Emma G. Gallegos

We love hiking up in the hills, mountains, bluffs, canyons and ravines around Los Angeles, but we also know that things can go awry in Mother Nature.

When pictures surfaced of a 30-year veteran teacher blindfolding his students, feeding them semen and putting cockroaches on their faces, you had to wonder: why hadn't anyone besides a photo lab technician come forward to complain? Some of Mark Berndt's students did come forward to complain to their parents and counselors when they noticed red flags—but counselors and parents brushed their worries aside.

Looking for a drama-free music festival in Silver Lake? Silver Lake Jubilee announced the dates for its third festival.

A former lawyer won nearly $10,000 in a lawsuit against Honda in small-claims court. Heather Peters claimed that the car company promised her that she would save a ton of gas money by buying a 2006 Honda Civic hybrid that got 50 miles to the gallon—while knowing that claim wasn't true.

A gay U.S. Army veteran in Pasadena has filed a suit against the federal government for denying military benefits to her wife. In her suit, Cooper-Harris says that the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs is still denying benefits to same-sex couples that it offers to heterosexual couples in violation of her constitutional rights, according to City News Service.

The Los Angeles Police Department is asking for the public's help solving the murders of two Lincoln Heights women whose bodies were dumped on the side of the freeway—though the department insists the cases are not connected.

Guzman's mother Darlene Duran went on CNN's "Issues with Jane Velez-Mitchell" this week to discuss the case and the question of whether there could be a serial killer on the loose in Los Angeles. It's only at the very end of the segment that Duran offers up an interesting detail about the case that hasn't been reported elsewhere.

The city has its work cut out for it as it tries to craft its Stumptown-inspired proposed mural ordinance: how can it tell the difference between an advertisement and a work of art?

Warm up your xerox machines and ready your staple guns: next week the inaugural L.A. Zine Fest will be kicking off. During the week of February 5, zinesters and other DIYers will be teaching workshops on zine-making, button-making and screenprinting.

The company Kodak has been on the decline, well, ever since digital cameras showed up on the scene. Now that the company is in bankruptcy court, it's hoping to get out of its contract to pay $75 million over 20 years for the naming rights of the Kodak Theatre, which has hosted the Academy Awards ever since it opened in 2002.

A man who is accused of blindfolding his students, putting hissing cockroaches on their faces and spoonfeeding them his own semen appeared in court today. His arraignment was delayed until February 21, and his bail was raised from $2.3 million to $23 million.

In tonight's Extra, Extra, Burbank sells a tank for $1, conservative groups aren't big on Miley Cyrus these days and Occupy Oakland. Plus: Keep up with us on Facebook, and follow us on Twitter: @LAist @LAistFood @LAistSports.