Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department - Lomita Station

If a loved one, a family member or you have been arrested by or are being investigated by the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department (LAPD), Lomita Station, it can cause a lot of anxiety. 

Facing such a situation, it can be good to know the bail amount (if any) associated with the offense if police deny an own recognizance (OR) release.  It is also valuable to know 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 smart to know a few more things before interacting with any branch of law enforcement.  It can be helpful to know the size of the police or sheriff’s department, the area’s demographics, the most common types of crimes 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 Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department, Lomita station has an unspecified number of sworn police officers and an unspecified number of civilian support personnel assigned to it. 

The Lomita Station is responsible for the City of Lomita, the City of Rancho Palos Verdes, the City of Rolling Hills, the City of Rolling Hills Estates, the unincorporated area of La Rambla, the unincorporated area of Academy Hill (near Chadwick School), the unincorporated area of the Palos Verdes Peninsula and unincorporated area of Westfield.

The City of Lomita (Spanish for “little hill”) is a city to the east of Torrance and north of Palos Verdes.  As of 2010, the racial makeup of the city was 59.2% White (43.4% Non-Hispanic White), 5.3% African American, 14.4% Asian and 32.8% Hispanic or Asian.  

The City of Rancho Palos Verdes is one of five areas on the Palos Verdes Peninsula (the others being Palos Verdes Estates, Rolling Hills, Rolling Hills Estates and the Palos Verdes Peninsula).  It is the largest of these five areas and is often regarded as the least wealthy, although it has its fair share of multi-million dollar homes along the ocean. 

Rancho Palos Verdes was the home of the former Marineland, now the resort Terranea.  It is also the home of Portuguese Bend, an area that has experienced massive landslides in the last decades.

The City of Rolling Hills is a gated community with private roads with three entry gates.  Homes are single-story 19th century California ranch or Spanish haciendas exemplified by architect Wallace Neff.  Incorporated in 1957, Rolling Hills maintains a rural and equestrian character, with no traffic lights, multi-acre lots with ample space between homes, and wide equestrian paths along streets and property lines.

 
Rolling Hills has the third highest median house value in the United States.  Homes are required to have white exterior paint.  Homeowners are also required to maintain horse property on their lots, or at minimum keep land where stalls could be built.

As of the 2020 census, Rolling Hills’ population was 1,739, down from 1,860 at the 2010 census. The racial makeup of Rolling Hills was 77.3% White (74.1% Non-Hispanic White),1.6% African American, 16.3% Asian and 5.5% Hispanic or Latino.

Most cases arising out of the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Lomita Station’s areas of responsibility are brought at the Torrance Courthouse, 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 Torrance Courthouse would be very serious cases needing specialized prosecutors trained in handling such cases.

Over the last 25 years, our office has handled over 1,000 cases arising out the Lomita Sheriff’s station and brought in the Torrance Courthouse.  Such cases vary from DUI to domestic violence, to shoplifting, to trespassing, to criminal threats to burglary.