Nick Gerda
is an accountability reporter who has covered local government in Southern California for more than a decade.
Published November 29, 2023 12:35 PM
Orange County Supervisor Andrew Do at the board of supervisors meeting on Nov. 28, 2023
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Nick Gerda
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LAist
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Topline:
A major trial over Orange County homeless services was suddenly derailed this month because O.C. Supervisor Andrew Do, who was testifying as a witness, failed to disclose he’s married to a high-ranking judge at the court, according to court records reviewed by LAist.
The backstory: It’s the second high-profile instance to emerge this month of Do not disclosing a relevant family relationship during official proceedings. Last week, an LAist investigation reported that Do voted to direct $3.1 million in subcontracts to a mental health center led by his daughter Rhiannon Do — without disclosing his family connection.
What happened: Do’s latest non-disclosure resulted in a mistrial in a lawsuit originally filed in Orange County Superior Court by the city of Santa Ana in early 2020. Earlier this month, Do testified until the lunch break as a witness called by the defense, according to court records. When the trial judge learned Do failed to disclose that his wife is Cheri Pham, a high-ranking Orange County Superior Court judge, he declared a mistrial saying, “I cannot be fair and impartial.”
A major trial over an Orange County homeless service center was suddenly derailed this month when O.C. Supervisor Andrew Do, who was testifying as a witness, failed to disclose he’s married to a high-ranking judge at the court.
This is the second high-profile instance to emerge this month of Do not disclosing a relevant family relationship during official proceedings.
Last week, an LAist investigation reported that Do voted to direct $3.1 million in subcontracts to a mental health center led by his daughter Rhiannon Do — without disclosing his family connection.
Do’s lack of disclosure of his wife’s role at the court, which led to a mistrial the same day he testified, came one week after LAist first contacted him for comment regarding why he had not publicly shared that his daughter led the mental health center.
The mistrial sets back the trial for months. The litigation has already been costly. As of July, Santa Ana city officials had approved up to $1 million in contracts for its attorneys on the case, according to a city spokesperson.
A major trial over an Orange County homeless services center was suddenly derailed this month when O.C. Supervisor Andrew Do, who was testifying as a witness, failed to disclose he’s married to a high-ranking judge at the court, according to court records filed this week and reviewed by LAist.
It’s the second high-profile instance to emerge this month of Do not disclosing a relevant family relationship during official proceedings. Last week, an LAist investigation reported that Do voted to direct $3.1 million in subcontracts to a mental health center led by his daughter Rhiannon Do — without disclosing his family connection.
His latest failure to disclose resulted in a mistrial Nov. 16 in an Orange County Superior Court lawsuit the city of Santa Ana originally filed in early 2020 against the nonprofit Mental Health Association of Orange County. The suit seeks to shut down the association’s homeless services drop-in center in the city, which is funded by the county.
The city contends the center violates zoning laws and is causing a nuisance and public safety harms to surrounding communities. The nonprofit operator disputes that, saying the center is not a nuisance and has not caused a major burden on city emergency services. It also says it’s a mental health treatment center that state law protects from discrimination by city zoning laws.
County staff say the center offers valuable services for unhoused people. The county is not a party in the case, though Do testified as a witness. At least one other county official was on the witness list, but hadn't yet been called to testify when the mistrial was declared.
What happened in court
On the morning
of Nov. 16, Do took the witness stand. It was 14 days into the trial, which had stretched across five months this year. Do testified until the lunch break as a witness called by the defense, according to courtrecords.
When court resumed, O.C. Superior Court Judge John C. Gastelum said he learned over the break that Do is married to another judge at the court, Cheri Pham.
“And she’s not only a colleague, she’s our current Assistant Presiding Judge,” Gastelum said.
That makes Pham a voting member of the court’s governing panel — known as the executive committee. In that role, she steps in to supervise the court when the presiding judge is unavailable, according to the court's rules.
Gastelum declared a mistrial after reviewing ethical rules and concluding, “I cannot be fair and impartial.” That means a whole new trial will have to start from scratch under a different judge, unless an appeals court decides otherwise. Gastelum said in court that he wished Do had disclosed his family connection.
I want to stress I didn’t know about [any] of this information until today. Certainly, Mr. Do didn’t say anything when he took the stand, which under better circumstances, I would have hoped he might have.
— Judge John C. Gastelum
“I want to stress I didn’t know about [any] of this information until today. Certainly, Mr. Do didn’t say anything when he took the stand, which under better circumstances, I would have hoped he might have,” Gastelum said, according to a transcript in an appeals court filing.
“But after consideration of all the circumstances and the applicable ethical rules, I have concluded that I cannot be fair and impartial. I’m going to recuse myself from this case and declare a mistrial,” he said.
The mistrial came one week after LAist first contacted Do for comment regarding why he had not disclosed that his daughter led a mental health center he voted to approve millions for.
Gastelum’s mistrial decision sets back the trial for months, with the next court date scheduled for February. That hearing will be followed at some point by a start date for a new trial.
The litigation
has already been costly. As of July, Santa Ana city officials had approved up to $1 million in contracts for its attorneys on the case, according to a city spokesperson.
Re-doing the trial would be “a staggering waste of the court’s and the parties’ time and resources,” the Mental Health Association of O.C. wrote in a petition to a state appeals court.
As Gastelum discussed next steps in court on Nov. 16, he said he was frustrated.
“Don’t look at me like that,” he told an attorney for the defendant just after declaring the mistrial, according to the transcript. “You can’t be any more or any less frustrated than I am.”
“I wasn’t looking at you, Your Honor,” replied Isaiah Weedn, a defense attorney for the Mental Health Association of O.C. “I’m just frustrated with the circumstances. I’m not blaming you, Your Honor.”
Mistrial discussed at supervisors’ meeting this week
The mistrial came up at Tuesday’s O.C. Board of Supervisors meeting, which was dominated by debate over whether to keep the homeless services center operating after its current contract ends at the end of December.
Supervisor Vicente Sarmiento — who formerly was mayor of Santa Ana — asked the county’s top lawyer, Leon Page, to summarize what happened with the mistrial.
“That’s my understanding as well, that Judge Gastelum, who was presiding over the trial, after 14 days of testimony did abruptly recuse himself from the case, claiming that he could no longer be impartial,” Page said.
The County of Orange's top lawyer, County Counsel Leon Page, observes a public commenter at the board of supervisors meeting on Nov. 28, 2023.
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Nick Gerda / LAist
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Do did not comment about the mistrial at the meeting. He also didn’t respond to LAist’s request for comment Tuesday or efforts to speak with him in person during two breaks in the meeting. [Note: He’d also previously declined to comment on LAist’s reporting on Do not disclosing his daughter’s leadership of a nonprofit receiving a multimillion dollar subcontract with Orange County.]
Earlier in the meeting, Sarmiento noted that he too has a family connection to the homeless services center case — his wife works for the disability rights law firm that represents unhoused people who joined the case in support of the Mental Health Association of O.C. Sarmiento said he disclosed that connection to the Santa Ana city attorney when he was mayor — as well as to the county’s top lawyer after he became a supervisor — and that both have said he can participate in votes about the association.
Ultimately, supervisors voted 3 to 2 to approve another one-year contract for the homeless service center while the legal battle continues.
Public discussion of contract rules was removed from agenda
Agenda item that was removed prior to Tuesday's meeting.
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Courtesy Orange County
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O.C. supervisors oversee billions in annual taxpayer spending on contracts and subcontracts. And they’ve been preparing in recent weeks to vote on the yearly update to the county’s rules around how they award contracts. Those rules include what kinds of conflicts of interest are required to be disclosed and which conflicts are banned.
In the wake of LAist’s investigation, Sarmiento and O.C. Supervisor Katrina Foley said they want to see requirements added to disclose officials’ known family relationships with contractors.
“In the interest of disclosure so that everybody knows what’s happening, and isn’t caught off guard, I think it’s important,” Foley said.
But the agenda item on the contract policy was deleted late Monday before the meeting.
The county official who requested the deletion, CEO Frank Kim, has not returned messages asking why it was deleted and who asked him to pull the item from the agenda.
Details of the vote that was deleted
Currently, the county’s conflict of interest rules adhere to the state’s legal definition of “immediate family,” which restricts officials from being involved in steering taxpayer money to their own children who are under 18.
The state law doesn’t apply when children of elected officials are adults.
Do and Supervisor Doug Chaffee oversaw the drafting of the contract policy updates, as ad-hoc committee members.
The proposed changes Do and Chaffee put forward keep the current definition of “immediate family” that doesn’t include officials’ adult children.
Any supervisor can propose changes to the manual, if the item comes back at a future meeting.
Do has not commented on LAist’s findings
O.C. Supervisor Andrew Do has allocated millions of county dollars to his daughter’s group, Warner Wellness Center, without publicly disclosing his family connection.
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Supervisor Andrew Do’s official Facebook page
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Do and his 22-year-old daughter who runs the mental health center, Rhiannon Do, have not returned LAist’s messages for comment over the past two and a half weeks. Nor has Dr. Clayton Chau, who led the county Health Care Agency that officially recommended the funding for the center, which was approved by Do and other O.C. supervisors.
Rhiannon Do is also a law student at U.C. Irvine. She graduated from U.C. Davis in December 2021.
Calls for an independent audit
In a statement reacting to LAist’s investigation, two immigrant advocacy groups called the findings “troubling” and urging an independent investigation.
“We strongly condemn the alleged corruption and egregious misuse of public funds by Supervisor Andrew Do and former O.C. Health Care Agency Director Dr. Clayton Chau,” wrote VietRISE and the Harbor Institute for Immigrant & Economic Justice.
The groups called for “an independent investigation and audit by the appropriate authorities into Supervisor Do and all contracts involving Dr. Chau during his term as O.C. Health Care Agency Director.”
Chau previously was fined by state authorities for failing to disclose $12,000 in drug company speaking fees that he received when he directed mental health and addiction programs at CalOptima, the county’s public health insurance plan for low-income residents, according to Voice of OC.
During Tuesday’s board of supervisors meeting, Cypress City Councilmember Frances Marquez spoke during public comment, after waiting for over five hours to speak.
Marquez referenced LAist’s investigation and Do’s failure to disclose his daughter’s connection to the mental health center before voting to award millions in subcontracts. Marquez is running for Do’s seat on the board of supervisors in next year’s election — Do is termed out and has endorsed one of his chiefs of staff, Van Tran, in the election.
Supervisor Do had a duty at minimum to disclose the conflict of interest and recuse himself from voting on this specific instance. He owed it to the public to be transparent and honest.
— Cypress City Councilmember Frances Marquez, who is running against Van Tran for Do's seat
Marquez said the supervisors need to do more to secure the public’s trust.
“It is a betrayal of the public trust,” Marquez said. “Supervisor Do had a duty at minimum to disclose the conflict of interest and recuse himself from voting on this specific instance. He owed it to the public to be transparent and honest.”
In the days since publication, the LAist investigation has been the focus of at leastfourlengthyvideos by Vietnamese language TV programs and YouTubers.
LAist previously reported that Connie Chung Joe, the CEO of Asian Americans Advancing Justice Southern California, said she contacted the FBI about the subcontracts to the mental health center led by Do’s daughter. Joe said she reached out to the FBI after community nonprofit leaders raised significant concerns about it.
When asked about this, FBI spokesperson Laura Eimiller told LAist her agency doesn’t confirm or deny the existence of investigations.
Orange County’s code of ethics
Aside from its contracting policies, the county has a separate code of ethics that broadly bans giving special advantages to anyone. And it bans favoritism toward any official’s family member when it comes to being appointed into county service.
The county’s spokespeople have not answered questions from LAist about Do’s role in selecting his daughter’s mental health center and whether the county ethics code was followed.
Much of the fine was for Do not disclosing his role in fundraising that ultimately paid for work by Peter Pham, who later co-founded Do’s daughter’s mental health center.
Aaron Schrank
has been on the ground, reporting on homelessness and other issues in L.A. for more than a decade.
Published April 2, 2026 4:23 PM
Supervisor Holly Mitchell, L.A. County Department of Public Health Director Dr. Barbara Ferrer, actor Danny Trejo and others gathered at Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science in Wilmington.
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Aaron Schrank
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LAist
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Topline:
A new private foundation called The Fund for Advancing Public Health LA launched Thursday, aiming to raise $2 million to shore up county health services this year. It comes after the Department of Public Health closed seven clinics following $50 million in funding cuts since early 2025.
Who's behind it: The foundation's board includes Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer, the CEOs of Blue Shield of California Foundation and LA Care Health Plan, actors Sean Penn and Danny Trejo and more. Board member Saree Kayne of the R&S Kayne Foundation pledged $150,000 at the launch. Ferrer acknowledged it's "a hard day" when a public agency has to turn to private donors to fund basic services.
Deeper cuts ahead: The federal "Big Beautiful Bill" slashes Medi-Cal funding, and the department anticipates losing up to $300 million over the next three years. Federal dollars account for nearly half the public health budget.
Some government funding streams for L.A. County’s public health system are drying up, and officials are turning to private philanthropy to fill the gap.
A new privately funded foundation launched Thursday to strengthen public health services after $50 million in federal, state and local funding cuts to the county’s Department of Public Health since early last year.
“It is really a hard day for our community when we have to ask for private donations to fund a public good, but unfortunately, we've lost too much money to not take this important step,” said Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer.
In February, the county’s Public Health Department closed seven clinics, with six remaining open. About half of the patients seen in those clinics are uninsured, according to county officials. The department also cut hundreds of staff positions.
She said the fund will help the county maintain its basic public health infrastructure, including disease prevention, health promotion, environmental health, and emergency response efforts.
Other board members include several health insurance executives, as well as actors Sean Penn and Danny Trejo. Board member Saree Kayne of the R&S Kayne Foundation pledged $150,000 to the fund Thursday. Kayne said she hopes the donation encourages others to give.
The foundation aims to raise $2 million this year.
More cuts expected
L.A. County Supervisor Holly Mitchell said it’s crucial to have an alternative funding stream to protect services for the county's most vulnerable residents.
“We are saving public health,” Mitchell said. “This fund represents a new approach, one that brings together government philanthropy in the private sector to invest in community-based solutions, protect vulnerable populations, and strengthen our public health infrastructure.”
Officials say more public health cuts are coming, through the federal budget law known as the "Big Beautiful Bill," which slashes funding for Medi-Cal.
The county Department of Public Health anticipates losing up to $300 million in revenue over the next three years because of the federal budget bill and other potential funding freezes. Federal funding accounts for almost 50% of the public health budget, according to county officials.
Mitchell also led an effort to put a half-percent county sales tax increase to fund public health on the June ballot.
If approved by voters, that proposal, known as Measure ER, is expected to raise about $1 billion a year for county safety net health services, including about $100 million for the public health department.
Adolfo Guzman-Lopez
is an arts and general assignment reporter on LAist's Explore LA team.
Published April 2, 2026 4:20 PM
Water infrastructure such as pipes that feed water to drinking fountains and toilets at the Rose Bowl Stadium are getting an infusion of $1 million for fixes.
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Adolfo Guzman-Lopez/LAist
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Topline:
Rep. Laura Friedman today announced that she secured $1 million for improvements to the water infrastructure at the aging Rose Bowl Stadium as it prepares for a global starring role in the LA28 Olympics.
Why it matters: The pipes may be working fine — for now — but the fear of backed-up toilets as the world watches is an ongoing worry at the venue.
Why now: Public officials have been pushing for spending to improve Olympic venues and surrounding areas as L.A. and other municipalities roll out the red carpet for the world to attend the Olympics. But they’ve hit road bumps and detours.
The backstory: The Rose Bowl is 103 years old and public officials have committed to spending $200 million to upgrade the Pasadena venue over the next two decades.
The Rose Bowl in Pasadena may be a centenarian, but it’s holding up pretty well as it continues to host events on its way to a starring role in the LA28 Olympics.
But before it can host the soccer final, it needs fixes, especially to the infrastructure serving the bathrooms and drinking fountains. Fears of a toilet backup while in the world’s spotlight led Rep. Laura Friedman to seek federal funds for upgrades. On Thursday she announced she secured just over $1 million.
“Two years from now, athletes around the world are going to compete for gold right where we are standing. This is not the time to find out whether or not these pipes are up to the task,” Friedman said.
The planned work, she added, will lead to improved water flow capacity and water drainage, eliminating the risk of backups and emergency maintenance.
The funds came from the House of Representatives Interior and Environment subcommittee. The fixes, an official said, will be completed by the LA28 Olympics.
The funds, however, are a drop in the bucket when it comes to what’s needed to make needed improvements to the Pasadena venue.
Officials, including (left to right) Rose Bowl Legacy Foundation President Dedan Brozino, Deputy Fire Chief of the City of Pasadena Tim Sell, Congresswoman Laura Friedman, and Rose Bowl Stadium CEO Jens Weiden announced infrastructure funding for the 103-year old Rose Bowl.
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Adolfo Guzman-Lopez/LAist
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“Over the next 20 years there's about $200 million that we need to put in and that's everything from updating light fixtures to updating gas, water, wastewater lines, etc.,” said Dedan Brozino, president of the Rose Bowl Legacy Foundation, the nonprofit that supports the Rose Bowl stadium's preservation and enhancement.
Getting venues ready will be expensive
The money is a much-needed win at a time when elected officials in city, county, state and federal offices have been struggling to find the funds to get L.A.-area venues ready for the global Olympic stage in two years.
The entrance to a men's bathroom at the Rose Bowl.
Additionally, to save money, LA28 organizers moved Olympic diving to the Rose Bowl complex last year because it has two Olympic-sized pools, while the Exposition Park complex doesn't and would need expensive upgrades.
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Kevin Tidmarsh
is a producer for LAist, covering news and culture. He’s been an audio/web journalist for about a decade.
Published April 2, 2026 3:39 PM
This Cape vulture chick hatched March 14 at the L.A. Zoo.
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Courtesy Misha Body/LA Zoo
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Topline:
The zoo said it’s the first major breeding success in its Cape vulture habitat, which opened up last year. The chick now joins the zoo’s committee — that’s the name for a group of vultures.
About the chick: The chick hatched on March 14. The zoo opened its Cape vulture enclosure in February 2025 after years of planning to encourage the birds to roost and nest, welcoming a new breeding pair that year. When it grows to be an adult, it’ll have a wingspan of eight and a half feet.
About the enclosure: The L.A. Zoo said it spent years developing the vulture habitat, which was designed to mimic the vultures’ natural environment in South Africa. Dominick Dorsa II, the zoo’s director of animal care, said in a statement the successful hatching is “a testament to the design and construction” of the habitat.
How to see the chick: You can’t for the time being. Zoo officials are keeping it away from visitors until the chick matures, though you can still see adult Cape vultures at the zoo’s enclosure.
Though visitors will have to wait until the chick matures to see it in the enclosure, you can still take in the impressive eight and a half foot wingspan of the adult Cape vultures.
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Courtesy Jamie Pham/L.A. Zoo
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What zoo officials are saying: “Welcoming a Cape vulture chick is a thrilling moment for our team and a beacon of hope for African vultures,” the L.A. Zoo’s curator of birds Rose Legato said in a statement. “Vultures are one of nature's most misunderstood marvels, and I cannot wait for our guests to eventually watch this chick grow and learn just how vital they are to our ecosystems.”
About the species: Cape vultures are listed as a vulnerable species due to human activities and encroachment. According to the L.A. Zoo, African vultures are more closely related to eagles and hawks than vultures native to the Americas, like the California condors that just hatched last year at the L.A. Zoo.
Topline:
The Los Angeles Zoo said it’s the first major breeding success in its Cape vulture habitat, which opened up last year. The chick now joins the zoo’s committee — that’s the name for a group of vultures.
About the chick: The chick hatched March 14. The zoo opened its Cape vulture enclosure in February 2025 after years of planning to encourage the birds to roost and nest, welcoming a new breeding pair that year. When it grows to be an adult, it’ll have a wingspan of 8 1/2 feet.
About the enclosure: The L.A. Zoo said it spent years developing the vulture habitat, which was designed to mimic the vultures’ natural environment in South Africa and nearby countries. Dominick Dorsa II, the zoo’s director of animal care, said in a statement the successful hatching is “a testament to the design and construction” of the habitat.
How to see the chick: You can’t for the time being. Zoo officials are keeping it away from visitors until the chick matures, though you can still see adult Cape vultures at the zoo’s enclosure.
Though visitors will have to wait until the chick matures to see it in the enclosure, you can still take in the impressive eight and a half foot wingspan of the adult Cape vultures.
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Courtesy Jamie Pham/L.A. Zoo
)
What zoo officials are saying: “Welcoming a Cape vulture chick is a thrilling moment for our team and a beacon of hope for African vultures,” the L.A. Zoo’s curator of birds Rose Legato said in a statement. “Vultures are one of nature's most misunderstood marvels, and I cannot wait for our guests to eventually watch this chick grow and learn just how vital they are to our ecosystems.”
About the species: Cape vultures are listed as a vulnerable species due to human activities and encroachment. According to the L.A. Zoo, African vultures are more closely related to eagles and hawks than vultures native to the Americas, like the zoo's California condors that hatched last year.
What should have been a celebration for formerly incarcerated youth completing a reentry program at the Boyle Heights Arts Conservatory (BHAC) last week instead ended with seven students and two staff members detained by the Los Angeles Police Department, according to witnesses.
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Screenshot courtesy of BHAC
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Topline:
Last week, seven students and two staff members from the Boyle Heights Arts Conservatory (BHAC) were detained by the Los Angeles Police Department, according to witnesses. Now, BHAC staff and city officials are demanding answers from the LAPD, with some accusing officers of racial profiling.
What happened: According to the LAPD, officers observed a large group gathered on the corner of Cesar E. Chavez Avenue and Mott Street around 4:16 p.m. on March 26. The group, classified by police as an “aggressive gang group,” consisted of seven 18-year-old students from the BHAC’s Bridge Academy Movement (BAM) program and two BHAC staff members.
Allegations of racial profiling: In total, seven 18-year-old students and two staff members were detained. BHAC staff said one student and one staff member were taken to Hollenbeck Community Police Station and released less than two hours later after advocacy from community members and Councilmember Ysabel Jurado. According to Rene Weber, a teaching artist at the BHAC, the students had gone to coffee across the street at Milpa Kitchen as they often did. After Weber told the officers that all of the students were 18, they said they would investigate whether the group had any gang affiliation.
What is BAM? The BAM program pays formerly incarcerated youth to complete 200-250 hours in media and visual arts training to prepare them for creative careers. That day, students were set to showcase their work at the BAM program graduation for families and community members.
What should have been a celebration for formerly incarcerated youth completing a reentry program at the Boyle Heights Arts Conservatory (BHAC) last week instead ended with seven students and two staff members detained by the Los Angeles Police Department, according to witnesses.
Now, nearly a week later, BHAC staff and city officials are demanding answers from the LAPD, with some accusing officers of racial profiling.
According to the LAPD, officers observed a large group gathered on the corner of Cesar E. Chavez Avenue and Mott Street around 4:16 p.m. on March 26. Authorities then requested backup for what they described as “a large group surrounding officers,” LAPD Public Information Officer Tony Im said.
The group, classified by police as an “aggressive gang group,” consisted of seven 18-year-old students from the BHAC’s Bridge Academy Movement (BAM) program and two BHAC staff members.
The BAM program pays formerly incarcerated youth to complete 200-250 hours in media and visual arts training to prepare them for creative careers. That day, students were set to showcase their work at the BAM program graduation for families and community members.
Rene Weber, a teaching artist at the BHAC, had been with the students setting up for the ceremony minutes before the incident occurred.
According to Weber, the students had gone to coffee across the street at Milpa Kitchen as they often did, when staff were alerted that they were being detained.
Weber said he arrived to find students and a staff member pressed against the wall in handcuffs.
Video from the scene, taken by a staff member at the BHAC, shows multiple officers surrounding the group. At one point, an officer orders a person to “get on the wall” and displays a stun gun.
“No, none of that, these are kids right here,” the staff member replies.
Another staff member, Teotl Veliz, recorded a large police response.
“I counted 12 cop cars, that’s at least 25 cops, and they had a helicopter,” Veliz said. “It was just so comedic, tragically comedic, that it was on their graduation day too.”
Officers established a perimeter with yellow tape along the side of Ashley’s Beauty Salon as local business owners and witnesses gathered around the students.
“I was just incredibly disappointed in LAPD… because it became so apparent to everybody, all at the same time, that it was racial profiling and nothing else,” Veliz said.
Weber said officers gave shifting explanations for the stop at the scene, including blocking the sidewalk and possible underage vaping. After Weber told the officers that all of the students were 18, they said they would investigate whether the group had any gang affiliation.
Police have not responded to questions about what led officers to believe that the group was gang-affiliated.
Weber recalled pleading with the officers to let the group go and explaining to them that they worked across the street. Community members and local business owners also stepped in to vouch for the students.
“Our job is to help them gain a new perspective on life,” Weber said. “They’re coming out of juvenile detention and they’re turning their lives around. We can do our part in keeping them off the streets and keeping them doing better but what does it mean if they’re going to be profiled and treated exactly the same way?”
In total, seven 18-year-old students and two staff members were detained. BHAC staff said one student and one staff member were taken to Hollenbeck Community Police Station and released less than two hours later after advocacy from community members and Councilmember Ysabel Jurado.
The incident ultimately resulted in an infraction for smoking a cannabis e-vape on a public sidewalk, according to a photo of the infraction shared with the Beat. LAPD did not provide details about the people taken to Hollenbeck Station or the infraction.
The graduation ceremony was cancelled that night and is expected to be rescheduled in April.
“Graduation should be a moment of pride and possibility — not fear,” Jurado said in a statement. “I’m seeking answers about what occurred, and this underscores the need for stronger relationships between law enforcement and community organizations so moments like these are protected, not disrupted.”
Carmelita Ramirez‑Sanchez, the conservatory’s executive director, said she was grateful to the community and Jurado for advocating for the students’ release. Jurado met her at Hollenbeck Station within 20 minutes of being alerted to the incident, she said.
“They had store owners, señoras, barbers, that ran out and were trying to explain to the police who our kids were,” Ramirez‑Sanchez said.
Still, she said the incident tarnished what should have been a joyous celebration.
“I imagine that what this does is derail this entire idea that you can be an active participant in your own restorative growth,” she said.
