General Jeff Skid Row Activist- by Walter Melton

General Jeff has tirelessly worked to rid the streets of Skid Row of its trash.  Week in and week out, he could been seen sweeping the streets, many times alone at night, or with Manuel Compito, the Co-Founder of the Skid Row 3 on 3 Streetball League.  He truly believed that the way for community members  to begin building self pride and respect was for them to take an active role in cleaning their streets.

To suggest that he would litter the very streets that he works so hard to keep clean is beyond any reasonable stretch.  I am embarrassed for the Los Angeles Police Department for this occurrence.

When Capt Smith, Captain McDonald and Sgt. Royce were a part of the original Skid Row task force, relations with the police improved considerably.  Those officers were widely regarded as servants of the community and everyone believed they cared for the well being of the inhabitants.  Since their departure, with no continuity of spirit and purpose, hard earned ground of mutual respect has been lost.

I commend Officer Deon Joseph for his ongoing efforts in protecting and improving the lives of the Skid Row community

I do hope that the relations, which at one time were on the uptick, between the community and law enforcement, once again return to a positive direction.

Sincerely,
Walter Melton  aka Scribeskidrow.

LAPD unjustly tickets Skid Row activist General Jeff yet again!

December 10, 2010

To all, For the fifth time in less than a month, Skid Row community activist and Downtown Los Angeles Neighborhood Councilmember General Jeff was handcuffed and detained by LAPD officers in Skid Row. Early morning on December 9th shortly after midnight, an LAPD patrol car stopped in front of General Jeff who was standing in front of the James Wood Community Center at 5th and San Julian street. Jeff had only been there a short while after a long day of meetings and events, including the CCA’s luncheon featuring guest speaker Tim Leiweke at the J.W. Marriott hotel at L.A.Live, Project Homeless Connect in Skid Row and a Lakers-Clippers viewing party in the Historic Core. In fact, General Jeff was still wearing a suit and tie when officers told him that he could not stand where he was standing. The officers asked Jeff where he lived and he replied “Skid Row”. The officers angrily got out of the car and told Jeff to turn around and put his hands behind his back. “Is there a problem?” Jeff asked. “Just do it!”, the officers replied. While one officer searched General Jeff, the other searched the nearby area. The officers picked up an alcohol bottle and a beer can out of the bushes and put them on the wall. “The beer can is yours”, one officer stated. “I can get you for open container”, he added. General Jeff replied, “What are you talking about? That’s not my beer can. I just got here”. “Well, it is now” , the officer replied. At that point, General Jeff requested a supervisor. While waiting for the supervisor to arrive, the other officer ran Jeff’s name through the computer. Once the supervisor arrived and after a brief discussion with both of the officers, the supervisor told General Jeff that he would be ticketed for littering. “Litter? Are you telling me that I supposedly threw something on the ground in front of the officers? ‘Cause that would be the only way they could possibly see me litter anything. Besides, I don’t litter at all!”, Jeff explained. “As a matter of fact, I helped to clean the trash off these streets. Why would I litter?”, he added. The supervisor replied, “Sir, I wasn’t here, but that’s what the officers told me.” General Jeff was cited and released at the scene. He then proceeded to Central Division where he obtained an officer complaint form. After filling it out, Jeff left a copy with the Watch Commander. The next day he also gave a copy to Internal Affairs. This is the fourth complaint General Jeff has given to LAPD’s Internal Affairs within thirty days. Jeff will also be giving a copy to the United States Department of Justice. As an outspoken community activist, General Jeff feels that he is unfairly being targeted by LAPD officers. Jeff also spoke before the Police Commission on Tuesday December 7th, where he left copies of the previous incidents with the Commission. An investigation is still on-going. It is unfortunate that the LAPD doesn’t seem to respect nor recognize General Jeff’s efforts to improve the Skid Row community. They obviously don’t honor his position as a Board member for the Downtown Los Angeles Neighborhood Council nor his leadership in the community by way of using his “lead by example” approach and also simply being nothing more than a positive presence in the Skid Row community. General Jeff has vowed to continue to be a positive presence in the community, a role model and a strong supporter of the continuing “change for the better” of all of Downtown as well as the City of Los Angeles. Please note that our 2010 Year In Review, which will summarize our many accoplishments and positive actions in Skid Row, will be released next month during our normal reflection period. Truthfully, ISSUES AND SOLUTIONS