Today on the show, we'll take a look at the ongoing investigation into the shooting at LAX. Then, KPCC's Alice Walton profiles Nury Martinez, the only woman on LA's City Council. In this week's Picture This, talk to photographer Michael Forster Rothbart's about his work in disaster areas in Chernobyl and Fukushima. Youth football coaches hope 'Heads Up' tackling technique will make the sport safer, plus much more.
How secure are America's airports?
Three people were wounded and one man was killed in Friday's shooting at LAX.
The alleged gunman, 23-year-old Paul Ciancia, remains sedated at Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center. Because of his condition, officials have yet to establish any motivation for the attack.
Meanwhile, flights have returned to normal at LAX but there's an increased security presence. Friday's incident has raised questions about just how secure airports actually are.
For more on this, we turn to Ralph Basham, who served as the first chief of staff of the TSA and founded the security advisory service, Command Consulting Group.
The children of Juárez left behind by violence
Warning: This story includes a disturbing description of drug violence and may not be suitable for younger listeners.
Many residents of the Mexican border city of Juárez are eager to say goodbye to one of the bloodiest eras in the city's history.
Juárez was the epicenter of a vicious drug war that resulted in the death of more than 10,000 people. Now things are improving, but echoes of the violence remain, particularly in the most marginalized communities.
Mónica Ortiz Uribe reports on one neighborhood's effort to look after its young people.
Nury Martinez on life at Los Angeles City Hall
There's been a lot of talk about the city of Los Angeles having just one woman in elected office. KPCC political reporter Alice Walton asked Nury Martinez what it's like to be the newest and only female member of the LA City Council.
Africa's Maasai people seek royalties for use of their name
Throughout Kenya and Tanzania, the Maasai people lead a nomadic life.
They're also one of most well-known indigenous groups in Africa, often dressed in bright red sheets wrapped around like togas, some sporting elaborate jewelry and homemade sandals. But that Maasai "style" is gracing more than these native people.
Global companies are using their imagery to design cars, pens, and purses, and the Maasai are looking to get a cut from those who are taking cues from their culture.
For more we're joined by Bloomberg Businessweek reporter Stephan Faris.
Picture This: Documenting life after a nuclear disaster
They're two major disasters at nuclear power plants that happened 25 years apart. In 1986, an explosion and fire at the Chernobyl plant in Ukraine sent huge amounts of radioactive material into the air. And in 2011, an earthquake off the eastern coast of Japan led to a series of events culminating in a nuclear meltdown at the power plant in Fukushima.
Check out more photos from Forster Rothbart's series on KPCC's AudioVision.
Both are the only two major nuclear accidents in history, and you'd think the area around the plants would be decimated. But travel around, and you'll see that life has gone on for many Ukrainians and Japanese who decided to stay nearby.
It brings up a question you may have wondered: "If my home, my community were victim to a major disaster, would I leave, too? Would I stay?"
That idea is the subject of a new ebook by photographer Michael Forster Rothbart called, "Would You Stay?" documenting his time with the people living so close to where disasters struck.
"It's so hard for us to think about in this country because we're so transient, moving from year to year," said Forster Rothbart, "But in a place like Ukraine and Japan, people have lived in the same village for generations -- sometimes the same house. How can you even imagine uprooting when your ancestors are there with you?"
On The Lot: Diversity in Hollywood, Disney animation and more
Time for On The Lot, our weekly look at the business of entertainment with Rebecca Keegan of the LA Times.
We start with a study of racial diversity in popular film. It's a pretty big study, and the news is not all that great. What's the headline here?
There were a lot of interesting breakdowns in this study, including the fact that although just a little over half those who go to the movies are white, more than three-quarters of all speaking roles went to white actors. And Latinos — who are big movie goers — they were way down the list on speaking roles, right?
The study found a strong connection between the race of the film's director and the race of the cast. Tell us about that? Seems like this is going to be a long-term problem, since directors remain overwhelming white and male, right?
Why did the study not factor in independent films? The movie biz is about making money. How much it can it be counted on to spark racial diversity at the expense of profits?
Moving on to movie music, you profiled a songwriting duo that has a what looks to be a hit in "Let It Go" for the upcoming Disney film, "Frozen."
For animated films, especially around the holidays, a great song can not make the movie memorable but actually help move the story along by leaps and bounds. Before it became "Let it Go", the song had an interesting description for what the directors wanted it to be.
Can Hollywood help encourage people to embrace the Affordable Care Act?
The California Endowment recently provided a $500,000 dollar grant to help TV writers and producers work plot lines about health care reform into their programming.
The year-and-a-half-long grant will be used for briefings with staff from television shows and to track health overhaul-related depictions on prime time and Spanish-language television.
For more on this, we're joined by Alex Ben Block, senior editor at the Hollywood Reporter.
Calif. prison realignment: Many women are serving more time in custody (photos)
Caryn Quincey holds up a photo she keeps in her jail cell at “Twin Towers” lockup in Downtown Los Angeles.
"Different, right?" she said.
The photo was taken a few days before she went to jail on a conviction related to financial fraud. That was two years ago, but in the photo, Quincey looks about 10 years younger. But, she says, things could be worse.
"I just want to give a shout-out to the woman who did my Botox before coming in here," Quincey said. "It's held up well."
She is one of thousands of women convicted of lower-level felonies who've been sent to L.A.'s County jails under AB 109, the state's prison realignment law passed in 2011. Meant to alleviate overcrowding in California's state prisons, realignment put counties in charge of punishing people for lower level drug and property crimes.
KPCC crime reporter Rina Palta has the story.
FAQ: Looking at the effects of California's prison realignment program
About two years ago, Californians were introduced to a new term: realignment. It is the policy that shifted responsibility for thousands of criminals from the state’s prisons to the local level. KPCC’s Rina Palta has been covering realignment for years and created this handy FAQ:
Q: How did all of this get started again?
A: In May 2011, the US Supreme Court upheld a lower court’s order to reduce overcrowding in California’s state prison system. The court determined that California’s prisons were so overcrowded that it was impossible for the state to provide inmates with adequate mental health and medical care. The court ordered California to significantly lower its prison population.
Q: Why are prisons so overcrowded?
A: Nationwide, the prison population has skyrocketed over the last four decades. In 1971, there were about 200,000 people in federal and state prisons in the US. In 2009, it reached a peak of about 1.6 million. That’s been true in California as well—tougher sentencing laws, the war on drugs, all fed lots of people into the prison system. In this state, they tried to keep up with the population by building dozens of prisons. But ultimately, the money ran out, and there wasn’t enough space to safely accommodate everyone.
Q: What exactly is realignment?
A: When California got the order to rapidly reduce prison overcrowding, the state had two options: build a bunch of prisons to increase capacity or reduce the prison population. Because of time constraints, budget problems, and the Great Recession, the state opted to cut the prison population. And it did so by telling county governments to take over punishing certain kinds of crimes, like drug crimes and property crimes. The hope was this would shrink the prison population and also inspire county governments to come up with new ways of dealing with people that might help cut the state’s high recidivism rate.
Q: Has it worked?
A: Yes and no. The prison population has shrunk, but not quite enough to meet court-ordered deadlines. Because of that, California Governor Jerry Brown has asked the court for extensions. He’s gotten minor ones, but California needs a supplemental plan for about 10,000 inmates. Brown has contracted for thousands of prison beds in private facilities in other states. He’s also negotiating with the attorneys who brought the original lawsuit. They are trying to forge a plan that relies more on rehabilitation to reduce the numbers of people cycling in and out of prison. If they can’t come to an agreement, Brown may have to send more inmates to counties or release inmates early onto state parole.
Q: And what have been some of the side effects?
A: There’s a real lack of data so far on what this policy has led to. But everyone has a theory. A lot of law enforcement think the policy will lead to higher crime rates. There’s a lot of county jail operators who are dealing with overcrowding problems now that they’ve taken in more people. There has been some innovative work being done across the state in terms of figuring out alternatives to locking people up. Whether those things are working well or not is something we’ll learn over time. And then there have been some really high profile crimes committed by people who’ve been sentenced under the law. So there’s a lot of disjointed things happening—and we’re finally starting to see academics and policy makers putting it all together to evaluate the policy overall.
Another interesting side effect has been the impact on women prisoners.
Dept. of Corrections Secretary Jeffrey Beard's constant crisis control
Corrections Secretary Jeffrey Beard has faced many controversial issues, from a widespread hunger strike to a never-ending battle with federal judges over control of California’s prisons.
But this isn’t Beard’s first go-round with those controversial issues. For the California Report, Scott Detrow has the story.
English language learners demand slang; teachers try to keep up
Even with English instruction starting as early as pre-school in some countries, thousands of foreign students still come to the US hoping to master a more natural speaking style.
KPCC's Josie Huang finds out how teachers keep up with the latest slang.
Starfish dying from mysterious 'wasting' disease off the West Coast
"Sea star wasting disease" is affecting large numbers of starfish up and down the west coast. The illness begins with a skin lesion which quickly turns these beautiful beings into goo.
Here to tell us more is Pete Raimondi, chairman of the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at the UC Santa Cruz Long Marine Lab.
Low power radio stations vie for FCC licenses
If you've ever wanted to start your own radio station, this is your big chance.
The Federal Communications Commission is now taking applications for small stations, with a broadcast range of less than ten miles in most cases. Advocates and applicants for Low Power FM Radio —or LPFM, as it's know — are hoping to create dozens of hyperlocal stations across California.
From the California Report, Andrew Stelzer has the story.
Third floor of CA governor's mansion opens its doors for first time in decades
Governor Jerry Brown has bucked many trends as Governor of California but the one many people won't understand is his decision not to live in the Governor's mansion.
The three-story, 30-room victorian home was built in Sacramento in 1877. Governors haven't lived there since the 1960s and it has since become a historical landmark and tourist attraction.
Tonight, the mansion opens its doors and, for the first time in decades, welcomes visitors to its third floor.
For more on its significance, we're joined by Al Howenstein, the chairman of the California State Historic Governor's Mansion Foundation, a non-profit that raises money to support the mansion.
Actress Rita Wilson brings her sultry vocals to the Walt Disney Concert Hall
The actress Rita Wilson is mostly known for playing supporting roles in the films like "Sleepless In Seattle", "It's Complicated" and on TV’s "The Good Wife".
But ever since she was a young girl, she's had aspirations to sing. She'll be doing just tomorrow night at Walt Disney Concert Hall in a performance called Rita Wilson and Friends.
Take Two's Alex Cohen recently had a chance to chat with her about her musical career and her earliest acting gigs.