Venice311 Founder Gets Restraining Order Against Boston Dawna

The founder of Venice311, a website devoted to real-time police scanner activity, was granted a restraining order Tuesday against a former Venice anti-crime activist.

A Superior Court judge handed out an 18-month restraining order against Dawna Chaet, better known as Boston Dawna, which will make it illegal for her to contact Venice311's Alex Thompson in any way.

Chaet, who moved to Boston more than a year ago, did not attend the hearing in which Thompson alleged that Chaet has been digitally harassing her, publishing personal information, including her home address. Chaet told people Thompson was "sleeping with cops, going into crime scenes and being a criminal," Thompson told the judge.

"This is a straightforward stalking case," Thompson's attorney, Benjamin Brin, said.

"I never wanted to be here," Thompson said after the hearing. "It's been awful." Thompson said her home was vandalized after Chaet posted her address, and she had to move.

Venice311, the website Thompson founded and runs, is best known for its Twitter feed, which rebroadcasts local messages from the LAPD scanner. The group behind the site also posts before and after images from graffiti cleanups, and video from alleged crimes in progress. Thompson was also instrumental in getting surveillance cameras on the boardwalk.

Venice311 launched this year and was both the recipient of an LA Weekly award for best police blog and the subject of an incendiary article in the publication, which highlighted some of the allegations against Thompson.

In a way, the site took over Chaet's role in the community as a citizen watchdog. "I think she's extremely jealous," Thompson said at the hearing.

For her part, Chaet alleges that Thompson is a con artist and a felon— an allegation the LA Weekly reporter found to be true.

In a May email, Chaet wrote, "Alex Thompson is using the police department and police scanner through Venice 311 to harass, stalk, threaten, terrorize, intimidate and procure privileged information to use against anyone who stands in her way."

The email, which went to an undisclosed list of recipients, ended, in part, "I am very upset and saddened to learn that a female career criminal was able to con her way into LAPD and the community. I was able to catch hundreds of criminals for 40 or so years. Now I am 3,000 miles away and still trying to protect my friends, community and LAPD."

Chaet did not immediately respond to a call for comment on the restraining order.

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