Fullerton Police Department

[UPDATED with Correction Regarding Roland Chi:] OC Weekly 2012 Election Guide: Fullerton!

See the end of this post for a correction regarding a County of Orange Health Care Agency  investigation into a Garden Grove supermarket owned not by Roland Chi, but rather his family.ORIGINAL POST OCT. 11, 2012 3:34 P.M.: It's tempting to qualify the Fullerton political scene as a live- action ... More >>

[UPDATED with Arraignment Details:] Did Pastor Joseph Angel Olvera Touch You With More Than His Sermon?

See the update at the end of this post with arraignment details.ORIGINAL POST, OCT. 11, 4:25 P.M.: Pastor Joseph Angel Olvera, who operates a shelter for at-risk youths at his Lifeline Ministries church in Fullerton, is facing misdemeanor sexual battery charges after a female teen accused the 54-yea ... More >>

[PHOTOS: Bill Hunt Sign Evidence:] $1,000 Reward Offered for Destroyer of Laguna Hills City Council Campaign Signs

See Update No. 2 at the end of this post on photos Laguna Hills council candidate Bill Hunt provided of his knocked-down campaign signs.   See Update No. 1 on Hunt saying his signs have also been vandalized, that Bill Kogerman is trying to implicate his campaign in the destruction of other ... More >>

Jose Guadalupe Jimenez, Clown Called "El Tin Marin," Gets 10 Years for Raping Little Girl

Send in the clown . . . so he may be sent to prison for 10 years for admitting to raping a 12-year-old girl.That's the sentence an Orange County Superior Court judge ordered Wednesday for Jose Guadalupe Jimenez right after the professional clown known as "El Tin Marin" pleaded guilty to, in full clo ... More >>

[UPDATED with Driver's I.D.:] Fullerton Police Kill Christopher Shull After Chase

See the update at the end of this post identifying the driver.ORIGINAL POST, AUG. 28, 10:21 A.M.: A police chase that began early today on the 5 freeway near the 91 freeway interchange ended at a (literal) dead end near Palo Verde Avenue and Artesia Boulevard in Bellflower around 3 a.m., when an off ... More >>

Chan Joon Park, Fullerton Acupuncturist, Poked Lady Patient with More Than a Needle: Cops

Chan Joon Park sounds like the name of a Korean movie director, but in this instance he's rolling as a specialist at a Fullerton acupuncture clinic.And, according to a female customer, the La Habra 68-year-old poked her--but not in the way he was supposed to.The woman's accusations have led to Park' ... More >>

Citizen Group Seeks Oversight of Fullerton PD

On Wed., July 11 at 6:30 p.m. the Police Oversight Proposal Committee will deliver a presentation on methods of police oversight. The citizen group, comprised of roughly half a dozen local residents, formed last November in the aftermath of the Kelly Thomas beating. The group seeks to develop civili ... More >>

Fullerton Police Finally Release Records per Mental Health Advocates' Request--But Are They Holding Back?

As promised, activists with Mind(ful) Liberation Project (MLP) have posted 22 pages of documents obtained from the Fullerton Police Department online. Prompted by the Kelly Thomas killing nearly a year ago, the organization filed a records-request for materials related to entry-level training and re ... More >>

[UPDATE: Mox Skeptical of Case] Did Officer Manuel Ramos Warm Up on a Disabled Man Before The Kelly Thomas Killing?

UPDATE, 2:37 P.M.: I can't vouch in any way for this lawsuit. For 19 hours, Russell R. Arens--the 1988 University of the Pacific McGeorge School of Law graduate who is the plaintiff's lawyer--has knowingly ignored five calls to answer simple questions. That type of conduct makes me leery of the m ... More >>

Have Two of Kelly Thomas's Attackers Been Fired?

Local blog Friends for Fullerton's Future is reporting officers Joe Wolfe and Manuel Ramos have been handed termination papers. The information was leaked to the blog by an anonymous source inside the Fullerton Police Department who said the firing stems from the officers' refusal to talk to in ... More >>

[UPDATED with Startling Diego Alejandro Figueroa Photo:] Fullerton Police Shoot Aurelio Paul Ramos-Navarette Dead

UPDATE, MAY 16, 1:28 P.M.: The Fullerton Police Department's booking photo for Diego Alejandro Figueroa has been released. The 22-year-old was one of two suspected gang members in a stolen pickup that led police on a high-speed chase and crashed before Figueroa's partner, according to cops, opened f ... More >>

The Kelly Thomas Beating & "Fullerton Metal Jacket": Where It All Started

The first thing I thought of when I heard about the Kelly Thomas beating was the first cover story I wrote for OC Weekly some 16 years ago. "Fullerton Metal Jacket: When The Police Go Military, The City Goes Vietnam," was published on March 8, 1996, just months into our paper's existence. It concern ... More >>

Dying Kelly Thomas Initially Ignored By Fullerton Paramedics

During the first hour of today's preliminary hearing for two Fullerton Police Department officers accused of criminally killing a homeless man last July, the biggest news came from a paramedic who first treated exceptionally minor scratches and bruises on cops than rush to the brutalized, dying vict ... More >>

Sobering Times for Pill Poppers: "Generation Rx," National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day

Prescription drug abuse by South County teens has been a hot topic lately thanks to the documentary Behind the Orange Curtain making its world premiere May 2 at the Newport Beach Film Festival and, due to a sell out, getting a second showing May 3 in the huge Big Newport theater.That makes a couple ... More >>

OCDA Charges Former Fullerton Police Officer with Destroying Evidence

​And the bad news just keeps rolling in for the Fullerton Police Department. Today the Orange County District Attorney's Office charged 41-year-old former FPD officer Thomas Mater with one misdemeanor count of destroying evidence relevant to the in-custody death of Dean Gochenour.  On April 1 ... More >>

Sunday OC News Notes: Was DA Tony Rackauckas "Pathetic" in Pursuit of an Accused Serial Killer?

Recent highlights in Orange County news from various media outlets or blogs:​TheLiberalOC discusses the long reach of its bombshell story on state Assembly candidate Michele Martinez's controversial train conversation related to a California Indian tribe and campaign support.OCPoliticsBlog calls D ... More >>

Fullerton Police Department: As Civil Liberties-Hating 88 Years Ago As It Is Today

As true today as in the 1920s​You'll remember in Marisa's story last month about the many sins of the Fullerton Police Department both before and after their killing of Kelly Thomas how she talked to an older woman who was subjected to a home invasion without warrant by the city's bullies in blue. ... More >>

Give the Gift of the Weekly...to the Weekly!

​In the course of Marisa's investigations into what became her badass cover story on the evil Fullerton Police Department, I had her run to the Langson Library at UC Irvine, to go through their collection of the Weekly on microfilm. See, due to an incredibly foolish lack of foresight by previous a ... More >>

Fullerton Has New Acting Police Chief: Dan Hughes

​Fullerton has a new acting police chief. KABC-TV-7 just reported that effective Jan. 3, Capt. Dan Hughes of the department's patrol division will replace current acting Chief Kevin Hamilton. Both men have been picked to fill the spot vacated by Chief Michael Sellers, who went on medical leave in ... More >>

Fullertonians Plan To Read Weekly's Cover Story About Their Police Department's Culture of Violence At Tomorrow's Council Meeting

​The Friends For Fullerton's Future blog is asking people to show up to tomorrow's city council meeting with a copy of the OCWeekly in hand.In the FFFF blog post, they ask people to be there for the public comment portion of the meeting, where they will "read into record," the recent&nbs ... More >>

Letters From OC Weekly Readers

The Fullerton Police Department Are the Bullies In Blue

Long before officers beat Kelly Thomas to death, the city's cops ran roughshod over anyone and everyone

Jay Cicinelli, Fullerton Police Officer Charged in Kelly Thomas' Death, Won't Have His LAPD Pension Reviewed

Jay Cicinelli​Even though Fullerton stopped paying Cpl. Jay Cicinelli on Oct. 8 -- three months after he and other Fullerton cops beat Kelly Thomas to death -- he's still getting a fatty pension paycheck.And, today's vote by the board that oversees cop pensions in LA, ensured that that's not gonna ... More >>

[UPDATED with Police Release Sketch Of Suspect:] Student Sexually Assaulted Near Fullerton College's Campus Two Weeks Ago

​UPDATE, NOV. 10, 5:29 P.M.:Today Fullerton police released a sketch of a man suspected of sexually assaulting a Fullerton College student last month. The man, who didn't know his victim, came up behind her, shoved his hand up her skirt and grabbed both her buttocks and genital area, police s ... More >>

Drugged-Up Dude Rams Into Ron Thomas' Parked SUV

​No one seems to think it was sinister, but certainly "very, very strange." Yesterday afternoon, Ron Thomas stopped by a coffee shop in downtown Fullerton--only a five-minute or so walk from the Fullerton Transportation Center where cops beat his son, Kelly, to death in July. Thomas and sever ... More >>

Federal Judge Calls Fullerton Police Department's Handling Of Allegations Of Sexual Misconduct By An Officer 'Shocking'

​A U.S. district court judge's decision earlier this week further tainted the already ailing image of the Fullerton Police Department.In a court document posted on the Friends For Fullerton's Future blog, U.S. District Judge Andrew J. Guilford writes some cutting words about the department and the ... More >>

Lalo Alcaraz at Fullerton Public Library TOMORROW

​As I wrote a couple of weeks ago, my "Gustavo's Awesome Lecture Series!" returns tomorrow at the Fullerton Public Library with legendary cartoonista Lalo Alcaraz. Lalo, ever the quick drawer, has even modified one of his famous anti-police brutality editorial cartoons to reflect Kelly Thomas' mur ... More >>

[UPDATED with Man Found:] Donald Turner Missing From Alzheimer Care Facility in Fullerton

​UPDATE, SEPT. 21, 9:12 A.M.: 74-year-old Alzheimer's patient Donald Turner has apparently been found safe.No official word from authorities, but Turner's family says he was found last night. No further details have been released.

Fullerton Police Chief Reacts to Charges in Kelly Thomas Case

Ed CarrascoFullerton Acting Police Chief Kevin Hamilton​In response to Orange County District Attorney Tony Rackauckas' announcement of a second-degree murder charge against Fullerton Police Officer Manuel Ramos and an involuntary manslaughter charge against Corporal Jay Cicinelli in the death of ... More >>

[UPDATED with 'Triple Threat Bandit' Had Robbed Orange County Banks Before:] High-Speed Chase After Fullerton Bank Robbery

​UPDATE, SEPT. 15, 3:46 P.M.: The FBI was already on the lookout for the man arrested at the end of today's hour-long chase."Preliminary investigation shows it was the same individual today as the 'Triple Threat Bandit,'" says FBI spokeswoman Ari Dekofsky. Today, the man allegedly robbed Farm ... More >>

[UPDATED with Fullerton Police Cite People For Honking At Protest:] Kelly Thomas' Story Goes National

​UPDATE, SEPT. 10, 6:27 P.M.: Fullerton police officers have had little to no presence at the Kelly Thomas protests outside their building for the past several weeks. Today, however, they stepped up enforcement and issued citations to three motorists who honked as they drove past the protest. ... More >>

Ron Thomas Meets With Fullerton Mayor Dick Jones to Discuss His Son's Death-by-Fullerton- Cops

Ed Carrasco/OC WeeklyRon Thomas​Fullerton Mayor F. Richard Jones is "about ready to quit," Ron Thomas, father of police beating death victim Kelly Thomas, said after his two-hour one-on-one meeting.Speaking at Fullerton City Hall this morning, Ron Thomas said that after last night's raucous city c ... More >>

LISTEN: Protest Songs For Kelly Thomas by Julian Porte and BNF

R. Scott Moxley / OC Weekly​As more information from the July beating death of Fullerton homeless man Kelly Thomas by six police officers surfaces, two new songs by local singer-songwriter Julian Porte and rapper BNF give their perspective on the subject of police brutality.Singer-songwriter Porte ... More >>

Anti-Police Brutality Protest Set For Today in Fullerton

(c) R. Scott Moxley / OC WeeklyProtesters oppose police brutality last Saturday​Residents are planning the biggest protest yet against the Fullerton Police Department today following the early July, gruesome cop killing of Kelly Thomas, an unarmed homeless man. Last Saturday, a spirited crowd of m ... More >>

Fullerton Stands Up for Kelly Thomas

[Moxley Confidential] Businessman/blogger Tony Bushala isn't letting anyone forget Kelly Thomas' brutal death at the hands of Fullerton police

Protest Fullerton Police Brutality Today; Victim's Vigil Tonight

Did police murder this man?​If you're alarmed that six Fullerton police officers surrounded and then brutally beat to death an unarmed, mentally ill and petite homeless man earlier this month without any known consequences, you can gather with other concerned citizens today and protest.Organizers ... More >>

Profiles in OC Pioneers Who Were Klan Members: William French, Fullerton's First Deputy Police Officer

​Hey, since the Fullerton Police Department is in the news because half-a-dozen of them beat to death a homeless man who suffered from schizophrenia, why not remind folks this week about the department's friendly past? Yes, Mitchie: Klan members were part of Fullerton's finest, and it started from ... More >>

Ex-Cop's Sad Saga Points to Problems with Pill Popping Police . . . and Fullerton PD?

​The Orange County Register has a detailed story on a pill-popping Fullerton police officer whose career ended when internal affairs investigators showed up at his Seal Beach apartment and found empty pill bottles and a cop so high he could not speak without slurring.The Reg tells the Todd Alan ... More >>

Craigslist Buy of Fullerton Police Badge Leads to Meth Pipe, Stolen Big Screen and Teen Runaways

​A worker for the city of Orange saw something unusual for sale on Craigslist and contacted the Fullerton Police Department.The item: a Fullerton Police Department badge.But, after arranging a buy, cops got more than their hardware back.

[UPDATED with Charges:] Trevor Harwell, Computer Tech, Accused of Using Spyware to Get Images of Naked Female Customers

​UPDATE, JUNE 10, 1:11 P.M.: The Orange County District Attorney's office (OCDA) has announced the charges filed against Trevor Timothy Harwell, the 20-year-old computer technician accused of secretly installing spyware on female customers' hard drives to capture images of them naked.The Fullerton ... More >>

[UPDATED] Jose Guadalupe Jimenez, Known as 'El Tin Larin' the Clown, Held in Rape of 12-Year-Old Girl While in Get-Up

Jimenez as "El Tin Larin"​UPDATE, MARCH 28, 10:19 A.M.: Ten minutes before the 10 a.m. scheduled arraignment of Jose Guadalupe Jimenez, the Orange County District Attorney's Office (OCDA) announced the filing of additional charges against the professional clown who performs as "El Tin Larin." In a ... More >>

[UPDATED: Murder Arrest] Andrew Pieatrucat, OC Homicide No. 45: Conked in Head in Alley

Courtesy of FPDSergio Camacho Gonzalez​UPDATE, MARCH 25, 10:20 A.M.: The Fullerton Police Department (FPD) announced an arrest has been made in the September 2010 murder of Andrew Petrusiak, who was also known as Andrew Pieatrucat.Sergio Camacho Gonzalez, 36, is accused of beating 56-year-old Petr ... More >>

[UPDATED:] Ruben Rodriguez Now Accused of Flashing 12 Girls Near Schools

​UPDATE: Three more girls have come forward to allege the suspect exposed himself to them (see end of post) . . . A 21-year-old Anaheim man has been arrested for allegedly exposing himself to at least nine girls between the ages of 12 and 17 over the last two months.

Jesse Rodriguez, OC Homicide No. 36, Gunned Down on Bike

​Jesse Rodriguez was riding his bicycle in the 200 block of West Hill Avenue, near Malden Avenue, in Fullerton before 10 p.m. Thursday when he was gunned down by someone in a car.Police do not know if the 17-year-old exchanged words with his unknown killer or killers before the slaying.

[UPDATED:] Photo AND VIDEO Released of Young Guy Caught Grinding Lady in Her 50s

​UPDATE: See video at end of post .  .  .Fullerton Police have released a photo captured on surveillance video from a CVS Pharmacy of a young man who went on to thrust his pelvis into the buttocks of a female shopper.From the photo, he appears to be 18 to 21, while police say the victim ... More >>

Vaughn Robert Biby, 9-Time Sex Offender Alleged to Have Kiddie Porn, Torture and Murder Pics-and Chuck E. Cheese Tokens

​You are 46 years old and you have been convicted NINE TIMES!!! previously for sex offenses. And yet, you are on the outside long enough to--according to Johnny Law--be found with hundreds of thousands of pornographic pictures and videos of children, as well as books and magazines on torture, ra ... More >>

[UPDATED:] Yanira Valderrama Held in Newborn's Murder

UPDATE: Just when you thought this couldn't get worse (details below) . . . Courtesy of Fullerton Police DepartmentYanira Valderrama​A 20-year-old Fullerton resident has been arrested for the September 2009 murder of her newborn baby boy.Yanira Valderrama was arrested Thursday on suspicion of murd ... More >>

Man Who Drowned 4-Year-Old Son Over Child Support Sentenced to 25 Years to Life in Prison

​A 38-year-old Fullerton father who was angry about having to pay child support was sentenced to 25 years to life in prison this morning for murdering his 4-year-old son by drowning him in a bathtub. Gideon Walter Omondi, who previously tried to burn the boy and himself to death by dousing the car ... More >>

Haunted Fullerton Walking Tour

Fullerton Museum

Jenna Jameson's Vagina Stolen!

Horny males across Orange County are weeping with news that a man made off with a vibrating plastic replica of porn star Jenna Jameson's vagina (retail price: $250) from Fullerton's Erogenous Zone on April 15. Respectable news organizations only opaquely refer to what exactly did the booty bandit ... More >>