Archive for October 10th, 2009

Associated Press

From AP

LOS ANGELES — Police are looking for a woman who left a 3-year-old boy alone at a South Los Angeles bus stop.

The little boy played with a purple stuffed frog, squealed and squirmed in the arms of a police officer during a press conference today.

Captain Robert Green says a witness saw the woman waiting for a bus with the boy sleeping in her lap at about 1 a.m. Friday. When the bus arrived, she got on and left the boy behind.

The witness stayed with the boy for an hour and finally took him to a police station.

Green says the boy was taken to a hospital and was determined to be in good condition.

Green says the woman could be charged with child endangerment.

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Contra Costa Times
By Rick Orlov Staff Writer
Posted: 10/09/2009 07:35:56 PM PDT
Updated: 10/09/2009 11:06:44 PM PDT

While District Attorney Steve Cooley wants to charge ahead with a get-tough campaign against medical marijuana dispensaries, Los Angeles police said they are waiting for a definitive city policy regulating the businesses before stepping up their efforts against rogue operators.

Capt. Kevin McCarthy, commanding officer of the LAPD’s gang and narcotics division, said that without a new city ordinance – which has been in the works for more than a year – officers cannot act against many of the clinics.

“We have been getting complaints from neighborhood councils and others and we log them and try to deal with them on a case-by-case basis,” McCarthy said.

“I think the district attorney made clear where he wants to go,” McCarthy said. “The city attorney and Sheriff Lee Baca are on board with him. The bottom line is we want to make sure people who need it have safe access.

“But we don’t want to see situations develop where there are other problems.”

In a radio interview on KABC-AM (790), Cooley reiterated his plan to close down many of the 800 to 900 medical marijuana shops believed to be operating in the city of Los Angeles.

“We will give them fair notice and, hopefully, they will see the light and voluntarily close down,” Cooley said. “We are going to uphold the laws of California.”

Local law enforcement has faced a dilemma as the City Council debates what to do about controlling the proliferation of marijuana dispensaries.

A moratorium on opening new shops expires in March and officials hope to have a new ordinance in place by then with detailed requirements on the shops and their allowed locations.

“None of us have a problem with the legitimate collectives,” said Councilman Dennis Zine, who has taken the lead on the issue. “The problem is with all these for-profit places that open up all over and who give out marijuana to everyone.”

Cooley and other officials say that in addition to selling to minors and others who do not use the drug for medical purposes, some of the dispensaries sell marijuana laced heavily with insecticides that endanger users even as they help finance Mexican drug cartels.

Councilman Greig Smith, who chairs the Public Safety Committee where the measure is pending, said he hopes to have action within the next two weeks.

Attorney Joe Elford, who has represented clinics, said he believes as long as the clinics follow the guidelines of the state Attorney General’s Office, they should be allowed to operate.

“We support reasonable regulations – such as there are too many in one area or the like – but for the district attorney to come right out and say all sales of marijuana is illegal (conflicts) with state law and what the voters have approved,” Elford said.

While the lack of an ordinance has partially tied the hands of the LAPD, McCarthy said officers have been able to go after brazen operators. For example, they took action against one shop that distributed fliers on the cars of students at a high school.

Councilman Paul Koretz, who wrote the state law implementing medical marijuana use, said he believes Cooley’s approach goes too far.

“All of us want to do something to make sure there are controls,” Koretz said. “I certainly never envisioned Los Angeles having more than 800 clinics. But I think the direction he is going is too far to try to eliminate all medical marijuana.

“It is clear they are out of hand, but the city is trying to deal with it.”

rick.orlov@dailynews.com

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By Associated Press Staff Writer
8:36 PM EDT, September 17, 2009

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Police say they have arrested a man suspected of breaking into the homes of Lindsay Lohan and Audrina Patridge.

Los Angeles police officer Rosario Herrera says detectives arrested 18-year-old Nicholas Prugo on Thursday morning on suspicion of felony burglary. Prugo is being held on $20,000 bail.

Herrera says the investigation is ongoing and there were no details about whether any property was recovered.

Jail records did not indicate whether Prugo has an attorney.

Lohan’s Hollywood Hills home was broken into last month. Patridge, a star of MTV’s show “The Hills,” had her home burglarized in February.

Both women turned over surveillance footage of the break-ins. Lohan’s footage showed three people, while Patridge’s captured a man and a woman.

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From Reuters
Tue Jun 9, 2009 2:19pm EDT

LOS ANGELES, June 9 /PRNewswire/ — Los Angeles County Sheriff Department
detectives from the Special Victims Unit have launched an Internet safety
program for children and parents, thanks to a partnership with Verizon.

Approximately 80 parents attended a ceremony on Saturday (June 6) at the
Sheriff’s Compton Youth Activity League to launch the program. At the event,
the Sheriff’s Department hosted the first Awareness is Power Internet Safety
course, and Verizon presented a check for $41,000 to support the program.

“It is an honor to partner with Verizon to establish this Internet safety
program,” Sheriff Lee Baca said. “This program will give children and their
parents the tools they need to have a safe and secure Internet experience
while exploring the limitless possibilities of the digital world.”

The Awareness is Power Internet Safety program will be available at the
Sheriff Department’s 14 Youth Activity League centers throughout the county
and will serve approximately 4,500 children and adults. Two courses, one
geared for children and the other for adults and parents, have been developed.
Curriculum topics will include social networking sites, chat rooms, parental
controls, e-mail, text messaging, legal downloading and financial Internet
safety.

In addition, to help manage their children’s Internet experiences, Verizon is
making it easier for parents to find and access the online parental controls
and resources for customers of the company’s online, FiOS TV and wireless
services. The enhanced Web site, www.verizon.net/parentalcontrol, gives
parents using Verizon Wireless, Verizon FiOS TV and any of Verizon’s
high-speed Internet services the ability to make decisions about their
families’ wireless, TV and online use.

John Johnson, vice president for Verizon Wireless, said: “Advanced broadband
technology powers today’s online world for business and family entertainment.
The challenge for parents is managing that experience for their children so
it’s a positive one. Our online tools, tips and software help make this
happen. Verizon’s grant is another step in the right direction as we partner
with the Sheriff’s Department to educate parents and children alike.”

The Verizon Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Verizon Communications,
supports the advancement of literacy and K-12 education through its free
educational Web site, Thinkfinity.org, and fosters awareness and prevention of
domestic violence. In 2008, the Verizon Foundation awarded more than $68
million in grants to nonprofit agencies in the U.S. and abroad. It also
matched the charitable donations of Verizon employees and retirees, resulting
in an additional $26 million in combined contributions to nonprofits. Through
Verizon Volunteers, one of the nation’s largest employee volunteer programs,
Verizon employees and retirees have volunteered more than 3 million hours of
community service since 2000. For more information on the foundation, visit
www.verizonfoundation.org.

About the Sheriff Youth Foundation
The Sheriff’s Youth Foundation was created in 1985, based upon the belief that
crime prevention programs focused on youth are the key to developing safer
communities. The Foundation’s objective is to increase community safety by
fostering self-esteem and a sense of purpose, assisting youth to find value in
themselves, to feel a sense of direction, and define who they are. The
foundation supports two countywide programs; Success Through Awareness &
Resistance (STAR) Program and the Youth Activity Leagues (Y.A.L.).

About Verizon
Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ), headquartered in New York, is a global
leader in delivering broadband and other wireless and wireline communications
services to mass market, business, government and wholesale customers.
Verizon Wireless operates America’s most reliable wireless network, serving
more than 86 million customers nationwide. Verizon’s Wireline operations
provide converged communications, information and entertainment services over
the nation’s most advanced fiber-optic network. Wireline also includes
Verizon Business, which delivers innovative and seamless business solutions to
customers around the world. A Dow 30 company, Verizon employs a diverse
workforce of more than 237,000 and last year generated consolidated operating
revenues of more than $97 billion. For more information, visit
www.verizon.com.

VERIZON’S ONLINE NEWS CENTER: Verizon news releases, executive speeches and
biographies, media contacts, high-quality video and images, and other
information are available at Verizon’s News Center on the World Wide Web at
www.verizon.com/news. To receive news releases by e-mail, visit the News
Center and register for customized automatic delivery of Verizon news
releases.

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