Robert Garrova
I cover mental health at a time when L.A. — and the nation — is failing people who live with a serious mental illness. The L.A. County jail system is the de-facto mental health institution for our region, and people who want help with their mental health often can’t get it, even if they can afford it. I’ll work to help Angelenos understand how we got here and what reforms aim to change things. I’ll do this through the stories of people struggling with their own mental health and those trying to get care for a loved one.
My reporting has taken me to the edge of wildfires in California, the White Mountains of New Hampshire, steps away from a robot that’s now exploring Mars, and into the homes of countless Angelenos.
I’ve had many jobs in radio. I used to help produce and direct the flagship show for Marketplace, a daily business and economic news show. I also spent a couple years in the Northeast working as a reporter. I found my love of audio journalism while interning on LAist's (formerly KPCC’s) Off-Ramp in 2013.
I was born and raised in SoCal. I’m most proud when my journalism can help raise the voices of people struggling in this beautiful region stricken by inequality.
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Founded in the 1920s by psychiatric nurse Agnes Richards, a pioneer of compassionate mental health care, Rockhaven Sanitarium was run by women, for women. -
People with a mental illness or a substance use disorder or who are unhoused will be eligible for the pilot program if they’re arrested for certain misdemeanors or non-violent felonies.
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The Board of Supervisors directs staff to devise a plan to increase the number of teams of unarmed mental health clinicians available to deal with people going through a psychiatric crisis.
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After closing down during COVID-19, the “Post of the Stars” welcomed back more than 100 people for a Memorial Day ceremony.
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Closed during the pandemic, the Elysian Valley and Sepulveda Basin recreation zones are reopening this Memorial Day for hiking, fishing, kayaking and bird watching.
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David Ordaz, Jr. had a knife and was in the midst of a mental health crisis when a family member turned to law enforcement for help. Now, more than 20 months after he was killed, charges have been filed against one of the deputies involved.
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Last fall, the Board of Supes approved a proposal to dismantle juvenile halls and probation camps. Five months later, the money to fund the plan isn’t in the County CEO's initial budget proposal.
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The supervisors’ vote comes on the same day the National Lawyers Guild of Los Angeles released a new report detailing claims of “aggressive and continuous” harassment by deputies of two families.
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The bulk of the money — about $53 million — would go towards training, after three separate reports on the department’s handling of last summer’s demonstrations stressed that as a deficiency.
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Body cam video of the March 31 incident in which a deputy shot and wounded Isaias Cervantes only shows part of what happened. The family’s lawyer and disability rights advocates say the footage proves deputies needlessly escalated the situation.
