LAPD Tries Barricades to Keep Lid on Cruising, Violence

Ribbons of bright headlights shimmer along the wide boulevards. Hip-hop and rap music blare from car stereos. Young drivers shout pickup lines at each other.

It’s cruising night on Laurel Canyon Boulevard, where young people drive up and down a two-mile stretch of pavement bordered by mini-malls and fast-food restaurants. Boys watch girls, girls watch boys and, above all, they show off their wheels.

Once a rite of passage for teenagers, cruising the Valley’s boulevards can also be deadly. Violence rocked the Valley’s most popular cruising spots last weekend, when 10 people were shot in four incidents, leaving a 17-year-old boy dead.

In response, Los Angeles police are increasing their efforts to crack down on young drivers cruising Sepulveda and Laurel Canyon boulevards, roughly between Chatsworth and Rinaldi streets. On Friday night, about 20 officers from the Los Angeles Police Department’s Foothill Division patrolled the popular area and set up barricades at many intersections to block traffic until 3:30 a.m. Saturday.

“We cannot allow this violence to continue,” said LAPD Capt. Ron Seban. “We’re going to let the cruisers know that we don’t want them here.”

That sentiment has been echoed in communities across Southern California and beyond as police try to bring cruising under control in response to residents’ complaints--mostly about noise and crowds, not violence--authorities said.

Three years ago in Orange County, for example, Santa Ana put an end to cruising along South Bristol Street by establishing an elaborate computerized checkpoint system and setting up barricades to deter drivers.

Officers stopped each car and entered the driver’s name and license number into a computer, said Sgt. Raul Luna, a spokesman for the Santa Ana Police Department. Although some cruisers have returned, many stay away, fearful of being cited.

Whittier Boulevard, a longtime Southern California cruising spot, is frequently plagued with noise and violence, officials said. Last weekend, Pico Rivera police launched a crackdown on cruisers by assigning more officers to the area and setting up barricades, said Jeff Hobbs, a spokesman for the city.

In the San Fernando Valley, police acknowledge that stopping cruising is no guarantee of ending the violence.

“We can push them away from the boulevards, but that won’t keep them from shooting each other,” Seban said.

Roy Chavez, 17, and a friend were cruising June 19 when they were shot at 1:30 a.m. at the intersection of Laurel Canyon Boulevard and MacNeil Street. Chavez, of San Fernando, died from his wounds. Fifteen minutes later, three men were wounded in another shooting at the same location.

The next day, four young men were wounded at 2:30 a.m. in a car-to-car shootout at the intersection of Laurel Canyon Boulevard and Chatsworth Drive. Despite being shot in the neck, the driver managed to speed away. Hours earlier, in the same neighborhood, a 25-year-old man was shot in the leg during an argument with a motorist.

Police believe all the shootings were gang-related.

‘Heating Up Again’

Victims of cruising violence in the Northeast Valley are usually treated at Providence Holy Cross Medical Center in Mission Hills, where emergency room and trauma center manager Mark Wallerstein said, “Things seem like they’ve been heating up again, because I’ve seen more shootings this year. We’ve been dealing with shootings for years, but I hope this isn’t a trend.”

A few cruisers agree that a night of fun can sometimes turn dangerous, but they say not everyone is violent.

“There is some fear out here, because you can’t be cruising and gangbanging,” Luis Ramirez, 19, of Van Nuys said. “It’s not right for everyone else. We’re not all gangsters.”

An area Neighborhood Watch captain, who asked not to be identified fearing retaliation, has called police many times to complain about the cruisers.

“I wish I could get a bulldozer, pick up my house and leave,” the captain said last week. “But if I move, who’s going to take care of the problem? I’m not going to run and hide.”

Drivers from other parts of the Valley and beyond head to the Mission Hills location. Even with nightclubs, restaurants and other entertainment venues available, many young people say cruising is their favorite summer weekend pastime.

“We just come out for the girls,” Ramirez said. “We stay out until the girls go home, or we go home with them. It’s just about having fun.”

On Sunday afternoons, the action moves to Sepulveda Boulevard.

“Sundays are the best because everyone comes here after spending the day with their family,” said Minor Ortega, 18, of Van Nuys. “Coming out here all weekend is the best, because you meet all kinds of people.”

Although Los Angeles police say putting up barricades and adding more officers on the street is the best answer to the situation, cruisers scoff at what they call a quick-fix solution.

“Once the barricades come down, we’ll keep coming back,” said Steve Low, 19, of Van Nuys. “They can’t keep us away forever.”

The City Council will decide Tuesday whether barricades along Laurel Canyon Boulevard will become permanent.

City Council Motion

Councilman-elect Alex Padilla has drafted a motion calling for expansion of the LAPD’s cruising enforcement program. It was introduced Friday by Councilman John Ferraro, because Padilla cannot officially do so until sworn in as the District 7 councilman next month.

The motion calls for adding Friday evenings to the enforcement program and extending Saturday-night barricade hours until 4 a.m. Sunday. The Sunday-night barricades would remain from 6 p.m. to midnight.

Cruisers appear to have an ally in local merchants, who do not appreciate access being cut off from their businesses.

“When cars filled with hungry people can’t come by because of the police, it hurts us,” said Mario Cuenca, manager of Coco’s restaurant on Sepulveda Boulevard. But, he added, “other people get scared because they see the cruisers.”

He estimates he loses 10% of his business to either police measures or cruising traffic.

Hasan Kamrul stared at the empty streets from the Arco gas station on Laurel Canyon Boulevard where he works, estimating he lost $1,000 Friday night as a result of police barricades.

“It’s better for us when the cruisers drive down the streets because they need gas,” Kamrul said. “We aren’t doing any business, and it makes me really mad.”

Jeremy Villegas and his buddies left their Van Nuys homes, climbed into his beat-up brown 1981 Buick Regal and set out to cruise along Laurel Canyon Boulevard on Friday night.

But their plans were foiled when they encountered Los Angeles Police officers.

“We have a good time and people look at us,” said Villegas, 19. “But the cops like to harass us because of the way we dress and our shaved heads. They think we’re all gangsters, and we’re not.”

‘It’s a Game to Them’

Police issued nearly 50 citations to cruisers Friday night for speeding, illegal U-turns and loud music, said Officer Kristina Shanahan of the Foothill Division. No cruising-related violence was reported.

Police planned to erect barricades again Saturday night and remove them about 4 a.m. this morning. Today, cruisers will be blocked from driving along Sepulveda Boulevard from early evening until 2 a.m. Monday.

“They’ll just keep driving around to see if we’ve taken the barricades down yet,” Sgt. McCall of the Los Angeles Department of Transportation said Friday as he stood near a barricade on Laurel Canyon Boulevard. “It’s a game to them, but we’re going to win it.”