By Mikey, Retired LAPD
Occasionally, on busy nights, I’d “buy” easy radio calls to ease up on the call load so the patrol cars could handle more important calls. At about 0130 a“415 Man” (man disturbing the peace) call came out at the Jack in the Box, Sunset and Ivar. The comments on the Mobile Digital Computer (MDC) read that the man had one leg and was on crutches. The man was approaching cars in the drive thru and he would ask the occupants for money. If they refused, the man would strike the vehicle with his crutches.
I arrived at the location and saw the man approaching a car in the drive thru. I shined my flashlight on him and yelled for him to turn around and stop.
He turned and said “I ain’t doing nothing.”
“Well, go do nothing somewhere else,” I said.
“I’m staying right here!”
“Get moving or get arrested for trespassing. Your choice.”
He stood there looking at me and I said again, “Get moving!”
The man slowly turned to leave and as he did he kept looking back at me. Just as he turned his head away again, shots rang out north of my location. They sounded very close and as I jumped back into my unit, I looked at the man as he was heading west at top speed. I have NEVER seen a man in his condition move that fast! I believe to this day he thought I was shooting at him. He never looked back as he headed north on Cahuenga Boulevard!
The shots had come from a night club a couple of blocks north from me, but that is another story.
THE 7-11 CAPER
There is a 7-11 convenience store on Cahuenga Boulevard just north of Yucca Street in Hollywood Division that had an armed security officer working there. He covered the graveyard shift and for the most part, maintained pretty good control over the transients, the inebriants, the homeless who lived or frequented that area of Hollywood. If I was on patrol and wanted a cup of coffee, I’d stop by and drink a cup with the man.
The weekends in Hollywood always rocked! The smell of food from restaurants and fast food places filled the air. Then there was the thumping of the music, folks both locals and the tourists and their excitement made it a great place to work.
I was once asked if I would ever work Hollywood and I said no. When asked why, I answered, “If God gave LA an enema, he’d stick the tube in Hollywood. Just saying.” I did work Hollywood and I stayed there 10 great years. I fell in love with the division, but I digress.
It was a Saturday night and the division was spring-loaded for a wild night. You could feel it. At around 0100 a 211 (robbery) in progress call at the 7-11 was broadcast. A second call at the location stated that shots had been fired. The first unit on scene broadcasted a “Code 4 suspect GOA” (all is OK, suspect gone on arrival). I arrived on scene and saw that the officers were talking to the security officer, so I stood back and listened. As I looked around the inside of the business, I noticed bullet holes on several walls.
I just had to ask the security guy a question, so I interjected. I asked him if he had exchanged fire with the suspect and he said, “No.”
I asked if the suspect had been armed, he answered, “He had a big knife.”
“Were those warning shots?”
“Hell no, Sarge, I was trying to shoot the asshole, but he kept ducking and dodging!”
Thank God none of the rounds had exited the store.
5 replies on “Roll Call: Short Dogs-Jack in the Box and 7-11”
Damn Mikey , that brought back all kinds of memories.
We are generational for sure sir, but your stories connect with me as mine do to you. We were blessed to have been given the opportunity to do what we were able to do. We are part of a fraternity whose members continue to protect and serve. God bless the young ones who are carrying on the solemn traditions of the profession. I miss it, as do you.
This job “gets in your blood.” I was told that early on when I figured out that I couldn’t do anything else with as much enthusiasm. It becomes our definitions. Thank you for all you have done and thanks for the wonderful, meaningful stories you all contribute. They’re like taking a black and white photo and colorizing it–this helps to see more than black and white lines. You guys are the best.
Thonie, I really enjoyed reading these. I love to her the stories, especially from sometime ago. As you know, my husband was also working back then. It was a special kind of time when the officers were respected and had fun on a dangerous job.
Thanks Jackie. The world was certainly different then.