‘Steamrolled’ In Eviction Court (And Other Headlines)

As we inch further away from the end of COVID-era renter protections and closer to summer, eviction cases have been piling up in court.

Most tenants come to eviction court without lawyers

My colleague David Wagner reported on the chaotic nature of eviction court, focusing on a noticeable trend: Landlords usually show up with attorneys by their side, but renters often don’t, which leaves them in a very vulnerable position.

Tenants aren’t promised an attorney like those who are in criminal court. Kyle Nelson, a UCLA postdoctoral fellow who studies eviction trends, said renters who don’t have attorneys “tend to get steamrolled.”

David reports that eviction court hearings move fast and can often be disorientating and hard to follow for many tenants. On a typical day, many people lose their homes.

“Eviction court in a lot of ways is the front lines of the homelessness crisis,” Nelson said.

Read David’s story to learn more about how much of a difference having a lawyer makes in these proceedings and what government-funded support is out there for tenants.

There’s more news below — just keep reading. 

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• State Democrats are torn whether Sen. Dianne Feinstein should resign over her declining health. Frank Stolze spoke to Democrats during their convention in L.A. this weekend.
• Some families of incarcerated youth in Los Angeles are concerned about their move to the shuttered Los Padrinos juvenile hall in Downey after state regulators ordered L.A. County to transfer them out of two other troubled juvenile halls. My colleague Robert Garrova has more on why families are worried.
• In Orange County, there’s a reported 30,000 students who are experiencing homelessness. My colleague Jill Replogle reported on why that number was undercounted before, along with more startling findings in the O.C. grand jury report. 
• Hundreds of abused children in L.A. County wind up in hotels. How? Los Angeles Times’ Kathryn Hurd and Rebecca Ellis reported on how foster children are placed in rented rooms when there are no homes for them. (Los Angeles Times) 
• State Farm has stopped taking home insurance applications for California, citing inflation and "catastrophe exposure."
• My colleague Jacob Margolis has a problem in his yard: zombie weed called purple nutsedge. He has tips on how to fight it if you’re dealing with the same issue. 
• Popcorn suppliers are making a comeback as more people are growing comfortable again seeing films in movie theaters post-pandemic. My colleague John Horn reported on the bounce back of popcorn sales. 
• It’s hard to feed kids healthy food with all the easy-to-get processed food out here. NPR’s Maria Godoy has a guide on how you can cut back on the amount of  junk food your child eats. 
• Laugh your pants off at HARM: Live in Concert at The Elysian tonight. Interested in film industry history during the “Red Scare”? Attend the Public Tour — Blacklist: The Hollywood Red Scare at the Skirball Cultural Center throughout the week. Attention art fans: attend HUGH SYME | IMAGINE THIS exhibition at the Musichead Gallery on Thursday. Check out more of this week’s events here.
  

Wait! One More Thing...

Attention LGBTQuties: Here's Your 2023 LA Pride Guide

Parade participants attend Christopher Street West's L.A. Pride Parade in 2022 in Los Angeles, California.

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Tommaso Boddi

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Getty Images

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Thursday is the start of Pride Month, and it’s going to be quite a busy month of fun and learning. My colleague Caitlin Hernández has a comprehensive guide with all you need to know to get your celebration on across L.A. County. Caitlin has practical tips to ensure you have the best, most comfortable time of your life, as well the details about each event.

Even though there are two large Prides — WeHo Pride Weekend, which is put on by the city of West Hollywood and L.A. Pride, which happens in Hollywood — there are a plethora of regional festivals and marches to attend throughout the month of Pride, from the Eastside to Compton. You can check out the whole guide here.