Your friendly blogger (that would be me) will again be on Warren Olney’s Which Way LA? show for a news segment tonight to talk about the Suzie Pena case and the judge’s decision.
That’s KCRW, 89.9 FM.
WWLA? Broadcasts at 7:30. The segment should be at or near the top of show.
(I have already taped the segment and, to my knowledge, I completed all my sentences, which on my dearth of sleep today, is an accomplishment.)
Heard you on the show – so THAT’S what you sound like these days? I thought you did a good job laying out the situation, and I agree, there was no “good option.” I’m also sure that Pena did not INTENT to use the child as a “human shield,” and no doubt loved her, just didn’t make a good decision holding her in his doped up, infuriated, state. But that must be how it looked to SWAT at the time, and he was firing at them, so they didn’t have time to wait him out til he put down the child. Either way, an innocent child is dead and I’m sure the cops involved felt horrible.
Saw the link to the show and this blog on L A Observed, “Dead Child and a High Five,” referring to the LATimes now photo. The commenters there generally think Trutanich was extremely insensitive to gloat, whatever his explanation about also being a father and so on. Most however accept that the SWAT had no “good options” and the verdict was correct, however. While I feel for the mother, I don’t see how it will help her heal to keep the pain alive with an appeal that is unlikely to succeed. Continuing to blame the cops for her husband’s crazy behavior won’t bring the child back, I hope someone advises her to let it go.
WBC “The commenters there generally think Trutanich was extremely insensitive to gloat” Sorry, but why is it that Trutanich’s reaction is seen a ‘gloating?’
To me, as someone who is sick to death of meritless cases being rewarded with taxpayer dollars, I thought Trutanich’s response was a high five for the legal system.
Yes, for once a judge had the guts to do the right thing and after listening to the evidence, say that while we all feel sorry for a mother who lost her child, that loss was not the fault of the police, but rather her boyfriend.
Yes, for once the City Attorney’s Office had the guts to do the right thing and fight the case instead of writing a check.
And, Yes, there’s every reason to day “High Five” at the fact that the system worked.
It’s a rare event. All too rare, sadly.
I’m reluctant to even mention this, but as a journalist who’s been digging into this, have you come across any verification that there was also a 17-year old girl allegedly rescued? Some blog reports allege that she was the baby’s real mother, that Pena was her stepfather and the “mother” suing on behalf of the child is really the grandmother…Allegations there was a family drama about all this that led to his depondency… It’s all so Jerry Springer but do you think this can be ruled out? (Of course, NONE of this would change the underlying facts or that the innocent child was killed, due to the father’s crazy and wildly irresponsible behavior — threatening the SWAT team, waving a gun and leaving them no choice.)
“marc,” you say “for once” the City Attorney “had the guts to fight the case.” But this case was in process way before he came on board, wasn’t it? I don’t believe for a minute that Rocky was about to just “write a check,” please don’t even try that one. Obviously you don’t “get” the lack of class and sensitivity that strikes most people here, and yes, it’s gloating. However, I don’t intend to argue this further — that’s “just my opinion” to cite Celeste’s own comment earlier, take it or leave it. You obviously have an agenda to defend Trutanich. Seems he needs people to do a lot of that already, the guy is totally tonedeaf to majority opinion.
Celeste: on the other case you’ve been covering lately (as has everyone), just out on the LATimes blog: Jack Leonard and (?) Winton are working on an article not even posted yet that documents that it appears that it was due to a clerical error which omitted a burglary from his rap sheet that Samuels was roaming the streets instead of locked up when he killed Lily. If it weren’t for this itty-bitty little “error,” he’d have been prosecuted for a third strike both in San Bernardino Cty a decade earlier and again, possibly, in L A a few years ago. — The details given so far are sketchy.
WBC, thanks for the kind words re: WWLA?
I too feel for the mom terribly, and also think it’s time to let it go.
As for the other, yes, there was a sixteen-year-old, Suzie’s older sister Ilsy, whom the cops managed to help get out early in the standoff. She was Pena’s step daughter. The baby was definitely not hers. For one thing, I know people who saw Lorena pregnant.
For another, when I first met Lorena, Suzie’s mother, the day after the shooting, we were starting to talk and suddenly both of us noticed the two wet spots on her tee-shirt. She was leaking breast milk. It was horrible. She began to sob, and frankly I began to cry too. It was so, so painful.
There was indeed a family drama that triggered the whole thing, the night before and Raul began acting crazy then. Suffice it to say that he did something that blew the marriage apart. I can’t say more than that as it doesn’t have any direct bearing on the shooting or the lawsuit. It is merely part of this family’s painful and private affairs. The police know too. But making it public isn’t anything that would do anybody any good, I promise. It could only do harm.
Ilsy, the teenager, had a very hard time in all of this. She was very, very attached to Suzie, the baby, and the fact that she got out and her sister didn’t, was shattering for her. I remember being extremely worried during that first week for her emotional well being.
It was all just terribly tragic—for the SWAT guys too. They were devastated. Really and truly.
Thanks, WBC, I did see it. (But I might easily not have, so I appreciate the heads up.)
I’m planning to do at least a short blog post about it.
There are some other details that I’d sure love to see filled in. But it’s quite interesting.