Newsom nominates Martin Jenkins to California Supreme Court, where he would be first openly gay justice
Gov. Gavin Newsom on Monday nominated Martin Jenkins, his chief adviser on legal affairs, to the California Supreme Court, where he would be its first openly gay justice. Jenkins, 66, was a judge on state and federal courts for 30 years before leaving the bench last year to become Newsom’s legal affairs secretary.
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Brutality action against L.A. County may proceed
The Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Friday affirmed the denial of a motion by the County of Los Angeles to dismiss a civil rights action brought by a man who was severely beaten during an arrest by two deputies who uttered racial epithets, and who claims that the county had a policy of condoning the existence of racist cliques within the Sheriff’s Department.
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Los Angeles County bench officers elects Samantha P. Jessner assistant presiding judge
Presiding Judge Kevin C. Brazile announced today that the Judges of the Superior Court of Los Angeles County have elected Judge Samantha P. Jessner as the Assistant Presiding Judge for the 2021-22 term beginning January 1, 2021. Judge Jessner will serve with Presiding Judge-Elect Eric C. Taylor, who was elected by the Court’s bench last month.
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Officers denied immunity in former NFL player’s excessive force suit
While waiting for his ride in a designated pedestrian pick-up zone outside of a nightclub in 2017, police asked former San Diego Chargers player Michael Lee to move. He did, asked the officers what he was doing wrong, and was taken down in a violent arrest that resulted in a career-ending arm injury.
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Private business not liable for injury caused by pothole on city property
A wine warehouse that exercised “ordinary and accustomed use” of a driveway and gutter cannot be held liable for a pedestrian’s injuries caused by a pothole located on city-owned property where the driveway and gutter meet, the Court of Appeal for this district has held.
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L.A. judge blasts county/city for bickering, time-wasting in homelessness suit
A federal judge blasted the city and county of Los Angeles for continuing to “bicker” and “waste time” instead of quickly finalizing an agreement to provide 6,700 beds for people experiencing homelessness under the threat of the coronavirus.
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Appeals court upholds ban on holding migrant children in U.S. hotels
An appeals court refused Sunday to allow the Trump administration to resume detaining immigrant children in hotel rooms before expelling them under rules adopted during the coronavirus pandemic. Three judges on the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals left in place a lower court’s order that requires the U.S. to stop using hotels in most situations to detain children unaccompanied by a parent.
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Judge fines L.A. $2.5 million for ‘serious abuse’ in handling of evidence in DWP case
A Superior Court judge on Tuesday ordered the city of Los Angeles to pay a $2.5-million fine, ruling in favor of a consulting firm that accused City Atty. Mike Feuer’s office of concealing evidence in a high-profile lawsuit involving the Department of Water and Power.
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Order to finish census count was overreach, feds tell Ninth Circuit
The Trump administration asked a Ninth Circuit panel Monday to stay a lower court order barring the U.S. Census Bureau from ending its decennial count of the population before the job is done. Lawyers from the Department of Justice argued U.S. District Court Judge Lucy Koh’s order barring the Trump administration from wrapping up its data collection by the end of September amounted to unprecedented interference by the judicial branch into the affairs of the executive branch.
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California justices take up extent of voter-backed parole expansion
California’s highest court will soon decide whether Proposition 57 - an initiative passed by voters in 2016 that expanded parole to all inmates convicted of nonviolent felonies - should apply to a convicted rapist and child molester serving 35 years to life after repeatedly slashing his girlfriend with a knife.
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Supreme Court reinstates South Carolina's ballot witness requirement
The Supreme Court on Monday reinstated a requirement that South Carolina residents voting by mail in November’s election get a witness to sign their ballots. Democrats had sought to have the requirement put on hold because of the coronavirus pandemic, but Republicans had defended it as deterring fraud.
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Supreme Court receptive to damages battle over no-fly list
Several justices with the U.S. Supreme Court hinted Tuesday that a law protecting religious freedoms includes a subtext that would allow individuals to sue government agents for money damages. In the underlying 2013 suit, Muhammad Tanvir accused FBI agents of violating the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) by placing him and two others on the No Fly List without any evidence they posed a threat to aviation safety.
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COVID-19 & Justice System
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Judge: Federal court not the place to sue University of California over fees
University of California officials cannot be sued on claims of cheating students out of hundreds of millions of dollars in fees for on-campus services not provided due to the Covid-19 pandemic because they are immune from federal lawsuits, a judge said in court Monday.
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Federal prisons will let inmates have visitors during pandemic
Relatives and friends will be permitted once again to begin visiting inmates in federal prisons as of Saturday, six months after such visits were ended over concerns about the coronavirus pandemic. Federal prisons officials said they were resuming family visits based on “the importance for inmates to maintain relationships with friends and family,” and some relatives of inmates lauded the decision.
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Newsom’s emergency order on church services stands
The Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals yesterday denied a Pasadena church’s emergency motion requesting that it enjoin enforcement of Gov. Gavin Newsom’s coronavirus orders restricting group-worship activities in an effort to stem the spread of the virus. Judges Johnnie B. Rawlinson and Morgan Christen signed the order. Senior Judge Diarmuid F. O’Scannlain dissented.
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Catholic priest sues Newsom for 'violating religious rights' with California's COVID-19 shutdown
A Catholic priest is suing Governor Gavin Newsom for allegedly "violating religious rights" by shutting down indoor church services across California amid the coronavirus pandemic. The lawsuit was filed last week in California Superior Court against Newsom and 19 other state, county and municipal officials on behalf of Father Trevor Burfitt, who oversees mission churches in Kern, San Bernardino, San Diego, and Los Angeles Counties.
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Presiding Judge Kevin C. Brazile issues new general order prioritizing criminal jury trials while permitting certain civil cases to proceed in accordance with social distancing requirements
Presiding Judge Kevin C. Brazile announced today that Chief Justice Tani G. CantilSakauye authorized him to issue a new General Order pursuant to the emergency powers granted under Government Code 68115 that supports the Court’s efforts to ramp up operations while prioritizing public health measures and social distancing protocols as the pandemic enters its seventh month. One of the most important principles of our constitutional democracy is the right of persons accused of a crime to have a speedy trial,” Presiding Judge Brazile said.
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D.A.'s office probing Sheriff Alex Villanueva claim against former county CEO
The Los Angeles County district attorney's office says it is reviewing allegations that Sheriff Alex Villanueva falsely reported a crime when he accused the county's former chief executive of violating conflict of interest laws in a referral to the state attorney general's office.
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DA files more charges against disgraced ex-film producer Harvey Weinstein
Disgraced former film producer Harvey Weinstein - who was already charged in Los Angeles with sex-related charges involving three women - was charged Friday with sexually assaulting two other women in Beverly Hills. Los Angeles County prosecutors filed three new counts each of forcible rape and forcible oral copulation against Weinstein, who is behind bars in New York after being convicted there of sexually assaulting two women.
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3 more LAPD officers charged with falsely labeling people as gang members
Three more Los Angeles Police Department officers have been charged with falsifying records that claimed people they had stopped were gang members, the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office announced Friday. The charges filed Thursday against Rene Braga, 40, Raul Uribe, 34, and Julio Garcia, 36, come less than three months after three other officers who had also worked at the LAPD's Metropolitan Division - Braxton Shaw, Michael Coblentz and Nicolas Martinez - were charged with similar crimes.
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Feds: California man tried to steal $22M from PPP loans
A California man convicted five years ago of defrauding several local governments in the state has been charged with trying to steal $22 million from the Paycheck Protection Program. Federal prosecutors announced Friday that Attila Colar of Richmond submitted nine loan applications and falsified payroll tax documents.
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CEO of Halliburton International Foods charged with engaging in prostitution with 2 teenage girls
The CEO of Haliburton International Foods in Ontario has been charged with engaging in prostitution with two teenage girls. Ian Charles Schenkel, 59, of Newport Beach, was charged Tuesday with six felony counts of unlawful sex with a minor and two misdemeanor counts of soliciting prostitution of a minor involving two girls, ages 15 and 16.
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Prosecutor reopens probe into killing of Oscar Grant, unarmed Black man shot in Oakland by officer in 2009
Prosecutors in California are reopening the investigation into the killing of Oscar Grant, a 22-year-old Black man whose fatal shooting by a transit officer in 2009 prompted protests and was among the first to be captured on a cellphone camera and shared on social media.
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Man freed after serving 7 years in South LA armed robbery after suspect confesses
Derrick Harris was an admitted gang affiliate with a prior felony, but he was not involved in the armed robbery for which he's spent the last seven years in prison, a judge ruled Tuesday in throwing out the conviction. At the urging of the the district attorney, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge William Ryan Tuesday ordered Harris released.
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Federal grand jury charges 8 defendants with trafficking kilograms of cocaine by mail and airline from Southern California to Alaska
Law enforcement in several states today arrested six defendants charged in a federal grand jury indictment alleging they participated in a Southern California-based outfit that trafficked kilogram quantities of cocaine to Alaska via commercial air flights and the mail.
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Tory Lanez, rapper who Megan Thee Stallion says shot her, charged with firearm assault
Rapper Tory Lanez has been charged with allegedly “assaulting a female friend” Thursday following accusations from Megan Thee Stallion that he shot her earlier this year. Lanez, 28, whose real name is Daystar Peterson, is facing one count of assault with a semiautomatic firearm and carrying a loaded, unregistered firearm in a vehicle, the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office said Thursday.
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Cities are losing police chiefs and struggling to hire new ones
This summer, a headhunter called Lashinda Stair, second-in-command at the Detroit Police Department, and asked if she was interested in potentially becoming the chief of the Louisville Metro Police Department. Her answer: “Absolutely not.” In a year that has seen protests in the street, defiant unions, and mayors who are quick to push out police chiefs, the job of running a police department has become less coveted among many law-enforcement leaders.
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George Soros attempts to unseat L.A. County's first Black female DA
Billionaire and Democrat mega-donor Geroge Soros recently gave $1.5 million to George Gascon’s campaign for Los Angeles district attorney. Gascon is a Black Lives Matter-endorsed prosecutor who has promised to lock up fewer criminals, running against incumbent L.A. DA Jackie Lacey.
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Thursday night’s informative & take-no-prisoners debate between Jackie Lacey & George Gascón as they battle to see who will be LA’s next District Attorney
At 6:30 p.m. on Thursday October 8, an important debate took place between two term Los Angeles District Attorney Jackie Lacey, the first woman and first African-American to hold the office, and challenger former San Francisco DA, longtime cop, and nationally known progressive justice reformer, George Gascón.
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Donors play prominent role in LA DA debate
After a summer of protests aimed at police and justice reform, the voters will finally get a chance to register their feelings on those issues in the high-profile Los Angeles District Attorney race. Squaring off in a debate this weekend the two candidates carrying the banners for more liberal reforms versus traditional reforms prominently dueled over the backers of their campaigns, which in itself clarified where they stand.
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Police reform takes center stage at Los Angeles DA debate
Candidates in the race for Los Angeles County District Attorney offered two different visions of the nation’s largest prosecutor’s office in a virtual debate on Saturday. Focus on the race has increased in recent months amidst national calls for police reform during the recent Black Lives Matter protests.
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As election winds down, Los Angeles D.A. candidates skirmish in virtual debate
With the race to lead the country’s largest prosecutor’s office entering its final stretch, the incumbent, Los Angeles County Dist. Atty. Jackie Lacey, squared off in a debate Thursday night with her progressive challenger, George Gascón, who is riding a swell in endorsements and fundraising after a tumultuous summer shifted political winds in Los Angeles.
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Los Angeles DA candidates Lacey, Gascon clash on police racism, death penalty at debate
Squaring off in a debate Saturday, Oct. 3, just days before Los Angeles County voters begin receiving ballots, District Attorney Jackie Lacey mocked her challenger George Gascon for “making a mess of things” in San Francisco, while Gascon accused her of being so in the pocket of police unions that have donated to her campaign that she looks the other way when investigating misconduct.
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An update on a crucial District Attorney race
If you haven’t already gotten your ballot, you will soon. And if you live in Los Angeles County, it will ask you to weigh in on one of the most consequential races in the country. No, again, I’m not talking about the presidential race. Los Angeles County District Attorney Jackie Lacey, elected in 2012 as the first woman and the first African-American to run the nation’s biggest prosecutor’s office, is facing a major challenge from George Gascón, who, until recently, was San Francisco’s district attorney.
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Will Los Angeles be ‘woke’ enough to re-elect Jackie Lacey?
Although "woke" lately has come to mean being sympathetic to the rights and potential double-standards of criminal standards and police interactions of black Americans versus white Americans, another consideration of "wokeness" has also occurred: 1) Lack of enforcement of ALL police enforcement of the law.
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Attack on Police Officers
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LAPD releases security and body camera video from attack on officers at Harbor Station
Segments of security and body-worn-video recordings that captured an attack on officers at the LAPD’s Harbor Station were shown publicly Wednesday, a day after the Department said it planned to investigate how one segment of the video was leaked to reporters in the hours after the incident. The edited presentation posted by the LAPD to YouTube shows an exterior view of the police station on the night of Sept. 26, when a man driving a white Chevy pickup truck drives towards the front door of the public lobby and parks outside.
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Mavs owner Mark Cuban donates $50,000 to families of ambushed Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies
Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban has donated to the families of ambushed sheriff’s deputies in Los Angeles County, California, per a report from Fox News. Each family will receive $50,000. The deputies, a 31-year-old woman and a 24-year-old man, were shot in the face and head while sitting in their patrol SUV near a metro station in Compton.
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Grand jury transcripts give peek into minds of OC deputies who lied about booking evidence
What were they thinking? Orange County sheriff’s deputies systemically failed to book evidence and lied about it in their official reports despite policies and training that drilled down on the importance of booking evidence by the end of each shift. And while there is no specific training that teaches deputies not to lie on reports, it seems intuitive not to falsify documents, especially when they are used to prosecute defendants.
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Gov. Gavin Newsom vetoed a bill this week that would have implemented a longstanding local policy of tracking law enforcement misconduct.
District Attorney Greg Totten, who is on the legislative committee of the California District Attorneys Association, helped author the legislation known as Senate Bill 1220. It was modeled after the work his office and local law enforcement agencies have done for about two decades compiling lists of lawmen whose prior behavior may impact their credibility when testifying.
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Lawmakers look for way to make it easier for people to testify at parole hearings
Louisiana lawmakers want to make it easier for some people to attend public meetings online through apps like Zoom, even after the coronavirus pandemic is over. A bill advanced Thursday, Oct. 1 would allow crime victims and advocacy groups to testify from their computer during parole hearings. Lawmakers say the idea could save district attorneys time and money by making the parole process easier.
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Former LAPD Chief Charlie Beck and George Gascon are straight up hypocrites
At the time that Beck abruptly left LAPD he left the LAPD in shambles, multiple civil lawsuits filed by Los Angeles police officers which named Los Angeles Police Command staff members as defendants, wide spread Infidelity by LAPD Command staff and violent crime on the rise. Now Beck who for more than 30 years was a member of LAPD professed to Protect and Serve the residents and stakeholders of the City of Los Angeles.
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Inspector General analysis of the criminal investigation into allegations that members of the Sheriff’s Department were assaulted by deputies associated with the Banditos.
Deputy secret societies have existed since at least 1970, being noted in a report by Special Counsel James G. Kolts in 1992. The 2012 Report by the Citizens Commission on Jail Violence (CCJV) noted, “for years management has known about and condoned deputy cliques and their destructive subcultures that have undermined the Core Values articulate [sic] by the Sheriff.
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LA County sheriff's deputy hospitalized after another deputy accidentally shoots her in leg
A Los Angeles County sheriff's deputy is recovering after another deputy accidentally shot her in the leg early Friday morning. Authorities had earlier said that the deputy had accidentally shot herself in the leg. Sheriff's officials released updated information in the afternoon, stating that another deputy unintentionally discharged his firearm, striking his partner.
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LASD body cam program begins; Santa Clarita to get cameras within 18 months
For the first time in the department’s history, Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department deputies will be provided with body-worn cameras that will be worn in the field. The first body-worn cameras being used by LASD deputies were to be used Thursday night - and moving forward - at stations in Century City, Lancaster, Lakewood, City of Industry and West Hollywood.
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Grace Yoo website slams Supervisor Ridley Thomas…. using a URL of MRT’s name
Someone on Supervisor Mark Ridley Thomas’ social media team is not paying attention. Today HMG-CN, while doing online research, found a website slamming current L.A. County Supervisor and L.A. City Council District 10 candidate Mark Ridley Thomas using a very surprising URL. The website is paid for by District 10 candidate Grace Yoo.
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Kristi Koons Johnson named assistant director in charge of the Los Angeles Field Office
Director Christopher Wray has named Kristi Koons Johnson as the assistant director in charge of the Los Angeles Field Office. Most recently, Ms. Johnson served as the special agent in charge of the Omaha Field Office in Nebraska. Ms. Johnson joined the FBI as a special agent in 1999 and spent a decade in the Chicago Field Office investigating organized crime and public corruption.
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LAPD asking for 2,600 more body-worn cameras so all cops have one
The Los Angeles Police Department is asking for tens of millions of dollars to buy more body-worn cameras so that all of its sworn officers, including those usually assigned to desk jobs and detective work, can be outfitted with the devices. LAPD is about 2,645 cameras short of being able to assign a camera to every uniformed officer without having to track them down and share them, Deputy Chief John McMahon told police commissioners on Tuesday, Oct. 6.
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Protests & Related Issues
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BLM protesters cause 'tens of thousands of dollars in damage' in LA after tearing down barriers outside police HQ, smashing store windows, burning a US flag and spray-painting 'kill more cops' on a wall
Violent protests that erupted in Los Angeles on Monday night reportedly caused tens of thousands of dollars in property damage, authorities revealed Tuesday. Dozens of demonstrators marched on the LA Police Department headquarters on Main and First streets around 9:40pm, during which windows were shattered, doors were kicked-in and ATMs were damaged.
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Can community policing defuse racial tensions? LAPD's new deputy chief says yes
When Emada Tingirides was a young girl in Watts, she never met “Officer Friendly”. Back then, in the 1970s, just a few years after the Watts Rebellion of 1965, relations between the police and the then predominantly black residents of the 2.1 sq mile Los Angeles neighborhood were still pretty tender.
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LA protesters gather outside police headquarters, smash windows of nearby building; At least 1 arrested: report
At least one person was arrested after dozens of protesters gathered in downtown Los Angeles on Monday night for a demonstration in front of LAPD headquarters, according to multiple reports. A tactical alert was issued by the Los Angeles Police Department in response to the demonstration, Fox 11's Bill Melugin reported. The Los Angeles Sheriff's Department reportedly sent Mobile Field Forces to the area to assist the LAPD and restore order.
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In South L.A., police join community leaders to denounce gun violence ‘not seen in years’
A 14-year-old aspiring football player. A 19-year-old high school graduate just getting his start in life. A 77-year-old woman and her 58-year-old daughter inside their home. A 79-year-old woman standing outside her car. On Friday morning, Los Angeles police officials cited these and other recent South L.A. shootings as they joined elected officials, community leaders, gang interventionists and local clergy to denounce the violence - which spiked this summer and surged this week - and ask for the community’s help addressing it.
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Colin Kaepernick calls for abolition of police 'roots in white supremacy’
Colin Kaepernick is calling for the end of America's current policing system ... saying Wednesday, "In order to eradicate anti-Blackness, we must also abolish the police.” The ex-NFL star spelled out his wishes for the country in a pointed essay ... claiming the current U.S. police system has "roots in white supremacy and anti-Blackness.”
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Ten-year-olds getting shot 'unacceptable:' LAPD raising alarm on uptick in violent crimes in South LA
The Los Angeles Police Department is reporting a troubling rise in violent crimes and a significant change in how many innocent victims have been injured or killed. "Ten-year-olds getting shot. That's unacceptable. Ten-year-olds getting shot in our communities, we are better than this," said L.A. City Councilman Joe Buscaino, whose district has been impacted, during a press conference Friday.
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LAPD Chief Michel Moore reports ‘tragically violent’ weekend after 6 shootings
Los Angeles Police Department Chief Michel Moore appealed to residents this weekend to “reject this trend” of violence that he says appears to be increasing in the city. Half a dozen people were shot in the L.A. area over the span of a few days, prompting Moore to call the series of crimes “tragically violent.”
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California becomes the first state in the nation to end collection of fees in the criminal legal system
Treasurer José Cisneros and Public Defender Mano Raju applaud Gov. Gavin Newsom’s passage of The Families Over Fees Act through signing Assembly Bill 1869, the first in the nation to end the harmful and costly collection of 23 administrative fees imposed against people in the criminal legal system. The bill takes statewide reforms first enacted in San Francisco to eliminate “high pain, low gain” fees that pile debt onto people who cannot pay it, drive people deeper into poverty and create barriers to their successful reentry.
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Police say quick application of tourniquet saved shooting victim’s life
One of three victims of an early Saturday shooting in South Los Angeles that left one dead wouldn’t be alive Sunday if it weren’t for the quick action of an LAPD officer, authorities said. A 51-year-old man was shot a little before 2:10 a.m. Saturday in the 100 block of West 111th Street in the Broadway-Manchester neighborhood. He was pronounced dead at the scene, while a second victim, in his early 30s, had been shot four times and was bleeding to death a short distance away, police said.
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Double murder suspect, one of U.S. marshals most-wanted, captured after Burbank rooftop chase
Double murder suspect Jory John Worthen, one of U.S. Marshals 15 most wanted fugitives, was captured Monday at a motel in Burbank after jumping from rooftop to rooftop in an effort to get away from authorities, law enforcement sources tell NBC News. Worthen was taken to custody by members of the Pacific Southwest Regional Fugitive Task Force, the sources said.
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Friends, supporters call for justice after transgender woman brutally attacked in MacArthur Park
Dozens gathered in MacArthur Park Monday evening to show support for a transgender woman who was brutally attacked. Friends of Daniela Hernandez, who was stabbed multiple times and had her throat slashed, are calling for justice as her attackers are still on the loose. Bamby Salcedo, the president of TransLatin@ Coalition, where Hernandez volunteers, says Hernandez was just walking down the street when she was attacked, and that the suspects said gay slurs to her.
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WNBA legend Cappie Pondexter reportedly arrested for battery in Los Angeles
A woman who refused to give her name to police when she was arrested in Los Angeles is said to be WNBA legend Cappie Pondexter, TMZ reported Thursday. The Los Angeles Police Department told FOX 11 that "Jane Doe" was arrested sometime this past Tuesday on a misdemeanor battery charge. She refused to identify herself to police, so she was booked as "Jane Doe" and was held in jail until she was released earlier Thursday.
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Amazon scoffs at liability for dangerous, fraudulent, and counterfeit products
Amazon is fighting back against a landmark California Appeals Court decision that held the e-commerce giant strictly liable for dangerous products sold on its website. Amazon appealed to the CA Supreme Court arguing that the court took an “unprecedented leap” when it found that Amazon was not shielded from liability for dangerous products that injure or kill consumers.
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Spoofed internet domains and email accounts pose cyber and disinformation risks to voters
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) are issuing this announcement to help the public recognize and avoid spoofed election-related internet domains and email accounts during the 2020 election year. Spoofed domains and email accounts are leveraged by foreign actors and cybercriminals and can be easily mistaken for legitimate websites or emails.
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Congressional investigation exposes Amazon's monopoly, bullying, and competition-crushing behavior
The House Judiciary Committee published its bipartisan investigation into the state of big-tech competitive practices of Amazon, Apple, Facebook, and Google. The committee examined whether these dominant firms engage in anti-competitive conduct, anti-competition practices, and whether existing antitrust laws, competition policies, and current enforcement levels are adequate to address these issues.
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Measure J: Proposed charter amendment earmarks county revenue for community investment (Audio)
Michele Hanisee on KPCC’s AirTalk with Larry Mantle: ADDA President Michele Hanisee appears on AirTalk with Larry Mantle to discuss Los Angeles County Measure J on the November ballot.
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Measure J seeks to shift funds in L.A. County to community investment
The moment has come for voters to weigh in on criminal justice funding in Los Angeles County. Measure J, on the ballot for the Nov. 3 election and mail-in ballot period leading up to it, asks the county’s residents for the greenlight to shift hundreds of millions of general-fund dollars - pegged at about $360 million - away from law enforcement, diverting it instead to help people pay for such things as affordable housing and securing substance-abuse treatment and other social programs.
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Proposition 25 explained: Cash bail vs. risk assessment algorithm
Proposition 25 is a bill that decides the fate of a law Governor Jerry Brown signed in 2018: Senate Bill 10. Senate Bill 10 eliminates the cash bail system, replacing it with an algorithm that determines whether a person is held in jail or let out on their own recognizance. John Bauters, the Budget Advocacy Director for Californians for Safety and Justice, says the cash bail system is inherently flawed.
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Inside the Ballot: Propositions 17 & 20
A pair of propositions could make some changes to California’s criminal justice and parole system. Proposition 20 aims to boost penalties for certain property crimes, like serial shoplifting and car theft, making them felonies instead of misdemeanors. It also increases penalties for those who violate parole three times and adds to the list of felonies disqualifying inmates eligible for early release - including child abuse, domestic violence and hate crimes.
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California voters to review criminal justice, bail reforms
California voters will consider rolling back a host of criminal justice changes in what amounts to a referendum on whether the progressive state has become too lenient. Proposition 20 would amend criminal sentencing and supervision laws enacted during the last administration of Gov. Jerry Brown that critics say are too favorable to criminals, while Proposition 25 could overturn a 2018 law that eliminates cash bail.
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Proposition 16: A new fight over affirmative action
Fundamentally, Proposition 16 is the latest skirmish in a decades-long conflict over the meaning of two words - affirmative action. If passed - very doubtful, according to two recent polls - the measure would repeal 1996’s Proposition 209, which banned discrimination or preferences “on the basis of race, sex, color, ethnicity, or national origin in the operation of public employment, public education, or public contracting.”
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What to know about Proposition 17
Early voting started Monday for millions of Californians, with a few exceptions.
Felons on parole lose their right to vote, but Proposition 17 is looking to change that. When it comes to this proposition it’s important to know the difference between probation and parole. Probation is a part of the offender's initial sentence whereas parole comes after and allows the person an early release from prison.
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Proposition 20 gets push from Senator and Assemblywoman
Several high ranking officials and politicians showed up at Tuesday's Anderson City Council meeting to push for members to support Proposition 20 on November's ballot. "It's really just killing our good citizens, our businesses, and our communities," Anderson Police Chief Michael Johnson said. Prop 20, according to the state, challenges three initiatives intended to reduce the state prison population: Proposition 47, Proposition 57, and AB 109.
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Opposition of parole for Nathan Sims
On August 6, 1993, Nathan Sims shot Long Beach Police Sergeant Abel Dominguez during a traffic stop. Abel was gravely injured, but ultimately survived the attack. Abel suffered catastrophic injuries resulting in permanent disabilities. On November 10, 2020, Sims will be going before the Parole Board again for consideration of an early release from his life sentence. We need your help in opposing this early release.
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Immigration enforcement nets more than 125 arrests, nearly 100 in L.A. area
The Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement announced Wednesday that a statewide enforcement operation that wrapped up last weekend resulted in the arrests of more than 125 “at-large aliens” across California, nearly 100 of them in the Los Angeles area.
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White supremacists remain deadliest US terror threat, Homeland Security report says
White supremacist extremists will remain the deadliest domestic terror threat to the United States, according to the Department of Homeland Security's first annual homeland threat assessment, which details a range of threats from election interference to unprecedented storms.
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Oregon police unions want to push regulations back on lawmakers
A state representative is among the chief petitioners of proposals to open up lawmakers to lawsuits and require cities to crack down on unlawful protests. As Oregon lawmakers continue to work up possible changes to law enforcement oversight, police unions now suggest they’ll ask voters to apply some of those same rules to lawmakers and city officials.
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Convicted killer denied parole for 14th time; crimes took place over 40 years ago
Convicted killer Freddie Rogers, 62, was denied parole for the 14th time, Stanislaus County District Attorney Birgit Fladager announced. On June 2, 1978, Rogers struck Jimmie Hendrix in the head with a tire iron while Hendrix was visiting Rogers’ sister at her home. He then repeatedly stabbed Hendrix with a knife, killing him.
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California to house transgender inmates based on gender identity
California Governor Gavin Newsom signed into law several LGBT-friendly bills in late September, including a measure which aims to protect transgender inmates by housing them according to their gender identity. The law, known as Senate Bill 132, "The Transgender Respect, Agency and Dignity Act," goes into effect January 1.
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Convictions/Pleas/Sentences
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Chinese company tied to Councilman Huizar's corruption and bribery to pay $1 million
A Chinese company's Arcadia subsidiary has agreed to pay more than $1 million to resolve allegations that it bribed city officials, including former Los Angeles City Councilman Jose Huizar, with campaign contributions, foreign travel and Katy Perry concert tickets to ensure support for its downtown building projects, it was announced Wednesday.
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Chatsworth trucking school owner sentenced to 4 years in federal prison for cheating Veterans Affairs out of $4.1 million
The owner of a San Fernando Valley trucking school was sentenced Monday to four years in federal prison for orchestrating a scheme that siphoned more than $4 million from the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs, officials said. Emmit Marshall, 53, of Woodland Hills was also ordered to pay $4.1 million in restitution, according to a release from the U.S. attorney’s office. Marshall, who was the owner and president of Alliance School of Trucking, pleaded guilty to five counts of wire fraud last July. star Inc. | All Rights Reserved.
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Torrance woman who went on racist rants sentenced in Del Amo Mall assault
A woman who was captured on camera giving racist rants targeting Asian Americans in Torrance was sentenced Tuesday to jail after pleading no contest in connection with a Del Amo mall assault. Lena Hernandez, 56, pleaded no contest to charges related to an October 2019 incident at the Del Amo Fashion Center, the LA County Superior Court spokesperson confirmed. She was sentenced to 45 days in jail.
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Vote that forced CrossFit Horsepower to close was biased, rules Los Angeles judge
On September 24, a Los Angeles Superior Court judge tentatively ruled that council member Stacey Armato was biased in her 2018 city council vote to label CrossFit Horsepower a public nuisance, a ruling that ultimately led to the gym’s closure. The Superior Court Judge, Mary H. Strobel, found evidence suggesting Armato told opponents she intended to vote against CrossFit Horsepower long before the vote took place, meaning she was not an impartial decision-maker when she voted.
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Supreme Court denies MLB request to dismiss lawsuit seeking increased minor league wages
The Supreme Court on Monday denied Major League Baseball's request to dismiss a class certification in a lawsuit filed on behalf of minor league players, paving the way for a case in which players seek to receive compensation commensurate with hours worked. The case of Senne v. Royals, filed originally in 2014 on behalf of former minor league player Aaron Senne, expanded to encompass thousands of past and present players who were not paid during spring training or received salaries below the poverty line.
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Supreme Court to hear numerous cases of interest to states and local governments while down a justice
Unless something surprising happens, Judge Amy Coney Barrett is expected to take the bench before the Supreme Court hears the most recent challenge to the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act on November 10. But before she is confirmed the Court will hear 10 cases in its October siting with only eight Justices on the bench.
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