1. A new LAPD chief.2. A ban on memorializing public figures who have been convicted of crimes. This would eliminate former Supervisor Pete Schabarum’s name on a south-county park and Richard Alatorre’s memorial by the MTA Building.3. An LAPD civilian review board.4. A district attorney to be appointed by the local state appeal court — […]
Category: LA Weekly
Trouble in Paradise
Just last month, Mary Angle was a star in the rarefied firmament of Southern California natural-resource management.She had been a park ranger, a member of former Senator Alan Cranston’s staff and an executive for Save the Redwoods before taking on the $77,000-a-year job as director of the San Gabriel and Lower Los Angeles Rivers and […]
Redistricting Revulsion
By this summer, if her colleagues adopt their favored redistricting plan, Ruth Galanter could end up representing some 246,000 San Fernando Valley residents during her last year in office. The new turf is about seven miles north of her present Westside district.Galanter, one of the three most senior members of the L.A. City Council, would […]
Hahn to Bernie: Drop Out
Two hours before Mayor Jim Hahn began his Tuesday news conference to state his opposition to Bernie Parks getting a second term as police chief, South Los Angeles activist Najee Ali was already reacting. He’d gone to the Los Angeles City Clerk’s Office to file papers to petition for the recall of Hahn.“No one has […]
Twisting Slowly
The debate is over on Bernie Parks. It‘s a foregone conclusion that the Los Angeles Police Commission will support the mayor’s wish that the police chief not be re-appointed for another term, and informal polling suggests the City Council will not override that decision.All of the talk about ”process“ and the independence of the mayor-appointed […]
The Toad vs. the Big Cement Company
County supervisors will vote next week on a project that would demolish a great hunk of northern L.A. County‘s remaining natural habitat.If they reject the long-delayed Transit Mix Concrete gravel-digging project, supervisors will stand with its fastest-growing and third largest city, Santa Clarita, which is suing several federal agencies for failing to protect rare species […]
Biting Back
As a covered entity under Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act, the City of Los Angeles does not discriminate on the basis of disability and, upon request, will provide reasonable accommodations to ensure equal access to its programs, services, and activities . . .Dan Knapp, L.A.’s former Department of Animal Services general manager, […]
Supervisorial Misconduct
The buck-and-a-half word for today is tergiversate, which means ”to change repeatedly one’s attitude or opinions.“ And as of this week, Los Angeles County Counsel Lloyd Pellman is Civic Center‘s prime tergiversator.Just look at the way he flipped through his options a few weeks ago on the little matter of dealing with the home health-care […]
Beyond Bernie
Early last week, top leaders in the local African-American clergy held a private breakfast meeting. I don’t know what it was about. But whatever decision was made, it doesn‘t seem to have been to amp up the protest against Mayor Jim Hahn’s decision not to rehire his police chief. New York mouth-at-large Al Sharpton was […]
The Knife
Facing the tightest budget in seven years, L.A. County’s new health-services director, Thomas Garthwaite, told a skeptical Board of Supervisors this week that he is willing to consider service cuts far beyond the $10 million reduction already approved.But it won‘t be easy to do. In light of strong protests voiced against the $10 million round […]