Between 2007 and 2011, the City of Los Angeles saw an annual average of 22 severe or fatal hit and run collisions involving bicycles and 92 involving pedestrians. Over that time, LAPD was only able to solve 20% of the cases. Hit and run crimes are especially difficult to solve because often there is little or no evidence and no witnesses.
As a City we must seek out new and innovative tools to assist the police in solving these crimes. On Wednesday, the City Council unanimously approved my motion to implement an alert system in the occurrence of hit and run crimes.
The resolution supports any State legislative program/bill to create a "Medina Alert" System for California. I have also submitted a second motion instructing the Police Department to report back on the feasibility of implementing the "Medina Alert" system in Los Angeles.
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The "Medina Alert" models a system implemented in the State of Colorado. Similar to the Amber Alert system, the alert will be issued for a specific hit and run incident. The Medina Alerts enable authorities to quickly broadcast information about a hit and run collision to the public on highway signs and through the media. In Denver, Colorado, the city has partnered with cab drivers and others who spend their time on the road to alert them when a collision occurs. This alert system has proven to be highly successful in the city of Denver, of the 17 Medina Alerts issued, 13 cases have been solved.
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- Mitchell Englander, Chair, Public Safety Committee
