Los Angeles Law News

February 03, 2012

Los Angeles teacher charged with lewd acts

Allegations against a veteran Miramonte Elementary instructor leave many parents shocked and angry. The probe that led to 23 counts involving kids 7 to 10 began after disturbing photos were reported.

In the fall of 2010, a drugstore photo technician was running a batch of 35-millimeter film when a disturbing image tumbled out of the machine — a child, blindfolded with a white cloth and gagged with clear packing tape. From that first photograph, detectives spent the next year following a trail that led them to a South Los Angeles elementary school. more..

February 02, 2012

Coliseum officials made $1 million in cash payments to union

Bundles of cash were used to pay wages of IATSE members for concerts and other productions, with no controls on disbursement. The U.S. Labor Department is investigating.

For at least five years, officials with the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum passed bundles of cash totaling more than $1 million to a union representative, sometimes in a suitcase packed with $100 bills.more..

February 01, 2012

Pinkberry co-founder pleads not guilty to tire iron assault

Pinkberry co-founder Young Lee pleaded not guilty Monday to felony assault for allegedly beating a homeless man with a tire iron over a sexually explicit tattoo.

Lee, who remains free on $60,000 bail, was granted a one-time dispensation by Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Upinder Kalra allowing him to travel to South Korea.more..

January 31, 2012

'Barefoot Bandit' gets federal sentence

A judge gives Colton Harris-Moore 6 1/2 years in prison for the theft of airplanes, boats and guns. 'I'm lucky to be alive,' the 20-year-old says in his first public statement since his arrest.

Reporting from Seattle— Colton Harris-Moore's nearly four-year odyssey as the "Barefoot Bandit" came to a conclusion Friday when a federal judge sentenced him to 61/2 years in prison for the theft of airplanes, boats and guns in an audacious swath of crime that stretched from Washington state to the Bahamas.more..

January 27, 2012

Suspected Mexican Mafia, gang members held in San Diego

Street gangs are targeted as authorities make more than 100 arrests in a wide-ranging investigation into alleged racketeering, firearms trafficking and drug distribution.

Authorities arrested more than 100 suspected gang members and associates throughout San Diego County on Wednesday morning as part of a wide-ranging investigation into alleged racketeering, firearms trafficking and drug distribution coordinated by the Mexican Mafia.more..

January 26, 2012

Serial arson suspect faces 100 counts related to 49 fires

When Harry Burkhart, the suspect in a string of serial arsons, appears in court Tuesday afternoon, he will be facing 100 counts related to 49 fires set during a four-day fire spree that left the Los Angeles area on edge.

Burkhart has now been tied by prosecutors to 49 of 51 blazes set earlier this month from Hollywood to Burbank in the largest arson spree in decades, officials said.more..

January 25, 2012

Campus, professor lawyer up to fight criminal negligence charges following lab death

Note: This story has been changed to clarify that a jury convicted Lori Drew of three misdemeanors and hung on a fourth count, and that the judge later threw out the convictions.

A chemistry professor at the University of California at Los Angeles who faces felony charges following a student's death in a lab accident has retained Thomas O'Brien, the former U.S. attorney in Los Angeles. more..

January 24, 2012

CHP officer found guilty of murdering her husband

California Highway Patrol officer Tomiekia Johnson was convicted Monday of murdering her husband more than two years ago.

As the verdict was read, Johnson collapsed and fell below the desk where she was sitting with her attorney. Her condition was unknown, but paramedics were called and a stretcher was brought to Judge Robert Perry's ninth-floor courtroom, which was cleared.more..

January 23, 2012

Jail probe panel can't promise anonymity to deputies who testify

A court could compel the panel, which is looking into allegations of deputy brutality against inmates, to reveal the identities of those who provide testimony, the panel's lawyer

A commission investigating allegations of deputy brutality inside Los Angeles County jails cannot guarantee confidentiality for deputies who want to testify, dealing a blow to efforts to combat what has been described as a code of silence among some jail guards.more..

January 20, 2012

Two men charged in '08 deaths at homeless camp

The gang members killed one man near the 405 and 710 freeways in Long Beach over a drug debt, then shot the others to ensure that there were no witnesses, police say.

In November 2008, police say, two gang members entered a secluded homeless encampment covered by brush and trees near the intersection of the 405 and 710 freeways in Long Beach.more..

January 19, 2012

Pinkberry founder Young Lee felt ‘threatened,’ attorney says

The Pinkberry co-founder accused of beating up a homeless man with a tire iron felt "at risk" and "threatened" before the assault, his attorney told The Times.

Young Lee, co-founder of the Pinkberry frozen yogurt chain, has been charged with assault with a deadly weapon in connection with a June 2011 assault on a transient on a 101 Freeway off-ramp.more..

January 18, 2012

Long Beach officer charged in domestic violence case

A Long Beach police officer was charged with multiple counts of domestic violence and assault with a deadly weapon in connection with nearly half a dozen incidents, authorities said Tuesday afternoon.

Brandon Preciado, 29, was charged with 21 counts in five incidents dating back to Sept. 18, the Los Angeles County district attorney's office said. They include 10 counts of corporal injury to a spouse, nine counts of assault with a deadly weapon and one count of making a criminal threat.more..

January 17, 2012

U.S. troops need better training on laws of war, experts say

Commanders must do a better job of translating the rules for modern circumstances, experts say. A court-martial over the killing of civilians in Haditha, Iraq, highlights the issue.

The court-martial of Marine Staff Sgt. Frank Wuterich at Camp Pendleton for his role in two dozen civilian deaths in the Iraqi village of Haditha has highlighted a legal peril for modern military personnel: determining who is the enemy.more..

January 16, 2012

1st charge filed in FBI probe of L.A. sheriff's deputy misconduct

The case involves former Deputy Gilbert Michel, who admitted smuggling a cellphone and other contraband into Men's Central Jail for an inmate who promised him $20,000.

Federal prosecutors filed their first criminal charge in the ongoing investigation of deputy misconduct in the Los Angeles County jails, saying that an ex-guard has agreed to plead guilty to felony bribery and is cooperating with the FBI.more..

January 13, 2012

Deputy allegedly smuggled drugs in a burrito into courthouse jail

A Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputy has been charged in connection with allegations that he smuggled heroin stuffed inside a burrito into a courthouse jail, prosecutors said Wednesday.

Henry Marin, 27, surrendered to fellow deputies Wednesday morning at the sheriff’s South Los Angeles station. He pleaded not guilty to charges of bringing drugs into a jail and conspiracy to commit a crime.more..

January 12, 2012

Trial begins in former CHP officer's slaying of husband

At Tomiekia Johnson's murder trial, the prosecution says the 2009 killing on the side of a road in Compton was intentional. The defense says it was self-defense.

No one disputes that former California Highway Patrol Officer Tomiekia Johnson had a tumultuous relationship with her husband. What's in question is whether she fatally shot him in the head two years ago by accident or in cold blood.more..

January 11, 2012

California Supreme Court voids death penalty in 1998 killing

Justices rule that a juror was improperly removed because she was uncertain about her views on the death penalty.

The California Supreme Court, which upholds the vast majority of capital sentences it reviews, decided unanimously Monday to overturn the death penalty for a convicted Long Beach murderer because a prospective juror was improperly removed for having ambivalent views on capital punishment.more..

January 10, 2012

Assembly member pleads no contest to shoplifting charge

Mary Hayashi is fined and sentenced to probation. Her lawyer says a benign brain tumor may have affected her behavior.

Reporting from Sacramento -- A California legislator pleaded no contest Friday to charges that she tried to shoplift $2,500 in clothes from Neiman Marcus in San Francisco.more..

January 06, 2012

Former drug kingpin pleads guilty to racketeering, conspiracy

The leader of Mexico's Arellano Felix drug cartel avoids life term under a plea agreement that baffles many legal observers and law enforcement officials.

Reporting from San Diego -- Former drug kingpin Benjamin Arellano Felix pleaded guilty Wednesday to federal racketeering and money-laundering conspiracy charges, marking the end of a decade-old case that targeted what once was Mexico's most powerful organized crime group.more..

January 05, 2012

L.A.-area arson suspect 'motivated by rage against Americans'

Hollywood arson suspect Harry Burkhart was "motivated by rage against Americans" and sought to terrorize as many people as possible when he torched dozens of Los Angeles-area cars, homes and garages over New Year's weekend, the Los Angeles County district attorney's office said in charging documents filed Wednesday.

Prosecutors said they filed 37 felony counts against the 24-year-old German national -- 28 for alleged attacks on property and nine involving inhabited structures -- and that further charges could be forthcoming as investigators continue their work on the arson spree.more..

January 04, 2012

Fallout From a Lab Tragedy

Sheharbano “Sheri” Sangji, a 23-year-old University of California at Los Angeles staff research assistant, died three years ago after suffering massive second- and third-degree burns when a chemical she was handling caught fire. After her death, UCLA beefed up its policies on compound handling and training for laboratory work. UCLA itself issued several new requirements to rectify some of the lapses in safety that resulted in a state agency fining the university nearly $32,000.

Now, a new development in the case is likely to reinvigorate the training and safety discussion not just at UCLA, but at any college or university where chemical work is performed: prosecutors last week filed felony charges against the UC regents and the chemistry professor who oversaw the lab, Patrick Harran, marking what researchers believe is the first criminal indictment stemming from an accident in the history of American academe. more..

January 03, 2012

Charges Brought In UCLA lab Death

Lab Safety: UC system, professor face felony counts in death of Sheri Sangji

The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office filed charges against the University of California and UC Los Angeles chemistry professor Patrick Harran on Dec. 27, 2011, for felony violations of California labor laws in the death of a staff research assistant three years ago.

Sheharbano (Sheri) Sangji, 23, died on Jan. 16, 2009, from injuries sustained in a fire 18 days earlier in a UCLA chemistry laboratory. Working with tert-butyllithium, which ignites spontaneously in air, she was drawing the chemical from a bottle into a syringe when the plunger came out of the syringe barrel (C&EN, Aug. 3, 2009, page 29). Sangji was not wearing a lab coat, and the chemical splashed onto her clothes and set them on fire. Sangji was burned on her torso, arms, and hands. more..

January 02, 2012

Long Beach pipeline company charged in oil spill

A Long Beach pipeline company has been charged with causing a massive oil spill that polluted the Dominguez Channel and Port of Los Angeles in Wilmington, prosecutors announced Thursday.

Crimson Pipeline Management Inc. faces a 61 misdemeanor count complaint that alleges the company and its operators "unlawfully caused, allowed, permitted, and contributed to the discharge of large quantities of oil into the city's storm drain system," Los Angeles City Attorney's Office spokesman Frank Mateljan said. more..

December 30, 2011

California Courts Will See a Raft of New Judges

SACRAMENTO (CN) - Gov. Jerry Brown went on a judge-appointing rampage this week, naming a dozen new judges to benches throughout the state, including six in Los Angeles County.

Los Angeles' six new Superior Court judges are Kerry Bensinger, 51, of San Marino; Michelle Williams Court, 45, of Los Angeles; Holly Fujie, 56, of Los Angeles; Michael Garcia, 54, of Alhambra; Roberto Longoria, 48, of Pasadena; and Michael Raphael, 43, of Los Angeles.more..

December 29, 2011

Felony charges filed against UC and a UCLA chemistry professor after fatal laboratory fire

A research assistant was fatally burned when chemicals burst into flame. Her death three years ago has focused attention on safety issues.

Felony charges have been filed against the University of California and a UCLA chemistry professor in connection with a laboratory fire that killed a staff research assistant three years ago.more..

December 28, 2011

Man charged with forcing girl into prostitution

Michael Vincent Pree is freed on $50,000 bond for allegedly pimping and sexually assaulting a minor.

A Los Angeles man faces several criminal charges stemming from his arrest last week on suspicion of forcing a child into prostitution and sexually assaulting her, police said.more..

December 27, 2011

ID errors put hundreds in L.A. County jails

Wrongful incarcerations totaled 1,480 in the last five years, a Times inquiry finds.

Hundreds of people have been wrongly imprisoned inside the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department jails in recent years, with some spending weeks behind bars before authorities realized those arrested were mistaken for wanted criminals, a Times investigation has found.more..

December 23, 2011

Some Occupy L.A. protesters may get a lesson in free speech

Prosecutors say they can avoid court trials by paying $355 to a private company for an educational program. The irony is not lost on the anti-corporate activists, who see it as patronizing.

Many Occupy L.A. protesters arrested during demonstrations in recent months are being offered a unique chance to avoid court trials: pay $355 to a private company for a lesson in free speech.more..

December 22, 2011

USDOJ: Attorney Charged in Multi-Million Dollar Stock Fraud

WASHINGTON – An attorney for a South Carolina health care device company, Signalife, was arrested on December 18, 2011, at Los Angeles International Airport on charges related to his alleged role in a multi-million dollar market manipulation fraud scheme, Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division announced today.

An indictment unsealed yesterday in United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida charges attorney Mitchell J. Stein, 53, of Hidden Hills, Calif ., and Boca Raton, Fla ., with one count of conspiracy to commit mail fraud and wire fraud, three counts of mail fraud, three counts of wire fraud, three counts of securities fraud, three counts of money laundering and one count of conspiracy to obstruct justice. The indictment also seeks forfeiture of the proceeds of the offenses. more..

December 21, 2011

Former Santa Clarita Building Inspector Pleads Guilty

LOS ANGELES – A former Santa Clarita building inspector pleaded guilty today to accepting more than $30,000 in bribes while issuing and signing off on building permits, the District Attorney’s office announced.

Deputy District Attorney Sean Hassett with the Public Integrity Division said Craig Allen Ingraham, 59, was immediately sentenced by Superior Court Judge David Horwitz to two years in state prison, which was suspended. Ingraham also was placed on five years probation, ordered to pay $32,000 in restitution and to complete 750 hours of community service.more..

December 20, 2011

Concealing of evidence highlighted in Texas wrongful conviction

Activists say the case of Michael Morton, exonerated of murder after 25 years in prison, underscores a problem of prosecutors withholding material that could help defendants.

Reporting from Houston and Washington— The case of a grocery store clerk wrongly convicted of murdering his wife has rocked the legal system across Texas, and not just because an innocent man served 25 years of a life sentence.more..

December 19, 2011

Lawyers for Rizzo, Spaccia ask judge to dismiss charges

Attorneys for ex-Bell City Administrator Robert Rizzo and his former assistant asked a judge Wednesday to throw out charges of misappropriation of public funds and other counts, but the judge did not immediately rule on the request.

Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Kathleen Kennedy said she wanted time to mull over the issues before deciding whether prosecutors can move forward with their cases against Rizzo and Angela Spaccia, who were indicted in March on charges of misappropriation of public funds, conflict of interest and hiding and falsifying official records. more..

December 15, 2011

Conrad Murray: I'm broke and need a court-appointed attorney

Surrounded by a team of lawyers and experts during his closely watched trial, Michael Jackson’s former doctor is on his own for his appeal.

Dr. Conrad Murray filed papers this week in Los Angeles County Superior Court saying he is broke and needs the government to pay for a lawyer to handle the appeal of his involuntary manslaughter conviction. more..

December 14, 2011

DANGEROUS JAILS: THE PRINCE

Six years ago, (Los Angeles) Men’s Central Jail commanding officer Captain John Clark had had enough.

Plagued by a spate of bad press over some high-profile incidents, plus calls for reform from the ACLU and the County Board of Supervisors over the dangerous conditions inside his jail, Clark sent his operations lieutenant, Casey Bald—second in command in the jail behind the captain himself—to read his supervisors the riot act.more..

December 13, 2011

Molester who worked in casting held on offender registry charges

Officials say Jason James Murphy failed to file a name change and change of address, felonies that could lead to three years in prison. His lawyer says he had been in compliance with state rules.

A convicted child molester who spent recent years helping cast Hollywood movies under an alias was arrested Friday on suspicion of violating sex offender registry laws, a move his attorney decried as an injustice born out of nationwide outrage over pedophilia scandals.more..

December 12, 2011

Should the feds have more power to seize domain names?

Before Congress gives the Justice Department more power to seize domain names, maybe it should consider what the government does with the power it already has.

Lawmakers are considering bills in the House and Senate that would authorize the DOJ to seek court orders seizing the domain names of online piracy hotbeds based outside the United States. One concern about the measures is that they don't do enough to protect the due-process rights of site operators.more..

December 09, 2011

Lawyer for Lakers' Devin Ebanks denies sex assault allegations

The attorney for the Lakers' Devin Ebanks on Wednesday strongly denied allegations that the player sexually assaulted a woman and said his client was a target after prosecutors announced they would not seek criminal charges in the case.

"Everyone in this city knows that high-profile people are often targets for those seeking money or attention," said attorney Jeff Rubenstein, who is representing Ebanks. "There is nothing here, This is not a case, end of story." more..

December 08, 2011

California and Nevada join forces in mortgage probe

The two states' attorneys general announce plans to jointly investigate misconduct and fraud in the mortgage business.

An alliance by California and Nevada to jointly investigate misconduct and fraud in the mortgage business further divides efforts by the nation's attorneys general to bring the home-lending industry to account for improper foreclosure practices.

The two states, which are at ground zero of the nation's housing bust, will join forces to probe allegations of foreclosure fraud and other wrongdoing in the mortgage markets, including the packaging and selling of mortgage-backed securities by Wall Street players and scams by smaller players offering to help troubled borrowers. more..

December 07, 2011

Mueller enlists Sheen's lawyer in Aspen cocaine case

ASPEN — Aspen criminal-defense attorney Richard Cummins on Monday entered his appearance for celebrity Brooke Mueller, who was arrested outside of a downtown nightclub Saturday on cocaine and assault charges. Cummins also was a member of actor Charlie Sheen's defense team for his Christmas Day 2009 domestic violence case involving Mueller, who was his wife at the time of the incident.

Cummins said Mueller, 34, waived any potential conflict concerning his representation of Sheen. more..

December 06, 2011

D.A. in the dark on jail probes

L.A. County Sheriff's Department does not always share with prosecutors the results of investigations of possible inmate abuse.

Even as a sergeant shouted, "Stop hitting him! Stop hitting him!," Deputy Marcos Stout continued punching an inmate in the head. Then, with the inmate on the concrete floor, Stout landed his knee on the man's skull.more..

December 05, 2011

Ousted L.A. Housing Authority chief leaves with $1.2 million

Critics see Rudolf Montiel's departure pay as a symbol of misplaced priorities and poor management at the agency. The authority's board chief says the deal was in the agency's best interests.

Rudolf Montiel seemed remarkably sanguine last spring, sitting in a meeting room at the Los Angeles Housing Authority headquarters as he was publicly castigated by tenants just before being fired as the head of the largest public housing operation west of the Mississippi.more..

December 02, 2011

Manager of young actors arrested in molestation case

Martin Weiss of Santa Monica is held on suspicion of sexually assaulting a boy over a three-year period. Police believe there may be other alleged victims.

A Hollywood manager who specializes in representing young actors has been arrested on suspicion of molesting one of his clients, and police suspect there may be other possible victims.more..

December 01, 2011

Wal-Mart pepper-spray attack caused 'total pandemonium,' says LAPD

Los Angeles police detectives described a chaotic scene when a woman pepper-sprayed 20 shoppers during a Wal-Mart Black Friday sale.

Authorities said they received a call around 10 p.m. Thanksgiving night to report that someone had discharged pepper spray at a videogame display at the Porter Ranch Wal-Mart, where the store was offering games at half their normal $60 price.more..

November 30, 2011

Conrad Murray gets four years for role in Michael Jackson's death

The judge voices shock at Dr. Conrad Murray's lack of remorse and criticizes the physician for recent comments suggesting Michael Jackson 'entrapped' him.

The trial of Dr. Conrad Murray in the drug overdose death of Michael Jackson ended with a resounding rebuke from the trial judge, who lambasted his treatment as "money for medicine madness."more..

November 29, 2011

Criminal defendants find an unlikely friend in Justice Scalia

Conservative Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia has led the charge in reversing convictions, citing the 6th Amendment and the right to challenge witnesses. For him there are no shades of gray.

Reporting from Washington— Justice Antonin Scalia, the Supreme Court's most outspoken and combative conservative, is not often described as friendly to criminals. more..

November 28, 2011

The hidden impact of three strikes

State law is widely used to coerce plea bargains

Across California, hundreds of criminals convicted of non-serious, non-violent, non-sexual crimes last month were no longer sent to prison under the state's massive inmate realignment — but this group of "low level" offenders does not include more than 2,200 inmates currently imprisoned for the exact same crimes.

They are serving life sentences under California's three-strikes law. more..

November 23, 2011

Ex-Beverly Hills school official convicted

A former Beverly Hills School District official was convicted Monday of conflict-of-interest charges for taking more than $1.3 million through a contract she steered to herself, authorities said.

Karen Anne Christiansen, 53, the district's former facilities director, encouraged school officials to borrow money for a building campaign while she planned to direct the management contract to herself, the Los Angeles County district attorney's office said.more..

November 22, 2011

Riverside County to make inmates pay jail costs

A judge will decide whether and how much each convict is able to pay. Riverside County officials say the state probably won't cover the costs of putting inmates in county jails instead of state prisons.

Struggling with an $80-million budget shortfall and an influx of thousands of felons to local jails, Riverside County is turning to a captive audience to raise some much-needed cash: Convicts. more..

November 21, 2011

Discord Over Strategy on Dr. Conrad Murray's Defense Team

The lawyers representing Dr. Conrad Murray in Los Angeles Superior Court had no reason to cheer on Nov. 8, but it wasn't just the guilty verdict that created tension on the trial team.

For much of the trial, discord dominated relations between Houston lawyer Ed Chernoff, who led the criminal-defense team for Murray, and his co-counsel J. Michael Flanagan of Glendale, Calif.'s Flanagan Unger Grover & McCool. Neither lawyer plans to represent Murray on appeal.more..

November 18, 2011

Charles Manson's 'right hand man' seeks parole for 14th time after becoming a born-again Christian in prison - and gets denied

Charles 'Tex' Watson appeared before a parole board in California to seek release after being denied over a dozen times before - and was denied again.

Watson, 65, made a plea for his freedom yet again during a hearing Wednesday at Mule Creek State Prison in Ione, 50 miles southeast of Sacramento.more..

November 17, 2011

Former Bell council members seek dismissal of corruption charges

Six ex-lawmakers contend Bell's status as a charter city allowed them to exceed state regulations on salaries

Six former Bell council members are asking a Superior Court judge to dismiss corruption charges against them, arguing that voters in the small Los Angeles County city gave them the authority to draw the annual salaries of nearly $100,000 that prosecutors say amounted to thievery.more..

November 16, 2011

Wilberle Vereus: US Resident Deported To Haiti, Reveals Brutal Conditions And Severe Health Risks In Jail

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti – When longtime Los Angeles resident Wilberle Vereus arrived in Haiti after being deported from the United States, he was taken to the Petionville jail above Port-au-Prince and placed in a 20-by-10-foot cell along with three other deportees and a group of Haitian prisoners.

Vereus, 22, had committed no crime in Haiti.

"We walked into the jail, and the first thing I smelled was urine," Vereus said. "They threw us in a jail that had no beds, no toilets, no shower, nothing but just concrete. It had a little toilet bowl that didn't work that had urine and trash and all that stuff up in there."more..

November 15, 2011

Attorney's Apology for Flouting Court Order Can't Support Sanction Absent Actual Breach

An attorney's immediate apology after a judge sustained an objection against him for violating a pretrial evidentiary order in his summation could not support a sanctions order when a careful review of the transcript showed no actual violation of the order, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit held Oct. 27 (Miller v. Los Angeles, 9th Cir., No. 10-55235, 10/27/11).

In an excessive force case involving a Los Angeles police officer, Chief Judge Alex Kozinski said the city's attorney could not have acted in bad faith—a prerequisite for a sanction based on the district court's inherent power—if he did not violate the court's order.more..

November 14, 2011

For teen program's chief, tough love may have turned criminal

The operator of a Pasadena 'boot camp' aimed at turning around troubled lives with military-type discipline faces trial on charges of kidnapping and extortion for his treatment of a girl and her family.

The surprise visit to Alberto Ruiz's house was swift.more..

November 11, 2011

Michael Jackson family's civil trial blames AEG in singer's death

Mother and children allege that the entertainment giant heartlessly pressured the star to deliver a comeback tour he was in no shape to take on.

With the conviction this week of Michael Jackson's doctor on an involuntary manslaughter charge, the question of blame in the pop star's death shifts to a new and much wealthier defendant: Los Angeles entertainment behemoth Anschutz Entertainment Group. more..

November 10, 2011

Ex-Oregon congressman pleads guilty to federal tax charge

Wester Cooley had been charged with seven felonies surrounding the sale of more than $10 million of private stock in Tujunga-based Bidbay.com and related companies from 2000 to 2003.

Former Oregon Rep. Wester Cooley pleaded guilty in Los Angeles federal court to a tax charge related to the allegedly fraudulent sale of stock in an online auction site.more..

November 09, 2011

Phone hacking scandal puts James Murdoch's career on the line

James Murdoch, the News Corp. heir apparent, will return to Parliament on Thursday for more questions about his role in the phone hacking case. He might lose his place as Rupert Murdoch's successor.

James Murdoch is fighting for his professional life, as a growing scandal engulfs his family and the media conglomerate they control.more..

November 08, 2011

Conrad Murray guilty in death of Michael Jackson

Michael Jackson's personal physician has been found guilty of involuntary manslaughter for causing the pop icon's 2009 death by a powerful surgical anesthetic.

The verdict against Dr. Conrad Murray comes after a jury of seven men and five women deliberated for about nine hours over two days. The 58-year-old cardiologist, who was charged with the lowest possible homicide offense, faces a maximum sentence of four years in state prison and a minimum sentence of probation.more..

November 07, 2011

Family calls for federal probe in fatal police shooting

His family stood quietly during a Friday afternoon news conference outside the Long Beach Police Department, holding signs that read, "Justice for Douglas Zerby!" and "Jail Killers Ortiz and Shurtleff."

They listened as their attorney, Brian Claypool, called for a federal probe into last year's fatal police shooting of Zerby, 35, because, Claypool said, the Los Angeles County district attorney's office had mishandled its own investigation.more..

November 04, 2011

Defense calls Conrad Murray a victim as case goes to jury

A defense attorney for Michael Jackson’s personal physician told jurors Thursday that his client would never have been put on trial were it not for the pop star’s celebrity.

“Somebody’s got to say it: If it were anybody else but Michael Jackson, if it were anybody else, would this doctor be here today?” defense attorney Ed Chernoff told jurors during closing arguments in Dr. Conrad Murray’s involuntary manslaughter trial.more..

November 03, 2011

Conrad Murray's defense ends without him taking the stand

Michael Jackson's personal physician declines to testify in his own defense as both sides wrap up their cases, setting the stage for closing arguments.

Testimony drew to a close in the involuntary manslaughter trial of Michael Jackson's personal physician Tuesday as the doctor announced he will not testify in his own defense.more..

November 02, 2011

Robert Rizzo sues Bell, says city had no 'cause' to fire him

Robert Rizzo, the former city administrator whose generous salary launched the city of Bell to notoriety last year, is suing the city, alleging breach of contract.

Rizzo, who was ousted from his post last year over revelations that he was collecting a salary of nearly $800,000 to oversee the day-to-day operations of the small, working-class community in southeast Los Angeles County, accused the city of breach of contract in a suit filed Monday in Los Angeles County Superior Court. He is representing himself in the suit.more..

November 01, 2011

Medical pot backers' suit seeks end of U.S. raids, threats

In suing U.S. Atty. Gen. Eric Holder and the top federal prosecutor in Northern California, Americans for Safe Access accuses the Obama administration of using coercive tactics to interfere with powers delegated to the states.

Medical marijuana advocates want a federal court to halt the recent raids and threats of prosecution that have significantly stepped up the Obama administration's assault on dispensaries and growers.more..

October 31, 2011

Raw-food crackdown went too far, defense attorneys say

A one-year investigation into allegedly illegal trafficking of raw dairy products by a Ventura County farmer, her assistant and a Venice store operator included hundreds of hours of manpower by 10 law enforcement and regulatory agencies using hidden video cameras and undercover agents to make covert buys, attorneys say.

The bust had all the makings of a major criminal investigation.more..

October 30, 2011

Police link 6 more slayings to Grim Sleeper suspect

The new allegations bring to 16 the killings linked to Lonnie Franklin Jr. But officials do not plan to seek criminal charges now in the new cases, fearing that would slow progress toward a trial.

Los Angeles police detectives have linked six more slayings to the suspect in the Grim Sleeper serial killings after reviewing hundreds of unsolved homicide cases and missing person reports, as well as a cache of photos of unidentified women found at the man's home.more..

October 28, 2011

Innocent man freed after 17 years in prison for nothing

LOS ANGELES — After serving 17 years in prison for a crime he did not commit, Obie Anthony walked out of a Los Angeles County Jail Oct. 4 and joined the ranks of many men and women across the U.S., who were incarcerated on the basis of flawed or false eyewitness testimony.

“It's really overwhelming at this point. It's going to take a couple of days before everything really sets all the way in but the fact of the matter is, like I said, I never lost faith. I knew that this day would come so I just stood fast in that and I knew that it would happen,” Anthony told the throng of supporters and media that greeted him during an early celebration immediately after he was released.more..

October 27, 2011

Montebello lawyer and former L.A. County Superior Court commissioner sentenced to federal prison

LOS ANGELES — A former Los Angeles County Superior Court Commissioner and Montebello attorney was sentenced to one year of federal prison Monday in a scheme to avoid paying taxes.

Anthony Luna, 72, pleaded guilty on March 22 to one count of conspiracy to structure cash transactions and one count of subscribing to a false tax return, the U.S. Attorney's Office said in a written statement. more..

October 26, 2011

Conrad Murray trial: Defense to begin its case

Dr. Conrad Murray's attorneys are expected to begin their case Monday, a task legal experts say will be a big damage-control job if they hope to keep Michael Jackson's physician from being convicted of involuntary manslaughter.

The prosecution's four-week case will wrap up after cross-examination and redirect of key medical witness Dr. Steven Shafer. Shafer has repeatedly attacked Murray's account of how Jackson died. The propofol expert testified that almost nothing about the quantity of drugs Murray said he administered matched up with what was later found in Jackson's blood.more..

October 25, 2011

Alaska corruption case clouded by prosecution's missteps

One of the Justice Department's most ambitious anti-corruption operations of the last decade ended modestly Friday after several reversed convictions and retrials. After two years, an investigation into prosecutorial misconduct continues.

Reporting from Juneau and Anchorage, Alaska— The scene captured by a hidden FBI camera in Suite 604 of the Baranof Hotel in Juneau has become one of the most famous in a state well-versed since the gold rush days in what happens when money, ambition and alcohol intersect.more..

October 24, 2011

Attorney arrested on suspicion of bringing drugs to jailed client

Acting on jailhouse intelligence, Los Angeles sheriff's deputies Friday arrested an attorney they say tried to smuggle 26 balloons of heroin and methamphetamine to a gang member in custody at the downtown courthouse.

Attorney Kenneth Markman, 47, was arrested on the 11th floor of the Clara Shortridge Foltz Criminal Justice Center when he tried to meet with his client in lockup. Deputies used a drug-sniffing dog to locate the narcotics wrapped in tape, said Sheriff's Capt. Mike Parker.more..

October 21, 2011

L.A. County jail probe includes claim that deputies beat visitor

Gabriel Carrillo, visiting his brother at Men's Central Jail, suffered bruises and cuts in an altercation with sheriff's deputies. Carrillo says he was attacked; deputies say he was resisting.

The FBI probe into the Los Angeles County jails has expanded to include allegations of a man who says he was beaten and pepper sprayed by deputies while handcuffed during a visit to see his incarcerated brother.more..

October 18, 2011

ACLU files suit over alleged racial profiling of students

The civil rights group alleges that about 55 Latino students at Glendale's Hoover High School were illegally detained, searched and interrogated.

The ACLU of Southern California filed suit Thursday against Glendale Unified administrators and three law enforcement agencies, alleging that about 55 Latino high school students were illegally detained, searched and interrogated in what the civil rights organization called "a textbook case of racial profiling."more..

October 17, 2011

Another city employee found preying on immigrants

A woman working in the Los Angeles Housing Department collected payoffs from Korean Americans, authorities say. She received a sentence and could face more penalties.

Glen Lim and his mother were anxious to find someone who could explain how their apartment building in Mid-Wilshire had gotten into so much trouble with Los Angeles housing inspectors — and what they could do to fix the problem.more..

October 14, 2011

30 jailers punished for inmate beatings, report says

Sheriff's Department watchdog releases study on inmate abuse. Sheriff Baca plans to install more video cameras in jail to document misconduct.

In the last two years, Los Angeles County sheriff's officials have disciplined more than 30 jail employees for beating inmates or covering up the abuse, according to a report from the agency's watchdog obtained by The Times.more..

October 13, 2011

'Austin Powers' actor allegedly kills sex offender in prison

An "Austin Powers" actor convicted of torturing a woman in Orange County is suspected of killing his cellmate in a Central Valley prison, authorities said Tuesday.

Joseph Hyungmin Son, 40, allegedly killed his 50-year-old cellmate, who was found dead Monday afternoon at Wasco State Prison Reception Center in Kern County.more..

October 12, 2011

Former Bell chief wants strapped city to pay his legal fees

Randy G. Adams' lawyer says the expenses total hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Former Bell Police Chief Randy G. Adams is requesting that a judge order Bell to pay legal expenses he incurred while defending himself in a civil lawsuit and corruption investigations.more..

October 11, 2011

Ex-deputy says he, others used improper force on inmates, Baca says

Sheriff Lee Baca says in a letter that the information led him to create a task force to examine a growing number of allegations of deputy misconduct in the jails.

A former sheriff's deputy at the center of an FBI probe inside the L.A. County jail system implicated himself and other jail employees in four cases of improper force against inmates, according to a letter written by Sheriff Lee Baca.more..

October 10, 2011

Open L.A. County's jails — to scrutiny

For the sake of the public, the Sheriff's Department and Sheriff Lee Baca himself, a thorough investigation into reports of abuse at L.A. County's jails is crucial.

Last week, I added my name to a letter to Atty. Gen. Eric H. Holder Jr. asking for a federal investigation into disturbing reports of assaults on inmates by L.A. County sheriff's deputies in jails.more..

October 07, 2011

Judge overturns murder conviction in 1994 slaying

Jurist criticizes prosecutors for not revealing that the main witness received leniency in return for his testimony implicating Obie Anthony in a case featured in the LAPD book 'The Killing Season.'

A Los Angeles County Superior Court judge on Friday overturned the murder conviction of a man who has spent 17 years behind bars for a killing outside a South L.A. brothel — a slaying that was prominently featured in a book about two LAPD homicide detectives.more..

October 06, 2011

D.A. opens investigation of Los Angeles Community College District

At issue are allegations of irregularities in the selection of a watchdog for the district's troubled $5.7-billion construction program.

Los Angeles County Dist. Atty. Steve Cooley has opened a preliminary inquiry into allegations of irregularities in the Los Angeles Community College District's choice of a watchdog for its troubled $5.7-billion construction program.more..

October 05, 2011

Judge reprimands Fullerton police

Seven women had accused Officer Albert Rincon of sexually harassing them or groping them during arrests. Two of them filed suit, and a judge has refused to throw out their case.

The Fullerton Police Department, already reeling from criminal charges filed against two officers in the death of a homeless man, has been reprimanded by a federal judge for allowing a police officer to return to patrol after he was accused of groping women.more..

October 04, 2011

Doctor acquitted of coverup in misallocated liver transplant

The former head of the transplant program at St. Vincent Medical Center is exonerated of violating rules that prompted the hospital to stop the surgeries.

Dr. Richard R. Lopez Jr., who once ran the liver transplant program at St. Vincent Medical Center, was acquitted by a federal jury Friday on charges that he led a conspiracy to cover up the misallocation of an organ in 2003.more..

October 03, 2011

Conrad Murray case: Judge rips attorney for 'Today Show' interview

A judge barred attorneys at the trial of Michael Jackson’s personal physician Friday from speaking publicly about the case after a Texas attorney associated with the defense criticized a witness and discussed trial strategy on the "Today Show."

Superior Court Judge Michael Pastor said he found the television appearance by Matthew Alford, a law partner of the lead defense attorney, “shocking,” given his previous entreaties not to try Dr. Conrad Murray’s case in the media.more..

September 30, 2011

Attorney: Antelope Valley corruption prompted firing of deputy, who should get $8.5 million

LOS ANGELES -- A former Los Angeles County sheriff's deputy is entitled to up to $8.5 million for exposing alleged corruption within his department and getting fired as a result, his attorney told a jury today.

Lawyer Richard Love said his client -- honored for his work in fighting drug dealers in the Antelope Valley -- lost his job because he told his boss that another deputy, Richard Engels, was possibly linked to both narcotics activity and to the disappearance of one of their colleagues, Jonathan Aujay. more..

September 29, 2011

Sheriff, U.S. Attorney to discuss FBI probe of LA County jails

Sheriff Lee Baca is expected to meet today with the U.S attorney in Los Angeles amid growing tension between his department and the FBI over a new FBI probe of alleged deputy misconduct in the Los Angeles County jail system, the nation's largest.

FBI agents orchestrated an undercover sting in which they paid about $1,500 to a sheriff's deputy to smuggle a cellphone to an inmate, sources told a Los Angeles newspaper. The inmate turned out to be an FBI informant. more..

September 28, 2011

L.A. city controller to audit Coliseum finances

L.A. City Controller Wendy Greuel's audit of the Coliseum's books comes on top of a criminal investigation by Los Angeles County Dist. Atty. Steve Cooley.

Los Angeles City Controller Wendy Greuel is dispatching a team of auditors to pore over the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum's books because of a financial scandal that is already the subject of a criminal investigation.more..

September 27, 2011

FBI probing reports of beatings in L.A. County jails

Federal agents sneaked a cellphone into Men's Central Jail as part of their investigation of misconduct, sources say.

Federal authorities are investigating allegations of inmate beatings and other misconduct by deputies in Los Angeles County jails, with FBI agents going so far as to sneak a cellphone to an inmate to get reports from inside, according to law enforcement sources.more..

September 26, 2011

Students guilty of disrupting speech in 'Irvine 11' case

Ten Muslim students get three years of probation for disrupting a speech by the Israeli ambassador at UC Irvine. Charges against another student were dismissed pending completion of community service.

In an emotional conclusion to a case that generated national debate over free speech rights, an Orange County jury has found 10 Muslim students guilty of criminal charges for disrupting a speech by Israeli Ambassador Michael Oren on the UC Irvine campus last year.more..

September 24, 2011

Michael Jackson: Jury selected in Conrad Murray case

Lawyers have finalized a jury to hear evidence against Michael Jackson's personal physician.

The panel seated Friday afternoon in the trial of Dr. Conrad Murray includes one man who had a brief encounter with Jackson three decades ago. The juror said he was introduced to the singer in the early 1980s while they both were working on the Disney lot.more..

September 23, 2011

Kelly Thomas death: Councilman 'sickened' by beating details

A Fullerton city councilman who was police chief when the two officers charged in the Kelly Thomas case were hired expressed sorrow and remorse after hearing details of the beating that preceded Thomas' death.

"I am absolutely sickened and my heart is just bleeding for the city, the Thomas family and the Police Department," Pat McKinley said Wednesday in a telephone interview. "I just don't understand how those officers could do what they did."more..

September 22, 2011

Coroner's report completed in Kelly Thomas' death

The findings are not made public, but the Orange County district attorney is set to announce whether criminal charges will be filed against six Fullerton police officers in the homeless man's beating.

The Orange County district attorney is set to announce Wednesday whether criminal charges will be filed against six Fullerton police officers involved in a violent confrontation that led to the death of a mentally ill homeless man.more..

September 21, 2011

'Irvine 11' accused of censorship

In closing arguments, prosecutor says that Muslim students interfered with Israeli ambassador's right to free speech. Defense argues that courtesy isn't necessary in a university setting.

Ten Muslim students who are on trial for disrupting Israeli ambassador Michael Oren during an appearance at UC Irvine in effect acted as censors, a prosecutor argued in closing statements Monday.more..

September 20, 2011

Jurors question deputies' testimony

Panelists' concerns over what they see as 'fabrications' spur an internal affairs investigation into law enforcement actions and testimony in a Compton weapons case

When Compton jurors recently deliberated the fate of a man charged with possessing a concealed firearm, they thought the evidence was overwhelming — not that the man was guilty but that the Los Angeles County sheriff's deputies who testified against him had lied.more..

September 19, 2011

Democrats ignored red flags on Durkee, records show

Kinde Durkee, now accused in federal fraud case, continued to work as a campaign treasurer for Democratic lawmakers despite numerous fines and audits.

When state Sen. Ted Lieu (D- Torrance) learned a few months ago that a state audit had found irregularities in his campaign finances, staffers immediately called Lieu's longtime treasurer, Kinde Durkee. more..

September 16, 2011

More veterans are using PTSD as defense in criminal cases

As awareness of post-traumatic stress disorder grows, veterans' lawyers are finding juries sympathetic. But the case of Joshua Stepp, who killed his infant stepdaughter, is testing how far that defense can go.

Reporting from Raleigh, N.C.— He killed her, Joshua Stepp admitted. He slammed the face of his 10-month-old stepdaughter into a carpeted floor, roughed her up as he changed her diaper, stuffed wet toilet paper down her throat, and soon she was dead.more..

September 14, 2011

LAUSD police officer convicted of faking his own shooting near El Camino Real High School

VAN NUYS - A Los Angeles school police officer was convicted today of faking his own shooting near El Camino Real High School, prompting a 10-hour police dragnet of an eight-square-mile area of the San Fernando Valley.

Jeff Stenroos, 31, was convicted in a non-jury trial of five of the six counts against him. Van Nuys Superior Court Judge Richard N. Kirschner took the sixth count -- filing a false police report -- under submission.more..

September 13, 2011

The unlikely lawyer in Conrad Murray's corner

A little known but well-regarded Texas attorney is representing the doctor facing an involuntary manslaughter charge in the death of Michael Jackson.

As his trial in the death of Michael Jackson approached, Dr. Conrad Murray found himself with an unlikely new cardiology patient — his own attorney. A battery of tests determined that the chest pains Ed Chernoff was experiencing were symptoms of anxiety, a diagnosis that the patient, a medium-time Texas lawyer about to try the biggest-time of cases, could not dispute.more..

September 12, 2011

Hollywood producer Drew Levin pleads guilty to fraud

A Hollywood producer and businessman pleaded guilty Thursday in Los Angeles to federal charges of stock fraud and bilking an investor.

Drew Savitch Levin, 57, of Pacific Palisades, conspired to inflate the revenue and stock price of Team Communications Group, Inc., a West Los Angeles-based company that Levin founded and for which he served as CEO until early 2001, according to the U.S. attorney’s office.more..

September 09, 2011

FBI: Treasurer used $677k in campaign funds to pay personal bills

Kinde Durkee, the Democratic campaign treasurer who was arrested by the FBI on Friday, used the campaign funds of Orange County Assemblyman Jose Solorio to pay business expenses, credit card bills and for her mother's assisted living care, according to a criminal complaint released Tuesday.

In all, Durkee is alleged to have defrauded the assemblyman out of more than $677,000 in campaign contributions, according to an affidavit attached to the criminal complaint. And there could be more. Lauren Horwood, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Attorney's Office in Sacramento, said the investigation continues and could expand to more of Durkee's clients, who include U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein, five U.S. representatives, six members of the state Legislature and local officials.more..

September 08, 2011

Doctor's trial may avoid Michael Jackson's past

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Michael Jackson's former doctor faces a tough challenge clearing himself of involuntary manslaughter charges in the pop star's death as his trial, which promises to avoid many dark aspects of Jackson's life, begins with jury selection due this week.

While it is Dr. Conrad Murray, who will be on trial when attorneys are expected to start selecting a panel on Thursday, the "Thriller" singer's infamy will loom large over the proceedings.more..

September 07, 2011

Attorney General Kamala D. Harris Announces Plea Deal in Identity Theft Conspiracy

SAN FRANCISCO --- Attorney General Kamala D. Harris announced today that a Vallejo man has entered into a plea for a four-year prison sentence for participating in an identity theft ring that defraud at least 29 victims in the Bay Area of at least $180,000.

Nick Luu, 30, of Vallejo, pled guilty in San Francisco Superior Court on August 24, 2011 to three counts of identity theft and admitted to participating in a conspiracy with five other defendants. more..

September 06, 2011

Elected officials notified of possible campaign fund fraud

Several clients of Kinde Durkee, a prominent campaign treasurer who was arrested Friday on a federal fraud charge, have reported that they were contacted by the FBI or U.S. attorney’s office about the criminal investigation.

Durkee was arrested from the office of her business, Durkee & Associates, in Burbank on one charge of mail fraud and is scheduled to be arraigned Tuesday in Los Angeles. She had served as campaign treasurers on hundreds of political campaigns over the years, working for federal, state and local candidates.more..

September 05, 2011

Jackson doc's trial ready to go

LOS ANGELES -- Michael Jackson's sad and perplexing final days of life will be laid bare as the involuntary manslaughter trial of his personal physician, Dr. Conrad Murray, begins on Thursday with jury selection.

Details of how the King of Pop, who'd been apparently suffering for years from debilitating insomnia, was addicted to a powerful anesthetic approved only for use in surgery and, more importantly, how he obtained it, is at the core of the case Los Angeles prosecutors will present in the televised trial, which is tentatively set to begin with opening statements on Tuesday, Sept. 27.more..

August 31, 2011

Former LA prosecutor backs ending CA death penalty

SACRAMENTO, Calif.—A former Los Angeles County district attorney joined an effort to end California's death penalty Monday, backing an initiative proposed for the November 2012 ballot that would replace capital punishment with life prison terms.

"The death penalty in California is broken and it is unfixable," Gil Garcetti said at a news conference held to release details of the proposed ballot measure. "It is more likely that the convicted murderer will die in prison before execution is imposed."more..

August 30, 2011

Suspect Indicted in Quadruple Hollywood Homicide

LOS ANGELES – A superceding Grand Jury indictment unsealed today charges Alberd Tersargsyan with the murders of three family members and a woman not related to the family, the District Attorney’s office announced.

Tersargsyan, 65 (7-7-46), pleaded not guilty before Los Angeles Superior Court Judge George Lomeli in case BA 382886. Tersargsyan, who was ordered held without bail, returns to court on Oct. 17 for a pretrial hearing in Department 100, said Deputy District Attorneys Alan Jackson and Amy Ashvanian.more..

August 29, 2011

Pedophile ex-priest faces court date

Michael Stephen Baker, a former Roman Catholic priest convicted of molesting two boys, will be arraigned Friday as part of a motion filed by L.A. County prosecutors to have Baker committed to a state hospital indefinitely after completing his prison sentence.

Baker, who has served more than five years of a 10-year prison sentence for his 2007 conviction, was scheduled to be released Aug. 18. The petition, filed the same day with L.A. County Mental Health Court, means he will continue to be held while a judge reviews the case, said Deputy Dist. Atty. Tracy Watson.more..

August 28, 2011

Judge denies Hubbard's motion for dismissal

Superintendent's attorney requests Beverly Hills Unified to provide emails that he says could clear Hubbard of wrongdoing.

LOS ANGELES — A judge on Friday denied a request to drop the felony criminal charges filed against the Newport-Mesa Unified schools chief.

An attorney for Supt. Jeffrey Hubbard had argued that Hubbard was only following procedure when, in his last job as superintendent for the Beverly Hills Unified School District, he wrote memos to subordinates requiring them to make payments to Beverly Hills' former facilities director, Karen Anne Christiansen, 53.more..

August 24, 2011

Relief delayed for prisoners deemed wrongfully convicted

U.S. District Judge Percy Anderson failed for years to rule on a number of eligible habeas corpus petitions. In one case, the prisoner died in the sixth year of the judge's inaction.

Justice delayed was justice denied for Omer Harland Gallion. He died in prison in his sixth year of waiting for U.S. District Judge Percy Anderson to act on a decision that he had been wrongfully convicted and should be released or retried.more..

August 19, 2011

Plea bargains a painful but necessary tool for the criminal justice system

The two men charged with gunning down 3-year-old Carlos Fernando Nava in a failed attempt to kill two rivals were free to walk the streets despite violent pasts.

Both had been in the grip of law enforcement for previous crimes but, through plea bargains, were able to escape prolonged prison terms.more..

August 18, 2011

Homeless man's death: Fullerton approves probe by police watchdog

The Fullerton City Council late Tuesday gave the go-ahead for an independent review of the city's embattled Police Department and to investigate the circumstances surrounding the death of a homeless man after a violent encounter with six officers.

Michael Gennaco, who oversees Los Angeles County's Office of Independent Review and scrutinizes the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department's actions, said the two contracts approved by the Fullerton council allow him to review Kelly Thomas' death and conduct a separate extensive review of department policies and procedures.more..

August 17, 2011

L.A. physician convicted of sexual assault

Dr. Kevin Brown, the son of a former premier of Bermuda, is found guilty on 21 charges related to sexual assaults on nine female patients, including a 15-year-old and an undercover police officer.

Dr. Kevin Brown, a South Los Angeles physician and son of a former premier of Bermuda, was found guilty Monday on 21 charges related to sexual assaults on nine female patients, including a 15-year-old and an undercover police officer.more..

August 16, 2011

Frank McCourt, Dodgers try to limit scope of Stow family suit

Attorneys for the Dodgers and owner Frank McCourt have asked a judge not to allow the children of San Francisco Giants fan Bryan Stow, who was beaten at Dodger Stadium, to sue over their father's injuries.

The attorneys also asked that references to drinking at the stadium and to McCourt's wealth be thrown out, saying they were irrelevant to the case. McCourt's legal team also wants descriptions of the March 31 beating as "brutal and vicious" removed. The lawyers are trying to significantly reduce the scope of the lawsuit.more..

August 15, 2011

Rapper's Twitter prank on sheriff's station may lead to charges

The Compton sheriff''s station was flooded with calls Friday night after The Game gave 580,000 followers a number to call for an internship. Officials may charge him with disrupting law enforcement.

The calls started without warning. Every line on every phone in the Compton sheriff's station lighted up at once, hundreds of calls pouring in for hours.more..

August 12, 2011

Fullerton death focuses attention on mental health

Federal, county and city authorities investigate the beating as Orange County supervisors look into implementing state's Laura's Law.

In the wake of the death of a schizophrenic man in Fullerton after a violent altercation with police, Orange County supervisors took an initial step Tuesday toward implementing a state law that would allow people with severe mental illness to be placed in court-mandated outpatient treatment.more..

August 11, 2011

Ex-official ordered to pay Irwindale for Broadway shows, ballgames

A retired Irwindale city manager convicted of misappropriating public funds paid $20,000 in restitution and fines for using city money to attend Broadway plays and Yankees and Mets games on trips to New York.

Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Mary Lou Villar de Longoria sentenced Steve Blancarte, 56, to pay $5,303 in restitution and an additional $14,700 in fines and penalties. After he paid the fines, the judge agreed to dismiss another four counts of misappropriation of public funds against the ex-city official. more..

August 10, 2011

Defense Decries 'Flagrant' Misconduct in FCPA Prosecution

In an attempt to salvage a criminal investigation devoid of sufficient evidence, federal prosecutors resorted to misconduct to win a high-profile Foreign Corrupt Practices Act case, defense lawyers argued in a court document.

The document, filed on July 25, supplemented a motion to dismiss based on prosecutorial misconduct that lawyers for Lindsey Manufacturing Co. and two of its executives filed one day before a jury verdict went against their clients. The case is one of the few verdicts the government has won under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, which prohibits individuals and businesses from bribing foreign officials to secure work. more..

August 09, 2011

Hundreds protest Fullerton man's death, call for release of video

Council members, bloggers and others urge Fullerton's police chief to resign in the wake of Kelly Thomas' death. A video shows six officers struggling with the homeless man, but key elements are obscured, a source says.

As hundreds of people on Saturday protested the death of a homeless man during an altercation with Fullerton police, it was looking less likely that a videotape at the center of the case would provide a full answer as to what happened. more..

August 08, 2011

Overturned case dropped

Father of four spent nine years in prison

ONTARIO - Prosecutors have dropped criminal charges against a man whose attempted murder conviction was overturned on appeal after he spent nine years in state prison.

Ontario resident Rafael Madrigal was released from prison two years ago when his conviction was set aside, but he faced the prospect of a new trial on charges that he participated in a shooting in 2000 in East Los Angeles. more..

August 05, 2011

Top prosecutors in Mexico resign en masse

Senior federal prosecutors in 21 of the country's 31 states and federal district step down, and it's not clear if they were forced out or quit in rebellion.

Reporting from Mexico City— In a major upheaval in Mexico's troubled attorney general's office, top prosecutors in 21 of the country's 31 states and federal district have abruptly quit, officials announced Monday.

Specific reasons were not given for the en masse resignations, but they come amid a widening purge of the agency by Atty. Gen. Marisela Morales, who took office in April and has seen several high-profile drug-trafficking prosecutions fall apart.more..

August 04, 2011

Prosecutor in Jaycee Dugard case attacks parole system

District attorney releases video taken by Phillip Garrido to bolster charges that the justice system relied too much on psychiatrists' opinions in freeing the convicted rapist and kidnapper.

Reporting from Sacramento -- El Dorado County Dist. Atty. Vern Pierson, who prosecuted the man convicted of abducting Jaycee Lee Dugard and holding her for nearly two decades, on Tuesday blasted the criminal justice system that let onetime parolee Phillip Garrido previously go free.more..

August 03, 2011

Los Angeles County judge acquitted of elections code violation

Judge Harvey Silberman had been accused of offering to pay a rival to drop out of a 2008 vote.

A Los Angeles County Superior Court judge was acquitted Monday of the charge that he had offered to pay an opponent to drop out of a 2008 election.more..

August 02, 2011

California may curb use of unsupported jailhouse testimony

A bill passed by the state Legislature earlier this month would prohibit convictions based solely on the testimony of jailhouse informants, who often have something to gain by lying.

No blood, fingerprints, weapon or other physical evidence was ever found to link Thomas L. Goldstein to the 1979 shotgun murder of John McGinest, a Long Beach neighbor he had never met. more..

August 01, 2011

Judge indicted in bribery case faces rare criminal prosecution

Jury is deliberating charges that Harvey Silberman tried to bribe his opponent to drop out of 2008 Superior Court race. His two political consultants pleaded no contest to conspiracy charges.

With the clock ticking on a deadline to file for judicial elections in 2008, Deputy Dist. Atty. Serena Murillo got a phone call with an unexpected offer.more..

July 28, 2011

Beverly Hills psychiatrist accused of misconduct

LOS ANGELES—A Beverly Hills psychiatrist who treated Anna Nicole Smith in the days before her death is accused of misconduct by the state's medical licensing agency.

In a July 13 filing, the Medical Board of California accuses Khristine Eroshevich of signing off on two workers' compensation and disability claims without actually examining the patients.more..

July 27, 2011

Arraignment for Two Suspects in Stow Beating Postponed

Two men charged with assault and mayhem in Brian Stow attack now to be arraigned on Aug. 10.

Two new suspects in the beating of Santa Cruz man Bryan Stow were in Los Angeles court Monday morning and were scheduled to be arraigned, but the arraignment has been postponed until August, a district attorney spokesman said.more..

July 26, 2011

ACLU/SC Calls on DA Cooley to Stop Parker Prosecution

In a letter sent today, the ACLU of Southern California is calling on Los Angeles County District Attorney Steve Cooley to stop the criminal prosecution of a Los Angeles County jail inmate whom two sheriff’s deputies brutally attacked in the Twin Towers Correctional Facility on January 24, 2011.

Both the Los Angeles Sheriff’s department and the FBI are conducting separate criminal investigations into the attack on James Parker, but have not yet completed their findings. While conducting a routine inspection of the jail, ACLU/SC Jails Project Coordinator Esther Lim witnessed deputies kicking and tasering Parker repeatedly. She witnessed the two deputies shouting “Stop resisting!” and “Stop fighting!” while he lay limp on the floor.more..

July 25, 2011

How the case against Dodger Stadium beating suspect unraveled

LAPD chief says investigators may have been overselling their findings in the attack on Bryan Stow, but it's his job to see through that. Source calls witness IDs of Giovanni Ramirez 'weak.'

On a Sunday afternoon in late May, Los Angeles Police Chief Charlie Beck stood before a horde of television cameras in the sprawling parking lot at Dodger Stadium. His voice wavering with emotion, Beck told a riveted city he was confident his detectives had caught one of the men responsible for the beating of a San Francisco Giants fan in that same lot weeks before.more..

July 24, 2011

Prosecutor seeks to quash 'gay panic' defense in Oxnard slaying

Judge will be asked to invoke a state law that allows jurors to be instructed to disregard a victim's sexuality.

The trial of an Oxnard teenager accused of gunning down a gay classmate he thought was flirting with him marks the first test of a state law allowing judges to admonish jurors that a victim's sexual orientation should not influence deliberations.more..

July 22, 2011

L.A. Council to look at use of lawyers other than City Attorney

Posing a direct challenge to Los Angeles City Atty. Carmen Trutanich, the City Council voted unanimously Tuesday to seek a report on other ways of obtaining legal services at City Hall.

On a 13 to 0 vote, the council asked for an analysis of how other cities across the nation hire their legal teams –- and of the possibility of separating the city’s misdemeanor criminal prosecutions from the work of crafting legislation and representing the city in lawsuits.more..

July 21, 2011

The Death Penalty is Prohibitively Expensive

A new study released this week puts the cost of maintaining the death penalty in California higher than it has ever been estimated in the past. Ninth Circuit Judge Arthur L. Alarcon and Loyola Law School professor Paula M. Mitchell, the study's authors, calculated that California taxpayers have spent more than $4 billion since capital punishment was reinstated in 1978, and estimate the annual cost of pursuing executions to be $184 million more than pursuing life without parole.

The report, facilitated by previously unavailable records from the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, details exactly where and why seeking the death penalty costs so much more than life, as in the extra $200,000 spent per capital case on jury selection, the upwards of $300,000 spent on attorneys representing each inmate on appeal, and the more than $100,000 extra it costs to incarcerate a death row inmate within more secure housing (though other states have had success in "mainstreaming" death row inmates with the general population).more..

July 20, 2011

McFarland case delayed until August

Keith McFarland PASADENA - Police in Pasadena have failed to turn over vital evidence in the Kelvin "Sgt. Mac" McFarland case, causing two delays this week in the criminal court proceedings, according to the suspect's attorney.

McFarland, 40, is a Pasadena juvenile boot camp operator accused of kidnapping, child abuse, false imprisonment, extortion and unlawful use of badge.more..

July 18, 2011

Ex-Vernon leader pleads guilty in public corruption case

Former Vernon City Administrator Donal O’Callaghan pleaded guilty Friday to felony conflict-of-interest charges related to the hiring of his wife as a city contractor, the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office announced.

The contracts awarded to O’Callaghan’s wife, Kimberly McBride O'Callaghan, were first reported by The Times last year as part of a series of stories on high salaries and benefits paid to the city’s top officials. O’Callaghan -- who had made as much as $785,000 in total compensation in 2009 -- was indicted in October and resigned from his position at Vernon City Hall.more..

July 16, 2011

Suspect in L.A. text-message slaying surrenders

The man, who had been tracked to Puerto Rico but got out on bail, appears at the Van Nuys courthouse with his lawyer. He is accused of shooting a 19-year-old man to death in North Hollywood in 2009.

For 18 months, the suspect in the shooting death of a teenager in a North Hollywood parking lot evaded police. Even after federal marshals hunted him down in Puerto Rico, Zareh Manjikian managed to bail out and flee again.more..

July 15, 2011

LAPD memo criticizes man who says Shaquille O'Neal orchestrated his kidnapping

A detective says Robert Ross was an 'undesirable informant' who had a 'vendetta' against fellow gang members and adds that the accusations were attempted extortion.

The music producer and former gang member who accused Shaquille O'Neal of being behind an alleged kidnapping by a criminal street gang was classified as an "undesirable informant" by the LAPD in early 2010, according to internal police records reviewed by The Times.more..

July 14, 2011

Fugitive Pleads Guilty, Sent to Prison in 2000 Attack on Sheriff’s Deputy

NORWALK – A man who fled to Mexico after shooting and wounding a Sheriff’s deputy a decade ago pleaded guilty today to assault on a peace officer and was sentenced to 25 years in state prison.

Deputy District Attorney Frank Tavelman of the Crimes Against Peace Officers Section (CAPOS) said Emigdio Preciado Jr., 41, was sentenced by Norwalk Superior Court Judge Peter Espinoza after the deputy who was wounded and others told the court how the crimes had affected their lives.more..

July 13, 2011

Armenian criminal boss pleads guilty

Federal Attorney of the Southern District of New York Preet Bharara informed that 47-year-old Kazarian headed a criminal group, which functioned in Los Angeles and New York.

“Voice of America” informs that the group was defeated in October, 2010, when over 50 members of the criminal syndicate – mainly of Armenian origin and citizens of that country - were arrested. They were accused of stealing personal data of thousands of doctors and patients, which were used by the criminals in order to extort millions of dollars from Medicare system, which exists for rendering medical aid to elderly people. more..

July 12, 2011

In Casey Anthony's case, the law worked

Many are upset at the verdict. But the system worked.

After Casey Anthony was found not guilty of murdering her daughter Caylee this week, a disturbing spectacle unfolded outside the Florida courthouse where the trial took place. The crowd outside, convinced that Anthony should have been convicted, began chanting "Appeal! Appeal!" The spontaneous demonstration revealed how little many Americans know about the justice system.more..

July 8, 2011

CALIFORNIA COURT OF APPEAL REVERSES CONVICTION IN ONE-STRIKE 32 YEARS TO LIFE SENTENCE

Court finds trial attorney to be ineffective by failing to present medical experts.

Filed 6/30/11 P. v. Clarke CA2/1

A jury convicted Daniel Ricardo Clarke of rape, burglary, and related charges. Clarke appealed and filed a simultaneous petition for writ of habeas corpus on numerous grounds, including ineffective assistance of counsel. We granted a limited form of relief on the habeas petition, directing the superior court to conduct an evidentiary hearing and rule on the ineffective assistance of counsel claim. The superior court held the hearing and ruled against Clarke, who then filed a new habeas petition in this court. We issued an order to show cause and ordered that the petition be heard concurrently with Clarke's still-pending appeal. We now conclude that Clarke's ineffective assistance of counsel claim has merit and that Clarke was prejudiced by counsel's deficient performance. We accordingly grant the petition and vacate the judgment. more..

July 08, 2011

PTA moms who allegedly ran Ponzi scheme charged with multiple felonies

Three former Diamond Bar elementary school PTA members were charged Wednesday with nearly two dozen criminal counts in connection with an alleged Ponzi scheme that defrauded more than 40 people out of $1 million.

Maricela Barajas, 41, Juliana Celeste Menefee, 50, and Eva Perez, 51, face 22 felony counts each of grand theft of personal property and securities fraud, said Jane Robison, a spokeswoman for the Los Angeles County district attorney's office.more..

July 07, 2011

No criminal charges in brawl by L.A. County sheriff's deputies

Prosecutors have declined to file criminal charges against a group of Los Angeles County sheriff's deputies accused of assaulting three fellow deputies at a Christmas party last year.

The violence that broke out at a department party in Montebello drew widespread attention after those involved were described as being part of an aggressive deputies’ clique at Men's Central Jail known to throw gang-like hand signs.more..

July 06, 2011

Casey Anthony acquitted of murder in the death of her 2-year-old daughter

ORLANDO, Fla.— Casey Anthony was found not guilty Tuesday of killing her 2-year-old daughter in a case that captivated the U.S. as it played out on national television from the moment the toddler was reported missing three years ago.

Anthony, 25, wept after the clerk read the verdict, which jurors reached after less than 11 hours of deliberation over two days. She was charged with first-degree murder, which could have brought the death penalty if she had been convicted.more..

July 05, 2011

California 'three-strike' sentences used less often 15 years later

Fifteen years after passage of the state's landmark "three strikes" sentencing law, prosecutors in Sacramento and throughout California have become far more selective in applying the full force of the statute, reducing the number of lifetime prison terms being sought for third strikers to a relative trickle.

While it used to obtain the maximum sentences anywhere from 50 to nearly 100 times a year, the Sacramento District Attorney's Office now asks for life terms for third strikers fewer than 20 times a year, according to the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. The office obtained 16 such sentences in 2010 compared with a high of 94 in 1996.more..

July 01, 2011

Hubbard to stand trial in August on 2 felony counts

Date could change, pending length of a related trial.

LOS ANGELES — Newport-Mesa Unified School District Supt. Jeffrey Hubbard was ordered Wednesday to stand trial in mid-August on criminal charges stemming from his former job as Beverly Hills schools chief.

At a pre-trial hearing, L.A. Superior Court Judge Stephen A. Marcus tentatively set Hubbard's trial date for Aug. 15. more..

June 30, 2011

James ‘Whitey’ Bulger, Arrested With $800,000, Seeks Taxpayer-Paid Lawyer

James “Whitey” Bulger, the accused Boston mobster arrested in California with $800,000, was given three days to show why a lawyer should be appointed to represent him at taxpayer expense.

Bulger, 81, and his girlfriend, Catherine Greig, 60, made initial appearances in federal court in Boston yesterday after a trip from California. Bulger, who was a fugitive for 16 years, didn’t oppose his continued detention while awaiting arraignment. Wearing jeans and a white hooded sweatshirt, he was led out of the courtroom in handcuffs by U.S. Marshals. more..

June 29, 2011

US Supremes to hear warrantless GPS tracking case

Surveillance in the digital age

The US Supreme Court has agreed to decide if the US Constitution requires police to obtain a search warrant before secretly monitoring location-tracking devices planted on the vehicles of suspects

Monday's agreement to decide whether the Fourth Amendment bars warrantless GPS tracking of criminal suspects came at the urging of the Obama Administration.more..

June 28, 2011

Get Smart on Reporting Prison Costs: A View From Inside

A recent story by Bill Boyarsky, the political correspondent for Truthdig and former city editor, columnist and Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter for The Los Angeles Times was headlined: “Are reporters missing the real story about our criminal justice system?”

Two paragraphs later he wrote, “I’m wondering if I’ve already lost some of my readers. Who cares about criminals? Some of the journalists I met last week said they get the same reaction from their editors”more..

June 24, 2011

Whitey Bulger arrest: 'He’s a very evil man,' victim’s family says

While Angelenos may only know notorious mob boss James "Whitey" Bulger through the Jack Nicholson character he inspired in "The Departed," in Boston, everybody knows his name.

Bulger, now 81, has been on the run since 1994, when he fled Boston as federal agents were preparing to arrest him in connection with at least 19 killings, racketeering offenses and other crimes from the early 1970s to mid-1980s.more..

June 23, 2011

MLB notes: Roger Clemens seeks to limit teammates' testimony

WASHINGTON — Roger Clemens and the prosecutors who have accused him of lying about using performance-enhancing drugs submitted a flurry of motions Tuesday ahead of next month's criminal trial, with the baseball star trying to limit his former teammates' testimony about drug use and the government trying to block revelations about his chief accuser's investigation for sexual assault.

The filings revolved around the prosecution's leading witness — former Clemens trainer Brian McNamee, who says he injected the seven-time Cy Young Award winner with steroids and human growth hormone. Clemens has steadfastly disavowed using drugs and is scheduled to go on trial July 6 on charges that he lied when he made those denials during congressional testimony.more..

June 22, 2011

Dodger Stadium beating suspect ordered back to prison on parole violation
The suspect in the Dodger Stadium beating was ordered back to prison Monday to serve 10 months on a parole violation.

After an hours-long hearing, Deputy Commissioner Ali Zarrinnam ruled that Giovanni Ramirez, 31, violated the terms of his parole by being a felon with access to a weapon. Police found the gun during a search warrant served as part of the investigation into the beating of Giants fan Bryan Stow.more..

June 21, 2011

Death penalty costs California $184 million a year, study says

A senior judge and law professor examine rising costs of the program. Without major reforms, they conclude, capital punishment will continue to exist mostly in theory while exacting an untenable cost.

Taxpayers have spent more than $4 billion on capital punishment in California since it was reinstated in 1978, or about $308 million for each of the 13 executions carried out since then, according to a comprehensive analysis of the death penalty's costs.more..

June 20, 2011

Former DWP plumbing supervisor pleads guilty in fraud case

LOS ANGELES - A former Department of Water and Power plumbing supervisor pleaded guilty today to four felony counts that stemmed from allegations that he and two others were involved in a plot to divert public funds.

Los Angeles Superior Court Judge David M. Horwitz immediately sentenced Anthony Mark Carone, 49, to three years in prison.more..

June 17, 2011

Suspect charged in slaying of MTV music coordinator

One of three co-defendants tied to a series of robberies that included the shotgun slayings of an MTV music coordinator and another man have been charged with capital murder, prosecutors said Wednesday.

Jabaar Vincent Thomas, 26, had been charged in connection with four robberies, but Wednesday prosecutors said the criminal complaint was amended to include the murders of Gabriel Ben-Meir and Marcelo Aragon.more..

June 16, 2011

Group seeks initiative to reform California's Three Strikes Law

A coalition led by a group of Stanford University lawyers intends to put an initiative on the November 2012 ballot to reform California's Three Strikes Law, the harshest such sentencing law in the nation.

The group has secured at least one major financial backer, David W. Mills, a former investment banker and Stanford Law School professor. It also hired San Francisco political consultant Averell "Ace" Smith to lead what is expected to be a fiery campaign. more..

June 15, 2011

Former Army officer pleads guilty to bribery

A retired U.S. Army major from Moreno Valley pleaded guilty Monday to taking part in a bribery scheme involving bottled water deliveries for troops stationed in Iraq and Afghanistan, federal prosecutors said.

Derrick L. Shoemake, 49, went before a federal judge in Los Angeles to plead guilty to a pair of bribery charge. He admitted accepting $250,000 to help fix contracts to supply bottled water, said Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Criminal Division of the Department of Justice.more..

June 14, 2011

Bloodstained jersey is not linked to Dodger Stadium beating case, sources say

aw enforcement sources on Saturday denied a television news report that said Los Angeles police had obtained a bloodstained Dodgers jersey that matched DNA from the Giants fan who was attacked outside Dodger Stadium.

KNBC-TV reported that the jersey had been dropped off at a cleaning establishment, which then notified law enforcement.more..

June 13, 2011

Before charges are even filed in the Dodger Stadium beating case, the defense goes public

The prosecution case is rooted in eyewitness identifications, so as police search for evidence, Giovanni Ramirez's defense attorney takes an aggressive stance. Unusual circumstances give both sides plenty of time.

In the three weeks since the arrest of a man accused of beating a baseball fan outside Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles police have scoured thousands of stadium surveillance photographs, run DNA tests and reviewed mobile phone records and financial transactions in search of hard evidence to bolster a case that authorities concede is largely based on eyewitness identifications.more..

June 11, 2011

NEWS ALERT: Judge orders Mehserle’s release from jail

BART Shooting top story, breaking news, bulletin, Fruitvale BART, Johannes Mehserle, manslaughter, Oscar Grant, release, Robert Perry

A Los Angeles County Superior Court judge has ordered that former BART Police Officer Johannes Mehserle, convicted of involuntary manslaughter in the shooting of Oscar Grant New Year’s Day 2009, be released Monday, after serving just over 11 months of his two-year sentence.more..

June 10, 2011

Extras are the center of attention in crackdown on casting company fees

Background actors have long complained about the upfront fees that casting companies charge them to find jobs. State and L.A. officials have taken their cue and ordered an end to the practice.

They are the anonymous hotel clerks, courtroom jurors and store patrons who populate countless movies, TV shows and commercials.more..

June 09, 2011

Mexico authorities return former mayor to Tijuana to face arms charges

Jorge Hank Rhon, a controversial casino magnate seen by many critics as an emblem of impunity in Mexico, and 10 other suspects were moved from the capital to a prison in the border city of Tecate.

Reporting from Mexico City— Former Tijuana Mayor Jorge Hank Rhon returned to Baja California on Wednesday as a federal prisoner facing weapons charges.more..

June 07, 2011

Lenny Dykstra faces felony fraud, drug charges

The former Mets star is accused in a fraudulent scheme to obtain luxury cars using credit from a company that doesn't exist; possession of cocaine, human growth hormone and ecstasy; and identity theft.

New Yorker magazine once touted former New York Mets star Lenny Dykstra as "baseball's most improbable post-career success story." He transformed himself into a financial guru and ace stock picker, drove a Maybach and bought Wayne Gretzky's palatial estate near the Sherwood Country Club.more..

June 06, 2011

Georgia immigration law taken to court

The ACLU and other civil rights groups file suit against legislation that allows law enforcement to check the immigration status of criminal suspects.

Several civil rights groups filed a lawsuit Thursday seeking to halt Georgia's stringent new immigration law that would allow law enforcement to check the legal status of criminal suspects and force many businesses to do the same with potential employees.more..

June 02, 2011

Oakland braces for Ex-BART cop Johannes Mehserle’s release

After serving eleven months of his 2-year sentence for the fatal shooting of Oscar Grant on New Year’s Day, 2009, former BART police officer Johannes Mehserle is expected to walk out of Los Angeles County Jail a free man within the next few weeks.

The website of the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department lists Monday, June 13th as the next court date for Mehserle, who is currently incarcerated in the Men’s Central Jail in Downtown Los Angeles. The hearing will begin at 8:30 AM. more..

June 01, 2011

Man fired while wrongfully jailed part of suit against county Locked up 9 days — and innocent

A case of mistaken identity landed a Port Hueneme man in the Ventura County jail for nine days last year, despite his repeated protests to a number of officers and a judge that they had the wrong man.

Charles Velasquez, 28, was a victim of identity theft by a man who already had been convicted in Ventura County in 2009 for falsely impersonating him and sentenced to prison.more..

May 31, 2011

Creator of 'Phonehenge West' to testify in code enforcement case

Acton man faces possible time behind bars if convicted in the trial over his home, built partly of utility poles.

Lawyers for an Acton property owner accused of building code violations will seek to defend his elaborate home expansion project as a work of art in a trial in Lancaster slated to wrap up this week.more..

May 30, 2011

Crime and punishment: When young offenders end up in adult court

A 14-year-old Rosemead girl accused with her older boyfriend of slaying her grandparents. A 16-year-old Pico Rivera boy charged with fatally shooting a woman who tried to stop his friend from tagging. A 14-year-old boy who allegedly shot a store employee in the head during a robbery in Pico Rivera.

The three teenagers have one thing in common: All are being tried as adults in Los Angeles County.more..

May 27, 2011

John Edwards 'did not break the law,' attorney says

The government is nearing a decision on whether to indict the former senator on criminal campaign finance violations in connection with his affair with Rielle Hunter.

As the government neared a decision on whether to indict former Sen. John Edwards on criminal campaign finance violations in connection with a sex scandal, his attorney furiously denied Wednesday that he had broken the law, or even that any law applied to the situation.more..

May 26, 2011

Prosecutors file additional charge in case of slain NBCUniversal executive

Prosecutors filed a second felony charge Tuesday against a Chatsworth man accused of fatally shooting an NBCUniversal executive.

David Andrew Armstrong already had been charged with murder in the St. Patrick's Day shooting that left Brian Russell Kaplon dead from a gunshot wound to the chest.more..

May 25, 2011

Judge disqualifies drug kingpin's lead attorney

Prosecutors allege that lawyer Jan Ronis, who represents Benjamin Arellano Felix, once worked on behalf of a Mexican drug cartel. The judge says the allegations could create the appearance of a conflict of interest.

Reporting from San Diego— A federal judge on Monday disqualified the lead attorney for Mexican drug kingpin Benjamin Arellano Felix, ruling that his participation in the high-profile case was marred by potential conflicts of interests that could force him to take the witness stand.more..

May 24, 2011

Chinese artist Ai Weiwei faces tax evasion charges

The official New China News Agency reports that Ai Weiwei's company 'intentionally destroyed accounting records' and committed other criminal acts. The internationally known artist was arrested last month at Beijing airport.

Reporting from Beijing— Ai Weiwei, the dissident artist whose arrest has prompted an international outcry, is being charged with evading "huge amounts" of taxes, Chinese state media reported late Friday.more..

May 23, 2011

Pico Rivera home to latest teen court in county

PICO RIVERA - Kids who commit a minor offense for the first time will have the option of being judged by a jury of their own peers here.

Starting May 31, the county's latest teen court will be based in Pico Rivera. The council chambers at City Hall, 6615 Passons Blvd., will serve as the de facto courtroom. more..

May 21, 2011

Prosecutors seek to oust Tijuana drug kingpin's lead attorney

Jan Ronis, lawyer for Benjamin Arellano Felix, committed an ethical breach in an earlier case, they say, and also has a conflict of interest.

Reporting from San Diego -- Federal prosecutors have asked a judge to disqualify the lead defense attorney for Mexican drug kingpin Benjamin Arellano Felix, saying the lawyer once worked on behalf of the Arellano Felix drug cartel to dissuade a witness from cooperating with U.S. law enforcement.more..

May 20, 2011

Lindsay Lohan expected to serve jail term at home

Actress Lindsay Lohan was sentenced to four months in jail after changing her plea and effectively admitting stealing a $2,500 gold necklace from a Los Angeles store.

But Lohan, who was not in court last Wednesday during the sentencing, will likely serve just 16-17 days of her sentence -- most likely under house arrest, officials said.more..

May 19, 2011

Former LAPD officer suspected of bilking at least $2 million from fellow cops, other investors

This post has been corrected. See the note at the bottom for details.

A former Los Angeles police officer charged with defrauding a handful of San Bernardino County people in an investment scam had been running real estate investment schemes for years and is suspected of bilking at least $2 million from fellow LAPD officers and other investors, authorities said.

Darcey Greenfield, 39, surrendered Wednesday to investigators from the San Bernardino County district attorney's real estate fraud unit, according to Mike Leibrich, the unit's senior investigator. She faces several felony charges, including the sale of false investment securities, the sale of securities without a license, and grand theft.more..

May 17, 2011

LAUSD officer pleads not guilty to faking his own shooting

Jeffrey Stenroos faces five felony charges in the January incident that triggered a massive manhunt and lockdown in Woodland Hills. The city and schools want him to pay restitution.

A Los Angeles Unified school police officer charged with faking his own shooting, triggering a massive manhunt and schools lockdown, pleaded not guilty Friday after a six-count grand jury indictment was unsealed.more..

May 16, 2011

Woman charged in killing of MTV music coordinator

A woman was charged Friday in the shotgun slayings of an MTV music coordinator and another man, while two men were charged in a string of related robberies.

Destiny Young, 29 of Los Angeles was arrested Wednesday in connection with a string of robberies in which the attackers were armed with a shotgun, the same type of weapon used in the killing of Gabriel Aron Ben-Meir, 30. She was charged in Ben-Meir's slaying.more..

May 13, 2011

Probation means Lindsay Lohan must behave to stay out of jail, legal experts say

Even though actress Lindsay Lohan may not end up serving jail time for her latest run-in with authorities, she's going to have to remain on her best behavior.

Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Stephanie Sautner placed Lohan on three years' probation. Any violations could land her in jail.more..

May 11, 2011

Man gets 25 years in missile-smuggling case

Yi Qing Chen, 49, of Rosemead was convicted in October of trafficking in counterfeit cigarettes, distributing drugs and conspiring to import missiles. He was sentenced to 25 years in federal prison under a 2004 anti-terrorism statute.

Yi Qing Chen was convicted last October of trafficking in counterfeit cigarettes, distributing drugs and conspiring to import missiles. He was sentenced Monday to 25 years in federal prison.more..

May 10, 2011

State to double crime searches using family DNA

California's success in using 'familial searching' spurs Atty. Gen. Kamala Harris to increase funding for the controversial genetic sleuthing technique in rape, murder and cold cases.

A young man followed a woman into a coffee shop as she prepared to open for business at 6 a.m. He put a knife to her throat, sexually assaulted her, barricaded her in a walk-in refrigerator and grabbed cash from the register before vanishing.more..

May 06, 2011

9th Circuit rules, for third time, that Thai teen's confession in slayings was invalid

The Supreme Court had asked the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals to review its previous decisions in the case of a Thai teenager who confessed to killing nine worshipers at a Buddhist temple near Phoenix in 1991.

For the third time, a federal appeals court ruled Wednesday that a Thai teenager's confession to the 1991 slayings of nine worshipers at a Buddhist temple near Phoenix was coerced and invalid.more..

May 05, 2011

Baca has raked in $120,000 in gifts since becoming sheriff

The gifts to L.A. county's sheriff have included some from donors that sought business with his agency and others who got special treatment. In a three-year span, he accepted more presents than all the state's other sheriffs combined.

Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca has accepted gifts from executives seeking his agency's business, individuals who later received special treatment from him, and even a pair of felons implicated in a massive money-laundering and fraud scheme, according to a Times review of disclosure records.more..

May 04, 2011

Mexico extradites drug kingpin to the U.S.

Benjamin Arellano Felix, the former leader of one of Mexico's most feared organized crime groups, had been incarcerated since his 2002 arrest. He is flown to San Diego to face racketeering and drug conspiracy charges.

Reporting from San Diego and Mexico City -- The Mexican government Friday extradited to the United States drug kingpin Benjamin Arellano Felix, the former leader of one of Mexico's most feared and powerful organized crime groups, whose ruthless reign transformed northern Baja California into a major drug trafficking corridor into the U.S.more..

May 03, 2011

Former Temple City mayor takes the stand in her bribery and perjury trial

LOS ANGELES - Taking the stand in her own defense former Temple City mayor Cathe Wilson said Friday money she took from a developer and his agent didn't constitute bribery, but was rather an expression of friendship.

Never turning to look at the seven-woman, five-man jury, Wilson painted herself as a motherly protector of developer agent Jay Liyanage, and in turn he provided her with cash, a car rental and funds for her political friends. more..

May 02, 2011

2 accused of illegal contributions to Antonio Villaraigosa, Jack Weiss campaigns

Koreatown developer Alexander Hugh and escrow company executive Annette Lee are charged with giving $26,000 to the mayor and the former councilman, who was running for city attorney.

A campaign fundraiser for Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa has been charged with illegally funneling $26,000 in contributions to the mayor and former City Councilman Jack Weiss, according to a five-count grand jury indictment unsealed Friday.more..

April 29, 2011

Former project manager details who he paid bribes for ex-Mayor Cathe Wilson

LOS ANGELES - A key witness broke down three times as he recounted in court Wednesday how he rented a car for former Temple City mayor Cathe Wilson and delivered campaign funds to other officials out of fear that a development he was spearheading would not get built.

The $75-million Piazza mall project was in fact never built, said project manager Jay Liyanage, even though he paid city officials $30,000 cash on behalf of his boss, Randy Wang, the developer. more..

April 28, 2011

Low-income housing developer at center of fraud probe is set to lose its court-appointed overseer

Couple call off divorce, forcing judge to end the receivership that uncovered alleged fraud, misuse of public funds and other problems in their company, ADI.

The couple whose low-income housing business is now at the center of a federal fraud investigation convinced a judge Tuesday that they no longer want a divorce, setting the stage for the removal of the independent receiver appointed to oversee the company.more..

April 27, 2011

Jury selection goes underway in former Temple City Mayor corruption case

LOS ANGELES - Jury selection began Monday in the corruption trial of former Temple City Mayor Cathe Wilson.

A pool of 50 potential jurors were screened by the defense and prosecution to determine if they could fairly deliver a verdict in the case.

Opening arguments are set to begin today at the Clara Shortridge Foltz Criminal Justice Center in downtown Los Angeles. more..

April 26, 2011

Jurors Recommend Death for Whittier Man Convicted in 2004 Triple Murder, One Other Killing

NORWALK – Following less than two days of deliberations, a Norwalk jury today recommended that a Whittier man be put to death for luring would-be used car buyers to his home, then fatally shooting and robbing the men.

Norwalk Superior Court Judge Dewey Falcone said Cimarron Bernard Bell, 37, will be formally sentenced on June 21. more..

April 25, 2011

Lindsay Lohan free after posting $75,000 bail hours after judge delivers 120-day in jail sentence

LOS ANGELES - Lindsay Lohan was sentenced to 120 days in jail Friday for violating her probation by waltzing out of a jewelry store with a necklace.

Within hours, the troubled starlet was set free after posting $75,000 bail, the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department said.more..

April 23, 2011

Los Angeles building inspector agrees to plead guilty to bribery charge

A Los Angeles building inspector who was arrested in a government sting operation for allegedly taking cash to sign off on development projects has agreed to plead guilty to a bribery charge in federal court.

Raoul Joseph Germain, 59, of Altadena, was one of two inspectors arrested this month on suspicion of taking thousands of dollars in bribes from an FBI informant and an undercover FBI agent in exchange for signing off on building inspections that never took place.more..

April 22, 2011

Judges orders geographically largest gang injunction in county history for the La Puente area

A Superior Court judge ordered the most wide-ranging gang injunction in Los Angeles County history Tuesday, ruling that rival La Puente area street gangs pose a public nuisance.

Judge James Chalfant granted the injunction that targets about 1,300 members of the rival street gangs Puente 13 and Bassett Grande. more..

April 20, 2011

Lenny Dykstra Accused of Bankruptcy Fraud

LOS ANGELES (CN) - Former Major League ballplayer Lenny Dykstra is accused of embezzling from a bankruptcy estate: selling and destroying more than $400,000 worth of stuff from his $18 million mansion in Ventura County, the U.S. Attorney's Office said.

Dykstra, 48, of Encino, played for the Mets and Phillies. He later "gained notoriety as a stock picker," the U.S. attorney said in a statement announcing Dykstra's arrest on unrelated charges, which the U.S. attorney did not elaborate.more..

April 19, 2011

Attorney barred from photographing man's injuries in alleged jail beating

Defense attorney says a beating by deputies was so severe that he couldn't recognize his client. Officials say the inmate was dangerous and was being kept in an area where civilians and cameras are banned.

Despite a judge's order, the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department has refused to allow an attorney to take photographs of a client he said was beaten so badly by jail deputies that he was unrecognizable.more..

April 18, 2011

Erin Runnion joins dead teen's family in protest

Friends, relatives and supporters of an Orange County woman who disappeared in 2007 protested Friday in front of the Los Angeles courthouse where they say the man responsible received a "slap on the wrist."

John Steven Burgess told investigators that 19-year-old Donna Jou attended a party at his Los Angeles home in June 2007, and that he gave her cocaine, heroin and alcohol. After agreeing to plead guilty, he admitted in court that he found her lifeless body in a chair the following day, panicked, and dumped her body in the Pacific Ocean.more..

April 15, 2011

City attorney files criminal charges against Hollywood talent manager

The Los Angeles city attorney's office has charged a veteran Hollywood talent manager with multiple counts of violating the state's talent-scam prevention law.

Patrick W. O'Brien, 51, operator of Pat O'Brien Talent Management and Talent Marketing and Promotions Inc., was charged this week with six criminal counts, including grand theft, false advertising, operating an advance-fee talent representation service and failing to file a $50,000 bond with the state Labor Commission.more..

April 14, 2011

Sheriff shifting policy on deputy discipline

Sheriff Lee Baca is taking a tougher stand against deputies accused of breaking the law.

In a recent policy shift, Baca no longer will wait until the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office completes its investigations of deputy misconduct before his department launches its own internal probes of the allegations, his spokesman said. more..

April 13, 2011

Alleged gang member convicted of murder in 49th Street Massacre

After two deadlocked murder trials, a third jury convicted an alleged gang member Monday of murdering three people, including a 10-year-old boy, on a South L.A. street in what became known as the 49th Street Massacre.

Ryan T. Moore, 37, was convicted of murder, attempted murder and conspiracy in the 2006 attack, which shocked the city and was part of a series of high-profile interracial gang crimes that stoked fears of a possible race war.more..

April 12, 2011

L.A. Building Inspector Ensnared in FBI Bribery Sting

Hugo Joel Gonzaleza, a Los Angeles City Department of Building and Safety inspector, was arrested Friday morning on federal bribery charges

Two building inspectors employed by the City of Los Angeles, one of whom resides in Eagle Rock, were arrested on federal bribery charges Friday morning after being snared in an FBI sting operation. more..

April 11, 2011

JGC to Pay $218.8 Million to Resolve Foreign Bribery Charges

JGC Corp. (1963), a Tokyo-based construction and engineering company, agreed to pay a $218.8 million criminal penalty to avoid prosecution on charges it bribed Nigerian officials for contracts on natural gas projects.

The U.S. Justice Department today charged JGC in Houston with one count of conspiracy and one count of aiding and abetting violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act in what it called a decade-long bribery scheme. The department agreed to defer prosecution for two years and dismiss the charges if JGC improves its programs to comply with the law. more..

April 08, 2011

Studio City Talent Manager Faces Criminal Charges

Prosecutors from the Los Angeles City Attorney’s office yesterday announced that charges have been filed against a Studio City-based talent manager for allegedly operating an advance-fee talent scheme that placed several minors at risk of harm.

Nicholas Roses, 21, and his company, Roses Entertainment Group, face seven misdemeanor counts, including three counts of operating an advance fee talent representation service, one count of failing to file the proper $50,000 bond with the State Labor Commission, and one count of failing to use written artist contracts. more..

April 07, 2011

Might a military jury deny 9/11 suspect's death wish?

Under military commission rules, Khalid Shaikh Mohammed cannot plead guilty to a crime that carries the death penalty, even though he wants it. And a military jury might be less likely than a civilian one to grant his wish.

His words leave little doubt about his role. It is his punishment that remains uncertain.more..

April 06, 2011

Judge dismisses murder charges against man who spent more than 20 years in prison

The action brings to an end a two-decade legal saga in which five of the six witnesses who identified Francisco "Franky" Carrillo in court as the gunman in a drive-by shooting recanted their testimony last month.

A Los Angeles County judge dismissed criminal charges Monday against a man who spent more than 20 years behind bars for a murder he insists he did not commit.more..

April 05, 2011

Report details prosecutorial misconduct, pushes for transparency

The Northern California Innocence Project finds 102 California cases, and 31 from Los Angeles County, in which prosecutors engaged in misconduct. The group, based at the Santa Clara University School of Law, is advocating more transparency in how misconduct is addressed.

California courts last year found that Los Angeles County prosecutors withheld evidence, intentionally misled jurors or committed other types of misconduct in 31 criminal cases, according to an Innocence Project report released last week.more..

April 04, 2011

Supreme Court rejects damages for innocent man who spent 14 years on death row

In a 5-4 ruling, justices overturn a jury verdict awarding $14 million to John Thompson, who had sued then-New Orleans Dist. Atty. Harry Connick Sr. because prosecutors hid a blood test that would have proved his innocence in a murder case.

Reporting from Washington— A bitterly divided Supreme Court on Tuesday tossed out a jury verdict won by a New Orleans man who spent 14 years on death row and came within weeks of execution because prosecutors had hidden a blood test and other evidence that would have proven his innocence.more..

March 31, 2011

Lindsay Lohan won't face charges in Betty Ford altercation

Riverside County prosecutors on Tuesday declined to file battery charges against Lindsay Lohan related to an alleged altercation with a technician at a Betty Ford Center housing complex in Palm Desert last year over whether the actress should take an alcohol test.

The decision comes after local police told prosecutors they believed there was enough evidence to charge Lohan.more..

March 30, 2011

Five Plead Guilty to Taking More Than $1 Million Dollars From Los Angeles County

LOS ANGELES – Three former employees of Tristar, a third-party administrator of workers’ compensation claims for Los Angeles County, and their wives pleaded guilty today to multiple counts of grand theft and claims adjuster fraud.

Deputy District Attorney Samer Hathout of the Healthcare Fraud Division said Christian Ramirez, 24, a former claims examiner for Tristar, pleaded guilty to one count each of false and fraudulent claim and claims adjuster fraud. Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge David Horwitz immediately sentenced the defendant to two years in state prison.more..

March 29, 2011

Authorities move to revoke license of doctor linked to overdose deaths

The Osteopathic Medical Board of California has accused Lisa Tseng of Rowland Heights of prescribing unsafe amounts of powerful narcotics to several patients. Since 2007 at least eight of her patients have died from overdoses of the same kind of drugs she prescribed.

Medical authorities have moved to revoke the license of a Rowland Heights physician whose practice was linked in a Times investigation to eight patient overdose deaths.more..

March 25, 2011

Lindsay Lohan Apparently Won't Take Plea Deal

Prosecutors said today Lindsay Lohan's lawyer notified them the actress would not be in court Friday, the deadline set by a judge to accept a plea deal to settle a charge of stealing a necklace from a Venice jewelry store.

Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Keith L. Schwartz told the 24-year-old actress at a March 10 hearing that she would only have to appear in court this week if she wanted to "plead guilty or no contest."more..

March 24, 2011

Former U.S. immigration attorney sentenced for taking more than $400,000 in bribes to help illegal immigrants

A former federal immigration attorney from Rancho Cucamonga was sentenced Monday to 17 years in prison for accepting more than $400,000 in bribes in exchange for helping illegal immigrants remain in the United States.

Constantine Peter Kallas, 40, was convicted last year of three dozen felony counts, including bribery, obstruction of justice, fraud, identity theft and tax evasion..more..

March 22, 2011

Former L.A. fire captain convicted of murdering woman

Jennifer Flores' body was found in the middle of a street. A trail of blood and tissue led to David Del Toro's Eagle Rock home. The jury rejects a first-degree murder verdict in favor of second-degree.

A former Los Angeles Fire Department captain was found guilty of second-degree murder Thursday for the death of a woman whose naked and brutalized body was found in the middle of a street about a mile from his Eagle Rock home.more..

March 21, 2011

Judge deals setback to attorney general's case against Bell officials

L.A. County Judge Ralph W. Dau, in a tentative ruling, said lawmakers cannot be sued for passing ordinances that award them high salaries. The ruling has no effect on the criminal case against current and former city officials.

A Los Angeles County judge on Thursday dealt a potentially lethal blow to a far-reaching civil lawsuit the attorney general filed last year as part of an effort to recover money from eight Bell city officials who drew some of the highest municipal salaries in the state.more..

March 18, 2011

Man goes free after murder conviction is overturned

Friends and supporters greet Francisco Carrillo, who was imprisoned for 20 years after he was convicted of a drive-by slaying, as he leaves L.A. County Jail. 'I'm, personally, not angry,' he said. 'I don't want to carry that heavy load.'

For two decades, Francisco "Franky" Carrillo insisted he was innocent.more..

March 17, 2011

LAPD braces for protests after Police Commission's finding in fatal shooting

A Los Angeles police officer acted within department rules when he fatally shot a Guatemalan day laborer armed with a knife last year in an encounter that triggered days of unrest, the LAPD’s oversight body ruled Tuesday.

Bracing for the possibility that the decision by the Los Angeles Police Commission could ignite another round of violent protests in the Westlake neighborhood where the man was shot, LAPD officials preemptively dispatched a large contingent of officers to the area before the decision was announced. In the hours after the commission’s finding, however, the streets around the shooting site were calm.more..

March 15, 2011

2 LAPD officers plead guilty to auto insurance fraud

Two Los Angeles police officers Friday pleaded guilty to charges of insurance fraud stemming from a case in which one of them had his car torched and the other helped cover up the crime.

As part of a deal he struck with prosecutors, Anthony Robert Villanueva, 24, admitted that last April he arranged to have his 2001 Lexus sedan taken to the desert and set on fire. Villanueva then reported the car stolen and submitted a claim with his insurance company to be reimbursed, prosecutors said.more..

March 14, 2011

Mel Gibson pleads no contest in domestic abuse

Actor is sentenced to community service and three years probation in incident involving ex-girlfriend Oksana Grigorieva.

Mel Gibson walked a gantlet of paparazzi and stood before a courtroom packed with reporters and wired with video cameras streaming online coverage Friday to agree formally to a plea deal in a domestic violence case that has dogged him for nearly a year.more..

March 11, 2011

Bell's all-new, all-novice council faces nasty choices

With the city on the edge of insolvency, immediate budget cuts — including possible closure of the Police Department — will be needed.

Now that arrests, resignations and voter ballots have scythed away Bell's entire City Council, the incoming leaders of the beleaguered little city — all first-time officeholders — will confront a budget in disarray, a citizenry expecting quick reforms and a long list of nasty choices.more..

March 10, 2011

Councilwoman asks D.A.'s Office to intervene in Montebello Bethania Palma

MONTEBELLO - A city councilwoman has asked the District Attorney's Office to intervene in what she called illegal activities relating to two recently discovered off-the-books bank accounts.

In her March 3 letter to Los Angeles County District Attorney Steve Cooley, Councilwoman Christina Cortez said "all criminal actions" relating to two off-the- books bank accounts should be prosecuted. more..

March 09, 2011

Former NFL Defense End, Two Others Charged in Lancaster Murder

LANCASTER – Former Raiders defensive end Anthony Wayne Smith and two purported associates have been charged with murdering a 31-year-old man in Lancaster more than two years ago, the District Attorney’s office announced today with the arrest of all three defendants.

Smith, 43 (dob 6-20-1967), of Fontana; Charles Eric Honest, 41 (dob 12-7-1969), of Los Angeles; and Dewann Wesley White, 32 (dob 6-2-1978), of Bloomington, were charged last month with murdering 31-year-old Maurilio Ponce on Oct. 7, 2008. They were arrested earlier this week.more..

March 08, 2011

O.C. Islamic leaders call for district attorney to drop charges against student protesters

Eleven students from UC Irvine and UC Riverside who disrupted a talk by Israel's ambassador to the U.S., Michael Oren, have been charged with misdemeanors.

Orange County Islamic leaders gathered in Anaheim over the weekend to show support for a group of college students facing criminal charges for interrupting a speech by the Israeli ambassador to the United States.more..

March 07, 2011

Former Bell city attorney denies signing Rizzo's contracts

Lawyer's signature appears on 2008 paperwork raising base salary to $703,248 but he says he didn't approve any contracts after 2002.

Bell's former city attorney testified Friday that while his signature appeared on several of the contracts that gave Robert Rizzo his increasingly lucrative salary, he didn't sign any of them.more..

March 05, 2011

Phil Spector, attorney Robert Shapiro settle dispute

There will be no courtroom showdown between imprisoned music producer Phil Spector and Robert Shapiro, the noted criminal lawyer he first tapped to defend him from murder charges.

Spector settled a lawsuit demanding that Shapiro return a $1-million retainer fee Thursday, just three days before the matter was to go to trial in Los Angeles County Superior Court.more..

March 04, 2011

Extradited to L.A., the Abergils Get Ready To Face the Music

Los Angeles — Hayyim Nahman Bialik, Israel’s first national poet, defined Zionism’s aspiration to make the Jews a normal people via statehood: “We will be a normal state only when we have the first Jewish prostitute, the first Hebrew thief, and the first Hebrew policeman.”

But in the 21st century, it’s not enough to be a local thief; you have to go global. And the upcoming Los Angeles trial of Itzhak and Meir Abergil promises to update Israel’s “normalization” when it comes to crime in a way that befits the times.more..

March 02, 2011

Judge Threatens to Sanction Attorneys In Michael Jackson Case

Saying he was concerned about the sharing of evidence among attorneys, a Los Angeles judge today threatened to penalize lawyers in the criminal case against Dr. Conrad Murray, who is charged with involuntary manslaughter in connection with singer Michael Jackson's death.

During a pretrial hearing, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Michael Pastor told defense attorneys and prosecutors he was disappointed in persistent complaints from both sides about lawyers failing to share evidence.more..

March 01, 2011

Armenian Power Organized Crime Group Targeted in Federal Indictments

LOS ANGELES (Combined Sources) — As a result of two federal indictments and state cases that charge a total of 99 defendants with a wide range of crimes — including kidnapping, extortion, bank fraud and narcotics trafficking — law enforcement authorities on February 16 arrested 74 members and associates of the Armenian Power organized crime group.

The majority of the defendants arrested are named in two federal indictments that charge a total of 88 defendants linked to Armenian Power, which is commonly called AP. AP is an international organized crime group that started as a street gang in East Hollywood in the 1980s. While members often identify themselves with tattoos, graffiti and gang clothing, the organization is less concerned with controlling “turf” than traditional street gangs and has long maintained a presence in several communities in the Hollywood area and the San Fernando Valley. more..

February 28, 2011

Judge says he can't force lawyers to produce imprisoned Spector to testify in civil lawsuit

LOS ANGELES - A judge refused Friday to direct Phil Spector's lawyer to make sure the music producer and convicted murderer is brought from prison to court for the trial of his civil lawsuit seeking to force attorney Robert Shapiro to refund a $1 million retainer fee.

Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Malcolm Mackey said there were too many security problems associated with getting Spector from Corcoran State Prison in Kings County between Bakersfield and Fresno. more..

February 25, 2011

Ethics panel clears Councilman Richard Alarcón in alleged bid to aid wife

LOS ANGELES - Councilman Richard Alarcón was cleared in an Ethics Commission investigation that delved into whether he misused his position to benefit his then-fiancée, it was revealed Wednesday.

Alarcón had filed a motion in 2007 calling for a one-block stretch of Wakefield Avenue in Panorama City to be downgraded from a busy highway to a "collector" street. more..

February 24, 2011

Judge tells Lohan day of reckoning coming soon

LOS ANGELES (AP) — A judge on Wednesday gave Lindsay Lohan roughly two weeks to decide if she will fight or take a plea deal in a felony grand theft case, but either decision could send the troubled starlet back behind bars.

Superior Court Judge Keith Schwartz told Lohan he would sentence her to jail if she accepted a plea deal involving the theft of a $2,500 necklace from an upscale jewelry store.more..

February 22, 2011

California Sex Crimes Defense Lawyer Fay Arfa achieves a Conviction Overturned in Child Molestation Case

A jury convicted defendant Kamal Ahmad Khan of two counts of lewd acts on a child under the age of 14 (Pen. Code, § 288, subd. (a)), but failed to reach a verdict on a third count of the same offense (which the court subsequently dismissed on the People‟s motion).1 The jury found true the special allegation defendant committed these offenses against more than one victim. (§ 1203.066, subd. (a)(7).) The court sentenced defendant to eight years in prison. more..

February 21, 2011

Fighting the 'Power'

They are a people who have long endured repression and reigns of terror across Eastern Europe and the Middle East. Even here, in the Promised Land where so many Armenians are thriving, they still are victimized.

Sometimes it's the pain of prejudice that every wave of immigrants has felt when their numbers threaten the way things were.more..

February 19, 2011

Los Angeles judge finds confession was coerced, frees murder defendant

The jurist says 'it wasn't even a close call' whether LAPD detectives coerced the man, 19 at the time, into changing his story, his lawyer reports. The teen had denied involvement dozens of times.

man on trial for murder was set free this week after a judge found that Los Angeles police had coerced him into confessing.more..

February 18, 2011

Judge urged to throw out plea bargain in sex assaults of disabled women

Advocates for the disabled say a proposed 8-year sentence for Juan Fernando Flores, who confessed to sexually assaulting three mentally disabled women, is an injustice.

Advocates for the disabled are urging a Los Angeles County judge to throw out a plea bargain for an employee of an El Monte day care center who confessed to sexually assaulting three mentally disabled clients, saying his eight-year-sentence was an injustice.more..

February 17, 2011

Judge questions Conrad Murray's hiring of lawyer who once worked for Michael Jackson defense team [Updated]

The judge handling the trial of Michael Jackson’s physician expressed concern Tuesday that the doctor recently hired a lawyer who once worked for a firm that defended the pop star from child molestation charges.

[Updated at 3:19 p.m.: Dr. Conrad Murray added attorney Nareg Gourjian to his defense team for the involuntary manslaughter trial set to begin next month. Gourjian formerly worked for Mark Geragos, who was Jackson’s attorney about seven years ago in the runup to a molestation trial in Santa Maria.]more..

February 16, 2011

Beverly Hills attorney pleads no contest to smuggling black tar heroin into courthouse

A Beverly Hills attorney who tried to smuggle heroin into a secure area of the downtown L.A. criminal courts building pleaded no contest Monday to a single count of taking drugs into jail.

Michael H. Inman was originally charged with four criminal counts of drug possession and sales in connection with his June 2010 arrest.more..

February 15, 2011

Bell mayor says death threats keep him from council meetings

Oscar Hernandez complains that police dislike him because he favors eliminating their department, and won't give him protection. Captain defends his officers.

Bell's mayor, whose absence from council meetings has made it difficult for the city to deal with its fiscal crisis, said he has withdrawn from civic duties because of death threats that make him fear for his life. more..

February 14, 2011

Seal Beach Woman Arrested for Impersonating FBI Agents by Altering Voice and Using Telephonic ‘Spoofing’ Technology

A Seal Beach woman was arrested today for allegedly used "spoofing" technology to impersonate FBI agents in phone calls to business clients who believed she was running a fraud scheme, announced Steven Martinez, Assistant Director of the FBI in Los Angeles, and United States Attorney André Birotte Jr.

Karen Elaine Hanover, 44, was arrested this morning without incident at Fashion Island in Newport Beach by special agents with the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Hanover was charged with impersonating a federal agent in a criminal complaint filed Tuesday in United District Court in Santa Ana.more..

February 13, 2011

Legal Action Being Taken Against Lindsay Lohan's Lawyer

An attorney representing a former client of lawyer Shawn Chapman Holley said today he will file an amended malpractice suit next week against the woman currently known for representing Lindsay Lohan.

Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Luis Lavin ruled Feb. 3 that there were insufficient details in portions of Heather Hillier's complaint against Holley and the law firm where she works, Kinsella, Weitzman, Iser, Kump & Aldisert.more..

February 11, 2011

DA offers limited immunity to Bell city clerk in public corruption case

Prosecutors on Wednesday offered Bell's city clerk "use immunity" as she prepared to testify in ongoing corruption hearings.

The offer to City Clerk Rebecca Valdez would mean her testimony cannot be used against her by the Los Angeles County district attorney. The deal would not necessarily shield her if another agency filed charges. more..

February 10, 2011

Lindsay Lohan to be charged in necklace theft

Actress Lindsay Lohan, who is on probation and faces a criminal investigation related to her stay at the Betty Ford Center, is to be charged in the case of a missing necklace.

Los Angeles County prosecutors said Tuesday they plan to file charges against actress Lindsay Lohan for allegedly stealing a $2,500 necklace from a Venice jewelry store. more..

February 09, 2011

Two Bell, California, Officials Decline Plea Deals, County Prosecutor Says

Two of the eight former and current Bell, California, officials facing accusations of misappropriating public funds rejected plea deals they were offered after contacting the Los Angeles County District Attorney, a prosecutor said.

Deputy District Attorney Jennifer Snyder, in a phone interview yesterday, declined to identify the two defendants and to disclose the terms of the plea bargains they were offered. She said it wasn’t uncommon for defendants to approach prosecutors to inquire about a possible deal. more..

February 08, 2011

Ralphs faces fines for overcharging customers

The Ralphs grocery chain pleads no contest to 62 criminal counts of overcharging on prepackaged and weighed products. It was fined for similar violations in 2008 and 2009.

Sentencing for supermarket giant Ralphs Grocery Co. was set for next Wednesday on 62 criminal counts of overcharging customers, false advertising and false labeling at more than a dozen stores in Los Angeles County. more..

February 07, 2011

Lindsay Lohan didn't steal necklace, will fight any criminal charges, her attorney says

Lindsay Lohan's attorney released a statement Saturday denying that the actress stole a necklace from a Venice jewelry store.

Los Angeles detectives presented the results of their investigation into the alleged theft to L.A. prosecutors Wednesday.more..

February 04, 2011

Former USC quarterback Mitch Mustain arrested on suspicion of selling drugs

Mustain, who was booked on felony charges, allegedly tried to sell the drugs to an undercover police officer.

Former USC quarterback Mitch Mustain was arrested on suspicion of selling prescription narcotics, police said Wednesday.more..

February 03, 2011

Convicted Serial Killer Charged in New Murder Case

LOS ANGELES – Convicted serial killer Chester Dewayne Turner, who was sentenced to death in 2007 for the murders of 10 women and an unborn child over a 10-year period, was charged today with four additional murders in the 1980’s and ‘90’s.

Turner, who is on death row, will be returned from state prison to face the new capital murder case, said Deputy District Attorney Bobby Grace, who prosecuted Turner four years ago. His arraignment date will be announced later. more..

January 31, 2011

Claremont man arrested for mailing threatening letters containing poison

CLAREMONT - A 48-year-old man was arrested Friday by federal authorities for allegedly mailing letters containing poisonous substances to a courthouse and to several offices of the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services.

Martin Calvin Yarbrough Jr. was arrested at his home in Claremont. He was indicted Tuesday by a federal grand jury on 13 counts of making threats and hoaxes. more..

January 30, 2011

Houston Meets Hollywood: Ed Chernoff Prepares for His High-Stakes Defense of Dr. Conrad Murray

After the conclusion of the preliminary hearing, Pastor ruled on Jan. 11 that there is sufficient evidence for the prosecution's case against Murray to proceed to trial. Murray pleaded not guilty at his Jan. 25 arraignment.

The representation of Murray, which has drawn international attention due to Jackson's star power, has not been easy for Chernoff or for his firm. "We've handled lots of high-profile cases. It's one thing when you have three cameras out there as you leave the courthouse. It is another when it's 300," Chernoff says. more..

January 27, 2011

Former O.C. sheriff Michael Carona begins prison term

Carona reports to a federal prison in Colorado to begin serving a 5 1/2-year sentence for witness tampering. Carona's new address was named by Forbes magazine as one of the '12 best places to go to prison.'

The lawman once lauded as "America's sheriff" for bringing criminals to justice is now behind bars. more..

January 26, 2011

Newport-Mesa schools chief suspended, will face criminal trial

Citing sexy e-mail exchanges and backroom deals, a judge Monday ordered Newport-Mesa schools chief Jeffrey Hubbard and a co-defendant to face trial on charges they abused public money while working in Beverly Hills.

Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Kathryn Solorzano concluded there was enough evidence to warrant a criminal trial for Hubbard, 53, and his former facilities director Karen Anne Christiansen, 52. Ending a four-day preliminary hearing, Solorzano said racy emails exchanged by the defendants contributed to her decision.

"This is not a prosecution that is paper thin," Solorzano said. She noted that emails and other evidence showed "for a period of time they were more than just colleagues at arms length. It shows a level of intimacy and lack of professionalism between them."more..

January 25, 2011

Judge rejects Bell mayor's request for legal fees

Superior Court judge says Oscar Hernandez is premature in asking the city of Bell to cover his legal fees to fight allegations of misappropriation of public funds and corruption

Bell does not have to pick up Mayor Oscar Hernandez's legal expenses in defending himself against accusations that he misappropriated hundreds of thousands of dollars from the city treasury, a Superior Court judge ruled Monday.more..

January 24, 2011

Student held in gun incident at Willowbrook school

A 17-year-old high school student was arrested after he was intercepted trying to bring a loaded handgun onto the campus of a South Los Angeles-area continuation school, Los Angeles County sheriff's officials said Friday.

The incident, which occurred Thursday morning at Cesar Chavez Continuation High School in unincorporated Willowbrook, came two days after two students were wounded -- one of them critically -- when a Gardena High School student reached into his backpack and accidentally fired a gun that was stashed inside, authorities said.more..

January 21, 2011

Sheriff Lee Baca met with Dist. Atty. Steve Cooley to discuss donor's case

Baca and Cooley met last April to discuss how a Beverly Hills businessman's forgery case against a tenant could be reopened. Late last year, the forgery case was re-filed.

Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca personally met with Dist. Atty. Steve Cooley to discuss how to appeal a prosecutor's decision to reject forgery charges sought by a well-connected businessman who had given Baca expensive gifts and donations.more..

January 20, 2011

Mariners outfielder Milton Bradley arrested in Los Angeles

LOS ANGELES, CA. -- Mariners outfielder Milton Bradley was arrested Tuesday by the Los Angeles Police Department's West Valley branch.

Bradley was booked on a felony charge of uttering criminal threats.more..

January 19, 2011

Former Police Officer Pleads Guilty

LOS ANGELES – A former police officer of the Palos Verdes Estates Police Department accused of misappropriating police association funds pleaded guilty today, the District Attorney’s Office announced.

Deputy District Attorney Alfred Coletta said Alex Ghazarian, 33, pleaded guilty to one misdemeanor count of refusal to make book entry or posting of notice required by law.more..

January 17, 2011

Israeli mobsters appear in L.A. court

The Abergil brothers are among the top drug and narcotics importers into the U.S.

Five alleged Israeli mob members pleaded not guilty to a wide range of charges in U.S. federal court in Los Angeles on Thursday and are being held in prison without bond.

The group landed in Los Angeles late Wednesday in a plane in which they were the only passengers, save for a squad of U.S. marshals.more..

January 16, 2011

Former Pico Rivera mayor takes stand in his corruption trial, denies conflict-of-interest charges

LOS ANGELES - A former Pico Rivera mayor took the witness stand in his corruption trial Friday and said he didn't know it was a conflict of interest when he voted to approve a street improvement project near his restaurant.

Ron Beilke, 50, testified at the Clara Shortridge Foltz Criminal Justice Center in Los Angeles. He said the repaving and other improvements done on Rosemead Boulevard, which is a major thoroughfare in Pico Rivera, benefitted not only residents but people from other communities as well. more..

January 14, 2011

CHP says they moved quickly to remove officer suspected of killing from contact with public

California Highway Patrol officials said Tuesday that they immediately removed a veteran officer from contact with the public when they learned last year that she was the subject of a criminal investigation into the death of her husband.

Tomiekia Johnson, 31, of Compton was arrested and charged Tuesday in connection with the February 2009 slaying of Marcus Lemons, according to the Los Angeles County district attorney's office.more..

January 13, 2011

Michael Jackson's doctor to stand trial in manslaughter

L.A. County judge revokes Conrad Murray's medical license and orders him to stand trial. One medical expert testifies that it's possible the pop star administered the fatal dose of propofol himself.

A judge stripped Dr. Conrad Murray of his state medical license Tuesday after ruling that prosecutors have sufficient evidence to try him for manslaughter in the death of Michael Jackson.more..

January 12, 2011

Hawaiian Gardens gang leader gets 30 years

George Manuel Flores, head of the Varrio Hawaiian Gardens street gang, had pleaded guilty to racketeering conspiracy in a case involving drug sales

A reputed drug kingpin and key defendant in a federal gang sweep was sentenced Monday to 30 years in federal prison for overseeing the racketeering and drug activities of the Varrio Hawaiian Gardens street gang.

George Manuel Flores, also known as "Boxer," 43, was arrested in 2009 as part of Operation Knockout, one of the nation's largest gang sweeps and the culmination of an investigation that began after the fatal shooting of Los Angeles Sheriff's Deputy Jerry Ortiz in 2005.more..

January 11, 2011

Courtney Love in high profile lawsuit over Twitter insults

Firebrand rocker Courtney Love is reportedly being taken to court by a fashion designer in the first high profile lawsuit over Twitter insults.

The 46-year-old Hole singer was in a dispute with Dawn Simonrangkir, who was demanding payments for a few thousand dollars' worth of clothes, when she let rip on various internet platforms. more..

January 10, 2011

Celebrity Justice? Dismissal in Anna Nicole Smith Case Insults America's Jury System

The criminal trial of Howard K. Stern in the events connected to the death of former Playboy model Anna Nicole Smith took a surprising twist Thursday. Stern, Smith’s former lover and lawyer, walked out of a Los Angeles courtroom essentially scott free. Smith’s psychiatrist, Dr. Khristine Eroshevich, received $100 in fines, a reduction from a felony to a misdemeanor charge, and one year of unsupervised probation. Stern walked out of court and immediately spoke with media – blaming the prosecution for being dishonest.

After a two month long trial and 13 days of deliberation, the jury found Stern guilty on two felony counts. Both counts involved conspiracy charges of acting fraudulently to obtain prescriptions and using false names to acquire medication for Smith. Eroshevich was similarly charged with conspiracy as well as aiding to furnish sedatives and opiates to an addict.more..

January 08, 2011

The King Of Pop's final hours: How his last day unfolded

The legal battle surrounding Michael Jackson's death has reached the courts. Guy Adams sketches the key players and what we've learnt from them

The charge is involuntary manslaughter, which carries a maximum of four years in jail. The defendant is Dr Conrad Murray, a physician accused of recklessly causing his patient's fatal cardiac arrest. The victim? Michael Jackson.more..

January 07, 2011

Michael Jackson: Criminal court case opens against singers doctor, Conrad Murray

Preliminary hearings began Tuesday in Los Angeles County Superior Court, for the involuntary manslaughter case against Dr Conrad Murray, the doctor who allegedly gave Michael Jackson the fatal dose of Propofol, that killed the king of pop in June 2009.

Murray a 57-year-old cardiologist, has pleaded not guilty in the case, and there are reports that his lawyers will claim that there is a possibility Jackson himself - injected the lethal dose. more..

January 04, 2011

DA will not appeal judge's dismissal of Mehserle gun enhancement conviction in Oscar Grant case

OAKLAND -- The Alameda County District Attorney's Office will not appeal a Los Angeles judge's decision to drop a gun enhancement conviction of former BART police Officer Johanes Mehserle that would have added more time to the sentence he is serving for involuntary manslaughter in the Jan. 1, 2009, fatal shooting of Oscar Grant III, officials said.

In a statement issued late Thursday, District Attorney Nancy E. O'Malley said that "after a review of the transcripts recording the action taken by Judge (Robert) Perry and an extensive consultation with the California Attorney General's Office, Criminal Appellate Division, it has been determined that efforts to appeal Judge Perry's ruling would not change the result." more..

January 03, 2011

Former Ore. congressman fights criminal charges

A former congressman from Oregon who fought unsuccessfully to keep his seat in the mid-1990s after being caught lying about his military record is fighting to stay out of prison 16 years later.

Wester "Wes" Shadric Cooley, 78, a Republican from Powell Butte who served one term after being elected in 1994, was indicted by a California grand jury in 2009 on six counts of money laundering. He also faces one count of filing a false income tax return in 2002 to conceal more than $1.1 million in what Uncle Sam considers illicit income. more..

December 30, 2010

ACLU Investigation Reveals Tehachapi Unified School District Knew About, Yet Ignored, Bullying of Seth Walsh

SAN FRANCISCO — Today, the California affiliates of the American Civil Liberties Union partnered with Wendy Walsh, mother of 13 year-old Seth Walsh who recently took his own life after enduring years of anti-gay harassment at school, to send an important message to schools about anti-gay bullying. California law, in particular, requires schools to take specific steps to protect students from harassment based on sexual orientation.

"Seth told me he was gay when he was in the sixth grade. He was a wonderful, loving child, and I loved him for who he was. I can't bring my son back. But schools can make a difference today to keep this from happening to any more young people," said Wendy Walsh. "Schools need to take harassment and bullying seriously when parents or students tell them about it, and when they see it in the halls." Wendy also recorded an online video message, the first time she has spoken publicly since her son's death, which was released today.more..

December 29, 2010

Oksana's Dentist Given Immunity For Not Reporting Her Injuries

Oksana Grigorieva's dentist, Dr. Shelden Ross, has been given immunity for not reporting the Russian beauty's injuries to law enforcement after she told him about the alleged attack she endured by Mel Gibson, RadarOnline.com has learned exclusively.

Dr. Ross was given immunity by the Los Angeles District Attorney in exchange for his cooperation in the assault investigation of Mel Gibson. A source with knowledge of the situation tells us: "Dr. Ross was given immunity so he would cooperate with the investigation of Mel Gibson. Dr. Ross was initially reluctant to cooperate because he feared he would also be the subject of a separate criminal investigation for not reporting Oksana's injuries.more..

December 28, 2010

A true city of angels?

For the first time since the late 1960s, Los Angeles appears on course to finish the year with fewer than 300 murders. And the crime statistics suggest further progress is possible.

The decline in violent crime in Los Angeles has been among this region's most gratifying and encouraging trends in recent years. But some have worried that the decline must inevitably level off and give way to stasis. Happily, year-end data from the Los Angeles Police Department suggest there is still progress to be made.more..

December 27, 2010

Commerce Councilman Ordered to Resign after Pleading Guilty to Obstruction of Justice

LOS ANGELES – A City of Commerce councilman must resign and abstain from holding public office for the next three years after pleading guilty today to obstruction of justice, the District Attorney’s Office announced.

East Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Henry Barela, who imposed the sentence, further indicated that Hugo Argumedo, 49, may not hold public office while on his three-year probation term.more..

December 24, 2010

Lindsay Lohan's accuser is fired by Betty Ford Center

Technician who says she was assaulted by the actress while trying to give her an alcohol test is said to have violated patient confidentiality by speaking with the media about the incident.

The Betty Ford Center has fired an employee who accused actress Lindsay Lohan of assaulting her when she tried to administer an alcohol test, saying the worker violated patient confidentiality by speaking with the media about the incident.more..

December 23, 2010

Lindsay Lohan called 911 first during incident, her lawyer says

Lindsay Lohan attorney Shawn Chapman Holley says her client was the first to call 911 for assistance at her Betty Ford Center sober house in the wee hours Dec. 12.

While not commenting further on Lohan's involvement in a battery case that is being investigated, CNN reports, Holley stated Wednesday that "it should be noted" the actress called police first after her post-curfew return.more..

December 22, 2010

Welfare Fraud Ringleader Sentenced to Prison

LOS ANGELES – The ringleader of a childcare scheme that collected more than $1.3 million in fraudulent government payments has been sentenced to 10 years in state prison and ordered to make full restitution to the agencies, the District Attorney’s office announced today.

Sakina Myles, aka Sakina Johnson, was sentenced Monday by Los Angeles Superior Court Judge William Pounders after she pleaded no contest in June to 12 counts of grand theft and 27 counts of perjury by declaration in two separate cases, said Deputy District Attorney Tamia Hope with the Public Assistance Fraud Division. more..

December 21, 2010

Federal Jury Rules In Favor of Defendants In Bad Check Trial; Plaintiffs Across California Had Sought $30 Million in Damages

A federal jury ruled this week against plaintiffs who sought $30 million in damages and claimed they were regularly charged illegal fees by a private company hired by district attorneys across the state to collect on bad checks.

A federal jury ruled this week against plaintiffs who sought $30 million in damages and claimed they were regularly charged illegal fees by a private company hired by district attorneys across the state to collect on bad checks. more..

December 20, 2010

The time may be right for Kamala Harris

She hopes the tough economy, shifting public opinion and her savvy transition team will bolster her prison reform goals.

Kamala Harris, the state's next attorney general, last week announced a transition leadership team that was a marvel in its political heft: two former secretaries of State — of the country, not of California — and a host of other luminaries.More

December 17, 2010

Hubbard's arraignment scheduled for Tuesday

The Newport-Mesa superintendent is innocent until proven guilty, school board member asserts at meeting.

Editor's note: The arraignment has been moved to Tuesday.

Newport-Mesa Unified School District Supt. Jeffrey Hubbard is to be arraigned Tuesday on two felony counts for his alleged involvement in the criminal misappropriation of public funds during his previous job as superintendent of Beverly Hills schools, according to the Los Angeles County district attorney's office.More

December 16, 2010

L.A. County scrutinizes government contractors

D.A.'s office likens their positions to those of elected officials and says the same standards should apply.

Criminal charges filed last week against two former top officials of the Beverly Hills Unified School District, accusing them of misappropriating more than $5 million in public funds, underscore a push by Los Angeles County prosecutors to target suspected wrongdoing by local government contractors.More

December 15, 2010

L.A. County judge rejects attorney general's effort to delay suit against Bell

Judge Ralph W. Dau says he was unimpressed with the argument from Jerry Brown's office that the criminal corruption case against current and former leaders could be damaged if the postponement wasn't granted.

In another blow to the state's case against current and former Bell officials, a Superior Court judge on Monday rejected a motion that would have let the attorney general put a lawsuit on hold while the district attorney pursues a public corruption case against eight current and former leaders in the embattled city.More

December 14, 2010

Two years prison for woman who hit Leonardo DiCaprio with wine glass

A woman who hit actor Leonardo DiCaprio with a wine glass during a party in the Hollywood Hills more than five years ago, causing injuries that required stitches, was sentenced today to two years in state prison.

Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Patricia Schnegg imposed the term on Aretha Wilson, 40, who pleaded no contest July 12 to a felony charge of assault with a deadly weapon involving the June 17, 2005, attack on the actor, who has appeared in films such as "Titanic," "Gangs of New York" and "Inception."More

December 13, 2010

School board seeks advice

Board of Education to meet next week in closed session to discuss Supt. Hubbard's felony charges of misusing funds.

COSTA MESA — The Newport-Mesa school board plans to meet in closed session at 6:30 p.m. Monday to discuss two felony counts filed this week against Supt. Jeffrey Hubbard.

The charges, filed by the Los Angeles County district attorney, concern Hubbard's performance in his previous job as superintendent of the Beverly Hills Unified School District. More

December 11, 2010

Judge issues injunction against L.A.'s medical marijuana law

The ruling finds the law's provision outlawing all dispensaries except those that registered under the moratorium unconstitutional. It leaves the city with little power to control pot shops. City officials vow to quickly address the concerns.

A judge handed Los Angeles a setback in its faltering drive to limit the number of medical marijuana dispensaries, granting a preliminary injunction on Friday that bars the city from enforcing key provisions in its controversial six-month-old ordinance. ”More

December 10, 2010

Judge rejects monitor for city of Bell

A judge has rejected a bid by the state attorney general’s office for the appointment of a monitor to oversee Bell’s finances in the wake of the management salary scandals that have enveloped the city.

Related Content•Interim city manager issues ‘First 100 Days’ report in Bell
Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Robert H. O’Brien issued a five-page ruling Monday in which he said the denial is “without prejudice to further review under different circumstances.”More

December 08, 2010

Michael Jackson's dad files new wrongful death suit

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - An attorney for the father of Michael Jackson on Tuesday filed a new wrongful death lawsuit against the doctor accused of involuntary manslaughter in the pop singer's death.

The lawsuit by attorney Brian Oxman on behalf of Joe Jackson was filed in California Superior Court against Dr. Conrad Murray and companies with which he is affiliated. It includes the "Thriller" singer's mother Katherine Jackson and his three children as nominal parties.More

December 06, 2010

Band Members Charged in Hollywood Freeway Traffic Jam

LOS ANGELES – Three members of an Orange County band were charged by the District Attorney’s Office today with felony conspiracy in connection with a purported publicity stunt that caused a massive traffic jam last month on the Hollywood Freeway.

“This was not a matter involving free speech or lawful protest,” said District Attorney Steve Cooley in a written statement. “This was a well-orchestrated commercial stunt perpetrated by these defendants and their accomplices with no concern for the lives or well-being of thousands of innocent victims who were caught up in the prank.More

December 03, 2010

California prison overcrowding case heads to Supreme Court

The state is appealing a 2009 federal judicial order to reduce the prison population by more than 40,000 in two years. Lawyers for 18 other states are backing the appeal.

Reporting from Washington and Los Angeles — The suicide rate in California's overcrowded prisons is nearly twice the national average, and one inmate dies every eight days from inadequate medical care.More

December 01, 2010

Lack of funding builds death row logjam

Convicted killers have a hard time finding lawyers to handle their final appeals, which can be both expensive and gut-wrenching.

Thirteen years ago, Edward Patrick Morgan asked the California Supreme Court for a lawyer to investigate and challenge his 1996 death sentence for a murder in Orange County. The court has yet to find Morgan an attorney.

The inability of the state to recruit lawyers for post-conviction challenges, or habeas corpus petitions, has caused a major bottleneck in the state's criminal justice system. Nearly half of those condemned to die in California are awaiting appointment of counsel for these challenges.More

November 25, 2010

Judge questions need to monitor Bell's finances

A judge today questioned the need for a monitor to oversee Bell's finances, but lawyers for the Attorney General's Office continued to push for an appointment.

Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Robert H. O'Brien asked lawyers for the state why their office could not monitor city finances.More

November 24, 2010

Investigation of alleged extortion plot targeting Mel Gibson slowed by budget cuts

An investigation into whether Mel Gibson was the victim of an extortion plot is still being investigated by L.A. County sheriff's detectives, and it's unclear whether it will be completed by the end of the year.

“We are sifting through all the evidence. We are weeks away from completing the investigation,” said Steve Whitmore, a department spokesman.More

November 23, 2010

DOJ Agent Charged with Embezzlement

LOS ANGELES – A 35-year-old state Department of Justice employee was charged today with grand theft and embezzlement after he allegedly stole $33,000 last week during an internal investigation, the District Attorney’s office announced.

Gabriel Noel Baltodano, (dob 2-10-75), is a special agent with the Bureau of Narcotic Enforcement. He is charged in case BA378316 with two counts each of grand theft and embezzlement and one count of filing a false police report, said Deputy District Attorney Alfred Coletta with the Justice System Integrity Division. More

November 22, 2010

Producer accused of wife's killing to stay in jail

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Lawyers for a reality TV producer charged with killing his wife in Mexico attacked the investigation Wednesday and promised a vigorous fight against extradition at a hearing where the defendant was ordered to remain in jail at least until a bail hearing later this month.

Suspect Bruce Beresford–Redman did not enter a plea during his brief appearance in federal court in Los Angeles. Dressed in a T–shirt and blue jeans, the former "Survivor" producer politely answered questions from a magistrate judge about his identity. More

November 19, 2010

Reality TV producer accused of killing wife in Mexico arrested

The arrest of Bruce Beresford-Redman comes five months after Mexican authorities accused him of killing his wife in Cancun and after he returned home despite being told not to leave Mexico.

An Emmy-nominated reality TV producer accused of killing his wife at a Cancun resort earlier this year was arrested Tuesday by U.S. authorities at his Rancho Palos Verdes home.More

November 18, 2010

Attorneys: Brown playing politics with Bell case

There has been no shortage of political profiteering in recent months over corruption and salary shenanigans down in the now-infamous city of Bell, but a judge's recent criticism of a civil suit filed by Attorney General Jerry Brown has given ammunition to defense lawyers who have long argued that the case was used to boost Brown's gubernatorial chances.

In a hearing a couple of weeks back, Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Ralph W. Dau questioned whether Brown had the authority to pursue the case, rhetorically adding: “So I'm wondering, is this just a political lawsuit?” More

November 17, 2010

Delay on lawsuit shows lack of evidence in Bell case, defense says

Action by Atty. Gen. Jerry Brown proves civil lawsuit was a publicity stunt in governor's race, attorney for former administrator Robert Rizzo says.

A request by the attorney general and the Los Angeles County district attorney's office to delay a civil suit filed against current and former Bell officials indicates a lack of evidence the city leaders plotted to loot the city treasury, the defendants' lawyers said Monday.More

November 16, 2010

Oksana Grigorieva didn't tell doctor Mel Gibson hit Lucia, says pediatrician who says she saw no sign of injury

Just days after Mel Gibson was ordered by a family court judge to pay the back child support he owes Oksana Grigorieva, a sworn declaration has surfaced in which Lucia's pediatrician says she saw no injury on the child during an exam the day after an argument in which Grigorieva alleges Gibson hit them both.

Nor did Grigorieva mention any injury during the Jan. 7 visit, Dr. Linda Nussbaum said in a June 24 document published Friday by TMZ. A picture of an allegedly injured Lucia surfaced at the same time as recordings of the actor ranting at his ex-girlfriend; Team Mel maintains that photo was doctored.More

November 15, 2010

Former KB Home CEO Bruce Karatz sentenced to five years' probation

Penalty in options-backdating case includes eight months of house arrest. Karatz is also ordered to pay a $1-million fine and do 2,000 hours of community service.
November 11, 2010|By Stuart Pfeifer, Los Angeles TimesBruce Karatz, whose 20-year run as chief executive of home-building giant KB Home was derailed by allegations that he manipulated the value of stock options, was sentenced Wednesday to five years' probation, including eight months of house arrest.

U.S. District Judge Otis D. Wright II also fined the former executive $1 million and ordered him to perform 2,000 hours of community service. Wright rejected prosecutors' request for a lengthy prison sentence, noting that there was no evidence that the crimes damaged KB Home or its shareholders. More

November 12, 2010

Ex Pico Rivera mayor Beilke's trial delayed

LOS ANGELES - The lack of an available courtroom delayed the trial of a former Pico Rivera mayor accused of perjury and conflict of interest.

Ronald Beilke's trial was scheduled to begin Wednesday in Los Angeles Superior Court but it was continued to Dec. 29. More

November 11, 2010

Ex-Marines Arrested In Los Angeles Weapons Scheme

Federal agents have arrested three retired Marines suspected of selling illegal assault weapons to a notorious Los Angeles street gang, authorities said Tuesday.

The suspected ringleader, Adam Gitschlag, who served in Iraq and was once based at Camp Pendleton, was arrested at his Orange County home Nov. 2 as part of an operation carried out by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, as well as military investigators and local police.More

November 10, 2010

SIMI VALLEY HOSPITAL PAYS $5.15 MILLION TO RESOLVE CIVIL CASE ALLEGING THAT IT DEFRAUDED MEDICARE

LOS ANGELES – In a “whistleblower” case concluded today with the dismissal of the lawsuit, Simi Valley Hospital has paid the United States $5.15 million to resolve allegations that the hospital filed false claims with the Medicare program.

The lawsuit, which was originally filed by a former employee of Simi Valley Hospital, alleged that the institution’s Behavioral Medicine Services unit knowingly submitted false claims to Medicare for chemical dependency and psychiatric patient services performed between 1991 and 1997. The United States intervened in the lawsuit negotiated the settlement with Simi Valley Hospital. United States District Judge Valerie Baker Fairbank dismissed the lawsuit this morning in accordance with a settlement agreement that was finalized last month.More

November 09, 2010

Scores arrested in Oakland protests over BART officer Mehserle

As many as 150 demonstrators were arrested in Oakland during protests over the two-year prison sentence handed down to a former police officer who fatally shot an unarmed man on an Oakland train station platform.

A four-hour peaceful demonstration at Oakland City Hall moved into the surrounding streets and took on a more aggressive tone Friday evening with marchers smashing windshields, making obscene gestures at surrounding police and noisily shouting slogans.More

November 08, 2010

Ex-BART officer Mehserle sentenced to two years in prison for fatal shooting of unarmed man [updated] November 5, 2010 | 1:05 pm

A former transit police officer convicted of involuntary manslaughter for fatally shooting an unarmed man on an Oakland train station platform was sentenced by a Los Angeles judge Friday to two years in prison.

Johannes Mehserle, 28, contended that he mistakenly used his firearm instead of an electric Taser weapon when he shot Oscar J. Grant III in the early hours of New Year’s Day 2009. But prosecutors argued at his trial that Mehserle meant to reach for his handgun as he tried to handcuff an unresisting Grant, who was lying face-down on the platform floor.More

November 06, 2010

MGM files for bankruptcy protection

Filing comes after leading creditors strike a deal with corporate raider Carl Icahn. He agrees to support a plan under which Spyglass Entertainment executives will run Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer when it exits Chapter 11.

TimesMetro-Goldwyn-Mayer, the fabled studio whose origins go back to Hollywood's earliest days, filed for bankruptcy protection, sagging under a mountain of debt. More

November 05, 2010

'Clown suit activist' arrested for allegedly threatening Bell city clerk at council meeting (Updated)

A political activist known for attending municipal government meetings in a clown suit has been arrested on suspicion of making criminal threats against the Bell city clerk.

Sheriff's deputies arrested Edwin Thomas Snell, 63, on Tuesday on the steps of the L.A. County Hall of Administration, where he was attending a Board of Supervisors meeting. More

November 04, 2010

"Calorie Commando" Juan Carlos Cruz Pleads No Contest To Plotting Wife's Murder

LOS ANGELES — Former "Calorie Commando" TV chef Juan Carlos Cruz pleaded no contest Tuesday to a charge that he hired two homeless men in a failed attempt to kill his wife.

Cruz, 48, pleaded no contest in Los Angeles County Superior Court to a count of solicitation of murder. The former Food Network chef made the plea as a preliminary hearing was scheduled to begin, prosecutors said. More

November 03, 2010

Public Laws Shaped by Private Interests: The Truth Behind Arizona's SB 1070

Sandra Hernandez is communications director for the ACLU of Southern California.

Immigration jails look to be the next big money maker for the private prison industry, according to National Public Radio’s Laura Sullivan. More

November 02, 2010

Mehserle won't get maximum sentence, legal experts say

OAKLAND -- While no one but Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Robert Perry knows exactly how long former BART police Officer Johannes Mehserle will be sent to prison, if at all, most legal experts agree it won't be for the maximum term of 14 years.

No matter how loud the community shouts for Mehserle to be given the most severe punishment for killing Oscar Grant III, Perry will be guided by state law and court rules when he issues his decision Nov. 5 and both guidelines, experts say, point to Mehserle receiving, at most, a mid-term sentence. More

November 01, 2010

Anna Nicole Smith's boyfriend Howard K Stern found guilty of supplying drugs to tragic star before her death

The boyfriend of tragic Anna Nicole Smith was today found guilty of helping to funnel prescription medications to the former Playboy Playmate.

After 58-hours of deliberation the jury convicted Howard K. Stern, 41, on two counts of conspiracy for allegedly fuelling the starlet's raging prescription drug problem that ultimately killed her. Stern was acquitted of seven other charges.More

October 29, 2010

Pakistani criminal justice system proves no match for terrorism cases

The courts, hamstrung by shoddy police work, antiquated procedures and witnesses who clam up, have a dismal track record.

Reporting from Islamabad, Pakistan —

To find the office of the prosecutor in charge of putting Islamabad's bomb builders and terrorist masterminds behind bars, visitors must wend their way through the midday bustle of shoppers and descend into a dingy basement alcove, next to the Valley Tour travel agency. More

October 28, 2010

Four Irwindale Officials Charged with Misappropriation

LOS ANGELES – Four Irwindale city officials, including a current council member, have been charged with misappropriation of public funds after they allegedly attended Broadway shows and baseball games during trips to New York to get a better bond rating for the city.

Charged in case BA377327 are Councilman Mark Breceda, 50; retired city manager Steve Blancarte, 56; finance director Abe De Dios, 65; and former councilwoman Rosemary Ramirez, 49, said Deputy District Attorney Nipa Cook with the Public Integrity Division. More

October 27, 2010

Baca asks Sheriff's Department watchdog to examine his handling of donor's case

Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca asked his department’s watchdog Tuesday to review his handling of a case in which he was accused of giving preferential treatment to a long-time supporter who has donated to the sheriff’s political campaigns and given him expensive gifts.

Baca wants the Office of Independent Review to consider guidelines that would help him decide how to handle requests for investigations brought directly to his attention, including pleas from donors, celebrities and friends. More

October 26, 2010

Anna Nicole Smith jury deliberations to resume

In this Feb. 28, 2006 file photo, Anna Nicole Smith, leaves the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta, File)Jurors in the Anna Nicole Smith drug conspiracy trial are set to resume deliberations Tuesday.

The panel began their second week of talks Monday. The six women and six men spent the day closeted in their jury room and asked no questions.More

October 25, 2010

Additional Charges Filed Against Former Bell City Manager

LOS ANGELES – Additional felony charges were filed today against Robert Rizzo, the former city manager of Bell, who with several current and former council members of the small southeast community faces charges of misappropriating more than $5.5 million in tax dollars.

Today’s charges – one count each of conflict of interest and one of misappropriation of public funds – allege that Rizzo took an additional $2.4 million from the city coffers.More

October 24, 2010

Lindsay Lohan ordered back to rehab, not jail

BEVERLY HILLS — New year, new Lindsay Lohan?

That appears to be the hope of Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Elden S. Fox, who on Friday ordered the starlet to remain in rehab until January. In doing so he ended any short-term plans for the actress' comeback, but also followed the recommendations of medical professionals who say the "Mean Girls" star is only beginning to realize the depths of her addiction.

He also slyly removed one potential source of temptation and relapse.More

October 23, 2010

Judge denies motion by lawyer for Mel Gibson's ex-girlfriend

A judge Thursday denied a motion by Oksana Grigorieva's lawyer that sought to limit what Los Angeles County sheriff's deputies could take from her computer and cellphone as part of an extortion investigation involving her ex-boyfriend, actor-producer Mel Gibson.

Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Scott Gordon said that if Daniel Horowitz, the attorney for Grigorieva, had issues with the way sheriff's officials were conducting their investigation, he could bring up the matter in criminal court.More

October 22, 2010

Veteran LAPD detective arrested on suspicion of workers' comp fraud

For the second time in two weeks the Los Angeles Police Department has arrested one of its own on suspicion of workers' compensation fraud, this time a 15-year veteran of the force, officials said Wednesday.

Det. John X. Vach Jr., who was most recently assigned to the major crimes division, surrendered Tuesday night after an arrest warrant was issued alleging seven felony counts of workers' compensation fraud, perjury and attempted grand theft. More

October 21, 2010

Former Vernon city administrator indicted by grand jury

It is the third time in four years that a top Vernon official has faced public corruption charges, prompting L.A. County's district attorney to call for the city's disincorporation.

A Los Angeles County grand jury Tuesday indicted the former city administrator of Vernon on three felony counts of conflict of interest and misappropriation of public funds involving business deals between the city and his wife. More

October 20, 2010

Angelo Mozilo, other former Countrywide execs settle fraud charges

Angelo Mozilo and two others who led the lender make a $73-million deal with the SEC to avoid trial on allegations of fraud and insider trading.

Angelo R. Mozilo, who as head of home-loan giant Countrywide was at the center of the housing boom and bust, agreed Friday to pay a record fine as part of a $73-million settlement of a government fraud lawsuit over the lender's near-collapse. More

October 19, 2010

Millennium Bomb Terrorist Meskini Was Involved in Drugs, Fraud, U.S. Says

Abdelghani Meskini, convicted after informing on a foiled al-Qaeda plot to bomb Los Angeles International Airport during millennium celebrations, got into drugs and prostitution after prison, U.S. prosecutors said.

Meskini, 42, an Algerian who pleaded guilty in 2001 to charges stemming from the foiled attack, was sentenced to six years in prison after he testified against a co-conspirator, Mokhtar Haourari and another co-conspirator. More

October 15, 2010

Jackson Video Tape Case Heading to Retrial

Two lawyers who worked for Micael Jackson have revived their legal battle with the owner of a private jet company who secretly filmed a private meeting with the superstar in 2003.

XtraJet boss Jeffrey Borer has admitted videotaping the Thriller hitmaker and his attorneys onboard one of his planes as they flew from Las Vegas to Santa Barbara, California, where the star faced a trial on child molestation charges. He was later acquitted.More

October 13, 2010

LAPD Officer Convicted of Felony

NORWALK – A Norwalk jury today convicted an LAPD officer of leaving the scene of an accident and causing great bodily injury for a June 2008 hit-and-run accident in a Saugus parking lot.

Jurors deliberated 2 ½ days before finding William Skett, 36, guilty of leaving the scene of an accident that injured two people on June 21, 2008, said Deputy District Attorney Natalie Adomian. Jurors also found true a special allegation of causing great bodily injury.

But jurors hung on a charge of DUI causing injury. He was acquitted of a third felony count, driving with a .08 percent blood alcohol level.More

October 12, 2010

Civil Rights Groups Move to Protect Men’s Central Jail Inmates from Retaliatory Abuse

LOS ANGELES, Calif. – In response to multiple reports of continued retaliation by guards at the Men’s Central Jail against detainees who report wrongdoing, the ACLU and the ACLU of Southern California, together with Disability Rights California and the law firm of Bingham McCutchen, today filed a motion in U.S. District Court seeking a protective order for inmates detained there.

“Retaliation against prisoners for cooperating in investigations of official wrongdoing isn’t uncommon, but the retaliation at issue here is so extreme – multiple credible accounts of beatings, stomping and shattered bones – that I haven’t seen anything to equal it in 17 years of prison litigation around the country,” said Margaret Winter, Associate Director of the ACLU National Prison Project. “These witnesses must have the court’s protection.”More

October 11, 2010

Rizzo may seek more money

The city of Bell reneged on a severance agreement, his lawyer says. The details of the resignation are murky.

Robert Rizzo might be due back pay from the city of Bell after officials reneged on an agreement to provide the longtime city administrator with severance payments and other benefits when he resigned earlier this summer, his attorney claimed Thursday.More

October 08, 2010

Defense argues prosecutors played dirty in Anna Nicole Smith trial

Los Angeles, California (CNN) -- Prosecutors must play defense Friday when they have the last word in the Anna Nicole Smith drug trial.

A defense lawyer turned the tables on the deputy district attorneys in his closing arguments Thursday by accusing them of prosecutorial misconduct. More

October 06, 2010

'Die Hard' director gets a year in prison in wiretapping case

John McTiernan remains free pending an appeal of his sentence for lying about his role in the case of private investigator Anthony Pellicano.

"Die Hard" director John McTiernan was sentenced to a year in federal prison Monday for lying to the FBI — and later to a federal judge — regarding his role in the wiretapping case of disgraced Hollywood private eye Anthony Pellicano.More

October 05, 2010

Jerry Brown Wants Executions To Resume in California

SAN JOSE, Calif. — Whether California's first execution in more than four years will occur next week remained an open question Tuesday, as a judge grappled with a demand from the state attorney general's office to resume lethal injections.

A hearing was held on the issue after a Riverside County judge last month set an execution date of Sept. 29 for Albert Greenwood Brown, who was convicted of abducting, raping and killing a 15-year-old girl on her way home from school in 1980. More

October 04, 2010

Lawyer: NJ ticket scam defendants didn’t break law

The upcoming trial of four California men accused of illegally buying more than a million sports and concert tickets online could set new rules for prosecuting computer fraud if it's allowed to proceed, an attorney for one of the men argued in federal court Monday.

Or not, according to federal prosecutors, who characterized the case as a garden variety fraud. More

October 01, 2010

Judge in Anna Nicole Smith cas dismisses 2 charges against her boyfriend

A Los Angeles County Superior Court judge Wednesday dismissed two charges against the boyfriend of the late model and actress Anna Nicole Smith, but left most charges to be decided by a jury.

Judge Robert J. Perry dismissed two counts of obtaining an opiate by fraud against Howard K. Stern, who was also Smith’s lawyer, according to court spokesman Allan Parachini. Stern still faces nine counts related to allegedly providing Smith with powerful drugs.More

October 01, 2010

Judge in Anna Nicole Smith cas dismisses 2 charges against her boyfriend

A Los Angeles County Superior Court judge Wednesday dismissed two charges against the boyfriend of the late model and actress Anna Nicole Smith, but left most charges to be decided by a jury.

Judge Robert J. Perry dismissed two counts of obtaining an opiate by fraud against Howard K. Stern, who was also Smith’s lawyer, according to court spokesman Allan Parachini. Stern still faces nine counts related to allegedly providing Smith with powerful drugs.More

September 30, 2010

Anna Nicole Smith's fight for oil mogul's cash reconsidered by Supreme Court

Anna Nicole Smith's fight for cash from her late husband's estate will continue from beyond the grave - officials at the U.S. Supreme Court have agreed to reconsider the case.

Smith launched a legal battle for a $300 million share of oil tycoon J. Howard Marshall's estate prior to her death in 2007, maintaining he promised her the money during their 14-month marriage.More

September 29, 2010

Lindsay Lohan could be back in jail after hearing

Lindsay Lohan managed to spend only a few hours in jail Friday after failing a drug test, but experts said her legal troubles are far from over.

Superior Court Judge Elden Fox was overruled in his effort to send Lohan to jail for at least 30 days, but it's possible he will place her behind bars after a hearing Oct. 22 about her latest probation violation.More

September 28, 2010

Waiting for a death-penalty debate

Albert Greenwood Brown is slated to be executed this week. It's too bad we can't have a real discussion on capital punishment.

Despite a last-minute delay by the governor, Albert Greenwood Brown is still slated to die this week. Few would mourn the convicted murderer-rapist's passing, but it would nonetheless be a sad day for California.More

September 27, 2010

Lindsay Lohan freed after 15 hours in jail

Actress Lindsay Lohan was freed from jail late on Friday night after spending around 15 hours behind bars for evidence of another failed drug test, a Los Angeles-based celebrity website reported.

The once-promising star was led handcuffed from a Beverly Hills courtroom early in the morning for a third time in three years when a judge found evidence of substance abuse, which would make her a criminal. He ordered Lohan, 24, jailed until an October 22 hearing, but was later reversed by a supervisor.More

September 23, 2010

'Calculated greed' at heart of Bell criminal case, D.A. says

Eight current and former Bell city leaders were arrested Tuesday on charges of misappropriating more than $5.5 million from the small, working-class community as prosecutors accused them of treating the city’s money as their personal piggy bank.

The charges follow months of nationwide outrage and renewed debate over public employee compensation ever since The Times reported in July that the city’s leaders were among the highest paid municipal officials in the country. Among those charged was former City Manager Robert Rizzo, who led the way with a salary and benefits package of more than $1.5 million.More

September 22, 2010

Audit says public funds paid off ex-Bell city manager's loans

Draft report alleges that $95,000 in city money was put in Robert Rizzo's retirement accounts to repay loans he had made to himself. An expert says the allegations could amount to federal wire fraud.

Apparently acting without City Council approval, Bell spent nearly $95,000 to repay loans that then-City Manager Robert Rizzo made to himself from his retirement accounts, a draft state audit reviewed by The Times shows.More

September 21, 2010

Former 'bling ring' lawyer sentenced [Updated]

A Sherman Oaks attorney who represented an alleged member of the "bling ring" celebrity burglary group was sentenced Monday in an unrelated witness tampering case.

[Updated 4:20 p.m.: An earlier version of this post, and the headline, said Sean G. Erenstoft had been disbarred, based on a statement released by the Los Angeles County district attorney's office. But prosecutors acknowledged Monday afternoon that Erenstoft faces potential disbarment rather than outright disbarment for pleading no contest to the single felony count of attempting to dissuade a witness.More

September 20, 2010

State Sen. Roderick Wright indicted on charges of voter fraud and perjury

The Inglewood Democrat is accused of listing as his residence a home in the district he wanted to represent when his actual home was elsewhere. He has pleaded not guilty.

A Los Angeles County grand jury on Thursday unsealed an eight-count felony indictment against state Sen. Roderick Wright (D- Inglewood), accusing him of filing a false declaration of candidacy, voter fraud and perjury beginning in 2007, when he changed his voter registration to run for the Legislature.More

September 18, 2010

Source: Lindsay Lohan Fails Drug Test, Faces More Jail

Lindsay Lohan has failed a court-mandated drug test, a source tells PEOPLE. The actress could now be facing 30 days in jail.

The actress, 24, was released from rehab Aug. 24 after serving almost two weeks in jail for violating probation in a DUI case. More

September 17, 2010

Michael Jackson’s Doctor Wants Charges Dismissed

According to sources Michael Jackson’s doctor who was chared in his death is seeking the dismissal of a wrongful death lawsuit that was apparently filed by the late singers father. Sources claim the attorneys for Dr. Murray sought the dismissal in a motion filed Wednesday in Los Angeles.

The document will literally ask the judge to dismiss the case on the grounds that Jackson’s father, Joe Jackson did not have the legal right to file the case in the first place on grounds that he is not a beneficiary of the estate. The Jackson family patriarch sued Murray in federal court in June, the one year anniversary of his son’s death. He claimed the doctor acted negligently by providing the pop singer with a mix of sedatives, including the anesthetic propofol. However, the father of Michael Jackson has no leverage in the case because he has nothing to do with the late pop icon’s estate and the judge will see this. Murray of course pleaded not guilty to involuntary manslaughter in criminal court.More

September 15, 2010

ACLU/SC Class Action Suit Challenges U.S. Government’s Prolonged Detention of Immigrants

LOS ANGELES –The American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California added refugees from Somalia and U.S. residents from El Salvador and Mexico to its class action lawsuit in federal court here challenging the U.S. government’s right to detain immigrants indefinitely while they await the outcome of immigration proceedings.

Co-counsel in the lawsuit include the national ACLU Immigrants’ Rights Project, the Stanford Law School Immigrants’ Rights Clinic, and the law firm of Sidley Austin LLP. More

September 14, 2010

Married former ICE agents charged with theft from federal agency

LOS ANGELES — A retired special agent for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and his wife, who also worked for the federal agency in Los Angeles, were arrested today on charges of stealing from the government and lying to investigators about it.

An indictment handed down by a Los Angeles federal grand jury alleges that Frank Eugene Johnston, 51, and his 53-year-old wife, Taryn, stole almost $600,000 that she received in salary and benefits from ICE, even though she had done virtually no work for the agency in years. More

September 13, 2010

Former Temple City mayor gets 16 months in state prison in bribery case

LOS ANGELES - A Superior Court Judge Friday sentenced former Temple City Mayor Judy Wong to 16 months in state prison for her role in a corruption case involving a developer that caused the downfall of several local politicians.

Wong, who resigned from the City Council in March, pleaded no contest in May to felony charges that she asked for and received $13,100 in bribes from local developer Randy Wang and lied about it. She was sentenced Friday on one count of solicitation to commit bribery. More

September 12, 2010

LAPD officer who fatally shot day laborer was accused of using improper deadly force in 2008 shooting

A federal civil rights suit is pending over the earlier incident, which the Police Commission found to be 'in policy.' But the panel found that the officer used improper tactics.

The Los Angeles police officer who fatally shot a day laborer in Westlake was previously found by the department's watchdog arm to have used improper tactics in 2008 when he shot and wounded a man in the leg, authorities said Friday.More

September 10, 2010

L.A. County district attorney drops felony criminal charges against ESPN's Jay Mariotti

The Los Angeles County district attorney's office did not pursue felony criminal charges on Tuesday against ESPN sports personality Jay Mariotti, who was arrested last month on suspicion of domestic assault against his girlfriend.

"We reviewed the case for filing consideration and determined based on the evidence it was consistent with misdemeanor charges," said Shiara Davila-Morales, a spokesperson for the district attorney's office. The case was then referred to the Los Angeles city attorney, who could still pursue misdemeanor charges against Mariotti. More

September 08, 2010

Suit Charges LA-Area Federal Contractor with Exploitation and Discrimination of Immigrant Workers

Terra Universal routinely required its largely immigrant workforce – documented and undocumented alike – to work overtime hours without overtime pay. To evade government scrutiny, it created a fraudulent time system, requiring workers to clock out at the end of an 8-hour workshift and clock back in as a “second job.” Workers who complained about workplace issues or who suffered injuries were fired, had their pay deducted or their hours reduced and were verbally abused.

“Terra Universal is just one example of the countless employers nationwide who prey on the vulnerabilities of immigrant workers, believing they will never get caught. Such unscrupulous exploitation hurts all American workers,” said Randy Renick, partner at Hadsell, Stormer, Keeny, Richardson & Renick. “We caught Terra Universal red-handed, breaking nearly every wage and hour law in the book.” More

September 07, 2010

Former Palos Verdes Police Officer Charged in Embezzlement Case

LOS ANGELES – A former police officer of the Palos Verdes Estates Police Department accused of misappropriating police association funds is due to be arraigned this morning, the District Attorney’s Office announced.

Alex Ghazarian, (dob 7/9/77) 33, is charged in case No. BA375303 with one count each of grand theft of personal property and embezzlement by a public officer. Ghazarian is scheduled to be arraigned in Department 30 of the Foltz Criminal Justice Center. More

September 06, 2010

T.I. faces possible prison time for drug arrest

Grammy-winning rapper T.I. is headed back to Atlanta and may soon be ordered to face the federal judge who signed off on an extraordinary deal that shaved years off a potential prison term.

T.I.'s arrest Wednesday night in Los Angeles for suspicion of possession of methamphetamine could trigger a motion by his probation officer. The officer could ask U.S. District Judge Charles Pannell Jr. to revoke some of the remaining probation on T.I.'s federal sentence stemming from his arrest on gun charges three years ago. T.I's probation expires in 2013. More

September 03, 2010

Man accused of fraud may get life in prison under California's three-strikes law

The stiff penalty is rarely used against white-collar criminals. Timothy Barnett is charged with 23 felonies for allegedly tricking five people into unknowingly granting him title to their homes.

Timothy Barnett spent nearly five years in state prison for a 1990s foreclosure rescue scam in which he conned homeowners out of tens of thousands of dollars. Now, prosecutors say, he has been at it again, targeting residents in the same South Los Angeles neighborhood he fleeced before.More

September 02, 2010

Judge doubts prosecutors can prove 2 key charges

LOS ANGELES — The judge in the Anna Nicole Smith drug conspiracy trial said Tuesday he doubted prosecutors can prove key charges against two doctors and the lawyer-boyfriend of the late Playboy model.

The two counts targeted by Superior Court Judge Robert Perry are at the heart of the case, accusing the three defendants of conspiring to prescribe, administer and dispense controlled substances to an addict and obtaining and dispensing prescriptions by fraud and use of false names.More

August 31, 2010

Paris Hilton's boyfriend Cy Waits pulled gun on knife-weilding home intruder Nathan Parada: source

LOS ANGELES - No wonder Paris Hilton thinks her new boyfriend is hot - he's packing heat.

Vegas nightlife impresario Cy Waits, 34, pulled a gun on an armed intruder at Hilton's Los Angeles home early Tuesday, a law enforcement source told the Daily News.More

August 28, 2010

PEOPLE v. SHIN

THE PEOPLE, Plaintiff and Respondent,
v.
BAE HYUK SHIN, Defendant and Appellant.

2d Crim. No. B212544.

Court of Appeals of California, Second District, Division Six.

Filed August 26, 2010.

Jeralyn Keller, under appointment by the Court of Appeal, for Defendant and Appellant.

Edmund G. Brown, Jr., Attorney General, Dane R. Gillette, Chief Assistant Attorney General, Pamela C. Hamanaka, Senior Assistant Attorney General, Joseph P. Lee, Sarah J. Farhat, Stephanie C. Brenan, Deputy Attorneys General, for Plaintiff and Respondent.More

August 27, 2010

Judge again delays sentencing of ex-Temple City Mayor Judy Wong

LOS ANGELES - Ex-Temple City Mayor Judy Wong, who pleaded no contest to multiple counts of bribery in May, received another reprieve on Tuesday as her sentencing was delayed until Sept. 10.

Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Patricia Schnegg agreed to postpone the sentencing to allow Wong to find a caretaker for her elderly mother, who has Alzheimer's disease. Wong's sister, who was to have taken care of the mother, had to leave the country to tend to an emergency, Wong said before the hearing.More

August 26, 2010

ACLU/SC Suit Seeks Information on U.S. ‘Proxy Detention’ of American Citizen in the U.A.E.

LOS ANGELES – Seeking to uncover information about the U.S. government’s 2008 overseas “proxy detention” of American citizen Naji Hamdan, the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California filed a lawsuit in federal district court here today. The suit asks the CIA, the FBI, the National Security Agency, and other intelligence agencies to turn over records about their surveillance of Mr. Hamdan in the United States, and their involvement in his detention and torture in Abu Dhabi, in the United Arab Emirates.

The suit results from the failure of these intelligence agencies to release any information about Mr. Hamdan under the Freedom of Information Act in response to a request from the ACLU/SC filed in January 2010.More

August 24, 2010

Comedian Rip Torn Denied Probation in Bank Break-In

You get drunk and break into a bank while armed and suddenly judges just won't cut you a break.

So Rip Torn has learned after a judge denied probation Wednesday. Torn, 79, an Emmy-winning actor with roles in "Men in Black," "Dodgeball," "30 Rock," and "The Larry Sanders Show," had hoped to enter a two-year program that would lead to all charges being dropped after a successful completion. He had no prior criminal record. Litchfield Superior Court Judge James Ginocchio found that the allegations against Torn were far to serious for him to qualify for probation under the program called accelerated rehabilitation.

However, prosecutors dropped a felony burglary charge as there was no evidence that Torn intended to commit a crime. Apparently Rip Torn went on quite a bender the night of the incident, drinking all night and then driving to a Salisbury bank which he mistook for his own home. The bank is in a house-like buidling nearby his home. Two hours after being arrested, Torn blood alcohol level was recorded at 0.203, over two and a half times the legal limit, the AP reports. Torn has said that he remembers nothing from that night. He has competed a two month inpatient rehab and over five months of outpatient couseling. More

August 21, 2010

Case of soup-kitchen thief fuels critics of three-strikes laws

A California man sentenced to 25 years to life was released Monday because a judge ruled his sentence under a three-strikes law was too harsh for his crime – breaking into a church soup kitchen 13 years ago.

Los Angeles
Critics of "three-strikes" laws are hoping that the release Monday of Gregory Taylor – serving a near life sentence for breaking into a soup kitchen 13 years ago – will provide momentum to efforts to repeal or modify the laws in the 25 states that have them. More

August 20, 2010

Three Strikes and He's Out (of Prison)!

Homeless Man Spent 13 Years Behind Bars After Trying to Break into Church Kitchen

LOS ANGELES (CBS/AP) A California man who spent 13 years in prison after trying to break into a church to find something to eat, and who became an example of the state's strict three-strikes law, has been ordered released from prison by a Superior Court judge.

Tears rolled down the face of 47-year-old Gregory Taylor when Judge Peter Espinoza ordered that he be set free, reducing his sentence from 25 years to life, to the time he has already served. More

August 19, 2010

ACLU/SC Suit Seeks Information on U.S. ‘Proxy Detention’ of American Citizen in the U.A.E.

Wednesday, August 18, 2010

LOS ANGELES – Seeking to uncover information about the U.S. government’s 2008 overseas “proxy detention” of American citizen Naji Hamdan, the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California filed a lawsuit in federal district court here today. The suit asks the CIA, the FBI, the National Security Agency, and other intelligence agencies to turn over records about their surveillance of Mr. Hamdan in the United States, and their involvement in his detention and torture in Abu Dhabi, in the United Arab Emirates.

The suit results from the failure of these intelligence agencies to release any information about Mr. Hamdan under the Freedom of Information Act in response to a request from the ACLU/SC filed in January 2010. More

August 17, 2010

Prop. 8 backers ask for permanent hold on same-sex marriage ruling

In an emergency appeal, they contend that Judge Vaughn R. Walker's ruling overturning California's gay marriage ban flouted the law and ignored the evidence.

August 14, 2010|By Maura Dolan, Los Angeles TimesIn an emergency appeal now before a federal court, the backers of Proposition 8 have asked for a permanent hold on last week's "egregiously selective and one-sided" marriage ruling, contending it flouted the law and ignored the evidence. More

August 16, 2010

California Storing DNA of Innocent People

California’s law mandating that DNA samples be taken from all felony arrestees is facing a legal challenge from the ACLU of Northern California.|

Petitions by Change.org|Get Widget|Start a Petition » Forcing people to provide a DNA sample without any judicial oversight, just because a single police officer has arrested them, violates the Constitution. That’s why California’s law mandating that DNA samples be taken from all felony arrestees is facing a legal challenge from the ACLU of Northern California (ACLU-NC). More

August 14, 2010

LAPD tactics in wild pursuit are under review [Updated]

The chaotic, potentially dangerous ending to a high-speed car chase last week has raised questions among high-ranking Los Angeles Police Department officials over the tactics and force several officers used to apprehend the driver.

Tonsha Wilcher, 39, walked into the lobby of the LAPD’s Southwest Area station about 2 p.m. Thursday, threatened to kill the officers working at the front desk and then fled in his car, according to an LAPD account of the incident. More

August 13, 2010

Judges Propose 'Bill of Rights' for Trial Courts in California

SACRAMENTO (CN) - At a California State Assembly hearing Wednesday, a group of trial judges told legislators that 200 judges around the state are writing a "trial court Bill of Rights" intended to give judges more power over the spending of money allocated by the legislature and retake control from the statewide Administrative Office of the Courts. "The AOC does not govern the trial courts," said Judge David Lampe of Kern County Superior Court who spoke on behalf of the Alliance of California Judges.

Lampe said the proposed Bill of Rights, is intended to lend balance to a currently unbalanced governance structure, with the AOC imposing its mandates on individual courts. "This governance structure has to be clarified," said Lampe in an inteview after the hearing. "There seems to be a gradual push that the AOC governs the judicial branch. That's just not the law." More

August 12, 2010

Long Beach agrees to pay $8 million in wrongful murder conviction

Thomas Goldstein was jailed 24 years based largely on a jailhouse informant whose credibility was questionable. The city denies his rights were violated but says it couldn't risk a sizable jury award.

Long Beach has agreed to pay nearly $8 million to settle a lawsuit filed by a man who spent 24 years in prison after being wrongly convicted of murder based largely on the testimony of a jailhouse informant. More

August 11, 2010

Long Beach Police Officer Charged with Grand Theft, Other Counts

LOS ANGELES – A police officer accused of stealing firearms from the Long Beach Police Department was charged today with more than a dozen counts, including grand theft, the District Attorney’s Office announced.

Deputy District Attorney Alfred Coletta of the Justice System Integrity Division said Damian Ramos, 32 (dob 8/21/77), is expected to be arraigned this afternoon in Department 30 of the Foltz Criminal Justice Center. More

August 09, 2010

Former Deputy, Accomplice Sentenced in Drug Smuggling Case

LOS ANGELES – A former Los Angeles County Sheriff’s deputy and a male co-conspirator were sentenced today to four and two years in prison respectively for attempting to smuggle drugs into a county jail facility guarded by the deputy.

Peter Paul Felix, 26, had been a sheriff’s deputy about two years until he resigned shortly after Oct. 13, 2008. On that date he was caught attempting to smuggle 161.5 grams of heroin, 24.4 grams of methamphetamine and 51.5 grams of marijuana into the North County Correctional Facility where he worked as a guard. More

August 06, 2010

Woman alleges group sex at Rialto Police Department Union Hall

RIALTO - Police officers engaged in group sex with female workers from the Spearmint Rhino strip club, according to a $500,000 claim filed by a woman at the center of a sex scandal that has sent shock waves through the Police Department and city.

"The claims that we have made are simply the tip of the iceberg and we have substantial proof to back up these claims, and my client will move forward with a lawsuit should the city not take her claims seriously," said Danuta W. Tuszynska, a Riverside-based attorney representing Nancy Holtgreve. More

August 05, 2010

Legacy's De los Angeles arrested over estafa case

A cop blotters Legacy Group president Celso delos Angeles (center) in Camp Karingal on Tuesday after his arrest.

Businessman Celso de los Angeles, the principal suspect in the Legacy insurance and pension scam, was arrested Tuesday at the St. Luke's Medical Center in Quezon City due to estafa charges filed against him in Leyte.

De los Angeles had been confined at the hospital after undergoing treatment for his stage 4 throat cancer and was later transferred to the Cathedral condominium inside the hospital's premises, where he was arrested.More

August 04, 2010

Grim Sleeper serial killer suspect expected to answer charges at arraignment

A South L.A. man accused of being the Grim Sleeper serial killer is expected to answer charges against him at an arraignment Tuesday morning.

Lonnie David Franklin Jr., 57, was charged earlier this month with killing 10 women over a period spanning  more than two decades. He has been held without bail since his arrest July 7, which came after undercover officers surreptitiously collected a sample of his DNA that authorities say matched evidence found at several of the crime scenes. If convicted, Franklin could face the death penalty. More

August 03, 2010

A Michigan Couple Convicted in John Stamos Extortion Trial

A man and woman accused of attempting to extort $680,000 from actor John Stamos in 2004 were convicted Thursday in a U.S. District Court in Michigan, CNN reports, and face up to nine years each in prison.

Prosecutors said Allison Coss and Scott Sippola had threatened to sell to a magazine allegedly compromising pictures of Stamos doing cocaine with a pair of strippers; when the FBI searched the couple's home, no such photos were found. Stamos had maintained that no pictures existed because nothing inappropriate had happened during a 2004 trip to Orlando, Fla., where he met Coss. More

August 02, 2010

Corruption and Abuse By LA County Deputies Contribute To Suicide, Report Confirms

John Horton was held in solitary confinement in the Los Angeles County Men‘s Central Jail following his arrest for drug possession. He committed suicide.

In the days leading up to his death in March 2009, jail staff noted that Mr. Horton was despondent. His cell was a dimly-lit, windowless, solid-front box the size of a closet. His body was already stiff by the time security staff discovered him hanging from a noose in his cell, with his hands bound – one of eight successful apparent suicides in the L.A. County jails in the past calendar year. More

July 31, 2010

One father's message to another

Terrell went to a party with friends in 2005 in an affluent neighborhood and was shot to death. He was home on winter break from Humboldt State University. Even though Terrell had never been involved with a gang, he became a victim of random gang violence.

Terrell's younger brother and sister suffer to this day. The perpetrator has never been caught or charged. But with every passing year I grow more committed to seeing justice through and to ending this type of senseless violence. I know one key is for parents to act more wisely to protect young people. More

July 29, 2010

Los Angeles Police Arrest American Pie Star Chris Klein For DUI

The man best known for his character of Oz in the "American Pie" comedies will soon be giving a call to his Los Angeles DUI attorney, as the man was arrested yesterday on suspicion of drunken driving. The Los Angeles Times reports that the actor Chris Klein was weaving across three lanes of traffic on the westbound 101 Freeway, which caught the attention of law enforcers and led to the pulling the actor over.

Chris Klein's breath test indicated that his blood-alcohol level was almost three times the legal limit and that this is the actor's second DUI arrest in the last six years, TMZ states. So perhaps the man already knows a DUI attorney in Los Angeles. Now that he's in danger of becoming a two-time DUI offender, it looks as though he'll be needing the best lawyer possible. More

July 28, 2010

An Open Letter to Lindsay Lohan from the ACLU

Dear Lindsay,

We know that going to jail is scary. But we can assure you that your experience at the women’s facility in Lynwood, outside Los Angeles, is likely to be starkly different from the thousands of others serving time and awaiting trial in the Los Angeles jails. Based on the ACLU’s decades of experience as an official court-appointed monitor of the jails, and the stories of countless women with whom we’ve spoken, the facility where you are staying is an overcrowded detention facility where women are needlessly humiliated for so long that they come to expect sub-human treatment.

It’s a place where an eight month pregnant woman was forced to sleep on the floor because she could not access the top bunk to which she was assigned. A place where women have said they are made to stand naked while menstruating, as they waited for jail-issued clothes. And a place where women routinely tell us they cannot get access to the same medications they took in the community (though we doubt that you will face this same problem.) More

July 27, 2010

'Bling ring' member is released from county jail

A 19-year-old Calabasas woman sentenced to six months in jail for burglarizing actor Orlando Bloom's Hollywood Hills home was released from jail Friday night after serving less than a month of her sentence.

Alexis Neiers, who starred in the E! Entertainment reality show “Pretty Wild” while being prosecuted for her role in the “bling ring” celebrity burglary case, pleaded no contest in May to felony residential burglary charges. More

July 26, 2010

UCLA Innocence Project hopes to help wrongfully convicted inmates by reviewing old cases

By reviewing old cases, UCLA Innocence Project hopes to help wrongfully convicted inmates

A few months ago, Amber Phillips maneuvered her Honda Element into the parking space at about 4 p.m.

That was when the stakeout began.

Over the next five hours, Phillips sat in her car with fellow UCLA School of Law student Steven Krieger. They studied, munched on chips and took swigs of Gatorade. Occasionally, they left the car to stretch their legs. But mainly, they watched and waited. More

July 25, 2010

The Death Penalty is a Woman's Issue Too

The anti-death penalty movement in California is expanding and gaining momentum. Our core base of activists—people concerned about the inequities of the criminal justice system and people of faith—are finding coalition with activists from other movements, movements whose core issue is not ending the death penalty. Young people are angered that California spends billions on the death penalty while slashing Cal Grants and raising tuition. The LGBTQ community fought against the inclusion of a death penalty provision in the Mathew Shepard Hate Crimes Legislation and are fighting horrific bills in Uganda that would impose the death penalty for being gay. Civil rights groups are demanding that we implement protections to ensure that race is not a factor in who gets sentenced to death.

Most recently, California NOW—the largest state based feminist organization in the US—joined the fight against new execution regulations in California. California NOW objected to the regulations based on the unfair and unequal treatment of women on death row, and encouraged their members to voice their opposition as well. Some might be surprised that a group focused on women’s issues would take a stand against the death penalty. But the death penalty is a woman’s issue too. More

July 23, 2010

Let’s Cut the Death Penalty and Save California $126 Million a Year

The California Supreme Court ‘sentenced’ our state’s taxpayers to an additional debt of $180,000 more per year yesterday.

How? The state’s high court upheld the death penalty in two cases. Imposing the death penalty adds enormously to the cost of prosecution and permanent lifetime housing for an inmate. The death penalty is certainly a polarizing public policy issue, but I wonder how many people realize that it’s also a vortex-like drain on their own pocketbooks. More

July 22, 2010

District Attorney Responds to Swiss Decision on Polanski

LOS ANGELES – District Attorney Steve Cooley said today that although Switzerland refused to return Roman Polanski to California for sentencing, extradition will be sought if the fugitive is arrested elsewhere.

“I am deeply disappointed that the Swiss authorities denied the request to extradite Roman Polanski,” Cooley said in a prepared statement. “Our office complied fully with all of the factual and legal requirements of the extradition treaty and requests by the U.S. and Swiss Departments of Justice and State.More

July 21, 2010

Shapiro Quits Lohan's Case

Lindsay Lohan has been left without legal representation again - top lawyer Robert Shapiro has quit her case just hours before the actress is due to start her stint behind bars.

O.J. Simpson's former attorney publicly announced he had agreed to take over as the star's representative after her legal Shawn Holley Chapman quit earlier this month. More

July 19, 2010

Lindsay Lohan's New Lawyer: "She Is Suffering From a Disease"

Lindsay Lohan's new lawyer officially stepped forward today—and made sure everyone knew he wasn't taking the job to enable anymore ridiculous excuses.

"I have agreed to represent Ms. Lohan on the condition that she complies with all of the terms of her probation, including a requirement of jail time that was imposed by Judge Marsha Revel," Robert Shapiro said in a statement to E! News. More

July 16, 2010

Races could test voters' views on death penalty

For decades, capital punishment was a driving force in California politics, swaying elections for governor and the U.S. Senate and reshaping the state Supreme Court.

While executions in California have been on hold for more than four years, tied up in court challenges to lethal injection procedures that the state is now redrafting, November's elections may determine whether the death penalty still carries political weight. More

July 15, 2010

Riots in California after police officer who shot dead unarmed black man is cleared of murder

53 arrests as protesters furious at verdict storm the streets

Violent protests erupted in the city of Oakland in California today after a Los Angeles jury convicted a white former transit officer of involuntary manslaughter in the fatal shooting of an unarmed black man.

Police in riot gear watched over a crowd of protesters as emotions ran high with 500 people marching in the street and 83 people arrested. More

July 14, 2010

Mass arrests in Oakland protests against court verdict

Police officer who killed defenseless man given lenient verdict

Police arrested 83 protesters in Oakland, California on Thursday, after hundreds went to the streets in demonstrations against a jury verdict of involuntary manslaughter for a police officer who was caught on video tape killing an unarmed man, execution-style.

Transit officer Johannes Mehserle was caught by at least four cameras shooting 22-year-old Oscar Grant III in the back as the victim lay face down on the ground and offered no resistance. Another officer was recorded screaming “bitch-ass nigger” at Grant shortly before he was executed. More

July 13, 2010

Holder raises question on Sept. 11 death penalty

WASHINGTON — Attorney General Eric Holder says there's a real question about whether a terrorist suspect such as self-professed Sept. 11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed can face the death penalty if he were to plead guilty before a military commission.

Holder proposed last year trying Mohammed and four alleged accomplices in civilian courts in New York City. But that idea generated so much controversy that it's all but been abandoned. More

July 12, 2010

Former BART officer convicted of involuntary manslaughter

Prosecutors accused Johannes Mehserle of intentionally firing his handgun as he tried to handcuff Oscar J. Grant III on New Year's Day 2009. Mehserle testified that he thought he was pulling out his electric Taser weapon and not a firearm.
Johannes Mehserle.

A former transit police officer who fatally shot an unarmed man at an Oakland train station was convicted of involuntary manslaughter Thursday, capping a racially charged case that raised fears in the Bay Area of possible violence after the verdict. More

July 09, 2010

California Implodes

California is the wealthiest and most populous State in America, and Los Angeles County is the largest county in America, so both the State and LA County wield unbelievable power in Washington D.C. The corruption in California affects you directly.

• How would you feel if you knew your federal tax dollars were being used to finance California’s corruption? More

July 07, 2010

Lindsay Lohan sentenced to jail for violation

Beverly Hills -- A judge ruled Tuesday that Lindsay Lohan violated the terms of her probation in a drunken-driving case when she failed to attend alcohol education classes and sentenced her to 90 days in jail.

Judge Marsha Revel stated several instances over the past few years in which the actress lied about taking drugs and drinking.More

July 06, 2010

Ferris Bueller's Day Off actor chared with failing to update sex offender registration

Actor Jeffrey Jones, best known for his portrayal of a high school dean in the 1986 movie "Ferris Bueller's Day Off," has been charged with a single felony count of failing to update his registration as a sex offender, prosecutors said Wednesday.

Jones, 63, was arrested June 23 on suspicion of failing to renew his registration with the state within five days of his last birthday, Sept. 28, 2009, said Sandi Gibbons, spokeswoman for the Los Angeles County district attorney's office. He was released on $20,000 bail. More

July 05, 2010

California Warden Now Believes that Executions Don't Make us Safer

Death row realism
Do executions make us safer? San Quentin's former warden says no.

As the warden of San Quentin, I presided over four executions. After each one, someone on the staff would ask, "Is the world safer because of what we did tonight?"

We knew the answer: No. More

July 01, 2010

A death penalty record

L.A. County led the U.S. in capital sentences in 2009. Prosecutors are being overzealous and inhumane.

Harris County, Texas, used to be known as the death penalty capital of the United States, the focus of national and global outrage over an outdated, costly and immoral form of criminal justice. But things have changed: Harris County now has a sentencing record that looks like Denmark's, and the hanging judges (or rather, prosecutors) seem to have relocated to liberal Los Angeles.

A recent report by the American Civil Liberties Union shows that Los Angeles County sent more people to death row last year than any other county in the U.S. -- and more than the entire state of Texas. The trend is particularly odd given that most of the rest of the country is headed in the opposite direction. According to the Death Penalty Information Center, the number of death sentences nationwide last year was the lowest since capital punishment was reinstated in 1976.More

June 30, 2010

Stories of Wrongful Conviction from California, continued:

More than 200 men and women have been wrongfully convicted of serious crimes in California, six of whom were sentenced to death. Here are some of their stories.

Gloria Killian
County: Sacramento
Convicted of: 1st Degree Murder
Year of Conviction: 1986
Sentence: 32 years to life
Year Released: 2002
Years Served: 18 years
Wrongful Conviction Factors: False testimony of informant; misconduct by prosecutor More

June 29, 2010

ACLU Lawsuit Spotlights Sonoma County Sheriff and ICE for Unlawful Detentions and Racial Profiling of Latinos

Echoes of Arizona in Lawsuit Asserting Sonoma Sheriff Exceeded Local Authority in Immigration-Related Arrests

SAN FRANCISCO — A federal judge in San Francisco issued an order Friday that an American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California (ACLU-NC) lawsuit charging unlawful collaboration between the Sonoma County Sheriff's Department and the U.S. Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to unlawfully target, arrest, and detain Latinos in Sonoma County can move forward.

"As the nation repudiates Arizona's racial profiling law, we continue to challenge the same type of profiling in our own backyard," said Julia Harumi Mass, ACLU-NC staff attorney. "No matter where they happen, violations of fair and common-sense legal protections like due process put all U.S. residents at risk – citizen and non-citizen alike." More

June 28, 2010

Too Many Wrongful Convictions in California

Thanks to the hard work and dedication of California's Innocence Projects, two California men were found innocent and freed in one week in February after years in prison for crimes they did not commit.

On Monday, February 5, the District Attorney in Santa Clara County dismissed charges against Jessie Rodriguez, who served six years of a potential life sentence in prison for a robbery he did not commit. The jury hung at Rodriguez's first trial, but convicted him at his second. The Sixth District Court of Appeal, however, overturned his conviction based on inadequate defense by his attorney, who limited his efforts in the second trial after the family ran out of money. In preparing for a third trial, the newly-assigned Deputy District Attorney re-investigated the testimony of an eyewitness and the forensic evidence. The DA found that eyewitness was no longer confident and that the original forensic analysis was wrong.More

June 25, 2010

9th Circuit reinstates criminal charges against Pierce O'Donnell

LOS ANGELES — A federal appeals court has reinstated criminal charges against plaintiffs' attorney Pierce O'Donnell after concluding that the section of the Federal Election Campaign Act on which he was charged applied to conduit, or indirect, campaign contributions, not just to contributions made under false names.

O'Donnell of O'Donnell & Associates in Los Angeles was indicted on charges that he reimbursed 13 employees of his law firm and others who had contributed $26,000 in 2003 to the presidential campaign of former U.S. Sen. John Edwards, D-N.C. See The American Lawyer's article, "The Trials of Pierce O'Donnell."More

June 24, 2010

Stories of Wrongful Conviction from California

More than 200 men and women have been wrongfully convicted of serious crimes in California, six of whom were sentenced to death. Here are some of their stories.

Herman Atkins
County: Riverside
Convicted of: Forcible Rape, Forcible Oral Copulation, and Robbery
Year of Conviction: 1988
Sentence: 45 years
Year Released: 2000
Years Served: 11.5 years
Wrongful Conviction Factors: Mistaken eyewitness identification More

June 23, 2010

Wrongfully convicted prisoners left uncompensated

States rarely pay for the mental and physical suffering of those wrongfully convicted.Byron Halsey recently had the happy and tragic distinction of being the 238th wrongfully convicted prisoner released from prison in the past two decades due to DNA testing. Halsey was the 12th wrongfully convicted prisoner exonerated this year. In 1985, he was accused of the rape and murder of two Plainfield, N.J., children.

Halsey’s nightmarish tale after the arrest is woefully familiar to others wrongfully accused. They face marathon police grilling, with threats and intimidation, a coerced confession, slipshod legal representation, a fast track trial, conviction, and then they are either dumped in a cell for life or receive the death penalty. Halsey faced the death penalty. More

June 21, 2010

Former BART officer testifies he pulled Taser before colleague fatally shot passenger

A former Bay Area transit police officer testified Friday that he pulled out an electric Taser weapon and threatened to use it on a group of men as an “intimidation tactic” minutes before a fellow officer fatally shot one of the men on an Oakland train platform.

Prosecutors allege that Anthony Pirone’s use of profanity and aggressive conduct in the early hours of New Year’s Day 2009 created a chaotic scene that resulted in the killing of Oscar J. Grant III." More

June 18, 2010

Bicyclists Clash with LAPD

Bad blood continues despite attempts at detente

Tensions between the LAPD and a group of hard-core bicyclists boiled over this spring, despite efforts by both sides to smooth over their history of bad relations.

Relations between the police and pedal-power activists, many of whom are ardent environmentalists, seemed to reach the bottom of a Gulf oil well in January, when cyclist Ed Magos, who works for the city's Information Technology Agency, was hit downtown by a woman who left the scene only to report the collision at the neighboring Rampart Division station.."More

June 17, 2010

False arrests and the Los Angeles Police Departments

Police have an odd way of measuring their performance. Their performance appraisals are largely based on the number of arrests made and citations issued. Felony arrests get more points than misdemeanor arrests and although citations for things like not wearing a seatbelt, expired registration tags, etc aren't technically arrests; they make the government a lot of money. So cops get points for them as well.

If you haven't noticed the flaw in this system, allow me to elaborate. Let us say that someone is murdered. The police arrest somebody for the murder and as far as the police are concerned "the case is cleared."More

June 16, 2010

Michael Jackson's doctor can keep medical license, judge rules

A doctor accused of administering a lethal dose of a strong anesthetic to pop icon Michael Jackson last year will keep his California medical license for now, a Los Angeles judge ruled Monday.

L.A. Superior Court Judge Michael E. Pastor rejected a request by the state's medical board to suspend Dr. Conrad Murray's license to practice medicine. In his ruling, Pastor noted that another judge at Murray's arraignment earlier this year restricted the physician's use of the drug propofol and other strong anesthetics as part of his bail conditions.More

June 15, 2010

Who should control California's prison budget? U.S. Supreme Court may weigh in

Reporting from Ione, Calif. —
A legal battle over who gets to control California's massive spending on prisons — judges or corrections officials — may be headed to the U.S. Supreme Court, with overcrowding at the state's 33 prisons at the center of the debate.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and state officials have challenged an edict from three federal judges that the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation must cut the prison population by 40,000, or about a quarter of its 165,000 inmates. The judges' order, issued last August, cited overcrowding as the main cause of healthcare failures that amounted to cruel and unusual punishment and left inmates to die from treatable conditions at the rate of one per week.More

June 14, 2010

Notorious past tainted robbery trial, Simpson appeal claims

Las Vegas, Nevada (CNN) -- Attorneys for disgraced gridiron great O.J. Simpson return to court Friday, arguing that the judge at his 2008 armed robbery trial in Las Vegas did not adequately guard against the looming shadow of his notorious past.

Simpson's defense is seeking to reverse his conviction on 12 counts of armed robbery and related offenses in connection with a Las Vegas hotel room confrontation over sports memorabilia. The 62-year-old is serving nine to 33 years in a state prison.More

June 11, 2010

False arrest lawsuit filed against West Covina, police chief and police officer

A man has sued West Covina, its police chief and West Covina police officer Tyler Kennedy, whom he claims falsely arrested him in order to have an intimate relationship with his ex-wife.

The lawsuit was filed in Los Angeles Superior Court and seeks unspecified damages. It also alleges West Covina police officers, with the tacit permission of city government, regularily discriminated against Hispanics and other minorities.More

June 10, 2010

L.A. County sheriff's lieutenant is under investigation in sex-assault case

The department is conducting an internal criminal probe into whether Lt Michael Rodriguez went to the home of a coworker and sexually assaulted her. Rodriguez denies the allegations.

The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department is conducting an internal investigation into allegations that a lieutenant in San Dimas went to the home of a co-worker and sexually assaulted her.More

June 09, 2010

Call on death penalty to wait

Three-member panel will decide whether to pursue capital punishment for double-murder suspect Daniel Wozniak, 26.

Prosecutors won't decide until after a preliminary hearing whether they should seek the death penalty against a Costa Mesa actor accused of killing two Orange Coast College students, officials said Wednesday.More

June 08, 2010

Freed after 16 years in prison, he says thanks

SAN DIEGO — Reggie Cole left prison a free man Saturday, after serving 16 years for a murder he didn’t commit. But instead of heading straight home to Los Angeles , he made a detour to California Western School of Law in San Diego.

“He wanted to meet a lot of the students who had worked on his case,” said Justin Brooks, director of the school’s California Innocence Project.More

June 05, 2010

BART police officer murder trial set to begin in Los Angeles

The murder trial of a former BART police officer who fatally shot an unarmed rider last year, sparking riots in Oakland, is expected to begin Wednesday with jury selection in a downtown Los Angeles courtroom.

Johannes Mehserle, 28, is charged in the New Year's Day 2009 killing of Oscar Grant on a BART station platform.More

June 04, 2010

LAPD officers accused of clashing with bicyclists relieved of field duty during probe

Four police officers involved in a clash with cyclists in Hollywood during a mass bicycle ride have been removed from the field while investigators review the incident, an LAPD official said Wednesday.More

Police launched an internal investigation into the Friday night episode after a video circulated that appeared to show an officer kicking at a passing bicyclist during a protest ride against BP's role in the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, said Cmdr. Andrew Smith.More

June 02, 2010

Former NASCAR driver arrested in Orange County on suspicion of attempted rape

Former NASCAR driver James Neal was arrested on attempted rape charges Monday within hours of his release from the Orange County Jail after serving a brief sentence on a misdemeanor driving count, authorities said.

Neal, 56, of San Clemente, was back in jail after he was booked on suspicion of attempted rape and false imprisonment, said Orange County Sheriff's Lt. Mike Jansen.More

June 01, 2010

Man Accused of Killing Angels Pitcher Wants Change of Venue

Angels pitcher Nick Adenhart was killed along with two friends in April 2009.

SANTA ANA -- The suspected drunken driver charged in connection with the crash that killed Angels pitcher Nick Adenhart and two others wants his trial moved outside of Orange County.

An attorney for Andrew Thomas Gallo filed a motion Friday saying Gallo can't get a fair trial in Orange County where the Angels have a huge fan base and there's enormous sympathy for the victims.More

May 31, 2010

Los Angeles Man Is wrongly convicted then released From Prison after 14 years

Reggie Deshawn Cole spent 14 years behind bars for a murder he did not commit.

Shoddy investigation leading to a wrongful conviction, how does that happen in California?

LOS ANGELES -- A Los Angeles man who was wrongly convicted and sentenced to life in prison for a 1994 murder and attempted robbery in South Los Angeles is a free man today.More

May 29, 2010

L.A. police panel fails to disclose findings on use-of-force incidents

The outcomes of reviews of at least 240 shootings and other violent encounters with suspects were not revealed, despite a Police Commission promise four years ago to post decisions on the Internet.

The Los Angeles Police Commission has failed to publicly disclose its findings on at least 240 police shootings and other violent encounters with suspects, despite a promise four years ago to be more transparent and post its decisions on the Internet, a Times review has found. More

May 28, 2010

Wrongful Convictions in California are Plentiful

More than 200 men and women have been wrongfully convicted of serious crimes in California, six of whom were sentenced to death. Here are some of their stories.

Herman Atkins
County: Riverside
Convicted of: Forcible Rape, Forcible Oral Copulation, and Robbery
Year of Conviction: 1988
Sentence: 45 years
Year Released: 2000
Years Served: 11.5 years
Wrongful Conviction Factors: Mistaken eyewitness identification More

May 27, 2010

A death penalty record in L.A.

L.A. County led the U.S. in capital sentences in 2009. Prosecutors are being overzealous and inhumane.

Harris County, Texas, used to be known as the death penalty capital of the United States, the focus of national and global outrage over an outdated, costly and immoral form of criminal justice. But things have changed: Harris County now has a sentencing record that looks like Denmark's, and the hanging judges (or rather, prosecutors) seem to have relocated to liberal Los Angeles.More

May 26, 2010

California Needs Eyewitness Identification Reform

Herman Atkins suffered for 12 years in a California prison -- for crimes he did not commit. Then DNA exonerated him. Mr. Atkins was a victim of faulty eyewitness identification.

Mr. Atkins' wrongful conviction for rape and robbery began when the victim and a witness identified him as the perpetrator after seeing his picture on a wanted poster for an unrelated crime. Then, the photo array used later by police also contained the wanted poster photo, which had already been viewed by the witnesses. More

May 25, 2010

California's Innocence Projects Free Two Wrongfully Convicted Men in One Week

Thanks to the hard work and dedication of California’s Innocence Projects, two California men were found innocent and freed in one week in February after years in prison for crimes they did not commit. These new exonerations come almost a year after California’s largest gathering of wrongfully convicted people, the Faces of Wrongful Conviction Conference, sponsored by the ACLU-NC, the Innocence Projects, and others. More than two dozen of California’s wrongfully convicted stood together at the conference’s opening session, somberly reciting the number of years stolen from them by the State of California and stating, “I am free, but countless more innocent men and women
remain in prison.”

Now, two more join the ranks of California’s exonerated.More

May 24, 2010

L.A. officer gets probation in hotel worker assault

A Los Angeles police officer who had been accused in Travis County of attempting to sexually assault a motel worker in April 2009 pleaded guilty Wednesday to a reduced charge of assault, a misdemeanor, and was sentenced to two years of probation.

With the plea, Silvio Sam Filipovich, 44, agreed to surrender his peace officer's license and not to reapply to be a law officer anywhere in the country while on probation.More

May 21, 2010

Defense reiterates request for sealed transcripts in Polanski case

In court papers filed Friday, Roman Polanski's attorneys said transcripts they want unsealed will bolster their contention that Los Angeles County prosecutors relied on "false statements'' in seeking the filmmaker's extradition from Switzerland in his 1970s teen sex case.

Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Peter Espinoza is scheduled on Monday afternoon to hear a request from attorneys Chad S. Hummel and Bart Dalton for transcripts of the closed-door testimony of Roger Gunson, a now-retired prosecutor who was assigned to Polanski's case for 25 years. More

May 20, 2010

Two More Pot Dispensaries Raided; Arrests Made

Los Angeles police this week served search warrants on two medical marijuana dispensaries, resulting in at least a few arrests, according to Los Angeles Police Department officials.

Six search warrants and three arrest warrants led cops to Medco Organics at 326 N. Vermont Ave. in Hollywood and The Relief Co. at 5669 W. Pico Blvd. in Wilshire Vista, police said. The raids happened Tuesday. More

May 19, 2010

Extended Civil Commitment of Sex Offenders Is Upheld

WASHINGTON — In a broad endorsement of federal power, the Supreme Court on Monday ruled that Congress has the authority under the Constitution to allow the continued civil commitment of sex offenders after they have completed their criminal sentences.

The 7-to-2 decision touched off a heated debate among the justices on a question that has lately engaged the Tea Party movement and opponents of the new health care law: What limits does the Constitution impose on Congress’s power to legislate on matters not specifically delegated to it in Article I? More

May 18, 2010

JAMES MCCONVILLE AND FIVE OTHERS INDICTED ON CHARGES RELATED TO MORTGAGE FRAUD

OAKLAND, Calif. – United States Attorney Joseph P. Russoniello announced today that a federal grand jury in Oakland indicted the following individuals on charges of conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud:

JAMES DELBERT MCCONVILLE,
a/k/a Delbert James McConville,
LAURA MARGERY CATON,
a/k/a Laura Margery Tate
a/k/a Laura Gussman
ARAKS DAVOUDI,
a/k/a Araks Galstanian
DONNA DEMELLO,
a/k/a Donna Demello Martin,
a/k/a Donna Kay McDaniel,
a/k/a Donna Kay Demello,
JASON ARTHUR PIETTE, and
RASUL RASULI.

According to the indictment, McConville purchased hundreds of condominiums throughout California in the names of straw buyers, individuals who were promised $5,000 to $10,000 for the use of their name and credit. The loan applications are further alleged to have contained false information about the employment, income, and assets of the straw buyers. Davoudi is alleged to have worked at Citibank as a personal banker during the conspiracy. She is charged with creating fraudulent verifications of bank deposits for some of the straw buyers. The escrow agent, Demello, is charged with creating a fraudulent final settlement statement that concealed large payments to individuals and entities controlled by McConville. That fraudulent version of the final settlement statement was sent to the lenders funding the loans. The indictment also alleges that McConville laundered the proceeds of the fraudulent scheme by writing checks for the purchase of expensive works of art and a valuable Superman comic book. More

May 17, 2010

Former TV chef held on suspicion of murder for hire

A onetime Food Network chef and cookbook author is in custody for allegedly asking homeless people to kill someone for him, Santa Monica police officials said Friday.

Juan-Carlos Cruz, former host of “Calorie Commando,” was arrested Thursday and booked on suspicion of solicitation to commit murder, said Sgt. Jay Trisler.

Cruz, 48, is being held at Los Angeles County Jail on $5-million bail.

Police said Cruz allegedly approached people on the streets a week earlier and asked them to kill someone for him. At least one of the homeless individuals contacted police, and, with that assistance, investigators were able to learn details of the alleged solicitation, including how, where and when the target was to be killed, authorities said. More...

May 14, 2010

STOCKTON MAN INDICTED ON PASSPORT FRAUD, AGGRAVATED IDENTITY THEFT AND FELON IN POSSESSION OF FIREARM CHARGES

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced today that a federal grand jury returned a four-count indictment charging Enrique Fonseca Martinez, 53, of Stockton, with passport fraud, aggravated identity theft, illegal reentry into the United States and being a felon in possession of a firearm.More...

May 13, 2010

FORMER RESIDENT OF SAN PABLO CHARGED WITH TAX FRAUD, ATTEMPTING TO INTERFERE WITH IRS LAWS AND UNLAWFULLY OBTAINING NATURALIZATION AND CITIZENSHIP

SAN FRANCISCO – Harjit Bhambra made his initial appearance in federal court Friday on charges that include filing false tax returns, false statements, unlawfully obtaining naturalization and citizenship, and impeding the administration of Internal Revenue laws, United States Attorney Joseph P. Russoniello and Special Agent in Charge, IRS Criminal Investigation, Scott O’Briant announced. More...

May 11, 2010

TWO MORTGAGE FRAUD CASES CHARGED

Five Defendants Legally Changed Their Names to Conceal Scheme

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced today that a federal grand jury returned an indictment charging Jake Weathers, 34, Elk Grove, Glenn Watkins, 40, Elk Grove, Kevin Watkins, 25, Elk Grove, Frederick Davis, 40, Elk Grove, and Paul Yearby Jr., 29, of Fair Oaks, with 11 counts of mail fraud relating to their alleged operation of a mortgage fraud scheme that involved the defendants changing their names to Muslim names in order to obtain new credit and to conceal poor credit histories and other liabilities in their birth names. More...

May 10, 2010

Chaos in the Casitas

Lawless, south of the border-style speakeasies get a grip on L.A.

All along busy Florence Avenue, between Halldale and South Denker, two blocks from the corner where riots erupted over the Rodney King jury verdict in 1992, the air is pungent with the smell of onions and corn tortillas rising from Vicki’s Tacos, a silver lunch truck. On very late weekend nights, there’s usually a line for her tacos once the nearby clubs, El Tiburon and El Nuevo Reno, close, at 2 a.m.More...

May 07, 2010

SAN PEDRO FISH COMPANY PLEADS GUILTY TO FALSIFYING DOCUMENTS RELATED TO HARVEST OF PACIFIC SARDINES

LOS ANGELES – A San Pedro fish canning and packing business has pleaded guilty to federal wildlife trafficking charges for knowingly falsifying landing receipts for Pacific sardines in 2008 and 2009.More...

May 05, 2010

FORMER MARINE PLEADS GUILTY TO MANSLAUGHTER IN 1987 DEATH

NEWS RELEASE SUMMARY - April 28, 2010 United States Attorney Karen P. Hewitt announced that today Melvin Lutrell McGee pled guilty before United States District Court Judge Barry Ted Moskowitz to the charge of voluntary manslaughter in the 1987 death of Lance Corporal Christopher Gaines. The death took place on United States Marine Corps Base, Camp Pendleton, California, which is within the special maritime or territorial jurisdiction of the United States. More...

May 04, 2010

VALLEY MAN PLEADS GUILTY IN $39 MILLION PONZI SCHEME

Following Son’s Guilty Pleas, Father Admits Role in Scheme that Bilked 1,000

A Sherman Oaks man pleaded guilty today to 26 felony counts related to a long-running scam that offered investments in, among other things, caffeinated mints and took approximately $39 million from 1,000 victims across the United States.More...

May 03, 2010

12 DEFENDANTS PLEAD GUILTY TO DRUG, GUN CHARGES FOLLOWING JOINT FEDERAL-STATE INVESTIGATION IN SALINAS

SAN JOSE– 12 defendants have pleaded guilty in federal court in San Jose to charges stemming from the 2008 “Operation Money Train” law enforcement initiative in Salinas, United States Attorney Joseph P. Russoniello announced.More...

April 30, 2010

DEFENDANT SENTENCED TO PRISON FOR MURDER OF BORDER PATROL AGENT

U.S. Customs and Border Protection Border Patrol Agent Robert W. Rosas, Jr. was killed while on routine duty on the U.S. - Mexico Border in July 2009 More...

April 29, 2010

ANTIQUES DEALER AGREES TO PLEAD GUILTY TO FEDERAL CHARGES RELATED TO SALE OF FAKE PICASSO FOR $2 MILLION

LOS ANGELES – An art and antiques dealer has agreed to plead guilty to federal fraud charges related to a $2 million sale of a fabricated Picasso pastel. More...

April 28, 2010

EX-FBI AGENT AND ACCOMPLICE SENTENCED TO 30 YEARS IN PRISON FOR PLOTTING VIOLENT HOME-INVASION ROBBERY

SANTA ANA, California – A New Orleans man who was a special agent with the FBI for over a decade was sentenced today to 360 months in federal prison for scheming to commit a home-invasion robbery at a residence he thought was a drug “stash house.”More...

April 27, 2010

PUBLISHER OF BAY AREA NEWSPAPERS PLEADS GUILTY TO FILING FALSE TAX RETURNS

Failed to report income from newspapers

OAKLAND, Calif. – Harry Warren Green pleaded guilty today to filing false federal tax returns for 2000 - 2003, United States Attorney Joseph P. Russoniello and Special Agent in Charge, IRS Criminal Investigation, Scott O’Briant announced. The guilty plea was followed by a sentence and order of restitution issued by United States District Court Judge Sandra Brown Armstrong.More...

April 26, 2010

JOINT TASK FORCE ARRESTS 34 IN SALINAS

Federal Indictments Charge Methamphetamine and Cocaine Trafficking Ring

SAN JOSE, Calif. - A joint law enforcement task force in Salinas, Calif., today arrested 34 people and executed 30 search warrants in support of a violence suppression program. United States Attorney Joseph P. Russoniello announced that more than 250 federal, state, and local law enforcement officers participated in the operation, culminating an investigation that began in September 2009.More...

April 23, 2010

FORMER CEO OF KB HOME CONVICTED OF FEDERAL FRAUD CHARGES RELATED TO STOCK OPTION BACKDATING IN WHICH HE AWARDED HIMSELF MILLIONS OF DOLLARS IN COMPENSATION

LOS ANGELES – Bruce E. Karatz, a former CEO and chairman of the board of KB Home, was convicted today of four felony counts related to a stock option backdating scheme in which he awarded himself and other KB executives millions of dollars in undisclosed stock-based compensation.More...

April 22, 2010

FEDERAL PRISONER SERVING TIME FOR HEALTH CARE FRAUD CHARGED WITH DISTRIBUTING MISBRANDED DRUGS THAT WERE LABELED AS ‘ALL-NATURAL’ SEXUAL ENHANCEMENT

SANTA ANA, California – An Orange County man who is currently serving a 10-year federal prison sentence for health care fraud has been charged with distributing misbranded drugs called “Vitalex” that were marketed as “all-natural” versions of sexual enhancement drugs such as Viagra. More...

April 21, 2010

IMMIGRATION AGENCY ATTORNEY CONVICTED OF FEDERAL CORRUPTION CHARGES FOR TAKING THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS IN BRIBES FROM IMMIGRANTS SEEKING STATUS IN U.S.

LOS ANGELES – A senior attorney with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) was found guilty today of three dozen corruption-related charges for taking a series of bribes from immigrants who were seeking documentation to remain in the United States.
ICE Assistant Chief Counsel Constantine Peter Kallas, 39, of Alta Loma, was convicted by a federal jury following a three-week trial. The jury found Kallas guilty of conspiracy, six counts of bribery, two counts of obstruction of justice, seven counts of fraud and misuse of entry documents, three counts of aggravated identity theft, nine counts of making false statements to the Department of Labor, four counts of making false statements to obtain federal employee compensation, and four counts of tax evasion. More...

April 20, 2010

ORANGE COUNTY CANCER DOCTOR CHARGED WITH DEFRAUDING MEDICARE AND OTHER HEALTH INSURERS IN $1 MILLION SCAM

An Orange County cancer doctor has been charged with fraudulently billing Medicare and other health insurance companies up to $1 million for injectable cancer medications that never were provided.

Dr. Glen R. Justice, 65, of Corona del Mar, was named in a five-count criminal information that was filed yesterday afternoon in United States District Court in Santa Ana. In a plea agreement that was also filed yesterday, Justice agreed to plead guilty to five counts of health care fraud. More...

April 19, 2010

BAY AREA GUN TRAFFICKERS PLEAD GUILTY

Ring That Shipped Firearms from Georgia to San Francisco Bay Area Dismantled
SAN FRANCISCO - Four Vallejo, Calif., residents pleaded guilty in federal court in San Francisco to receiving firearms in California that had been unlawfully shipped from Georgia, United States Attorney Joseph P. Russoniello announced.More...

April 18, 2010

MEXICAN ACTRESS AND ‘HUSBAND’ ARRESTED BY FEDERAL AUTHORITIES FOR ALLEGEDLY ENTERING INTO SHAM MARRIAGE

LOS ANGELES – A Mexican national who has appeared in feature films and a Los Angeles man whom she married in June 2005 were arrested this morning by federal officials on marriage fraud charges that alleged they entered into a sham marriage so the actor could obtain legal status in the United States.More...

April 16, 2010

SAN GABRIEL VALLEY DOCTOR SENTENCED TO FOUR YEARS IN FEDERAL PRISON FOR ILLEGALLY DISPENSING HUGE AMOUNTS OF NARCOTICS WITHOUT EXAMINING HIS ‘PATIENTS’

Doctor with Duarte ‘Pain Clinic’ was Nation’s Largest Buyer of Hydrocodone

LOS ANGELES – A physician who operated a clinic in Duarte and dispensed massive quantities of powerful and addictive painkillers, such as oxycodone and hydrocodone, directly out of his office without examining “patients” who simply paid him cash for pills was sentenced this afternoon to 48 months in federal prison. More...

April 14, 2010

FEDERAL GRAND JURY INDICTS I.R.S. REVENUE AGENT FOR FILING FALSE TAX RETURNS AND THREATENING INVESTIGATORS

LOS ANGELES – A federal grand jury has indicted an Internal Revenue Service revenue agent on charges of filing false tax returns, helping others file false tax returns, and threatening to kill tax agents who were investigating his activities.More...

April 13, 2010

MAN CHARGED WITH IMPERSONATING AN ATTORNEY IN FRAUDULENT SCHEME

SAN FRANCISCO - A federal grand jury in San Francisco indicted Michael Anthony Nelson yesterday with mail fraud, wire fraud, computer fraud and aggravated identity theft, United States Attorney Joseph P. Russoniello announced. The indictment charges Nelson with carrying out a fraudulent scheme in which he impersonated a licensed attorney who is also named Michael Nelson. More...

April 12, 2010

FOUR SAN FRANCISCO MEN PLEAD GUILTY TO BANK FRAUD CONSPIRACY CHARGES IN $1.3 MILLION BANK “BUST OUT” SCHEME

SAN FRANCISCO - Three San Francisco men, Peter Chan, Kam Seto, and Zhijian Wu, pled guilty yesterday to bank fraud conspiracy charges, admitting to participating in a bank “bust out” scheme that defrauded banks of a total of more than $1.3 million, United States Attorney Joseph P. Russoniello announced. A fourth conspirator, Kent Wu, pled guilty on March 24, 2010, to a charge arising from the same scheme. A fifth defendant, David Chan, remains a fugitive. More...

April 09, 2010

ORANGE COUNTY MAN WHO PARTICIPATED IN MORTGAGE FRAUD SCHEME SENTENCED TO 60 MONTHS IN FEDERAL PRISON

LOS ANGELES – A Newport Coast man who defrauded the Department of Housing and Urban Development by fraudulently obtaining mortgage loans that went into default was sentenced today to five years in federal prison.More...

April 08, 2010

LA CAÑADA WOMAN SENTENCED TO SEVEN YEARS IN PRISON FOR SELLING MILLIONS OF DOLLARS OF FAKE ART THROUGH NATIONWIDE TV ART AUCTION PROGRAM

LOS ANGELES – A La Cañada woman who sold fake art – including works purported to be by Picasso, Dali and Chagall – through a rigged televised art auction has been sentenced to 84 months in federal prison.More...

April 07, 2010

TWO DESERT HOT SPRINGS POLICE OFFICERS INDICTED ON CHARGES OF ABUSING HANDCUFFED SUSPECTS WITH TASERS

LOS ANGELES – One current police officer and one former officer with the Desert Hot Springs Police Department surrendered this morning to face federal charges of violating the civil rights of suspects in police custody by using Taser guns to stun three victims, two of whom were in handcuffs when they were abused.More...

April 06, 2010

MEMBER OF COMMERCE CITY COUNCIL ARRESTED IN SCHEME TO HIDE ILLEGAL CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTIONS FROM GRAND JURY

Robert Fierro, a member of the Commerce City Council, was arrested this morning by special agents with the FBI, after a grand jury indicted him and two family members in a scheme to conceal illegally reimbursed campaign contributions from a federal grand jury that was investigating allegations of political corruption in the city just east of downtown Los Angeles. More...

April 02, 2010

FIVE CHARGED IN INSIDER TRADING RING THAT GENERATED MORE THAN $1.7 MILLION IN ILLEGAL PROFITS

LOS ANGELES -- Special agents with the FBI this morning arrested two of five defendants charged in an insider trading scheme in which the participants secretly used confidential information obtained from two investor relations firms to generate more than $1.7 million in illegal profits.More...

March 31, 2010

BEVERLY HILLS INVESTMENT ADVISOR WHO STOLE $8 MILLION FROM CLIENTS SENTENCED TO NINE YEARS IN FEDERAL PRISON

A Beverly Hills-based investment manager and stockbroker who confessed to running a Ponzi scheme that caused clients to lose more than $8 million was sentenced today to 108 months in federal prison.More...

March 30, 2010

FORMER UNION OFFICIAL CHARGED WITH EMBEZZLING MORE THAN $47,000 IN UNION FUNDS AND PERJURY

SAN JOSE, Calif. – A former union official has been charged with embezzling more than $47,000 in union funds and making false statements to a government agency, United States Attorney Joseph P. Russoniello announced. More...

March 29, 2010

FORMER BROCADE CEO CONVICTED OF SECURITIES FRAUD

Government Prevails in Options Backdating Prosecution

SAN FRANCISCO - Gregory L. Reyes, former Chief Executive Officer of Brocade Communications Systems, Inc. of San Jose, Calif., was convicted of four counts of securities fraud, four counts of lying to accountants and one count of false books and records by a federal jury today, First Assistant United States Attorney David L. Anderson announced.More...

March 25, 2010

INLAND EMPIRE MAN WHO PLEADED GUILTY TO ROLE IN $4 MILLION MORTGAGE SCAM SENTENCED TO OVER 7 YEARS

LOS ANGELES – Concluding a mortgage fraud case involving more than $4 million in losses at several banks, the fourth defendant convicted in the scheme was sentenced today to 85 months in federal prison.More...

March 24, 2010

OPERATOR OF STANDARD HOTEL IN LOS ANGELES AGREES TO PLEAD GUILTY TO ENVIRONMENTAL OFFENSE IN DUMPING OF POOL CHEMICALS THAT CAUSED ILLNESSES IN SUBWAY

The corporate operator of the Standard Hotel in downtown Los Angeles has agreed to plead guilty to violating federal environmental laws in an incident where a hotel employee dumped pool chemicals into a rooftop drain, which led to a street closure and several people becoming ill when fumes filled a subway station.More...

March 23, 2010

SAN FRANCISCO MAN SENTENCED TO 21 MONTHS FOR ROLE IN MORTGAGE FRAUD SCHEME

SAN FRANCISCO - Michael Chou was sentenced today to 21 months in prison and ordered to pay $360,800 in forfeiture as a result of his conviction for conspiring to commit wire fraud, United States Attorney Joseph P. Russoniello announced.More...

March 22, 2010

PENINSULA AREA MOTHER AND DAUGHTER CHARGED WITH NINE COUNTS OF TAX EVASION

Failed to Report Over $1,000,000 of Income

SAN FRANCISCO – Maria Virginia Reyes and Christine Reyes were indicted by federal grand jury in San Francisco on nine counts of tax evasion, United States Attorney Joseph P. Russoniello and Special Agent in Charge, IRS Criminal Investigation, Scott O’Briant announced. More...

March 19, 2010

ILLINOIS MAN SENTENCED TO 2½ YEARS IN PRISON FOR POSTING NUDE VIDEOS OF ESPN REPORTER ON INTERNET

LOS ANGELES – A Chicago-area man was sentenced this afternoon to 30 months in federal prison for taking nude videos of television personality Erin Andrews and posting the videos on the Internet after being rebuffed when he offered the videos for sale to a celebrity website.More...

March 18, 2010

LEAD DEFENDANT PLEADS GUILTY IN RICO MORTGAGE FRAUD CASE

United States Attorney Karen P. Hewitt announced that today lead defendant Darnell Bell entered a guilty plea to an indictment charging that he conspired to violate the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) statute by engaging in a pattern of racketeering activity, namely, wire fraud, bank fraud, and money laundering. The charged racketeering activity all stemmed from an extensive mortgage fraud scheme based in San Diego, California. Bell entered his guilty plea pursuant to a plea agreement in United States District Court before Magistrate Judge Nita L. Stormes, subject to final acceptance of the plea by U.S. District Judge Marilyn L. Huff. Bell is the fourth defendant to enter a guilty plea in this matter. Guilty pleas were previously entered by defendants Michael Ivy, Diana Jaime, and Marcus Dozzell.More...

March 17, 2010

FINAL DEFENDANT IN $6 MILLION FRAUD CASE INVOLVING BILLS FOR NONEXISTENT ADS SENTENCED TO 5½ YEARS IN PRISON

The seventh person convicted in relation to a scheme that collected more than $6 million from companies and organizations that thought they were paying for advertisements that had run in various minority-themed publications was sentenced today to 66 months in federal prison.More...

March 16, 2010

FAIRFIELD COUPLE CONVICTED OF RACIALLY-MOTIVATED ASSAULT

SACRAMENTO – United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced today that JOSEPH SILVA, 56, and his wife GEORGIA SILVA, 52, both of Fairfield, were convicted today by a jury, following a four day trial before U.S. District Judge John A. Mendez, of a federal civil rights felony offense in connection with a racially-motivated assault. The victim and his wife, an Indian-American couple, were attempting to enjoy El Dorado Beach at South Lake Tahoe in July 2007 when the SILVAS confronted and attacked them in what the jury determined was a bias-motivated assault. More...

March 15, 2010

SANTA MONICA RESTAURANT AND SUSHI CHEF CHARGED WITH SELLING MEAT OF PROTECTED SEI WHALES

LOS ANGELES – Federal prosecutors this afternoon filed a criminal complaint that charges a Santa Monica sushi restaurant and one its chefs with selling Sei whale meat.More...

March 12, 2010

SECURITIES BROKER PLEADS GUILTY TO ISSUING FALSE PRESS RELEASES TO INFLATE STOCK PRICES

SAN FRANCISCO - Lambros D. Ballas pleaded guilty in federal court in San Francisco yesterday to one count of securities fraud, United States Attorney Joseph P. Russoniello announced. More...

March 11, 2010

ACCOUNTANT PLEADS GUILTY TO $13.5 MILLION PONZI SCHEME

SACRAMENTO, Calif.– United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced today that WILLIAM MURRAY, 55, of Sacramento, pleaded guilty and was immediately taken into custody today. The guilty plea was entered before United States District Judge Edward J. Garcia to mail fraud and interference with tax administration.More...

March 10, 2010

SAN JOSE MAN SENTENCED TO 41 MONTHS IN FEDERAL PRISON

ILLEGALLY EARNED $3.5 MILLION IN MORTGAGE FRAUD SCHEME

SAN FRANCISCO - John A. Bui was sentenced today to 41 months in federal prison and ordered to pay $3,500,000 in forfeiture as a result of his convictions for conspiring to commit wire fraud, destruction of records in a federal investigation, and witness tampering, United States Attorney Joseph P. Russoniello announced.More...

March 09, 2010

SAN FERNANDO VALLEY MAN SENTENCED TO OVER 18 YEARS IN FEDERAL PRISON FOR SOLICITING MURDER OF I.C.E. INFORMANT

A Sherman Oaks man was sentenced this morning to 217 months in federal prison for his role in a bank fraud scheme and a related plot in which he attempted to hire a hitman to murder a witness who was prepared to testify against him in the fraud case.More...

March 05, 2010

MARINE CORPS CAPTAIN CHARGED WITH SKIMMING HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS FROM MILITARY CONTRACTS

Riverside, California – A captain in the United States Marine Corps was charged today with conspiring with his wife to skim approximately $1.75 million from government contracts awarded under the Iraqi First Program while he was acting as a Marine Corps contracting officer’s representative in Iraq.More...

March 04, 2010

LOS ANGELES WOMAN PLEADS GUILTY TO FALSELY TELLING F.B.I. THAT SHE HAD BEEN KIDNAPPED

A 24-year-old Los Angeles woman pleaded guilty today to lying to the FBI last summer when she claimed to have been the victim of a days-long armed kidnapping in which her captor brought her across state lines.More...

March 03, 2010

EUROPEAN FRAUDSTER CONVICTED IN INVESTMENT FRAUD SCHEME THAT BILKED VICTIMS OUT OF $7.3 MILLION

LOS ANGELES – A British national who ran an investment scam that took $7.3 million from victims who were promised that their money would be maintained in safe accounts and used only to back the purchase of bonds has been convicted on federal fraud and tax evasion charges.More...

March 02, 2010

14 ENTITIES PAY $15.4 MILLION TO RESOLVE ALLEGATIONS OF BID-RIGGING AND PRICE-FIXING ON DEFENSE CONTRACTS

LOS ANGELES – Trelleborg AB, a Swedish manufacturer of marine fenders and marine hose, and 13 other corporations and individuals, have paid the government a total of $15,448,728 to resolve civil allegations that they fraudulently overbilled the Navy and other federal agencies by bid-rigging and price-fixing on sales of materials used on piers and other marine construction projects.More...

February 26, 2010

TWO “SOVEREIGN CITIZENS” SENTENCED IN ILLEGAL INSURANCE SCHEME

SACRAMENTO, Calif.—United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced today that JAMES S. KALFSBEEK, 72, of Arbuckle, and DONNA JEAN ROWE, 59, of Lodi, were sentenced yesterday by United States District Judge Lawrence K. Karlton to terms of imprisonment of 10 years and four years respectively. On June 11, 2009, both defendants were convicted by a federal jury of conspiracy, mail fraud, and money laundering in connection with a fraudulent insurance scheme. Both defendants were also ordered to pay restitution in an amount to be determined at a later hearing and to serve a term of supervised release after serving their prison sentences.More...

February 25, 2010

FORMER HOSPITAL EXECUTIVE SENTENCED TO 37 MONTHS FOR PAYING KICKBACKS IN ‘SKID ROW’ HEALTH CARE FRAUD SCHEME

LOS ANGELES – The former co-owner of City of Angels Medical Center was sentenced today to 37 months in federal prison for paying illegal kickbacks for referrals of “patients” who were recruited from Los Angeles’ “Skid Row.” More...

February 24, 2010

DOCTOR WHO PLEADED GUILTY TO HEALTH CARE FRAUD FOR GIVING AIDS AND HIV PATIENTS DILUTED MEDICATIONS SENTENCED TO 15 MONTHS IN FEDERAL PRISON

SANTA ANA, California – A well-known AIDS doctor who pleaded guilty to federal health care fraud charges for “subdosing” patients by administering doses of medicine that contained less than the prescribed amount of medication that the patients were supposed to receive was sentenced this afternoon to 15 months in federal prison.More...

February 23, 2010

FINAL DEFENDANT ADMITS SHAKING DOWN INVESTORS CONNECTED TO $40 MILLION PONZI FRAUD

SACRAMENTO, Calif.— United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner, FBI Special Agent-in-Charge Drew Parenti, and IRS-Criminal Investigation Special-Agent-in-Charge Scott O'Briant announced today that MICHAEL DAVID SANDERS, aka David Dennis Sanders, and Dave Sanders, 42, of Fair Oaks, pleaded guilty to Conspiracy to Impersonate an Officer and Employee of the United States. SANDERS was the final defendant to plead; co-conspirator CRAIG ANDERSON, 39, of Chicago, pleaded guilty on February 1, to the same charge; CASSANDRA MOORE, 26, of Beverly Hills, and SEAN SMARTT, 41, of Sacramento, pleaded guilty to misdemeanor Unlawfully Possessing False Documents on February 4 and 5, respectively.More...

February 22, 2010

SHIPPING FIRM SENTENCED TO PAY $10 MILLION FOR CAUSING COSCO BUSAN OIL SPILL AND COVERUP

SAN FRANCISCO — Fleet Management Ltd. was ordered to pay $10 million today for its role in causing the Cosco Busan oil discharge and a subsequent cover-up after the ship struck the San Francisco Bay Bridge in November 2007, U.S. Attorney Joseph P. Russoniello and the Justice Department announced.More...

February 20, 2010

FIVE WHO TARGETED HOMEOWNERS IN DEFAULT SENTENCED TO FEDERAL PRISON IN $13 MILLION MORTGAGE FRAUD CASE

O.C. Man Gets 15 Years for Fraud, Refusal to Account for Off-Shore Money

LOS ANGELES – A Downey woman who orchestrated a real estate fraud scheme that caused nearly $13 million in losses after falsely promising to help homeowners in default on their mortgages has been sentenced to 10 years in federal prison. A second person involved in the scheme was sentenced yesterday to 15 years in prison after a federal judge determined that he had refused to account for proceeds of the scheme in an off-shore bank account that he had agreed in his plea agreement to repatriate.More...

February 19, 2010

LOS ANGELES TAX PREPARER ACCUSED OF DEFRAUDING U.S. WITH LIES ON VISA APPLICATIONS AND FALSE TAX RETURNS

A Hancock Park man who is charged with conducting a multi-faceted fraud against several government agencies – including applying for immigration visas with false claims that the aliens would be employed as religious workers in the United States – has pleaded not guilty to a series of charges in a federal grand jury indictment.More...

February 18, 2010

LONG BEACH MAN PLEADS GUILTY IN $33 MILLION PONZI THAT LURED INVESTORS WITH PROMISES OF PROFITS IN REAL ESTATE

A 33-year-old Long Beach man who operated a number of ventures that he used to solicit money with false claims of profitable investments in real estate has pleaded guilty to a federal wire fraud charge.More...

February 16, 2010

FORMER CALIFORNIA POWER AUTHORITY MANAGER PLEADS GUILTY TO DEFRAUDING STATE OF OVER $660,000

SACRAMENTO, Calif.– United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced today that BENJAMIN BUSTAMANTE, 32, of West Sacramento, pleaded guilty today before United States District Judge Garland E. Burrell Jr. to wire fraud in connection with a scheme to defraud the former California Power Authority Demand Reserve Partnership Program of over $680,000. More...

February 15, 2010

MORTGAGE BROKER AND REAL ESTATE DEVELOPER INDICTED IN $19.6M MORTGAGE FRAUD

SAN FRANCISCO – Yesterday a federal grand jury in San Francisco indicted Michael Ohayon and David Papera with conspiracy to commit bank fraud, bank fraud, and money laundering, United States Attorney Joseph P. Russoniello announced. More...

February 12, 2010

APPEALS COURT UPHOLDS BAN THAT PROHIBITS FELONS FROM POSSESSING FIREARMS

Right to Bear Arms Does Not Extend to Convicted Felons

SACRAMENTO, Calif.–The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in San Francisco issued an opinion on Monday upholding the federal ban on convicted felons possessing firearms as consistent with the Second Amendment of the Constitution. The three-judge panel unanimously affirmed the defendant’s conviction for being a felon in possession of a firearm. More...

February 11, 2010

FORMER TUSTIN HOSPITAL EXECUTIVE AGREES TO PLEAD GUILTY TO PAYING KICKBACKS IN ‘SKID ROW’ HEALTHCARE FRAUD PLOT

LOS ANGELES – The former chief financial officer of Tustin Hospital and Medical Center agreed in court papers filed today to plead guilty to paying illegal kickbacks for patients who were recruited from the “Skid Row” area of Los Angeles.More...

February 10, 2010

FORMER BOEING ENGINEER SENTENCED TO NEARLY 16 YEARS IN PRISON FOR STEALING AEROSPACE SECRETS FOR CHINA

SANTA ANA, California – An aerospace engineer was sentenced today to 188 months in federal prison for his conviction on charges of economic espionage and acting as an agent of the People's Republic of China for more than three decades while employed by Rockwell and Boeing, from which he stole restricted technology and trade secrets, including information related to the Space Shuttle program and Delta IV rocket.More...

February 09, 2010

THREE PLEAD GUILTY TO SHAKING DOWN INVESTORS CONNECTED TO $40 MILLION PONZI FRAUD

SACRAMENTO, Calif.— United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner, FBI Special Agent-in-Charge Drew Parenti, and IRS-Criminal Investigation Special-Agent-in-Charge Scott O’Briant announced today that, on February 5, 2010, CRAIG ANDERSON, 39, of Chicago, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to impersonate an officer and employee, and CASSANDRA MOORE, 26, of Beverly Hills and SEAN SMARTT, 41, of Sacramento, pleaded guilty to unlawfully possessing false documents, a misdemeanor. A fourth defendant, MICHAEL DAVID SANDERS, 41, of Fair Oaks, is confirmed to begin trial on March 1, 2010. More...

February 08, 2010

OPERATOR OF MALIBU-BASED ‘CAP X’ INVESTMENT PROGRAM ARRESTED FOR ALLEGEDLY RUNNING $12 MILLION PONZI SCHEME

The promoter of a bogus investment offering involving distressed business assets was taken into custody this morning on federal mail and wire fraud charges that charge him with running a Ponzi scheme in which he raised at least $12 million from victims across the United States.More...

February 05, 2010

FIFTH GANG MEMBER SENTENCED TO LIFE WITHOUT PAROLE AFTER CONVICTIONS IN MASSIVE FEDERAL RACKETEERING CASE

Other Members of Florencia 13 Gang Receive Multi-Decade Sentences for Numerous Crimes, including Race-Based Attacks, Committed in Bid to Control Drug Trade and Extend Gang Territory into Other Neighborhoods. More...

February 04, 2010

WEST COVINA MAN PLEADS GUILTY IN PONZI SCHEME BASED ON BOGUS INVESTMENTS IN LATEX GLOVES AFTER 9/11 ATTACKS

A West Covina man has pleaded guilty to federal mail fraud charges for running a Ponzi scheme that took nearly $700,000 from victims who thought they were investing in latex gloves, which were portrayed as being in high demand following the 9/11 terrorist attacks. More...

February 03, 2010

FORMER PRESIDENT OF INLAND EMPIRE MORTGAGE COMPANY SENTENCED TO 13 YEARS IN FEDERAL PRISON IN FRAUD SCHEME THAT LED TO NEARLY $30 MILLION IN LOSSES AT H.U.D.

RIVERSIDE, California – The former president of Mortgage One Corporation in Hesperia was sentenced this afternoon to 13 years in federal prison for defrauding the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development and private lenders by fraudulently obtaining hundreds of federally insured loans and selling those mortgages to private lenders in a scheme that caused tens of millions of dollars in losses to the federal housing agency. More...

February 02, 2010

REAL ESTATE APPRAISER SENTENCED TO 3 YEARS IN PRISON IN MORTGAGE FRAUD SCHEME THAT LED TO $46 MILLION IN LOSSES

LOS ANGELES – A former state-licensed real estate appraiser was sentenced today to three years in federal prison and ordered to pay more than $46 million in restitution for her role in a massive mortgage fraud scheme that caused tens of millions of dollars in losses to federally insured banks.More...

February 01, 2010

Bank Robber Sentenced To Serve 57 Months In Federal Prison

San Diego, CA - United States Attorney Karen P. Hewitt announced that Miguel Dario Florez was sentenced today in federal court in San Diego by United States District Judge William Q. Hayes to serve 57 months in custody based on the defendant’s conviction for five counts of bank robbery, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 2113(a).More...

January 31, 2010

FORMER BANK OF THE WEST CUSTOMER SERVICE MANAGER PLEADS GUILTY TO EMBEZZLEMENT

FRESNO, Calif. – United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced today that DONICE MAXINE MEDINA, 53, of Parlier, Calif., pleaded guilty today to theft and embezzlement of bank funds before United States District Judge Lawrence J. O’Neill.More...

January 29, 2010

CANADIAN TRUCK DRIVER ADMITS TO SMUGGLING $435,000 AND ECSTASY

CHP Stop Led to the Arrest

SACRAMENTO, Calif.—United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner and United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement Assistant Special Agent-in-Charge Dan Lane announced today that ROBERT JAMES FOX, 38, of British Columbia, Canada, pleaded guilty on Tuesday to possession with intent to distribute MDMA (commonly known as Ecstasy) and bulk cash smuggling.More...

January 28, 2010

NEBRASKA MAN AGREES TO PLEAD GUILTY IN ATTACK OF SCIENTOLOGY WEBSITES ORCHESTRATED BY ‘ANONYMOUS'

LOS ANGELES – A Nebraska man agreed today to plead guilty to participating in an attack on Church of Scientology websites in January 2008 that shut down the group’s websites.More...

January 27, 2010

INMATE WHO WAS SERVING TIME IN STATE PRISON FOR IDENTITY THEFT SENTENCED TO 8½ YEARS IN FEDERAL PRISON IN SECOND IDENTITY THEFT CASE FOR TAKING OVER CREDIT CARDS

RIVERSIDE, California – A man who was serving a three-year state prison sentence for identity theft was sentenced today to serve 102 months in federal prison after pleading guilty to federal charges of identity theft and organizing a bank fraud scheme while he was incarcerated at the California State Prison in Centinela.More...

January 25, 2010

MANAGER OF EAST BAY FUEL TERMINAL SENTENCED TO ONE YEAR OF HOME CONFINEMENTFOR VIOLATING THE CLEAN AIR ACT

Also sentenced to 200 hours community service related to health impacts of air pollution More...

January 22, 2010

CONMAN FOUND GUILTY OF OPERATING $62 MILLION PONZI SCHEME THAT TARGETED SPANISH-SPEAKING INVESTORS

LOS ANGELES – A Huntington Park man who preyed on Spanish-speaking investors with promises of hefty returns in the real estate bubble has been found guilty of federal charges for bilking more than 2,000 victims out of more than $62 million.More...

January 21, 2010

SUPPLEMENT MANUFACTURER PLEADS GUILTY TO SELLING PRODUCTS CONTAINING ANABOLIC STEROIDS

VMG Global, Inc. Admits Selling Spiked Supplements Containing “Tren,”or "4-estra," and "Madol," or "DMT." More...

January 20, 2010

INLAND EMPIRE MAN AND THAI SUPPLIER CHARGED WITH SMUGGLING IVORY FROM ENDANGERED AFRICAN ELEPHANTS

LOS ANGELES – A federal grand jury today indicted a Southland man and a Thai national in a scheme that allegedly smuggled ivory from endangered African elephants into the United States.More...

January 19, 2010

DEFENDANT WHO WAS FUGITIVE FOR 12 ½ YEARS SENTENCED TO 240 MONTHS FOR 1992 DRUG TRAFFICKING OFFENSE

SAN FRANCISCO - Donnell Hatcher was sentenced Tuesday to 240 months in prison for possession with intent to distribute heroin, a sentence which will run consecutive to a previously-imposed 200 month sentence, United States Attorney Joseph P. Russoniello announced. More...

January 18, 2010

HEDGE FUND MANAGER WHO BILKED RELATIVES OUT OF $25 MILLION SENTENCED TO OVER 10 YEARS IN FEDERAL PRISON

After admitting that he ran a Ponzi scheme that targeted family members and close friends and caused them to lose more than $25 million, the founder and manager of two Beverly Hills hedge funds was sentenced today to 121 months in federal prison.More...

January 16, 2010

FEDERAL COURTHOUSE BOMB SUSPECT PLEADS GUILTY

SACRAMENTO– United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced today that MATTHEW FRATICELLI, 31, of south Sacramento, entered a guilty plea today to a charge of possession of an unregistered destructive device. The guilty plea was taken from the defendant in federal court in Sacramento by United States District Judge Edward J. Garcia. More...

January 15, 2010

MAN SENTENCED TO OVER 13 YEARS IN $21 MILLION PONZI SCHEME THAT COSTS DOZENS OF VICTIM THEIR LIFE SAVINGS

Victims Describe Ordeals of Loss after ‘Up-Close’ Meetings with Fraudster More...

January 14, 2010

UNLICENSED ORANGE COUNTY MORTGAGE BROKER SENTENCED TO NEARLY SIX YEARS IN PRISON IN $40 MILLION FRAUD SCHEME

SANTA ANA, California – A San Clemente man who acted as a mortgage broker under several umbrellas, including the Orange-based Lucrativo Real Estate Solutions, Inc., was sentenced this morning to 70 months in federal prison for his conviction on tax evasion, mail fraud and credit card fraud charges related to a mortgage fraud scheme that caused at least $7 million in losses.More...

January 13, 2010

GUILTY PLEA IN PASADENA ARSON PLOT LINKED TO DOMESTIC TERRORIST ORGANIZATION

A Los Angeles-area man who installed a gasoline bomb in a multi-million dollar condominium development under construction in Pasadena pleaded guilty this afternoon to a federal conspiracy charge in which he admitted working on behalf of the Earth Liberation Front.More...

January 12, 2010

UNLICENSED ORANGE COUNTY MORTGAGE BROKER SENTENCED TO NEARLY SIX YEARS IN PRISON IN $40 MILLION FRAUD SCHEME

SANTA ANA, California – A San Clemente man who acted as a mortgage broker under several umbrellas, including the Orange-based Lucrativo Real Estate Solutions, Inc., was sentenced this morning to 70 months in federal prison for his conviction on tax evasion, mail fraud and credit card fraud charges related to a mortgage fraud scheme that caused at least $7 million in losses.More...

January 11, 2010

WEST HOLLYWOOD ANTIQUES DEALER FACES CHARGES OF SELLING FAKE PICASSO DRAWING FOR $2 MILLION

Dealer Claimed the Art Once Belonged to Malcolm Forbes

LOS ANGELES – A West Hollywood antiques dealer has been named in a federal fraud case involving the $2 million sale of a fake Pablo Picasso that she paid an artist $1,000 to fabricate. Tatiana Khan was informed of the charges this morning by FBI agents who also seized a $700,000 de Kooning painting that prosecutors allege was purchased with proceeds derived from the sale of the bogus Picasso.More...

January 08, 2010

GRAND JURY INDICTS DOCTOR WHO HEADED LIVER TRANSPLANT PROGRAM ON CHARGES OF COVERING UP PATIENT SWITCH

Intended Recipient of Liver was Removed From Wait List and Later Died

A Los Angeles surgeon who was the director of the liver transplant program at St. Vincent Medical Center in Los Angeles was indicted today by a federal grand jury for lying to the national organ transplant network after a liver accepted on behalf of one patient was instead transplanted into another patient who was significantly lower on the national wait list. More...

January 06, 2010

MANTECA BUSINESS OWNER ADMITS AIDING AND ABETTING THE SALE OF UNINSPECTED BEEF

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced today that RICHARD J. RIELLA, 48, of Manteca, pleaded guilty to two misdemeanor counts of aiding and abetting the sale of uninspected beef.More...

January 05, 2010

ORANGE COUNTY MAN ADMITS TO POSTING PRE-RELEASE ‘SCREENER’ OF HOLLYWOOD MOVIE ON INTERNET

An Irvine man today agreed to plead guilty to a felony charge of uploading a pre-release version of the movie “The Love Guru” to a website operated by a piracy group that made the movie widely available on the Internet. More...

January 04, 2010

FEDERAL AUTHORITIES ANNOUNCE LARGE INCREASE IN CRIMINAL IMMIGRATION PROSECUTIONS IN CENTRAL VALLEY

47% increase in federal indictments over prior year More...

December 30, 2009

Former Park-and-Ride Security Guard Convicted of Murder

LANCASTER – After nearly a month of deliberation, jurors today convicted a former security guard of fatally shooting an 18-year-old college student in a Palmdale park-and-ride lot. More...

December 29, 2009

ACCUSED KILLER RETURNED TO MEXICO AFTER EXTRADITION REQUEST

FRESNO, Calif. - United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced today that ARMANDO REYES ANDRADE, 57, a Mexican national and resident of Riverbank, California, was returned to Mexico yesterday following a Mexican extradition request for him to stand trial for the January 2005 shooting death of Celedonio Leon Tapia in the state of Michoacan. More...

December 28, 2009

Man Charged in Ex-Girlfriend’s Murder

VAN NUYS – A 30-year-old East Los Angeles man accused of fatally stabbing his ex-girlfriend was charged with murder today, the District Attorney’s Office announced. More...

December 24, 2009

TIBURON MAN SENTENCED TO 42 MONTHS IN CUSTODY IN CONNECTION WITH FAKE INVESTMENT SCHEME

SAN FRANCISCO - Malcolm McVickar Jr. was sentenced today to 42 months in prison and ordered to pay $436,583.37 in restitution for mail fraud and wire fraud, United States Attorney Joseph P. Russoniello announced. More...

December 23, 2009

TWO FRESNO MEN CONVICTED IN SPREE OF 30 ARMED ROBBERIES

FRESNO, Calif.–United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner,Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF)Special Agent in Charge Stephen Herkins, Fresno County DistrictAttorney Elizabeth A. Egan, and Fresno Chief of Police Jerry Dyerannounced today that a jury returned More...

December 22, 2009

NEW YORK RABBI SENTENCED TO TWO YEARS IN FEDERAL PRISON IN SCHEME TO DEFRAUD FEDERAL TAX AUTHORITIES

LOS ANGELES – The Grand Rabbi of Spinka, a religious group within Orthodox Judaism, was sentenced this morning to two years in federal prison for orchestrating a tax evasion scheme that prosecutors called “an astonishingly complex and sinister enterprise.”More...

December 21, 2009

NEVADA MAN SENTENCED TO THREE YEARS IN PRISON FOR LYING TO OBTAIN NEW PASSPORT AFTER AUTHORITIES SEIZED HIS PASSPORT DURING INVESTIGATION INTO DOUBLE MURDER

LOS ANGELES – An alleged leader of a Las Vegas-based white supremacist gang has been sentenced to three years in federal prison by a federal judge who found that he lied on a passport application as he fled an investigation into his possible involvement in a hate crime in which two people were murdered. More...

December 18, 2009

ARCHITECT OF MORTGAGE FRAUD AND REAL ESTATE INVESTMENT FRAUD SCHEMES PLEADS GUILTY IN FEDERAL COURT

SAN FRANCISCO - Patricia Morgen pleaded guilty in federal court in San Francisco yesterday to wire fraud, mail fraud and money laundering, United States Attorney Joseph P. Russoniello announced.More...

December 17, 2009

INDICTMENT UNSEALED CHARGING NINE WITH SEX TRAFFICKING OF CHILDREN

United States Attorney Karen P. Hewitt announced that Malcolm Jamal Allen, Ama Bahati Bernard, Devon Leontae Sutton, Birdia Rollins, Nicole Brook Tierney, Vincent Windsor Heimstra, Dominique Cortez Little, Joseph Anthony Ponder, and Alexandra Grove, have been charged in a previously sealed six-count indictment handed up by a federal grand jury on December 4, 2009, with Conspiracy to Violate Sex Trafficking of Children and by Force, Fraud and Coercion; Sex Trafficking of Children and by Force, Fraud and Coercion; Sexual Exploitation of a Child and Aiding and Abetting. The indictment was unsealed today before United States Magistrate Judge Nita L. Stormes. All defendants are currently in custody.More...

December 16, 2009

UNIVERSITY OF PHOENIX SETTLES FALSE CLAIMS ACT LAWSUIT FOR $67.5 MILLION

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The Justice Department announced today that the University of Phoenix has agreed to pay the United States $67.5 million to resolve allegations that its student recruitment policies violated the False Claims Act.More...

December 15, 2009

AUDIOLOGIST SENTENCED TO SIX MONTHS IN PRISON FOR MEDICARE FRAUD

FRESNO, Calif. – United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced today that ADAM JOHN SORTINI, 88, of Merced, was sentenced on December 11, 2009, by United States District Judge Oliver W. Wanger, to six months in prison to be followed by 15 months of home confinement, plus restitution of $100,000, for his scheme to defraud the Medicare program by submitting false billings for audiology services. A jury found him guilty of 17 counts of mail fraud and one count of health care fraud on November 4, 2008.More...

December 14, 2009

Judge Sentences Defendant to Serve 210 Months In Federal Prison For Conspiracy To Conduct Enterprise Affairs Through A Pattern of Racketeering Activity

United States Attorney Karen P. Hewitt announced that Jose Rojas was sentenced today in federal court in San Diego by United States District Court Judge Barry Ted Moskowitz to serve 210 months in custody, based on his conviction for conspiracy to conduct enterprise affairs through a pattern of racketeering activity, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1962(d). The sentence imposed today for Rojas followed his guilty plea earlier this year.More...

December 11, 2009

STOCKTON MAN CONVICTED OF BANK FRAUD, AGGRAVATED I.D. THEFT, AND POSSESSION OF STOLEN U.S. MAIL

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced today that RUSSELL ANTHONY HARDCASTLE, 39, of Stockton, pleaded guilty this morning before United States District Judge Lawrence K. Karlton to felony bank fraud, aggravated identity theft, and possession of stolen U.S. mail.More...

December 10, 2009

VALLEY MAN ADMITS SOLICITING MURDER OF INFORMANT HELPING INVESTIGATORS IN BANK FRAUD INVESTIGATION

LOS ANGELES – A Sherman Oaks man has pleaded guilty to solicitation of murder, admitting that he was willing to pay to a hitman to kill an informant working with federal investigators who were looking into a bank fraud scheme. More...

December 09, 2009

BURBANK MAN SENTENCED TO EIGHT YEARS IN FEDERAL PRISON FOR LAUNDERING PROCEEDS RELATED TO HEALTH CARE FRAUD

A publisher of Russian-language newspapers and magazines was sentenced today to eight years in federal prison for running a sophisticated “cash-back” scheme that helped numerous perpetrators of health care fraud to avoid the payment of taxes and to obtain cash to be used for kickbacks to associates.More...

December 08, 2009

Brown Halts UCLA Professor's Use of Charitable Funds for Personal Business Ventures

Los Angeles -Attorney General Edmund G. Brown Jr. today reached a settlement with UCLA Professor Gerald D. Buckberg, M.D., and five officers of the nonprofit L.B. Research and Education Foundation ("L.B.") that forces them to stop using the charity as a "personal bank account" to finance their business ventures. More...

December 07, 2009

KERLAN-JOBE ORTHOPAEDIC CLINIC AGREES TO PAY $3 MILLION TO SETTLE KICKBACK ALLEGATIONS

LOS ANGELES – The Kerlan-Jobe Orthopaedic Clinic, a sports medicine clinic with offices across the Los Angeles area, has agreed to pay the United States $3 million to settle allegations that it received illegal kickbacks from HealthSouth Corporation, the Justice Department announced today.More...

December 04, 2009

KAISER ENTITIES AGREE TO SETTLE MATTER BROUGHT UNDER HHS-OIG VOLUNTARY SELF DISCLOSURE PROTOCOL

SAN FRANCISCO – Four Kaiser entities in Northern and Southern California have agreed to pay the government $3,752,000 to resolve allegations that they submitted false claims to the United States in connection with payments from the Medicare and Medicaid programs, U.S. Attorney Joseph P. Russoniello announced.More...

December 03, 2009

Man Deemed Sane in LAX Police Officer’s Murder

LOS ANGELES – A 51-year-old man faces life in prison after a Los Angeles jury determined today he was sane when he carjacked and murdered a Los Angeles International Airport police officer in 2005.More...

December 02, 2009

FORMER POLICE OFFICER IS SENTENCED FOR FALSELY CLAIMING SILVER STAR MILITARY DECORATION

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced today that ERIC GENE PIOTROWSKI, 41, of Elk Grove, was sentenced this morning by United States Magistrate Judge Gregory G. Hollows to 12 months probation and 200 hours of community service for falsely claiming that he was awarded a Silver Star Military decoration during Operation Desert Storm. He pleaded guilty on September 15, 2009. Under the Stolen Valor Act, which was enacted in late 2006, it is a misdemeanor offense to wear military medals that were not in fact awarded, or to falsely claim to have been awarded such medals. More...

November 30, 2009

RIO DELL RESIDENT SENTENCED TO SIX YEARS IN PRISON FOR MARIJUANA CULTIVATING OPERATION

Forfeited real property and $945,000 Promissory Note

OAKLAND, Calif. – Jordan Pyhtila was sentenced Wednesday to six years in prison, followed by three years of supervised release for maintaining a place to manufacture marijuana and conspiracy to launder money, United States Attorney Joseph P. Russoniello announced.More...

November 27, 2009

CLEANUP COMPANY PLEADS GUILTY AND IS SENTENCED FOR FALSE REPORTING

Employee Found with Illegal Drugs from DEA Cleanup Site Sentenced

FRESNO, Calif. — United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner, California Secretary for Environmental Protection Linda S. Adams, California Department of Toxic Substances Control Acting Director Maziar Movassaghi, and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Special Agent-in-Charge Anthony D. Williams announced today that PROFESSIONAL ASBESTOS REMOVAL CORPORATION, also known as PARC ENVIRONMENTAL, pleaded guilty this morning before Chief United States District Judge Anthony W. Ishii to making a false statement in a uniform hazardous waste manifest in violation of the Federal Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, which governs the safe handling and storage of hazardous materials, including hazardous waste found at clandestine drug labs.More...

November 26, 2009

THREE FAMILY MEMBERS WHO USED IDENTITY THEFT IN CREDIT CARD ‘BUST-OUT’ SENTENCED TO FEDERAL PRISON TERMS

SANTA ANA, California – Three members of a Los Angeles family who operated a credit card “bust-out” scheme in the neighborhoods surrounding the Little Armenia section of Los Angeles have been sentenced to up to eight years in federal prison after pleading guilty to fraud charges.More...

November 25, 2009

U.K.-BASED FRAUDSTER SENTENCED TO NEARLY SIX YEARS IN PRISON FOR WORKING IN MULTIMILLION DOLLAR ‘LOTTERY SCAM’

LOS ANGELES – A man who participated in a London-based telemarketing scheme that defrauded elderly victims in the United States and the United Kingdom with false promises of lottery winnings was sentenced today to 70 months in federal prison.More...

November 24, 2009

SACRAMENTO GANG MEMBER GETS 6 YEARS AND 5 MONTHS SENTENCE FOR BANK ROBBERY

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced today that United States District Judge Frank C. Damrell Jr. sentenced MICHAEL ANDREW WILLIAMS, 28, of Sacramento, to six years and five months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release for bank robbery. He was also ordered to pay restitution. More...

November 23, 2009

FORMER UKRAINIAN PRIME MINISTER SENTENCED TO 97 MONTHS IN PRISON

Fined $9 Million for Role in Laundering $30 Million of Extortion Proceeds More...

November 20, 2009

FORMER CEO OF BRICSNET FM AMERICA, INC. INDICTED FOR EMBEZZLING OVER $1,000,000 FROM COMPANY

SAN FRANCISCO - Ethan Farid Jinian made his initial appearance in federal court this morning after a federal grand jury indicted him on 14 counts of wire fraud in connection with his alleged embezzlement from Bricsnet FM America Inc., United States Attorney Joseph P. Russoniello announced. More...

November 19, 2009

FORMER NFL PLAYER SENTENCED TO NEARLY FIVE YEARS IN FRAUD SCHEME THAT COST VICTIMS OVER $5 MILLION

SANTA ANA, California – A former high school and college football star who briefly played with the Tennessee Titans was sentenced this afternoon to 57 months in federal prison after pleading guilty to fraud charges related to a $5 million Ponzi scheme.More...

November 18, 2009

BUSINESS OWNER PLEADS GUILTY IN VALLEJO ARSON OF WINES CENTRAL WAREHOUSE

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner, ATF Special Agent in Charge Stephen Herkins, and IRS Special Agent in Charge Scott O’Briant announced that late this afternoon MARK C. ANDERSON, 61, of Sausalito, pleaded guilty to all 19 charges in an indictment that included one count of arson, four counts of interstate transportation of fraudulently obtained property, nine counts of mail fraud, one count of use of a fictitious name, and four counts of tax evasion stemming from the October 12, 2005 arson of the Wines Central warehouse in Vallejo.More...

November 17, 2009

DOCTOR SENTENCED TO NEARLY FIVE YEARS IN PRISON FOR WRITING CONTROLLED SUBSTANCE PRESCRIPTIONS FOR CASH

SANTA ANA, California – A physician who operated a medical clinic in Westminster was sentenced today to 57 months in federal prison for illegally writing prescriptions for “patients” who simply paid cash to have access to dangerous narcotics. More...

November 16, 2009

SEVEN CHARGED IN 53 COUNT, MILLION DOLLAR MORTGAGE FRAUD SCHEME

More Than 100 Properties Involved More...

November 13, 2009

FORMER EDD EMPLOYEE PLEADS GUILTY TO SCHEME TO PROVIDE FRAUDULENT DISABILITY PAYMENTS TO FRIENDS

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced today that AUDREY RENEE BELL, 49, of Pacoima, Calif., pleaded guilty today after the United States rested its case last week in a two-week jury trial. The guilty plea was entered before Senior United States District Judge Lawrence K. Karlton to 10 counts of mail fraud. More...

November 12, 2009

VALLEY BUSINESSMAN SENTENCED TO 2½ YEARS IN PRISON FOR SELLING NON-CONFORMING GASKETS USED ON BOEING JETS

A Woodland Hills businessman was sentenced today to 30 months in federal prison for selling uncertified rubber gaskets that were installed on Boeing 737 aircraft. More...

November 10, 2009

MANAGER OF HEDGE FUNDS PLEADS GUILTY TO MAIL FRAUD

Alexander Trabulse admits to engaging in fraudulent conduct More...

November 09, 2009

MANAGER OF HEDGE FUNDS PLEADS GUILTY TO MAIL FRAUD

Alexander Trabulse admits to engaging in fraudulent conduct More...

November 06, 2009

VENTURA COUNTY MAN SENTENCED TO NEARLY EIGHT YEARS IN FEDERAL PRISON IN $1 MILLION IDENTITY THEFT CASE

A Thousand Oaks man was sentenced today to 95 months in federal prison for orchestrating an identity theft scheme in which he used personal identifying information taken from dozens of mortgage and credit files to fraudulently obtain credit cards that were used to purchase more than $1 million in goods and services. More...

November 05, 2009

ORANGE COUNTY MAN WHO FIRED LASERS AT COMMERCIAL AIRCRAFT SENTENCED TO 2½ YEARS IN FEDERAL PRISON

LOS ANGELES – A resident of Orange who willfully interfered with aircraft pilots by intentionally shooting a laser at two commercial airliners that were on approach to John Wayne Airport has been sentenced to serve 30 months in federal prison. More...

November 04, 2009

WESTLAKE VILLAGE MAN WHO ORCHESTRATED $64 MILLION PONZI SCHEME SENTENCED TO 25 YEARS IN FEDERAL PRISON

Victims Were Told Money Would Buy Insurance for South Los Angeles Churches

A Los Angeles County man who was the leader of a $64 million Ponzi scheme that bilked 63 investors in California and Texas with false promises of huge returns from investments in a bond-trading program and a life insurance pool that would benefit members of African-American churches in South Los Angeles was sentenced today to 300 months in federal prison. More...

November 03, 2009

DEFENDANTS SENTENCED TO 18 MONTHS FOR DEFRAUDING CALIFORNIA STATE AGENCY

FRESNO, Calif. — United States Attorney Lawrence G. Brown announced today that United States District Judge Lawrence J. O’Neill sentenced MARIO JURADO PENA, 39, of Sanger on Friday, October 30, 2009 to 18 months in prison and $3,120,706 in restitution for defrauding the State of California, Employment Development Department (EDD), of millions of dollars. PENA will serve his sentence in addition to the nine years he is currently serving for a narcotics conviction. Also sentenced for the same charge was his wife, JACQUELINE CHAVES JURADO, 34, of Sanger, who received one year of home detention and three years of supervised release. More...

November 02, 2009

HIGHEST OFFICIAL WITH INLAND EMPIRE INDIAN TRIBE SURRENDERS TO FEDERAL AUTHORITIES ON BRIBERY CHARGES

The chairman of the Soboba Band of Luiseno Indians surrendered this afternoon to federal agents after being indicted on federal charges of accepting a quarter million dollars in bribes from tribal vendors and concealing income from the IRS. More...