Controversies
San Diego Veterans Cemetery Looks Different with Most of the Grass Dead
Cemetery Director Tom Mullen said a big chunk of the landscape greenery is dead on purpose. Gravestones are being realigned in certain sections, so the ground has to be prepared just so. They turn off the water and use Monsanto’s Roundup weed killer to finish the job. But a larger chunk of real estate involves an upgrade to the irrigation system, which is plagued by broken valves. read more
Hollywood Wins Battle with Bicyclists for the Streets of L.A.
Although the 6-foot-wide strip, stretching 1.5 miles along Spring Street, brightened the day of bicyclists who rode on it, the neon green paint proved too distracting for filmmakers. They claim that the bright lights of a film set reflect off the paint, causing a weird green glow everywhere and ruining one of the most popular locations for street shots in L.A. read more
On its Way to Passing a Budget, Legislature “Guts” Key Open-Government Law
The legislation changes existing law to give local and state agencies the power to restrict public data to electronic formats, like pdf files (rather than spreadsheets or cvs files), which cannot be used in databases that are conducive to analysis. Local governments would also be allowed to deny written requests for public records without giving a reason, or, if the mood strikes them, not to respond at all. read more
HIV Patients in Class-Action Lawsuit over Forced Mail-Order Drug Program
The lawsuit claims that “HIV/AIDS patients face a potentially life-threatening decision that also threatens their privacy” because of United Healthcare’s requirement that they use mail-order pharmacies. Many of the drugs used by HIV/AIDS patients need refrigeration, but delivery to a house, apartment or office could be problematic for more than just safety reasons. read more
Lawmakers Kill Proposed New Limits on Public Access to Court Records
Back in March it became known that Governor Jerry Brown’s proposed budget contained a provision to levy a $10 fee on anyone requesting a court record. The seemingly small fee is actually a large impediment to journalists who routinely request access to 10 or more documents in the course of a day.
Researchers working for law firms, landlords and companies who scour court records for information on debts, probate and evictions would also feel the impact. read more
Wealthy Town, Surrounded by Oakland, to Photograph License Plates at Municipal Border
The wealthy East Bay city of Piedmont, totally surrounded by the not-so-wealthy city of Oakland, passed an ordinance last week to deploy cameras on every road leading into town to snap pictures of license plates. Piedmont is one of the few towns that is setting up cameras to shoot pictures of everyone entering and leaving town. read more
Judge Stops Whittier Oil Project on Land Intended to be a Nature Preserve
Judge James C. Chalfant ruled that the city couldn’t sign leases with oil companies to drill on 1,280 acres in the Whittier Hills because it had purchased the land using funds from Proposition A, a 1992 Los Angeles County ballot measure aimed at preserving natural lands and open space.
“When the parties say we want this for open space . . . that is inconsistent with having an oil derrick on it,” Chalfant reportedly said from the bench. read more
A Look at How State Agencies Fail to Protect Personal Information
“In 2012 alone, 16 state agencies and affiliated nonprofits reported major data breaches,” according to the center’s report, released last week. Although state security guidelines call for the encryption of sensitive data by agencies, the center found that one-fourth of the 283 computers and phones containing confidential information that were reported lost or stolen during the last decade lacked that fundamental protection. read more
FAA Wants No Part of Regulating Annoying Helicopters Hovering over Los Angeles
Democratic Congressman Adam Schiff was not happy with the FAA’s decision to punt the issue to local negotiators.
“The report recommends several steps to minimize helicopter noise, but, not surprisingly, stops short of recommending regulatory action opposed by industry,” he wrote. “Voluntary measures in the past have provided little relief for residents, and I am skeptical that without a determined effort to oversee them by the FAA that they will do so now.” read more
Ex-PG&E Specialist Claims Utility Misused His Data to Mislead Regulators
Christopher Surbey, an ex-PG&E specialist who claims he was hired to help fix the database system in 2011, is suing his former employer for firing him later in the year. The lawsuit, according to Courthouse News Service, alleges PG&E retaliated against Surbey for accusing the company of tricking regulators into granting rate increases to pay for database system upgrades it wasn’t going to make. read more
Another Big Medical Marijuana Dispensary Operator Pleads Guilty to Federal Charges
The successful Stockton businessman reportedly employed 75 people at his seven legal medical marijuana dispensaries for which he had local and state business permits and paid state taxes.U.S. Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner wrote.
Davies supplied his shops with marijuana he grew and stored at warehouses around town and when stopped by police on the way to answer a burglar alarm at one of them, he freely told them where he was going. read more
Appellate Court Puts California Death Penalty on Ice Again
The three-judge panel ruled that the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) had failed to properly include public participation in the process of changing the state’s lethal injection procedures (pdf). Underlying the court’s ruling was a decision by the CDCR to reject the federal judge’s suggestion that it should substitute a one-drug alternative for the state’s preferred three-drug lethal cocktail. read more
L.A. Coliseum Showdown: USC versus Museums for Control of Invaluable Parking
The cash-strapped commission agreed in May 2012 to lease day-to-day control of the Coliseum to the University of Southern California (USC), whose football team plays there, but control of the parking is still being fought over with other Exposition Park tenants.
Robert Stein, a member of the board that runs the park, told the Los Angeles Times what is at stake: “If they (USC) take over the parking structure, they're virtually closing down the museums, because there's no place to park.” read more
No Federal Prosecution if Wind Turbine Kills Endangered Condor
On Friday, the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) announced for the first time that it wouldn’t prosecute a wind farm developer if a condor dies in the blades of one its turbines. But it only gets to kill one condor, which is an endangered species, over the project’s expected 30-year life.
Federal law prescribes a year in prison and a $100,000 fine for any individual that kills a condor, and a $200,000 fine for an organization that does it. read more
Report Points Finger at Doctors for Elective Surgery Choices being “All Over the Map”
Women with breast cancer who live in the South San Francisco area are seven times more likely to undergo a lumpectomy with radiation than those in the South Lake Tahoe area. Men with prostate cancer are 18 times more likely to receive internal, localized brachytherapy radiation treatment than men in the Oceanside area. read more
Is There Any Sound if 85,000 Trees Fall in Berkeley Hills while Students Are Away?
Some folks in the Bay Area are livid over the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) plan to cut down 85,000 trees in the hills near Oakland and the University of California, Berkeley. The agency has scheduled three public hearings on the controversial proposal in May while students are studying for finals or going home for the summer. read more