Election 2012

District attorney race: Alan Jackson concedes to Jackie Lacey
Deputy Dist. Atty. Alan Jackson early Wednesday conceded defeat in the race for Los Angeles County district attorney against veteran prosecutor Jackie Lacey. With the victory, Lacey becomes the county's first female and first African American district attorney.
Los Angeles Times

Calif. voters approve Brown's sales, income taxes
California voters have approved Gov. Jerry Brown's plan to raise income taxes on the wealthy and raise the statewide sales tax to fund K-12 schools and help balance the state budget. The Proposition 30 vote was close and its passage was not clear until early Wednesday. Its passage increases the statewide sales tax by a quarter cent for four years, starting in January, while people who make more than $250,000 a year will pay higher taxes for seven years retroactive to the beginning of 2012.
Associated Press

Labor defeats anti-union initiative Prop. 32 in California
California voters have reaffirmed their support for unions in defeating a provision that would have banned the way labor traditionally raises money to fund political activity. The defeat of Proposition 32 became clear early Wednesday. Business and labor groups contributed more than $120 million on an initiative that reflected the national debate over labor clout.
Associated Press

Proposition 34: Death penalty repeal fails
California voters on Tuesday rejected a ballot measure that would have repealed the state's death penalty. Proposition 34 lost by about 6 percentage points, dimming the hopes of death penalty opponents who were trying to abolish the death penalty in California and clear the largest death row in the nation. Proposition 34 marked the first opportunity in more than three decades for California voters to decide whether to retain the death penalty, which has been scrapped by a number of other states in recent years.
San Jose Mercury-News

'Three strikes' change wins California voter approval
Voters have approved a revision of California's landmark Three Strikes sentencing law, passing a measure that eliminates 25 years-to-life sentences for inmates whose third felony offense is not a serious or violent crime. Proposition 36 changes the 18-year-old law, considered the nation's toughest, by allowing inmates to seek new hearings if their third strike was not violent or serious, and is estimated to save the state $70 million to $90 million annually.
Sacramento Bee

Pensions

Los Angeles city unions oppose former Mayor Richard Riordan's pension overhaul
Two major city unions said Tuesday they will launch an aggressive campaign urging the public not to sign former Mayor Richard Riordan's ballot initiative to dramatically change the city's pension system. The Los Angeles Police Protective League, in a campaign titled Public Safety First, asks that officers and LAPD supporters not sign the petition, and that supporters visit locations where the petitions are being circulated to urge people to not sign the measure.
Los Angeles Daily News
Public Safety First

Law Enforcement

Crime alerts for Hollywood, Highland Park, 17 other neighborhoods
Crime reports are up significantly for the latest week in 19 L.A. neighborhoods, according to an analysis of LAPD data by the Los Angeles Times' Crime L.A. database. Nine neighborhoods reported a significant increase in violent crime. Hollywood was the most unusual, recording 30 reports compared with a weekly average of 13.8 over the last three months. Highland Park topped the list of 10 neighborhoods with property crime alerts.
Los Angeles Times

Officers credit Valley Village crash victims with saving their lives
Two Good Samaritans who were electrocuted trying to help the driver of a car crash in Valley Village in August may have saved the lives of two police officers. Arman Samsonian, 19, drove his SUV into a fire hydrant and light pole on Magnolia Boulevard on Aug. 22, which resulted in an electrically charged pool of water. Irma Zamora, 40, and her husband were driving when they witnessed the crash. Zamora's husband called 911 while she ran out to help, but she was jolted to death as she stepped in the water.
CBS2

Officials call for $50,000 reward in church graffiti shooting
Outraged over a shooting outside a Westlake church that left a young father dead, city officials said they will seek a $50,000 reward for information about the gunman and tagger whose graffiti sparked the slaying. "This is as bad as it gets," said City Councilman Eric Garcetti, who represents the area and said his office had been fielding calls from outraged residents and merchants all day on Monday.
Los Angeles Times

Los Angeles General Services officers to be folded into LAPD
The Los Angeles City Council gave preliminary approval Tuesday to folding the 220 General Services police into the Los Angeles Police Department to provide what officials said would be a seamless response to crimes throughout the city. The General Services officers, who carry weapons and received LAPD training and patrol city facilities, will be part of a new Security Services Division within the LAPD.
Los Angeles Daily News