Law Enforcement

Advocate shows autistic people how to have safe encounters with police
As part of the Autism Society of Los Angeles, Emily Iland is trying to make sure young people like him, pushing for independence, don't wind up as law enforcement statistics. Since 2007, Iland has been trying to teach Los Angeles Police Department officers how to recognize and interact with people who have autism spectrum disorders. Now she's trying to teach people with autism what to do if they are stopped by police.
Los Angeles Times

LAPD seeks public's help to locate missing man, 18
The Los Angeles Police Department Tuesday asked for the public's help in locating a missing 18-year-old man with autism. Romario Snow was last seen around 6:30 p.m. on June 27 in the 600 block of N. Spring Street. Snow, who was described as a Hispanic man with black hair and brown eyes, has the mental capacity of a 10 year old, according to the LAPD. Snow is roughly 5 feet 7 inches tall and weighs 150 pounds.
CBS LA

6 L.A. County deputies convicted of impeding FBI's jail probe
A jury Tuesday found six members of the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department guilty of attempting to impede a federal civil rights inquiry into the county jails, providing prosecutors with a decisive victory as they continue to investigate higher-level officials tied to the scandal. The case stems from a 2011 undercover operation in which the FBI used a jail inmate as an informant to investigate brutality and other misconduct by jail guards.
Los Angeles Times

New Law

California's "Ban the Box" law takes effect
California's "Ban the Box" law - removing questions about criminal convictions from state and local government job applications - took effect Tuesday, and supporters say it'll make the hunt for gainful employment easier for about 7 million Californians. A study released Tuesday by the National Employment Law Project shows public employers have updated their job applications to comply with the new law, enacted as AB 218 by Assemblyman Roger Dickinson, D-Sacramento.
Contra Costa Times

Legislature

California legislators look to change campus 'rape culture'
As colleges continue to grapple with the increasingly public issue of campus sexual violence, California lawmakers are weighing how to address a "rape culture" that some say has been overly tolerated by the state's public universities. During a joint oversight hearing Monday afternoon, members of the Assembly Higher Education and Joint Legislative Audit committees questioned whether schools in the University of California and California State University systems need harsher punishments for perpetrators and greater legislative oversight to ensure they are complying with federal requirements to investigate and report incidents of sexual violence on their campuses.
Sacramento Bee

City Government

Hundreds of city workers protest bank deals at L.A. City Hall
Hundreds of city workers and their allies packed the streets and sidewalks outside Los Angeles City Hall on Tuesday morning, protesting "predatory fees" the city pays to Wall Street banks. The Fix LA Coalition, which includes labor unions, clergy and community groups, argued that the city must renegotiate two deals signed with banks in order to restore funding for tree trimming, sidewalk repairs and other badly needed services.
Los Angeles Times

L.A. Council backs $39-million subsidy for downtown hotel project
The Los Angeles City Council moved forward Tuesday with plans to allow a real estate developer to keep $39.2 million in taxes expected over 25 years from a downtown hotel and residential project planned next to the 110 Freeway. The council voted 11 to 0 to negotiate agreements that would let Greenland L.A. Metropolis Hotel Development retain one-fourth of the property, sales, hotel, parking, business, utility and other taxes that would normally flow to the city budget.
Los Angeles Times

L.A. workers' comp costs higher than in some other cities
Los Angeles city employees file workers' compensation claims at rates higher than employees in other large California cities, according to two audits released Tuesday by City Controller Ron Galperin. L.A. needs to do more to control costs and ensure that the claimed injuries are actually job-related, according to the audits. In 2013, there were 17 claims for every 100 Los Angeles employees, the audits show.
Los Angeles Times

Acting LAFD chief now in running for full mayoral appointment
The search for the next head of the Los Angeles Fire Department is underway, with Interim Fire Chief James G. Featherstone among the candidates being interviewed for the top job. Mayor Eric Garcetti's office has not provided the full list of candidates being considered. An aide said the mayor intends to name the 3,200-member department's next leader this month. At Tuesday's meeting of the city Fire Commission, Featherstone told The Times he had been interviewed to keep the job.
Los Angeles Times