Today on the show, we talk with reporter Sam Quinones about the resurgence of heroin in the US. Then, a rise in Texas border apprehensions poses humanitarian need. Plus, KPCC reports that the city of LA spends millions of taxpayer dollars on police union activities, our Tuesday Reviewsday critics look a new music and much more.
Philip Seymour Hoffman's death highlights resurgence of heroin in the US
Authorities are still investigating the official cause of Phillip Seymour Hoffman's death, but we know the actor struggled with addiction and investigators have confirmed the presence of heroin in his apartment.
It's a growing problem in this country, and heroin use here has doubled since 2007. According to the DEA, heroin seizures in New York State are up nearly 70 percent over the last four years.
For more on why use of the drug is on the rise, we turn now to LA Times reporter Sam Quinones, who's currently working on a book about the recent heroin surge.
Rise in border apprehensions shifts to South Texas
While apprehension rates along the US-Mexico border remain the lowest in decades, new numbers released by the U.S. Border patrol show that there’s a significant shift in where border crossers are headed and where they're coming from.
In Texas’ Rio Grande Valley the number of apprehensions has tripled since 2010, straining resources and revealing a troubling trend: a rising number of unaccompanied children from conflict zones in Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador.
"The murder rates have really exploded, especially in Honduras," said Melissa del Bosque, reporter with the Texas Observer, who also writes the blog La Línea.
According to new figures released by U.S. Border Patrol at the end of January, apprehensions in the Rio Grande Valley rose to 154,453 for Fiscal Year 2013. That number surpasses those apprehended in Tucson by nearly 35,000. In the Rio Grande Valley, juveniles make up 26,027 of those apprehended, compared to 10,675 in Tucson.
"That has been the most surprising thing," said del Bosque, who added that typically the number of children would be around 7,000 a year. "Last year it shot up to 25,000. Now Homeland Security is estimating maybe 60,000 kids."
That poses challenges to humanitarian services, said del Bosque.
In the Rio Grande Valley, those coming from countries other than Mexico, make up 96,829 of those apprehended, or about 63 percent.
One figure the Border Patrol doesn't track, though, is how many are seeking political asylum, said del Bosque. And there are indications that those applications are on the rise -- especially among Mexicans. With the current unrest in Michoacán, said del Bosque, that also could increase.
Nationwide, the number of apprehensions was 420,789 last year, marking the third year out of the last five that the number surpassed the 400,000 mark.
Why does the city of LA spend millions of taxpayer dollars on police union activities?
In the past three years, the city of Los Angeles has spent about $3 million in taxpayer funds to pay the salaries of nine LAPD officers. These officers work full-time for the police department's union.
KPCC's Alice Walton has been investigating this story and she joins us now to talk about the details.
California struggles to provide rehabilitative treatment programs for prisoners
A panel of federal judges may soon issue an order outlining steps California must take to relieve prison crowding.
The state has until mid-April to reduce the population by around 6,000 inmates. But Governor Jerry Brown wants more time. His reforms include increasing cell capacity, expanding parole eligibility and investing in substance abuse programs, so fewer felons return to prison.
The California Report's Michael Montgomery — in collaboration with the Center for Investigative Reporting — says when it comes to providing treatment for prisoners, the state is struggling.
Law to protect transgender students tested in rural school
California students who don't identify with the gender of their birth have new rights under a state law that took effect January 1.
The School Success and Opportunity Act allows transgender students to use bathrooms and locker rooms that correspond to their gender identity. Opponents are challenging the new policies, and they'll find out next month if their referendum to repeal the law qualified for the November ballot.
We visit one rural town that got a head start on accommodating transgender kids. For the California Report, Ana Tintocalis has the story.
Tech News: Microsoft's new CEO, Facebook's new app
Today is a big day for two of the biggest tech companies in the world: Facebook and Microsoft. Microsoft has a new CEO, Bill Gates is being replaced as chairman, and Facebook turns 10 years old today. In conjunction with that milestone, they've released a new app called Paper.
For more on all this, we're joined now by Devindra Hardawar from Venture Beat.
Tuesday Reviewsday: Band of Horses, Uncle Tupelo, Broken Bells, Marissa Nadler
Time for Tuesday Reviewsday, our weekly new music segment. Joining us this week is Shirley Halperin, music editor at The Hollywood Reporter and Chris Martins, senior writer at Spin Magazine.
Shirley's Picks:
Artist: Uncle Tupelo
Album: "No Depression: Legacy Edition"
Release Date: Feb. 4
Songs: "I Got Drunk" "Sin City"
Uncle Tupelo was a punk band from the 1990s that loved country music, which at the time was an anomaly. Although there were bands that sounded like that, UT distilled it into this snarl, heard on their 1990 debut "No Depression." The album introduced two rising voices, Jeff Tweedy and Jay Farrar — the Lennon/McCartney of alt-country. Tweedy, who would go on to much greater fame and success with Wilco, is in the background here almost in Farrar's shadow. Jay Farrar, who went on to form Son Volt, was sort of seen as the star apparent.
Alt-country became a catch-all for bands that looked to country as an influence, everyone from Drive By Truckers to Deertick. This legacy edition has like 22 extra tracks and one of the tracks I was happy to see was this B-side to "I Got Drunk," a cover of the Flying Burrito Bros. Pretty true to the original but its significance is in connecting Gram Parsons and Cosmic American music and staking their claim to that.
The opposite of the pummelling "I Got Drunk and I Fell Down," which is what Gram Parsons would've done anyway. There was no Americana back then, like the Minor Threat of alt-country, it was an ethos and a blueprint for people to follow. In 1995, it even inspired a magazine.
Artist: Band of Horses
Album: "Acoustic at the Ryman"
Release Date: Feb. 11
Songs: "Neighbor"
A band that started in Seattle, now based in South Carolina, BOA were initially part of a particular wave of SubPop bands like The Shins, Fleet Floxes and Band of Horses. Those bands all had multi-layered harmonies, and that reverb on the vocals. Pretty, introspective, it's sensitive guy music, but rooted in Americana.
They've released four albums and this is their first proper live album recorded at the Ryman in Nashville. Ten tracks, all acoustic, soft, very sparse where you get to hear how good their vocals are. Their songs tens to veer into Crazy Horse territory , which is awesome, but you won't hear that on this album. No "Laredo" or "Is There a Ghost" or my personal favorite, "Ode to LRC." Who knows what bands think when they do these selective live cuts, but they have been making me want to dig back into those albums so perhaps there's a more subliminal plan in play.
The album's release will be commemorated by a 13-date run of special acoustic performances, commencing on the its February 11 street date at the Wilshire Ebell Theatre and concluding March 5 at — where else? — The Ryman itself.
Chris's PiCKs
Artist: Broken Bells
Album: "After the Disco"
Release Date: February 4
Songs: "After the Disco" "Holding on for Life"
I had just wrapped my first year of college when the Shins' "Oh, Inverted World" dropped, and I graduated the year Zach Braff's "Garden State" movie came out. All of which is to say, I'm a sucker for James Mercer's super sweet sensitive falsetto cooing. And after a four-year break, his seemingly one-off project with megaproducer Danger Mouse is back.
Broken Bells second LP "After the Disco" (titular track). I can hear the cries of hypocrisy coming after I slammed Daft Punk's "Random Access Memories," but this isn't a disco album per se. Yeah, there's that bass groove, and you're gonna hear something that sounds a lot like the Bee Gees on the next sample, but the title is key. This is the hangover.
They co-write the lyrics, Mercer is married, and Brian Burton is very, very single. And I'm sure they're using the titular party as a metaphor for relationships or something. But I can't help but feel like this is also a message to all of the disco revivalists out there: it's over. Turn down. Collect yourself. Move on. Aurally, it's actually a lot of '80s influences — some rockist elements, but very sci-fi synths in their pop.
Makes sense, since they've also made a short film to go with the thing starring Kate Mara and Anton Yelchin. These guys are firmly in the stratosphere, drifting as they contemplate our lonely existence.
Artist: Marissa Nadler
Album: July
Release Date: February 4
Songs: "Dead City Emily" "Was It a Dream"
Marissa Nadler is a Boston-based singer-songwriter who trades in dark themes and even darker music. This is her seventh album, named after seventh month of the year, but it doesn't sound like any summer I've ever had. The most common words that come up in describing her music: haunted, ghostly, death, Hades, smoke.
Her first album, in 2004, was called "Ballads of Living and Dying," and included a song using Edgar Allan Poe's "Annabel Lee" as lyrics. She's actually earned cred in the experimental metal world - sang on the final album by black metal shut-in Xasthur. With July, she's supported by producer Randall Dunn, who's resume includes mighty bands like Sunn O))) and Earth.
Result is beautiful, eerie, and a bit cinematic. It makes sense she's on the Sacred Bones label, home to music by David Lynch and Jim Jarmush. There are strings and synth on the album, but it's all texture. Subtle, stark, supporting Nadler and guitar. just don't call it folk.
Is trade between US and Mexico on the rise?
This week, the U.S. Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker is visiting Mexico City and Monterrey.
We’ll look at the top issues on the agenda and the state of US-Mexico trade with Shannon O’Neil, senior fellow for Latin America studies at the Council on Foreign Relations and author of “Two Nations Indivisible: Mexico, the United States, and the Road Ahead."
Mexico on the way to pass Japan in US auto sales this year
Mexico is set to surpass Japan in car exports this year, with 1.69 million cars made in Mexico expected to be purchased in the U.S. Bloomberg reporter Brendan Case, who wrote about Mexico's auto production surge, joins the show with more.
Teachers fear agricultural education programs will wither away
Teaching kids technology in the classroom is one of the biggest initiatives around the country.
But in the Inland Empire, teachers prize their agricultural education programs, too, and they're worried that they might wither away. Governor Brown's proposed budget would shift grant money for these classes into a general fund. That could gut a program like Norco High School's.
Ag teacher Robin Grundmeyer explains that the money is needed to give her kids hands-on experience.
"In order to get supplies and materials for our students, we obviously need extra funding so students aren't just reading out of a book and watching video clips," says Grundmeyer, "Students really learn what they're doing."
Out of the $4.1 million reserved for agricultural programs in the state, Norco High School currently receives nearly $20,000 in aid. That's then matched by the school district.
Grundmeyer says it's a modest amount to help her students towards a viable career path.
"Our country's in desperate need of welders and plumbers and electricians," she says, "and we're meeting a need that the colleges and universities are sometimes lacking because they're not teaching that hands-on application and theory."
Drought relief tug-of-war between Sacramento and Washington, DC
Last week President Obama personally phoned Governor Brown to get an update on the state of drought emergency in California. But when it comes to getting federal assistance for our water woes, Governor Brown is saying thanks but no thanks.
For more on the tug-of-war between Sacramento and Washington D.C. over drought relief, we're joined by Michael Doyle, reporter in the Washington Bureau of McClatchy Newspapers, and Dan Walters, columnist with the Sacramento Bee.
LAPD body cameras: 90-day test seeks to answer key questions to create new policy
About 30 Los Angeles patrol officers are testing body cameras that record interactions with the public. Supporters say it's an impartial tool that can help resolve complaints filed against officers.
But some worry about potential Consitutional issues, like violating an individual's right to privacy. KPCC's Erika Aguilar says the LAPD will use a six-month trial period to answer some of these concerns.
YouTube video accusing former vice principal of sexual assault leads to charges
Felony sexual assault charges were filed Monday against Andrea Michelle Cardosa, a former vice principal at Alhambra High School. She has been charged with 16 counts of aggravated sexual assault and lewd acts on a child under the age of 14.
RELATED: Abuse allegations in YouTube video lead to charges
This comes after the release of a YouTube video where Cardosa is confronted over the phone by a young woman who says she was sexually abused by her years ago as one of her students at a Riverside middle school.
The video was viewed on YouTube over a million times in one week, and since its release, a second victim has come forward. Edward Imwinkelried, a professor at the UC Davis School of Law, joins the show to discuss the case.