Zach Behrens

Photo by stevendamron via Flickr With the federal government calling distracted driving an "epidemic" -- and for good reason, 16% of U.S. roadway deaths in 2009 were thanks to distracted driving -- and one study concluding that texting while driving is up, several policing agencies in Los Angeles County will be keeping a watchful eye on where drivers are looking on Tuesday. "You've been warned," tweeted the California Highway Patrol's Southern Division about a...

Photo by girl42 via LAist Featured Photos on Flickr October isn't only about Halloween, it's also about walking. Yes, happy Walktober! "The Eastside has emerged as a center of Los Angles culture and entertainment, and music is at the heart of the scene," says Jennifer Cuevas in her first In the Mix column about Eastside events. Most notably this weekend is the Eagle Rock Music Festival. Beaches near Ballona Creek have been reopened after...

Photo by Ray_from_LA via Flickr Last Friday it was canceled for the rest of the year, only to be reborn into a new quartly weekend-long daytime event. Then on Monday it is was back -- at least for October as boardmembers figured out funding. And today, it was announced that funding was found and that the Downtown Art Walk will continue as it does every month, attracting 20,000 people to the streets, galleries and...

Mega conference Comic-Con will stay put in San Diego through at least 2015, organizers announced last night. Officials in both Anaheim and Los Angeles were hoping they could woo the conference, which would be a major boost to tourism. The four-day summer event draws 125,000 people annually. Although the bids were confidential, rumors surfaced that L.A. offered the convention space at no cost. Even if the Comic-Con moved to L.A., some believe downtown doesn't...

Photo by pointnshoot via Flickr California's celebrity governor had no problem signing this bill into law yesterday. AB 2479 by Karen Bass (D - Los Angeles) takes some illegal tactics used by paparazzi and upgrades them to misdemeanors. "Existing law makes it a crime to willfully interfere with the driver of a vehicle or with the mechanism thereof so as to affect the driver's control of the vehicle, to follow another vehicle more closely...

Yoko Ono and her Plastic Ono Band are playing tonight and tomorrow at the Orpheum Theater. This is a big deal, as she's bringing in some very special guests: Nels Cline and Iggy Pop tonight and Lady Gaga and Mirror/Dash on Saturday. The band is also playing with Cornelius, Perry Farrell, Carrie Fisher, Vincent Gallo, RZA, Mike Watt and others (see the full line-up on this poster here). To enter our contest, enter via...

Photo by mondolind via LAist Featured Photos on Flickr In Los Angeles County, there are 689,307 people who choose to vote by mail permanently. Then add those of the 4.3 million total registered voters who choose to do it, but haven't signed up for the permanent program. If you're not already automatically getting ballots, you can, starting next Monday and through October 28th, can request a vote-by-mail ballot for the November 2nd election. To...

At a previous City Council meeting in Van Nuys | Photo by alexbcthompson via LAist Featured Photos Does this mean the budget is fixed? For a few years, the Los Angeles City Council met in the San Fernando Valley monthly to add great accessibility -- after all, the Valley is nearly half the physical size of the city -- but then the idea was shelved due to budget cuts earlier this year. Well, it's...

Be careful out there, the wild weather continues in areas surrounding Los Angeles. Lightning strikes in Orange County have caused at least three tree fires and Fullerton community college to close after a strike hit campus, knocking out power. Out in Fontana, a man was injured by lightning that apparently struck a crane he was touching. He survived, according to the Press-Enterprise....

Photo via the Arcadia Police Department Have you ever been to a public school during drop-off or pick-up time? It's a madhouse and parents are willing to break the law -- great example, guys! -- to get in and out fast. In the Los Angeles suburb Aracadia of the San Gabriel Valley, some members of the community and police have had enough. Today the city's police department is reminding the public that they have...