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Residents urge Cerritos council to trial closing neighborhood entrance after string of burglaries
Summary
Residents from the Liberty Park/Sunray track pressed the Cerritos City Council on Feb. 13 after repeated home burglaries and slow responses; deputies described new deterrents and staff agreed to meet residents and agendize a study on temporary closures and traffic changes.
Dozens of Cerritos residents told the City Council on Feb. 13 they are terrified after a recent wave of burglaries and home invasions, urging immediate steps including temporary closures of neighborhood entry points, additional cameras and targeted patrols.
At the public‑comment portion of the meeting, Dr. Dionne Washington said her home has been burglarized three times and that in the most recent incident, deputies took “30 minutes” to arrive; other speakers corrected the specific response time to 13–15 minutes in some incidents but stressed that delays have persisted. Multiple residents from the neighborhood near Liberty Park described home invasions, carjackings and robberies that they said have occurred since September and reported a pattern of thieves using nearby freeway ramps to escape.
Sheriff’s Captain (identified in comments as the local captain) said the department has shifted resources into the area: a trailer with live video feeds and ALPR (automatic license plate reader) capability has been deployed to a narrow track of homes, a decoy radio car is being used, and special teams and volunteer patrols are active. The captain said the department is meeting an average priority response time goal of about seven minutes but acknowledged individual calls can take longer and offered to review specific incidents when residents provide details or photos via the department’s evidence upload link (evidence.com).
City staff said they will meet with resident representatives immediately and study traffic circulation, including whether temporary traffic barriers, planters or bollards could be installed to close or limit one entrance to the affected track on a trial basis. Council members emphasized any change must involve the fire department and traffic‑circulation analysis because blocking an entrance could affect emergency access for roughly 200 homes. Staff committed to report back and the council agreed to agendize the issue at a subsequent meeting two weeks out.
Why it matters: Residents described repeated, traumatic incidents and asked the city for near‑term, visible action to improve safety; staff and law enforcement outlined both operational responses already under way and procedural constraints that will shape any physical traffic changes.
What’s next: Staff will meet with neighborhood representatives, include public‑works and fire officials in feasibility work, and return with options for council consideration at an upcoming meeting. The sheriff’s office encouraged residents to upload photos and video evidence to assist investigations.
