Extra, Extra

Photo by ikebaha via the LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr

• Mayor Villaraigosa says the summertime anti-gang programs that ran in the city over the past few weeks made a difference. During Summer Night Lights violent crime went down 17% from last year.
• A suicide attempt gone awry is to blame for an explosion at a Covina residence. The man wishing to end his life had left the gas on for over an hour when the explosion occurred; once the fire was put out he was taken to the hospital and treated for his first and second degree burns.
• How 'bout let's not make a deal? That's what the judge said in the federal case against Anaheim Ducks owner Henry Samueli, on trial for stock backdating.
• Although a lot of our area schools' playgrounds look like parking lots, they are, in fact not. Perhaps the woman who drove her Honda onto a school's playground in San Juan Capistrano was confused.
• Here's on Pasadena pit bull with a bad rap now--the dog bit off a two-year-old's finger. Apparently the dog was induced to vomit, which allowed employees at an animal shelter to get a hold of the bit-off digit and get it to the hospital to have it sewn on.
• Talk about getting screwed! A pickpocket out in Hemet got away with a man's wallet, and when he tried to get it back one of her accomplices attacked him with a screwdriver. Insult to injury: As the thieves' vehicle sped off, the victim's foot was run over.
• More gentrification looks to be on tap for Downtown, as word has it that SaMo-based California Landmark will be working their real estate magic on the space on 14th between Olive and Hill. 150 condos are slated to go in, but no retail space.
• So what makes Huntington Beach residents get litigious against their city? Turns out it's the trees; nearly half of the claims filed against the city have to do with trees, namely their roots and how they interfere with sewage systems.