Redondo Beach Police Chief Steve Sprengel stood alongside LA County District Attorney Nathan Hochman and LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell on Thursday, Aug. 6, to announce a coordinated crackdown on hate crimes across Los Angeles County.

The noon press conference at the Hall of Justice in downtown Los Angeles put a local face on the enforcement push. Sprengel was one of a handful of law enforcement leaders Hochman invited to signal that the effort extends beyond LAPD's jurisdiction into surrounding cities, including the South Bay, according to the Daily Breeze.

Among the cases Hochman highlighted is one with a direct Redondo Beach connection. Gregory Allen Pettis Jr., 28, of Gardena, faces four felony counts of making criminal threats and one felony count of assault by means of force likely to produce great bodily injury, all with hate crime enhancements. Prosecutors say Pettis directed an anti-Mexican slur at a victim in a Redondo Beach restaurant parking lot on Feb. 23, then entered the restaurant, threatened to kill several people while simulating a handgun in his waistband and punched the manager approximately 10 times. His preliminary hearing is scheduled for Aug. 19 at the Torrance Courthouse. If convicted, he faces up to 20 years in state prison.

The centerpiece of Thursday's announcement was the sentencing of Gerald Pitts, 67, of Santa Monica, to life in prison plus seven years for the attempted murder of Santos Tejas Gonzalez aboard a Metro bus on March 25, 2023. According to the DA's office, Gonzalez boarded the bus around 9 p.m., tried to walk past Pitts to take a seat, and was immediately met with racial slurs. When Gonzalez tried to exit at Western Avenue and Exposition Boulevard, Pitts stabbed him multiple times in the abdomen, arm, hand and face, then kicked him repeatedly in the head as he fell from the bus. Gonzalez survived despite life-threatening injuries. The DA's office released surveillance video of the attack on Thursday showing the knife protruding from Gonzalez's face as Pitts continued to strike him.

A jury convicted Pitts on June 16 of attempted murder with premeditation, finding the attack was motivated by the victim's actual or perceived race or ethnicity.

Hochman also highlighted the case of Job Uriah Taylor of Santa Monica, charged with attempted murder after allegedly using a metal pipe to beat victims in a racially motivated attack near the 5th Street Expo station in Santa Monica on March 3, 2023. A trial court had granted Taylor mental health diversion, but the DA successfully appealed. Taylor's pretrial hearing is set for Aug. 11 at the Airport Courthouse.

"What hate criminals want to do is … destroy the house," Hochman said at the press conference. "Whether they do it with their words, whether they do it with a spray can, whether they do it with a knife or a gun. … That is not going to happen."

LAPD Chief McDonnell said reported hate crimes in the city are down nearly 4% through the end of July compared with the same period in 2024-25, after hitting a record high of 838 in 2023. Countywide, 1,355 hate crimes were reported in 2024, the latest full year of data available, according to KTLA. That averages nearly four per day. McDonnell cautioned that the numbers don't tell the whole story because hate crimes often go unreported among victims who fear retaliation or distrust the justice system.

Hochman stressed that offensive speech alone is generally protected by the First Amendment, but when bias is coupled with a criminal act motivated by a person's protected status, prosecutors can pursue hate crime charges.

Residents who witness or experience a hate crime can call 911 for emergencies, 211 for LA vs. Hate county support, (833) 866-4283 for the state CA vs. Hate hotline, or 1-877-A-THREAT for terrorist threats.