Judge Refuses to Reduce Sentences for Two Convicted LA Animal Abusershttps://www.citywatchla.com/animal-watch/15393-judge-refuses-to-reduce-sentences-for-two-convicted-la-animal-abusers

May 07 2018 ANIMAL WATCH-On May 2, LA Superior Court Judge Shellie Samuels denied a request to reduce the sentences of the two Los Angeles Lucky Puppy Rescue Retail store owners, Rachel Kennedy and Sandra Vasquez, who are currently on suspended sentences with...

• Type: Article
• Author: Phyllis M. Daugherty
• Category: ANIMAL WATCH

The “Alt-Right” Label: What’s Real, What’s Fake, and Why It Mattershttps://www.citywatchla.com/important-reads/15116-the-alt-right-label-what-s-real-what-s-fake-and-why-it-matters

March 19 2018 ALT-RIGHT POLITICS-The Southern Poverty Law Center has issued a full retraction and apology for a bizarre screed it published last week lumping anti-war leftists in with fascists and Nazis. As of this writing, two other articles by the same author,...

• Type: Article
• Author: Caitlin Johnstone
• Category: IMPORTANT READS

Judge Warns Convicted LA Animal Rescuers, "You Could Go to Jail!"https://www.citywatchla.com/los-angeles/14776-judge-warns-convicted-la-animal-rescuers-you-could-go-to-jail

January 29 2018 EIGHT MOST READ - ANIMAL WATCH-Judge Shellie Samuels is a tough lady with obvious empathy for animals and a staunch lack of tolerance for defendants’ failure to obey court orders. She presided over a two-week jury trial which ended on August 16, 2017,...

• Type: Article
• Author: Phyllis M. Daugherty
• Category: LOS ANGELES

Los Angeles: Musical Chairs at City Hallhttps://www.citywatchla.com/la-watchdog/14597-los-angeles-musical-chairs-at-city-hall

December 28 2017 LA WATCHDOG--It has been over a year since Miguel Santana announced that he was resigning as the City Administrative Officer to become the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Los Angeles County Fair Association. And despite the call for a...

• Type: Article
• Author: Jack Humphreville
• Category: LA WATCHDOG

Is Cannabis a Treatment for Cancer?https://www.citywatchla.com/370-420-file/14594-is-cannabis-a-treatment-for-cancer

December 28 2017 420 FILE—I receive this question in my email recently looking for some hope for her mother’s health crisis. This is what she wrote: My mother is battling cancer. She has lost 35lbs and now weighs less than 100 pounds. Watching this illness ravage her...

• Type: Article
• Author: Susan Marks
• Category: 420 FILE

Does Councilman Koretz’ Latest Proposal Legalize Animal Hoarding?https://www.citywatchla.com/los-angeles/14308-does-councilman-koretz-latest-proposal-legalize-animal-hoarding

November 06 2017 ANIMAL WATCH-Councilman Paul Koretz and his protégé, Councilman Bob Blumenfield (CD3), quietly introduced a motion on October 27 (CF 17-1237, Kennel / Delete Definition) in an apparent attempt to help Mayor Eric Garcetti, and LA Animal Services General...

• Type: Article
• Author: Phyllis M. Daugherty
• Category: LOS ANGELES

LA Animal Rescuers Sentenced for Cruelty, Neglect by Judge Shellie Samuels https://www.citywatchla.com/los-angeles/14112-la-animal-rescuers-sentenced-for-cruelty-neglect-by-judge-shellie-samuels

October 02 2017 ANIMAL WATCH-Two Los Angeles animal rescuers were sentenced on Friday by Superior Court Judge Shellie Samuels after each was found guilty on one count of animal abuse and two counts of negligence. LA Animal Services General Manager Brenda Barnette...

• Type: Article
• Author: Phyllis M. Daugherty
• Category: LOS ANGELES

It’s Time to Fire DWP Ratepayer Advocatehttps://www.citywatchla.com/los-angeles/13936-it-s-time-to-fire-dwp-ratepayer-advocate

September 04 2017 LAST STRAW BETRAYAL-The Los Angeles City Council should reject a recommendation by Fred Pickel, Director of the Office of Public Accountability at the LADWP, that the city back tunnels altering water diversions South from the San Francisco Bay Delta,...

• Type: Article
• Author: Consumer Watchdog
• Category: LOS ANGELES

Let’s be Clear: LA Does Not have Rent Control! It has RSO!https://www.citywatchla.com/los-angeles/13770-let-s-be-clear-la-does-not-have-rent-control-it-has-rso

August 10 2017 NEIGHBORHOOD POLITICS--Renting in LA is about as enjoyable as having a third job -- which many renters have, spending nearly half their monthly income on rent. As neighborhoods gentrify from Venice to Highland Park, the city’s rental market is...

• Type: Article
• Author: Los Angeles Tenants Union
• Category: LOS ANGELES

Neighborhood Councils: If I Had It to Do All Over Againhttps://www.citywatchla.com/los-angeles/13628-neighborhood-councils-if-i-had-it-to-do-all-over-again

July 20 2017 15 CANDLES—(Editor’s Note: Have LA’s Neighborhood Councils accomplished what they promised 15 years ago? What have we learned? What would we change? I’m sure you’ve heard myriad answers to these questions. Most often from folks whose claims and...

• Type: Article
• Author: Greg Nelson
• Category: LOS ANGELES

Soon-to-be American Already ‘Giving Back’https://www.citywatchla.com/los-angeles/13511-soon-to-be-american-already-giving-back

June 29 2017 MY TURN-Immigrant bashing has become the new national sport in some areas of our country, even though some bastions of white conservatism have been revitalized by an influx of immigrants. These groups have given new life to towns once on the verge of...

• Type: Article
• Author: Denyse Selesnick
• Category: LOS ANGELES

The Opioid Crisis in Black and Whitehttps://www.citywatchla.com/important-reads/13456-the-opioid-crisis-in-black-and-white

June 22 2017 URBAN PERSPECTIVE-On March 29, 2017, the mood at the White House was somber when #45 Trump signed an executive order establishing a commission charged with making recommendations on dealing with the opioid crisis. At the signing, all the talk by Trump...

• Type: Article
• Author: Earl Ofari Hutchinson
• Category: IMPORTANT READS

Boycott Trump … Change the Political Landscape?https://www.citywatchla.com/eric-preven-s-notebook/13282-boycott-trump-change-the-political-landscape

May 25 2017 RESISTANCE WATCH-In normal times, Dee from New York would have ordered her copy of The Handmaid’s Tale from Amazon, but these are not normal times. Amazon is on the Grab Your Wallet list, a campaign to boycott retailers that sell Trump family products,...

• Type: Article
• Author: Mattea Kramer
• Category: ERIC PREVEN'S NOTEBOOK

Trump: In Search of a Silver Lininghttps://www.citywatchla.com/los-angeles/12741-trump-in-search-of-a-silver-lining

March 02 2017 MY TURN-I did not vote for Donald Trump, which I'm sure will come as no surprise to all of you. I have watched his administration the last forty days or so with an almost morbid curiosity, which runs from incredulity to terror. I am, however, an...

• Type: Article
• Author: Denyse Selesnick
• Category: LOS ANGELES

Galperin (Finally) Investigates LAFD Fraud … But Won’t Admit Ithttps://www.citywatchla.com/los-angeles/12564-galperin-finally-investigates-lafd-fraud-but-won-t-admit-it

February 06 2017 @THE GUSS REPORT-Los Angeles City Controller Ron Galperin finally woke up from the slumber he has been in during his first term in office regarding alleged LAFD fire inspector fraud, a subject about which he and Mayor Eric Garcetti have long since...

• Type: Article
• Author: Daniel Guss
• Category: LOS ANGELES

Is Koretz’ Nanny-State Nonsense a Diversion from Rick Caruso?https://www.citywatchla.com/los-angeles/12530-is-koretz-nanny-state-nonsense-a-diversion-from-rick-caruso

January 30 2017 @THE GUSS REPORT-Los Angeles City Councilmember Paul Koretz has a new way to squander the city’s already strained legal and financial resources on a solution in search of a cause, namely his floundering re-election campaign. At a time when the City of...

• Type: Article
• Author: Daniel Guss
• Category: LOS ANGELES

CalPERS’ Siege Mentality: The Castle Moat is Full, the Drawbridge is Up!https://www.citywatchla.com/los-angeles/12506-calpers-siege-mentality-the-castle-moat-is-full-the-drawbridge-is-up

January 26 2017 EASTSIDER-You don’t need to be a rocket scientist to know that CalPERS has taken some hits over the past months. There was the series of articles in the LA Times, OpEd pieces everywhere from the Sacramento Bee to a pretty concerted attack in a variety...

• Type: Article
• Author: Tony Butka
• Category: LOS ANGELES

Garcetti Appoints Transparency-Denier Llewellyn as Interim CAOhttps://www.citywatchla.com/los-angeles/12451-garcetti-appoints-transparency-denier-llewellyn-as-interim-cao

January 16 2017 @THE GUSS REPORT-It’s so very “Rich” in both the proper noun and the adjective sort of way. Last week, Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti appointed his adviser Rich Llewellyn as interim Chief Administrative Officer after Miguel Santana’s exit, a departure...

• Type: Article
• Author: Daniel Guss
• Category: LOS ANGELES

The War on Science, There is a Bright Sidehttps://www.citywatchla.com/los-angeles/12313-the-war-on-science-there-is-a-bright-side

December 19 2016 GELFAND’S WORLD--It's easy to become despondent about the right wing war against science. It's been exposed in books and in countless blog posts. There is a lot of truth to the existence -- and danger -- of the unrestrained attacks on scientific...

• Type: Article
• Author: Bob Gelfand
• Category: LOS ANGELES

On Corporations, their Minions and the Perversion Called ‘Mandatory Arbitration’https://www.citywatchla.com/important-reads/11920-on-corporations-their-minions-and-the-perversion-called-mandatory-arbitration

October 06 2016 EASTSIDER-I am old enough to have grown up in and around labor unions and the union-management collective bargaining system, a system that today is largely broken, even as the 1/2 of 1% grow obscenely rich and the rest of us are beggared into a two...

• Type: Article
• Author: Tony Butka
• Category: IMPORTANT READS

Defeating Islamic Terrorism … Here’s How!https://www.citywatchla.com/important-reads/11514-defeating-islamic-terrorism-here-s-how

July 25 2016 EDITOR’S PICK--As terrorism struck again in Nice and Germany and… Donald Trump outlined his policy against Islamic State: as president, he will seek a full declaration of war from Congress, the first such formal invocation since Pearl Harbor. Trump was...

• Type: Article
• Author: Peter Van Buren
• Category: IMPORTANT READS

Labor’s Love Losthttps://www.citywatchla.com/los-angeles/11280-labor-s-love-lost

June 13 2016 REALITY POLITICS, LA COUNTY STYLE--Election campaigns contain a bit of Shakespearean drama as they deal with many aspects of human nature, but the fractured headline of this piece refers not to Shakespeare’s play but the question labor faces because of...

• Type: Article
• Author: Joel Fox
• Category: LOS ANGELES

It’s NOT a Business! It’s Our Water and Power!https://www.citywatchla.com/los-angeles/11232-it-s-not-a-business-it-s-our-water-and-power

June 06 2016 BUTCHER ON LA--I’ve been reviewing LA’s documents for many, many years. Used to be the CAO had its own font. You’ll notice it If you look through old files. CLA reports all have a similar style. Again, you know it when you see it. Every public document...

• Type: Article
• Author: Julie Butcher
• Category: LOS ANGELES

The CalPERS Soap Opera: Getting Weirder and Weirderhttps://www.citywatchla.com/los-angeles/10734-the-calpers-soap-opera-getting-weirder-and-weider

March 17 2016 EASTSIDER-When we last left CalPERS they had just hired a sleazebag Florida lawyer named Robert Klausner as their outside fiduciary counsel in an exceedingly tawdry process orchestrated by their CEO, Anne Stausboll. As near as I can tell, he’s still in...

• Type: Article
• Author: Tony Butka
• Category: LOS ANGELES

SoCal High Speed Train Delay: Sweet Victory for the Northeast Valleyhttps://www.citywatchla.com/los-angeles/10693-socal-high-speed-train-delay-sweet-victory-for-the-northeast-valley

March 10 2016 MY TURN-I love traveling by train. I have used them in Europe, Asia, New York, Chicago, Atlanta, San Francisco and San Diego. In Los Angeles...not so much! In fact, probably like many of you, I have yet to take the train from the San Fernando Valley to...

• Type: Article
• Author: Denyse Selesnick
• Category: LOS ANGELES

Inspecting Remaining Aliso Canyon Gas Wells a Musthttps://www.citywatchla.com/los-angeles/10687-inspecting-remaining-aliso-canyon-gas-wells-a-must

March 10 2016 GUEST COMMENTARY-The State Legislature is undertaking emergency action to address the major natural gas leak in the Aliso Canyon fields – a leak that drove thousands of people from their homes last October in search of relief. Senate Bill 380 builds...

• Type: Article
• Author: Bob Huff
• Category: LOS ANGELES

Missouri: A Teaching Moment for other Colleges that Flunk the Racism Testhttps://www.citywatchla.com/climate/9910-missouri-a-teaching-moment-for-other-colleges-that-flunk-the-racism-test

November 09 2015 RACE IN AMERICA-Now former University of Missouri president Tim Wolfe (photo left) in a moment of rare candor for someone who just fired himself admitted what has been probably one of the worst kept secrets at American colleges. His words: “Racism does...

• Type: Article
• Author: Earl Ofari Hutchinson
• Category: CLIMATE

Headlines Don’t Lie – LA Needs Leadershiphttps://www.citywatchla.com/archive/9545-headlines-don-t-lie-la-needs-leadership

August 27 2015 JUST THE FACTS-I’m talking to you as a man who policed Los Angeles streets for over 30 years and established policy for another 14 years -- two years as an elected Charter Reform Commissioner and 12 years as an elected Los Angeles City Councilman. Take...

• Type: Article
• Author: Dennis Zine
• Category: Archive

Yes, Cosby Can Be Prosecutedhttps://www.citywatchla.com/archive/9281-yes-cosby-can-be-prosecuted

July 09 2015 URBAN PERSPECTIVE-The moment the first of the 45 women to date publicly accused comedian Bill Cosby of drugging and raping them, the big question on the lips of many was: Could Cos be criminally prosecuted? The legal experts hashed the question back...

• Type: Article
• Author: Earl Ofari Hutchinson
• Category: Archive

The God’s of Bad Writinghttps://www.citywatchla.com/archive/9198-the-god-s-of-bad-writing

June 22 2015 GELFAND’S WORLD-I was asked to give a talk last week about writing. You may notice that what I do is straightforward nonfiction. In fact, I refer to it as uncreative writing, since the idea is to communicate ideas cleanly and clearly. In preparing and...

• Type: Article
• Author: Bob Gelfand
• Category: Archive