Latest news with #LaMesa
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Five years after riots, La Mesa reflects on the unrest and resilient recovery
LA MESA, Calif. (FOX 5/KUSI) — On this day, five years ago, peaceful protests following the death of George Floyd and violent arrest of Amaurie Johnson devolved into destructive riots in the city of La Mesa. The riots on May 30, 2020 became a local flash point in the wider reckoning around policing and criminal justice reform, leading law enforcement agencies to end the use of chokeholds as a form of restraint and put a greater emphasis on community-police relations. Hundreds of protestors flooded the streets, eventually making their way onto Interstate 8. When they arrived in La Mesa, the demonstrators were met with police, who fired tear gas and bean bag rounds among other projectiles towards them in an effort to disperse the crowd. San Diego Police Department to encrypt radio communications Hours later, the city's downtown area was ablaze. A bank and several cars were burned. Grocery stores and local businesses were vandalized and looted. Some were even left disabled by injuries sustained in the chaos. The next morning, La Mesa residents were left to pick up the pieces. While most of the physical remnants of the protests have long since been repaired, the memory of the day lives on for those who lived through it. Pierre Farhat, who owns Pierre's Jewelry on La Mesa Boulevard, saw the events in downtown La Mesa unfold. He remembers seeing people clad in black break into his store, as the small city center descended into what he described as a war zone. 'That night when it happened, I thought I'm done. I'm not gonna come back,' he said. 'I had people come in the next day, people wanted to help, wanted to clean, they boarded the windows. Some customers wanted to give me money to help me out. It was amazing.' Craig Maxwell, owner of Maxwell's House of Books, similarly recalls being heartened by how the community came together after the events of that fateful night, even though he remains on edge about law enforcement activity again getting out of hand. 'We all did what we had to do to protect each other and ourselves that night and subsequently rebuild our businesses. It was all on our own,' he said. 'I'm very proud of everybody here. We all pulled together well.' KUSI's Dan Plante contributed to this report. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
7 days ago
- Yahoo
Suspect arrested after pursuit, police shooting in East County
SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI) — A man was arrested Monday after a pursuit and shooting involving an officer in the La Mesa area. Jahlil Johnson, 29, of La Mesa, was booked into county jail for multiple felony charges including domestic violence and child endangerment, Lt. Daniel Meyer with the San Diego Police Department said in a news release. Around 10:40 a.m., La Mesa Police Department officers responded to a report of a man strangling a female in the area of 7700 Normal Avenue. When authorities arrived, the suspect drove away with the 29-year-old woman inside his vehicle, according to SDPD. As officers attempted to pull the car over, the driver pulled over briefly to let the woman passenger exit, but then took off again. The pursuit was terminated, however, officers learned two young children, ages 5 and 7, were still inside the vehicle. The suspect then returned to the woman's location where he dropped her off and let the kids exit the vehicle. Police reinitiated the pursuit, deploying a tire deflation device that didn't slow down the driver. SWAT standoff underway in East County The driver eventually stopped in the area of 4400 Parks Avenue where he backed into the front of a police vehicle stopped behind him. The passenger officer was preparing to exit the police vehicle to conduct a high-risk vehicle stop when the police vehicle was struck, causing the officer to hit his head and injuring him, per SDPD. 'In response, the officer fired his handgun multiple times in the direction of the suspect vehicle. The vehicle was struck several times, but the suspect himself was not hit,' Meyer said. Another pursuit ensued into the city of San Diego and then back into La Mesa where tire deflation devices were deployed at least twice more, but the driver did not stop. Then in the area of 7800 University Avenue, a relative of the suspect stepped into traffic in front of the suspect's vehicle, forcing the pursuit to end. The suspect tried to run from authorities for about two blocks, but officers with La Mesa, San Diego and El Cajon were able to catch up with him. A taser and police K-9 were used to bring the suspect into custody. Johnson, who was not struck by gunfire, was taken to a local hospital for his injuries from the arrest. The injured La Mesa police officer, who has been with the department for eight years, was taken to a hospital for treatment and has since been released. San Diego Police Homicide Detectives are investigating the incident per the countywide memorandum of understanding regarding officer-involved shooting. Anyone with information about the incident is asked to call the Homicide Unit at 619-531-2293 or Crime Stoppers at 888-580-8477. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
