Breaking: In a press conference announcing a proposed class action lawsuit against @BeverlyHillsPD, @AttorneyCrump claims that 105 of 106 arrests made by a local task force were of Black people. The plaintiffs are a Black couple from PA who were arrested on Rodeo Drive in Sept.
Jasmine Williams and Khalil White say that they rode electric scooters from their hotel in BH to Rodeo Drive. The city has a current ban on electric scooters. Officers made contact and arrested them.
In a response to the suit, acting chief Dominick Rivetti says that officers warned the plaintiffs earlier in the day re: scooters (which they dispute) and that the plaintiffs gave false info to PD.
Rivetti says that the city formed the Rodeo Drive Team in response to a rise in complaints from the business community.
Williams and White walk through their arrests at the very spot it took place. A judge reportedly threw out all the charges against them.
The suit cites an incident from October, in which Versace VP Salehe Bembury was stopped and searched for allegedly jaywalking. Bembury was carrying bags with Versace shoes (that he designed) at the time of the stop.
Both the number two and three of the department, Asst chief Marc Coopwood and Capt Scott Dowling, have announced plans to resign. Attorney Bradley Gage points out that the resignations came after their names appeared in claims against the city.
Some background on Gage. He has become a real thorn in the side of BHPD, representing around a dozen employees in claims against the city for discrimination, especially by former chief Sandra Spagnoli.
Spagnoli resigned in May amid mounting losses in legal fees, judgements, and settlements totaling millions. She has been accused of racist/homophobic/antisemitic remarks and actions. The city has yet to name a replacement, tho a search has been ongoing.
The suit fingers Dowling as the head of the Rodeo Drive Team and accuses him of a history of racist comments.
Crump revealed that he had been contacted by the Department of Justice regarding the lawsuit. He said he would encourage the DOJ to look into the matter
Crump addressed the matter of the city’s ban on electric scooters, accusing the BHPD of arbitrary enforcement of the policy.
Beverly Hills has prohibited ride sharing options until one year after either California or the city repeals the declaration of emergency related to the pandemic. Here’s a bit on that history for you hungry transportation nerds. google.com/amp/s/beverlyh…
Gage and Crump did not provide direct evidence for the 105 statistic. Gage said that he has multiple sources confirm the figure, including a retired BHPD officer. A source of mine could not immediately confirm the exact number, but said on background that it sounded correct.
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