Law Enforcement

L.A. budget official seeks delay in police hiring
Looking to get through the next 15 months, City Administrative Officer Miguel Santana said no new police should be hired until July at the earliest, a move that would cause the Los Angeles Police Department to fall up to 68 officers below the staffing level sought by Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa. That idea was swiftly denounced by Villaraigosa Deputy Chief of Staff Matt Szabo, who said it "makes no financial or operational sense."
Los Angeles Times

LAPD probing officer gunfire exchange on freeway
Los Angeles police say they are investigating an exchange of gunfire in which an unknown assailant shot at an officer on a freeway, causing the officer to fire back. Police said in a statement Friday that Officer Franck Peter, a 21-year department veteran, was driving home after work on March 10 on Interstate 110 when a truck pulled up alongside his personal car. Peter heard a loud bang and saw a bright flash.
Associated Press

Intentions of knife-wielding man at Staples Center remain a mystery
What was shaping up to be a routine day in the life of the Los Angeles Clippers took a bizarre turn Saturday morning, when police engaged in a standoff lasting nearly half an hour with a knife-wielding man on the court at Staples Center, just prior to Saturday's scheduled game against the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Los Angeles Times

Police seek driver in fatal hit and run in West Los Angeles
Police were searching Sunday for a driver believed to be involved in a hit-and-run accident that killed a motorcyclist in West Los Angeles on Saturday. Officers responding to a traffic collision call at Jefferson Boulevard and Mesmer Avenue at 3:05 p.m. Saturday found a man unresponsive on the ground near a fallen motorcycle, according to a police statement. The man was taken to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead, according to the statement. His name had not been released by the coroner's office Sunday.
Los Angeles Times

Wisconsin police officer killed, other wounded after standoff
A Wisconsin police officer was killed and another wounded after a six-hour standoff with a gunman Sunday morning. According to authorities, Fond du Lac police were investigating a report of sexual assault at a home around 6:30 a.m. when an armed man opened fire on them, shooting Officer Craig Birkholz, 28, in the chest and killing him. K-9 Officer Ryan Williams was also shot in the chest and taken to a nearby hospital where he remains in critical condition. He is expected to survive. Williams' K-9 partner, Grendel, was also injured.
KGO News

2 Bush officials in running to be next head of FBI
Two officials who worked for President George W. Bush, including one who threatened to resign to block legally questionable anti-terror surveillance, have a realistic chance of being asked to head the FBI, according to people familiar with the search. James Comey and Kenneth Wainstein served in sensitive national security-related posts at the Justice Department in the Bush administration. FBI Director Robert Mueller's 10-year, nonrenewable term expires Sept. 4.
Associated Press

State & Municipal Budget Crises

An all-cuts budget may surface
Cutting universities, shifting prisoners to county jails and slashing funds for Medi-Cal patients is difficult. But from a political perspective, those were among the easier moves. Lawmakers voted to erase $14 billion of the state's $26.6 billion deficit last week by cutting various state programs, taking funds from special accounts and finding creative ways to raise revenue. Finding the rest of the money will be significantly harder.
Sacramento Bee

Auditor says Victorville near insolvency
Ongoing losses, net asset deficiencies in major funds and a lack of liquidity has put this city on the brink of insolvency, an auditor has determined. Auditing firm Mayer Hoffman McCann said in its comprehensive audit released last week that "substantial doubt exists about the city's ability to continue as a going concern." A going concern refers to a business that operates without the threat of liquidation for at least 12 months.
San Bernardino Sun

State Government

California drivers still waiting for new high-tech licenses
Six months after California launched its new driver's license program, the company that won the $63 million contract is still struggling to fix production problems that have left tens of thousands of motorists waiting months for a new license. A review of internal e-mails shows that problems actually got worse last month, when the production backlog at L-1's Sacramento factory reached its highest level since the card's October launch.
Sacramento Bee

Passing

Remember Warren Christopher and his role in changing L.A.
Former Secretary of State Warren Christopher, who died late Friday, left his mark on many parts of the world. But the L.A. attorney made a special mark on his hometown, where he stepped into the rebuilding of the Los Angeles Police Department at a crucial moment.
Los Angeles Times