Frank Stoltze
I came to L.A. as a very young reporter on New Year’s Day, 1991. Two months later, four LAPD officers were caught on videotape beating Rodney King. A year later, the night before the riots/rebellion broke out, I was in the Nickerson Gardens housing project in Watts at an extraordinary rally of rival gangs that had brokered a truce.
Today, I cover Civics and Democracy in L.A. As we face perhaps the greatest threat to democracy since the Civil War, I seek to engage with communities and examine the hurdles to becoming involved in the political process. I cover the various social and political movements seeking to improve the lives of Angelenos. I also cover anti-democratic forces.
And after all these years, I still need to figure out the best donut shop in L.A. The best torta. The best (not fanciest) coffee. Best of all I get to meet the smartest, most interesting people and bring their voices to you.
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George Gascón had previously banned charging juveniles as adults in all cases, sparking heavy criticism. Now he says he's open to it in crimes involving "severe violence." -
Enrique Cristobal was released in 2020 after serving 17 years for attempted murder, only to be immediately detained by immigration agents because he came to the U.S. illegally with his parents when he was 14.
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Spurred mostly by Sheriff Alex Villanueva's refusal to enforce the vaccination mandate, county supervisors took a step towards giving the Director of Personnel the power to fire or otherwise discipline county employees who defy the order.
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Motivated by allegations that Sheriff Alex Villanueva has abused his power, the groups want the Board of Supervisors to change the county charter so an elected sheriff could be removed by a four-fifths vote of the board.
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L.A. County Sheriff Alex Villanueva raised more than $1.2 million for his re-election campaign last year — more than all six of his challengers combined.
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In response to a letter from county counsel, Attorney General Rob Bonta's office has agreed to review the sheriff's investigation of the inspector general and others.
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The effort to remove the progressive district attorney has until July 6 to gather more than 566,000 valid signatures from registered voters.
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The powerful union representing deputy sheriffs sponsored the Wednesday night debate. You can still see the replay.
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Sgt. Rosa Gonzalez — who won a $1 million settlement in 2019 after suing over alleged sexual harassment by the Banditos — says because of her testimony and her reporting of discrimination in the personnel department, she was moved into a less prominent job with fewer career opportunities.
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Top officials did not comment directly on the incident at a Burlington store two days before Christmas, but they discussed how officers are trained to carefully determine whether an active shooter situation is occurring before taking aggressive actions.
