Law Enforcement

Man on mini-bike slain in South L.A. shooting, LAPD says
Two men on mini-bikes in South Los Angeles were shot in an apparent gang-related attack that left one of them dead and the other wounded, police said Wednesday night. The shooter was in a green Ford Taurus that pulled up to the bikers Wednesday afternoon near South Normandie Avenue and West 84th Street, the Los Angeles Police Department said. The victims were believed to be in their 20s. One died at a hospital and the other was in stable condition, the LAPD said.
Los Angeles Times

Los Angeles gets more wireless surveillance cameras
The Los Angeles Police Department completed this month an installation of 23 wireless surveillance cameras in high-crime areas. Cameras were installed atop light poles and traffic lights in the Mission, Foothill and Southwest Los Angeles neighborhoods. Sandra Russell, a systems analyst for the LAPD, said the goal of the project is simply to reduce crime in the city. The cameras are monitored by volunteers and officers during peak crime periods and can also be monitored in the watch commander's room, Russell said.
Government Technology

The Zen of LAPD Chief Charlie Beck
It's a crisp, cloudless afternoon in late October, making Los Angeles Police Department chief Charlie Beck squint as he walks out of LAPD headquarters to Occupy L.A. across the street. "On the north lawn, you have the people who are here for the ideals. The south lawn is more diverse. People aren't here as much for the movement as for the experience, you know?" he says, chuckling. Walking around the tent-strewn grounds of Los Angeles City Hall, the chief weaves past a guy holding a snake and a group of 20-somethings casually passing a blunt around by the lawn's central statue.
LA Weekly

DOJ asks Congress to criminalize using pseudonyms, lying online
The U.S. Department of Justice asked Congress to expand the federal law it relies on to prosecute computer crimes to cover more offenses and impose stronger penalties. The proposed changes will also make it possible to prosecute people for lying online. Congress needs to revise the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act and related legislation so that the DOJ can go after online criminals more effectively, Richard Downing, deputy section chief of the Computer Crimes division at the DOJ said at a Nov. 15 hearing before the House Judiciary Committee's Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism and Homeland Security.
eWeek

State Budget Crisis

Grim California budget forecast means more cuts to schools, social services
The state's nonpartisan budget analyst on Wednesday said California will fall $3.7 billion short this fiscal year, likely resulting in fewer public school days, cuts to libraries and further reductions in developmentally disabled services. Gov. Jerry Brown and Democratic lawmakers counted on that money - to be generated by projected tax revenues - in a fit of summer optimism when they drafted the state budget. But Legislative Analyst Mac Taylor now predicts California will land 4 percent shy of the $88.5 billion in revenues they banked on in their plan.
Sacramento Bee

Pensions

Pension reform group files tweaks to California initiative proposals
California Pension Reform, the group pushing to put a public pension rollback measure on the November 2012 ballot, on Tuesday filed amendments with the attorney general intended to clarify their provisions. The attorney general, which analyzes proposed ballot initiatives and then assigns them a title and summary, allows amendments to be made within 15 days of their submission. CPR first filed its proposals on Nov. 2. In a statement released Tuesday afternoon, CPR President Dan Pellissier said that the changes were prompted by criticisms that some elements of the proposals might not be constitutional.
Sacramento Bee

City Government

Villaraigosa wants a more livable L.A., with 50 pocket parks
In a speech to lay out his record and his vision on making Los Angeles a more livable city, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa announced Wednesday that he wants to build 50 pocket parks in the next two years. Villaraigosa, who grew up in City Terrace and recalls playing on hills that are now industrial areas, highlighted the dearth of parks in Los Angeles. He noted that his administration has added 650 acres of new ball fields, picnic areas and playgrounds in six years, more than in the previous dozen years.
Los Angeles Times

Prisoner Transfers

Riverside County supervisors finalize jail fee
Anyone convicted of a crime and sentenced to Riverside County jail will soon have to pay for their stays in the lockup. Riverside County supervisors gave their final approval Tuesday to a measure aimed at recovering the $142.42 per day it costs to keep someone behind bars. Although authorized by state law, the county ordinance may be the first of its kind in the state and one already being watched closely by other counties, said Curtis J. Hill, a legislative representative with the California State Sheriffs' Association.
Riverside Press-Enterprise

Immigration

U.S. to review cases seeking deportations
The Department of Homeland Security will begin a review on Thursday of all deportation cases before the immigration courts and start a nationwide training program for enforcement agents and prosecuting lawyers, with the goal of speeding deportations of convicted criminals and halting those of many illegal immigrants with no criminal record. The accelerated triage of the court docket - about 300,000 cases - is intended to allow severely overburdened immigration judges to focus on deporting foreigners who committed serious crimes or pose national security risks, Homeland Security officials said.
New York Times

Education

Cal State trustees vote to raise tuition by 9% for 2012
At a meeting in Long Beach marked by violent disruptions, the California State University Board of Trustees on Wednesday voted narrowly to increase annual tuition by 9%, or $500, for next fall. With the increase, annual tuition for undergraduates will rise to just under $6,000.The 9 to 6 vote was taken behind closed doors and out of public view after police removed chanting, whistle-blowing protesters from the meeting room. Several protesters were taken into custody after a group tried to storm the meeting room, shattering a glass door.
Los Angeles Times