12-12-12
On Wednesday, December 12th, the Sheriff Department's Parole Compliance Team planned a large scale Parole and Post-Supervised Release Person (PSP) operation here in the Antelope Valley. The operation began at approximately 6:00 AM, when 14 teams totaling more than 120 Sheriff's personnel fanned out across the Antelope Valley, conducting compliance searches of individuals released from State Prison on either Parole or the PSP program, through Assembly Bill AB-109. The search operation included teams from the Department's COPS Bureau, both Lancaster and Palmdale Stations, Narcotics Bureau and two booking teams from the Inmate Reception Center.
In all, 54 locations were identified for search throughout the Antelope Valley. A total of 16 arrests were made for charges including; possession of methamphetamines, weapons charges (not firearms) and other violations of Parole. One individual was arrested for being a "Parolee at Large", meaning he had not complied with the terms and conditions of his early release program.
The Sheriff's Department set their command post, a 45 foot trailer, from the Emergency Operations Bureau at the Lancaster Metro-Link Station's overflow parking lot. The command post is fully self-contained, with radios, computers and televisions. The command post is used for operations, such as the one conducted Wednesday, as well as large scale fires and floods.
The sweep was another operation conducted under the umbrella of the Antelope Valley Crime Fighting Initiatives (AVCFI). This program, developed in 2007, coordinates various resources from the Sheriff's Department and other agencies, and attacks criminal behavior on a regional level throughout the Antelope Valley.
When asked about the frequency of operations, Lieutenant Larry Gregg replied, "Our plan is to schedule as many of these large scale operations as possible throughout the coming year. The advantage of the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department is we have numerous resources available to us for these types of operations." Lieutenant Gregg added that in the past month approximately 130 searches and seventy arrests have occurred through operations conducted by the AVCFI.
The community is encouraged to partner with the department in taking an active role in enhancing the safety of the Antelope Valley. Residents can do this by starting a Neighborhood Watch program, joining the Volunteer on Patrol program or contact their local stations anytime they witness or suspect a crime has occurred. Residents can provide this information directly to the Palmdale Sheriff's Station by calling 661-272-2400, or they can report it anonymously by contacting "Crime Stoppers" at 800-222-TIPS (8477), texting the letters TIPLA plus your tip to CRIMES (274637), or using the website http://lacrimestoppers.org.
Prepared by Deputy Robbie Royster
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