Pensions

Billionaire Boys Club bankrolling pension scheme
Richard Riordan and his billionaire friends are currently circulating petitions to put a Charter Amendment ballot measure called the "New Defined Contribution Plan" on the May 2013 ballot. Riordan is telling anyone who will listen that closing the three city pension funds to new hires and replacing them with a 401(k) system would be less costly to the City. His statements are in the league of Arnold Schwarzenegger - they sound good, however they are not true.
LAPPL Blog

Public Safety

Los Angeles Council President Herb Wesson ties proposed sales tax hike to public safety
Days after the Los Angeles City Council tentatively backed a half-percent sales tax hike for the spring ballot, Council President Herb Wesson outlined which departments are likely to benefit from the funds at a breakfast event on Thursday. Wesson pitched the tax proposal at an informal gathering sponsored by the local chapter of the American Institute of Architects in downtown Los Angeles. "In the event we were successful in this sales tax, we would sustain the Police Department," Wesson said. "We would enhance the Fire Department because they are really thin."
Los Angeles Daily News

Investigation of LAFD response times finds deeper flaws
A long-awaited review of Los Angeles Fire Department response times has found that the agency used inaccurate data "that should not be relied upon until they are properly recalculated and validated." The data were used to make critical reductions in fire station staffing last year. Although the Fire Department has previously acknowledged some mistakes in its data, the 32-page report by a task force formed by Fire Chief Brian Cummings found more widespread problems and delved more deeply into factors that contributed to the faulty figures.
Los Angeles Times

Law Enforcement

Armed and dangerous: Police hunt for the "Western Bandit"
Detectives have formed a special task force to search for a violent, armed robber they are calling the "Western Bandit." For more than a year, the LAPD says the man has terrorized people and businesses along the Western corridor. "It started about a year ago. We had a flurry of activity. We had several shootings and one that resulted in a homicide," said LAPD Lt. John Radke.
KTLA

Police recover thousands of stolen items
Police have recovered over 11,000 items that were snagged during home burglaries and that thieves attempted to resell, sometimes even at legitimate markets. Earlier this year, the Los Angeles Police Department established a Knock-Knock task force, aptly named after robbers that knocked on doors to gain entrance to homes. The items were then sold to so-called "fencing operations" which buy the stolen property to resell.
Brentwood Patch

Studio City hit-and-run leaves motorcyclist with broken leg
A motorcyclist suffered a broken leg in a hit-and-run collision with an SUV in Studio City, police said Thursday. The motorcycle was headed northbound on Laurel Canyon Boulevard, just south of Ventura Boulevard, traveling side-by-side with another vehicle that veered into the bike, sending it into a wood power pole around 10:30 p.m. Wednesday, said Sgt. Randy Modrell of the Los Angeles Police Department's Valley Traffic Division.
City News Service

LAPD Pacific Division Day before Thanksgiving dinner
The Los Angeles Police Department Pacific Division will host its 20th annual Thanksgiving dinner on Nov. 21, the Wednesday before Thanksgiving. Food donations will be accepted between 1:30 - 4 p.m. at the Pacific Division headquarters, located at 12312 Culver Blvd. Dinner will be served on the second floor of the station in the Roll Call Room.
Venice MarVista Patch

Prisons & Parole

California seeks extension to comply with prison population caps
Admitting once again to federal judges that the state won't be able to reach goals set for reducing crowding in its prisons, Gov. Jerry Brown's administration has asked for a delay while it works on alternatives. In legal filings Thursday, the state corrections department said the number of inmates in its 33 prisons has remained roughly unchanged for two months.
Los Angeles Times

Parolees avoiding GPS pose a danger, agents, victims say
A KCRA investigation into parolees tampering with or refusing to wear their GPS electronic monitor has sparked action from one legislator, and strong response from parole agents and victims of violent crimes. State Sen. Ted Lieu, D-Redondo Beach, said he plans to introduce legislation that would make it a felony for parolees to remove or tamper with their GPS bracelets as a result of KCRA's investigation.
KCRA Sacramento

City Election 2013

City clerk urges Los Angeles voters to turn out for March 5 election
With a $16 million budget for the two upcoming city elections, City Clerk June Lagmay on Thursday announced an ambitious effort to work with community groups and neighborhood councils to boost voter turnout. "This is your chance to decide your government, Los Angeles," Lagmay said at a City Hall news conference flanked by activists from 15 different community groups. The election features the three citywide offices of mayor, city attorney and controller, the eight odd- numbered City Council districts and three seats each on the boards of the Los Angeles Unified School District and the Los Angeles Community College District.
Los Angeles Daily News

Health

Fewer Los Angeles County residents are smokers, health report says
Less than a million adults are smokers in Los Angeles County, a figure reached for the first time since such data were collected in 1997, according to a new health report. The report, released by Los Angeles County Department of Public Health late Wednesday, found 13.1 percent of all adults were smokers in 2011, the last year for which data were available. That is down from 14.3 percent in 2002 and 2007.
Los Angeles Daily News