Champaign Police, Crime Stoppers looking for tips in fragrance theft
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (WCIA) — The Champaign Police Department is investigating an act of retail theft, and officials are asking for help through Crime Stoppers in finding the person responsible.
The theft happened on Feb. 3 at Market Place Shopping Center. Officials said that at 6:40 p.m., a woman entered the Sephora store and went directly to the fragrance area. She put several gift sets and travel sprays in her basket and then walked out with no attempt to pay for them.
Champaign Police investigating overnight shots-fired incident
The stolen items were valued at over $700.
The suspect was described as a Black woman last seen wearing a tan coat with fur around the hood, a black shirt, black leggings and brown furry boots. She entered Sephora carrying the basket she used in the theft.
Anyone who has information on the woman's identity is asked to submit their knowledge to Champaign County Crime Stoppers by calling 217-373-8477, visiting their website or using the P3 Tips app. All tips to Crime Stoppers are both anonymous and eligible for a cash reward if the tip leads to an arrest.
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an hour ago
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A repeat of Rodney King? Local leaders say L.A.'s latest unrest is nothing like 1992
The clashes between National Guard troops, police and protesters in recent days have evoked memories for some Angelenos of the deadly riots that erupted after LAPD officers were acquitted of brutally assaulting Black motorist Rodney King in 1992. But leaders who were involved in dealing with the uprising more than three decades ago say what has unfolded with President Trump's deployment of soldiers to Los Angeles and surrounding communities bears no resemblance to the coordinated response that took place then. 'It's not even close,' said former LAPD chief and city councilman Bernard Parks, who was a deputy chief in the police department during the 1992 unrest. 'You get a sense that this is all theatrics, and it is really trying to show a bad light on Los Angeles, as though people are overwhelmed." The chaos of 1992 unfolded after four LAPD officers who were videotaped beating King the prior year were not convicted. It took place at a time of deep distrust and animosity between minority communities and the city's police department. Federal troops and California National Guard units joined forces with local law enforcement officers to quell the turmoil, but not without harrowing results. More than 60 people were killed, thousands were injured and arrested, and there was property damage that some estimate exceeded $1 billion. What has played out recently on the city's streets is significantly more limited in scope, Mayor Karen Bass said. 'There was massive civil unrest [then]. Nothing like that is happening here,' Bass said on CNN on Sunday. 'So there is no need for there to be federal troops on our ground right now.' As of Wednesday evening, several hundred people had been arrested or detained because of their alleged actions during the protests, or taken into custody by federal officials because of their immigration status. On Tuesday, after the 101 Freeway was blocked by protesters, buildings in downtown Los Angeles were vandalized and businesses ransacked, Bass imposed a curfew in the city's civic core from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. that is expected to last several days. Read more: Bass enacts curfew in downtown L.A. to stem chaotic protests Zev Yaroslavsky, who served on the City Council in 1992, recalled that year as "one of the most significant, tragic events in the city's history." He described the riots as "a massive citywide uprising," with "thousands of people who were on the streets in various parts of the city, some burning down buildings." Yaroslavsky, who was later on the county Board of Supervisors for two decades, said that while some actions protesters are currently taking are inappropriate, the swath of Los Angeles impacted is a small sliver of a sprawling city. "All you're seeing is what is happening at 2nd and Alameda," he said. "There's a whole other city, a whole other county that is going about its business." Another significant distinction from 1992, according to people who lived through it, was the bipartisan coordination among local, state and federal law enforcement agencies. Gov. Pete Wilson, a Republican, and Democratic Los Angeles Mayor Tom Bradley requested assistance from then-President George H.W. Bush. That's a stark contrast from what started unfolding last week, when Trump's administration sent ICE agents to Los Angeles and federalized the state's National Guard without request by the state's governor, which last happened in the United States in the 1960s. "The biggest difference is that the governor requested federal help rather than having it imposed over his objection," said Dan Schnur, a political professor and veteran strategist who served as Wilson's communication's director in 1992. "There were some political tensions between state and local elected officials. But both the governor and the mayor set those aside very quickly, given the urgency of the situation." Loren Kaye, Wilson's cabinet secretary at the time, noted times have changed since then. "What I'm worried about is that there aren't the same incentives for resolving the contention in this situation as there were in '92," he said. Then, "everyone had incentives to resolve the violence and the issues. It's just different. The context is different." Parks, a Democrat, argued that the lack of federal communication with California and Los Angeles officials inflamed the situation by creating a lag in local law enforcement response that made the situation worse. 'You have spontaneous multiple events, which is the Achilles heel of any operation,' he said. 'It's not that they're ill-equipped, and it's not that they're under-deployed,' Parks said. 'It takes a minute. 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Bragg in North Carolina on Tuesday, said that he deployed National Guard troops and Marines to Los Angeles 'to protect federal law enforcement from the attacks of a vicious and violent mob.' The president descried protesters as leftists pursuing a "foreign invasion" of the United States, bent on destroying the nation's sovereignty. 'If we didn't do it, there wouldn't be a Los Angeles," Trump said. "It would be burning today, just like their houses were burning a number of months ago." Newsom responded that the president was intentionally provoking protesters. 'Donald Trump's government isn't protecting our communities — they're traumatizing our communities,' Newsom said. 'And that seems to be the entire point.' Read more: Newsom, in California address, says Trump purposely 'fanned the flames' of L.A. protests Activists who witnessed the 1992 riots said the current turmoil, despite being much smaller and less violent, is viewed differently because of images and video seen around the world on social media as well as the plethora of cable outlets that didn't exist previously. "They keep looping the same damn video of a car burning. It gives the impression cars are burning everywhere, businesses are being looted everywhere," said Earl Ofari Hutchinson, president of the Los Angeles Urban Policy Roundtable. Hutchinson, an activist from South L.A. who raised money to rebuild businesses during the 1992 riots, said he was concerned about the city's reputation. "L.A. is getting a bad name," he said. Get the L.A. Times Politics newsletter. Deeply reported insights into legislation, politics and policy from Sacramento, Washington and beyond, in your inbox twice per week. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Yahoo
an hour ago
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Nashville DA, police under scrutiny for not filing charges after transgender woman was attacked
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Los Angeles Times
2 hours ago
- Los Angeles Times
A repeat of Rodney King? Local leaders say L.A.'s latest unrest is nothing like 1992
The clashes between National Guard troops, police and protesters in recent days have evoked memories for some Angelenos of the deadly riots that erupted after LAPD officers were acquitted of brutally assaulting Black motorist Rodney King in 1992. But leaders who were involved in dealing with the uprising more than three decades ago say what has unfolded with President Trump's deployment of soldiers to Los Angeles and surrounding communities bears no resemblance to the coordinated response that took place then. 'It's not even close,' said former LAPD chief and city councilman Bernard Parks, who was a deputy chief in the police department during the 1992 unrest. 'You get a sense that this is all theatrics, and it is really trying to show a bad light on Los Angeles, as though people are overwhelmed.' The chaos of 1992 unfolded after four LAPD officers who were videotaped beating King the prior year were not convicted. It took place at a time of deep distrust and animosity between minority communities and the city's police department. Federal troops and California National Guard units joined forces with local law enforcement officers to quell the turmoil, but not without harrowing results. More than 60 people were killed, thousands were injured and arrested, and there was property damage that some estimate exceeded $1 billion. What has played out recently on the city's streets is significantly more limited in scope, Mayor Karen Bass said. 'There was massive civil unrest [then]. Nothing like that is happening here,' Bass said on CNN on Sunday. 'So there is no need for there to be federal troops on our ground right now.' As of Wednesday evening, several hundred people had been arrested or detained because of their alleged actions during the protests, or taken into custody by federal officials because of their immigration status. On Tuesday, after the 101 Freeway was blocked by protesters, buildings in downtown Los Angeles were vandalized and businesses ransacked, Bass imposed a curfew in the city's civic core from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. that is expected to last several days. Zev Yaroslavsky, who served on the City Council in 1992, recalled that year as 'one of the most significant, tragic events in the city's history.' He described the riots as 'a massive citywide uprising,' with 'thousands of people who were on the streets in various parts of the city, some burning down buildings.' Yaroslavsky, who was later on the county Board of Supervisors for two decades, said that while some actions protesters are currently taking are inappropriate, the swath of Los Angeles impacted is a small sliver of a sprawling city. 'All you're seeing is what is happening at 2nd and Alameda,' he said. 'There's a whole other city, a whole other county that is going about its business.' Another significant distinction from 1992, according to people who lived through it, was the bipartisan coordination among local, state and federal law enforcement agencies. Gov. Pete Wilson, a Republican, and Democratic Los Angeles Mayor Tom Bradley requested assistance from then-President George H.W. Bush. That's a stark contrast from what started unfolding last week, when Trump's administration sent ICE agents to Los Angeles and federalized the state's National Guard without request by the state's governor, which last happened in the United States in the 1960s. 'The biggest difference is that the governor requested federal help rather than having it imposed over his objection,' said Dan Schnur, a political professor and veteran strategist who served as Wilson's communication's director in 1992. 'There were some political tensions between state and local elected officials. But both the governor and the mayor set those aside very quickly, given the urgency of the situation.' Loren Kaye, Wilson's cabinet secretary at the time, noted times have changed since then. 'What I'm worried about is that there aren't the same incentives for resolving the contention in this situation as there were in '92,' he said. Then, 'everyone had incentives to resolve the violence and the issues. It's just different. The context is different.' Parks, a Democrat, argued that the lack of federal communication with California and Los Angeles officials inflamed the situation by creating a lag in local law enforcement response that made the situation worse. 'You have spontaneous multiple events, which is the Achilles heel of any operation,' he said. 'It's not that they're ill-equipped, and it's not that they're under-deployed,' Parks said. 'It takes a minute. You just don't have a large number of people idly sitting there saying, okay, we are waiting for the next event, and particularly if it's spontaneous.' Protests can start peacefully, but those who wish to create chaos can use the moment to seek attention, such as by burning cars, Park said. The end result is images viewed by people across the country who don't realize how localized the protests and how limited the damage was in recent days. 'The visuals they show on TV are exactly what the folks in Washington want to be seen,' Parks said. On Monday, the president deployed hundreds of Marines from Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center in Twentynine Palms. State leaders have asked for a temporary restraining order blocking the military and state National Guard deployments, which is expected to be heard in federal court on Thursday. Trump, speaking to U.S. Army troops at Ft. Bragg in North Carolina on Tuesday, said that he deployed National Guard troops and Marines to Los Angeles 'to protect federal law enforcement from the attacks of a vicious and violent mob.' The president descried protesters as leftists pursuing a 'foreign invasion' of the United States, bent on destroying the nation's sovereignty. 'If we didn't do it, there wouldn't be a Los Angeles,' Trump said. 'It would be burning today, just like their houses were burning a number of months ago.' Newsom responded that the president was intentionally provoking protesters. 'Donald Trump's government isn't protecting our communities — they're traumatizing our communities,' Newsom said. 'And that seems to be the entire point.' Activists who witnessed the 1992 riots said the current turmoil, despite being much smaller and less violent, is viewed differently because of images and video seen around the world on social media as well as the plethora of cable outlets that didn't exist previously. 'They keep looping the same damn video of a car burning. It gives the impression cars are burning everywhere, businesses are being looted everywhere,' said Earl Ofari Hutchinson, president of the Los Angeles Urban Policy Roundtable. Hutchinson, an activist from South L.A. who raised money to rebuild businesses during the 1992 riots, said he was concerned about the city's reputation. 'L.A. is getting a bad name,' he said.
