Courts/Rulings & Lawsuits | | |
Appeals court blocks enforcement of California ID law for federal officers
A federal appeals court on Wednesday blocked enforcement of a California law requiring law enforcement officers to wear identification, saying states lack the authority to impose such rules on federal agents. The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals granted the federal government’s request for a preliminary injunction, preventing the law from taking effect while the case against it continues to play out in court.
Politico
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Defendant should not have been coerced into giving up entrapment defense
A defendant who was convicted of exchanging sexually explicit electronic messages with someone he thought was a 13-year-old girl -but was actually a vice detective - was wrongfully put to the choice of waiving his entrapment defense or having his conviction of a sex offense 50 years earlier brought up, Div. Three of the Fourth District Court of Appeal held yesterday.
Metropolitan News-Enterprise
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OC judge overturns $2.9 million verdict in Santa Ana police retaliation lawsuit
An OC Superior Court judge overturned a $2.9 million jury verdict in favor of former Santa Ana Police Administrative Manager Rita Ramirez after she alleged she was unlawfully retaliated against for refusing to pick sides between two feuding police factions. Superior Court Judge Nathan Vu this month granted city officials’s motion for a judgement notwithstanding a verdict - vacating her awarded millions, after the court found there was insufficient evidence to support the jury’s verdict.
Voice of OC
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CAA victory spreads as court strikes down L.A. rent-triggered relocation mandate
A California appeals court has struck down the City of Los Angeles’s rent-increase-triggered relocation assistance requirement, delivering another major win for the protections afforded to rental housing providers under the Costa-Hawkins Rental Housing Act. The Los Angeles ordinance required housing providers to pay relocation assistance when tenants chose to move out after a rent increase above a specified threshold - even in units that are exempt from local rent control under Costa-Hawkins, such as single-family homes, condominiums and units built after 1978.
California Apartment Association
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Officers awarded $14.6M after jury finds LAPD retaliated against them for reporting training safety issues
A Los Angeles Superior Court jury found that the L.A. Police Department retaliated against four officers who attempted to raise concerns about unsafe working conditions at a firearms training facility. As part of their verdict, the jury awarded the four nearly $15 million, according to Matthew McNicholas, the lead attorney for the officers.
Los Angeles Times
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Judge grants dismissal motion in ‘highly unusual’ case
Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Sam Ohta, in what he termed “a highly unique case,” has granted a motion by the office of District Attorney Nathan Hochman to dismiss, in the interests of justice, voluntary manslaughter charges brought under the administration of his predecessor against two Torrance police officers. The shooting by the officers, Matthew Concannon and Anthony Chavez, took place on Dec. 9, 2018.
Metropolitan News-Enterprise
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Moms ask Ninth Circuit for religious exemption to California school vaccination requirement
Four mothers turned to a Ninth Circuit panel Friday to reinstate their lawsuit challenging California’s prohibition on religious exemptions to the state’s requirement that children need to be vaccinated against a slew of childhood diseases to attend school.
Courthouse News Service
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Drivers say Uber is not complying with California’s Proposition 22
A nonprofit that advocates for app-based drivers sued Uber Monday, claiming the ride-hailing company is skirting its obligations under Proposition 22 while simultaneously using the law to classify workers as independent contractors. The plaintiff, Rideshare Drivers United, which represents more than 20,000 app-based drivers, including Uber drivers, says Uber has failed to comply with certain conditions of Proposition 22, including the requirement that the company provide an appeals process for terminated drivers.
Courthouse News Service
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Bumping prospective juror leads to reversal of conviction
The Sixth District Court of Appeal has reversed the felony conviction of a man for driving under the influence based on the prosecution’s peremptory challenge to a Hispanic prospective juror who recounted a negative experience with law enforcement but said he would be fair and impartial, finding inadequate the judge’s explanation of why he was honoring the challenge.
Metropolitan News-Enterprise
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Woodland Hills woman nabbed at LAX as suspected arms dealer tied to Iranian spies
An Iranian national was taken into custody at Los Angeles International Airport on Saturday night and charged with brokering deals for Iranian drones, bombs, and millions of rounds of ammunition bound for Sudan, federal prosecutors say.
Los Angeles Magazine
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Man charged with attempted murder in stabbing of Long Beach police officer
A man has been charged with attempted murder in connection with the stabbing of a Long Beach police officer last week, prosecutors said Thursday. Arturo Scott Fernandez, 44, of Torrance, was arrested last Friday following the incident, which was captured on surveillance footage and police body-worn cameras, according to the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office.
NBC4
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D4vd case: Singer's phone contained 'significant amount' of child pornography, prosecutors say
A "significant amount" of child pornography was discovered on a phone belonging to singer D4vd, who's accused of murdering a teen girl, prosecutors said during a hearing on Thursday. The hearing was a procedural check-in as prosecutors and defense attorneys determine next steps in the case involving the death of the Celeste Rivas Hernandez. Thursday also marks one year since she was last known to be alive.
ABC7
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43 Mexican mafia gangsters arrested on indictments alleging racketeering, drug trafficking, kidnapping, assault, and murder
Twenty-five members and associates of the Mexican Mafia prison gang were arrested today on three federal indictments charging them with committing scores of crimes in Orange County, including kidnapping, extortion, trafficking fentanyl and methamphetamine, running illegal gambling businesses, and murdering a victim last year at a gang-controlled Anaheim motel.
U.S. Attorney’s Office Press Release
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Correctional officer, suspected drug trafficker charged with smuggling cocaine into Los Angeles County
A California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation officer and a suspected drug trafficker have been charged with smuggling cocaine into Los Angeles County after 20 kilograms of cocaine was found at a stash house in Rowland Heights. “It is reprehensible that a state corrections officer can be seduced by greed and manipulated by others to commit such crimes that endanger the public,” Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan J. Hochman said.
L.A. County District Attorney’s Office News Release
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Man charged with murder in stabbing that killed Burbank schoolteacher, seriously injured daughter
A 30-year-old man was charged today with murder in the stabbing of first-grade teacher Arti Varma, 59, and the attempted murder of her 25-year-old daughter, Meera Varma, at their home in Burbank. “Arti Varma was a deeply beloved elementary school teacher who was senselessly taken from her family and community in an act of horrific violence, leaving an entire community grieving in its wake,” Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan J. Hochman said.
L.A. County District Attorney’s Office News Release
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OC mother charged after teen son hits 81-year-old while riding e-motorcycle
An Orange County mother is facing felony charges after prosecutors say her teenage son critically injured an 81-year-old man by crashing into him while riding an electric motorcycle The crash happened last week, and the victim remains hospitalized in critical condition. Prosecutors say the woman was warned about letting her son illegally ride the e-motorcycle before the crash.
ABC7
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DA Todd Spitzer showed racial bias in OC burglary case against Chilean national, judge rules
Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer’s campaign to close a tourism loophole that allows Chileans to enter the United States without background checks has landed him in hot water in the case of a Chilean national charged with felony burglary. A judge last week ruled that a news release by Spitzer was racially biased against defendant Jorge Navarretecorvalan, who was described in defense papers as the “poster child” for the district attorney’s push to drop Chile from the ESTA visa waiver program.
Orange County Register
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“This is the beginning”: DOJ signals intensifying health care fraud enforcement in California
Recent U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and California Attorney General enforcement activity sends a clear signal that California health care entities that interact with government programs - in particular the hospice and home health industries - are now under intense scrutiny. Companies in these sectors should prepare for subpoenas, Civil Investigative Demands, and searches as a result of federal and state agencies conducting independent and parallel investigations.
Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP
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Southern Poverty Law Center indicted over alleged use of paid informants in extremist groups
The Southern Poverty Law Center was indicted Tuesday on federal fraud charges alleging it improperly raised millions of dollars to secretly pay leaders of the Ku Klux Klan and other hate groups for inside information, acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said. The Justice Department alleges the civil rights group defrauded donors by using their money to fund the very extremism it claimed to be fighting, with more than $3 million paid to informants through a now-defunct program to infiltrate white supremacist and other extremist groups.
Associated Press
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Motion alleges misconduct by prosecutors in Maya Millete murder case, possibly delaying trial
Attorneys for Larry Millete, the Chula Vista husband accused of killing his wife Maya Millete, are asking a judge to remove the San Diego County District Attorney’s Office from the case, alleging misconduct by prosecutors and investigators. The motion, filed last Friday, claims Deputy District Attorney Christy Bowles and others engaged in improper conduct, including presenting false testimony and misinterpreting evidence.
NBC7 San Diego
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Families rally in Sacramento for changes to Proposition 57 amid teen violence concerns
Families from across California gathered near the State Capitol Monday morning, calling for changes to Proposition 57, the state’s criminal justice reform law. Organizers say the current law makes it harder to hold teens accountable for violent crimes. The rally got underway around 10 a.m. Monday in downtown Sacramento, drawing families, advocates, and lawmakers focused on how the law impacts juvenile cases, particularly whether it should be easier to try some teens as adults in serious crimes.
ABC10 Sacramento
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$400M Prop. 36 funding bill debated during Senate hearing
Legislation that would allocate $400 million to a tough-on-crime measure in California was discussed during a committee hearing Tuesday morning. Senate Bill 926, the Funding of Proposition 36 Act, spends $400 million of the state’s taxpayer-funded general fund to enforce Prop. 36. No vote occurred on SB 296 on Tuesday morning because the Senate Public Safety Committee, which heard the bill, did not have a quorum.
The Center Square
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LA officials not confident 2028 Olympics will help local economy
Ahead of the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028, the LA28 committee Friday heard some harsh criticism from member of the LA City Council as some LA officials complained they have not seen specific plans by the organizing committee to protect the interest of taxpayers and local businesses. In the lead up to the Olympics, billions of dollars were projected to rain down on Southern California businesses, according to LA28 officials.
NBC4
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L.A. production crisis now mayoral race flashpoint
Los Angeles’ film and TV production crisis, which has battered the entertainment industry’s working classes, is emerging as a key issue in the city’s mayoral campaign. Suddenly, each of the top contenders is proclaiming they’re the one who is serious about solving it - and one of the punching bags is the city’s film permitting office, FilmLA.
The Hollywood Reporter
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Websites break California privacy law at ‘industrial scale,’ survey finds
A new audit has found that websites across the internet may be failing to abide by California privacy law, ignoring a requirement to not track visitors who set a privacy control. The report, from researchers at webXray, a firm headed by a former Google privacy engineer, said the findings suggest major companies may be simply ignoring the law, and could point to “industrial-scale noncompliance with California requirements.”
CalMatters
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LA homeless agency has ‘significant’ problem with inaccurate financial statements, auditors find
Auditors are flagging major problems with the handling of tax dollars by the L.A. Homeless Services Authority. The failures surround poor bookkeeping and accounting of taxpayer money at the agency - which spent over $800 million in public funds last fiscal year. The issues emerged despite previous audits flagging serious oversight problems in prior years.
LAist
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Judge dismisses Kash Patel's defamation lawsuit over claim he frequented 'nightclubs'
A Houston federal court judge on Tuesday dismissed a lawsuit by FBI Director Kash Patel alleging that former FBI official Frank Figliuzzi defamed him by saying Patel last year had “been visible at nightclubs far more than he has been on the seventh floor of” the bureau’s headquarters in Washington, D.C. “The Court finds that Figliuzzi’s statement is rhetorical hyperbole that cannot constitute defamation,” U.S. District Court Judge George Hanks Jr. wrote in his decision.
CNBC
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Hamas hostage tears into UCLA over vile condemnation - as council chief issues furious statement
The survivor of brutal torture at the hands of Hamas has a message for the UCLA student leaders who condemned his speaking appearance on campus. “If you are willing to silence a survivor of 505 days in captivity to protect a preconceived narrative, it’s worth pausing,” Omer Shem Tov exclusively told The California Post, after the university’s Undergraduate Students Association Council blasted his April 14 visit to the school to mark Holocaust Remembrance Day.
California Post
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Measure ER: What you need to know about the proposed sales tax hike in LA County
Measure ER asks voters to raise L.A. County's general sales tax by a half-percent for five years to backfill hospital and clinic budgets amid massive federal cuts to Medi-Cal, the state's Medicaid program. The county tax would generate an estimated $1 billion a year for providers that rely on Medi-Cal dollars to pay for patient care. The measure would increase L.A. County's sales tax rate from 9.75% to 10.25%.
LAist
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Is he ‘The Venice Karen’ or the victim of an unruly bar scene? L.A. may soon decide
David Feige is tired. Tired of the noise blasting from bars near his multi-story Venice Beach home. Tired of the people dealing drugs, urinating and fighting in the alley. Tired of asking restaurant owners, repeatedly, simply to follow the law. But now, his fight to get several establishments on one iconic block to tone it down has turned personal - and frightening - after “wanted” posters with Feige’s photo suddenly appeared around town, dubbing him “The Venice Karen.”
DNYUZ
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'We've lost our way': Clifton's operator gives up on downtown Los Angeles
The proprietor of Los Angeles' legendary Clifton's has given up on reopening the shuttered venue. It's just too difficult to do business in downtown's historic core, he says. Andrew Meieran bought Clifton's on Broadway in 2010 and poured more than $14 million into repairs, renovations and upgrades, adding additional bar and restaurant spaces in the four-story building.
Los Angeles Times
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Homeless and encampment-related fires noticeably increased in LA, new data shows
Los Angeles firefighters have repeatedly warned that rising call volumes and chronic understaffing are slowing their response times, and new data shows one major driver - encampment fires. Every time the L.A. Fire Department responds to a blaze, crews must file a report and mark whether it was "Homeless or Encampment Related."
ABC7
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Retired LAPD detective tracked down accused killer of beheaded Inglewood man
More than 10 years after a 75-year-old man was decapitated in his Inglewood apartment, a 42-year-old former neighbor who was tracked down in Youngstown, Ohio remained jailed in Los Angeles Friday awaiting his next court appearance. The suspect, William Fowler, was located by a retired Los Angeles Police Department detective working with Inglewood police on the cold case investigation, Inglewood Police Department Captain Neal Cochran told City News Service.
MyNewsLA
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2 people arrested for spraying graffiti on state property in LA County
A man and a woman were arrested for "a series of graffiti incidents" on state property across Los Angeles County, the California Highway Patrol said on Friday. Herman "Woody" Sanchez was arrested Thursday for acts of vandalism, including graffiti on public property and infrastructure such as traffic signs. Investigators said they found evidence linking Sanchez to the suspected crime.
NBC4
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17-year-old arrested for alleged kidnapping of girlfriend in Simi Valley following 2nd battery report
A 17-year-old boy is in custody after an alleged domestic dispute escalated into kidnapping and false imprisonment at a Simi Valley home. According to authorities, officers responded to a home in the 2200 block of Desert Creek Avenue on April 17 just before 7 p.m. Police said a boy, later identified as the 15-year-old brother of the suspect, called 911 to report a disturbance and was whispering to avoid his brother finding him.
Fox11
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New bill would stop DMV from making millions off auctioned cars without telling the owners
State lawmakers have pushed forward legislation that would change a decades-old state law allowing the Department of Motor Vehicles to receive millions of dollars from auctioned cars without telling the owners. The bill from Murrieta Republican Senator Kelly Seyarto directly follows CalMatters’ reporting, which revealed that the DMV collected more than $8 million from nearly 5,300 cars sold at auction from 2016 to late 2024, without having to notify the owners that their towed cars had been sold for a surplus.
CalMatters
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California’s $2 billion budget error exposed, even as state leaders knew about it for months
California’s budget mess just got a whole lot messier - and a whole lot more embarrassing. Top lawmakers sat on a staggering $2 billion accounting blunder for months while publicly warning of a looming budget crunch, according to a bombshell memo that’s now blowing the lid off the quiet deception.
California Post
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Calpers sent retirees ‘shocking’ bills. They’re getting their money back
CalPERS on Tuesday gave up a seven-year legal battle to claw back hundreds of thousands of dollars from four pensioners who the fund accused of breaking the rules about working after retirement. The end of the saga is meaningful not just to the retirees who no longer face “shocking” payment demands from their pension fund, but also for cities that turn to former government employees as part-time workers for short-term staffing needs.
CalMatters
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How a CHP hiring spree started to bend the curve on CalPERS contribution rates
There’s a surprise in the upcoming budget for the California Public Employees’ Retirement System: The cost of paying for pensions is actually starting to come down. Don’t get too excited. The charges are still high by historical standards. The state expects to spend $9.8 billion on contributions to CalPERS next year, more than double the $4.8 billion cost from 2016.
CalMatters
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California Senate Democrats propose new health care tax on major companies
California's Democratic State Senators are proposing a new tax on major corporations to help with the state's health care costs. The group of lawmakers Thursday released an outline of their proposed budget plan, which includes the new fee on major companies. The new tax would specifically apply to the state's top 2% of corporations, requiring them to contribute to the state's program that provides health insurance to low-income Californians known as MediCal.
KCRA
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Kern County Sheriff says it was his deputy who ran over the suspected deputy killer
Kern County Sheriff Donny Youngblood held a news conference on Friday morning regarding Thursday's deadly shooting in Porterville. Tulare County Sheriff's Detective Randy Hoppert was shot and killed in the line of duty. Deputies were serving an eviction order and the suspect opened fire. Detective Hoppert was killed while providing support to those deputies.
Fox26 News
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How gangs connected to India are terrorizing a California immigrant community
Last Fall, Harsimran Singh was well on his way to bringing 15,000 fans to Stockton for an international tournament of the ancient Indian sport Kabaddi. Then, suddenly, athletes started dropping out. They seemed to manufacture excuses to avoid the sport’s world cup. As president of the American Kabaddi Federation, Singh felt increasingly shaken as the cancellations mounted. He began pressing for answers.
CalMatters
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Tory Lanez sues California officials for $100m over prison stabbing
The rapper Tory Lanez, who is serving a 10-year prison sentence over the shooting of fellow hip-hop artist Megan Thee Stallion, has filed a federal lawsuit against California corrections officials, seeking $100m after being stabbed in prison. Lanez, whose name is Daystar Peterson, said in court papers that a fellow inmate at California correctional institution in Tehachapi stabbed him approximately 16 times on 12 May 2025 using a “home-made” shank.
The Guardian
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Proposed decision favors California in delta tunnel project dispute
A draft decision issued Monday on appeals to California’s Delta Conveyance Project appears to hand the state a major win in its battle to make the massive project a reality. However, while discarding most of the appeals against the project, the recommendation to the Delta Stewardship Council calls for sending two issues about the project back to the state Department of Water Resources for reconsideration.
Courthouse News Service
| | Convictions/Pleas/Sentences/Parole | | |
Man pleads guilty in death of Los Angeles County sheriff’s recruit, injuring other recruits in wrong-way crash in Whittier
Nicholas Gutierrez, 25, pleaded guilty today to a fatal wrong-way crash that resulted in the death of Los Angeles County Sheriff’s recruit Alejandro Martinez-Inzunza and caused severe injuries to several other recruits in November 2022 in Whittier. “Today’s plea and sentence cannot undo the devastation of that day, nor will it bring back the life that was lost,” Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan J. Hochman said.
L.A. County District Attorney’s Office News Release
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California bear-suit luxury car scam ends in insurance fraud sentences for 3
Three people in California have been sentenced for insurance fraud in a bizarre scam that involved someone dressed in a bear costume damaging luxury cars. The California Insurance Department said the three used a person in a bear suit to stage fake attacks inside a Rolls-Royce and two Mercedes in 2024, then submitted fraudulent claims seeking nearly $142,000 in payouts from insurance companies. The department called it “Operation Bear Claw.”
Associated Press
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SoCal man rented cars to thieves for a share of their stolen goods, federal prosecutors say
A Canyon Country man has pleaded guilty to participating in a widespread “crime tourism” theft ring responsible for millions of dollars in losses across the United States. Juan Carlos Thola Duran, 59, admitted Monday to leading a scheme that enabled organized theft crews with a majority traveling from South America to help carry out burglaries, retail thefts and fraud in Southern California and across multiple states, according to federal prosecutors.
Los Angeles Times
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Cal Poly regulatory study: New study finds Napa wine grape growers face up to $1,700 per acre in regulatory costs
For the first time, wine grape growers in Napa County can put a financial number to the burdensome regulations they face every year. Researchers from California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo have released in March a new study on agriculture regulations for wine grape production.
Napa County Farm Bureau Press Release
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California Democrats are clamoring to tax the wealthy - why their proposals could backfire
Progressive California democrats, who have long fought and failed to raise taxes on the rich, are renewing their push this year in light of a specific threat: The seismic federal cuts to Medi-Cal, the state’s health care program for the poor. President Donald Trump’s H.R.1, signed into law last July, is estimated to strip tens of billions a year in state Medi-Cal funding and cause 2 million low-income residents to lose coverage.
CalMatters
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House Ethics Committee releases list of sexual misconduct investigations amid lawmaker scandals
The House Ethics Committee on Monday published a complete list of members of Congress it has investigated for sexual misconduct and defended its process for addressing - and publicizing - reports of such behavior. The compilation, which stretches back 50 years, comes as the lower chamber’s ethics panel and Congress as a whole have come under increased scrutiny after a pair of high-profile resignations of lawmakers implicated in sordid sexual harassment and assault scandals.
Courthouse News Service
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