LAPD - Valley Traffic Station

If a family member, a loved one or you have been arrested by or are being investigated by the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD), Valley Traffic Division, it can cause a lot of worries.  Facing such a situation, you may want to know the bail amount (if any) associated with the offense if police deny an own recognizance (OR) release.  It is also typical to ask what evidence is needed to convict one for the crime that allegedly took place, the defenses possible and the sentence a judge can impose if one is convicted of the crime. 

We at Greg Hill & Associates believe it is valuable to know a few more things before interacting with any branch of law enforcement.  It can be good to know the size of the police or sheriff’s department, the area’s demographics, the most common types of crime the department investigates and just a bit about the area’s history to make one’s communication with law enforcement more meaningful, more savvy and perhaps, more respectful.  This can lead to a better outcome than if one lacks such perspective.

This article is presented with this goal in mind.

The LAPD Valley Traffic Division is responsible for enforcement of traffic laws, investigation of traffic accidents and preventing traffic-related crimes in all of the Valley bureaus to ensure the smooth flow of traffic within its jurisdiction.  These bureaus include the West Valley, Van Nuys, Topanga, the Northeast Division, North Hollywood, the Mission Division and the Devonshire Division bureaus.

The LAPD Valley Traffic Division typically defers to the California Highway Patrol for traffic enforcement duties along the freeway in its area, as well as in certain surface streets close to the freeway.  There is some overlap in traffic enforcement along such surface streets.

Such crimes can include DUI, hit and run, reckless driving and speeding, as well as such infractions as driving while using a cell phone and driving without the use of a seat belt.  The traffic divisions of the LAPD (there are four for the County of Los Angeles) also often operate DUI check point stops.

What many have found, and we certainly have, is that a police officer may initiate a traffic stop for what is first believed to be a simple traffic ticket, for example for expired registration, tinted windows or an inoperable taillight.  However, after the stop, the officer then develops a reasonable suspicion that the driver may have violated other laws or is involved in something far more serious than an infraction and so the officer requests additional officers to help him and / or prevent a problem.  The seemingly low-level, routine traffic stop can then progress and change into an arrest for something very serious.

The West Valley Division includes an area of 33.5 square miles with a population of 196,840 people.  The boundaries are Corbin Avenue to the west, Roscoe Boulevard to the north, the 405 Freeway to the east and Mulholland Drive to the south.  This includes the neighborhoods of Encino, Reseda, Lake Balboa, Sherman Oaks (part), Northridge (part) and Tarzana.

The Van Nuys Division includes the cities / areas of Sherman Oaks and Van Nuys neighborhoods.  The area is 30 square miles with over 325,000 residents.

The Topanga Division includes the cities of the areas of Canoga Park, West Hills, Winnetka and Woodland Hills.

The Northeast Division includes the areas / cities of Atwater, Cypress Park, Eagle Rock, East Hollywood, Echo Park, Elysian Park, Elysian Valley, Glassell Park, Griffith Park, Highland Park, Los Feliz, Mt. Washington and the Silverlake Northeast Area. The area covers 29 square miles and has a population of about 250,000 people.

The North Hollywood Division includes the cities of North Hollywood, Studio City, Valley Village, Toluca Lake, West Toluca Lake and a portion of Sun Valley.  This is an area of approximately 25 square miles that contains close to 220,000 residents.

The Mission Division covers the cities of Arleta, Mission Hills, North Hills, Panorama City and Sylmar.  The area covers 25.1 square miles with an approximate population of 225,849.

The Devonshire Division patrols Chatsworth, Northridge and parts of Canoga Park, Granada Hills and Winnetka.  The area is approximately 48.31 square miles and has an approximate population of 210,136.

The LAPD Valley Traffic Station has 161 sworn police officers and an undisclosed number of civilian support personnel assigned to it.  Most cases arising in the Valley Traffic Division area are brought at the Van Nuys, San Fernando or Burbank Courthouses, but some are also brought at the Clara Shortridge Foltz criminal courts building (CCB) at 210 West Temple Street in downtown Los Angeles.  Cases that may be filed at CCB instead of at the Van Nuys, San Fernando or Burbank Courthouses would be cases such as felony hit and run, vehicular manslaughter (for example, of a pedestrian) and felony DUI.

Our office has handled over 250 DUI cases, dozens of hit and run cases, as well as many other traffic-related offenses in our 25 plus years of practice.

For more information about being arrested and possibly facing a criminal case, please click on the following articles:

Below is the Google Map to the LAPD Valley Traffic Station.