Following a fight that broke out at an office Christmas party last year, six employees at the Men's Central Jail will be fired, reports KTLA.
The men were "part of a gang like clique, which included a three-fingered hand sign," according to KTLA. The fight occurred in the parking lot at Quiet Cannon Restaurant, where about 100 workers had gathered to celebrate the holidays.
Brawling Jail Employees Will be Fired
3 Dead in Baldwin Park Sadness
When police arrived last night to a call, the suspect was standing in the middle of the street holding a handgun. Luckily, no struggle occurred. Unfortunately, moments before it was not so good:
Two women and a 4-year-old girl were killed and two other children were wounded in a shooting Monday night in a Baldwin Park neighborhood, police said.more ›
Strange Pursuit: LA Co. Sheriff/CHP & Vons Big Rig
In Sunday's wee hours, an unusual car chase took place on our local freeways, between the LA County Sheriff and a Vons big rig. According to the San Jose Mercury News:
Officials say the hourlong pursuit began when LA County Sheriff's deputies responded to a report that a big rig was weaving.more ›
Troubled OC Sheriff Carona Calls It Quits
Despite having returned back to his post just two weeks ago, today Orange County's beleagured Sheriff Michael Carona, announced his retirement from the job on the Department's blog. Carona is entwined in a mess of legal troubles that extend to include his wife and his mistress, Deborah Carona and Debra Hoffman, respectively, in its web.
SoCal "Monster Storm" Update
At about 1 a.m., [she] made a one-minute 911 cellphone call that led officers to the scene before the call was disconnected [...] When officers arrived, they found her male companion, Rene Valencia, 36, of Corona, several hundred yards south clinging to a tree [...]more ›
Mischa Barton Driving Drunk in West Hollywood, Arrested
L.A. County Sheriff's Dept. just announced that Mischa Barton was pulled over at 2:46AM this morning while driving in the 900 block of north La Cienega Boulevard in West Hollywood. According to the police report, her vehicle was seen "straddling two lanes of traffic and failed to signal when making a turn."
Today in Stupid Car Chases
Yesterday, a 26-year-old man stole a Los Angeles County Sheriffs (LASD) patrol car for unknown reasons, leading a car chase that ended in the San Diego area. The chase ended on the southbound I-5:
Regino Aguilar, 26, got out of the car after the chase but didn't comply with officers' orders, said San Diego police Lt. Kevin Rooney.more ›
Found in LA: Guns and Grocery Carts
LAist Featured Photos contributer Jonathan Alcorn caught this scene in Compton on Saturday: "In an effort to reduce violence, 156 guns were collected by Los Angeles County Sheriff's representatives in Compton during the first three days of an annual exchange program, officials said today. People turning in guns to sheriff's personnel receive $50 gift cards for use at Best Buy, Home Depot, Ralphs or Target. Gift cards worth $100 were given for each of the first 50 guns turned in."
No need for arrests on the Orange Line
Even Flat Stanley pays his Orange Line fare. The Daily News has an idea. We're not so much into it, but here is how it goes. While Metro contracts with LA County Sheriff's, the LAPD has a man who knows something about enforcing ticketless travelers on transit systems and he happens to be top cop Chief William Bratton. Some will remember that he became famous for his "broken windows" theory that enforced smaller crimes...
LAist Poll: Playing With Fire
Last week's devastating Agua Dulce/Santa Clarita Valley wildfire was started accidentally by a "male juvenile" playing with matches, the L.A. County Sheriff's Department announced Tuesday. The Buckweed Fire blackened over 38,000 acres, destroyed more than 60 structures, and led to an estimated $7.4 million in damages. On October 22, one day after the blaze began, a detective questioned a "boy" who "admitted to playing with matches and accidentally starting the fire," according to the Sheriff's...
Around the World with the -ists
LAist began the month with a new food series exploring the popular and unknown late night eats around town. If a Top Chef winner opened up a late night spot in Los Angeles, denizens would flock it, yet the LA Times and other media might be wary. Turning to sports, the Dodger season was quite memorable in the way that it imploded and the LA County Sheriff's Department made some games of their own...
Guy Hiking with a Guy with a Sword ends up in Hospital
Believe it or not but there's not a lot of hiking happening with many of us here at LAist. Sure there's Zach and a few other show-offs, but even they could tell you that if you start lacing up your hiking boots and notice someone stretching with a freaking sword, things will probably not end well.
OC Deputies Taser, Cuff 15-Year-Old Autistic Boy
Taylor Karras was reported missing by his mother yesterday, after running away from a Westminster social services facility where he was receiving therapy for autism. Around 9:30 p.m., the 15-year-old boy was found just a block from his North Tustin home. Orange County Sheriff's deputies spotted Karras pushing a shopping cart in the street, chased him on foot, Tasered him once, and handcuffed him. Only when a passing neighbor recognized Karras did the authorities...
Extra, Extra: Jumbo-Sized MTA Buses, John Singleton's Accident and the Frogtown Artwalk Tonight
The MTA will be testing a new 65-foot-long prototype bus - which can hold up to 131 sitting and standing passengers - on the Orange Line busway for one year starting this week. Nicely done: L.A. City Councilman Richard Alarcon drafted a measure 2 months ago that would've drastically reduced traffic congestion on one block of one street in Panorama City - namely the one where his house is located. Who's down with Gov....
Misadventures in Journalism - The Precious Photo-Op
At least a camel is much more entertaining and inspiring than Patch Adams.
When Wookiees Attack
It's hard to find a good Wookiee these days, so LAPD is looking for a naughty one. A Chewbacca impersonator allegedly sexually assaulted a Marilyn Monroe look-alike near Hollywood and Highland last month, though the crime was just reported yesterday. When authorities showed up to investigate, the suspect fled. Police are presumably looking for a man who is tall, dark, and hairy. There has been no comment from LA County Sheriff Lee Baca, who may...
LAPD to Accept 9-1-1 Text Messages In a Few Years
In the wake of the most recent King-Harbor tragedy, where concerned witnesses called Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department 9-1-1 to report that the medical staff was doing nothing about a woman dying on the floor of the hospital, only to be told that 9-1-1 would not dispatch any help, comes a plan by the LAPD to improve their handling of 9-1-1 calls. Yesterday officials told the L.A. Police Commission that they were beginning to...
Sheriff Baca Claims Paris Will Be Treated Like Others, Then Explains How She Will Be Treated Special
In a deft version of doublespeak, LA County Sheriff Lee Baca spoke out of both sides of his mouth today as he prepped the press and paps about what they can expect when Paris Hilton goes to jail on Tuesday. In one breath Baca said that Paris will be treated like any other inmate at the Century Regional Detention Center in Lynwood, saying that her food will be the same as the other women's...
Who Reads Memos?
"In support of Bike to Work Day, Thursday, May 17th, cyclists ride free on Metro and on other participating transit agencies listed below." said Metro's website. "Board with your bike or helmet and enjoy the ride… it’s on us!" According to many cyclists including this LAist writer, it was sometimes a fight to get that free ride. Many cyclists at the Rally told stories of them informing the bus driver that they get to...
Sheriffs Plant Dummy Explosives at Union Station, Loses Them, Evacuates Building
Do we need to say much more than that to give you a "ha!" and an "uhhhhh?" at the same time (now this should be the definition of interrobang)? Supposedly, the Los Angeles County Sheriff's were in the midst of a training exercise that included this bag of dummy explosives. But someone who wasn't supposed to get to them, got to them first and stole it. Metro stopped the Gold and Red Lines before hitting...
Tomorrow, Union Station will be on High Alert
Expect delays between 6 a.m. and noon on Saturday: On Saturday morning, April 28, transit patrons utilizing Union Station between 6 a.m. and noon are advised that they may experience service delays of 15 minutes or longer on inbound and outbound rail and bus services due to a scheduled joint security training exercise.Union Station transit operators, including the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro), Metrolink and Amtrak, will join the Los Angeles County...
PM News Roundup
This dog delivers beer! Click here to find out how.
Photo by C-Monster.
Larry Birkhead to World: I told you so! Sleazy paparazzo beats off human parasite, fake prince, former bodyguard and clump of seaweed to prove he's Anna-Nicole's baby-daddy. -TMZ
Howard Stern cozies up to Birkhead, says Papa Larry can spend as much time as he wants with little Mealticketlynn. World's #1 Mom Virgie Arthur expected to sue for custory. -TMZ
MSNBC punishes Don Imus with two-week vacation. Rutgers players still pissed, would love to meet with radio host to personally express their "hurt, anger and disgust." -AP
34-year-old Girls Gone Wild founder Joe "take your top off, sweetie" Francis arrested in Panama City, Florida airport early this morning on a warrant for criminal contempt of court. Who knew he was 6'2"? -Extra TV (Mugshot courtesy of AP Photo/Bay County Sheriff's Office)
With more than $400 million in unmet needs, the LA County Department of Parks and Rec unveils "Adopt-A-Park" plan to allow private businesses to "adopt" parks in South Los Angeles. Your neighborhood park just got pwned. -CBS2
Coast Guard still searching for two people swept off jetty in Corona del Mar. -LA Times
Google starts mapping genocide. - CNN
Awww, isn’t it cute how Los Angeles keeps imitating San Francisco? LA county officials consider banning plastic bags. No word on how this will affect Joan Rivers. - LA Times
2nd shooting in less than a month at Chicago high school. Maybe it was a bad idea to make Target Practice an elective. -AP
6:30 A.M. 3.5 magnitude temblor rattles folks in Ventura County. -ABC7
Some f*@%$in a#$%hole thinks "open and uncensored" blogs need warning labels. Cuz it’s not like you're ever gonna hear rude words at home, in movies, on the street, at your friends' homes, on television, in books… -BBC
Dennis Blunden, the fat, snarky kid from 80s sitcom Head of the Class, is the programming genius behind Nickolodeon's tween TV empire. -NY Times
It's raining rats, courtesy of a KFC/Taco Bell in Manhattan (that would be New York City). -Fox News
Shocking News! Diets don't work. Eating sensibly and exercising moderately does. -BBC (& common sense)
Quote Of the Day: Jonathan Rhys-Meyers explains why the American public couldn’t possibly love a fat man, and why it makes perfect sense to cast a rail-thin, dark-haired pretty boy as an obese, red-bearded monarch:
"You're trying to sell a historical period drama to a country like America, you don't want a big, fat, 250 pounds, red haired guy with a beard. It doesn't let people embrace the fantastic monarch he was, because they're not attracted to the package. Heroes do not look like Henry VIII. That is just the world we live in."
--WENN/IMDB
Extra, Extra - 'Hey Mister' You're Under Arrest
-- 15 teams of sheriff's deputies and undercovers nabbed 58 people across Southern California Saturday on suspicion of providing alcohol to minors. It was the was the largest one-day "hey mister / shoulder tap" sting operation in state history. - MyFoxLA.com. -- A wildfire north of Anaheim charred 2,000+ acres and threatened homes. It's still burning, as is a smaller fire near Corona. Do your best to not burn down your neighborhood -- it's hot,...
Your Walking Guide: Sunset, 6th & Angelus Rosedale Cemetery
Oprah's favorite weight loss doctors, Michael Roizen and Mehmet Oz, would be proud of Los Angeles this weekend. In their most recent book, You: On A Diet, they say you should walk thirty minutes every day no matter what. "No excuses. It doesn't matter if you do this in one whole block or broken up into as many as three shorter sessions." Inspired by Franklin Ave's Wilshire Walk, Will Campbell from Metroblogging Los Angeles...
1001 Reasons LA is better than Florida
#46 St. Augustine Motherhood Maternity agreed to settle lawsuits with would-be employees who were not hired because they were pregnant, and with a woman who was fired when she was suspected to be pregnant - Miami Herald
Extra, Extra - The Separate the Races Edition
-- Survivor announces that the tribes for the next season on Cook Island will be set up into four different "races" (Black, Asian, White, Latino) which causes no controversy; the fact that 9 of the 20 participants are from LA does. - Reality Blurred -- LA city workers who were on strike today for the second day in a row did not flinch when Mayor Tony accused the movement of losing steam, they claim...
AM news: rogue cops, stealing the sheriff's SUV
No donuts for five officers and 14 others caught in a home-robbery scheme that lasted for more than two years. The nineteen posed as cops conducting raids; the crew was led by former LAPD officer and Golden Gloves boxer Ruben Palomares. Thomas O'Brien, head of the criminal division for the U.S. attorney's office in LA, told the LA TImes, "While this story sounds like a script from 'The Shield' or 'Training Day,' it actually happened."

