The operations manager of WeHo’s Block by Block program, Shea Gibson, was once charged with murder and armed robbery and was convicted of voluntary manslaughter in Georgia, according to criminal records. He apparently served more than 8 years in prison on the manslaughter charge.
And city officials — including then-Mayor Lindsey Horvath — have been aware since at least September 2021.
According to a background check on BeenVerified.com, Gibson was charged with murder and armed robbery for an incident in March 1995. Prosecutors chose not to pursue those charges in lieu of a voluntary manslaughter charge, for which he was convicted.
West Hollywood last week decided to move a significant amount of its public safety budget for the next two years into the hands of the the Block by Block program, which will gain 30 security ambassadors to patrol city streets, as it reduced funding to the Sheriff’s Department funding.
WEHOville reached out to Gibson last week for an interview and was declined. Danny Rivas, the new director of Public Safety, was asked if he had any knowledge of Gibson’s record.
An email sent to WEHOville appearing to be dated September 14, 2021 shows that the City Council members had prior knowledge of Gibson’s record before voting to defund the sheriff and add additional funds to the Block by Block security ambassador team under Gibson’s command. The source is redacted but the letter is addressed to Mayor Lindsey Horvath and City Council staff .
Dear Mayor and Council Staff,
I was curious to find out more about the ambassadors program and the training they receive. Sadly I came across shocking information about the managers Shea Gibson. How is it that someone with a prior criminal history of “voluntary manslaughter” be able to hold a position of its kind hnading security for the city of WEHO. See attached link. (the link is no longer valid) .
Why isn’t the city and sheriffs department conducting background checks on its ambassadors?
The city needs to be holding the ambassadors to the highest standards just like the LASD does for its deputies.
This might not be a good image if wehoville or weho times gets a hold of this information.
Anonymous Resident.
Despite knowledge of Gibson’s record and lawsuits pending against Block by Block as reported here in WEHOville, City Council did not raise any concerns during public discussions of defunding the sheriff and adding funds to a program under Gibson’s command, or a program in which the City of West Hollywood has no oversight over the personnel who are hired.
WEHOville then contacted Community Safety Director Danny Rivas, who was apparently unaware of the charges. He responded Thursday with the letter below.
Hi Larry,
Thank you for bringing to my attention and as you aware Block by Block was recently awarded a contract in June 2022 following the City’s request for proposal (RFP) process. We will be following up with Block by Block concerning their hiring checks and practices to ensure it follows those listed within the RFP.
Respectfully,
Danny
According to his LinkedIn profile, Gibson has been with the Block by Block program since 2013.
[…] 2022, WEHOville discovered that Gibson had served time in a Georgia prison for a voluntary manslaughter conviction, a fact unknown to the city officials who hired him. City Hall rushed to support him in the wake of […]
[…] about Shea Gibson, the Head of Block by Block. Sadly, Shea has had some issues in the past. He was convicted of murder and served time in prison. When we published the story about the man being promoted being convicted […]
[…] One of WeHo’s top public safety officials is a convicted murderer […]
https://www.cbsnews.com/losangeles/news/lapd-issues-community-warning-following-string-of-follow-home-robberies/
I’m sorry for someone’s past choices in life, but the public deserves to know who’s in a position of power and serving in what capacity, as in overseeing public safety, security ambassadors, being in charge of current public safety measures replacing law enforcement officers. This is neglectful, negligent, and a serious liability for a city who is losing the confidence of your residents/citizens and business owners and employers of West Hollywood! Concealment can’t be justified by a company employee, program administrators when it comes to criminal history of having been tried and convicted for serious violent crimes such as armed… Read more »
City Code:2.60.080 Duties. The Public Safety Commission shall have the power and be required to: a. Analyze the level of law enforcement needs and make policy recommendations to the City Council, which can include reimagining public safety through alternate community-based systems and mechanisms that are needed to achieve a safe community for all West Hollywood community members; (This is what will end up in court) b. Evaluate and recommend mechanisms to involve the Fire Department in community services; d. Analyze and make policy recommendations to the City Council on ways to promote, in partnership with law enforcement and first responders, the best… Read more »
If you guys only knew what actually goes down in that company they are so unorganized the staff is horrible and majority of those supervisors are either drunks that get DUI, sex offenders, or killers they don’t treat there employees with respect they all think they are higher than everybody else it doesn’t make sense when you get hired in that company they are really strict in the background checks so why aren’t they doing the same thing with supervisors and staff BBB has something coming for them hopefully they have good lawyers it’s not looking to good maybe the… Read more »
Shea Gibson aka Sef Kobane is a brother from another mother. I have worked with Shea for many years right after he did his time. If you knew the whole story behind his trials and tribulations, also what a great human being he is then you would know what kind of person he truly is. I’ve had the privilege of producing music and recording a demo album for him which eventually caught the ears of prominent record label executive Vincent Herbert (Lady Gaga’s manager) and A&R at Interscope Records. Although unfortunately our lives took different paths we still remain hopeful… Read more »
If that’s the case then shea should of stayed recording music instead of being a head supervisor for a big company the past is the past but if you act like a criminal in a big position than you shouldn’t be in this
The “whole story” is that this man was indicted for murder & found guilty of voluntary manslaughter during the commission of armed robbery. The only thing missing from the “whole story” is about his victim, what fear & suffering he might have endured before dying & about the losses suffered by his family & friends & how a convicted killer can just get on with his life after snuffing out the life of another. The victim here is a nameless statistic who has gotten lost in the “whole story” of his killer, who seems to be made a hero by… Read more »
No idea why people are so surprised. Leftists and Progressives etc. (which is what 21st century Democrats are today)–have ALWAYS sided with criminals or criminal sympathizers. They have a LONG history of doing that and a simple reading or refresher of history will confer that. Today is no different: George Gascon, Chesa Boudin (Cheese Sausage), Larry Krasner, Bill Ayres and his wife and the list goes on and on and on… So much of this has been encouraged and ramped up due to “wokeism”, one of the absolute biggest and quickest metastasizing cancers in a society ever to be witnessed.… Read more »
The Block by Block supervisor in this article has a felony record.He could not be hired by most companies if their personnel departments discover his criminal record. I think if he was to apply to the LA Sheriff’s department,he would not be hired because of his record.The same thing would happen if he applied to the LA Police Department.Police and sheriff department do not hire felons for officer and deputy positions. The sheriff department is a law enforcement agency and since Block by Block does similar work to the sheriff,it would make sense to have the same standards as the… Read more »
Case by case. Dont put everyone in one category.
This is a shock only to the clueless who don”t know history (looking at you, GenX and later). WeeHoe has been a catch basin for criminals from all over the country, some who’ve served their time, others on the run, since the late 1920s.
including then-Mayor Lindsey Horvath thankfully she will be done forever. Apparently, there was not any kind of vetting and background check. Do the Right Hand not know what the Left Hand is doing at City Hall. Election Day will be the reckoning!!!!
There were commissioner’s during the last few years who were felons. West Hollywood and its overpaid staff doesn’t do background checks. Time we started investigating every commission member.