Venice attracts a lot of people and has always had a number of vehicular homeless along its streets. More recently, thanks to the economy, the number of RVs, minivans and other vehicles housing people without a traditional home, have increased so much, that residents want to create overnight parking districts, effectively eliminating the problem... well, from their neighborhood, at least. KCET's SoCal Connected explored the issue last week in this above segment.
Galaxy forward Edson Buddle scored his first goal of the season late in the game to salvage a 1 - 1 tie for the blue-and-gold last night against the Kansas City Wizards. The tie helps extend the Galaxy's undefeated streak to nine games, but it did not come easy. The blue-and-gold demonstrated some of its best offensive work on the season during portions of the first half, generating several quality chances. Galaxy forward Alan Gordon nearly opened the scoring at the 22nd minute on a one-on-one with Wizards 'keeper Kevin Hartman, but Hartman was up to the challenge.
Start off the morning with a nice casual two hour hike/walk starting at Malibu Bluffs Park and heading to the beach led by the California Native Plant Society who will teach you about wildflowers, native grasses and invading weeds. Begins at 10 a.m.
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Cruzer Pizza in Los Feliz started offering vegan pizza yesterday with a new cheese that vegans are calling "revolutionary." Yes, it's vegan cheese, from Daiya Foods, that apparently melts and stretches like real cheese, says vegan blogger Quarrygirl. "It beats all other vegan cheeses, by far," she wrote in an e-mail to LAist. She also noted that it isn't available anywhere else on the West Coast.
You've got the original Eastside--LA city neighborhoods east of the LA River including unincorporated East LA--and you've got the newish Eastside--Silver Lake, Los Feliz, Echo Park--battling it out for their title. Tomorrow in the LA Times a feature, which is already posted online, dives into the issue head on:
Some people agree with DUI checkpoints and some hate them. Well instead of setting one up in the LAPD's Southwest Division tonight, they're doing a saturation patrol, meaning the area will be flooded with cops on the look out for drunk drivers. The division covers the the area just southwest of downtown including the USC campus (.pdf map). Compared to last year, the division has experienced a 32 percent increase in Driving Under the Influence related traffic collisions this year. The patrol will take place between 5 p.m. and 3 a.m. | UPDATE, 4:38 p.m.: LAPD will also saturate the Newton Division, which covers the south part of downtown and south of the 10 Freeway (Photo: Ross Reyes)
That's the what the National Weather Service is predicting for mostly the Antelope and Cuyama Valleys with the possibility of them heading towards the Valley and Los Angeles basin by late this afternoon or later tonight. We like thunder so we hope it does end up heading our way. From the beaches to the Valley, temperatures are in the 60s today with cloudy skies overhead. As you head up into Santa Clarita and Antelope Valleys, you're in the 70s and 80s, respectively.
From 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. tonight and tomorrow night, BuFest, a green indie music event, is happening over at Paramount Ranch, a National Park Unit in the Santa Monica Mountains. It's a beautiful park, especially at sunset, and now it can have a live soundtrack. More info here.
Karma has a funny way of rearing its head at the most inopportune time. Thursday night, as 20,739 fans readied themselves to celebrate a great victory by Chivas USA over the Chicago Fire in a tough, physical match, karma intervened, putting the party on hold and handing the Fire a 3 - 2 victory.
In the most dominating fashion, the Lakers dismantled the Denver Nuggets 119-92 in Denver in Game 6 of the Western Conference Finals. They now head to their 30th NBA Finals and look to atone for their collapse in last year's finals against the Boston Celtics.
Here's a 45-second video of a flying fish gliding across the water off the coast of Japan. It's no quarter-mile, as debated in the comments section of an LAist post about this weekend's Flying Fish Festival, but it's still pretty cool.
A U.S. Bank branch at Woodman and Riverside in Sherman Oaks was robbed this afternoon at around 2 p.m. Now a perimeter has been set up as police look for two suspects who may be armed. "There are choppers everywhere," exclaimed Beth Oslander, a resident nearby who e-mailed LAist asking what was going on. A bomb squad was also called two the scene because of a suspicious package left at the bank by the two suspects, the LAPD says. Notre Dame High School and some other nearby buildings have been evacuated.
Beginning Monday, mandatory water conservation in Los Angeles begins. That means things like a different rate structure (.pdf) and a stricter sprinkler ordinance (.pdf). Speaking to watering lawns, which consumes the most amount of water in households, homeowners don't necessarily have to sprinkle anything. Isla Earth, the daily podcast from the Catalina Island Conservancy explains some xeriscaping basics in an episode from 2007 that are still relevant today:
An e-mail, probably from an anonymous staffer within the city's Information Technology Agency, says the city's most successful outreach tool to the public is set to be cut from the budget outright. If you don't use it, 3-1-1 is available 24 hours a day with live city operators ready to take various requests like graffiti and bulky item pickups and help you access any person within the city. It's goal is to centralize access to the city and could in fact save the city money when the three phased project is finished, if ever.
After a jury found Phil Spector guilty of actress Lana Clarkson's murder, a judge today sentenced the music producer to 15 years to life for second-degree murder and four years for personal use of a gun. "Six years ago, Phil Spector was barely a blip on the American celebrity radar screen," explained the Associated Press of his past. "Although his music lived on, his name and face were only dimly recalled by rock music aficionados until a shooting at his Alhambra mansion propelled him to notoriety." A lottery was done for people who wanted to witness the sentence, noted the LA Weekly. "Deptartment 106 is packing out with media, D.A. types and lottery-drawn spectators," they said.
LA's Department of Transportation is not known for its willingness to communicate with the public at large. It was only after a couple City Councilmember got aggressive this week with bikeways staff that yesterday, draft maps of the LA Bicycle Plan were released. You can download them here and then submit comments via an online form. They are not exactly thrilling maps to ogle over, but it's worth a look to check our your neighborhood and commuting routes. For example, in Sherman Oaks we noticed that a bike lane was deleted from Woodman Ave between Ventura and the 101 Freeway, even though maps published within the past few years show that one exists currently (it never did). A proposed bike lane for Fulton Ave. to Valley College has also disappeared. What's going on in your neighborhood?
The great thing about California state parks is that many of them have so much beauty, history and significance, they could be a National Park. In fact, sometimes state parks work in combination with National Parks like in the Redwood Forest and locally within the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area (check out this map of all the proposed parks to be cut here).
Voting may be the hallmark of our Democracy, but it should not be our pastime. It should be reserved for regular elections and the off-chance that there is a special and well deserved occasion. We Californians vote way too much for our own good. We are standing in our own way of progress and need to let our leaders do their jobs so we can lead fuller, richer, more productive lives.
Former West Hollywood Councilman and Assemblyman Paul Koretz claimed victory for LA's 5th district seat late Tuesday night. Then an e-mail late yesterday afternoon came with some sobering news.
"We learned last night from the County Registrar that their original estimate of approximately 100 ballots left to be counted was incorrect," an e-mail last night stated. "They are now reporting that there are between 500 and 1,000 ballots still to be counted on Friday afternoon. The original estimate of 100 is now included in the updated count. Paul is currently leading by 702 votes."
He faces community organizer and attorney David Vahedi. The 5th District stretches from the Valley over the Hollywood Hills and into the Westside (.pdf map).
In the final phase of a federal security transportation initiative, our borders are tightening even more beginning Monday. Those traveling by land or sea, will have to present a Passport or the newish Passport Cards when re-entering the states from Mexico, Canada, the Caribbean and Bermuda. Similar rules have already been in effect for air travel after September 11th prompted the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative. What if you mess up and don't have either after a weekend of debauchery across neighboring international lines? We will not deny entry to noncompliant travelers," a spokeswoman for U.S. Customs and Border Protection told the Chicago Tribune. However, those travelers will probably be put into secondary inspection as officers verify their identity.
LA Dodgers defeat Chicago Cubs 2-1. Who knew Randy Wolf would give the Dodgers such great performances? Wolf took to the Friendly Confines going seven-plus innings giving up one run on six hits and a walk with seven strike outs. The only run he gave up was the first batter of the eighth inning Bobby Scales hitting a pinch hit homer to stir the Wrigley crowd. Ramon Troncoso didn't make things easy practically refusing to throw a strike. In both the eighth and ninth innings the tying runs were in scoring position, but Troncoso managed to get out of the jam both times. Juan Pierre went 2-for-4 with a stolen base which is good for me since I signed him as a free agent on my fantasy team.
So we learned earlier today that fire officials do not want residents staying and defending their homes. So what about hiring a private fire fighting firm to ensure your home's safety from wildfires?
More than 200 citizens died earlier this year while defending their homes from wildfires in Australia. That news made officials do a 180 from considering a stay and defend training program for Southern California. So they announced yesterday a "Ready, Set, Go" wildfire action plan for residents living in high risk fire areas--that is to create a defensible space around the home and go when evacuation orders are given. With a light year in rainfall, we could be experiencing more wildfires than ever this year. Stay safe and be prepared!
All Brenda Lee (not that Brenda Lee) wanted to do was give President Obama a letter this morning at LAX. That ended up being a big fat nope.com from the Secret Service. Anyway, Obama was in town for a Democratic National Committee fundraiser, which prompted protests outside it at the Beverly Hilton. Among those who paid over $30,000 for a pair of dinner tickets included "Seth Rogen, Ron Howard, Kiefer Sutherland
"At one time, prom may have been a big popularity contest where the best-looking guy or girl were crowned king and queen. Things have changed and it's no longer just about who has the most friends or who wears the coolest clothes," said Sergio Garcia, who beat out girls to be this year's prom queen, in his campaign to become prom queen, something he said was more of a stunt in the first place. "Sure, I'm not your typical prom queen candidate. There's more to me than meets the eye." At the prom, he'll be wearing a suit.
Who wants to help bail out California, world's eighth-largest economy, by lending it money? Not bailed out banks. So like a kid asking his parents to co-sign his first apartment lease, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is asking the federal government to back the state on loans:
Not a good day for use of force reports in Long Beach. In two separate incidents, Long Beach police used their guns injuring four suspects with one officer also being shot. In the first incident, Long Beach undercover detectives witnessed a drive by shooting in Compton and pursued the vehicle onto the 710 freeway. It ended in a shootout: three suspects hit and one officer. Later, an officer responding to a vandalism call led to the suspect being shot when he tried to grab the officer's baton.
LA Lakers defeat Denver Nuggets 103-94. Lakers players not named Kobe Bryant or Pau Gasol made an appearance in Game 5 of the Western Conference Finals. Most notably Lamar Odom became the beast everyone knew he could be scoring 19 points, grabbing 14 boards and blocking four shots. To open the fourth quarter Odom was everywhere defensively and offensively helping the Lakers go on a 11-0 run to start the fourth. Meanwhile when the Lakers looked a bit lethargic in the third quarter, Shannon Brown came into the game and made an emphatic dunk over Chris "Birdman" Anderson. The game was tight throughout being tied after the first, second and third quarters. But the Lakers were active on defense in the fourth quarter and summarily was able to pull out the game. By the way, Kobe Bryant scored only 22 points.
The Chicago Fire arrived at LAX earlier this week ahead of their Thursday night match against Chivas USA and were greeted by several Mexican soccer fans hoping to get an autograph or picture of long time Club America icon and Fire standout Cuauhtemoc Blanco. Blanco is making what will likely be his only and final visit to L.A. as a member of the Fire this year, having stated earlier in the year that he would not be rejoining the team next year. His career with the Mexican National Team seems to have been given a second chance by new Head Coach Javier Aguirre and after Thursday's match, Blanco will join his compatriots as they prepare for their World Cup Qualifying match against El Salvador on June 6th.
It's the highest reward ever set by the LA City Council--over a half million dollars--and today it was renewed. The long-standing mysterious "Grim Sleeper" serial killer has alluded police for over 20 years. It was only recently that police knew they were looking for the same man in a handful of cases.
A fire that broke out this afternoon near Dodger Stadium in Elysian Park has grown to one acre, but is expected to be extinguished soon, according to the Los Angeles Fire Department. At 2:41 p.m., a call from 1700 Stadium Way in the park reported the brush fire as near them. 38 firefighters responded to the fire in medium brush, which quickly grew from a half to full acre, as of 3:25 p.m. However, with virtually no winds, they expected a knock down soon. No one has been reported injured and no structures were threatened. UPDATE: As of 3:26, the fire was knocked down.
Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger's latest budget proposal suggest eliminating welfare. If that would happen, California would be the only state without such a program. "You would think they would legalize weed before this," quipped Shane Hirschman, a multimedia designer, on Twitter.
One will address the war and the other, Prop 8. At 3:30 and until 5 p.m., activists from CODEPINK and ANSWER LA will protest troops in Afghanistan and war funding outside the Beverly HIlton, where President Obama is attending a Democratic National Committee fundraiser. Then at 6 p.m., the Courage Campaign is organizing one about Prop 8. "Let's take this opportunity, just one day after the CA Supreme Court makes its decision on Proposition 8, to show our President our support for his daring promise to our community and to highlight the growing movement towards FULL FEDERAL EQUALITY," their website says.
We first met the roving band Killsonic last year on Valentine's Day roaming the streets of downtown during the monthly art walk. The quality of music and the random nature of how it all felt gave us a fantastic feeling. Then last night, at the tail end of the Prop 8 march in Hollywood was the band, rocking it out, once again.
Although not officially announced by the County Registrar, Paul Koretz claimed victory last night in an e-mail blast: "The L.A. County Registrar of Voters has just posted an update on their website. Paul's lead in Council District 5 has jumped from 551 votes to 702 votes... Although we have been told that there are still approximately 100 ballots left to count, we can now safely claim victory." As for the reported incorrect ballots, the e-mail indicated there were only 50. The total posted was Koretz, 18,286 votes (50.98%), Vahedi 17,584 votes (49.02%). What does this mean for residents of CD5? When he was an Assemblymember, there were lots of community town halls. Lots (but will he have more than Tom LaBonge?). As for improving the area West Hollywood style like he did when he sat on that city's council? If he can do that, then, wow.
Although it won't be for official presidential business. This afternoon, Barack Obama will arrive in Los Angeles for a Democratic National Committee fundraiser in Beverly Hills. There will be no public appearences and he will stay overnight. His presence is affecting private pilots, who are not being allowed to fly in or out of LAX, Hawthorne Municipal Airport, Santa Monica Airport, Burbank Airport and Van Nuys Airport from 1:05 p.m. today to 8 a.m. tomorrow. This will be his second trip to Los Angeles since he took office. The last time was while on official duty.
Last night's large Day of Decision protest and march went peacefully through nearly six and half miles of West Hollywood and Los Angeles streets. There was lots of frustration, but also chants of encouragement, statements written in yellow chalk on the sidewalks and streets and people to meet.
In an e-mail yesterday from Protect Marriage, the official Yes on Prop 8 group, they are not too worried concerned about the 18,000 gay couples whose were marriages untouched in the state Supreme Court's ruling. Why? Cause, apparently, a lot of gays will divorce, they say: "if California goes as Massachusetts did after legalizing gay marriage, a substantial portion of the still-recognized gay marriages will be dissolved by divorce within a few years." Jeeezzz.
I still say the Lakers will defeat the Denver Nuggets in six games. But it's not this series that I'm finding all that compelling. Out in the east, we are witnessing an Orlando Magic team that is tearing apart the Cleveland Cavaliers. Aside from the Magic's 10-point victory in game three, all games have been close: one point margins in games one and two and a two point victory by the Magic in game four.
The brush fire that began Sunday afternoon and burned around 450 acres in Joshua Tree National Park was fully contained yesterday morning, although some firefighters remained on the scene to check for hotspots. “Exotic grasses and weeds change the desert’s natural ecology and its normal fire frequency. Because of this, Joshua Tree National Park has a full suppression approach to wildfires," said Park Superintendent, Curt Sauer. "Given that no firefighter or park visitor was hurt in the process, that’s about as good of an outcome as we can expect.” The following areas remain closed to public use to allow for the remaining fire operations: the Lost Horse Mine Road and trailhead, the Oyster Bar parking area, and the Hall of Horrors parking area. All other park areas and facilities are open for normal visitor use.
Since Californians overwhelmingly rejected his propositions last week in the special election, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger released his latest budget plan detailing $5.5 billion in cuts from a deficit estimated to be $24.3 billion by July 1 (that's higher than the $21.3 billion that was touted in the last few weeks).
LA Dodgers defeat Colorado Rockies 7-1. What better way to come out of a hitting slump than to play against the worst team in the NL West? Casey Blake came through with the bases loaded in the fifth inning hitting his second double off of Rockies starter Aaron Cook clearing the bases giving the Dodgers a 4-0 lead. Although Dodgers starter Eric Milton gave one run back in the bottom of that frame, he pitched just well enough to get his first win since August 8, 2006 when he played for the Cincinnati Reds. Juan Pierre had just another normal outing for him, a 3-for-5 day scoring twice and driving two home. Orlando Hudson went 2-for-3 extending his hitting streak to a career-high 16 games. The Dodgers will bring the brooms out and go for the sweep today.
Two top attorneys who argued Bush v. Gore on opposite sides have now joined forces to strike down Prop 8 in federal court, filing for a preliminary injunction against same-sex marriage ban until the case is resolved, which would immediately reinstate the right for all Californians to marry. Theodore B. Olson and David will officially announce their case tomorrow morning in downtown, according to the American Foundation for Equal Rights.
One of the first protests of many in the Los Angeles area today took place at the East Los Angeles Recorder Office on Cesar Chavez Avenue. Around 100 people, who would have preferred to be celebrating, were prepared with Repeal Prop 8 in 2010 signs. They chanted in front of news cameras while a few couples waited in line to get marriage proposals, an exercise in purposeful futility. After being denied, the couples refused to leave saying they would wait until gay marriage is legal in California. Eventually, they left shortly after 3 p.m.
After a year of restoring its wildlife and native habitat, Bull Creek, between Victory Boulevard and the LA River in the San Fernando Valley, re-opened to the public this morning. As with the LA River, the Army Corps of Engineers adjusted the creek for flood control purposes years ago leaving the ecosystem and habitat weakened.
A collision between a Metro Blue Line train and a vehicle, possibly a pick up truck, left at least one person injured and transported to the hospital. At 1:25 p.m., the two collided near Washington and Main just south of downtown, but no train passengers were hurt. Two other people were in the vehicle, but their condition is unknown and the circumstances of the crash are under investigation. Last week, two pedestrians were killed when crossing the Blue Line tracks. If LAist is keeping tabs correctly, this is the 827th incident on the Blue Line since it opened in 1990. In the past, some LAist commenters believe this is purely an issue of survival of the fittest and others think Metro's safety standards are not up to par.
Speaking from Sacramento today as he works with legislators on our failed state budget (they want to take money away from cities), gay marriage supporter and Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villariagosa addressed today's Prop 8 ruling in a statement.
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has always been a supporter of gay marriage, but his duty is to uphold today's ruling. However, he believes that someday gay couples will get the right to marry in California. Here's what he said in a statement today: "While I believe that one day either the people or courts will recognize gay marriage, as governor of California I will uphold the decision of the California Supreme Court. Regarding the 18,000 marriages that took place prior to Proposition 8's passage, the court made the right decision in keeping them intact. I also want to encourage all those responding to today's court decision to do so peacefully and lawfully.''
Stop8.org founder and contributor to LAist's sister site to the north, SFist, Matt Baume put together this nice video. To him, it's not all that bad... here's to continuing the positive conversation for ultimate change.
After this morning's ruling that gay marriage will remain illegal in California, things outside the California Supreme Court in San Francisco started to get a little out of hand. Locally, the LAPD announced logistics to the media about tonight's permitted protest in Hollywood. They advised reporters of media staging areas, the route and what to do if the march is declared as an unlawful assembly.
A long awaited decision announced at 10 a.m. on Prop 8 and 18,000 already-married couples proved mostly a loss for the gay community. In a 6-1 vote, the California Supreme Court ruled that Prop 8 was indeed an amendment and therefore remains law, meaning gay marriage in the state is illegal. However, as expected by many, the 18,000 couples who married during the Rainbow Window last year will remain legally married (the full ruling is embedded below).
Prop 8 is upheld? Protests. Prop 8 is defeated? Celebrations. No matter the outcome, today is the long-planned-for Day of Decision with events across the nation. Most are taking place this evening, but if you go, make sure to check the time for your preferred location:
"I want to have an aggressive agenda and hit the ground running," said Carmen Trutanich, who will become LA City Attorney on July 1st, to the Daily News. He plans to name a transition team and develop an agenda for his first 100 days in office. Not only that, he's opening his doors to Controller-Elect Wendy Greuel for a department audit, something current City Attorney Rocky Delgadillo and former Controller Laura Chick sparred about. "I spoke to (Controller-elect) Wendy Greuel about having her come in to give me a base line on what we need to do. I will follow her with my own auditors to confirm with another set of eyes on what needs to be done."
As of 7 p.m. last night, the Lost Horse Fire in Joshua Tree National Park was 80% contained with full containment expected by 8 a.m. this morning. At 8:15 a.m., rangers at the Visitor Center could not confirm the current status of the blaze to LAist.
At 10 a.m., the California Supreme Court will announce their decision on Prop 8, a ballot initiative that banned gay marriage last November. Two questions will be answered: will Prop 8 be upheld or struck down and if the former, what is the fate of the 18,000 couples already married in the "Rainbow Window," between at three outcomes
On Sunday evening, Jessica Amen and Kyle Kushner lost just about everything when their two-story unit apartment in Brentwood went aflame. Over 100 Los Angeles firefighters fought the aggressive blaze for nearly an hour before extinguishing it, keeping it contained to only their unit. One resident and one firefighter sustained injuries, but nothing life threatening.
John Silva was last seen jumping off a boat into the water to cool off yesterday afternoon. But soon after entering the water without a life jacket, the 42-year-old El Monte resident began to struggle to stay afloat, prompting a friend to dive in for an attempted rescue. However, Silver went underwater before he could be reached and is presume drowned after a two-hour searched, to be continued tomorrow, provided no results.
Long Beach's Animal Care Services could not be more correct: "It’s a People Problem, Not a Wildlife Problem." As human development encroaches on wildlife habitat, coyotes and other animals become part of a neighborhood's fabric as they search for food and water. And easy to find trash and kitty cats keep those coyotes coming back. On Saturday, a cat was nabbed from the front yard of a Long Beach home. The owners, hearing their cat scream, went outside to find Bear--that's the feline's name--in a coyote's mouth.
As it stands right now, former West Hollywood Councilman and Assemblyman Paul Koretz leads lawyer and community organizer David Vahedi by a close 551 votes. Provisional and vote-by-mail ballots still need to be counted, but some problems have surfaced, earlier examined by the LA Times and highlighted by a Vahedi camp e-mail this weekend:
Young politicians have an awful lot of social networking and "new media" at their disposal to make reaching out to their potential constituents a lot faster and easier. Like many people in their 20s, Emanuel Pleitez, who recently challenged veteran politico Gil Cedillo for the 32nd Congressional District seat vacated by US Labor Secretary Hilda Solis, made use of his personal Facebook profile to share news items and images with his "friends."
Wesley Korir of Kenya won today's LA Marathon, beating the race's record from 2006. His 2:08:24 finishing time beat the previous record of 2:08:40 by 24 seconds, according to the LA Times. In the women's race, Tatiana Petrova of Russia won finishing at 2:25:29, also a record with the third-fastest time.
A brush fire broke out in the Mount Olympus neighborhood off Laurel Canyon last night that left approximately 1-acre burned. The blaze began shortly after 7 p.m. on the 2100 block of Laurel Canyon Road the and was knocked down in less than an hour, reportedly leaving no people injured or structures damaged.
In just the first two days of the Memorial Day long weekend, authorities made more than 420 arrests for "suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs in Los Angeles County," the Pasadena Star-News reports, up from the 387 arrests in the same time frame last year. The count began at 12:01 a.m. Friday and these figures represent arrests logged until midnight Saturday. Motorists may have noticed the upped presence of patrols and checkpoints, which is thanks to the "Avoid the 100" campaign; 100 county law enforcement agencies working together as a "task force target[ing] intoxicated drivers" are the ones you'll want to avoid. Better yet, avoid any problems and either be the or designate a sober driver.
Last Thursday the California Department of Education released their 2008 rankings for schools and districts using the Academic Performance Index (API) test scores as their base criteria, as well as "how they perform compared to schools having similar demographics," according to the Daily News.
A fire that began yesterday afternoon inside Joshua Tree National Park continues to burn today, but is expected to be knocked down by tonight. The blaze began around 4 p.m. near the Lost Horse Mine in the hills between the park’s Geology Tour Road and the Keys View Road. By 11 p.m., 150 acres had burned and had only been contained by 5%. As a precaution, 12 hikers near the Lost Horse Trail were airlifted to safety. They were never trapped, but the fire left them with a much longer, more dangerous route to leave the park, according to ranger Pam Tripp. Although the fire is burning through Joshua trees, pinyon pines, junipers and desert scrub vegetation, another concern is the endangered desert tortoise and historic Lost Horse Mind itself, which was discovered in 1893 and is currently the park's best preserved stamp miss used back then to process 9,000 pounds of gold ore. *UPDATE*: As of 10 a.m., the fire was 50% contained and expected to be at 100% by 8 a.m., Tuesday morning.
An 18-year-old man was eating at the Louisiana Fried Chicken on Rosecrans Avenue in Compton shortly before 10 p.m. Sunday when he was shot and killed, cbs2 reports. The restaurant is part of a chain of fried chicken fast food joints, known locally not just for their eats, but their distinct "decor."
Without a doubt, there will probably be more military fly overs today than this, but since we know the one in Santa Monica, here's your warning. Two Sikorsky Black Hawk helicopters will fly over Santa Monica's Woodlawn Cemetery at 11:45 a.m. this morning. Then a C-17 Globemaster III will fly over Venice and Santa Monica beaches around 1 p.m. This is for an annual event at the cemetery.
The LA Marathon has been happening since 7:20 this morning, but with miles to go and thousands of runners and spectators, the route is going to make getting around town a bit challenging for many today. So before you head out, double check the route map to see if you need to rethink your own route, or, if you want to help cheer people on, check out the Spectator's Guide to see where the bands, the cheerleaders, and the broadcasters will be gathered.
A structure at a car wash in Hollywood collapsed on some cars awaiting washing. There was no one in the cars and no one was injured. | A Costa Mesa man got to the top of Mount Everest. But the hardest part, coming down, is still yet to come. | Some state education leaders explain how ridding the system of bureaucracy would help in this time of severe budget cuts.
So it's the rubber match of the Dodgers (30-14) and the Angels (22-20). The Dodgers have started a new promotion with the Bleacher Beach section in the left field reserve seats. Now if I had been smart, I would have brought a USB cable to share pictures with you, but alas that will have to wait until later.
NASA has decided to land Space Shuttle Atlantis here in Southern California this morning, after first scrapping plans to land in Florida yesterday in favor of landing here, and then opting to hold off the landing for one more day in hopes of more desirable weather back in Florida. But Atlantis is coming in for its landing here, at Edwards Air Force Base. "So Cal residents should anticipate twin sonic booms just prior to 8:39 PDT," the Los Angeles Fire Department's Brian Humphrey tells us. Let us know if you hear them, and where you are! And welcome home, Atlantis.
Chivas USA and Kansas City Wizards traded second half goals en route to a 1 - 1 draw in Kansas City last night. The tie extends Chivas USA's undefeated streak to 6 games and
The Dodgers dropped the series opener against the pesky Angels last night 3-1. The same issue from the New York Mets series reared its ugly head: the inability to hit with runners in scoring position. Last night the Dodgers were 1-for-14. While the Angels were almost as woeful going 2-for-17, that one extra hit was what netted the two runs in the eighth inning to take the lead.
With an ailing economy in the era of prolific self-expression via a multitude of platforms, sometimes the best way to be heard is to grab some paper and a pen and put the message up on your own four wheels. This is what one San Fernando Valley resident seems to be fond of doing, as found byLAist Featured Photos pool contributor CookieDuster, who explains the sign-maker's most recent foray into their version of Twittering:
The neighbor is riled up enough again to post his first tailgate message since election day. A total lack of punctuation and a spelling mistake only adds to the charm.Continue reading "Found in LA: America's Armpit Analogy, With Spellcheck"
I don't get it. In Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals Pau Gasol got nine field goal attempts. In Game 2 he got eight. In these two games, Gasol has less attempts than he did in Game 7 of the Houston Rockets series.
Late yesterday afternoon LA Observed's Kevin Roderick offered up some insight on the recent goings-on in local politics during his KCRW commentary. In addition to taking a look at this week's winners and losers--err, in the context of elections--Roderick took a look at what may or may not be the pop culture litmus test for potential electoral success. Yes, you guessed it: Twitter.
Following yesterday's walkouts at Santee High School, where hundreds of students marched from their campus to the Downtown headquarters of the Los Angeles Unified District, Board President Monica Garcia has issued a statement. Her emphasis, however, is focused neither on the Board changing their minds about layoffs and budgetary decisions, nor on punishing the students, but rather on using their education as their best mode of protest. Says Garcia:
“I encourage our students to continue informing themselves and speaking out on cuts in California that affect their futures more than anyone else’s.Continue reading "LAUSD Board President Garcia Responds to Student Walkouts"
Cancel that Sonic Boom heads-up warning for today: NASA has announced that they will not be landing the space shuttle Atlantis here in Southern California at Edwards Air Force Base. The local landing was decided upon when weather conditions in Florida were determined to be less favorable than here, but ultimately the shuttle won't be landing anywhere today, period. NASA is holding off the landing until tomorrow, and prefers Florida's Kennedy Space Center, but "there’s still a chance Atlantis will go to Edwards. If thunderstorms linger in Florida Sunday, the shuttle will likely be diverted to Southern California," which means we just might "hear the orbiter’s twin sonic boom shortly before the spacecraft lands," after all, explains the OC Register.
For the first time in months, the main soccer field at the Home Depot Center will not see any action this weekend. A bit of a rarity and attributed to the fact that all three of L.A.'s professional soccer teams have taken their respective shows on the road.
If you hear/feel a large BOOM Saturday, it (hopefully) won't be an earthquake but rather the Space Shuttle Atlantis landing. Rain in Florida has forced the shuttle to move it's landing from the Kennedy Space Center to Edwards AFB. | Sometimes, alcohol can make guys do really stupid things... | Twenty-five Southern California residents were charged with fraud for seeking Medi-Cal payments for clients who were actually dead.
A car with an engine fire sparked a small brush fire off La Tuna Canyon in the Northeast Valley a quarter to 1 p.m. today. Flames spread towards the 210 Freeway, prompting multiple lanes to close and a SigAlert to be issued. But 35 firefighters quickly stomped out the blaze. They will now stay at the scene for cold trailing, where they check for smoldering, bury any tree trunks and generally make sure nothing flares back up again. The fire burned an area estimated to be a 200 square foot area in addition to the car at the side of the road, which we hear was a Mercedes SL500. Ouch.
Like last Friday, a number of students from Santee and Lincoln High Schools protested budget cuts and teacher layoffs this morning. They marched to the LAUSD headquarters in downtown where Superintendent Ray Cortines spoke to them, according to Cuts Hurt Kids on Twitter. Last week, students and teachers protested ending with a around 40 educators in jail.
An earlier post this week on catch basin screen covers generated a lot of interest and some questions from readers in the comment section. The City of Los Angeles Bureau of Sanitation was watching, too. Michelle Vargas is a public information officer with the Department of Public Works and wanted to follow up with some information. We've parsed out her response below:
The long awaited day will finally come. The Supreme Court will announce their decision on the validity of Prop 8, which banned gay marriage in California, on Tuesday at 10 a.m. Such rulings are generally made on Mondays and Thursdays, but due to the Memorial Day holiday, the ruling will come on Tuesday. Depending on the outcome, celebrations or protests are planned for Tuesday night and a large one next week Saturday in Fresno, of all places. The court's full announcement is below:
Yesterday, we told you why the LAPD announces DUI Checkpoints along with where one would be located in the Valley tonight. Now Central Traffic Division is announcing that they will hold one at Washington Boulevard and Lovelace Avenue from 7:00 p.m. to 12:30 a.m. "in response to an increase in DUI related traffic accidents" in the area.
The Lake Mead National Recreation Area is warning travelers this weekend that , which is within its boundaries, is experiencing an unpleasant odor and dead carp washed up on the beaches. There are no known human heath risks associated with the suspected cause of the carp deaths, but visitors are advised not to handle the dead fish. The cause is unknown, but biologists are performing tests with results due back next week. Nearby Lake Mead seems to be fine (except the lower water levels).
Late yesterday afternoon, a San Diego bound American Eagle backing out of the gate bumped into another Embraer that was empty sitting at its respective gate. The 40 passengers and 3 crew were not injured, but both planes sustained minor damage. American Airlines booked passengers on other flights to San Diego as the National Transportation Safety Board began to investigate.
After the death of a man crossing the Metro Blue Line tracks yesterday afternoon, a 49-year-old woman was left in critical condition when she was hit and trapped beneath the train shortly before 8 p.m. near Flower and Venice in downtown. Yesterday's incidents increase the train line's statistics to 93 deaths and 826 accidents, according to transit advocate Damien Goodmon who today is calling for Congressional investigation and hearing. "It is the deadliest light rail train in the nation," a news release from his Citizens' Campaign to Fix the Expo Rail Line group said. On Wednesday, a woman was killed by a Metro bus downtown when she was hit near City Hall
Denver Nuggets defeat LA Lakers 106-103. Just as the Denver led by double digits in Game 1 and gave the Lakers the victory, the Lakers did the same in Game 2. Down the stretch the Lakers could not snag defensive rebounds giving the Nuggets second chance opportunities. Meanwhile the Nuggets played the Lakers very well defensively by clogging the lanes and forcing the Lakers to take contested jumpers. The Lakers came out on fire taking the ball to the rim and opening a 14 point lead, however on defense they did allow the Nuggets to penetrate. The Lakers started to play sloppy in the end of the second quarter allowing the Nuggets to go on a 14-2 to close the half with a one point deficit. The game would remain close throughout as the teams went back and forth trading punches. While the referees blew some calls, none of that should detract from the fact that the Lakers gave up a 14 point lead. But what's good for the goose is good for the ganders. The series now shifts to Denver on Saturday for Game 3.
Denver gets the Lakers at home on Monday night, we get their WWE spillover. Scheduling conflicts always arise during the playoffs, but it's cool, Denver, you could've kept the WWE show, we would have gladly hosted the game... Redondo residents have been getting ripped off at the pump, and not from gas prices. | Since October, over 1,000 victims have been "skimmed" by using their ATM card at an Arco gas station on PCH. Police are getting closer to the suspects who have stolen $200,000 in just the last two weeks from victims' accounts.
A pedestrian was struck and killed by a northbound Blue Line train at about 2:30 p.m. in South Los Angeles. The man, estimated to be approximately 50 years old, was crossing at a marked crosswalk, but it is unknown if he was doing so legally, according to the LA Fire Department, who gathered the information from witnesses. The 47-year-old train operator was shaken and asked paramedics to evaluate her condition, but she declined treatment and transportation. A Sheriff's investigation is underway. This is the second Metro related death within a day's time. Last night, a woman was killed near City Hall when a bus hit her.
A training mission north of Edwards Air Force base has left one plane downed and the two crew members in unknown condition. The T-38 Talon went down nine miles north of the base around 1:15 p.m. In March, an F-22a fighter jet crashed killing the test pilot and in December, an F/A-18 crashed into a San Diego neighborhood, killing four members of a family.
At least that's what U.S. Atty. Thomas P. O'Brien said this morning at a news conference about this today's large sweep that indicted around 150 members of the Varrio Hawaiian Gardens gang (only some were actually arrested). The operation was part of a racketeering indictment, 476 “overt acts” in all, that includes crimes ranging from drug dealing and murder.
Here's LA Weekly Editor stoner Jill Stewart on last week's SoCal Connected sticking it to the Los Angeles City Council. She's has some good points, especially in light of the news coming out this week about California's post-election budget crisis, which has prompted proposals to strip legislators pay and to drop services and spending to 1999 levels. And, oh, we probably won't be getting any help from the feds. Unfortunately, all that happens at the state level in the budget trickles down to the city's budget, too.
If you want good quotes, you go to LAPD Chief Bratton. He's always been one to be candid (remember his celebrity gossp/analysis?) Well yesterday, he joined Patt Morrision for her show on KPCC and when asked about LA Weekly's April 30th story refuting the LAPD's touted crime statistics, he dismissed it calling the report "voodoo journalism" said writer Patrick Range McDonald and cohorts must have "smoking a little weed when they wrote the article." That didn't sit well with Tina Dupuy at FishbowlLA:
A few weeks ago, the Bird Sanctuary Trail finally opened back up after the 2007 Griffith Park fire left it unusable to the public. It's a relatively short hike, but one that offers great views and connects to a wider system of trails.
On Friday night from 6 p.m. to 2 a.m., the LAPD is holding a sobriety checkpoint in Canoga Park at Reseda Boulevard & Sherman Way. Over the past year, the area has experienced over 50 crashes involving drunk drivers along with 346 hit and runs. That's why they are doing this, but, as many LAist readers have asked in the past, why do they announce it to the public? One reason is they have to by law, but according to Lt. John Romero, "a certain amount of prevention occurs just by a warning the public." What do you think? Should DUI checkpoints still be announced?
A Tuesday night CBS 2 News report that featured LAist (they described as "a Web site where people vent about issues like parking tickets," and pronounced us as LA-List, hehe) exposed the hundreds of thousands of tickets that drivers have fought and won. In total, over a two and a half year period, they found that more than 124,000 tickets were overturned.
When José Maldonado exited his parked car Monday afternoon, knife in hand and a t-shirt partially cover his face, to try to kidnap an juvenile girl walking home, he probably didn't expect her to fight back. He also probably didn't realize her father was down the street running towards them. So he stopped and drove away before anything serious happened.
When all the ballots were counted from precincts early Wednesday morning, just hundreds votes separated the two candidates for Council District 5, now held by Jack Weiss, who lost a bid for City Attorney during the same election. Former West Hollywood Councimember and former Assembly Paul Koretz leads lawyer and community organizer David Vahedi by 335 votes. Around 3,000 ballots, a mix of mail-in and provisionals, remain to be counted and the LA County Recorder-Registrar predicts announcing the results as early as Friday. However, about 112 mail-in ballots may have been erroneous. Some allegedly did not include the council race and one reviewed by the LA Times seemed to be assembled incorrectly with contradictory information on the front cover and inside.
After some of them spent two nights in a Red Cross shelter, the 18 residents of an earthquake damaged apartment building in Long Beach will return home today.
For the second time this year, a bus making a turn has fatally struck a pedestrian crossing the street. It was about 7:25 p.m. at Temple and Spring when the woman, believed to be in her 30s, crossed the street correctly on a green light, but seemingly at an angle, a Metro spokesperson told the LA Times. Earlier this year, a DASH bus making a turn killed a woman at 5th and Flower near Central Library.
LA Dodgers defeat New York Mets 2-1. Neither the Mets nor the Dodgers did anything offensively, but Russell Martin did just enough to drive in the winning run in the eighth inning. The Mets went 0-for-10 with runners in scoring position while the Dodgers went 1-for-9, that one on Russell Martin's single in the bottom of the eighth that scored Orlando Hudson from second base. Livan Hernandez pitched seven innings giving up only one run in the first inning for the Mets. Jeff Weaver pitched five innings giving up one run on four hits and two walks. Ronald Belisario came in to pitch in the top of the eighth and gave up two walks and a David Wright fly ball to center field that advanced the runners to second and third. Brent Leach came in and induced two weak grounders that kept the runners from scoring. With the Dodgers scoring in the bottom of that frame it gave him the win. Jonathan Broxton came in and got his 11th save out of 13 chances. The Dodgers have the day off Thursday.
Speaking of LA County's terrible water quality ranking that was announced today, have you seen these along Los Angeles' curbs? These catch basin screen covers prevent litter larger than ¾ of an inch from entering the storm drain system that brings water to the ocean via the LA River and Ballona Creek. Over the past year, they started appearing in the Valley, but they were first installed in other areas that generated the highest amount of trash.
A special Silver Lake Neighborhood Council meeting scheduled for tomorrow night will focus on the controversial Sunset Junction Festival. A board member from the non profit festival's producer, the Sunset Junction Neighborhood Alliance, will make a presentation addressing changes for this year's fete, set for the weekend of August 22nd. Among other nitty gritty detail that community members have concerns about, they will discuss parking problems and the wristband/handstamp policy that in the past has sometimes left employees at local businesses paying to get into the festival to access their jobs. The meeting is at 7 p.m. at Micheltorena School Auditorium and the council hopes the public will join them. The meeting's full agenda is embedded below:
The city of Burbank is ready to make their energy a whole lot greener, the Leader is reporting. There, "construction crews are set to break ground on a $14.9-million Burbank Water and Power project as part of what officials called an aggressive plan to serve as a model of sustainability."
After hearing about the unfortunate death of a mountain lion on the 5 Freeway this morning, we found another puma photo via the National Park Service. This time, it's good news. She, named P6, was tagged awhile ago by the Service, but her radio collar stopped working two years ago.
If you live in an apartment and you don't appreciate your neighbors' cigarette smoke drifting in from common areas into your area, is there anything you can do besides close your window? Or move? In Long Beach, landlords and tenants interested in finding out their options plan to meet this afternoon for the "Smoke Free Apartments Community Forum" hosted by the Long Beach Department of Health and Human Services, explains the Press-Telegram.
Driving on the 5 freeway this morning in the Newhall Pass between Los Angeles and the Santa Clarita Valley, a Mountains Recreation & Conservation Authority ranger spotted a dead mountain lion on the center divider near Calgrove Blvd. Presumably, it was hit trying to cross the freeway.
LA County still has worst water quality in state and includes several sites on the top 10 "beach bummer" (i.e., worst beaches in the state) list in this year's Heal the Bay Beach Report Card. This comes as neighboring Orange and Ventura counties earn high grades for good water quality.
Consider this scenario: your opening day starter starts only one game then goes on the disabled list; your slugger will be suspended for 50 games; your rookie starter who showed promise has no idea where to find the strike zone; two of your bullpen pitchers are on the disabled list; you can't etch the names of your fourth and fifth starters.
It always felt like an obvious thing to do, but now we know the potential. According to state's Flex Your Power program, "if you use air conditioning, a ceiling fan will allow you to raise the thermostat setting about 4°F with no reduction in comfort. And here’s the best part: most ceiling fans use less electricity than a light bulb. Remember to turn fans off when you leave the room, since they work by creating a breeze to cool people, not rooms." This tip comes from a list of seven easy tips, including a favorite of ours that a lot of people seem to forget about: "Closing the blinds or curtains on south or west-facing walls can cut down on solar heat gain during the day."
The California Department of Public Health announced today that thirteen hospitals have been fined $25,000 per violation "after a determination that the facilities’ noncompliance with licensing requirements has caused, or was likely to cause, serious injury or death to patients." Of the thirteen statewide, nine of those are within the Los Angeles region, ten if you count San Diego in the mix. Is one of them yours? Check below for the list of SoCal hospitals and what they did. These fines stem from incidents in 2007 and 2008:
On Monday night, the well-known cyclist and activist, who goes by Roadblock, was thrown from his bike after a driver rear-ended him going 45 miles per hour. The accident occurred on N. Glendale just before Park and the driver was said be in a dark gray sedan, plate number 6GYC11.
Oh, the terrible Newport-Inglewood, you've yet to forsake us. Yesterday's mild 4.1 earthquake caused 18 people to be displaced at the Locust Avenue apartments in Long Beach.
Since the recession and a new ordinance began, business for a family selling food out of a taco truck in Palos Verdes Estates is down by half. It started last summer, as LA County tried to unsuccessfully enforce a similar, but more relaxed, ordinance that was struck down as unconstitutional. In an article about trying to curb taco trucks nationwide, the LA Times explains: "No longer could loncheras set up for hours at parks or construction sites. Instead, they could stop only at sites where a bathroom was available to patrons, and stay just half an hour, barely enough time to set up and prepare a meal or two before having to break down and drive away again. In addition, all employees had to get background checks." The guys over at Carne Asada is Not a Crime caught wind of an ordinance proposed at neighboring Rancho Palos Verdes earlier this year and spoke to the attorney who represented taco vendors in the LA County case. No word if any action will be or was taken.
The LAPD didn't get hit as hard as other departments in the City Council approved city budget, but the current plan does slow down hiring new officers. Now the Los Angeles Police Protective League has submitted their ideas to save the city money in order to get back on track of getting more officers on the streets. There are 16 in all, but some are not very specific to the department like installing wind and solar energy on government buildings. However, there are a few ideas that seem to have potential:
With 100% of precincts reporting, preliminary results for yesterday's special election are here. It's preliminary because an unknown number of provisional and vote-by-mail ballots still need to be counted. Here's a round up of what happened:
LA Lakers defeat Denver Nuggets 105-103. ESPN is awful. Their announcing teams are unlistenable and their analysts are even worse. Magic Johnson said the Lakers bench played horribly in the first half. Um, the Lakers bench outscored the Nuggets bench 20-2. In fact it was the Lakers bench that helped the Lakers overcome that 13 point deficit. True the Lakers didn't play that well. They came out shooting cold and had lapses on defense. But it's the playoffs and they played well enough to put the dagger in the hearts of the Nuggets. Kobe Bryant scored 40 points while Derek Fisher scored 13 including the three pointer at the end of the first half to give the Lakers a one-point lead.
With all but two precincts reporting, only 316 votes separated candidates Paul Kortez and David Vahedi for the 5th district of Los Angeles, which covers the Hollywood Hills, Westside and Sherman Oaks/Encino. Koretz, a former West Hollywood councilman and state politician, led with 50.51% of the vote, over a point ahead of Vahedi, a community organizer and lawyer, according to the LA County Recorder-Registrar/County Clerk. The race is too close to call because provisional and some vote-by-mail ballots will still need to be counted. UPDATE: 335 votes separate the two with 100% of precincts reporting. Koretz still leads, but because these are preliminary results and the race is so close, the official outcome will probably come in the near future.
Come July 1st, there will be some new blood in city hall. After a nasty race, Carmen "Nuch" Trutanich tonight won the race for City Attorney, announced the LA Times in a breaking news alert. He faced current 5th District Councilman Jack Weiss. As of midnight, Trutanich had over 55% of the vote with 76% of precincts reporting, according to the LA County Recorder-Registrar/County Clerk. Trutanich had the endorsement of Sheriff Lee Baca, but not LAPD's Chief William Bratton, who he will closely work with on the job.
Other than Prop 1F, all the budget ballot props have failed, according to the Sacramento Bee: "With about a quarter of the state's precincts in as of 9:30 p.m., the Secretary of State's Office reported none of Propositions 1A through 1E were garnering more than 41 percent of the vote. Only Proposition F, which would freeze the salaries of state elected officials in bad budget years, was winning - and it was winning big." Contests for LA City Attorney and the 5th District are still up for grabs. As of 10:30 p.m., Carmen "Nuch" Trutanich is up 3 points over Jack Weiss for City Attorney with 22% of the precincts reporting. In the 5th District, Paul Koretz leads David Vahedi by 5 points. Only 10% of the precincts reporting in that race.
Los Angeles has welcomed the Kogi Korean BBQ truck with open arms. The OC needs to make sure Kogi is official... | NBCLA wants to wish you a Happy 10th Anniversary of standing in line for Star Wars: The Phantom Menace. Yes, it was 10-years ago when you waited 42-days outside of Mann's Chinese, only to run back to your mom's basement and promptly seek solace after the film.
An ordinance in the high desert city of Lancaster went into full effect on March 1st, but today Lancaster officials are reminding residents not to water their lawns between 10 a.m. and 10 p.m. “The summer heat is already beaten down upon us," said Lancaster Mayor R. Rex Parris about today's reminder. "It is imperative that we each do our part to conserve water this summer. We must sustain this precious resource in our Valley." Recently, the Antelope Valley has been regularly experiencing temperatures in the high 80s and 90s, which is nothing compared to normal temps during the height of summer. The ordinance, which was adopted last year, stays in effect until October 31st.
For the second time this week, an earthquake has struck an area 10 miles southwest of downtown near unincorporated Lennox. The 4.1 shaker struck at 3:49 p.m. this afternoon, followed by a 2.5 aftershock at 3:51 p.m. On Sunday evening, a 4.7 rattler shook up in the same area and earlier this month, a 4.4 struck in the Santa Monica Mountains. The Los Angeles Fire Department is reporting no immediate damage, but per policy, they must enter into "Earthquake Emergency Mode" and "actively survey" the city by ground and air to make sure. UPDATE: Officials at Caltech are saying this was an aftershock from Sunday's 4.7 quake.
By 1:15 p.m., a voting precinct in a garage on Stern Avenue in Sherman Oaks just received their 60th vote. That's 60, or 4.28%, out of roughly 1400, a number provided by the LA County Recorder-Registrar's Office pertaining to the average amount of registered voters per precinct. Countywide, a sampling of turnout was a bit higher at 8.76% as of 2 p.m., according to the Recorder-Registrar's Twitter feed. Polls are open to 8 p.m. and if you need more info on today's election, check out our earlier post.
Work to restore truck arresters to their original function after a deadly crash last month began today, announced Caltrans. On April 1st, a truck barreled down Angeles Crest Highway (SR-2) through a red light in La Canada Flintridge, crashing into several cars, injuring 12 and leaving a father and daughter dead. "This project will restore the truck arresters to their original function and enhance safety on SR-2," the state agency said in a news release. "The arresters, located in the median, are designed to enable vehicles experiencing braking problems on the highway’s 7 percent grade to slow and stop." Prior to the April crash, the community had been advocating for safety improvements after a similar incident last year that destroyed seven cars and injured one person. The project should be completed in June; crews will work weekdays between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. One lane in each direction of the four-lane highway will be closed during construction.
A state senate bill that would allow gay couples to enter into a domestic partnership is making its way through the Nevada legislature. After passing through the Senate, the state's Assembly followed suit, but only after some amendments, last Friday. It now goes back to the Senate for approval, but even if passed, Gov. Jim Gibbons has already said he would use his vetoing power. Meanwhile, back in California, the state Supreme Court still deliberates over Prop 8 as the decision deadline approaches. Rulings are are only announced on Thursdays and Mondays with a advance notice the day preceding. Last Friday, an erroneous rumor began on Twitter saying a decision had been made.
The City Coucnil not only saved cuts proposed by Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa to special funds--that's where bicycle funding sits and was threatened to be completely eliminated--but they also directed LADOT not to propose cuts to the the bikeways department before consulting them. And a lot of the attention drawn to this subject was due to cyclists who showed up to yesterday's hearing and spoke during public comment. "Yesterday proves one thing that bike activists have long known but the City Council and other city leaders are still learning," noted Damien Newton at StreetsblogLA. "L.A.'s diverse bike community is an active and fast mobilizng constituency that is growing to loud to ignore or push aside any longer. After all, this is the second time this month that a group of cyclists has descended on the City Council and walked away with resolutions passed by the Council based on their testimony."
The counties of San Bernardino and San Diego tried to fight Prop 215, but were denied an appeal hearing yesterday by the US Supreme Court. They tried to challenge state law, specifically ID cards to protect users from police, saying federal law prohibits use of marijuana. That didn't fly, especially in light of the Obama administration's new stance on state rights in regards to medical marijuana, and the appeal went on deaf ears. "No longer will local officials be able to hide behind federal law and resist upholding California's medical marijuana law," said Joe Elford, lawyer for Americans for Safe Access, to the San Francisco Chronicle.
And that approval came at a price. Last night's budget compromise included 800 more employee layoffs--400 were approved earlier this month--26 furlough days for many city employees, no new left turn signals or sidewalk repairs, reduced hours at city libraries and swimming pools and a slower plan to hire 1,000 new officers, albeit probably not by the end of the year as desired by Mayor Villaraigosa and Chief Bratton. Interestingly enough, the plan to lease parking meters and parking garages like Chicago did not make the cut, or at least until the council gets a more detailed study on the proposal. Mayor Villaraigosa has two weeks to review the budget.
Little Armenia business owners are making headway in creating a stronger neighborhood brand. Coming soon are signs on the 101 Freeway near the Sunset Blvd. exits identifying where the neighborhood's location, the Little Armenia Chamber of Commerce announced in an e-mail last night.
A suspect who shot and killed Dolla was also arrested yesterday at Los Angeles International Airport. Up-and-coming rap artist Roderick Anthony Burton II--stage name, Dolla--died Monday at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center after being shot near an entrance of the Beverly Center yesterday afternoon. The around-3-p.m. shooting prompted the closure of the area as police searched for possibly two suspects, but to no avail.
That had to be one of the most frustrating Lakers playoff series in recent memory. The undermanned Houston Rockets team sans Tracy McGrady, Dikembe Mutombo and as of game three Yao Ming had no business being in that series. That should have been at worst a five-game series. But the Lakers sometime lackadaisical play kept the Rockets in the series making superstars out of Luis Scola, Shane Battier and Aaron Brooks.
Hello, Election Day! Today, Californians decide the fate of the state's budget, or at least the direction of around $5 billion of it. And in Los Angeles, our new City Attorney will be chosen along with a new Councilman for the tony 5th District. Here are a few tips, just in case you need:
LA Dodgers defeat NY Mets 3-2 (11). Like Vin Scully said during the bottom of the 11th, the Mets played like the 1962 team known for their ineptitude in every facet of the game. In the top of the 11th with Ryan Church on first and two outs, Angel Pagan hit a ball to right center. Church came storming home and Pagan settled in on third to score the go-ahead run. But both third baseman Mark Loretta and manager Joe Torre noticed Church never touched third base. Loretta tagged third base to get Church out for the final out of the inning with the game still tied at two. After Loretta walked to open up the bottom of the 11th, Xavier Paul hit a fly ball to left center for a sure out except Pagan got in the way of Carlos Beltran. Ball drops, runners on second and third with no out. The Mets intentionally walked Juan Pierre and brought in Beltran to be the fifth infielder. After Furcal flied out to short left, Orlando Hudson hit a grounder sharply to first base. A sure double play ball was over thrown to home, Loretta scored. The Dodgers won on a walk off error, the fifth error given up by the Mets. Yeesh.
Fear not! Or, rather, if you're alarmist, fear! A new case of H1N1, aka Swine Flu, has been logged in LA County. | There was a gruesome discovery early this morning at a Riverside elementary school. | Authorities revealed today that a man committed suicide by hanging Saturday inside the LA County Arboretum.
Today, the Santa Monica Police Department announced the city's new crime mapping tool. It's a great start, but it's a bit clunky when compared to LAPD's crime map. Data, stored for the last 90 days, can be searched by type of crime in relation to an address, intersection, landmark or within the city's boundaries. Only sex-related crimes are not included.
After years of bickering--okay, lawsuits--with the Bush administration about more stringent fuel standards, California and other states are finally getting their way. Tomorrow, a California delegation will join President Obama for his announcement that the federal government plans to set fuel efficiency standards for vehicles at 35.5 mpg by 2016, according to the AP who spoke to anonymous sources. And the Wall Street Journal says "in a perverse way, that answers Detroit’s prayers: U.S. automakers have long argued against California’s go-it-alone stance and in favor of a single national fuel-economy standard." While the specifics are officially under wraps, politicians have already begun sending out press releases announcing their travel plans to the Capitol. Two local politicians, Asm. Paul Krekorian and Sen. Fran Pavley, will join Gov. Schwarzenegger and Att. Gen. Jerry Brown tomorrow at the announcement.
A shooting that occurred around 3:10 p.m. at the La Cienega Boulevard entrance of the Beverly Center has left one man dead. He was transported to Cedars-Sinai where he died. Two suspects, one of them who may be a female, are on the loose.
Galaxy midfielder Eddie Lewis scored late in the game to salvage a 1 - 1 tie for the Galaxy on Sunday afternoon against the Columbus Crew at the Home Depot Center. Lewis' opportunity came as a result of another strong performance by Galaxy 'keeper Donovan Ricketts. Ricketts made multiple quality saves throughout the game that kept the visitors at bay and the blue-and-gold within striking distance.
Today marks the start of more vigilant enforcement of the state's "Click it or Ticket" campagin, which focuses on motorists breaking the law and endangering their safety by driving with their seatbelt unfastened. Although our state is one of the top in the nation for belt-wearing, about one million Californians neglect to spend the two seconds it takes to "click" their belt in place. "Tickets for seat belt violations went up on Jan. 1 to $132 for adults and $435 for children under age 16," explains the Daily News. Local law enforcement officers intend to get serious about the law during the next few weeks: "If stopped and found to be in violation, law enforcement will issue citations without warning. Additionally, children age 12 and under are required to ride properly restrained in the back seat and those under age 6 or 60 pounds must be in proper child safety or booster seats."
Well, election day is tomorrow and if you haven't already voted by mail and are otherwise understudied for tomorrow, there are plenty places to help catch you up on tomorrow's election. Here are some of our recommendations:
Enforceable times at parking meters are still confusing residents as LADOT makes it way through the city updating extended times at signs and meters. The problem? Here's an example: a sign on West 3rd Street says "2 Hour Parking 8am to 6pm Except Sunday” but corresponding meters say Mon-Sat 8am-8pm and Sunday 11am-8pm, notes Tasha Nita Adams at her blog Blackburn & Sweetzer. This is an issue LAist looked at back in January and we thought all signs would be updated by now... apparently not. "It would be inappropriate [to ticket] without the new signs," the department spokesman Bruce Gilman explained back then.
If you've got 11 minutes this lunch hour, this investigative report on city hall politics and marijuana dispensaries is excellent. "Almost every city has gotten its act together and put regulations in place for marijuana dispensaries except Los Angeles," said Paul Lerner, a Melrose area neighborhood activist who voted for Prop 215, but doesn't like the proliferation of dispensaries on every street corner.
Every American teenager knows Prom night begins with more virgins than it ends. Arcadia High’s prom took place Saturday, and if its students had gotten jiggy for the first time, it wouldn’t have been because of sexually-suggestive music from the likes of Lil’ Wayne, P. Diddy or Pitbull.
The LA County Bicycle Coalition sent out an "urgent alert" Saturday afternoon that was pretty shocking: LADOT THREATENS TO CUT THE ENTIRE BIKEWAYS DEPARTMENT!! BIKE PROJECTS WOULD BE CUT!! Los Angeles is facing a perilous budget crisis. All city departments are being asked to submit plans on how they will cut spending, and LADOT have proposed to eliminate the entire Bikeways staff. Not just lay off some people, but cut it altogether.
Plans to build a $1 billion power plant in Carson--touted by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger as the "cleanest and greenest" in the nation when it was announced in 2006--have just recently been "quietly abandoned," the Contra Costa Times reports, citing "inhospitable" ecological conditions at the proposed site, and "resistance from local environmentalists."
On Friday, UCLA announced a settlement with the student who was tasered over and over and over again back in November 2006. It was captured on video and YouTubed in what we still think is one of the most disgusting police videos ever (embedded below if you care to watch).
If you've been sitting on the edge of your seat waiting to grab up the best 747 area code number (747-666-6666?), today is the first day to grab one. The San Fernando Valley has been in overlay mode--that means you have to first dial 1 when calling within the 818 area code--since last month. Starting today, new phone line activations can be in the new 747 area code or still within the 818 one until it's fully exhausted.
Last Friday, protests against the LAUSD began before the school day began. Hundreds of teachers called in sick to work, and many participated, with students and their parents, in gatherings on campuses and outside LAUSD headquarters, despite orders not to. Wearing black to symbolize mourning for the loss of funds and jobs, the protests continued through the day, blocking traffic, shutting down streets, and resulting in the arrest of a handful, including UTLA President AJ Duffy.
Last August, a young man sleeping inside Downtown's 7th/Metro Station was roused by an MTA security guard; during the incident the guard delivered a kick to the patron's head, which was not only not part of his job description, but also captured on surveillance cameras inside the station. The footage convinced a jury to find the guard guilty of using excessive force. Cases such as this one happen more frequently than perhaps reported, and today's LA Times offers a look at the the 11 investigations launched in the past two years by the L.A. County's Sheriff's Department into allegations of abuse.
LA Times photographer Jay L. Clendenin shows us why it's important to "drop, cover and hold," as earthquake experts tell us. Yes, this photo (see it, and others, in large here) shows a shard of glass on a chair at a Starbucks at Hawthorne and Artesia boulevards. Another photo shows broken glass from a North Long Beach storefront on the sidewalk.
Now, hasn't it just been too quiet in Southern California? Were you not just asking about when the next earthquake was going to hit? We have our answer. A 4.7 (originally estimated by sensors as 5.0) struck at 8:39 p.m., 10 miles SSW of Downtown L.A. in Lennox, a suburb just feet from Inglewood. We are getting reports that people have felt the quake from Santa Monica to Glendale. How was your Sunday evening shake? UPDATE: It was followed by two microquakes--3.1 and 1.6--at 8:45 p.m. and 9:46 p.m., respectively. Also, a 2.5 struck at 8:44 p.m. in El Segundo. The Los Angeles Fire Department reported no immediate damage or injuries, but recommended you review disaster preparedness info. UPDATE 2: The LA Times has a photo of broken glass at a Starbucks--one person was reportedly sent to the hospital. 
The epicenter of the quake was in Lennox, 10 miles from Downtown Los Angeles
The Governator spent some time visiting churches as the special elections draw near. Maybe he thinks his propositions don't have a prayer of passing. | LAStreetsBlog thought that they were safe from any more of the Governator's transportation cuts... they were wrong. | The mother of a 2 year-old girl was put behind bars for felony child endangerment when it was discovered that the girl she put a missing child report out on was found on the side of the road 9 hours earlier.
Apparently, not everyone loves a Happy Ending. In what could have been an upbeat tale sprung from Hollywood, a popular watering hole and eatery had their hopes up for a new life on Culver Boulevard in Playa del Rey...only to find out that they are not welcome there, according to the Daily Breeze.
Chivas USA survived a relentless D.C. United attack last night to hang on for a 2 - 2 tie at the Home Depot Center.
You (hopefully) heard it here first: The Fresh & Easy Hollywood store will begin to stock beer and wine starting Monday.
On Tuesday May 12th, the Environmental Media Association, along with Yes to Carrots launched their new partnership with the Los Angeles Unified School District to sponsor educational gardening in several of their schools. At an event held in the new garden at Helen Bernstein High School in Hollywood, many of the EMA's celeb board members were on hand to lend a hand and to share their interest in organic gardening and its role in both education and the Los Angeles community.
Arcadia High School doesn't want to mess around when it comes to, well, songs that reference all kinds of messing around. Songs that are in heavy rotation right now on the radio and on the iPods of many high schoolers include ones that "glorify prostitution, casual sex, and inspire some major bumping and grinding on the dance floor," explains MomLogic.
D.C. United visits Chivas USA at the Home Depot Center tonight in a duel of conference leaders. United will be a tough test for the league leading Chivas USA squad who boasts a 7 - 1 - 1 record almost a third of the way into the season.
You can now call him Dr. Governator. Arnold Schwarzenegger received an honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from USC. UCLA fans insert joke here... | In an effort to avoid another tragedy like what happened in Chatsworth, Metrolink board of directors approved the use of cameras in their train engines.
On Wednesday as a car chase came to the end in a residential neighborhood, suspected driver and known gang member Richard Rodriguez gave up by laying down on the ground and fanning his arm away from his body. The first officer to arrive kicked Rodriguez in the head (watch the video here), prompting the latest hit in viral police violence videos. The police union representing the El Monte officer is calling it a distraction blow (remember the LAPD's distraction punch video?). The the union's attorney said this, via the LA Times: “Unfortunately these things never look good on video. Sometimes officers have to use force when dealing with bad guys. The officer initially came upon the suspect alone. The suspect hadn’t been searched and was a parolee and a gang member. The individual officer saw some movement. He feared the parolee might have a weapon or be about to get up. So the officer did what is known as a distraction blow. It wasn’t designed to hurt the man, just distract him." What do you think? Was that a legit distraction kick or not?
Speaking from South LA today, Vice President Joe Biden announced that affordable-housing development Esperanza Community Housing Corporation will receive $875,000 for the removal of toxic paint from 225 homes.
We Got Yer Holiday Spirit Right Here
Eat My Blog: Blogger Bake Sale Will Benefit LA Foodbank
Sobriety Checkpoints Tonight, Saturday Night
Howie Mandel Opens up About OCD with 20/20 Tonight
A Weather WTF?!: Storm Warning Issued for LA Region
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