Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti said the city would be taking action against residents throwing large parties. The move comes in the wake of several reports about people hosting large parties without paying heed to orders aimed at restricting the spread of coronavirus.
As part of the aforesaid section, Garcetti said he would instruct the city to shut off water and power services to those hosting large parties. He touted the recent gatherings of primarily young people in the Calabasas and Hollywood Hills as "flagrant violations of health orders."
Beginning Aug. 7, if the LAPD (Los Angeles Police Department) officers find a large party is going on at a property, and discover pieces of evidence that show that the venue has been hosting such parties for a long time, the department will have the authority to urge the city to shut off water and power services to the property within 48 hours, Los Angeles Times reported.
With nightclubs and bars inaccessible amid the pandemic, these large house parties have replaced nightclubs in the hills, Garcetti said. He also pointed out that these house parties are usually happening either in vacant homes or homes that are used for short-term rentals.
Pointing out at the drawbacks of these parties, Garcetti said these large parties lead to worse consequences that ripple through the entire community, given that the virus can spread quickly. This heightened scrutiny is a result of a recently concluded boisterous party on Mulholland Drive that concluded in a fatal shooting.
Following several complaints from neighbors, police arrived at the venue at about 7 p.m. and found nearly 200 people there. While the police officers confiscated some illegally parked vehicles, they did not break up the large party even though gatherings of any size are restricted under Los Angeles County’s coronavirus health order.
LAPD Lt. Chris Ramirez said police officers found two women and man injured by gunshot wounds when they arrived following a shooting report about 12:45 a.m. The victims were rushed to hospitals and were in critical condition at the time, and a 35-year-old woman succumbed to death caused by the injuries while the other two were stable, according to the officials.
Ramirez touted the shooting as a gang-related homicide. Detectives alluded to social media activities to determine that the shooting was related to gang activity. Earlier this week, L.A. Councilman David Ryu introduced a motion with increased penalties and more enforcement options against those violating city laws including the city's 2018 party-house ordinance.