TimesOC: Santa Ana officer criticized for trying to prevent public filming
Good morning and welcome to the TimesOC newsletter.
It’s Friday, April 22. I’m Ben Brazil, bringing you the latest roundup of Orange County news and events.
Cities around the country have had to contend with a new strategy where some police officers play copyrighted music in order to deter the public from filming them and posting the recordings on social media.
That controversy found its way to Orange County last week when an online video went viral that showed a Santa Ana officer playing Disney music from the loudspeakers in his squad car to prevent a citizen from filming him and other officers while they investigated a possible stolen car.
In addition to potentially violating the 1st Amendment right to record public employees, the incident also roused neighbors from their homes in the middle of the night. Unlucky for that officer, he also decided to pull the stunt in the neighborhood of Councilman Johnathan Hernandez, who scolded the officer after he admitted that he was playing the music and cited copyright infringement as the reason.
This week, Hernandez proposed that the council consider directing city staff to draft a resolution or ordinance to ban the use of loud music by police officers. Other council members criticized the actions of the police and supported drafting a resolution or ordinance.
“This is a practice that we can’t condone,” Hernandez said during the council meeting. “It is an unethical practice, and as members of the community, especially public servants, it’s not something that we can support as a city. It’s why I brought this ordinance forward, so that we can as a city, be on the right side of history, ensuring that we do everything that we can to uphold transparency, good ethics and to honor the Constitution and the amendments that we were elected to protect and serve.”
Councilman David Penaloza said that there should be consequences for the involved officers. Last week, Santa Ana Police Chief David Valentin said the department is investigating the incident.
“I must say that that was one of the most embarrassing things I’ve ever seen in my life,” Penaloza said. “... I don’t know how an officer within our department could feel that confident to do that.”
Councilwoman Thai Viet Phan said the ordinance or resolution should aim to prevent police officers or any public employee from using copyrighted music or materials in order to prevent the exercise of 1st Amendment-allowed recording.
Mayor Vicente Sarmiento agreed with Phan’s suggestion and said that the actions of the police could set back the progress the city is trying to forge between the community and police.
“We’re trying to establish this relationship where we say, ‘When you see something, say something,’” Sarmiento said. “Well, sometimes all you can say is to videotape something or to document something. This really chills that sort of activity. That chills it for victims and chills it for witnesses. It really erodes the trust that we’re trying to so painfully try to stimulate between the police and the public. So I’m really disappointed that we even have to talk about this as a practice.”
MORE NEWS
You no longer have to wear a mask to ride a bus in Orange County. The Orange County Transportation Authority announced an end to its “No Mask, No Ride” rule after a federal judge struck down a national mask mandate for planes and public transit. Masking is still recommended on OCTA buses by the CDC to help contain the spread of the COVID-19 virus. My colleague Gabriel San Román has the story.
Costa Mesa Police are searching for a possible suspect after four ducks were found shot to death with a pellet gun in TeWinkle Park. The four dead birds were brought to the Wetlands & Wildlife Care Center in Huntington Beach, and X-rays showed that they had metal fragments inside of them. The wildlife center is asking for members of the community to come forward if they have information about the incident. Mayor John Stephens was saddened by the bird murder and said the city is taking measures to prevent the animal abuse in the future, reporter Sara Cardine wrote.
Newport Beach police warned residents this week that within the span of an hour, burglars broke into two Newport Beach homes last Friday. The suspects, who have not been found, used a ladder and stacked patio furniture to enter windows on the second story of each house. It isn’t known whether the same suspects burglarized both homes, my colleague Lilly Nguyen reported.
For the last several years, attorney Kevin Shenkman has been sending letters to Orange County cities alleging that their at-large elections violate the California Voting Rights Act. In response to the threat of litigation, some cities have turned to district elections. The city of Brea entered into an agreement with Shenkman’s firm and was all set to pivot to district elections until city officials this week decided to retain the at-large election system.
A federal jury convicted a woman this week for playing a role in a fatal shooting off Dana Point Harbor in 2019. Sheila Marie Ritze is facing significant prison time for second-degree murder. Her friend who killed the victim was convicted of first-degree murder in December. Check out the story by reporter Meghann Cuniff.
LIFE AND LEISURE
South County Outreach is dedicated to preventing hunger and homelessness in Orange County. My colleague Sarah Mosqueda wrote this week about the volunteers who run the nonprofit that distributes 700,000 pounds of food to thousands of residents each year. To gather the food, volunteers go outside and harvest the produce from trees around the county. The group’s creator was emboldened to ensure that the fruits and vegetables that grow throughout the county don’t go to waste.
Many people instantly recognize the image of “La Calavera Catrina.” Yet, many may not know who is behind the iconic image. The Fullerton Museum Center will help educate the public on the man behind the famed image with its new exhibition, “José Guadalupe Posada: The Iconic Printmaker and his Legacy in Popular Culture.” The exhibit spotlights Posada’s work and the people who he inspired. Posada, known as the father of Mexican printmaking, inspired the work of Frida Kahlo and José Clemente Orozco, among others. Yet despite his talent, Posada was poor when he died, and few knew his name.
Alicia Cox is hoping to change how we think about beachfront pizza with the opening of her newest concession in Huntington Beach, Sahara Sandbar & Pizza. The pizza joint can seat about 500 people, will serve beer and wine, and servers will skate out the food to customers, wrote reporter Matt Szabo. There is also a charitable component to the restaurant, as $1 from every pizza served will be donated to the Irvine-based nonprofit Families Forward.
Ruben Salazar is hoping to turn a parking lot into a cultural landmark in Santa Ana. It’s a lofty goal, but he got one step closer to making that happen when the city recently granted him a land use certificate that allows him to hold public events at the Blue Lot. It wasn’t easy getting the city to grant the certificate, Salazar had to raise thousands of dollars to fix the pavement and outdated fencing to improve the security of the property. Salazar believes the Blue Lot will represent and support the people of Santa Ana and their ideals.
SPORTS
Angels superstar Shohei Ohtani has had a tough time pitching against the Houston Astros in previous seasons. But he was determined to change that this week when he took the mound. He ended up nearly pitching a perfect game with 12 strikeouts and not allowing a man on base until the sixth inning. He also had two hits and two RBIs to lead his team to a 6-0 win over Houston.
The dominant Huntington Beach softball team shut out Marina to become the Surf League Champions for the second year in a row. My colleague Andrew Turner wrote a recap of this week’s game, where sophomore ace Zoe Prystajko threw a complete-game shutout with five strikeouts to lead her team to a win.
The Edison girls’ lacrosse team claimed the first Sunset League title in the program’s five-year history. To accomplish that feat, the team defeated Corona del Mar this week 17-12. “There’s no better group of girls to win this with,” said midfielder Sydney Hoggard. “I’m so excited to finally put Edison’s name in the history books.”
Stay in Touch
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