warrant to search the Larsen residence, on the grounds that the circumstances surrounding his death are questionable, at the very least. Det. Daniels and I head over with the search units. 10:19hrs. Arrive at the Larsen residence. 10:24hrs. Breached residence, and proceeding with search. 11:04hrs. After packaging some cameras and some film that we found in the fridge, Det. Daniels and I head back to Parker Center. 11:49hrs. Arrive back at Parker Center and regroup with the squad to discuss the case. We really don't have much to go on here. The search was kind of a bust. Although we did find a portfolio full of a lot of what would be considered tabloid shots. Good ones at that. Valuable ones, the type people might be willing to do bad things to keep from being published. But that's all theory, right now. To quote the Chief, "we know diddly." 12:13hrs. Daniels and I head out for lunch. 13:11hrs. Chief and I head over to the morgue to meet Dr. Crippen to see if the autopsy has revealed any clues. 14:06hrs. Arrive at the morgue. Dr. Crippen finds the victim died as the result of the fall, which isn't that surprising. But he did find a strange break in the victim's right hand. I would think a 120ft fall would break just about everything, but this particular fracture isn't consistent with a fall. We also found an unusual bruise on the victim's ribs. Knowing the four manners of death, accidental, natural, suicide, and homicide, we now have to determine which category the fall fits into. I think we can rule out natural. 15:27hrs. Arrive at Parker Center. The Chief and I quickly regroup with the squad before heading over to the Cielo Hotel to perform some field tests. We're basically going to throw some dummies off a building. Should be a good time. 16:42hrs Arrive at the Cielo Hotel. The Management wasn't thrilled about our little experiment. They asked us if we could come back after hours, but after I explained how we'd have to bring twice as much equipment, including giant flood lights that require independent powering with loud, diesel-fuel-fume-spewing generators. Along with bullhorns and flashlights for hand signal communication, to counteract the noise from the generators. We'd also need at least twice the man power, and a place to set coffee and food, per union regulations. Suddenly, they changed their minds. Ok, so maybe I made that last bit up about the coffee and food, but, hey, it worked. 17:13hrs After trying a few different scenarios to re-create the fall, we discover the most likely one probably involves the victim hitting the rail and flipping over. We also think he hung on with his right hand before it was stomped on, causing him to lose his grip and fall to his death. I think we can narrow down the manner of death to homicide. On a side note, it's a good thing we brought Buzz with us to videotape everything because some little kid came out and started playing with the dummies before we could get photos. 18:18hrs. Arrive back at Parker Center. 19:16hrs. After finishing up some paperwork, the Chief sends us all home for the night. It'll be good to get home a little early tonight. Daniels asked me if I wanted to pick up a movie and hang at her place. That might be fun. But for right now, I'm just going to get out of here before Chief changes her mind. 20:04hrs. Arrive at home. 20:29hrs. I just got a call from Daniels. She's rented a couple movies and wants me to come over her place. I told her I was too tired, but only so she'll be surprised when I actually show up. You've got to keep them guessing. 21:17hrs. Arrive at Daniels' place. 02:47hrs. Arrive home from Daniels' place. Good movie, good time. 09:03hrs. Arrive at Parker Center. 09:34hrs. The squad meets to discuss the case. Our best bet is that our photographer took a photo that someone didn't want him to get and it cost him his life. His camera's missing, which supports that theory. Unfortunately, the majority of the stars that frequent the hotel use aliases, which will make tracking them down that much harder. Lt. Flynn found an incident report from the night of the big fall, where another paparazzi stalker, named Elvis Presley (no lie) was cited for trespassing. Elvis says he was waiting for Whit Coleman. Whit Coleman! One of the biggest stars on Earth! He's done everything. My nephew even has the Whit Coleman commando action figure. He accidentally shot his buddy Josh in the eye with his "Go-Action" crossbow. Fortunately, his other buddy Bo's father was a doctor and was able to save it. Just kidding, it wasn't that serious…well, until he developed a pretty severe infection, but still there was never the threat of losing it. Anyway, Elvis has been ticketed over 70 times at the Coleman residence, so Chief, Lt. Flynn, Det. Daniels, and I head over to Whit Coleman's house to see if we can find "The King." 11:58hrs. Arrive at the Coleman residence to find Elvis has not left the building. Elvis, who claims to be a "friend" of Whit, says that he's just trying to "look out" for Whit, and that he's in the process of writing a book about the other side of Whit, the "human" side. He also tells us Whit was staying at the Cielo last night. If there's anyone who's big enough to have someone die over a "bad" picture getting out, it's Whit (over 600 million domestic) Coleman aka Archie Leach, room#1121. 12:47hrs. The four of us grab some lunch. 13:53hrs. Arrive back at Parker Center. 14:40hrs. Tao gets a hit on Larsen's camera. It was pawned at a shop off of Wilshire out in Santa Monica. It could tell us a lot. It'll definitely tell us who pawned it at the very least. I'm always impressed by Tao's skills. He knows a little bit of everything, about everything. And if he doesn't know, he knows where to find out. I'm going to learn a lot from him. On another note, the Chief has hit a bit of a roadblock on the journey to interview one Whit Coleman. His name is Tom Blanchard and he is probably the best lawyer ever. I'm not making that up. It was published in an article in some law magazine I read once on a plane. The guy is as good as they come. But, so is the Chief. Damn, I wish I had some popcorn. 14:57hrs. Tao and I head out to Santa Monica to pick up the camera. 17:43hrs. Arrive back at Parker Center with the camera, minus its ever-so-precious, and/or incriminating memory card. But plus, the name, address, and signature of the person who pawned it. Nicholas Costa, the night manager at the Cielo Hotel. Hmmm, I wonder how much they charge you to pawn your things. That must be a new amenity I wasn't aware of. 17:59hrs. Lt. Tao, Det. Daniels and I head out to pick up Nicholas Costa. 19:11hrs. Arrive back at Parker Center with the suspect. 20:04hrs. Chief begins the interrogation of Nicholas Costa. He says he didn't kill "Tony." That he went up to the room when he heard someone had jumped, saw the camera, and just took it. He says it didn't have the memory card in it when he did. He also says that he had an agreement with Anthony to call him when big stars showed up, and that he contacted him to tell him Whit was there last night and had requested an intimacy kit, which includes condoms. He also states that as he was getting off the elevator to go check on Tony, Whit and his bodyguard Lloyd were getting on. I think he knows more than he telling us, but that's all the info from him for now. 20:41hrs. I just got word that Whit's bodyguard has agreed to come in for an interview. I'm going to go let the Chief know. 21:33hrs. Interrogation of Whit's Bodyguard, Lloyd begins. Note: Interviewee has invoked his right to have counsel present. Conveniently it's Tom Blanchard. 21:44hrs. Holy Hell!!! Whit's Bodyguard drops a bomb!!!! He says Whit was with a man by the name of Jose Diaz. A guy!! Whit was with a guy? WHIT COLEMAN IS GAY?!!!! Oh my God! That's huge!! There would be a lot of people who would kill someone to keep that a secret. Basically anyone who thinks Whit Coleman's reputation is valuable. 22:14hrs. Chief sends Lts. Flynn, and Tao to pick-up Jose Diaz. 22:43hrs. I just got a call from my buddy Fuller asking me if I had seen the latest issue of The Star Spectacle? He said if I hadn't, that I should, because it was important. So, I'm going to run out to a newsstand, if I can find one this time of night. 23:09hrs. Found a newsstand…we've got a big problem, and it's on the front page. Someone sold a very valuable photo of Whit Coleman, and his gay lover. 23:26 Arrive back to Parker Center to find Jose Diaz has skipped town. We missed him by about 6 hours. Chief wasn't too happy about the photo being leaked either. Stuff like that will only complicate this investigation. 00:05hrs. After a long day and night of an ever-twisting investigation, it's finally time to head home. 00:42hrs. Arrive at home. After a quick late-night snack, I'm heading straight of to bed. 07:00hrs. Rise and shine. After an energy shake and a protein bar, I'm off to the gym. 08:47hrs. Arrive at Parker Center. 09:13hrs. Chief arrives. She's got a new hunch about the case, so she and I head over to talk to Elvis again. I'm not sure where her head is, but I'm curious to find out. 10:22hrs. Arrive at Coleman residence to find Elvis exactly where we left him. Although this time he seems more pissed off. I think he blames us for Whit's recent bad press. I told him he was one of the people who could help Whit, if he helps us. He reluctantly agreed, and turned over some photo he had taken the night of the murder. 11:11hrs. Arrive back at Parker Center. 12:02hrs. The Chief takes another stab at Nicholas Costa, to confirm a theory of hers about the case. I'm still not quite sure what she's up to yet. 14:27hrs. The Chief begins a seemingly impromptu interrogation of Anthony Larsen's ex-wife. She kind of freaked out towards the end. I thought I was going to have to restrain her. 14:47hrs. Case Closed: The ex-wife did it. I must admit, with all the possible directions, and potential scandals that could have motivated this crime, I didn't see this ending coming. Grief is a very strange thing. Most people grieve because they've lost a loved one, but some people grieve because their love has been lost. posted by: Sgt. David Gabriel |
| Tuesday, July 11, 2006 |
| "How can my team put me on the outside?" |
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08:00hrs. I wake up to my alarm, still exhausted. I was up way too late playing video games. I haven't gamed in a long time and now I remember why -- because I get stuck and the next thing I know, 3 hours have passed by. Not good.
09:10 Arrive at Parker Center after a quick stop for some coffee. 15:56 Wow! I passed by the Chief in the hallway on my way down to the evidence lock up, and man did she look pissed! I don't know who's going to get it, but someone definitely is. 17:33hrs. Well, I'm stuck down here in evidence. They've got to get a better system for pulling inventory. I've tried calling Daniels to see if she knows anything about what's going on with the Chief, but I'm not getting an answer. Come to think about it, nobody's answering. 18:02hrs I'm finally done with evidence. I have no idea where everyone is. I've been calling for over an hour. I'm heading back to the murder room now to see if I can get some answers. 18:18hrs. Well, the murder room is empty. What the hell is going on? Maybe I'll just stop wondering and just enjoy the quiet. 18:20hrs. Well, that didn't last. I've got to find out what's going on. 20:03hrs. I finally found Daniels. She was standing guard outside the ladies' room for the Chief. She passed on some B/S assignment she says the Chief wants me to do. She wants me to Bates stamp this ancient case file. Over 2,000 pages! And for what? It's not pertinent to anything we're currently working on…that I know about. Then all of a sudden Lt. Provenza walks directly into the ladies' room talking about some adoptive parents. I'm going to find out what's going on, mark my words. 20:23hrs. Let the stamping begin. 21:36hrs. I've done about all the stamping I can handle for a lifetime, or at least for tonight. Since I can't find anyone, and I mean no one, I've decided to go home. I'm tired of chasing around whatever it is that everyone is trying to keep away from me. I just don't understand it. How can my team put me on the outside? Unless it's something that I've done that they're investigating? Nah, no way! I haven't done anything,…that I know about. Screw this, I'm going home. 23:22hrs. Arrive at home, after stopping and renting a couple of video games for my new game system. I figured I'm all caught up on my work, so maybe I'd spend the night playing some games, and watching TV. I think there's a good movie on TNT. It may not sound exciting, but when you spend the majority of your time dealing with "chaos," a quiet night at home can be exactly what the doctor ordered. 03:49hrs. I played until I can play no more. Games have come a long way since I was in high school. I can't believe I just played for 4 hours straight. Wow. On another note, no one from the squad returned any of my calls. I'm not sure whether I should be frustrated, or worried. 08:00hrs. Woke to my alarm clock, exhausted. 09:09hrs. Arrive at Parker Center. 09:16hrs. Arrive in the murder room, only to find it empty. The mystery continues. 10:01hrs. Back to stamping. 11:57hrs. I've finished the "special" work, finally. Now I'm on way down to case records to re-file it. 12:03hrs. I just passed Chief and Lt. Flynn in the hallway. They got really quiet when I walked by. I don't get it. I just don't get it. 13:22hrs. The fire alarm goes off while I'm down in records. I heard someone say something about a bomb threat. I know we have to take each one of them seriously, but they get a little old after a while. 13:27hrs. I spotted some of the squad outside during the bomb threat evacuation. I was about to go over and say "long time no see" but before I could, Special Agent Howard, aka Fritz, shows up and takes a suspect away from Robbery/Homicide and into federal custody. I don't know exactly what went down, but I do know Taylor and his boys were not happy. 14:29hrs Caught up with the Chief in the hallway. After a little cat and mouse, she fills me in on some of the situation. I say some, because, for whatever reason, she feels it would be best for me not to know the whole story. Which to be honest, still doesn't make sense to me. But, one thing's for sure, I trust the Chief, and if she thinks it's for the best, then I trust her judgment. I just hope none of this was a matter of a lack of trust in me. That aside, I'm now in the mix again, and the case, as far as I can gather, involves a former surrogate mother whose boyfriend cut her open for drugs. Not really sure why that's a big secret but, something tells me it's not. The big secret that is, but I digress. Anyway, we're on our way to interview some slimy, sleazy, lawyer who's been doubling as a "black market stork." Peddling babies from less than desirable mothers to desperate, hopeful, want-to-be parents, for a nominal fee, of course. I'm not really sure of all the details but, I don't have all the details, so I'll just stand there and look tough…which I'm pretty good at. 14:46hrs. Chief and Lt. Provenza leave to serve a warrant connected to this mysterious case. She asked me to hold the fort while she's gone. I feel like things are getting back to normal. Daniels asked me out to dinner as well. She says she wants to make up for ignoring me for the past 24 hours, although she swears she was only following orders. I haven't decided if I want to try and coax this ever elusive secret out of her. I think I could probably find an effective method of getting the info out of her; I'm just not sure that I really want to know. 17:03hrs. So, I still don't know everything, but I know it has something to do with Lts. Provenza and Flynn and a pair of sky box tickets. And knowing those two, it's probably best I don't know anything else. 17:13hrs. Done with work early so Daniels and I head out to Malibu for some sunset, seaside seafood. Things are starting to get interesting between her and me. Just taking it step by step for now, but I'm thinking the next step might not be far away. posted by: Sgt. David Gabriel |
| Tuesday, July 4, 2006 |
| "That, to me, is creepy and sobering at the same time." |
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09:42hrs. Just got a call about a homicide over at Chez Paul, LA's newest hot spot restaurant. An employee found the victim dead in the kitchen. Flynn and Provenza are already at the scene, and Chief is en route. It's pouring down rain outside, which is a rarity for LA. I can only imagine how much fun Chief is having, driving around in the hell that is driving in LA in the rain. Thank God it doesn't happen often.
10:32hrs. Arrive at the scene. The victim has been identified as Karen Bivas age 42. She's the managing partner of Chez Paul. She's been stabbed multiple times and appears to have had her throat slashed. It doesn't appear to be a robbery, the victim still had her jewelry and other valuable personal effects, and the safe was locked and didn't appear to be tampered with. It's pretty brutal; someone snapped. It seems things went from pleasant to barbaric in a blink. Chief still hasn't arrived yet, I'm not surprised. Hell I tell you…HELL. I'm going to talk to the coroner's assistant in the meantime. 10:47hrs. Chief arrives at the scene. She looked nice; she's got plans after work. Me, I'm sure I'll have work after work. 11:27hrs. I collected all the knives from the kitchen of Chez Paul, and I'm taking them down to the morgue for comparison. I don't really care for the morgue. It's not that I think the bodies are going to turn into zombies or anything, it's more like these people go from being people, to being, just bodies in a matter of hours. Less than 24 hours ago Karen Bivas was a living, breathing, working woman, probably planning for tomorrow. And just a few short hours later…she's just another body. That, to me, is creepy and sobering at the same time. Wow, I think I just had a breakthrough. 12:09hrs. Arrive at the morgue. 13:13hrs. After comparing all the knives at the scene we come up empty. None of them match the victim's wounds. I'm going to head back to Parker Center to regroup with the squad. On a side note, I keep getting calls from an unidentified number on my personal cell phone. I usually don't answer them because they are usually fax machines or telemarketers. Whoever it is, they won't leave a message. 14:01hrs. Arrive back at Parker Center. 14:07hrs. Chief is in the middle of an interview with Tom Newman, a restaurant critic who dined at the restaurant the night of the murder with, (drumroll please) Dennis Dutton, our local multi-millionaire psycho. They both provide alibis for each other, but we're going to see if we can rattle the critic's cage a little. 14:13hrs. I join the Chief in the interview. 14:29hrs. After getting some new information from the critic, the Chief and I prepare to serve a search warrant at the Bivas residence to locate Chef Paul's personal chef's knife. 15:37hrs. Arrive at Bivas residence. 15:49hrs. Chief and I head to the morgue with the knives we recovered from the Bivas residence. Chef Paul didn't seem too thrilled with us taking them, not that it mattered. He does seem sincere in his grief though, but hell, I've seen people pass out from crying over losing a loved one and then read them their rights a few hours later. Sometimes people get emotional when the gravity of something, something they may have done in a passionate moment, starts to sink in. I can't say for certain that's what is happening here, but I can't say it isn't either. 16:38hrs Chief and I arrive at the morgue. After a comparison, one of the Chef's knives match the dimensions of the victim's wounds. The downside is there's no blood, or other forensic evidence that supports it being used as the murder weapon. We also found out the victim ate ostrich before she was murdered. Who eats ostrich? 17:59hrs Chief and I arrive back at Parker Center. I'm going to grab a quick bite to eat with Daniels before tackling some paperwork. I also answered my mystery call. It turns out I won the latest home video game system in a raffle. I bought a couple of tickets from these kids a few weeks ago for a fundraiser and I actually won. I don't know what I'm going to do with it. I haven't played video games since high school…like I've got time for video games. Maybe I'll give it to charity or something. 19:11hrs. Sanchez comes back from retrieving the critic's garbage. We're checking their alibi. We need to know if Dennis Dutton's prints are on the wine bottles they claim to have been drinking last night. Chief seems a little "off" today. She's got this huge bouquet of flowers, but no one knows what for. 19:52hrs. Flynn and Provenza just called, they've taken Chef Paul and a Walter LaSalle into custody on various charges. They're on their way to Parker Center now. 20:36 I begin the interview with Walter LaSalle. He's French. He claims Lt. Flynn assaulted him and he intends to "zue da poul-ease." After the Chief enters, LaSalle admits to the affair and says he thinks the only reason Karen was sleeping with him was so Paul could be head chef of L'Amboise He also informs us that Dennis Dutton had had an affair with Karen as well, and he alluded to Dennis actually taking Karen from him in more ways than one. We also learn that Dennis is "knife happy." Wow, and all this time I thought it was just golf clubs. 21:05hrs. Chief has me pull Dennis Dutton up from holding. We need to ask him a few questions. 21:17hrs. Begin re-interviewing Dennis Dutton. He admits to the affair as well. He says Karen and he had sex up until the day he wired her the investment money. He says she used him, he got pretty pissed talking about it too. There's no doubt about the fact that the guy has anger management issues. But, did he kill Karen? He claims she was too valuable to him in regards to the restaurant, and that he wouldn't have invested at all if it wasn't for her involvement. Then he gives us a little piece of gold. He tells us about a big insurance policy that Karen had made out to Chef Paul. Hmm, a little motive anyone? 21:50hrs. After a little digging Daniels finds the insurance policy supporting Dennis' insurance claim. It's a multi-million dollar policy that conveniently doubles in the event of a homicide. Things are not looking good for our Chef. 22:03hrs. Well, I'm done for the night. Daniels and I are going to catch a movie, if we can make it in time. It's kind of late but, hey, you got to have a "life" too. 01:19hrs. Arrive home and go straight to bed. 08:56hrs. Arrive at Parker Center. 09:24hrs. Chief and I head down to holding to talk to Chef Paul. The bastard had the nerve to throw his food all over the floor. I'm sorry, but I'd expect to see a little more decorum from a chef. He tried to look surprised by the insurance policy, and the knowledge that his wife was basically whoring herself for his career advance. I just don't believe he didn't know. I mean, seriously, how could you not know your wife was sleeping with, God knows how many other guys. I mean where did he think she was? I hope I never experience it, but if I do, I feel like I would know. 10:12hrs. The squad meets to discuss the case. We've narrowed it down to 3 good suspects. 1) Paul Bivas, he had the knives, the insurance, and his wife was screwing around. 2) Walter LaSalle, he also had the knives, his restaurant was failing, and he had been having an affair with the victim. And of course, 3) Dennis Dutton, he's crazy, he's rich, he too had an affair with the victim that left him feeling used, and he may have gotten away with murder once before so he might be cocky enough to do it again. Chief wants me to find out where you can buy ostrich meat. I'm not quite sure what she's thinking, but I'm sure she's thinking something. 11:04hrs. After some searching I find three locations where a person can buy ostrich meat. Each of them uses surveillance cameras, so Chief and I were head over to view the footage, and she finds exactly what she was looking for. 12:15hrs. Sanchez and I sit in the surveillance van in a parking lot adjacent to L'Amboise. Chief sits inside waiting for her lunch date, the food critic Tom Newman. Right now we're just killing time until he arrives. Sanchez is trying to teach me Spanish, but I'm not sure if I can trust what he's teaching me to say. I get funny looks from people when I repeat what he teaches me. He just smirks, like he's "loco." 12:28hrs. The guest of honor arrives. The interrogation begins. 12:51hrs. Case closed: Tom Newman was taken into custody without incident. I hate to use clichés but "looking for love in all the wrong places" is playing over and over in my head. He made the mistake of falling for a woman who had already fallen for someone else. When he told her he loved her, she laughed. Not exactly a reciprocation. He says he doesn't remember much after that, but he'll have plenty of time to try and salvage his memory. Try anywhere from 15 to life! Too cliché? 13:46hrs. Back at Parker Center. After booking Tom Newman, Chief actually gave some of us the rest of the day off. I'm going to run a few errands, pick up my game system, and I've also got to go pick up the cake for later. We found out it was Chief's birthday yesterday, 40! I may grab some dinner with Daniels. We've been having some fun together, just hanging out. I'm hoping that doesn't create any problems at work. It's a little risky, but what can say, I like her. Like a wise man once said, "worry of the future will make the present unbearable." posted by: Sgt. David Gabriel |
| Tuesday, June 27, 2006 |
| "I can't stop thinking about how one moment can change or end the lives of so many others." |
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11:08hrs. Just got settled at my desk with a jelly doughnut and a latte. Chief took the day off to sightsee with her mother and Fritz. We're all trying to get our sugar fix while she's off. They say, 'while the cat's away the mice will play.' So, Lt. Provenza declared it "Sugar Day." P.S. I know that that rhymed, but it's what really happened.
11:12hrs. We just got a report of a triple-shooting off of Figueroa. It's a pretty well-known gang territory, but it's also really close to USC. That's my old stomping ground. I used to see a lot of suspicious activity when I was going there to get my masters in administration. I didn't tell many people that I was a cop. If I had told them, I don't think people would have been relaxed around me. You get to see who people really are when they don't think you're watching. Anyway, Chief said only to call if there was an emergency. I guess this would qualify as an emergency. 11:17hrs. Leave Parker Center to pick up Chief. 11:36hrs. Pick up Chief. 11:59hrs. Arrive at crime scene, most of the squad is here. It looks like your typical gang drive-by. It's sad to say "typical," but I used to see this type of stuff all the time over in Robbery/Homicide. Speaking of, Commander Taylor is here and he knows one of the victims. There were three victims all together: #1: Wesley Talmadge, B/M age 19, D.O.A.; #2: Myra Singleton, B/F age 19, D.O.A.; and #3: Teresa Hoover W/F age 20, seriously injured. There were dozens of rounds fired into the vehicle they were riding in. Commander Taylor insisted that Wesley was not associated with any gang. But it's pretty messy, though I'd say it's overkill for a case of mistaken identity or to just be random. I've seen this before, long before becoming an officer. You don't grow up where I did and not see this type of thing...far too often. It makes me think about some of my old friends who were killed this way. Their families were never the same. Speaking of family, the Chief dropped a bomb on me. She wants me to do the notification of Wesley's parents. My first...ugh. I am not looking forward to this. 12:35hrs. Arrive at the Talmadge residence. Chief gave me some pointers on the way over--things to be prepared for, what to say, and when I'll lose them. I've gotta keep all that tucked away in the back of my mind. I must admit, I'm nervous, but calm, if that makes any sense at all. 12:37hrs. Begin interview with the Talmadges. 12:53hrs. End interview with the Talmadges. That was by far, one of the hardest things I've ever done. The sound--the wail--that comes out of someone who's just lost a loved one is absolutely heart-wrenching. I wasn't totally prepared for it. I've watched Chief deliver these notifications so many times, and she can have the rest of them if she wants. On another note, the parents didn't offer much new info. I can't imagine being them right now, what they're feeling, what they're thinking....and I hope I never have to. 13:41hrs. Back at Parker Center. The station is packed with gang members, lots of gang members. They actually outnumber the police in this city at least 3 to 1. 14:28hrs. After a quick lunch, Chief and I watch Det. Sanchez interview one of them. He pulled one of his favorite tricks, the old "you kicked me" technique. Not really my style. Sanchez didn't know Chief Pope was watching, although he didn't react the way I thought he would. But regardless of his sometimes aggressive methods, Sanchez gets answers. Unfortunately, in this instance, there isn't much information to get...but that alone tells us something. 16:07hrs. The squad regroups in the murder room to discuss the case. All the victims appear to be "good" kids. One of them is actually on the Dean's List, not your typical gang banger. Then Lt. Flynn walked in and dropped a bomb. Myra Singleton wasn't Wesley's girlfriend like we thought; actually, it's Teresa Hoover. Could this have been some sort of racially motivated crime? I don't know, but it certainly wouldn't be the first time. 18:40hrs. After a few hours of digging into Ronald Talmadge's business history, I'm finally on my way home. Chief called it a night about an hour ago. Maybe I should have done the same. 19:24hrs. Arrived at home. Daniels called me. She wanted to know if I wanted to grab a quick bite to eat. I graciously passed. I'm not really feeling up to it. This case is really close to home. I can see so many parallels between myself and my journey and Wesley and his. This could have been me ten years ago. I can't stop thinking about how one moment can change or end the lives of so many others. 22:12hrs. Time for bed now, but I can't seem to shut my mind off. There's only one surefire solution...a sleeping pill. I don't like to use them, because they leave me a little groggy. But so will a night with no sleep. 08:13hrs. Just woke up--slept through my alarm. 08:15hrs. Quick shower. 08:35hrs. Quick breakfast. 08:54hrs. Depart for Parker Center. 09:47hrs. Arrive at Parker Center. 10:04hrs. Chief and I interview the Talmadges. They're still very emotional over the loss of their son. Me too, quite frankly. It's hard when people project their emotions on you. Because I'm the one who delivered the news, they sort of look at me as the bad guy. But that's ok. I understand that. Mr. Talmadge tells us he usually drives the Escalade. Is it possible these gang bangers were trying to kill him instead of Wesley? We're not sure. But we are sure of one thing: the Talmadges didn't know it was Teresa Hoover who was their son's girlfriend. You have to wonder, if they didn't know about that, what else was their son hiding from them? Was he a gangster? We're not certain. The family says no, but as we learned, they didn't know everything about their son. 14:02hrs After lunch we find out Teresa Hoover is conscious, so we're going to take a trip to the hospital. We stop by Chief's house on the way, and I got to formally meet her mother, Willie Rae Johnson. She is adorable!!!! And for some reason, Chief doesn't want her to know about Fritz. Which is a little odd, considering his U-Haul is sitting in front of her house. But she's the boss. Of course the moment she leaves me alone, her mom asks me about, what else...Fritz! Great. 15:03hrs. Arrive at hospital. Teresa tells us how she and Wesley would travel around with a third (Myra Singleton) to avoid any potential problems with people who don't like interracial couples. They had had some problems in the past. As someone who has dated interracially myself, I understand some of what she's saying. Not everyone has evolved to the 21st century. But the way she described the shooting seems at little peculiar. She says someone yelled "this is from everyone." That seems strange. LA's really not typically a racial hotbed like some think, a la "Crash." Lots of different cultures coexist here and flourish. On the other hand, we've got our share of nuts too. 16:31hrs. Time for paperwork. Lots of paperwork. 19:24hrs. The squad regroups in the murder room. I'm not the only one who finds "this is from everyone" a little peculiar. But, then we realized we, or more so she, may have heard them wrong. We've been thinking that, because of the location, the shooting was maybe a 62, 53 "tit for tat." But we now think it could be an "81" issue. "81" could definitely sound like "everyone," when accompanied by a hail of bullets. Tao also found an incident report from another shooting that supports our theory. Things are starting to get interesting. 21:33hrs. Arrived home. God, I'm beat but I can't get my mind to shut off. Detectives never really stop thinking about their cases. Riddles, puzzles, and problem solving is a part of who they are as people; it's not just their job. 07:32hrs. I actually woke up before my alarm, so I just stared at the ceiling thinking about this case. Basically picking up where I left off last night. It takes me back to when I've lost friends who simply got caught up in trying to live that life. Trying to be "hard." Student by day, wanna-be thug by night. It's all about choices, in what you do, and, most importantly, in what you don't do. This kid seems different though. Sometimes when you're a cop you go with a hunch, and I have a hunch Wesley was a good kid. But then again, some of my old friends had their parents fooled too, before they were gunned down or went to prison. Ahh...GOOD MORNING WORLD! 08:57hrs. Arrive at Parker Center. 10:07hrs. After a quick meeting, Chief, Tao, Sanchez, and I head over to the scene of the 81 shooting. Det. Sanchez finds some gang "tags" on the side of one of the buildings. It pretty much says two guys, Pookie and Lil' Devil, shot Wesley for shooting one of their guys. Blood for blood, the gang-banger credo. I must say, as much as I give him a hard time, Det. Sanchez knows his s#@t. 12:46hrs. Back at Parker Center. Quick lunch while gang task and patrol units search for Pookie and Lil' Devil. 14:14hrs. The gang task force has located Pookie and Lil' Devil and taken them into custody. They are transporting them down to Parker Center and I asked Sanchez to pull their arrest records. So, in the meantime I'm off to grab a coffee. 15:40hrs. Chief begins her interrogation of Pookie and Lil' Devil. 16:51hrs. The Chief uses the old coin toss trick (actually I've never seen anyone do it before) to pull some troubling information out of Lil' Devil. He says Wesley's Escalade, the one with the rims and the USC sticker on the back, was the one that shot Pookie's cousin in the other incident two weeks ago. 17:39hrs. Chief, Tao, and I head over to the SID garage so she can examine the Escalade herself. To my surprise she finds a bullet casing inside, under the seat in the back. Have we been wrong about Wesley? Have I been wrong about Wesley? People may lie, but evidence does not. It can be misinterpreted, but it doesn't lie...it is what it is. 18:47hrs. We interview the Talmadges again, Commander Taylor is present. It's always tough to read parents. You want to believe that they're trying to help, but you never know what they might be trying to hide...possibly even from themselves. They claim that the night Pookie's cousin was shot they drove the Escalade to a restaurant called "Shay" for an 8 o'clock dinner reservation. That would make it impossible for Wesley to have had the car, which makes it impossible for Wesley to have been the shooter. That, of course, is all dependent upon if they are (drum roll please) telling the truth. They didn't have an explanation for the casing we found in their car, none at all. 19:22hrs. Chief's heading home for the night, and after some last minute paperwork's done, I'll be right behind her. 19:37hrs. I've finished working for the night and I'm finally on my way home. 19:56hrs. Chief calls me to tell me that she and Fritz have taken a new suspect into custody and to meet her back at the station...So, I'm on my way back to Parker Center. 20:13hrs. Arrive back at Parker Center. 20:21hrs. Chief begins interrogation. 21:23hrs. Interrogation ends. CASE CLOSED. So my hunch was right after all. Wesley wasn't in a gang and didn't associate with them either. The only mistake his parents made was going to dinner. Marcus, the valet guy at Shay, took their Escalade for a little spin while they were eating. He picked up Nate Rawlings, aka "Big Junior," and the two of them drove into 81 territory and shot Pookie's cousin. They wanted some "street cred," and didn't want to look soft. It's so pathetic and sad. In my walk through life, I have seen every side of this type of thing before, friends and associates who have played just about every role in this particular puzzle. The only thing I hadn't seen or heard firsthand was the wail and collapse of a mother who has just heard the worst words she possibly could. We'll have to add four more names to that awful list, the parents of Marcus and the parents of Nate Rawlings. Marcus said he was going to die for this. Sadly he's probably right. Where he's going, "cred" is imperative for getting respect. Without it, he'll be forced to join a rival gang...You know, come to think about it, Marcus was already in prison. posted by: Sgt. David Gabriel |
| Tuesday, June 20, 2006 |
| "It’s always interesting
for me to see if my theories match hers." |
|
12:16hrs. On my way to Chief’s place. Apparently, there’s been some sort of emergency down at the courthouse.One of the Jurors has had a heart attack or something.The details are a little sketchy right now.Lt. Flynn is on the scene. 12:28hrs. Arrive at Chief’s place. Fritz is moving in. It seems a little tense. I’m just trying to stay out of the way. 12:54hrs. Arrive on the scene. The victim is Juror #9 Bela Rose. She was serving as a juror on a very high-profile trial, involving an Armenian mob boss named Aram Asourian. He’s on trial for starting a night club fire, which killed two people.A horrible way to go.It’s long been rumored that the fire was actually started by Aram’s son, Vahan Asourian, who has mysteriously vanished since the incident. Right now we have to locate Bela Rose’s next of kin to deliver the notification. 13:41hrs. Back at Parker Center. I’ve confirmed Bela Rose’s address. Just waiting for the Chief to return from the morgue before heading over to notify the husband. He’s a doctor. I’m going to try to grab a quick bite to eat before we go, before I lose my appetite. Notifications always do that to me. 17:12hrs Chief returns from the morgue with the autopsy report. There were elevated levels of digoxin in her system. It’s a heart medication that, in small doses, is used to regulate one’s heartbeat, but too much can be lethal.She had 16-times the prescribed amount in her system.I guess that’s too much. 17:42hrs. The Chief, Lt. Flynn and I head over to Bela Rose’s house to interview and notify Bela’s husband, Dr. David Rose. 18:13hrs. Arrive at the Rose residence. 18:28hrs. Leaving the Rose residence. The husband took it pretty hard. I can’t say I blame him. I’ve never lost someone that close to me. These notifications are tough. They’re the worst part of the job if you ask me. Well, that and all the blood and guts stuff. But at least a dead body can’t tell you how much pain it’s in. 18:59hrs. Arrive back at Parker Center. Now the fun task of paper work begins. 22:38hrs. Finished for now. I’m going home to try to get some shut eye. 22:53hrs. Arrive at home. Going to grab a late night snack, watch a little TV and hit the sack. 03:11hrs. I just woke up on the couch to an infomercial. I must have dosed off. I’ve still got my suit on. I’m going to crawl in bed now. 08:30hrs. Woke up to my alarm clock.I hate that chirping noise; not the way to start the day.I think it’s time for a new alarm clock.Something more gentle in the morning. 08:37hrs. Quick shower. 08:50hrs. Quick breakfast and a little morning news. 09:07hrs. Left for Parker Center. 09:42hrs. Arrive at Parker Center. 09:58hrs. The squad regroups to compare notes.Chief brought her mom in today, she’s adorable.She brought us fudge too.Chief can’t tell her mom not to bring sugar into the murder room.It’s funny, no matter how old you get, when your parents are around, you’re always their little baby.It’s nice to see where Brenda comes from.On another note, all arrows point to Aram’s son, Vahan.Apparently in the first trial, (which ended in a mistrial) there was a witness who was murdered, shot to death.We have reason to believe that that juror may have been murdered by Vahan, or someone connected to the family.Chief wants around-the-clock surveillance on every house connected with the Asourian family, which means I’m on surveillance supervision.It’s not so bad though, I just send out the teams, and wait for someone to call.That’s if the guy even shows up.If he’s smart, he’ll stay “vanished.”But they’re usually not that smart. 10:21hrs. Chief and I meet with Aram’s lawyer, Jamie Milbrook.A high paid, high profile attorney with an incredible flare for manipulating the truth to his client's benefit. But, by the end of the meeting he was definitely looking out for himself.He unofficially gave us a tip that may lead us to Vahan.I must admit it was a little unethical the way we got the tip, but it’s also unethical being a killer.I’ve always thought of how unfair enforcing the law can be at times.We have to closely follow a set of rules and procedures that don’t apply to the criminals.I’ve never crossed the ethics line before, but maybe the lines need to be re-drawn. 11:13hrs. The squad packs up and heads over to the address we acquired for Vahan. 11:41hrs The surveillance teams are in place.I’m partnered with Daniels.It’s been a little tense between us since the Martin Case.I tried to explain to her that removing her from that case wasn’t a personal decision, but a professional one.Maybe I should have spoken to her first, butI don’t know.I offered to take her to dinner, as a peace offering, and she accepted, so hopefully there won’t be any long term tension. Hopefully. 12:22hrs. Lt. Flynn spots Vahan. 12:24hrs. Lt. Flynn engages in a foot pursuit of Vahan.All units move in. 12:25hrs. Shots fired. The suspect, Vahan, is hit once in the abdomen and taken into custody before being transported (with police escort) to Cedar-Sinai Medical Center. 13:07hrs. Chief and I begin the interrogation of Vahan Asourian.With a little help from the Chief, (by way of exaggerating his injuries) he confesses to setting the night club fire after being “disrespected” by the club owner.He also admits to killing the other juror in the first trial. By the time we were done, he wished he really was dying.NOTE: He took no responsibility for the death of Bela Rose. 13:25hrs. Chief and I leave the hospital. 13:53hrs. Chief and I return to Parker Center.We run into Commander Taylor (which is always a joy) in the hallway.He wasn’t happy about the Asourian case ending in a mistrial again.But, like Chief said, maybe we should try charging him with a crime he has actually committed.There’s an idea.Regardless, with a mistrial declared we can finally talk to the other jurors about Bela Rose. 13:59hrs. Quick lunch, a burger and fries. 14:40hrs. Chief and I depart Parker Center and head over to the home of Juror #3, Didi Conover. 15:25hrs. Finally arrive at Juror #3’s home. God, the traffic in this city is just ridiculous! 15:29hrs. Begin interview of Juror #3.We learned that Bela’s death was probably not a suicide.We also learned that there were some pretty heated arguments between Bela and her husband during the deliberations. Mainly over financial issues...could it be that we’ve found another motive for someone (maybe a husband) to want her dead?It’s time to bring the husband back in. 16:17hrs. Arrive back at Parker Center.Have to drag the Rose’s finances to see if there are any lucrative life insurance policies floating around. Meanwhile Det. Sanchez served a search warrant for the Rose residence. Picked up the husband and brought him back in. 17:35hrs. The husband, Dr. Rose, lawyers up.Interrogation over. 17:40hrs. Chief sends me over to examine some of the items seized from the Rose residence while she interviews the doctor’s mother, Grandma Julia Rose.I sense the Chief is on to something.She seems very focused, too focused to have many questions left.I have an idea as well.It’s always interesting for me to see if my theories match hers.She’s right far more often than I am, but the more we work together, the more I learn. 18:02hrs. Chief calls to notify me that the case is closed, and that she would be heading home for the night (for the record, my theory was right).The grandmother poisoned Bela Rose in some sick twisted attempt to save herself.She didn’t want to spend her final days confined to some ward just waiting to die.Ironically, that’s exactly where she’s going to be. posted by: Sgt. David Gabriel |
| Tuesday, June 13, 2006 |
| "I think it’s going to be one of those days" |
|
08:00hrs. Woke up to the morning chirp of my alarm clock. Didn't sleep that well, noisy neighbors. I woke up with a strange feeling. I think it's going to be one of those days.
08:10hrs. Quick shower. 08:30hrs. Quick breakfast. 08:37hrs. I just got the call. I didn't know what it would be, but I knew there'd be something. Officer down in a warehouse downtown. I think I know the guy....God, I hope I don't know the guy. 08:43hrs. I'm out the door. 09:12hrs. Just picked up Chief Johnson. She seems a little anxious. Officer down is the worst call we can get. It makes everyone think of their own mortality. At least it does for me. 09:39hrs. Just arrived on the scene. Damn there's a lot of people here. Seems like everyone from Central Division is here. A lot of old faces for me, including the downed officer, Det. Tim Martin. I know him well, too well. It's an interesting experience when the last interaction you have with someone is an unpleasant one, and then the next time you see them...they're dead. 09:44hrs. Entered the warehouse. It smells like hell, flies everywhere. The bodies have been here for about two days. That's a feast for the bugs. Det. Martin was shot between the eyes at close range, while the other body, Ze've Barak, a wanted double-homicide suspect, was shot once in the chest, possibly severing his spinal column. The whole scene is very peculiar and eerie. I feel for Daniels, she used to date Det. Martin when we were both at Central. I don't think she should be here, and I let Chief know that. 10:27hrs. Chief and I are on our way back to Parker Center. The rest of the squad is still investigating the scene. It's pretty tense. Central Division wants answers, and a punching bag, right now. But Chief needs time to find the right people to question, to get those answers. Me,... all I want right now is a venti Caramel Macchiato. 11:01hrs. Back at Parker Center. Got my coffee, it's as good as I thought it would be. Gotta review a murder book and look at Tao's preliminary ballistics report before an interview of Det. Martin's partner, Det. Lawrence Xavier. I don't know him, but I hear he's a bit of a hot head. 12:13hrs. Chief and I interview Det. Xavier, and he is a hot head. Apparently, he and Det. Martin haven't been partners very long. But they were currently working on a case involving an ecstasy drug ring, and a double murder. There's an informant I need to find, Ari Cohen, who might have some valuable information to the case, but it's going to be tricky because of an Anonymity Clause in his deal with the D.A. But, no worries, I'll find him. 13:07hrs. Lunch break. 13:33hrs. Left Parker Center to check on an address I found for Ari Cohen. 13:58hrs. Found Ari's place. He's nowhere to be found. His neighbors said they haven't seen him in awhile. I'm going to have to try another route to track him down. 14:30hrs. Back at Parker Center. I took a quick nap while waiting for Chief to return from lunch. When you work homicide you gotta sleep when you can. 15:20hrs. Chief returns. 15:47hrs. After a brief update, Chief and I are out the door to the hospital to interview Det. Martin's old partner Det. Ken Hubbard, who was granted "medical leave" to take care of his sick son, after his wife died. 16:22hrs. We interview Det. Hubbard and he gives us some very interesting new information. Det. Martin was apparently fooling around with Det. Xavier's ex-girlfriend, before she was his ex. So, on top of a double-murder suspect and missing mystery state witness, we have to add a jealous hot-head cop to our list of potential suspects. 17:15hrs. Chief and I head back to Parker Center. 17:47hrs. Back at Parker Center, I begin the tedious task of dragging Ari Cohen's credit cards. After about 20 minutes of being frustrated with the dinosaurs we call computers, I enlisted Tao's help to track Ari spending habits. 19:29hrs. We finally get a hit on Ari's credit cards. He's in Vegas, spending like he's Bill Gates. 19:41hrs. I walked in on the tail end of a meeting between Chief and Det. Daniels. I went there to relay Ari's whereabouts, and walked into a real mess. She (Daniels) was upset that I told the Chief of her past personal relationship with Det. Martin. I believe she thought it was because I too was one of the guys Martin screwed over to get what he wanted, which was Daniels at the time. But it wasn't about that for me. It was really about the case...I think. Anyway, it got pretty heated between Chief and I and I'm not sure if she believed me or not about my good intentions. But I know the truth. 23:23hrs. Finally done with paper work, so it's the end of the night for me. Flynn and Provenza are off to Vegas to retrieve Ari Cohen. I wish I was going, I love Vegas. It would be nice to get away for a night, even if it were work related. But, I'll settle for my own bed after a day like today. Most days I love my job...most days. 07:55hrs. Woke up 5 minutes before my alarm. I hate that. I wanted those last few minutes. So I just laid there until the alarm went off, but it wasn't the same. 08:10hrs. Quick shower. 08:30hrs. Quick breakfast and a little morning news. 09:00hrs. Left home for Parker Center. 09:37hrs. Arrive at Parker Center. The traffic was just ridiculous. I was tempted to put my lights on, but I've been chastised before for doing that. It just makes it easier to get around in this city. 10:51hrs. Chief is about to interrogate the elusive Ari Cohen and Det. Xavier together. She asked Det. Hubbard to come in and observe from the electronics room, so he can help affirm or negate specific information for her. 10:57hrs. The interrogation begins. 11:22hrs. CASE CLOSED. When it was all said and done, he did it for his son, or more so because it wasn't his son. It turned out Det. Martin had been involved with Det. Hubbard's deceased wife (before she was deceased, of course) on a far too personal level. Fathering the son Hubbard believed to be his own. Partners share a lot, but they don't usually share wives. I really feel for Hubbard. He was a good guy, who just...lost it...after losing absolutely everything. I can't say that I would have reacted the way he did in the same circumstance, but I can understand how and why he did. Now more paperwork. Mountains and mountains of paperwork. posted by: Sgt. David Gabriel |
| About Me | |
 |
 Name: David Gabriel Occupation: Detective Sergeant with the LAPD and member of the Priority Homicide Squad |
|
Marital Status: Single Employment History: Gabriel began his law enforcement career as a rookie cop with the LAPD and moved on to work in Robbery/Homicide under Commander Taylor. He enthusiastically campaigned to gain his current position on the newly formed Priority Homicide Squad. Personal File: Gabriel admires Deputy Chief Johnson's interrogation skills and looks to her as a mentor, although he knows she is not always easy to work with. He goes above and beyond for Johnson, whether that means helping her navigate through Los Angeles or caring for her cat's newborn kittens while she's out of town. He does not, however, hesitate to speak his own mind in the course of an investigation. |
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