Guardian Angel Chief Seized Again

Curtis Sliwa, the controversial founder of the Guardian Angels citizens patrol, was arrested by Los Angeles police Thursday on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon, but the district attorney’s office declined Friday to accept the felony complaint.

Sliwa and private security guard Stephan Hulbert allegedly attacked a young Los Angeles man who tried to visit a friend in a Hollywood neighborhood the Guardian Angels had sealed off in their unofficial battle against drug dealers.

Edward Kockis, 22, told police Sliwa knocked him down and Hulbert struck him with a night stick as he walked near the corner of St. Andrews Place and Melrose Avenue, where a dozen Guardian Angels have been demonstrating against drug pushers who openly sell their wares in the neighborhood.

Kockis was treated at Hollywood Presbyterian Medical Center for a minor leg cut.

Hollywood Division Capt. Larry Fetters said the district attorney’s office turned down the original assault with a deadly weapon complaint against Sliwa and Hulbert, and referred the matter to the city attorney’s office.

Assistant City Atty. Reginald Dunn said he is reviewing the case and will determine whether any charges should be filed. He said the police report contains conflicting statements about what happened. Any criminal complaint filed through the city attorney’s office would be a misdemeanor count.

Sliwa, 31, was released Thursday night on $2,000 bond, Fetters said. Sliwa could not be reached for comment Friday. He was arrested at the same location Sunday for blocking the street and resisting a peace officer. That case also is pending before the city attorney’s office.

Hulbert, 32, who remained in jail Friday, is employed by the private Selective Security patrol firm. He was armed Thursday night.

The Guardian Angels were organized by Sliwa in New York City to combat crime on the subways. They since have established chapters in Los Angeles and Orange counties, and have come under frequent criticism by official law enforcement agencies.

Fetters said Friday that Hollywood police officers have made 377 narcotics-related arrests so far this year in the St. Andrews Place neighborhood. He said the impact of the Guardian Angels, who have been demonstrating there this week, is hard to assess. The captain said that if the group succeeded in doing anything, it was simply to force drug dealers to move their operations to other locations in the city.