Law Enforcement

After LAPD pursuit, Glendale man arrested at home
Los Angeles police officers arrested a Glendale man Wednesday afternoon after he led them on a pursuit near La Cañada Flintridge, officials said. The man, who was not immediately identified, was stopped on Foothill Boulevard near the Glendale (2) Freeway at about 11:37 a.m. after officers observed him possibly purchasing narcotics, said Los Angeles Police Lt. Andy Neiman.
Los Angeles Times

Van Nuys car bomb scare forces neighborhood evacuation
A report of a car with a bomb inside prompted evacuations of hundreds of residents in a Van Nuys neighborhood Wednesday morning, police said. Someone called police around 12:20 a.m. and said there was a possible bomb in a car parked in the 7300 block of Lennox Avenue, near the intersection of Van Nuys Boulevard and Sherman Way, said Sgt. Larry Martinez of the Los Angeles Police Department's Van Nuys Station.
City News Service

Man in Hollywood allegedly threatens woman with machete, barricades himself
LAPD SWAT officers fired teargas into a Hollywood apartment Wednesday, then went inside and arrested a man who barricaded himself after allegedly threatening a woman while armed with a machete. The man could be seen being bundled into an ambulance to be driven to a hospital after his confrontation with the officers, but no details of his injuries or how they were inflicted were immediately released.
City News Service

Oakland police chief steps down by surprise
An understaffed Oakland police force struggling with rising crime and a court order to curb officer misconduct is again looking for a leader, after Police Chief Howard Jordan abruptly stepped down Wednesday, citing an unspecified medical reason. Jordan, who announced his departure in a morning letter to the rank and file, was a longtime Oakland police veteran who led the force for 19 months, a tumultuous time of Occupy protests, budget cuts and wide alarm over killings and robberies.
San Francisco Chronicle

Ballot Initiatives

Abel Maldonado touts initiative to repeal prison realignment
Abel Maldonado, who is preparing to challenge Gov. Jerry Brown in next year's gubernatorial race, said Wednesday he will file a ballot initiative to repeal California's prison realignment, an issue Republicans consider a potential liability for Brown. The former lieutenant governor provided few details about the initiative, but the circumstances of his announcement suggested Maldonado will make the issue a centerpiece of his campaign.
Sacramento Bee

State Budget

California revenue surges ahead of revised budget plan
California collected $15.03 billion in revenue in April, putting the state's fiscal year-to-date revenue at $4.6 billion above the estimates in Governor Jerry Brown's initial budget plan, the state controller's office said on Wednesday. Overall revenue in April missed the budget estimate by $119.9 million, but was up $5.4 billion from the same month a year earlier - an increase of 55.9 percent - propelled by rising incomes and consumer spending, State Controller John Chiang's office said in a report.
Reuters

Traffic

City Government

Judge delays release of DWP employee names with pay data
The union representing Los Angeles Department of Water and Power employees won a temporary restraining order Tuesday, preventing the release of workers' names with their salaries until each employee has had more time to argue that the identity disclosure could pose a safety risk. The names of DWP employees who don't file an objection via their union will be released May 21, election day in the city mayor's race.
Los Angeles Times

City Election

Police union boosts spending on behalf of Wendy Greuel
The union for Los Angeles police officers is pumping another $850,000 into an independent effort backing mayoral candidate Wendy Greuel, the largest single contribution from one source during the campaign. The contribution came amid reports that Greuel was scaling back her spending on TV ads - although her campaign said late Wednesday it was launching another ad today attacking rival Eric Garcetti for taking campaign contributions from a convicted felon.
Los Angeles Daily News