Porterville police dog dies after patrol car’s air conditioning shuts down

Here is the latest Local News from the LA Times.

Porterville police dog dies after patrol car’s air conditioning shuts down

A Porterville police dog died in June when a patrol car’s air conditioning stopped working, the police department announced Thursday.

The dog’s handler placed “Idol” in the patrol car with the air conditioning on after a training session on June 20. The temperature outside was 90 degrees, according…

Freelance photographers catch suspected arsonist setting a brush fire in the Antelope Valley

Freelance photographers Jeff Zimmerman and Bernie Deyo are usually out covering fire stories but on Tuesday they found themselves in the middle of one.

The two photographers took photos and video of a suspected arsonist setting fires in Neenach, a small community 34 miles northwest of Lancaster.

…

Child is killed when pickup truck hits stroller being pushed by mother in South Los Angeles

A 10-month-old was killed and the child’s mother injured when they were struck by a pickup truck early Thursday in South L.A., police said.

The incident occurred about 7:10 a.m. at the intersection of 59th Place and Broadway, according to a statement from the Los Angeles Police Department.

Juana…

Redlands statue honoring widows and orphans of WWII servicemen is vandalized

A bronze statue in Redlands of a child and mother holding a folded American flag was taken apart, possibly by thieves bent on selling scrap metal, a city official said Thursday.

Installed in 2008 at the veterans memorial near the eternal flame at Jennie Davis Park, the statue, titled “Widows and…

Trump campaign pays Costa Mesa over $15,000 for costs of policing rally

Donald Trump’s presidential campaign has cut a check to Costa Mesa for more than $15,000 to cover some of the costs the city racked up for policing an April 28 rally that sparked a massive protest.

Thousands of people flocked to the event at the OC Fair & Event Center, filling the 8,500-seat Pacific…

San Diego moves to ban single-use plastic bags

The San Diego City Council on Tuesday voted to ban single-use plastic bags at large grocery stores, pharmacies and corner markets — becoming one of the last major cities in California to limit the disposable products.

“Citizens across the state have demonstrated the ability to transition to more…

Claude Williamson dies at 89; versatile jazz pianist was mainstay of West Coast cool

Claude Williamson, a versatile pianist who skillfully merged the bebop style of the East with the laid-back sound of the West, securing himself a seat in the cool L.A. jazz scene of the ‘50s, has died.

Williamson, 89, died in a facility in Sunland on Saturday, said his son, Marc Williamson. He…

Funding priorities, executive salaries top agenda as Cal State trustees welcome five new campus presidents

When Gov. Jerry Brown signed off on the state’s final budget plan, which gave California State University about 60% of the additional funding that administrators said they needed for the 2016-2017 fiscal year, university officials had to make tough allocation decisions and downsized certain priorities,…

State funding cuts during the recession still shortchanging Cal State students, officials say

State budget cuts have left California State University with about 19% less in funding to spend per student compared with pre-recession years — compromising efforts to fully address student needs, university officials said.

The state spends about $7,858 per full-time student, compared with $9,686…

David Horowitz dies at 86; longtime Hollywood publicist

David H. Horowitz, a longtime Oscar publicist who helped broker public appearances for Bill Clinton, died Sunday at his home in Los Angeles, said friend and colleague Carl Samrock. He was 86.

Horowitz was a publicist for various Hollywood celebrities, but was known particularly for his Academy…

How ‘fat shaming’ on Snapchat turned into a criminal investigation

Last week, Playboy model Dani Mathers took a photo of a nude woman in a locker room shower at an LA Fitness gym and posted it on Snapchat with the caption, “If I can’t unsee this then you can’t either.”

Mathers immediately faced the wrath of critics on social media who accused her of fat shaming,…

In Westlake, homeless people take cues from immigrant street vendors

Josiah Payne struggled in Kansas City, bouncing from job to job and from apartment to apartment.

He packed up and headed to Los Angeles two years ago, carrying with him the well-trodden transplant dream of becoming an actor, musician — something. But in just four months of living in the city, he…

Long Beach educator will be first Latino to lead California community colleges

Eloy Ortiz Oakley, a nationally recognized leader in public education who heads the Long Beach Community College District, was named Monday as the new chancellor of California’s community college system.

He will become the first Latino chancellor of the 113-college system, the nation’s largest…

San Diego’s trendy Hillcrest area cracks down on disruptive homeless, aggressive panhandlers

Panhandlers have asked for change from diners in restaurants, according to one business official. A furniture store owner said he has found homeless people napping in his showroom and sleeping on his doorstep. Another shop owner said he has to constantly clean human waste from the alley behind…

Decomposing 22-ton whale washes up onshore again – this time in Encinitas

A whale carcass found on a San Diego County beach over the weekend is likely that of Wally the humpback, which just won’t stay out at sea.

A construction crew attempted Sunday to cut up and remove the decomposing whale from Grandview Beach in Encinitas, since lifeguards didn’t have a boat big enough…

Melvin Durslag, longtime Los Angeles sportswriter and columnist, dies at 95

Melvin Durslag, a  sports columnist who covered the Los Angeles  scene for decades beginning in 1939, died Sunday at a convalescent home in Santa Monica after a brief illness, according to friend and former colleague Larry Stewart. He was 95.

Durslag was said to string “together words like Nolan…

She’s the mom of four black men, a former L.A. cop and a major skeptic of ‘justifiable’ police shootings

Cheryl Dorsey faced a mirror in a Pasadena hair salon, at the beginning of an appointment that would eat up the whole morning and part of the afternoon. Her stylist, Ursula Simpson, carefully braided Dorsey’s locks before weaving in a spectacular lion’s mane of silver curls.

These things take time.

…

Once one of the nation’s most powerful cops, is ex-L.A. County Sheriff Lee Baca heading to prison?

Lee Baca was never an easy man to define.

Throughout a remarkable, albeit flawed, career as sheriff of Los Angeles County, Baca defied tough-guy police stereotypes with an affectionate, oddball style of leadership that earned him the nickname “Sheriff Moonbeam.”

He was at once admired for his…

‘Pokemon Go’ adds new life to some L.A. neighborhoods by forcing players outside

The little girl with chipped pink polish nails stopped short of a picnic table outside of the Jordan Downs Recreational Center in Watts, scaring a cat as she approached — hands glued to a phone — in search of a magical creature.

Visiting from South Gate, her babysitter, Julian Campos, 20, watched…

After weeks of terror, San Diego homeless are relieved a suspect is in custody

Herman Quillion, an out-of-work welder from Georgia, wasn’t worried about a serial killer striking homeless men in San Diego “until it was time to lay down to sleep.”

“I was sleeping with a bat,” said Quillion, 41, who made his way to San Diego two months ago in hopes of finding work. “Sometimes…

UC Berkeley student is confirmed dead in Nice terror attack

A UC Berkeley student missing in Nice since Thursday’s terror attack has been confirmed dead, according to university officials.

Nicolas Leslie, 20, was on a study abroad program and had gone to the city’s promenade to watch the Bastille Day celebration when a truck raced through the packed crowd,…

Girl killed when car slams into house

A 7-year old girl was killed early Sunday evening when the car she was riding in veered off the road and slammed into a house in South Los Angeles.

Critically injured were a 30-year old woman and three young boys who were also in the vehicle.

“Nobody in the house or on the street was injured,”…

Shooting that wounded 14 at Bakersfield party felt like ‘the OK Corral,’ witness says

Many of the victims of a shooting that wounded 14 people in Bakersfield early Saturday were teenagers, one as young as 13, according to witnesses.

Police on Sunday continued to look for three young men who detectives believe were involved in the attack.

The men, who were told to leave a Bakersfield…

Shooting at Artesia graduation party leaves one man dead, two wounded

Four suspects crashed a backyard graduation party in Artesia on Saturday night and opened fire, killing one man and wounding two others, authorities said.

The shooting occurred about 10 p.m. in the 18000 block of Alburtis Avenue, where authorities responding to the scene found three men suffering…

Charter school and union unite on wanting L.A. Unified to pay retiree benefits for charter teachers

The local teachers union has made rare common cause with a charter school: They are pressing to have the Los Angeles school district — not the charter — pay for costly retiree benefits that are due to teachers who worked at the charter.

A formal grievance against L.A. Unified, filed recently by…

Orange County native is tapped to coordinate what could be a wild Republican National Convention

There are tough jobs, and then there’s Marcia Lee Kelly’s job: organizing the Republican National Convention in Cleveland at a time of growing national unrest and an outspoken, often unpredictable presidential candidate named Donald Trump.

Like the GOP nominee himself, the event that kicks off…

How to live blind and bold – a Braille teacher’s lesson plan for life

Open the door and announce yourself. That’s the rule for students entering Keith Christian’s classroom.

They step inside and hear the pitter patter of paws on the carpet as Whitney, a black labrador, brushes against their legs.

If they reach to the right, they feel thin cylinders bedecked with…

How transparent will the LAPD be on releasing videos of police shootings, other controversial encounters?

For more than a year, the plan to put body cameras on thousands of Los Angeles police officers has been clouded by a divisive debate over a key question: How much video should be made public and when?

The LAPD insisted it would generally withhold the recordings unless required to provide them by…

Jaime Escalante honored with stamp at Garfield High ceremony

About a hundred friends, former students and fans of legendary East Los Angeles educator Jaime Escalante gathered at Garfield High School Saturday to honor the Bolivian immigrant whose success with his calculus students inspired newspaper articles, books and the film “Stand and Deliver.”

 

Escalante’s…

For regular crossers of the U.S.-Mexico border, waiting is part of the routine

Lines of red taillights greet Jerry Jackson each morning as he launches his commute to downtown San Diego. For the 34-year-old Tijuana resident, getting to work means crossing an international border, and that often entails a two-hour wait.

As the U.S. presidential campaign draws a spotlight to…

Suspect in attacks on homeless men in San Diego has history of arrests and mental issues

San Diego police said the man arrested in connection with a string of attacks on homeless men has a history of arrests and possible mental problems.

San Diego police arrested Jon David Guerrero, 39, on Friday. Guerrero faces three counts of murder, two counts of attempted murder and two counts…

Thorny issues challenge California’s commitment to renewable energy goals

As California pushes forward on its ambitious goal to produce 50% of its electricity from renewable sources by 2030, it will confront a wide range of potentially troubling economic, technical and political questions — though there remains strong support among public officials for the state’s climate…

Huntington Beach is touted as the ‘Soul of SoCal’ in new branding campaign

Huntington Beach residents can now claim they live in “The Soul of SoCal.”

Visit Huntington Beach, the official destination marketing organization for the city, announced the new brand recently at a meeting at the Pasea Hotel & Spa.

The organization partnered with the Atkins Group, a Texas advertising…

210 Freeway closed in Pasadena after fatal five-car crash

A fatal accident on the 210 Freeway in Pasadena on Friday has closed the eastbound lanes of the highway, jamming traffic.

The five-car accident on the eastbound 210 at Madre Street left one person dead and two injured, Pasadena fire officials said. TV footage showed one truck crushed by the crash.

…

Professor who killed man she says raped her gets six years in prison

A former psychology professor was sentenced Friday to six years in prison for the 1995 killing of a man she says raped her while she was a Southern California college student.

Norma Patricia Esparza, 41, pleaded guilty in 2014 to voluntary manslaughter in exchange for the prison term in the death…

Black Lives Matter ‘occupation’ of L.A. City Hall enters fourth day

Chanting “this is what democracy looks like,” several dozen Black Lives Matter demonstrators spent Friday on the steps of Los Angeles City Hall for a fourth day as they demanded the firing of Police Chief Charlie Beck in protest of a fatal police shooting.

Members of the group said they did not…

L.A. gym bans Playboy model after she posts body-shaming shower photo on Snapchat

Playboy model Dani Mathers has been banned from all LA Fitness gyms after she took a photo of a woman inside a locker room shower and posted it on Snapchat with disparaging comments about her body.