Lisa Brenner

Photo by East of West LA via LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr With performance opportunities down more than 50 percent in the last two years and competition at Mariachi Plaza so ferocious that it devolves periodically into fighting, a group of plaza veterans have joined forces to form a type of labor union in an effort to stop "what they call 'mariachi pirates' from slashing prices to half the going rate," according to...

A bear in his natural habitat, a Studebaker Griffith Park. Nothing says independence quite like dressing up a statue in flag garb and a fake beard. Please let's all take this moment to appreciate the splendor of freedom.

Photo by D. Anne via LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr Two suspects were arrested on suspicion of criminal threats and committing hate crimes after the parents of two Latino teenagers called authorities followin an incident allegedly involving skinheads "taunting and threatening" their kids in Ojai on June 30, according to LA Now. Ventura County Sheriff's Department officials said the two suspects, Daniel Dockery and Shauna Criner, drove up to two Latino teens and...

Photo by lowjumpingfrog via Flickr Federal agents are investigating a 25-foot boat carrying 200 pounds of marijuana that was found sinking near Rancho Palos Verdes on Friday, according to the Daily Breeze. The boat, not registered in the United States and with no passengers aboard, was spotted by a hiker around 10:30 a.m. as it was sinking in a fishing cove near the Point Vicente Interpretive Center and Terranea Resort. One bale of marijuana...

Tonight in Extra, Extra! Counterfeit money, Brit & K-Fed memories for sale, the "unrecognized crisis" of stoned driving?, and oh so much more. Plus: Keep up with us on Facebook, and follow us on Twitter: @LAist @LAistFood @LAistSports.

Photo by ElvertBarnes via LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr Unfortunately today brings more horrible news involving soccer and molestation. A 6-year-old boy at a Pico Rivera park for a soccer match was sexually molested in a public bathroom on Saturday, say officials, according to LA Now. The boy reported being molested at 2:37 p.m. in a stall of the restroom at Rio Hondo Park, where he had come for a soccer match, according...

Get Out! And into the swing at the Boyle Heights Carnival, get creeped at the Twin Peaks marathon, The Egyptian Stop(s) Making Sense, & sport Red, White, & Blue-eyed soul at the Hollywood Bowl with Hall & Oates & Fireworks.

Photo by Sister72 via Flickr In the face of a $408-million shortfall, the Los Angeles Board of Education approved its final budget on Thursday, "bridging a multimillion-dollar deficit in the state's largest school district with pay cuts and the layoffs of about 3,000 people, including some teachers, counselors and office workers," according to the LA Times. Members said they had no choice but to order the cuts because of declining revenue from the state...

With a middle finger to Paul Haggis and a hate-on for LA, John Nolte, the Editor-In-Chief of Andrew Breitbart's Big Hollywood website, is leaving Angel City after eight years, noting, "There is very little...my wife and I will miss about the city itself."

Photo by Mark Luethi via LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr After a prolonged political purgatory and departure into disrepair, LAX, with aspirations of again becoming the west's best international airport, is looking to spend $4 billion to upgrade utilities, expand taxiways for wide-bodied aircraft already in service, and make modernization improvements to the Bradley International and several domestic terminals. These improvements would mark the "first major expansion of passenger facilities since the Tom...

Photo by Tony Webster via Flickr A shooting near the 101 and Normandie early Saturday morning left a man and woman critically wounded, according to LA Now. The incident occurred about 4:05 a.m. on the 600 block of North Normandie Avenue near the 101 Freeway. According to police, the victims were reportedly standing outside of a building when a man got out of a vehicle and shot both of them. Both were transported to...

Photo by samproof via Instagram I mean really. Have you ever met a package that wasn't suspicious? Day two of the Anime Expo got animatedly dramatic on Saturday when the Los Angeles Police Department bomb squad cleared out the costumed from the South Hall lobby of the Los Angeles Convention Center. Reports of a "suspicious crate" were investigated by officers around 10:45 a.m. and "ultimately determined to be a basket belonging to a homeless...