Opinion ID: 4536868
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: LASD’s Criminal Investigation

Text: On April 4, 2018, one of Grey’s neighbors called the Lancaster Community Appreciation Program (“LANCAP”) team of the LASD regarding ongoing issues with Grey. LASD Deputy Andrew Chappell contacted the neighbor and the neighbor stated that Grey had shot a Glock handgun into the air several times during the previous year’s Fourth of July holiday. The neighbor reported that following the Fourth of July, Grey’s behavior became “bizarre” and that Grey had started to do “strange things” like stringing up tarps in his backyard and installing flood lights that illuminated Grey’s backyard along with the backyards of his neighbors. The neighbor said he saw multiple pieces of heavy equipment in the backyard of Grey’s house, including vehicle parts, firearm 8 UNITED STATES V. GREY parts, and tools. Then in October 2017, according to the neighbor, Grey showed him a large amount of methamphetamine. Afterwards, Grey invited the neighbor to his house several times and reportedly showed him an “old and beat up” AK-47 rifle, a Glock handgun, a “snub nose” revolver with a blued finish; many firearm parts, including stocks, barrels, and slides to semi-automatic pistols, and firearm ammunition. During one of these visits, Grey allegedly loaded the AK-47 and shot it into the air multiple times from his backyard. The neighbor also reported seeing Grey carrying firearms on his person and keeping firearms in the trunks of the vehicles parked on his property. The neighbor reported that around December 2017, Grey installed fencing in the front yard, along with a camouflage tarp along the fence, as well as 30-foot poles with cameras affixed to them. The neighbor reported that he was concerned that the fence might be electrified because of an electrical wire attached to the fence. The neighbor also reported that he last saw Grey shoot a gun in his backyard in early March 2018. The neighbor also complained of a burning chemical smell from Grey’s property. When asked why he had waited so long to report the crimes, the neighbor said that he wanted to keep to himself and tried to give Grey the benefit of the doubt, noting the possibility that Grey was mentally ill. However, the neighbor believed that in March 2018, Grey had made a false allegation of child abuse to the Department of Children and Family Services, and that was “the straw that broke the camel’s back.” Deputy Chappell then generated a six-pack photographic lineup with Grey’s photograph and showed the lineup to the UNITED STATES V. GREY 9 neighbor, who identified Grey. The neighbor also identified the car driven by Grey and provided Deputy Chappell with photographs he had taken of Grey’s front and back yard. The day after Deputy Chappell’s interview with the neighbor, Chappell drove by Grey’s house with Deputy Danny Ornelas. As he drove by, he smelled a strong odor of a chemical-like substance coming from the house and observed the fence and tarp described by the neighbor. Deputy Chappell saw Grey in his garage, as well as several vehicles in the driveway and garage. Deputy Chappell then contacted several other neighbors of Grey, who wished to remain anonymous and “collectively” told Chappell that Grey was “weird,” “unhinged,” “not all there,” and “strange.” The neighbors reportedly feared Grey and his “increasingly odd behavior.” Deputy Chappell also contacted Code Enforcement Officer McNutt, who showed Chappell his case file on Grey’s house and told Chappell that Grey and his landlord had been generally uncooperative. McNutt told Chappell that Grey had refused to take down the fencing around the front of the property despite three separate City-issued citations. Deputy Chappell also contacted Deputy Kuper, who told Chappell that he had gone to Grey’s property on March 13, 2018, and that Grey had acted very strangely, as if he had a mental illness. Kuper also reported that Grey seemed extremely paranoid and would talk to him only through a crack in the gate at the driveway. Deputy Chappell then checked Grey’s criminal history and determined that Grey had been convicted of felony 10 UNITED STATES V. GREY driving under the influence in 2008. Chappell also saw that Grey had multiple drug-related arrests and that he had been convicted of felonies in Louisiana and Pennsylvania, including voluntary manslaughter. Deputy Chappell also reviewed calls for service to Grey’s address and saw that there were several calls for service in which deputies had been dispatched to the location regarding loud music being played. On October 25, 2017, deputies were dispatched to Grey’s property because another neighbor had reported a gun being fired into the air. Based on his interview with the neighbor and his subsequent investigation, Deputy Chappell formed the opinion that Grey was a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition, that he was in the possession of a controlled substance, and that he had negligently discharged firearms multiple times. Deputy Chappell filed a police report dated April 5, 2018, regarding Grey’s alleged possession of firearms and ammunition, and the report was approved by Deputy Chappell’s supervisor, Sergeant D. Wolanski, on April 6, 2018. During the evidentiary hearing, Wolanski testified that he did not believe the LASD had probable cause to either arrest Grey or search his home at that time.