Arson Fires

Hollywood man arrested in weekend arson spree
A Hollywood man has been arrested in connection with the weekend spree of 53 fires from West Hollywood to the San Fernando Valley. At a press conference, law enforcement released the name of the suspect arrested in the spree: Harry Burkhart, 24. He has been booked downtown and is being held in lieu of $250,000 bail. Los Angeles Police Department Chief Charlie Beck reminded reporters and the public the arrest is not the end of the investigation. "An arrest is not a prosecution and a prosecution is not a conviction," Beck said. "We are very confident in this arrest, but we have a long way to go."
KPCC

Tip from federal officials was big break in L.A. fires
Los Angeles police Chief Charlie Beck said the key break in the L.A. serial arson investigation came Saturday night when federal officials recognized a "person of interest" in the fires. That night, officials had distributed a video of a man walking near a car fire at the Hollywood & Highland Center parking structure. Beck said unnamed federal officials recognized the man and gave police information about him.
Los Angeles Times

Social media sites are crucial in arson probe
When an arsonist began preying on Hollywood last week, social media sites like Twitter quickly emerged as a clearinghouse for information. People tweeted when they first saw smoke, shot videos and photos of burning cars on their cellphones, and traded both facts and rumors in rapid stream. Faced with a quickly changing, highly unusual investigation, L.A. law enforcement agencies embraced Twitter and other forms of social media as never before.
Los Angeles Times

Law Enforcement

Crime alerts for Porter Ranch and four other L.A. neighborhoods
Crime reports are up significantly for the latest week in five L.A. neighborhoods, according to an analysis of LAPD data by the Los Angeles Times' Crime L.A. database. Three neighborhoods reported a significant increase in violent crime. Porter Ranch was the most unusual, recording three reports compared with a weekly average of 0.2 over the last three months. Toluca Lake topped the list of two neighborhoods with property crime alerts.
Los Angeles Times

Man opens fire on LAPD officers in South L.A.
Los Angeles police officers shot at a man in South Los Angeles on Friday morning after he opened fire on the officers, department officials said. Neither of the two officers, who are assigned to the 77th Street station, nor the suspect was hit by gun fire, said LAPD spokeswoman Norma Eisenman. The officers had just finished fueling their car at the Southeast Area Police Station when they spotted the man pointing an object at them about 9 a.m. at 107th and Figueroa streets, Eisenman said. Moments later, the man fired an unknown number of rounds at the officers, she said.
Los Angeles Times

LAPD officers involved in 2 shootings New Year's morning
Los Angeles police are investigating two officer-involved shootings that were reported New Year's Day morning, department officials said Sunday. The first incident took place in the opening minutes of 2012 when a sergeant driving his patrol car through the intersection of Florence and McKinley avenues was shot at. The second shooting was reported just after 7 a.m. in the 500 block of South Kenmore Avenue, said LAPD spokesman Gus Villanueva.
Los Angeles Times

1 dead, 2 badly hurt in South Los Angeles drive-by
A drive-by shooting Monday afternoon in South Los Angeles left a teenager dead and two others, including a child, wounded, authorities said. The shooting occurred near the corner of 46th Street and McKinley Avenue in the South Park section of South Los Angeles shortly before 3 p.m., said LAPD Officer Sara Faden. A 19-year-old man was struck multiple times in the upper body and died at the scene. A 57-year-old man was shot in the shoulder, and an 11-year-old girl was shot in the foot. Both were taken to a hospital where they were listed in stable condition, Faden said.
Los Angeles Times

Teen fatally shot outside his home minutes before New Year begins
A 14-year-old boy in South Los Angeles was fatally shot outside his home just minutes before the start of the new year, according to the Los Angeles Police Department. The teen was standing outside his home in the 1300 block of 61st Street when someone shot him Saturday around 11:55 p.m., said Los Angeles Police Sgt. Rudy Alaniz.
Los Angeles Times

City Government

Villaraigosa delays payment of $100 million in personnel costs
To weather the Great Recession, Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa pushed thousands of employees out the door at City Hall in what he has described as one of the tougher choices on his watch. But Villaraigosa has also relied on a second, less understood strategy for keeping the city in the black: postponing at least $100 million in personnel costs until after he leaves office, a Times analysis found.
Los Angeles Times

New Laws

New year brings new laws in California
Californians will no longer be able to carry handguns openly in public, buy alcohol at self-serve checkout stands or purchase shark fins for their soup under hundreds of new laws that take effect Jan. 1. Other measures bar minors from tanning beds, allow students to be suspended for cyber-bullying and require booster seats for children in cars until they are 8 years old or at least 4 feet, 9 inches tall. Despite another year of budget shortfalls, the 760 bills that Gov. Jerry Brown signed into law in 2011 included several that cost money.
Los Angeles Times

Pensions

Public pensions likely hot issue in 2012
Changes in public employee retirement were a hot-button issue in 2011 and will likely continue this year as a dominant policy debate at the state and local levels. Gov. Jerry Brown late last year proposed a 12-point pension overhaul plan that includes increased retirement ages and employee contributions. He has been trying to rally support among skeptical majority Democrats in the Legislature. In addition, a group called California Pension Reform is pushing proposed ballot initiatives seeking more sweeping changes to public employee retirements.
Riverside Press-Enterprise