The mother of Kelly Thomas, a schizophrenic homeless man who was beaten to death by police officers earlier this year, is suing the Orange County District Attorney in order to gain access to records involving her son's demise. According to the OC Register, Cathy Thomas' attorney, Brian Gurwitz, claims that Cathy is a victim and so has a right to see the details of what happened to her son that night. more ›

These days, thanks to science and technology, your family tree isn't just something you can trace by a paper trail, DNA provides significant links among us. Now, a new bill proposed by Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA), would allow feds to conduct familial searches in DNA databases to solve cold cases. more ›

City Controller Wendy Greuel has taken a look at the Los Angeles Police Department's approach to tackling a backlog of over 7,000 untested rape kits in recent months, and has found that there is much room for improvement in how the LAPD handles this kind of evidence. more ›

We caught some murmurings on Twitter mid-morning today about the 110 Freeway in South L.A. being at a standstill, and now more information is available about what ended up being a total shutdown of the road. Authorities say they were conducting a search on the Harbor Freeway in the vicinity of the 10 Freeway, when during the course of a pursuit they saw the suspects tossing guns or ammunition onto the road. more ›

While Lindsay Lohan is due in court tomorrow for another go-'round of the necklace caper case, the Venice jewelry store who is accusing the actress of lifting the $2500 item says they're auctioning off the item in question for charity, according to ABC7. This is the second instance Kamofie & Co. is making headlines for raising money on the back of the case; earlier this week the store sold their surveillance video showing Lohan browsing and trying on the necklace. more ›

Of the 5,123 back logged untested rape kits, a majority--3,800--of them have been closed "because detectives arrested someone, prosecutors refused to pursue the case, or police could not determine that a crime had been committed," the LAPD announced yesterday, per the LA Times. However, around 400 of those untested could lead to suspects. more ›

Two big news conferences are scheduled for Monday to present reports on the LAPD and not necessarily in a good light. First, at 11:00 a.m. on the steps of City Hall, City Controller Laura Chick will present her audit on the backlog of Forensic DNA rape-kits. It has been reported that their backlog is around 7,000 kits. That's thousands of chances to gather physical evidence and DNA that could help put criminals in jail. Chick's audit is expected to officially reaffirm those problems. more ›