KPCC: Stories by Frank Stoltze

State prison inmates threaten to overwhelm LA County

Mon, 21 Nov 2011 14:30:45 -0800

In this photo taken Tuesday, Sept. 27, 2011, double-tiered bunks are seen in one of the cells at a formerly closed housing unit at the Rio Cosumnes Correctional Center, in Elk Grove, Calif. that will be reopened to handle the increase of inmates sentenced under the new prison realignment program. The realignment plan, championed by Gov. Jerry Brown, is aimed at slashing the state's costs and reducing its prison populations by allowing judges to send non-violent, lower level offenders to county jail for crimes such as property, white collar and drug offenses instead of state prison. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli) Credit: Rich Pedroncelli/AP

Los Angeles County officials are struggling to deal with an influx of former state prison inmates to the county. Thousands of non-serious and non-violent criminals now fall under the supervision of the counties as part of California's plan to reduce its prison population. Some fear illegal activities are bound to spring up in its wake.

“I think you’re going to see a spike in crime in the months ahead," Supervisor Mike Antonavich said.

Antonavich pointed to the long criminal record of one man the state planned to released to L.A. County. His list of crimes included assault on a police officer, assault to commit rape and indecent exposure.

"This was not the profile that the governor was telling the counties we would be receiving and responsible for," he said.

Under one part of the state's realignment plan, county probation officers instead of state parole agents supervise non-serious, non-violent, non-sex offender inmates coming out of prison. The state only count's the inmate's last conviction - not his entire record - when considering who to release.

More than half of the 1,019 inmates released to L.A. County in October were considered high risk for committing new crimes.

“It could be ongoing continual criminal thinking patterns, anti-social behavior," Reaver Bingham, Bureau Chief of Probation's Adult Field Services, said. "When we did the assessment, they hit high on these categories which rendered them high risk.”

Nearly a quarter of those released have been diagnosed with mental health disorders, Dr. Marvin Southard, L.A. County director of Mental Health, said. He is surprised at the severity of their problems.

“The level of acuity of mental health need is greater than we initially projected that it might be," Southard said. "The vast majority require intensive outpatient services.”

Southard conceded the county is struggling to provide that help.

Probation officials said they are working on a contract with community based agencies to expand services. They said they’re also looking at whether the county can force parolees to accept mental health services as a condition of their release.

Under realignment, people who commit new non-serious, non-violent, and non-sexual offenses go to county jails instead of state prison. L.A. County Assistant Sheriff Cecil Rhambo said most who arrived at the jail in October committed a drug offense or burglary, and most were sentenced to two or three years.

He said the county saw 260 more inmates that it expected last month. “We did see a number come to us higher than anticipated," Rhambo said. He said the "spike" happened because some defendants had delayed their sentencing to avoid state prison time.

Rhambo conceded sheriff's officials likely will be forced to release some inmates early, and conduct more G.P.S. monitoring, as the jails fill up.

Some county officials sought to place a positive spin on how realignment was rolling out.

“Given such a huge change, I think we’ve really experienced fewer problems than we certainly could have," Cal Remington, Acting Probation Chief, said.

Some at the probation department are hopeful that the county can do a better job of rehabilitating criminals than the state. But they say they’ll need to offer a lot more help to ex-convicts if they’re going to succeed.

Mary Sutton, a prisoner rights advocate, agreed.

“We need to talk about this group of people with a sense of humanity," Sutton said. "What are we going to do to help these people survive and make it back into the communities that they came from.”

But among county officials, there is a sense of inevitability that one of the inmates released under realignment will commit a high profile crime that will attract a lot of media attention.

“Down the line, one of these guys is going to be a major re-offender. We know that," Supervisor Gloria Molina said.

"But that’s the nature of anybody that comes out of our state prisons.”

Commission examining LA County jail violence convenes

Fri, 18 Nov 2011 18:36:29 -0800

The Citizen's Commission tasked with examining violence inside L.A. County jails held its first meeting today and selected former federal judge Lourdes Baird as chair.

“What we’re planning to do with this commission is hopefully be able to not necessarily report on what is going on, but I believe its going to be more so a question of what recommendations we can make for the future," Baird said.

The group, appointed by the Board of Supervisors, includes former federal judge Dick Tevrizian, former State Supreme Court Justice Carlos Moreno, Long Beach Police Chief Jim McDonnell and the Rev. Cecil Murray. Two more commission members are yet to be selected. Their work is expected to last six months.

The FBI is investigating reports that L.A. County Sheriff’s deputies regularly brutalize inmates at the Downtown Men’s Central Jail. But Sheriff Lee Baca, who is independently elected, is under no obligation to follow any reforms the commission may suggest.

Realignment sends more inmates to already crowded LA County jails

Mon, 14 Nov 2011 06:50:20 -0800

Los Angeles County Men's Central Jail Credit: Corey Bridwell/KPCC

Los Angeles County supervisors are scheduled to hear an update Tuesday on how prison realignment is affecting L.A. County jails. One report suggested the influx of new inmates will force more early releases.

Under realignment, people convicted of non-serious and non-violent crimes go to county jails, instead of state prison. It’s part of California’s effort to abide by a federal court order to reduce its prison population.

The state estimates L.A. County jails will see as many as 8,000 convicts diverted from prison.

The Los Angeles Times obtained an internal report by the L.A. County district attorney that says the jails will be full by the end of the year. Sheriff Lee Baca, who operates the lockups, says he has the funding to add 1,800 more beds — well below the number needed.

The sheriff has said his department is developing an improved risk assessment system to identify which inmates are the best candidates to leave the jails early. Baca also wants to use GPS monitoring to track early release inmates.

District Attorney Steve Cooley has predicted the early releases will result in a spike in crime.

Southern California veterans struggle with PTSD

Fri, 11 Nov 2011 07:24:12 -0800

Iraq veteran Marshall Lewis Credit: Grant Slater/KPCC

What was once called "battle fatigue" afflicts hundreds of thousands of Iraq and Afghanistan War veterans. Post-traumatic stress disorder sometimes surfaces in a suicide, but more often chips away at the emotional well-being of veterans trying to re-enter the society they went to war to protect.

Frances Lucas never saw a bullet fired or a bomb dropped. She was a nurse, in a military hospital in Bilat, Iraq. She did see soldiers on operating room tables. Lucas uses the phrase "mutilated bodies."

"IED blasts, and lots of brains injuries, spinal injuries, and lots of shrapnel injuries of the extremities and the body," she said. "Traumatic, really traumatic."

Lucas, 57, joined the Navy almost four decades ago, and switched to the Air Force 15 years later. In June, she returned from Iraq.

“We can happily say that we saved just about everybody who came through our operating room," Lucas said. But Lucas wonders if she suffers from PTSD.

She describes “attacks.” “Attacks when all of a sudden out of nowhere, I’m just bawling like a baby," Lucas said. "I feel like I hold it together on the outside. You can see my smile and everything. But there are moments and times when I am just so emotional."

The Pentagon estimates upwards of 20 percent of Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans suffer post-traumatic stress disorder. Studies show less than half seek professional help.

Husbands and wives may see symptoms first.

“She recognized this before I did," Army veteran J.R. Browning said of his wife. "I was in that very complex state of denial.”

Browning attended a recent KPCC Crawford Family Forum event for veterans. He helped liberate Baghdad. He also experienced 20 bomb blasts. Doctors diagnosed Browning with both severe post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury.

“I constantly need her to remind me, ‘Babe, what did I say last Thursday?'" Browning said. "I don’t know because she knows more about me at this point than I do.”

It wasn’t always like that. Browning, 31, said his relationship with his wife suffered for several years.

“It’s been strained. Definitely been strained,” Browning said.

“At this point in our lives, we’re very good. But when he came home, it was very difficult," Nicole Browning said. "The stigma that is in the military when you’re active makes it very difficult to seek help when you’re in the military."

Nicole Browning is studying military social work at USC. She said a lot of women are not prepared to cope with the complex social and mental health issues many combat veterans faces.

“A lot of these veterans are coming home and they’re marrying people that weren’t in the military culture," she said. Some new wives miss symptoms that "maybe a military wife would have picked up on.”

Marshall Lewis, 28, served three tours in Iraq with the United States Marine Corps.

A combat injury in Haditha, Iraq sent him home. The fighting was bad enough, Lewis said. But guilt took its toll too.

“A few of my friends died, actually, while I was in a hospital," he said. "To me it’s like I was, for lack of a better word, 'being lazy' while they were doing the work.”

When Lewis came home to Southern California, he did seek out help from a Veterans Affairs therapist and was diagnosed with PTSD. But he quit going to therapy.

“I didn’t really notice it was doing anything for me except for probably making me a little more angry than I was before because it brings it back up," Lewis said. "I know it’s not the perfect scenario, but for me, the more I bury it, the easier it is to deal with.”

Lewis is a computer information systems student at Pasadena City College. He says for now, he'd rather immerse himself in his books than deal with the trauma of war.

Navy veteran describes sexual assault

Thu, 10 Nov 2011 07:00:18 -0800

Paul Casey, 52, served as a medical corpsman in the United States Navy from 1984 until 1992. He was the victim of sexual trauma during his time in the military. Credit: Grant Slater/KPCC

To date, 22 million Americans have served in the military. Many of them see the trauma of war. A few experience a different kind of horror — at the hands of fellow service members. One of them was Paul Casey.

Casey recalls what prompted him to join the military. It was heartbreak. He'd just broken up with his fiancé when he met a Navy recruiter at UC Riverside.

“They make a lot of promises and paint the future really bright," Casey said. "So I thought I’d give it a try, give it a whirl.”

Casey, who'd studied pre-med, became a medical corpsman. The Naval hospital in Bremerton, Washington, was his first assignment. He said the command master chief called him and another sailor into his office.

"In the beginning I thought that was kind of cool that somebody with that much power and that much prestige would pay attention to me,” Casey said.

It was 1984. Casey, who was 25 years old at the time, ate up the attention. Looking back, he said, it made sense.

“I had a very abusive father when I was growing up. In fact I moved out of my home when I was 15 years old because I couldn’t tolerate the abuse any more," Casey said. “Then I found myself in the Navy with this gentleman, I thought a mentor, somebody who’s going to show me the ropes, teach me what was expected to be a man."

The command master chief is the most senior enlisted sailor in a United States Navy unit. As Casey garnered more of his attention, others began to call him the master chief’s “boy.”

“At the time, I really didn’t understand what everybody else saw until I started getting a lot of unwanted sexual attention." Casey pauses. "I really don’t even want to discuss some of the things that went on.”

He said the command master chief sexually assaulted him.

The Pentagon’s own statistics indicate that military sexual trauma (MST), including assaults and harassment, is a serious problem. Women experience it more than men.

Studies say as many as one in three servicewomen suffer military sexual trauma. But it happens to as many as one in four men too.

Like people who suffer trauma from bomb blasts and seeing friends killed, military sexual trauma victims often suffer post-traumatic stress disorder.

Most victims never report it. They do what Casey did — bury it.

“You feel so small, you feel like nobody really cares," Casey said. "And if you do ask for help — what about the ramifications, and the name-calling, and the innuendos."

Casey asked, "Who’s going to believe me anyways? I’m just a peon sailor. And here’s God," Casey said, referring to the command master chief.

Casey, who is not gay, also said that back in those days, the rule wasn’t “don’t ask, don’t tell.” Homosexual behavior in the military was criminal.

He kept his secret, and in the months and years that followed, Casey suffered excruciating migraine headaches and digestion problems. He began drinking a lot.

Casey left the military in 1994 and became a registered nurse at Loma Linda University and Desert Hospital in Palm Springs. He worked some of the toughest shifts, in the emergency room and neonatal intensive care.

“I thought I was the bee’s knees... I got this handled.”

He had help — from Vicodin and other prescription painkillers.

“You find this wonderful little white pill that you can pop in your mouth with a cup of coffee and you’re normal again. You’re OK,” Casey said.

But he wasn’t OK. Relationships failed. Co-workers noticed he was using drugs. He quit nursing, and started a small construction business.

As the recession hit, work dried up. So did the money.

“You run out of friends with couches," he said. People are "tired of feeling sorry for you."

Earlier this year, Casey, now 52 years old, ended up in building 206 at the West Los Angeles Veterans Affairs complex. That’s where homeless veterans can get help.

Casey had seen VA counselors before. "There’s always this one question. And I’ve heard it before," he said. "Have you ever experienced sexual trauma while in the military? I always say 'No. no, no, no, no.'”

This time, he told the counselor yes.

Furutani, Buscaino to compete for Hahn's City Council seat in January runoff

Wed, 09 Nov 2011 09:10:08 -0800

Assemblyman Warren Furutani (right) will square off against police officer Joe Buscaino in a Jan. 17 runoff election for the 15th District seat on the City Council. Credit: Rich Pedroncelli/AP

Los Angeles police officer Joe Buscaino and Assemblyman Warren Furutani will square off in a Jan. 17 runoff election in their bids for the 15th District seat on the City Council.

In Tuesday's election, they topped a field of 11 candidates vying to take over for Janice Hahn, who left the seat in July when she was elected to Congress. Hahn replaced Congresswoman Jane Harman, who stepped down earlier this year to run a foreign policy think tank in Washington, leaving a vacancy in a district that stretches from Watts to San Pedro.

The candidates and outside groups spent $1.9 million on mailings, billboards, TV ads, yard signs and more to sway voters in the heavily Democratic district. During the campaign, the candidates jockeyed for prominent endorsements from influential politicians and powerful unions.

In July, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa announced his support for Furutani, who also has received endorsements from the Los Angeles County Democratic Party, the Teamsters and a handful of labor unions representing government workers.

Furutani is a fixture in local politics. His role as a state legislator led to an influx of financial support from Sacramento as well.

Joe Buscaino is a first time candidate but was quick out of the gates to raise money for his campaign. He raised $170,000 on his own and the Los Angeles Police Protective League contributed an additional $72,285.

Buscaino is also a longtime resident of San Pedro - the largest voter area in 15th district. His popularity at home seemed to help propel him to the top of the polls.

Other candidates included Rudy Svorinich, a registered lobbyist who had the benefit of name recognition in the campaign. He held the now-open seat for two terms before Hahn.

Pat McOsker was also a competitive candidate and had the support of political action committees set up by the Service Employees International Union and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers. The two organizations have spent a combined $374,000 to support firefighter McOsker's campaign, more than five times the next highest spending committee.

Additional candidates on the ballot were:

-- Frank Pereyda, businessman;

-- Gordon Teuber, Hahn's economic director;

-- Justin I. Brimmer, Los Angeles legislative deputy;

-- Rebecca Chambliss, Realtor;

-- Jayme Wilson, businessman;

-- M. "Candice" Graham, community activist, businesswoman; and

-- John M. Delgado Jr., businessman.

The four certified write-in candidates were James T. Law, Timothy "Dream" Weaver, Robert Farrell and Emery D. Soos.

VA seeks to help homeless veterans in Los Angeles

Wed, 09 Nov 2011 06:07:02 -0800

A homeless man sleeps on the sidewalk next to a prepared downtown lot where the new Los Angeles United States Courthouse was supposed to be built. Credit: David McNew/Getty Images

The debate rages over how well the federal Department of Veterans Affairs helps the more than 8,000 homeless men and women living on the streets of Los Angeles.

Earlier this year, the American Civil Liberties Union filed a lawsuit against the VA. It accused the agency of failing to provide adequate help to homeless vets at its sprawling 400-acre West L.A. campus.

“Veterans groups and organizations have been pleading with the VA to provide permanent supportive housing so that these vets can get access to the necessary services,” ACLU Attorney Mark Rosenbaum said. “Every administration has turned its back on these vets.”

Partly in response to the lawsuit, the VA has ended the practice of renting out part of the West L.A. campus property to rental car companies and other commercial enterprises.

VA officials have said they’ve also secured money for more supportive housing and expanded outreach programs, as part of the agency's ambitious goal to end veteran homelessness by 2014.

“The VA over the past several years has become much more accessible to more people,” Chief of Mental Health Bill Daniels told KPCC.

As part of the VA's homeless outreach program, veteran Thomas Esparza, who suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), now helps other veterans who end up on the streets. He described the challenges of reaching out to Iraq and Afghanistan vets.

“A lot of them are not willing to admit they have a mental health issue because they don’t want to be ‘crazy’ at a young age,” Esparza said. “As soon as you say ‘mental health,’ they’re ‘no, no, no.’ They don’t want to be labeled.”

Vietnam veterans, he said, are especially difficult to reach. They are distrustful of government, and often have allowed themselves to deteriorate.

“Most of the time their dogs look better than the veterans do.”

Audio: Take a trip to ground zero in the VA’s homeless outreach program.

Colleagues, friends remember Latino political scholar Harry Pachon

Tue, 08 Nov 2011 07:04:23 -0800

Harry Pachon Credit: Tomas Rivera Policy Institute

Harry Pachon was a key figure in Southland Latino political circles. He died on Friday at the age of 66.

“Harry Pachon was truly one of the pioneers in Latino political science," Arturo Vargas, executive director of the National Association of Latino Elected Officials (NALEO), said.

Pachon held a PhD in political science, a rarity for people from his background during his time. He taught at a number of institutions over the years, most recently at USC and its Tomas Rivera Policy Institute.

Pachon wrote numerous journal articles and co-wrote three books on Latino politics. They included “Latino Politics Comes of Age in the Golden State,” “Addressing Institutional Inequalities in Education” and the forthcoming “Leading the Way: An Analysis of the Effect of Religion on the Latino Vote.”

"His groundbreaking research on the Latino community in America continues to inform and drive our nation's policy-making process," Congressman Xavier Becerra said.

Pachon was "a brilliant scholar and trailblazer," Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa said.

But Pachon wasn’t merely an academic. He was the first director of NALEO, and was chief of staff to the revered Latino congressman from Los Angeles, Edward Roybal.

Pachon was a political tactician. “He had a vision of working to increase the electoral strength of the Latino community through one principle strategy of promoting citizenship among legal permanent residents," Vargas said. "If we look at how naturalized citizens have affected the statewide electorate in California, it’s clear his work had an impact.”

Pachon's longtime friend Jaime Regalado, executive director of the Pat Brown Institute at Cal State L.A., agreed.

“He was one of those uncanny people who had both a theoretical framework and a practical knowledge of how politics really works," Regalado said.

He recalled how Colombian-born Pachon helped convince the American Political Science Association to think more broadly about Latino politics by changing the name of its Chicano caucus. Now it’s the Latino caucus.

Regalado never forgot the first time he met Pachon — in 1969. Pachon was teaching Principles of Political Science at Cal State L.A. Regalado was a student struggling with Herbert Marcuse’s “One Dimensional Man,” when he asked the question no other student would.

“’Professor Pachon, we don’t understand this book. Do you?’"

Pachon paused, Regalado said.

"He thought about it for a second and then he says ‘Well, no actually, I don’t. But collectively we can come to some understanding.”

Vargas said Pachon’s demeanor made him effective in politics, too. “Always a gentleman, genteel, mild-mannered. But very focused."

Vargas added, “I think the most important thing I learned from him is that the work you do is based on research and on fact, not on emotion."

In 1997, President Bill Clinton appointed Pachon to the President’s Advisory Commission on Educational Excellence for Hispanic Americans. That same year, the Mexican government presented him with a humanitarian award to honor his work on behalf of Mexicans in the United States.

Pachon served on a number of nonprofit boards of directors over the years, including that of Southern California Public Radio, the operator of KPCC.

Friends said Pachon was suffering from Parkinson's disease at the time of his death.

DA clears Long Beach officers in killing of unarmed man

Thu, 03 Nov 2011 14:16:10 -0700

This image released by the Long Beach Police shows the black pistol grip water hose nozzle held by Doug Zerby before being shot to death by Long Beach Police officers on Sunday afternoon. Credit: AP Photo/Long Beach Police

Los Angeles District Attorney Steve Cooley on Thursday cleared two Long Beach Police officers who shot and killed a man holding a garden hose nozzle last December. Cooley's office called it a "tragic mistake."

The report by Cooley's office said the officers “reasonably believed” that Douglas Zerby was armed with a handgun. The report called it a lawful shooting by officers who thought their lives were in danger.

The DA for the first time names the officers who killed Zerby: Officer Jeffrey Shurtleff, a six-year member of the Long Beach Police Department, and Officer Victor Ortiz, a 10-year veteran.

On the afternoon of Dec. 12, 2010, Long Beach cops responded to reports of a man with a gun. They snuck up on Zerby, 35, who had been drinking and was actually holding a garden hose nozzle while sitting on a friend’s back porch steps.

"Shurtleff believed that Zerby was waiting for someone to enter the courtyard in order to ambush him. Shurtleff watched as Zerby extended his arm and pointed the firearm south toward the location where Ortiz was positioned inside the front house," the DA's report states.

Shurtleff opened fire.

"Believing that Zerby was shooting at him, Ortiz fired his shotgun at Zerby," the report said.

Zerby, a Long Beach native and father of an eight-year-old son, was pronounced dead at the scene. His family has called the killing an "assassination."

“I’ve heard a lot of people saying that he was an alcoholic, just a dumb drunk who deserved to die," said Heather Woodland, Zerby's younger sister, shortly after her brother's death. "To those people I want to say shame on you."

Woodland said her brother was a good man who suffered from alcoholism.

"But that is no excuse to shoot and kill him when he hasn’t broken a law and done anything wrong,” she said.

Zerby apparently never knew the officers were watching him. They never identified themselves as they approached. Police said they wanted to "secure the location" before giving verbal commands to Zerby.

Long Beach Police Chief Jim McDonnell joined the DA in clearing his officers.

McDonnell "found the actions of both officers to be within department policy and consistent with departmental guidelines." A statement from the Long Beach Police Department said the reviews by the chief and DA concludes a "lengthy and arduous investigation of this incident."

LA County Supervisors grill Sheriff Baca on jail violence reforms

Wed, 02 Nov 2011 07:17:21 -0700

Sheriff Leroy Baca of Los Angeles County, California. Credit: Alex Wong/Getty Images

Frustrated by the pace of jail reforms, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors Tuesday quizzed Sheriff Lee Baca on his plans to stop inmate abuse at Men’s Central Jail. At times, Baca struggled to answer supervisors' inquiries about how he intends to better supervise his deputies.

Supervisor Gloria Molina wanted to know about plans to rotate deputies throughout the jail, so they won’t develop gang-like cliques that brutalize inmates.

“When would you see that being implemented?" Molina asked.

Baca started to answer. “Soon, I mean we’re... we’re doing it now to a degree.”

The supervisor persisted. “'Soon' is when?”

“Well, I have no way of predicting the endpoint,” the sheriff said.

Molina sighed. “Sheriff, let’s start again.”

Baca said he needs to consult the powerful deputies union before he can start the rotations. Union leaders have said they don’t like the idea.

The FBI has launched an investigation into L.A. County jails in the wake of dozens of allegations of inmate abuse — not just from inmates, but from jail chaplains and even from a former deputy who worked at the downtown lockup.

At today's hearing, supervisors also grumbled about the long-delayed installation of cameras inside Men’s Central Jail to monitor deputies’ behavior. Supervisor Mike Antonovich, who in the past has defended Baca, expressed frustration with Baca's plan to install them in the next five months.

“The board was very adamant — we want the cameras installed," Antonovich said. "The need for them was yesterday — not five months from today.”

“I don’t disagree," the sheriff said. He said he would try to accelerate the timeline.

The sheriff maintained he’s making progress on reforms with a new set of jail commanders and a revised force prevention policy.

“It’s my intent through the force prevention policy and my involvement with the jail operations to reduce force to the absolute barest minimum," Baca said.

He said his department’s already cut the use of force at Men's Central Jail by a third. He said the average monthly use of force has gone from about 45 incidents to 17 in October.

The Board of Supervisors has established a seven-member Commission on Jail Violence to examine the issue. So far, the members include former California Supreme Court Justice Carlos Moreno and former federal judges Lourdes Baird and Dickran Tevrizian.

Authorities break up Coachella Valley Occupy camp; Occupy LA prepares for potential police raid

Tue, 01 Nov 2011 07:06:11 -0700

LAPD Chief Charlie Beck at Occupy L.A. Credit: Frank Stoltze/KPCC

Authorities have broken up an anti-Wall Street encampment in the Inland Empire. More than half a dozen members of Occupy Coachella Valley were taken into custody early Tuesday morning after defying orders to leave a public park in Palm Desert. At Occupy L.A., protesters prepare for a potential police raid.

Officers cleared about 20 demonstrators from Palm Desert's Civic Center Park just after midnight. Eight people were arrested for unlawful assembly, being in a public park after hours and unlawful camping.

The city of Palm Desert had granted a temporary camping permit to the demonstrators. It declined to renew it after it became clear the group planned to stay indefinitely.

A video of the early morning arrests were posted on YouTube by one the protestors.

Demonstrators told the Desert Sun newspaper that officers gave no verbal warning before making the arrests. But half the protesters left when officers arrived.

Police say officers visited the park over the weekend to ask demonstrators to leave, or move their protest. Some protestors complied, but then returned.

Demonstrators say they plan to resume their occupation of Civic Center Park.

Occupy L.A. prepares for potential police raid

Some Occupy L.A. protesters encamped outside City Hall are preparing for a police raid, even though LAPD officials say they don’t plan to conduct one.

“It feels like there’s a case being built against the Occupy protest," Don Duncan said. "Dead grass at City Hall, the sanitary conditions around the trash and the restrooms. It feels like a lot of issues are being brought up in the media.”

Duncan is no stranger to police tactics. He is with Americans for Safe Access, a medical marijuana group that's fought against police raids on pot shops. Duncan provided a civil disobedience seminar to a small group of Occupy L.A. protesters.

Duncan said people should decide ahead of time if they're willing to be arrested, and urged them to be nonviolent if the police approach. He also said people should not already be in trouble with the law.

“If you have an outstanding warrant (for your arrest), you’re probably not a good candidate for civil disobedience," Duncan told the group sitting outside City Hall. "You’re going to get arrested for your outstanding warrant."

Some people worried about agent provocateurs sparking police violence. Others worried the police would show up in the middle of the night. One man said he had more faith in the LAPD than the Oakland Police, who protesters claim used excessive force.

Friday, LAPD Chief Charlie Beck walked through the hundreds of tents nearly surrounding City Hall.

“This group has been peaceful and respectful," Beck said as he joked with one protester who'd lost one of his flip flops. "We'll slow down for you."

Beck said there's no immediate plan to remove the protesters, but echoed Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and others who've said they can't stay indefinitely.

“We want to continue a program that continues freedom of speech but also allows the city to continue its business," Beck said, "and when I say business, I mean the use of property and public space and all of that.”

As the chief spoke, several reporters smelled marijuana in the air. Beck professed he smelled nothing, adding that marijuana use was not his biggest concern at Occupy L.A.

"Marijuana use doesn’t necessarily disturb me. The behavior of the group disturbs me. And the behavior of the group has been good," Beck said. "I’ve been here many, many times. Nobody is smoking marijuana in front of me. I don’t know if it's medicinal or illegal. I have no idea. But I certainly have not seen alcohol containers. I have not seen people publicly intoxicated or high.”

Its unclear how many of the hundreds of protesters would obey a police order to leave. Duncan said people are split on the issue.

“I’m hearing about 50/50 right now of people saying they are going to stick around no matter what and people saying they are going to leave when the police department orders them to go," he said.

City and LAPD officials say they continue to negotiate with Occupy L.A. about finding another venue.

Sheriff Baca faces LA County Board of Supervisors on jail violence

Tue, 01 Nov 2011 06:58:22 -0700

Sheriff Lee Baca holds a press conference regarding the Paris Hilton case at the Los Angeles Sheriffs Department June 8, 2007 in Monterey Park, California. Credit: Chad Buchanan/Getty Images

Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca is scheduled to appear before the Board of Supervisors Tuesday to discuss violence inside Men's Central Jail and other county lockups. The FBI has launched an investigation into dozens of allegations of inmate abuse by sheriff’s deputies. The board, in response, has created a Commission on Jail Violence.

“I think it’s a good idea. We’re really better when society is looking at things and I welcome it,” Baca told KPCC.

Baca initially resisted any outside investigation. He indicated he still views reforms proposed by Supervisor Gloria Molina and approved by the board as a formality.

“We’ve been working on it as it stands, and I think she just put it in one package so that the public could understand the importance of these reforms,” Baca said.

The board said it wanted to impress upon the sheriff the importance of reforming his jails. Voters elect the sheriff, and he is not beholden to the Board of Supervisors. But at least one supervisor has threatened to cut off funding to the sheriff if he fails to enact jail reforms.

The Los Angeles Times reports his command staff was raising concerns about abuse nearly two years ago. While he now acknowledges some abuse has occurred, Baca, who has been sheriff for more than a decade, said allegations of inmate abuse are exaggerated.

“When it gets right down to it, there are a large number that are not provable," Baca said. "I don’t know if this is a strategy on the part of inmates to be housed in a different place when they don’t want to be in the Central Jail.”

The allegations don’t come just from inmates, but from a jail chaplain, a tutor who works at Men's Central and a former sheriff’s deputy who told the Times that he was ordered by supervisors to beat up a mentally ill inmate.

Baca said he is moving to stop any abuse with a new force prevention policy at the jail.

"Avoid making physical contact with inmates. Use a communication skill that decelerates anxiety and whatever stresses inmates have," Baca said he has told deputies. The inmates "all have depression, stress and anxiety as it stands. But when we are too aggressive with them in minor incidents, it can lead to force.”

Baca said his policy has resulted in fewer inmate complaints.

ACLU sues LA sheriff's deputies for detaining photographers

Thu, 27 Oct 2011 17:36:13 -0700

A female photographer in Morro Bay, California. Credit: mikebaird/Flickr (Creative Commons)

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) Thursday accused Los Angeles County Sheriff’s deputies of unlawfully detaining and searching photographers under the guise of looking for terrorists

Thursday's suit was filed in a L.A. district court on behalf of three photographers, who have been detained or ordered not to photograph by sheriff's deputies on at least six occasions.

The plaintiffs say they were each on public streets when sheriff's deputies approached them. The deputies, they say, detained them, frisked them and asked why they were taking photos.

The ACLU represents three photographers, including Greggory Moore. The Long Beach Post reporter recently said Sheriff’s deputies questioned him outside the courthouse where he was taking pictures for a news story.

“I started to answer," he said. "I said is there a problem? And he said 'are you taking pictures of the courthouse?'"

From there, said Moore, the conversation escalated: "I said is it illegal to take pictures of the courthouse? And he said 'sir step over here.' The eight officers came around me in sort of a perimeter. I was told to put my hands behind my back palms together.”

Moore said the deputies told him they were making sure he wasn’t a terrorist. The ACLU says in other cases, deputies have ordered photographers to stop taking pictures. The lawsuit states the actions are a violation of the Constitution’s First Amendment right to free expression and Fourth Amendment right to be free of unjustified searches and seizures.

Another plaintiff said sheriff's deputies detained and searched him for photographing turnstiles on the Los Angeles Metro, asking if he planned to sell the photos to al-Qaeda and threatening to put his name on the FBI's "hit list," according to a ACLU/SC press release.

“Photography is not a crime. It’s protected First Amendment expression,” said Peter Bibring, senior staff attorney at the ACLU in Southern California, in a press release. “Sheriff’s deputies violate the Constitution’s core protections when they detain and search people who are doing nothing wrong. To single them out for such treatment while they’re pursuing a constitutionally protected activity is doubly wrong.”

The lawsuit asks that the court order the Sheriff's Department to stop the practice. It also seeks unspecified damages.

A Sheriff’s spokesperson said the department had no immediate comment.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Audit: First 5 Commission sitting on $1 billion intended for kids

Thu, 27 Oct 2011 09:35:37 -0700

An audit of Los Angeles County’s First 5 Commission finds that the agency failed to spend almost a billion dollars set aside for children’s health and education programs.

L.A. County supervisors expressed dismay that hundreds of millions of dollars in cigarette taxes intended to help kids languishes in First 5 bank accounts.

“The current status of affairs at First Five is unacceptable — the lack of transparency, the lack of accountability," Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky said.

First 5 is an independent, voter-approved agency. In reaction to the audit, the supervisors voted to begin the process of taking control of the commission.

Supervisor Gloria Molina dissented. She said First 5’s problems don’t warrant that.

“I don’t see where one dollar was stolen, one dollar was misappropriated," Molina said.

Yaroslavksy said that may be true, but there are plenty of warning signs. The audit found First 5 L.A. lacks a competitive bidding process, is overstaffed and its executives fail to inform the commissioners of the most basic information about multi-million dollar contracts.

Occupy LA may be asked to move

Thu, 27 Oct 2011 09:15:49 -0700

Protesters remain camped on City Hall's lawn but may soon be moved to another location. Credit: Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images

After saying last week that Occupy L.A. protesters could remain at their City Hall encampment "for now," Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa instructed his staff to find a place for the protesters to relocate and come up with a plan for limiting the protest's time on City Hall's lawn.

At first, police shooed people off the broad lawn surrounding City Hall between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m., but then gave up after a few days. Villaraigosa suggested the protesters could be moved to city property near Temple and Main streets.

He has said he won't put up with the demonstration indefinitely; protesters wont be able to stay on the lawn forever.

L.A. City Attorney Carmen Trutanich says an existing law requires people to clear out of the city’s public parks by 10:30 at night.

“If you’re a protester and you’re protesting the fact that Wall Street is breaking the law by doing what they’re doing and you in turn are breaking the law by doing what you’re doing, you’re in the same exact boat.”

Trutanich told KPCC’s Larry Mantle that he’s advised the city council to enforce the night curfew. Council members are considering whether they should move the protesters to another location.

Councilman Dennis Zine offered an explanation for the city's change of heart.

“Not much has changed except the time they’ve been there, and at a certain point your welcome is worn out,” Zine said on the Madeleine Brand Show Thursday. “We now have homeless people who are joining the group, people who are coming up off of skid row, who don’t have anything to do.”

Lance Robertson, a 29-year-old at the Downtown camp, said he agrees the protesters can't stay on the City Hall lawn forever. But if politicians force the demonstrators to leave, the movement will continue regardless.

"...it shows me that these people are massively out of touch without the broader social undercurrents that are happening right now," said Robertson.

But Zine said there are no local solutions to the wider problem, and system wide changes may be difficult to achieve.

“These folks basically want to take the 1 percent of the population, the wealthy folks, and how they became wealthy —through inheritance, through hard work, or whatever the case may be — and turn it into a socialist environment," Zine said on the Madeleine Brand Show "We’re a capitalist society and I don’t’ see us changing a capitalist society.”

The Occupy movement started Sept. 17 in New York City and has since spread around the nation. In Oakland, demonstrators allegedly threw things at police, who fired tear gas and riot-control rounds into the crowds yesterday.

Protesters in L.A. have expressed solidarity with the Oakland demonstrators, but the LAPD seem to have a very different approach to the Occupy movement here. Police officers have been speaking with L.A. protesters on a daily basis, and are taking cues from the city's politicians when determining how long the protesters will be able to stay.

Mayoral spokesman Peter Sanders said police would not make anyone move off City Hall's lawn overnight. Since people started camping at City Hall on Oct. 1, the number of tents set up overnight has ranged from about 40 to 493, by the most recent count.

On Wednesday evening, LAPD Public Information Director Andrew Smith was out wandering and talking to the protesters, as he says he does nearly every night.

"For right now, nothing has changed in our posture towards the crowd here," he said. "We've had great cooperation. We've had meetings with [protesters]. We meet with them just about every day. Everything's working out great. We've had a very peaceful, nonviolent expression of people's First Amendment rights here, which has been fantastic for us."

Villaraigosa has said he was concerned about the cost to taxpayers. He said the city was spending about $2,700 per day, mostly for General Services Department police officers to watch demonstrators. People also have been messing up the lawn and inadvertently breaking sprinkler heads, he said.

Damage to the lawn could be as much as $400,000, according to the Department of Parks and Recreation.

But the Occupy protesters are largely self-sustained. With over 500 tents set up on the lawn, the group has created a makeshift city that includes a library, first-aid station and a media tent where they can even live stream what's going on at their camp.

On Friday, there are even plans to hold a marriage ceremony at the Occupy camp.

The movement's spokesmen released a response to the concerns Wednesday night.

LA County Supervisors approve Newhall Ranch project despite environmental objections

Tue, 25 Oct 2011 12:51:31 -0700

The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors Tuesday gave final approval to the first phase of the massive Newhall Ranch project near Santa Clarita. The vote came after 15 years of litigation and investor changes.

Eventually, the Lennar Corporation plans to build more than 20,000 homes, seven public schools, a commercial district, a regional park and a golf course in rugged open space in Northern L.A. County.

Some environmental and Native American groups decried approval. They argued the project will increase traffic, contaminate ground water and that the open space should be protected. A spokesman for the developer said Lennar met all state and local regulations and promised the project would bring thousands of temporary and permanent new jobs.

Under the first phase, known as Landmark Village, Lennar will build more than 1,100 condominiums and 270 homes. The company plans to break ground next year.

Downey police may have shot, killed wrong man; family outraged

Tue, 25 Oct 2011 09:27:30 -0700

Downey police have admitted that a man who was shot to death Saturday night while an armed robbery investigation was underway may have been the wrong man. The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department and District Attorney's Office have opened investigations.

Sheriff’s Sgt. Michael Thomas said the shooting occurred around 7 p.m. Saturday. “Saturday evening, the 22nd of October, Downey officers were responding to a call of an armed robbery at an ATM machine.”

Thomas said Downey police briefly detained 31-year-old Michael Nida, but he got away. Sheriff's investigators say Downey police shot and killed Nida because he twice ran from them and approached them in a threatening manner.

“One of the officers during the foot pursuit saw the suspect turn toward him, and fearing for his safety fired his firearm at the suspect, striking him,” Thomas said. Nida was unarmed.

Family members said Nida had only jaywalked across a busy street to buy cigarettes as his wife bought gas near Imperial Highway and Paramount Boulevard, KCAL9 reported. They said they don’t know why he would run.

Police reportedly found a small amount of marijuana on him. Nida was the father of four children.

"Officers were responding to a robbery of a citizen on the street, " Downey police Sgt. Perry Miller said. "When they saw two suspects matching their descriptions, a pursuit started. When one suspect was confronted, he ran from the officers again, and that led to the officer-involved shooting."

Authorities said today Nida probably was not the suspect they were looking for, KCAL9 reported.

"He got taken off by authority. You know? By authority. By the law," friend Gabriel Sapien told KCAL9.

During the chase, Nida was detained twice, and escaped from Downey police twice, running through a subdivision near Imperial Highway and Paramount Boulevard, said investigators for the Los Angeles County sheriff, who have been brought in by Downey police to investigate.

"He said the individual was acting almost like a caged animal and that his actions were very aggressive, and he believed he was armed and he believed he was a dangerous to everybody around him," Lt. Dave Dolson of the sheriff's department told KCAL9. "The first time he fled from the officer he had not been patted down or checked for weapons."

Dolson said the second time Nida was caught, he was placed flat on the ground on his stomach but not patted down or searched.

A weapon was never recovered.

"You're supposed to trust them and be able to know that they're going to take care of you and then they do this. This isn't right," Nida's niece Veronica Garo said.

A sister of the man shot by police told CBS2 that her brother was uninvolved in the robbery.

"My brother and his wife were getting gas. He went across the street to get some cigarettes. He jaywalked, I guess. And the police saw him. Confronted him. I don't know what happened, but they shot him ... in the back. Five times. Killed him," Terri Teramura said.

Teramura said her brother had four children.

"Father of my grandchildren. My son. My baby. My baby. My baby," Nida's mother, Jean Gaxton said to KCAL9. "He was God's gift to me. He was God's gift, and he was taken away, not through any actions of his other than being afraid and running."

Sheriff's detectives were overseeing the investigation.

No information was made available about the underlying robbery.

This story incorporates information from KPCC wire services.

Obama comes to Southern California seeking Latino support

Mon, 24 Oct 2011 06:00:04 -0700

U.S. President Barack Obama speaks about the $447 billion jobs bill he sent to Congress during a news conference in the East Room of the White House October 6, 2011 in Washington, DC. Credit: Alex Wong/Getty Images

President Barack Obama is back in Los Angeles Monday raising money for his re-election campaign — and shoring up support among Latinos.

“Yes, he is in trouble with Latino voters,” Antonio Gonzalez said. Gonzalez is president of the Los Angeles-based William Velazquez Institute.

“He would gain about half the Latino vote if the election were held today,” Gonzalez said. That’s a “precipitous decline” from his zenith in 2009, which was about 80 percent.

That decline puts his re-election in jeopardy, because of the large number of Latino voters in swing states like Nevada and Florida.

The president hopes to re-establish support from Latinos with a Los Angeles fundraiser organized by the Futuro Fund, a group comprised of Latinos. The star-studded event is at the home of actor Antonio Banderas and his wife Melanie Griffith. Actress Eva Longoria helps host the event.

Another fundraiser is at the home of producer James Lassiter with hosts Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith. Both events are in the Hancock Park area. Expect major traffic delays in and around Hancock Park starting in the late afternoon and lasting into the evening.

Gonzalez said many Latinos blame Obama for failing to push immigration reform through Congress. He notes Democrats controlled both the House and the Senate for the first two years of his presidency.

Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, who will attend Obama’s fundraiser, defends the president.

“First of all, President Obama doesn’t not have a vote in the Congress,” Villaraigosa said. “I put the blame on the Congress and particularly the Republicans who have opposed any effort at comprehensive immigration reform.”

But Latinos are not just upset about immigration, Gonzalez said. Latinos have been hit disproportionately hard by unemployment and foreclosures, and many blame Obama.

“You have essentially seen the elimination of a gigantic portion of the American middle class," Gonzalez said, "and perhaps the majority of the black and Latino middle class as defined through home ownership.”

At the same time, said Gonzalez, no Republican contender “has captured the Latino imagination.” He notes many continue to talk about militarizing the southern U.S. border.

Air Force One arrives at LAX shortly before 5 p.m., flying to the UCLA area via helicopter. A motorcade will transport the president to Hancock Park, where he will attend fundraisers later that evening and stay the night. He leaves Tuesday around noon, after taping a segment with Jay Leno for “The Tonight Show.”

The Secret Service remains tight-lipped about Obama's exact route. A representative from the Wilshire Community Police Station said they have not been given any information regarding specific street closures.

However, L.A. City Councilman Bill Rosendahl told KNX radio in an interview that "Sunset, Santa Monica, Pico and Olympic (boulevards) are under consideration for the route to Hancock Park for the fundraiser."

According to Beverly Hills Patch, motorists can expect delays on the 405 Freeway. Streets between the 405 and Highland Avenue may be most impacted.

Rosendahl also told KNX that "After the president clears a certain location, they will immediately open up the streets."

This story has been updated and includes contributions from KPCC's Andrea Wang.

Villaraigosa: Occupy LA can stay 'for now'

Thu, 20 Oct 2011 19:38:52 -0700

A sign on one of the tents set up outside Los Angeles City Hall as part of Occupy LA Credit: Frank Stoltze/KPCC

Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa on Thursday refused to issue an open-ended invitation to Occupy LA protestors camped on City Hall’s lawn.

Last week, the City Council passed a resolution supporting Occupy LA, and Council President Eric Garcetti told protestors “stay as long as you need.” Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa is not making a similar commitment.

“The city acknowledges their First Amendment right to be here and to protest in the way that they have,” he said.

So they can stay there as long as they want?

“I think for now. We’ll see what happens going into the future," he said.

The mayor pointed out Occupy LA’s 500 tents on City Hall lawns are costing $2,700 a day in police, sanitation and other expenses. Damage to the law and sprinklers could top $400,000, according to one city official.

“We’ve all got to acknowledge that there’s a price to bear,” the mayor said.

After initially saying they planned to camp out until the end of the year, some Occupy LA leaders say they want to stay until the November 2012 elections. Their encampment has forced a popular weekly farmers market off of City Hall’s lawn and across the street. But both the mayor and police have said the protest has been generally peaceful.

Update: LA County jails to get oversight committee

Tue, 18 Oct 2011 15:27:19 -0700

Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca pictured this year. Credit: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Los Angeles Sheriff Lee Baca did not show up for a key vote by the Board of Supervisors Tuesday to create a citizen’s jail commission. The new panel is charged with examining allegations of widespread inmate abuse by Baca’s jail deputies, especially those who work at Men’s Central Jail downtown.

“I was disappointed he wasn’t here today,” Supervisor Gloria Molina today. An assistant sheriff said Baca was meeting with a group of jail captains.

In the past, the independently elected sheriff has been resistant to outside oversight, but Molina said this time Baca called her and said he was supportive of the commission. Each supervisor will appoint one member.

Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky said the panel is similar to the Christopher Commission that looked at the LAPD in the wake of the Rodney King beating, and recommended reforms. Despite similarities, questions remain about whether the panel will have the resources to conduct a thorough review. The board did not approve a budget for its work.

"Deep and long term solutions to our problems in the jail need to be articulated frankly, publicly, with a group of independent citizens," Yaroslavsky said before the vote.

Baca is independently elected by L.A. County voters, and would be under no obligation to follow any recommendations. Yaroslavsky said the panel will carry enough political weight to apply the necessary pressure for change.

"It's just become necessary to have a fresh set of eyes on the problem," Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas said before the vote. Civil libertarians have long expressed concerns about inmate abuse inside L.A. County lockups, especially at the downtown Men's Central Jail. The FBI also has launched an investigation into the L.A. County jail system. Civil rights activists have long complained of abuse, and the county has paid out millions of dollars to inmates who have filed lawsuits.

In addition to creating the commission, the Board of Supervisors approved a series of jail reforms and asked Sheriff Baca to report back on them in two weeks. One commission calls for the installation of cameras in the jails — something the sheriff has been slow to adopt. Another proposal calls on deputies to no longer use flashlights as batons.

“It is heavy, it has sharp angles,” the board’s Special Counsel Merrick Bobb said. “It causes much greater injury — many more fractures, many more broken bones — than does a baton.”

That proposal immediately drew fire from Mark Divis, a representative of the Association of Los Angeles Deputy Sheriffs, the union that represents jail deputies.

“Do not jeopardize our deputies by removing a tool that has been used for years,” Divis said.

The union’s president, Floyd Hayhurst, warned against portraying all deputies as brutal. He also said Baca should be allowed to address the problems on his own: “Give him the opportunity to work through the problems and get them fixed,” he said.

"I wasn't ignoring the jails. I just didn't know," Baca told the Times. "People can say, 'What the hell kind of leader is that?' The truth is I should've known. So now I do know."

Connie Rice, civil rights attorney and friend of Baca, told the California Report's Krissy Clark that Baca usually leads through inspiration and positive energy but now will look toward more concrete changes.

"I think he's now seeing that's not enough. That you actually have to change the incentives, you have to rewrite the job descriptions, you have to change the promotional criteria, and what people do on their shifts," she said.

The stories of abuse coming out of the jails are indeed harrowing.

Gordan Grbavac, 44, is a father of four who spent eight days in jail on an illegal weapons charge that was eventually dropped.

"They handcuffed me and took me to a back room and they slammed my head into a glass wall over half a dozen times," he said. "There was blood on the glass. There was blood on the cement floor."

Accounts like these don't just come from former inmates. Jail Chaplain Paulino Juarez said he witnessed a passive inmate plead with three deputies as they repeatedly punched him.

"He was just saying 'stop, please stop. I did nothing wrong.'" Juarez recalled. "I was shaking, I was sad, I was upset."

In a declaration filed in federal court by the ACLU, Juarez said he later saw a pool of blood where the inmate fell to the floor.

Few know more about the jails than Merrick Bobb. He's been special counsel to the board of supervisors for two decades. His job is to watchdog the sheriffs department.

"A lot of what has transpired lately is more of the same of what has been around for a long period of time," Bobb said.

Bobb believes there is a culture that allows abuse of inmates. He said a relatively few number of deputies engage in excessive use of force, but many more help cover it up.

"The code of silence is one of the building blocks that allows it to be maintained and sustained," Bobb said.

Bobb also said many politicians and the public tend to be uninterested in what happens to people who end up inside L.A. County jails. He said before the vote that he hopes that's finally changing.

Supervisor Molina said the sheriff needs a push to make real change, and issued a threat if Baca doesn’t make reforms.

“I am not going to give him a nickel until he starts doing what we are recommending,” Molina told KPCC. “I have found that is the only way that you can have any kind of accountability with your children, with anybody.”