Early this morning, a man detonated a pipe bomb strapped to his chest in a New York City subway terminal. We check in with an NYC reporter for updates. We also update listeners on the Thomas Fire in Ventura County; host our weekly round table discussion on politics; and more.
Check in on Thomas fire, the 5th largest in Calif. history, and NY subway attack
The Thomas Fire that broke out a week ago in Ventura County is now the 5th largest in California history.
The fire has grown to 230,500 acres, or 360 square miles — nearly the size of San Diego. The fire is still just 15 percent contained and has already destroyed more than 750 buildings, burning six more in Carpinteria on Sunday. Guest host John Rabe speak with KQED’s Steve Cuevas, and reporter Stephanie O’Neill on the latest on the Thomas fire.
Also, AirTalk will check in from New York on the pipe bomb explosion in the subway. The suspect has been identified, and officials are investigating as an act of terrorism.
Guests:
Steven Cuevas, bureau chief of The California Report at KQED; he’s covering the Thomas Fire in Santa Barbara
Stephanie O’Neill, reporter in Ojai covering the Thomas fire; she tweets
Rebeca Ibarra, assistant producer and reporter at WNYC; she’s been following the story
Week in politics: Alabama race, Al Franken/Trent Franks resignations, more
We’re expecting another whirlwind week in politics this week.
Tomorrow is the long-anticipated special election between Republican candidate Roy Moore and Democratic candidate Doug Jones. Moore, of course, has been embroiled in a series of allegations of sexual assaults involving teenagers that date back decades ago. Moore has denied all of the accusations.
Guest host John Rabe speaks with an Alabama reporter about the Moore/Jones race, as well as our political analysts Jack Pitney and John Iadarola for analysis on the special election. We also parse through other political stories, including the resignations of Congressmen Al Franken and Trent Franks, and Megyn Kelly’s morning interview with women who have accused President Trump of sexual misconduct.
Guests:
John Hammontree, managing producer of Reckon Alabama, the investigative and in-depth reporting unit at AL.com, the news site that covers the state of Alabama; he tweets
Jack Pitney, professor of politics at Claremont McKenna College; he tweets
John Iadarola, host and creator of ThinkTank, part of The Young Turks Network; he also serves as a weekly co-host for The Young Turks weekly live show; he tweets
The LA Times on the 2014 secret Sheriff’s Dept. list of deputies with histories of misconduct
The Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department keeps a secret list of deputies with a history of misconduct.
Sheriff Jim McDonnell has been fighting to get this so-called “Brady list” into the hands of prosecutors. The issue is that these officers testify in court. And prosecutors need to tell criminal defendants if there’s evidence that would undermine any of these officer’s credibility as witness.
The Sheriff’s Deputies union has been pushing back against the Sheriff, saying that giving prosecutors access to the list would harm deputies and could cast doubt on criminal prosecutions that they’ve been involved in. The California Supreme Court has taken up the case and is likely to come down with a decision next year.
Very few people get access to this list, but last week, the L.A. Times did a long investigation of the 2014 list from the Sheriff’s Department. We talk to two of the reporters to hear what they learned.
We reached out to District Attorney Jackie Lacey and the Sheriff's Department. They were unable to join us on-air.
Guests:
Frank Stoltze, KPCC correspondent who covers criminal justice and public safety issues
Maya Lau, reporter on the metro desk covering the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department for the Los Angeles Times
Corina Knoll, staff writer at the Los Angeles Times
Founder of Homeboy Industries on redemption, second chances and the power of hope
Father Gregory Boyle knows a thing or two about second chances.
The Jesuit priest has built his life around offering them to those that most of the rest of society might overlook or dismiss. As the founder of Los Angeles’ Homeboy Industries, Father Greg offers a second lease on life to former gang members and the recently incarcerated, connecting ‘homies’ and ‘homegirls,’ as he calls them, with services like substance abuse treatment, tattoo removal, mental health counseling and employment services. And when you’ve spent almost three decades doing what he has, you get to see firsthand what someone can accomplish if given a second chance and a good nudge in the right direction.
In his latest book, “Barking to the Choir: The Power of Radical Kinship,” Father Greg looks back on the lessons he’s learned as he approaches 30 years at the helm of Homeboy Industries, which now boasts many social and businesses ventures as its own. He talks about the homies and homegirls whose stories have touched his life – the former gang member and inmate trying to kick his drug habit and start over, or the man trying to find a way to forgive his family after they abandoned him as a child – and how we can learn lessons from them about perseverance, compassion, forgiveness, and the power of unconditional love.
Father Greg will be speaking about his book in a series of events this week:
- Monday, 12/11 at All Saints Episcopal Church in Pasadena with Vroman’s at 7 p.m.
- Tuesday, 12/12 at Diesel Bookstore in Santa Monica at 6:30 p.m.
- Wednesday, 12/13 at St. Cross Episcopal Church in Hermosa Beach with Pages Bookstore at 7 p.m.
Guest:
Father Greg Boyle, founder of Homeboy Industries; author of the new book, “Barking to the Choir: The Power of Radical Kinship” (Simon & Schuster, 2017)