Northridge, CA – The United Chambers of Commerce of the San Fernando Valley and Region hosted a luncheon honoring the police captains of the San Fernando Valley on Wednesday, September 20th 2017, at the Porter Valley Country Club. The luncheon included: Conversation with the officers, remarks from Deputy Chief John Sherman, recognition of the officers, and statements from the officers regarding the importance of strong community relations.
Deputy Chief John Sherman’s address covered three primary points. First, he noted that crime levels across the San Fernando Valley were down about 1%, with violent crime down 4%. And while there had actually been a slightly uptick in crime in recent years, this paled in comparison to a significant reduction from the late 1990’s to early 2000’s. Between that period and today, the total number of crimes dropped from approximately 40,000 annually to about 28-30,000 per year. Murders, in particular, dropped from approximately 1,200 to less than 300 across the entire City.
Deputy Chief Sherman next addressed the homelessness and transient situation in the San Fernando Valley. He stressed that it was a significant concern, but also not solely a law enforcement problem. He highlighted the shortage of transitional housing, in particular, stating that, when officers encounter a homeless individual who is not “service-resistant”, it can be difficult to find a transitional bed for them. Deputy Chief Sherman noted and expressed support for several ballot measures aimed at providing funding for homelessness reduction, including job opportunities and training programs.
Finally, Deputy Chief Sherman thanked the community for their support, and commended the Los Angeles Police Officers for doing a commendable job under very close scrutiny. “We’re going to continue doing a great job for you,” said Sherman, “We’re going to continue bringing crime down for you and keeping it under check. I do challenge you to make sure you’re out there, supporting your police officers, recognizing the very difficult job they have policing our community.”
The captains currently policing the San Fernando Valley include:
- Operations – Valley Bureau
- Commanding Officer Deputy Chief John Sherman
- Assistant Commanding Officer Commander Jorge Rodriguez
- Devonshire Area
- Area Captain III Bryan Lium
- Patrol Captain I Kathleen Burns
- Topanga Area
- Area Captain III Maureen Ryan
- Patrol Captain I Paul Vernon
- West Valley Area
- Area Captain III Beverly Lewis
- Patrol Captain I Natalie Cortez
- Van Nuys Area
- Area Captain III Lillian Carranza
- Patrol Captain I James Setzer
- North Hollywood Area
- Area Captain III Donald Graham
- Patrol Captain I Aaron Ponce
- Foothill Area
- Area Captain III Ernest Eskridge
- Patrol Captain I Elaine Morales
- Mission Area
- Area Captain III Robert Marino
- Patrol Captain I Peter Casey
- Valley Traffic Division
- Division Captain II Andrew Neiman
The luncheon was sponsored by:
- Title Sponsor
- The Gelb Group
- Table Sponsors
- Arnie’s Coffee N Cruise
- DC Collective
- Galpin Motors
- Horace Heidt Estates
- Jean Sinatra, Legal Management Recruitment
- Larry Stearn, LAPD C-PAB Co-Chair (Devonshire Division)
- Special Friend Sponsors
- Alliance of Community Empowerment
- C & M Printing
- Commercial Bank of California
- Corradi Investments – Pam Corradi
- Dilbeck Estates – Sherry Keowen
- Empower Group of Companies
- Florine Goodman
- Gaspar Insurance Services
- Law Office of Mark Levinson
- Law Office of Savin Bursk
- Lewitt Hackman
- Los Angeles Police Federal Credit Union
- Mike’s Roofing Corporation, Inc.
- Parker Brown, Inc.
- Universal City – North Hollywood Chamber
The United Chambers of the San Fernando Valley and Region is a coalition of 32 business organizations including 18 Member Chambers, representing over 21,000 businesses that provide over 387,000 jobs. United Chambers deals with Valley-wide, County-wide and Regional issues and promotes the San Fernando Valley’s overall welfare, progress and economic prosperity.