LAPD's Northeast Division and the Dodger Stadium Beating

A piece today (Sunday) from the Los Angeles Times looks at how the Giovanni Ramirez arrested was refuted and three new suspects were identified and arrested.

Two have also been charged--mayhem, assault with a deadly weapon and battery.

The Times characterizes Beck’s decision to assign the case to Northeast “as unusual.” But it also quotes Beck as saying :

"When Northeast came to us, they had what appeared to be a good case. They had multiple witnesses that identified him, he lived in the same neighborhood … and given his criminal history, the fact that he's on parole for a violent crime, his gang affiliation—knowing what we knew, we would have been derelict had we not made the arrest."

Ramirez was first identified by a parole officer as a possible suspect. Then two witnesses picked him out of a photo lineup, though the Times says police never confirmed he bought a ticket to the game.

Simultaneously, Ramirez's  attorneys--most notably Anthony Brooklier and Jose Romero--were expressing doubt about the case. They put together a list of potential alibi witnesses and other evidence to show he wasn't at the game and was instead at his uncle's house eating hot dogs.

According to the Times piece, every witness identified and interviewed by Northeast division detectives was re-interviewed once the case was transferred to the LAPD’s Robbery-Homicide division. Again, quoting from the Times' piece:

"Beck said that detectives, in an eagerness to solve cases, often oversell the strength of their investigation when briefing supervisors. He acknowledged that may have been at play when Northeast investigators briefed him but said he considers it his responsibility to see through that."

Significantly, at a Friday press conference, Beck made a point of referring to evidence “developed by both Northeast and Robbery-Homicide detectives” as leading to the new suspects.

Two of them--Marvin Norwood, 30, and Louie Sanchez, 29—will be arraigned Monday in Department 30 of Los Angeles Superior Court.

Here’s a link to a complete text of the LA Times piece.