Our LAPD Story

This Side of the Yellow Tape

Our LAPD Story returns with a brand new episode.   LAPD Detective Brent Hopkins has lived two lives, one as a journalist for a major Los Angeles newspaper and the other as a police officer.  While these two careers are often at odds, Hopkins believes there are many similarities in the professions.  In fact, he believes a healthy working relationship between the press and the police is critical.  It's just one of the lessons he has learned walking from one side of the yellow police tape to the other.

You Can't Judge a Book...

There is no doubt we are living through some of the most contentious of times. From an ever-evolving international pandemic to civil and social unrest, 2020 has been a year of constant change and unmitigated social angst, with law enforcement at the center of most of it. On this episode of Our LAPD Story, we meet up with Officer Michael Silva. While his name might not ring any bells, you more than likely have seen a now viral video of Officer Silva having racial slurs being hurled at him, and smoke being blown in his face during a recent episode of social unrest in Los Angeles. At face value, an incident like this might seem common place in today's day and age, however Officer Silva is an outlier as a proud African-American man, who grew up homeless to a mother who was addicted to drugs. The age-old saying is 'you should never judge a book by its cover' and Officer Silva is living proof that you just can't.

Coming Home

Officer Pablo Soto grew up in South Los Angeles surrounded by a large family, with LAPD officers only coming around when something had gone wrong. Guided by a constant need to serve, he joined the military straight out of high school. After serving his country, Officer Soto was ready to serve Los Angeles, but specifically the neighborhood he grew up in. On this episode of Our LAPD Story, we sit down with Officer Soto, and learn a little bit more about what drove him to serve the city that raised him, and how went from a cop that was focused on putting criminals behind bars to building relationships with the residents of the Pueblo Del Rio housing development.

A Moment

From being diagnosed with COVID-19, to working around the clock during the recent days civil unrest that surged across our country as a result of the brutal murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis, Commander Cory Palka has had one of the busiest five weeks of his 30+ year career. Commander Palka has dedicated his life and career to living by the golden rule: treat others as you would want to be treated. In this episode of Our LAPD Story, we sit down with Commander Palka as he reflects on his career, and how a lifetime of dedication to principled patience and understanding, continues to resonate with those he serves.

A Surgical Approach

A career in medicine, and a career in law enforcement. Ask almost anyone, and they would say the two could not be more different. But here in Los Angeles, within the LAPD, both worlds come together in one person: Doctor Kenji Inaba. Doctor Inaba wears many hats- -Keck Hospital of USC Professor of Surgery (Clinical Scholar) -Keck Hospital of USC Director, General Surgery Program -Keck Hospital of USC Vice Chair, Department of Surgery -Keck Hospital of USC Chief of Trauma, Emergency Surgery, and Surgical Critical Care -LAPD Reserve Officer. In this episode we sit down with Kenji to get some insight into what led him towards a career in medicine, and also what drove him to simultaneously pursue an opportunity to protect and serve Angelenos. We also get an invaluable opportunity to get some perspective on the severity of this COVID-19 crisis from one of our city's top medical minds on the front lines.