Law Enforcement

USC student fatally beaten with baseball bat; 4 teens arrested in case
Four teenagers were arrested in Thursday's deadly attack on a USC graduate student as he walked home from a study group, with police saying the incident was one of at least two robberies the group attempted that day. Xinran Ji, a 24-year-old graduate student from China, was allegedly hit on the head with a baseball bat by at least one of the suspects, according to two law enforcement sources. Detectives are probing whether other weapons were also used, the sources said. The suspects range in age from 16 to 19.
Los Angeles Times

Pedestrian fatally struck in Koreatown, driver flees
A pedestrian was killed after being struck by a pickup truck early Monday in Koreatown, police said. The pedestrian was struck on the northeast corner of Beverly Boulevard and Normandie Avenue about 6:40 a.m., Los Angeles police Sgt. Craig Brown said. Two other victims were critically injured and taken to a hospital, according to Katherine Main of the Los Angeles Fire Department.
Los Angeles Times

LAPD patrol car runs over man lying in street, killing him
A Los Angeles police car ran over a man who was lying in the street Sunday night, killing him, officials said. Officers were responding to a call about a naked man running around the neighborhood of Adams Boulevard and Hillcrest Avenue about 10:20 p.m. when they ran over him, according to the Los Angeles Police Department.
Los Angeles Times

NYPD cops to get lessons on use of force during LAPD training
Don't expect NYPD cops to be more mellow after a visit to their counterparts on the West Coast. The six NYPD employees headed to Los Angeles are going to get at least some training in the use of force, officials said. "We've been in contact with Commissioner (Bill) Bratton and senior officers from the NYPD," LAPD Commander Andrew Smith said. "Right now, we're working on a curriculum that's going over our basic academy training as well as our in-service training on lethal and less than lethal use of force."
New York Daily News

Pensions

Panel rules that Los Angeles City Hall must toss out new pension rules
In a major victory for Los Angeles city unions, a labor panel on Monday ordered that City Hall leaders toss out pensions rules adopted last year, a move that jeopardizes billions of dollars of promised savings for the city. The five-member Employee Relations Board sided with a report concluding the city of L.A. violated labor rules when then-Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and other city officials enacted sweeping new retirement benefits for employees without the unions' consent.
Los Angeles Daily News

Public Safety

More than 10,000 rush to apply in rebooted LAFD hiring drive
More than 10,000 applicants are seeking to join the ranks of the Los Angeles Fire Department, according to data released Monday, as the city rushes to reboot a hiring process halted earlier this year amid concerns of nepotism and mismanagement. A flood of applications poured into the city Personnel Department even though the new hiring process was only approved less than three weeks ago, and the window to apply was open for just a few days last week.
Los Angeles Times

Prisons

CDC: California inmates should be tested for Valley fever immunity
Federal health officials say the state must take steps to reduce the outbreaks of Valley fever at its prisons. Their recommendations come after 30 inmates in California died from the illness. The fungal infection is caused by spores in the soil and can cause fever, chest pain and swelling. Two Central Valley prisons, Avenal and Pleasant Valley, have had especially high rates of the disease. Last year, California officials agreed to transfer high-risk inmates from the two prisons.
KQED San Francisco

City Government

Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti's 'mystery' vacation
It's Monday. Do you know where Mayor Eric Garcetti is? It was the big secret at City Hall on Monday when his office put out a weeklong schedule saying: "Please note that Mayor Garcetti will be traveling with his family out of the state from July 25 until August 4." Later, it was confirmed - after a guessing game on Garcetti's Instagram account - that he was in Charlevoix, Mich., a town with a total population of slightly more than 2,100 people.
Los Angeles Daily News