Courts/Rulings & Lawsuits | | |
Southern California Edison agrees to pay United States $82.5 million to resolve lawsuit stemming from 2020 Bobcat Fire
Southern California Edison (SCE) has agreed to pay the United States $82.5 million - the largest-ever wildfire cost recovery settlement by the United States in the Central District of California - to resolve claims on behalf of the U.S. Forest Service to recoup costs and damages associated with the 2020 Bobcat Fire in the Angeles National Forest, the Justice Department announced today.
U.S. Attorney’s Office Press Release
| | |
Judge guts deputy's felony conviction but warns of likely prison sentence
A federal judge has agreed to dismiss a felony civil rights charge against a former sheriff’s deputy at the request of the new Trump-appointed U.S. attorney in Los Angeles. The order from U.S. District Judge Stephen V. Wilson doesn’t strike the jury’s felony verdict, but it dismisses the felony allegation in the indictment against Trevor Kirk.
Legal Affairs & Trials with Meghann Cuniff
| | |
New CA ruling targets Ventura County retirees
A California Supreme Court decision three years ago was supposed to be the final word on former Gov. Jerry Brown’s marquee pension limit law, but judges are still sorting it out - and making decisions that could mean thousands of dollars a year to government retirees. Last week a state appeals court affirmed a Ventura County Employees’ Retirement Association’s decision undoing a perk that had allowed government workers to increase their pensions in a way banned by Brown’s 2013 law.
Tri County Sentry
| | |
Former Times reporter sues Villanueva, L.A County, alleging 1st Amendment violation
Former Los Angeles Times reporter Maya Lau filed a federal lawsuit Tuesday against Los Angeles County, former Sheriff Alex Villanueva, a former undersheriff and a former detective, alleging that a criminal investigation into her activities as a journalist violated her 1st Amendment rights. The suit comes less than a year after a Times article revealed that Lau had been the target of an L.A. County Sheriff’s Department investigation that “was designed to intimidate and punish Lau for her reporting” about a leaked list of deputies with a history of misconduct, Lau's attorneys alleged in an emailed statement.
Los Angeles Times
| | |
C.A. reverses $12.3 million verdict in fatal train crash case
Div. One of this district’s Court of Appeal has held that a trial judge prejudicially erred in rejecting a defense-requested negligence per se instruction in a case accusing a Long Beach police officer of causing a man to fall off the edge of a platform and die after being hit by an oncoming train during a search incident to arrest, saying the instruction based on a Penal Code section prohibiting escaping custody would have helped the jury assess comparative fault.
Metropolitan News-Enterprise
| | |
Renters sue Pasadena and LA County over toxic ash cleanup, lack of enforcement
Pasadena and Altadena renters whose homes were covered in toxic ash during January’s wildfires are now suing local officials for allegedly failing to inspect their units and require landlords to carry out necessary cleaning. Individual renters, along with two tenant unions, filed lawsuits Wednesday against the city of Pasadena and the L.A. County Department of Public Health. Citing previous LAist reporting, the complaints allege local officials have refused to enforce tenants’ right to a safe, habitable home.
LAist
| | |
Sheriff’s Department that sold services enjoys immunity
A sheriff’s department that sold its services to a public transit authority pursuant to a contract that capped payments at $25 million is entitled, along with the county, to governmental immunity, the Sixth District Court of Appeal held Friday, affirming judgments of dismissal in four cases brought by estates and survivors of nine persons gunned down at their worksite by a fellow employee who then fatally shot himself.
Metropolitan News-Enterprise
| | |
LA medical center nurse tentatively settles COVID vax suit
A Los Angeles General Medical Center nurse who alleged she was wrongfully suspended in 2022 and suffered lost wages because she sought and was denied a religious exemption to the mandatory coronavirus vaccination has reached a tentative settlement in her lawsuit against Los Angeles County. An attorney for Elena Delaney Gonzales filed court papers Wednesday with Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Jon R. Takasugi notifying him of a "conditional" resolution in the case with the expectation a request for dismissal will be filed by Sept. 5.
City News Service
| | |
US appeals court rejects challenge to federal marijuana ban
A U.S. appeals court on Tuesday rejected arguments by several Massachusetts cannabis businesses that the federal prohibition on marijuana could no longer be deemed constitutional, as the U.S. Supreme Court held two decades ago. The Boston-based 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that changes in how marijuana is regulated and sold in the decades since the Supreme Court upheld the law in 2005 did not mean the federal ban was no longer constitutional.
Reuters
| | |
Search warrant reveals scope of Huntington Park corruption probe
The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office seized dozens of records relating to Huntington Park city contractors with ties to consultant Efren Martinez as part of an investigation into alleged corruption at City Hall, according to a copy of the search warrant released by the city.
Pasadena Star News
| | |
30 people accused this probation officer of sexual abuse. He won't face charges
Many eyes were on Los Angeles County on April 7 as a claims board approved a long haggled-over $4-billion settlement, following a flood of lawsuits from victims who said they were sexually abused as children in county-run lock-ups and foster homes. That same day, the L.A. County District Attorney’s Office quietly finalized another decision: The man who had emerged in the lawsuits as the most prolific abuser would not face criminal charges.
Los Angeles Times
| | |
Department of Justice takes action to enforce Title IX in California to protect girls’ sports
The Justice Department today sent letters of legal notice to California Attorney General Rob Bonta, State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond, Jurupa Unified School District, and the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) that it is opening an investigation to determine whether Title IX, a landmark federal civil rights law, is being violated by AB 1266, a state law permitting males to participate on female sports teams at state schools.
U.S. Attorney’s Office Press Release
| | |
LA residents among 14 arrested for allegedly stealing $25M in COVID relief, small business loans
Los Angeles area residents were among 14 people arrested Wednesday for allegedly stealing more than $25 million in COVID-19 relief funds and federal small business loans, prosecutors said Thursday. A total of 18 people, including four who are believed to be in Armenia, were named in two federal complaints, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.
ABC7
| | |
Local casino winners targeted in over a dozen highway robberies, DOJ says
Two men from South Gate have been federally indicted for allegedly carrying out over a dozen armed robberies, targeting individuals who had won money at local casinos, according to federal prosecutors. Juan Gabriel Gonzalez, 22, and Dereck Nathan Lopez, 21, have been charged in a federal indictment unsealed on May 9. They are accused of committing more than a dozen armed robberies by stealing gambling winnings from individuals leaving local casinos.
Fox11
| | |
‘Ending the cycle’: Los Angeles DA touts success of new California law cracking down on ‘smash-and-grab’ offenders - why he says it goes way beyond just filling 'prisons with these thieves'
Like many major cities, Los Angeles is not immune to crime - but incidents of store theft have increased in recent years. Crosstown LA, citing LAPD data, says that in 2023, there were 11,945 reported cases of shoplifting in the city, compared to 6,585 the year before. There’s been a notable uptick in “smash-and-grab” robberies, where a criminal smashes a window, grabs items on display, and makes a run for it.
Moneywise
| | |
U.S. attorney in L.A. moves to 'neutralize' California's sanctuary rules
The top federal prosecutor in Los Angeles is ratcheting up immigration enforcement in jails as the Trump administration looks for more ways to remove more immigrants from “sanctuary cities.” U.S. Atty. Bill Essayli last week announced a pilot program dubbed “Operation Guardian Angel” that is intended to “neutralize” sanctuary state laws. The office identifies individuals with criminal records who have been deported and charges them with illegally reentering the United States, a federal crime.
Los Angeles Times
| | |
California legislature considering early parole for murderers and rapists
The California Legislature is considering moving up parole hearings and releases for murderers and rapists. The proponents of this change may be having some difficulty rounding up the votes, and they have employed a legislative trick to buy more time. People with sense need to use this time to tell their representatives to vote down this atrocity instead. In California, sentences of X-to-life (as opposed to a set term of years) are generally reserved for the very worst criminals.
California Globe
| | |
LA mayor, city officials called to court in contentious federal hearing on homelessness spending
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and other city officials are expected to take the stand this week at a federal hearing held to determine whether the city breached its legal obligations to create more shelter for unhoused people. It comes as U.S. District Judge David O. Carter considers transferring control of homelessness spending from city officials to a court-appointed receiver after a searing audit wasn’t able to verify the numbers of beds the city claims to have created.
LAist
| | |
Trump administration increases pressure on ‘sanctuary jurisdictions’ with public listing
The Department of Homeland Security is putting more than 500 “sanctuary jurisdictions” across the country on notice that the Trump administration views them as obstructing immigration enforcement as it attempts to increase pressure on communities it believes are standing in the way of the president’s mass deportations agenda.
Associated Press
| | |
Supreme Court limits scope of environmental reviews in federal permitting
In a major victory for the housing and infrastructure sectors, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a unanimous decision yesterday in Seven County Infrastructure Coalition v. Eagle County, significantly curbing the scope of environmental reviews of infrastructure and other building projects under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). NAHB joined an amicus brief in support of this outcome, and applauds the Court for restoring clarity and predictability to the federal permitting process.
National Association of Home Builders
| | |
Angelenos agree MacArthur Park needs help. The reliance on police is where they differ
The residents, business owners, unhoused people, commuters and passersby in the area around Los Angeles’ MacArthur Park have some things in common: They benefit from the community being clean, and they all value their safety. But that consensus papers over some significant differences about how to achieve those goals. As L.A. City Hall focuses time and resources on reviving MacArthur Park, some of those differences are surfacing and raising questions about whether Mayor Karen Bass and those around her are on the right track.
CalMatters
| | |
Mary Bella's Law stalls in the California state legislature
A few brave women are determined to change the trajectory of surviving sexual abuse in California with SB 286, also known as Mary Bella's Law. "This is spiritual warfare, and right now the enemy is winning," Mary said. The proposal would have closed a loophole in state law that allowed early prison release for some of the most egregious violent sex offenders. However, after unanimously passing the state Senate Public Safety Committee in April, the bill died in another committee last week.
KCAL News
| | |
CHP deploys all-black enforcement vehicles, despite forbiddance in state code
The California Highway Patrol (CHP) is deploying new Specially Marked Patrol Vehicles (SMPVs) throughout the state, designed to keep a low profile. Each of the car bodies is its own uniform color, including silver, grey, maroon, blue, and black. The purpose of the new SMPVs, all Dodge Durangos, is to blend into traffic and observe reckless driving without being “immediate(ly)” detected by motorists, per a CHP press release issued May 8.
The Corsair
| | |
The LA fed tapes on appeal - can the Watergate of Los Angeles be solved?
The scheduled potential June jury trial for Kevin de León in his case against the two accused leakers of the LA Fed Tapes has been stayed pending appeal. Uncovered by the media, the latest filing is largely a rehash of prior proceedings last summer, during which defendants Santos Leon and Karla Vasquez failed to prevail in initial proceedings contesting the liability claim.
Zachary Ellison Substack
| | |
More California bar examinees wrongly told they failed, state bar says
Nine more people who were initially told they failed California’s troubled February bar exam actually passed, the State Bar of California said in an email sent to test takers on Thursday, which Reuters reviewed. Those errors were in addition to the four test takers whose status changed from fail to pass last week after scoring and grading problems were identified.
Reuters
| | |
Little-known provision in Trump tax bill could allow him to ignore court orders
President Donald Trump’s bill to slash taxes for the rich and medical care for the poor is headed for the Senate after a long and furious debate in the House of Representatives. But one provision that has gone virtually unnoticed might allow Trump to ignore court orders against him. Judges issue those orders as injunctions, prohibiting a person or organization - which can include the president or other officials - from taking actions that the judge considers illegal.
San Francisco Chronicle
| | |
A program paying California jurors $100 a day would end abruptly due to Newsom’s new budget
In his attempts to solve a multibillion-dollar state deficit, Gov. Gavin Newsom’s new budget plan would terminate a legislative experiment that increased pay for juries in an effort to make them more fairly represent the communities they serve. Since September, jurors in seven counties have been eligible to receive $100 per day while serving on a jury, a significant improvement to the statewide norm of $15.
CalMatters
| | |
Ed Martin pledges to use DOJ to harass people he can’t actually prosecute
The good news is that Ed Martin will not be the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia. In the end, even Republicans in the Senate had too many misgivings to hand one of the most powerful roles within the Department of Justice to a January 6 wingnut.
Above the Law
| | |
Landmark Los Angeles federal courthouse slated for quick sale by agency
The federal government is offering real estate investors an unusual opportunity - the chance to buy a historic courthouse and office building in the heart of downtown Los Angeles. The landmark U.S. Courthouse built in the 1930s on Spring Street near City Hall has been slated for "accelerated disposition" by the General Services Administration as part of a plan to sell off obsolete and underutilized federal properties.
Los Angeles Times
| | |
Bad week for biglaw capitulators - see generally
Ed. Note: We’re starting a new feature, kicking off the week with a collection of top stories from the prior week. It’s like our daily See Also, but for the week. So… See Generally.
Above the Law
| | |
LA bar failed to protect staff before actor’s death: Suit
The fellow bartender who accompanied former "General Hospital" actor Johnny Wactor the night he was shot to death as thieves tried to steal his parked car's catalytic converter Tuesday sued the downtown bar/restaurant where they worked for allegedly failing to provide her a safe place to work and park. The plaintiff is identified only as Jane Doe in the Los Angeles Superior Court lawsuit against the owners of the Level 8 bar on Figueroa Street.
City News Service
| | |
Probation moving incarcerated kids out of “unsuitable” juvenile hall after court approval, but oversight commission says simply relocating kids won’t solve root problems
The Los Angeles County Probation Department began moving kids between youth lockups this week, as part of a plan to reduce the population inside Los Padrinos Juvenile Hall. Living conditions in Los Padrinos are so bad that the Board of State and Community Corrections declared it uninhabitable, and Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Miguel Espinoza ordered the county to come up with a plan to close the facility.
Witness LA
| | |
Justice delayed, justice denied: Inside the collapse of LASD’s crime lab under Sheriff Luna
While Sheriff Robert Luna chases photo ops and funding for his re-election campaign, the Los Angeles County justice system is bleeding out behind the scenes - and drug offenders, rapists, and killers are slipping through the cracks faster than the county can bury the truth. Inside the LASD crime lab, the meltdown is no longer a warning sign - it’s a full-blown catastrophe.
The Current Report
| | |
Metro’s violence prevention program marred by subway fight and subcontractor’s RICO indictment
In November 2022, two men connected to a Metro safety program beat up another man on a station platform. Video footage, which The Times obtained last week, shows one of the workers squaring off before striking the man while the worker’s colleague, wearing a black shirt that says “security,” jumps into the fray throwing fists. The man fights back, is pushed down onto the Metro platform, and ends up on the tracks. Still held by one of the pair, he tries to yank away and throws punches until he is let go.
Los Angeles Times
| | |
"No responsive records" of communications from active mayor during Palisades Fire, says L.A. City
On May 19th, the City of Los Angeles responded to KTLA’s request for public records of the officials involved in the city's response to the Palisades fire by closing the case, saying there were “no responsive records matching [the] search parameters.” As permitted in the California Public Records Act of 1968, KTLA had been pursuing records of communication from key officials relating to the fires just weeks after they occurred.
Los Angeles Magazine
| | |
In the red or not, you can now get a $63 fine for parking near an East L.A. crosswalk
Parked near a crosswalk on Whittier Boulevard while picking up a 20-piece boneless wing combo? You might come back to find a $63 parking ticket on your windshield. This month, the L.A. County Sheriff’s Department (LASD) began issuing citations for vehicles parked within 20 feet of crosswalks in compliance with California’s “daylighting” law.
Boyle Heights Beat
| | |
LA County budget shortfall, sexual abuse settlement, water taxi and more
Los Angeles County is the most populous county in the United States. Supervisor Janice Hahn, who represents the county's 4th District, recently sat down with Marc Brown for Eyewitness Newsmakers to discuss multiple issues facing L.A. County's nearly 10 million residents. This fiscal year, the county has a budget of about $48 billion, which is about $1 billion less than last year.
ABC7
| | |
L.A. County sheriff's deputy arrested for second time on suspicion of domestic abuse
A Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputy who was placed on leave in January 2023 was released from jail early Tuesday on $50,000 bond after he was arrested Monday on suspicion of felony domestic violence, according to the sheriff’s department. The arrest of Jim Devoe, 30, came two years after he was arrested and charged with physically abusing his 5-year-old son.
Los Angeles Times
| | |
Father handed gun to son in alleged drive-by gang killing, LAPD says
On a Monday night in February, police say, Roberto Martinez took his 14-year-old son in the Pico-Union neighborhood on a graffiti spree. With a can of yellow spray paint, they marked the facades of a pawn shop, laundromat and furniture store with the names of their gangs, according to a a Los Angeles Police Department detective wrote in a search warrant affidavit. Driving down Normandie Avenue, Martinez and his son came across Kevin Rivera, who was crossing the street, the affidavit says.
Los Angeles Times
| | |
Illegal party recruits participants on social media before vandalism, chaos in downtown LA
After a crowd of more than 1,000 people caused mayhem in downtown Los Angeles Saturday night, investigators are now poring over surveillance images and social media posts to track down those responsible, especially people who vandalized businesses, an LAPD car and Metro trains. Large groups of people were caught on video, kicking and spray-painting the patrol vehicle while another group of about 50 trespassers blocked two trains at the intersection of Washington Boulevard and Maple Street and vandalized them.
NBC4
| | |
‘I cannot rebuild’: Simi Valley jewelry heist leaves family devastated
In a brazen overnight heist, multiple suspects used a tool to cut through the roof of a coffee shop and stole cash and merchandise from an adjacent jewelry store in Simi Valley. According to Jonathan Youssef, the owner of the 5 Star Jewelry & Watch repair, his family-owned business on Cochran Street was targeted just before midnight on Sunday.
KTLA
| | |
Gavin Newsom’s off-the-mark budget numbers undermine his credibility again
Gov. Gavin Newsom’s revised state budget assumes California will see a sharp decline in projected revenue, largely because President Donald Trump’s tariffs will slow the nation’s economy. Newsom blames a “Trump slump,” as well as an unanticipated increase in spending on Medi-Cal, California’s medical program for the poor, for punching a $12 billion hole in the budget.
CalMatters
| | |
2 California campers accuse software giant of illegal ‘drip pricing’
A pair of California campers filed a class-action lawsuit accusing a software giant of illegally tacking on hidden “junk fees” when users book campsites through the official state parks reservation system, ReserveCalifornia.com. The lawsuit, filed on Thursday in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, alleged that Texas-based software company Tyler Technologies designed its interface to mislead users by advertising an initial price, only to add an undisclosed reservation fee at checkout - a practice known as “drip pricing.”
SF Gate
| | |
Trump's FCC delays multilingual emergency alerts for natural disasters, sparking concern in L.A.
California Rep. Nanette Diaz Barragán urged the Federal Communications Commission on Monday to follow through on plans to modernize the federal emergency alert system and provide multilingual alerts in natural disasters for residents who speak a language other than English at home. The call comes nearly five months after deadly fires in Los Angeles threatened communities with a high proportion of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders - some with limited English proficiency - highlighting the need for multilingual alerts.
Los Angeles Times
| | |
New California Highway Patrol K9 teams trained to sniff out fentanyl
A new generation of crime-fighting canines has officially joined the California Highway Patrol, with six highly trained K9 teams now deployed across the state - and for the first time, these dogs are hitting the streets trained from day one to detect fentanyl. Announced Friday by the Governor Gavin Newsom’s Office, the new K9 unit includes five Belgian Malinois and one German Shepherd.
KTLA
| | |
State claims there’s zero high-risk AI in California government - despite ample evidence to the contrary
California uses algorithms to predict whether incarcerated people will commit crimes again. It has used predictive technology to deny 600,000 people unemployment benefits. Nonetheless, state administrators have concluded that not a single agency uses high-risk forms of automated decisionmaking technology. That’s according to a report the California Department of Technology provided to CalMatters after surveying nearly 200 state entities.
CalMatters
| | Convictions/Pleas/Sentences | | |
Man convicted of murder, shooting at SWAT
A man was convicted Wednesday of being involved in a March 2017 murder in Los Angeles and then shooting at police and wounding a SWAT officer who was struck in the hip following a pursuit when authorities tried to arrest him nearly three months later. Jurors deliberated about five days before returning their verdict Monday on 13 counts in the trial of Qasim Knox, with the verdict being read Tuesday in a downtown Los Angeles courtroom.
MyNewsLA
| | |
California court upholds rejection of ‘Gator’ Rogowski’s parole bid
A 2022 decision from California Governor Gavin Newsom to reverse parole for former skateboarding icon, Mark 'Gator' Rogowski, for the brutal 1991 rape and murder of Jessica Bergsten in Carlsbad will stand, ruled a California Appellate Court last week. In a May 22 ruling, an appellate panel refused to overturn Governor Newsom's parole reversal, meaning the 1980s skateboard star will not be released from prison without a new parole hearing.
CBS8
| | |
Florida court orders convicted "supercop" and wife to pay over $2.4 billion to Mexico after taking cartel bribes
A Florida court on Thursday ordered a former Mexican security chief convicted of drug trafficking and his wife to pay more than $2.4 billion to their country, Mexico's government said. Mexico sued Genaro Garcia Luna, who is imprisoned in the United States, for alleged corruption and money laundering involving dozens of public contracts. The ruling is the latest twist in the saga of the former high-flying minister who earned himself the nickname of "supercop" but instead aided and abetted drug traffickers.
CBS News
| | |
California Supreme Court Justice Goodwin Liu shows some judges actually have a good sense of humor
Being a high-profile judge isn’t all talking about typewriters during rule of law crises and getting gifted six-figure trips to fish with billionaires whose cases you will adjudicate. Donning the black robes that come with being a judge requires handling most matters with a baseline solemnity that doesn’t leave much room for taking things lightly.
Above the Law
| | |
A celebration - and wake - for a political time gone by
They came to the baking desert to honor one of their own, a political professional, a legend and a throwback to a time when gatherings like this one - a companionable assembly of Republicans, Democrats and the odd newspaper columnist - weren’t such a rare and noteworthy thing. They came to bid a last farewell to Stuart Spencer, who died in January at age 97. They came to Palm Desert on a 98-degree spring day to do the things that political pros do when they gather: drink and laugh and swap stories of campaigns and elections past.
Tribune News Service
| | |
YouTube's poaching of Disney exec Justin Connolly sparks lawsuit
YouTube‘s hiring of longtime Disney executive Justin Connolly to serve in a newly created role as global head of media and sports has sparked a lawsuit against the Google-owned company. Disney, in a lawsuit filed Wednesday in Los Angeles Superior Court, alleges breach of contract, tortious interference with contractual relations and unfair competition. It seeks a court order to block the hiring, arguing that Connolly could leak confidential information or trade secrets belonging to Disney ahead of a licensing renewal with YouTube.
The Hollywood Reporter
| | | | |
