Santa Monica News, CA Local News

Man who crashed drone into Super Scooper during Palisades fire gets 14 days in prison, home detention

Mon, 15 Sep 2025 16:49:50 +0000

LOS ANGELES — A Los Angeles computer game developer who admitted operating a drone that crashed into and damaged a Super Scooper firefighting aircraft battling the Palisades Fire was sentenced Monday to a mix of prison and home detention.

Peter Tripp Akemann, 57, of Culver City, pleaded guilty in February to a federal class-A misdemeanor count of unsafe operation of an unmanned aircraft, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

Akemann was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Michael W. Fitzgerald to serve 14 days in federal prison, followed by 30 days’ home detention. He was also ordered to pay about $156,000 in restitution and fines, prosecutors said.

Super Scooper 243, call sign Quebec 1, is back in service with Quebec 2 Thursday, at Van Nuys Airport on Jan. 14, 2025. The plane, Quebec 1, sustained wing damage and was grounded and out of service for a few days. The plane suffered damage to the left wing after a drone hit it while at the Palisades fire. (Photo by Gene Blevins, Contributing Photographer)

As a result of the collision, the firefighting aircraft was taken out of service for a period of time and was not able to continue its firefighting mission, court papers show.

In a three-page letter to the court, Akemann expressed his “sincerest remorse and deepest apologies” to the crew of the Super Scooper and the citizens of Los Angeles for what he described as his “stupid and reckless” conduct.

He said he flew the drone partly out of “curiosity” to see damage caused by the Palisades fire and “out of concern for a friend” whose home was thought to be near the burn area. At some point, he wrote, he experienced signal loss and then lost contact with the drone.

“It was not until I heard on the news that a drone had collided with a firefighting aircraft that I became concerned that it was possibly my drone that had been involved,” Akemann wrote.

He said he should have recognized that “operating a drone anywhere near an active wildfire and rescue operation was irresponsible, regardless of my intention to do no harm.”

As part of his plea agreement, filed in Los Angeles federal court, Akemann agreed to pay full restitution to the government of Quebec, which supplied the plane, and an aircraft repair company that handled the necessary fixes, the document states.

Akemann also agreed to complete 150 hours of community service in support of the 2025 Southern California wildfire relief effort.

“This defendant recklessly flew an aircraft into airspace where first responders were risking their lives in an attempt to protect lives and property,” the U.S. Attorney’s Office said in a statement when charges were filed in late January.

“This damage caused to the Super Scooper is a stark reminder that flying drones during times of emergency poses an extreme threat to personnel trying to help people and compromises the overall ability of police and fire to conduct operations. As this case demonstrates, we will track down drone operators who violate the law and interfere with the critical work of our first responders.”

Akemann admitted to reckless and illegal conduct in flying the drone that posed an imminent safety hazard to the Super Scooper crew.

While the wildfire was burning in and around Pacific Palisades on Jan. 9, Akemann drove to the Third Street Promenade in Santa Monica and parked his vehicle on the top floor of the parking structure. He then launched a drone and flew it toward Pacific Palisades to observe damage caused by the Palisades Fire.

Federal prosecutors say Akemann flew the drone more than 1.5 miles toward the fire and lost sight of the remotely piloted unit. As Akemann was flying the drone, it collided with a government of Quebec Super Scooper carrying two crew members attempting to fight the blaze. The impact caused a roughly 3-inch-by-6-inch hole in the left wing. After landing, maintenance personnel identified the damage and took the aircraft out of service for repairs, court papers show.

At the time of the collision, the Federal Aviation Administration had issued temporary flight restrictions that prohibited drone operations near the Los Angeles County wildfires that erupted last month.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office said that as a result of the collision, the government of Quebec and an aircraft repair company incurred costs of at least $65,169 to repair the plane.

“Lack of common sense and ignorance of your duty as a drone pilot will not shield you from criminal charges,” Akil Davis, the assistant director in charge of the FBI’s Los Angeles bureau, said in January. “Please respect the law, respect the FAA’s rules and respect our firefighters and the residents they are protecting by keeping your drone at home during wildfires.”

Children’s Hospital LA laying off 439 healthcare workers by late October

Thu, 11 Sep 2025 15:06:00 +0000

Children’s Hospital Los Angeles is laying off 5.8% of its workforce in Southern California as part of a strategic realignment triggered by rising costs and budget cuts in Medicaid and Medi-Cal healthcare programs.

“Due to declining federal and state reimbursements, emerging policy changes affecting funding, and escalating costs of healthcare delivery, Children’s Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA) must take steps to secure the hospital’s long-term viability for millions of children in need of care,” wrote Mamoon Syed, chief people officer with Children’s Hospital in a recent letter filed with the state’s Employment Development Department.

The hospital plans to cut 439 positions out of nearly 7,550 throughout its healthcare system by Oct. 28.

CHLA chief executive officer Paul Viviano said in a recent statement that the layoffs were “necessary to ensure CHLA can continue to survive in this uncertain climate.”

The CHLA statement said that 253 of positions are permanent layoffs while the remaining 186 people will be offered the option to transfer to “adjusted roles” at facilities in Arcadia, Bakersfield, Encino, Santa Monica, South Bay, Valencia and its main campus at 4650 W. Sunset Blvd. in East Hollywood.

Positions include nurses, occupational therapists, psychiatric social workers, respiratory care practitioners, financial consultants and a language and cultural specialist.

Medicaid, funded jointly by states and the federal government, provides health coverage to eligible low-income adults, children, pregnant women, elderly adults and people with disabilities. Medi-Cal is California’s Medicaid program, a health insurance program that provides healthcare services for low-income individuals.

In June, executives at CHLA announced that its Center for Transyouth Health and Development, which provides gender-affirming care, including hormone therapy and surgeries, would close this summer.

CHLA had been one of the oldest, largest public providers of gender-affirming care, especially for lower-income patients, in the United States.

The EDD filing was made as part of the federal Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act — commonly referred to as WARN, which are required when an employer lays off more than 50 employees. All affected employees are notified at least 60 days before their terminations are scheduled to occur.

Suspected serial prowler arrested by Santa Monica police

Wed, 10 Sep 2025 00:42:07 +0000

A man suspected in several prowling and peeping incidents in Santa Monica was arrested last week by members of the Santa Monica Police Department.

On Sept. 3, officers conducting a crime suppression operation in Palisades Park contacted a man who they say matched the description of the suspect in multiple prowling investigations in the region over the past several months.

He was arrested without incident shortly after he entered a parked vehicle. A search of that vehicle led to the discovery of clothing items believed to be linked to previous prowling incidents, police said.

He's been identified as 58-year-old Calvin Otis Arnold, and he's since been booked into the Santa Monica Jail where he remains as he awaits.

Investigators from the Police Department say they've linked Arnold to multiple instances in which he allegedly looked through the window of an apartment complex. At least two people were targeted on more than one occasion, police said.

Police say there is no evidence that he's ever entered a home or made physical contact with any victims.

Over the past month, specially trained officers have conducted operations meant to locate and identify the man responsible for these invasive crimes, which ultimately led to his arrest last week.

The investigation remains ongoing and anyone with information is urged to contact the SMPD non-emergency line at 310-458-8491. Santa Monica residents can also sign up for a free home security assessment by calling the Community Engagement Team at 310-458-8474.

Older California homes for sale now must come with wildfire warnings

Tue, 09 Sep 2025 11:22:03 +0000

By Todd Woody | Bloomberg

Most California homes were built long before the state required they be constructed to withstand wildfires.

Now, sellers of older homes in high-risk areas must disclose to potential buyers not only a dwelling’s susceptibility to fire but what they’ve done to address those vulnerabilities.

As climate change intensifies natural disasters, states across the US have been mandating that home sellers disclose risks such as flooding. But the California disclosure is the first to zero in on a property’s ability to survive a catastrophe.

Also see: Advocates push for mandatory retrofitting of existing homes in fire zones

That could make the state a model as wildfire and other climate threats endanger homes across the US. While three dozen states require some degree of flood-risk disclosure, only California currently mandates home sellers reveal wildfire hazards.

“When you require disclosure, you see effects on home prices,” said Margaret Walls, a senior fellow at Resources for the Future, a Washington, DC-based nonprofit research institute.

Also see: LA County adopts fire maps that leave out much of Altadena’s burn area

Walls and other economists’ research has shown that disclosing climate risks results in lower home prices, but that buyers are willing to pay more for safer properties. That, in theory, should motivate sellers to improve their homes’ resilience to climate risks. But such outcomes need to be validated by further research, according to Walls.

The new California rule requires sellers to list specific features that endanger a house, including combustible roofs, uncovered vents, single-pane windows and vegetation within five feet (1.5 meters) of a building. Real estate disclosures showing the seller has remedied such threats could help buyers when they apply for homeowners’ insurance, according to experts.

Whether a sale goes through is increasingly contingent on a home’s insurability as insurance companies reduce their exposure in disaster-prone areas that are seeing more fires and floods.

“Insurers in these very high hazard severity zones are going to ask homeowners to do all these things,” said Jennifer Valdez, a fire inspector for the Monterey Fire Department in California, where 40% of the city is subject to the wildfire disclosure rules.

Seren Taylor, vice president of the Personal Insurance Federation of California, a lobbying group for the state’s major carriers, said that in high-risk areas, insurers will give preference to homes that have reduced wildfire threats. “The point of sale is clearly a terrific opportunity to start to get home hardening built into older housing stock,” he said.

Nearly 91% of California’s homes was built before 2010, and there are 2 million dwellings in high-risk wildfire areas. About 3% to 4% of single-family houses come on the market annually.

The remains of two homes destroyed during the Airport Fire sit on El Cariso Road in El Cariso Village, CA, on Wednesday, March 12, 2025. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Do climate disclosures work?

What remains unknown is to what extent real estate disclosures compel sellers to preemptively improve wildfire resilience — or how much buyers are paying attention to the warnings amid a deluge of disclosures that accompany the sale of a house. This is particularly true in California, which also requires home sellers to flag, among other things, water-hogging toilets, possible contamination from lead paint and meth labs, and the potential presence of nearby gas pipelines and registered sexual offenders.

“You can give people too much information such that they ignore all of it,” said Matthew Kahn, an economics professor at the University of Southern California.

A 2023 paper he co-authored, however, found that targeted climate-related disclosures can influence home buyers. Working with Redfin Corp., Kahn and his colleagues randomly provided more than 8.5 million users of the real estate service with detailed flood risk information on each property they viewed and then tracked the actions they took.

They found that people who looked at homes with high flood scores subsequently searched for properties with lower flood ratings. Homes with high flood risk sold for lower prices while buyers paid more for those that were less exposed.

Kahn said further research is needed, but he sees California’s wildfire disclosures as potentially having a similar effect. “For those home sellers who can demonstrate that they’ve taken proactive steps to protect their homes, they’re going to sell for a price premium,” he said. “Those homeowners who haven’t taken these steps are going to sell their home for a lower price than they would’ve if they hadn’t had to disclose this stuff.”

Destroyed homes in Malibu from the Palisades Fire from an Orange County Fire Authority helicopter on Monday, March 3, 2025 in Los Angeles, California. (Ana Ramirez / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

An analysis Walls co-authored published in the journal Land Economics determined that older homes in California sold for nearly 5% less when subject to a general wildfire disclosure. She said correlating home sellers and buyers’ particular actions with the new disclosure requirements will prove challenging.

“You don’t really know how people interpret the information they’re given,” said Walls. “But drawing attention to these risks may make people step up and do more.”

California’s wildfire disclosures

California enacted a two-prong wildfire disclosure law in 2020 after a series of destructive conflagrations. The first part took effect in 2021 and requires home sellers in zones the state designated as having high and very high fire hazard to provide buyers with documentation that they’ve complied with restrictions on vegetation around a house that could ignite the structure, called defensible space.

The second provision — the new home hardening disclosure — went into force in July and applies to homes built before 2010.

Sellers appear to be complying with the requirements, according to Gov Hutchinson, assistant general counsel for the California Association of Realtors, a trade group. “It’s another disclosure, it doesn’t seem to interfere with sales,” he said.

To document that they’ve complied with defensible space regulations, home sellers must request an inspection, usually from their local fire department. Alternatively, the buyer can agree to obtain such documentation after the sale closes.

Home sellers will have more work to do in the coming years as the state begins enforcing regulations in 2029 that require owners of existing homes in high-risk wildfire areas to remove vegetation and other combustible material within five feet of the building. Some cities already require such ember-resistant zones.

Valdez, the fire inspector, said 6,259 parcels in Monterey and two adjoining communities are subject to the 2020 disclosure law. That includes much of Carmel-by-the-Sea, a village of 1920s storybook cottages with highly combustible wood-shingle roofs. Her department does about 15 to 20 pre-sale inspections per month and conducts annual defensible space inspections.

“Maybe it’s because of insurance or seeing these devastating fires, but people are doing the work around their houses and are starting to take the steps that they can afford to start doing the home hardening,” said Valdez.

Suspect arrested for stabbing man outside restaurant near Santa Monica Pier

Sun, 07 Sep 2025 05:18:32 +0000

A suspect was arrested for attempted murder after a stabbing left a restaurant worker hospitalized near the Santa Monica Pier.

The suspect was identified as Malvin Walker, 24, according to the Santa Monica Police Department.

On Aug. 31, police responded to a stabbing outside of a restaurant on the 1600 block of Ocean Front Walk just before 5 p.m.

Officers found the male victim had been stabbed several times by the assailant. He was taken to a local hospital with non-life-threatening wounds. The suspect fled the scene before police arrived.

Witnesses said the victim was an employee at Pier Pizza and Subs and was on his lunch break when he was attacked from behind. The assault occurred at the top of a pedestrian staircase connecting Ocean Front Walk to Appian Way.

Following an investigation, on Sept. 3, officers identified Walker as the suspect and located him on the 1800 block of Ocean Front Walk where he was taken into custody. There was no indication that the suspect and victim knew each other.

A walkway with shops and restaurants on the 1600 block of Ocean Front Walk in Santa Monica. (Google Maps)

He was arrested for attempted murder and was also booked on unrelated charges, including felony vandalism and a $51,000 warrant for battery. He remains in police custody. Authorities did not release his booking photo.

Anyone who witnessed the stabbing or has information on the case is urged to contact Detective Isaac Reyes at isaac.reyes@santamonica.gov or the Santa Monica Police Watch Commander at 310-458-8427.

Typhus outbreaks are spiking in LA County, health department reports

Sat, 30 Aug 2025 17:53:22 +0000

Summer heat, check. Mosquitoes, check. Labor Day traffic, check.

Now add fleas carrying typhus fever to things Southern Californians have to worry about this weekend.

A report from the Los Angeles County Health Department released Thursday warns everyone — especially pet owners — to make sure they are keeping fleas at a distance, because they’ve found an increase in people getting sick this year when infected by the tiny pests carrying the flea-borne disease typhus, also known as typhus fever.

Cases of typhus have been on the rise in L.A. County since 2010, with 2024 experiencing a record-high number of cases numbering 187.

This year, there have been 106 cases reported, a rate that is higher than last year at this same time, the health department reported. And since the typhus season peaks now, in late summer and fall, health officials predict the number of cases and clusters of cases will rise in the next several weeks.

Localized disease clusters have been reported in central Los Angeles and the DPH is investigating a second outbreak in the city of Santa Monica with five cases so far.

The average number of cases in 2018 was about 60, but the numbers have been spiking. The 2020-2024 average is 143 cases, DPH reports show.

A look at the number of flea-borne typhus cases reported in Los Angeles County in the last decade. (image courtesy of LA County Department of Public Health)

In the past, outbreaks have occurred in Pomona (2015); Willowbrook (2017, 2018, 2022); Downtown L.A. (2018); Monrovia (2021); Glassell Park and Eagle Rock (2022); Boyle Heights (2022); Wilshire Center (2022) and L.A.’s Westlake area (2021, 2024-2025).

Typhus is only spread by infected fleas. It is not transmitted person-to-person.

These infected fleas are found on rats, feral cats and opossums. A single opossum can carry as many as 700 fleas, according to vector control experts.

Pets such as dogs and cats can pick up the vector after going outdoors and bring them into the home. So flea control methods for pets are highly recommended.

The illness is caused by Rickettsia Typhi bacteria, which is spread by the infected fleas. People can become infected when flea feces get into the flea-bite site, or penetrate into cuts or scrapes on the skin or rubbed into the eyes.

“Flea-borne typhus is serious, but preventable,” said Dr. Muntu Davis, L.A. County’s health officer. “We urge people to take precautions by using flea control on their pets, avoiding contact with stray animals, and preventing wildlife from living in or next to their home or property.”

Detection can be difficult because the symptoms of typhus resemble other conditions. These include fever, headache, muscle pain/myalgia, nausea/vomiting and rash. Anyone with these symptoms should seek medical attention, Davis said.

Typhus can become serious but is rarely fatal, with a less than 1% fatality rate. Between June and October 2022, Los Angeles County reported three deaths, according to a report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The DPH recommends several steps to take to prevent exposure:

• Reduce vegetation on a yard’s perimeter, where opossums or feral cats can hide

• Fill in holes in eaves, crawlspaces or sheds

• Don’t leave cat or dog food outside

• Pick up fruit from trees

• Keep garbage containers tightly covered

• Report stray animals or any signs of rodents or opossums near your property to local animal control officials.

• Use flea control medication on your pets

For more information regarding flea-borne typhus, visit: ph.lacounty.gov/Typhus.

Freebie of the week: KCRW Dance Party comes to Santa Ana

Tue, 26 Aug 2025 10:04:27 +0000

Enjoy KCRW Summer Nights from 7 to 10 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 30 at the Bowers Museum in Santa Ana.

This free event will be held outdoors in the Key courtyard, and feature live sets from KCRW DJs Raul Campos and Jason Kramer, pop-up bars, kids activities, and more.

Note that entrance to the museum’s special, late-night opening is not included for free — unless you’re a resident of Santa Ana or a member of the Bowers or KCRW, in which case you do get in free, as well as a special $11 discounted rate to see the World of the Terracotta Warriors exhibit.

You don’t need a ticket to get into the Summer Nights party, but make a reservation here: kcrw.com/summer-nights-2025

The Bowers Museum showcases folk art and cultural artifacts. It’s located just off the Santa Ana (5) Freeway in Santa Ana. 2002 N. Main St., Santa Ana. Phone 714-567-3600. bowers.org

KCRW is Southern California’s premier public radio station, based at Santa Monica College. It can be heard on various frequencies throughout the region. kcrw.com

Temescal Canyon Road reopens for 1st time since Palisades fire, and Pali High students are back in class

Thu, 14 Aug 2025 06:16:27 +0000

PACIFIC PALISADES — Two milestones in the recovery from the Palisades fire were celebrated along the coast of Los Angeles on Wednesday, Aug. 13.

In a move long anticipated by motorists, Temescal Canyon Road reopened on Wednesday, Aug. 13, north of Pacific Coast Highway for the first time since January’s Palisades fire.

Los Angeles City Councilwoman Traci Park announced the reopening with a video on Instagram, noting that the route was used over the last six months as a staging area for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers during fire-debris removal operations.

“They moved over a million tons of fire debris right through this corridor through the Pacific Palisades,” Park said. “With its closure for the last seven months, obviously that has impacted the flow of traffic in and around the Palisades area. And now with schools just on the brink of reopening in the Palisades, we could not be any more excited to finally have Temescal Canyon back open.”

Temescal Canyon Road reopened on Wednesday, Aug. 13, 2025, resurfaced and restriped, north of Pacific Coast Highway in Pacific Palisades for the first time since January’s Palisades fire. (Photo by Dean Musgrove, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)

Park noted that the reopening of a street may not seem like a major accomplishment, but in the wake of the devastating wildfire, “every single little step forward feels like a really big deal.”

To the south, students from fire-damaged Palisades Charter High School were back in class on Wednesday, in temporary quarters at the old Sears Building in Santa Monica.

“Pali High,” as it’s known, was damaged in the deadly firestorm that engulfed the Palisades beginning on Jan. 7 and it won’t be ready to welcome students again until 2026.

For now, students are returning to class in neighboring Santa Monica, not far from Santa Monica High School, where classes begin next week.

Students from fire-damaged Palisades Charter High School were back in class on Wednesday, August 13, 2025, in temporary quarters at the old Sears Building in Santa Monica. (Photo by Dean Musgrove, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)

It will likely make for additional traffic and Principal Pam McGee says those commuting to what’s been dubbed “Pali South” should give themselves extra time.

After a period of remote learning, classes were moved to the Sears Building to conclude the last school year, so returning students are used to the routine.

Pali High reportedly serves about 3,000 students from over 100 ZIP codes in the Los Angeles area.

City News Service contributed to this article.

The best things we ate at Southern California restaurants in July

Tue, 05 Aug 2025 14:16:23 +0000

July kept our team busy with various food festivals as well as putting together foodie guides to help you keep your cool with sweet treats across Southern California. This month, our team went to work to bring you a variety of recommendations. From staple restaurants in the region, to up-and-coming spots worth checking out, as well as some new takes on classics you can only get for a limited time at the county fair, there was plenty to write about.

It’s hard to believe, but we’re over halfway through 2025! Which means our reporters have already put together six guides featuring local spots they recommend dining at throughout Southern California. If you need a refresher, we’ve got them all linked at the bottom of each of our “Best Things We Ate” guides.

Also see: The best things we ate at Southern California restaurants in June

Here’s a look from reporters at nearby eateries to try around Los Angeles, Orange County, and the Inland Empire.

Related: See the best things we ate in Southern California in 2024.

The five-spice chicken fried steak at District 36 in Fountain Valley. (Photo by Brock Keeling, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Five-spice chicken fried “steak” – District 36 in Fountain Valley

District 36 in Fountain Valley is a new eatery that puts a Vietnamese spin on classic diner fare. Their take on chicken-fried steak is a perfect example. Instead of traditional tenderized cube steak, they use a katsu-style chicken cutlet breaded and seasoned with five-spice blend (known in Vietnamese as ngũ vị hương, typically featuring star anise, cloves, Chinese cinnamon, Sichuan pepper and fennel seed). The cutlet gets fried to a golden crisp, smothered in house-made gravy, and topped with pickled onions and a tangle of microgreens. The result is a dish that feels far lighter than its American counterpart. But by no means is it less filling; it comes with two eggs (served however you like) and crispy tater tots or rice.

— Brock Keeling, Restaurant Reporter

RELATED: Here, try this: Five-spice chicken fried ‘steak’ at District 36

Lobster Roll from Circle Hook Fish Company in Newport Beach. (Carolyn Burt, SCNG)

Lobster Roll – Circle Hook Fish Company, Newport Beach

If you’re someone who prefers their lobster roll sans mayo, then this is the spot for you. This dish from Circle Hook Fish Company is simple, but delicious. The lobster is coated with butter and served on a “C’est Si bon” baguette rather than your typical brioche roll. But what really makes this experience is the view of Newport Harbor. The outdoor dining lets guests enjoy the breeze as they eat their meal. Definitely a spot to revisit when it comes time for the Newport Beach Boat Parade in December.

— Carolyn Burt, Audience Engagement Producer

RELATED: Where to eat during the Newport Beach Christmas Boat Parade

Tiramisu latte and coffee cake from Cafe Ruisseau in Santa Monica. (Timothy Guy, SCNG)

Tiramisu latte and coffee cake – Cafe Ruisseau, Santa Monica

Tucked away in a cozy Santa Monica neighborhood is Café Ruisseau. It’s one of three locations of this Black-owned family business. The iced tiramisu latte was perhaps one of the best mocha coffees I’ve had in a long time. The absolute balance of coffee and sweetness. I later dreamt about this coffee. A big mention also goes to the massive slice of coffee cake. It was literally the size of my fist and yet still not large enough once I dug in. While many coffee cakes are dry as the desert, this coffee cake was moist and fresh.

— Timothy Guy, Digital Editor

Matcha Mont Blanc at Matcha Ren inside Costa Mesa’s Mitsuwa Marketplace. (Brock Keeling, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Matcha Mont Blanc – Matcha Ren inside Mitsuwa Marketplace, Costa Mesa

The Matcha Mont Blanc is a tasty postmodern riff on the classic French dessert. This verdant Japanese soft serve starts with matcha ice cream that gets crowned with a nest of smooth bean paste. What makes it so special? For starters, there’s the taste and texture: The smooth ice cream combined with the denser paste creates a delightful experience for your palate. Then, there’s the unique look; the shades of matcha and forest greens give it an earthy, unusual hue for a dessert (hence why it’s been splashed on social media as of late).

RELATED: Orange County’s best ice creams, frozen sweets and cool treats

Finally, just before it’s served, you get to watch as a Matcha Ren employee squeezes said bean paste from a special machine that looks like an adult version of a Play-Doh Fun Factory, bringing back memories of childhood. A treat for both your tastebuds and your eyes.

— Brock Keeling, Restaurant Reporter

Kanomwaan Thai Gelato and Dessert Cafe’s Mango Sticky Rice Sundae was among the desserts served at the Belly Laughs Comedy & Food Festival in Los Angeles. (Carolyn Burt/SCNG)

Mango Sticky Rice Sundae -Kanomwaan Thai Gelato and Dessert Cafe

People were buzzing about this Thai dessert the first day of the festival, so much so that it sold out nearly two hours after the gates opened on the first day. We made sure this was one of the first items we tried, and the hype was well-earned. Kanomwaan takes the best of a traditional mango sticky rice dessert, with coconut sticky white rice topped with dark ripe mangos, and elevates it. The dessert cafe adds a scoop of lilac-colored coconut gelato and another of mango gelato. It was such a cathartic process combining the rice, mango chunks and the gelatos with every bite for the nearly perfect dessert. This mango sticky rice sundae has completely shattered my expectations of every sticky rice I will have in the future, and I am okay with that.

— Charlie Vargas, Features Reporter

This entry was featured in our best things we ate at the Belly Laughs Comedy and Food Festival

Baja Shrimp Tacos from Casa Vega in Sherman Oaks (Carolyn Burt, SCNG)

Baja Shrimp Tacos – Casa Vega, Sherman Oaks

I went to Casa Vega to catch up with a friend and enjoy their table-side Caesar Salad (the one that uses the original recipe). Sadly, they were out of it for the night, but I didn’t feel too disappointed because one, it was an excuse to come back, and two the Baja Shrimp Tacos more than made up for it.

RELATED: Casa Vega marks the 100-year anniversary of the Caesar Salad by adding original recipe to the menu

The tacos were filling, and combined with the Mexican slaw, pickled red onion, guacamole and chipotle crema, each bite was a mouthwatering experience. The tacos also come with Spanish rice and refried beans, adding to the overall experience.

This LA restaurant is a must-visit the next time you’re in the Valley, not only for the food and drinks, but because of the local history of the establishment. There’s a reason why it has a long list of celebrity patrons.

— Carolyn Burt, Audience Engagement Producer

Hainanese chicken rice at Nam An in Westminster. (Photo by Brock Keeling, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Hainanese chicken rice – Nam An, Westminster

When Winnie Yee, the pitmaster behind Smoke Queen Barbecue, calls a place one of the best in Orange County, you have to try it. That’s what led me to Nam An and its glorious Hainanese chicken rice. This dish is a study in simplicity, featuring a chicken (white or/or dark, your choice) that’s been poached in an aromatic stock, resulting in tender, perfumed meat. The chicken is sliced and served alongside a half-dome of rice, which is cooked in chicken fat for maximum flavor. You also get three traditional dipping sauces: a chili-based sauce with sweet and sour notes, a hella zesty ginger-scallion sauce with the right amount of kick and a sweet-savory soy sauce blended in-house. As Tin Tran, whose family owns and operates the restaurant, explained, “With the Vietnamese variation, I think we value the freshness and we don’t want it to have too heavy of a mouthfeel.”

— Brock Keeling, Restaurant Reporter

RELATED: Where do Orange County’s top chefs eat? We asked them

Happy Camper Creamery in Redlands sells Redlands Orange Sorbet by the pint. (Photo by Fielding Buck, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

Redlands Orange Sorbet – Happy Camper Creamery, Redlands

Every now and then reporters get assignments that seem too good to be true. In July, mine was sampling ice cream throughout the Inland Empire. I discovered Happy Camper Creamery, a small scoop shop at 721 Nevada St., Suite 208, Redlands.

Owner Erica Horan makes sm

Santa Monica’s iconic Chez Jay Celebrates 66-year anniversary with retro party

Tue, 05 Aug 2025 11:10:15 +0000

It’s been a famed celebrity hangout since its Dutch doors opened in 1959 with stars like Elvis Presley pulling up in his pink Cadillac and Steve McQueen rubbing elbows on the well-worn wood bar next to locals and beach bums.

Even members of the Beach Boys and the Rat Pack gathered at this historic spot over martinis and it’s said that John F. Kennedy and Marilyn Monroe had more than a few rendezvous at the small nautical themed bar, leading to the interior being declared a “paparazzi-free” zone.

Located by the end of Route 66 near the Santa Monica Pier, the historic Chez Jay celebrates its 66-year anniversary on Saturday, Aug. 9 with a daylong retro-theme party.

“We’ve had such a rich history here,” said Chris Anderson, who along with his father Michael Anderson owns the famous spot, which has long been described as a high-class dive bar and classy joint that’s pretty much remained the same since it opened in 1959.

Chez Jay in Santa Monica, CA, on Thursday, July 31, 2025. The bar and eatery will celebrate its 66th anniversary on Aug. 9th. (Photo by David Crane, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)

“In a city that’s ever changing you can count on us to never change. And I think what’s special about that is that we see people who come in and they’ll sit in the same booth that their grandparents or their parents sat at. That kind of magic is something you can’t replicate,” he added.

The anniversary celebration is a ticketed event that will include live music featuring covers of The Beach Boys, Motown and jazz bands, a retro “Route 66” classic car display; a mini Chez Jay museum featuring memorabilia and historic photographs on display plus and interactive “Rumor Has It” video booth where attendees can share their Chez Jay memories.

And since Chez Jay also happens to be a legit restaurant known for dishes like the Butter Steak and Sand Dabs Sauté Almondine, its famed Linguine and Clams and Chez Jay’s “Original” Clam Chowder, some ticket holders will be able to reserve a prix-fixe dinner as part of the celebration. But with only 10 tables and 12 bar seats, you may have to be a celebrity to score one of these tickets.

Butter steak at Chez Jay in Santa Monica, CA, on Thursday, July 31, 2025. The bar and eatery will celebrate its 66th anniversary on Aug. 9th. (Photo by David Crane, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)

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Butter steak at Chez Jay in Santa Monica, CA, on Thursday, July 31, 2025. The bar and eatery will celebrate its 66th anniversary on Aug. 9th. (Photo by David Crane, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)

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Chez Jay lore

Chez Jay was originally founded by actor and hot-air balloonist Jay Fiondella, who purchased it when it was then known as the “Dawn Cafe” for one dollar. It opened with a party that included show girls and a circus elephants who ate free peanuts from the bar, according to the Santa Monica Conservancy. One of the elephants even left a dent on the bar, which can still be seen today.

According to the Conservancy, Chez Jay also has a place in political and space history too because the Pentagon Papers were passed to a New York Times reporter at table 10 and astronaut Alan Shepard smuggled a Chez Jay peanut into space and back.

While its lore is forever woven into the fabric of the city, for Anderson Chez Jay is still a spot that’s all about the people and the stories they share when they pull up a seat at the bar.

“You just never know who’s going to walk in through that front door,” Anderson said.

“It’s all about the people who come here. And it’s just this melting pot, a time capsule, no one is on their cell phones, everyone leaves their problems at the door and they come to the bar and you hear the greatest stories from all around the country and the world,” he added.

Chez Jay celebration

When: 3 p.m.-12 a.m. Aug. 9

Where: Chez Jay, 1657 Ocean Ave, Santa Monica

Tickets: resy.com

A Subway restaurant becomes Happy Gilmore’s ‘Happy Place’ for a one day pop-up

Mon, 04 Aug 2025 09:31:27 +0000

Fans of Happy Gilmore can get into the character’s head and go to his happy place in real life, thanks to a one day pop up in Santa Monica.

On Friday, Aug. 8, Subway, which has had a collaboration with the “Happy Gilmore” film since the original movie was released in 1996, is transforming one of its restaurants at 1801 Pico Blvd. in Santa Monica into the “Happy Place,” the surreal and serene dream world where Adam Sandler’s character mentally escapes to in order manage his anger.

“You can walk into our activation and feel like you stepped straight into the shoes of your favorite character from Happy Gilmore and you can relive some of the most beloved scenes from the film,” said Dean Harrison, senior director of social media and entertainment partnership for Subway.

On Aug. 8 Subway, which has had a collaboration with the “Happy Gilmore” film, is transforming one of its restaurants at 1801 Pico Blvd, Santa Monica into the “Happy Place,” the surreal and serene dream world where Adam Sandler’s character mentally escapes to in order manage his anger. (Rendering courtesy Subway)

Movie fans can expect to see scenes from both films including Virginia’s chaise lounge and there may even be a bear attack happening that day. There’s going to be a Happy Place beer garden, a putting green featuring recreations of the toughest holes in both movies where guests can play minigolf and people will be treated to free Happy Gilmore meals, featuring the Cold Cut Combo or the All-American Club sandwiches.

And from 12-2 p.m. movie fans will also get to meet Christopher McDonald, known for playing Shooter McGavin in the original “Happy Gilmore.”

“There’s going to be fountains, fogs, iconic music. It’s a multi-sensory experience that refereances the lore of the original Happy Gilmore as well as Happy Gilmore 2,” he said.

Subway’s Happy Place

When: 12 to 7 p.m., Friday, Aug. 8

Where: 1801 W. Pico Blvd., Santa Monica,

Tickets: Admission is free, but people are encouraged to make a reservation at SubwayHappyPlace.com/events.

Kevin Bludso’s BBQ is a must-try for every barbecue fan

Wed, 16 Jul 2025 17:55:00 +0000

If Los Angeles has an Avatar of BBQ, a King of Smoke, a Master of the Grill, then his name is Kevin Bludso, the Lord of Bludso’s BBQ. There are three branches of Bludso’s, two of which offer the option of sit-down consumption — the first on La Brea, the sequel in Santa Monica.

The third, and latest Bludso’s does not offer the option of inhaling in-house. The Van Nuys Bludso’s is takeout only — a warehouse of a space, on a street of many warehouses, and few restaurants. But if you feel the call of Bludso’s supremely smoky, tender, spicy, nigh-on perfect brisket — and can manage to drive it home without pulling over to tear the bag open, and stuff it all in your face — then Bludso’s BBQ to-go rules.

This is ’que as good as it gets here in SoCal – smoky meats that exude Texas roadhouse goodness, with a tad of an LA edge. I mean, do they offer barbecued jackfruit in Austin? The smart money says, not a chance.

Bludso’s BBQ is known for smoked ribs, pulled pork, brisket and more. (File photo by Leonard Ortiz, Orange County Register/SCNG)

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Bludso’s BBQ is known for smoked ribs, pulled pork, brisket and more. (File photo by Leonard Ortiz, Orange County Register/SCNG)

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Kevin Bludso is a local lad who knows his way around the complexities of Texas ’que. He was born and raised in Compton. His father was a police officer. To get him out of the ’hood, his parents sent him to Corsicana, Texas, come summer, where his grandmother ran a barbecue stand — and where he learned the subtleties, the ins-and-outs of smoking meat Texas-style.

He became not just a Master of the Pit, but also a historian of the genre, understanding which dishes had roots in Memphis, and which in Kansas City. In Los Angeles, he was schooled with meals at local legends like Woody’s, Philippe the Original and the iconic Mr. Jim’s — where the motto was, “You don’t need no teeth to eat our beef.”

He was to the barbecue pit born — an avocation that he continued during his 13 years working for the California Department of Corrections. Barbecue always called to him. And these days, he’s gone from running a local stand, to two sit-downs … and, in a somewhat full-circle moment, back to a stand serving the best ’que in the Valley.

He can be seen as a judge on the Netflix show “The American Barbecue Showdown.” He hung out with Guy Fieri on “Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives.” He’s got a cookbook, “Bludso’s BBQ Cookbook: A Family Affair in Smoke and Soul.” But mostly, Bludso is his ’que … and his ’que is Bludso. And SoCal as well.

I’ve been to barbecue stands in Texas. Unlike Bludso’s, they don’t offer homemade chips with creamy queso and Fresno peppers. They are devoid of barbecue chicken salad and turkey Caesar. But there is a shared commonality with the fried okra, the hushpuppies … and the fries loaded with Buffalo chicken, pulled pork or brisket. (That there are fries under all that is almost irrelevant.)

I have long been a brisket-aholic. I grew up eating Eastern European style brisket in the Bronx. And the quirky, textured nature of brisket isn’t just a flavor I adore — it’s part of my DNA.

The brisket at Bludso’s comes two ways, as it does at many ’que shops. There’s a fattier slice, and a leaner one. The debate between brisket partisans about which is best approaches religious zealotry. I argue that any brisket is better than no brisket. The full fat cut may have a deeper flavor. The leaner cut may have a more appealing texture.

The smokiness is pure and unabated. This is a wonderful brisket — perhaps even better on Bludso’s inspired brisket and hot link combo sandwich. With onions, pickles and sauce. If they eat this in Heaven, I’ll gladly repent of my sins.

I love the “threadishness” of the pulled pork. And the burnt edge of the rib tips. I prefer the rack of pork ribs to the “dinosaur” beef ribs, which exercise my teeth a bit more than they desire. Not that there’s anything wrong with that. But I’ve had enough dental work over the years that I worry I’ll swallow a crown along with the beef.

On the side, mac and cheese is essential, as are potato salad and coleslaw. The baked beans achieve glory with the addition of beef brisket, cooked long in much sauce.

Collard greens supply the dark greens we’re told we should be eating regularly. And one must order the cornbread because … one must order the cornbread.

Bludso’s has made lots of meal choices for us. There’s a Lunch Plate with two meats and two sides. There’s a smoked chicken Family Meal with sides and cornbread. There are trays for eight, 10 and 15. There’s sweet tea to drink, which separates Southerners from Northerners better than the Mason-Dixon Line.

There’s also banana pudding. Which for me, is what a meal of smoke should conclude with. The blackberry cobbler with ice cream sounds good. But banana pudding sounds better. It goes better with smoke than anything else. And it travels so well.

Merrill Shindler is a Los Angeles-based freelance dining critic. Email mreats@aol.com.

Bludso’s BBQ

Rating: 3 stars
Address: 13631 Saticoy St., Van Nuys
Information: 818-849-5237; www.bludsosbbq.com
Other locations: 609 N. La Brea Ave., Los Angeles; and 1329 Santa Monica Blvd., Santa Monica
Cuisine: The first two branches of Bludso’s offer sit-down dining. The SF Valley branch is takeout only. Which works fine since this ’que travels perfectly. The biggest problem is the aroma might cause you to pull the car over and rip open the takeout bag. The temptation is powerful.
When: Lunch and dinner, every day
Details: Soft drinks; no reservations
Prices: About $35 per person
On the menu: 6 Starters ($9-$16), 3 Salads ($9-$15), 5 Sandwiches ($15-$17), 8 Quarter Pound Meats ($9-$13), 3 Big Meats ($10-$39), 3 Hot Sides ($7.50), 2 Cold Sides ($7), Cornbread ($4), Seasoned Fries ($8), 6 Extras ($2-$8), Family Meal ($45), Lunch Tray ($160), Bludso’s Tray ($220), Party Tray ($360), 3 Lunch Specials ($17-$25), 4 Desserts ($5-$10), 5 Drinks ($2.50-$3.50)
Credit cards: MC, V
What the stars mean: 4 (World class! Worth a trip from anywhere!), 3 (Most excellent, even exceptional. Worth a trip from anywhere in Southern California.), 2 (A good place to go for a meal. Worth a trip from anywhere in the neighborhood.) 1 (If you’re hungry, and it’s nearby, but don’t get stuck in traffic going.) 0 (Honestly, not worth writing about.)

Man Arrested For Attempted Murder in Front Of Santa Monica Salvation Army

Tue, 08 Mar 2022 02:21:44 +0000

SANTA MONICA (CBSLA) — Police arrested a 29-year-old man for stabbing someone multiple times in front of a Salvation Army early Monday morning.

According to the Santa Monica Police Department, officers responded to the Salvation Army off of Fourth Street to investigate an apparent assault with a deadly weapon. A witness identified Michael Montgomery as the suspect. Police said the witness saw Montgomery strike and stab the victim multiple times. The victim pleaded with the suspect to stop. Montgomery responded by kicking and dragging the victim.

(Credit: SMPD)

SMPD soon detained Michael Montgomery in the area of Fourth Street and Colorado Avenue and found a folding knife on him.

Officers found the victim in front of the Salvation Army and rendered first aid until fire crews arrived. The victim was suffering from multiple stab wounds and was transported to a local hospital.

The victim is still in critical but stable condition.

Montgomery was booked for attempted murder and kidnapping.

‘The Lost Daughter’ Takes Home Top Honors At 2022 Film Independent Spirit Awards; Other Winners Named

Mon, 07 Mar 2022 03:15:34 +0000

SANTA MONICA (CBSLA) — The 37th Annual Film Independent Spirit Awards returned to the stage Sunday after resorting to a virtual ceremony in 2021 due to the Coronavirus pandemic.

SANTA MONICA, CALIFORNIA – MARCH 06: (L-R) Maggie Gyllenhaal accepts the Best Screenplay award for ‘The Lost Daughter’ from Daveed Diggs onstage during the 2022 Film Independent Spirit Awards on March 06, 2022 in Santa Monica, California. (Photo by Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images)

The festivities took place at The Victorian in Santa Monica, adjacent to the beach home to the Santa Monica Pier. The awards show is traditionally held to honor films distributed by companies other than Hollywood’s top studios.

For a production to be selected for eligibility in the award show, they must cost less than $22.5 million to make.

Nick Offerman and wife Megan Mullaly hosted the awards show, which was also broadcast live on IFC. Sunday’s show saw “The Lost Daughter,” directed by Maggie Gyllenhaal, take home the night’s top honors with both the Best Feature and Best Director awards.

Among the several entertainers presenting awards were Javier Bardem, Kristen Stewart, Rosario Dawson, Taika Waititi, Bob Odenkirk, Chloé Zhao and Andrew Garfield.

Full list of winners at the 2022 Film Independent Spirit Awards, with other nominations:

FILM CATEGORIES

Best Feature (Award given to the producer)

“The Lost Daughter” – Producers: Charles Dorfman, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Osnat Handelsman Keren, Talia Kleinhendler
“C’mon C’mon” – Producers: Chelsea Barnard, Andrea Longacre-White, Lila Yacoub
“A Chiara” – Producers: Jonas Carpignano, Paolo Carpignano, Jon Coplon, Ryan Zacarias
“The Novice” – Producers: Ryan Hawkins, Kari Hollend, Steven Sims, Zack Zucker
“Zola” – Producers: Kara Baker, Dave Franco, Elizabeth Haggard, David Hinojosa, Vince Jolivette, Christine Vachon, Gia Walsh

Best First Feature (Award given to the director and producer)

“7 Days” – Director: Roshan Sethi; Producers: Liz Cardenas, Mel Eslyn
“Holler” – Director: Nicole Riegel; Producers: Adam Cobb, Rachel Gould, Katie McNeill, Jamie Patricof, Christy Spitzer Thornton
“Queen of Glory” – Director: Nana Mensah; Producers: Baff Akoto, Anya Migdal, Kelley Robins Hicks, Jamund Washington
“Test Pattern” – Director/Producer: Shatara Michelle Ford; Producers: Pin-Chun Liu, Yu-Hao Su
“Wild Indian” – Director/Producer: Lyle Mitchell Corbine, Jr.; Producers: Thomas Mahoney, Eric Tavitian

John Cassavetes Award (Award given to the best feature made for under $500,000; award given to the writer, director and producer.)

“Shiva Baby” – Writer/Director/Producer: Emma Seligman; Producers: Kieran Altmann, Katie Schiller, Lizzie Shapiro
“Cryptozoo” – Writer/Director: Dash Shaw; Producers: Tyler Davidson, Kyle Martin, Jane Samborski, Bill Way
“Jockey” – Writer/Director/Producer: Clint Bentley; Writer/Producer: Greg Kwedar; Producer: Nancy Schafer
“Sweet Thing” – Writer/Director: Alexandre Rockwell; Producers: Louis Anania, Haley Anderson, Kenan Baysal
“This is Not a War Story” – Writer/Director/Producer: Talia Lugacy; Producers: Noah Lang, Julian West

Best Director Award

Maggie Gyllenhaal – “The Lost Daughter”
Janicza Bravo – “Zola”
Lauren Hadaway – “The Novice”
Mike Mills – “C’mon C’mon”
Ninja Thyberg – “Pleasure”

Best Screenplay

Maggie Gyllenhaal – “The Lost Daughter”
Nikole Beckwith – “Together Together”
Janicza Bravo, Jeremy O. Harris – “Zola”
Mike Mills – “C’mon C’mon”
Todd Stephens – “Swan Song”

Best First Screenplay

Michael Sarnoski, Vanessa Block – “Pig”
Matt Fifer, Sheldon D. Brown – “Cicada”
Fran Kanz – “Mass”
Shatara Michelle Ford – “Test Pattern”
Lyle Mitchell Corbine, Jr. – “Wild Indian”

Best Male Lead

Simon Rex – “Red Rocket”
Clifton Collins Jr. – “Jockey”
Frankie Faison – “The Killing of Kenneth Chamberlain”
Michael Greyeyes – “Wild Indian”
Udo Kier – “Swan Song”

Best Female Lead

Taylour Paige – “Zola”
Isabelle Fuhrman – “The Novice”
Brittany S. Hall – “Test Pattern”
Patti Harrison – “Together Together”
Kali Reis – “Catch the Fair One”

Best Documentary (Award given to the director and producer)

“Summer of Soul (…Or When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised) – Director: Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson; Producers: David Dinerstein, Robert Fyvolent, Joseph Patel
“Ascension” – Director/Producer: Jessica Kingdon; Producers: Kira Simon-Kennedy, Nathan Truesdell
“Flee” – Director: Jonas Poher Rasmussen; Producers: Monica Hellström, Signe Byrge Sørensen
“In the Same Breath” – Director/Producer: Nanfu Wang; Producers: Christopher Clements, Julie Goldman, Carolyn Hepburn, Jialing Zhang
“Procession” – Director: Robert Greene; Producers: Susan Bedusa, Bennett Elliott, Douglas Tirola

Best Supporting Male

Troy Kotsur – “CODA”
Colman Domingo – “Zola”
Meeko Gattuso – “Queen of Glory”
Will Patton – “Sweet Thing”
Chaske Spencer – “Wild Indian”

Best Supporting Female

Ruth Negga – “Passing”
Jessie Buckley – “The Lost Daughter”
Amy Forsyth – “The Novice”
Revika Reustle – “Pleasure”
Suzanna Son – “Red Rocket”

Best International Film

“Drive My Car” (Japan) – Director: Ryusuke Hamaguchi
“Compartment No. 6” (Finland/Russia) – Director: Juho Kuosmanen
“Parallel Mothers” (Spain) – Director: Pedro Almodóvar
“Pebbles” (India) – Director: P S Vinothraj
“Petite Maman” (France) – Director: Céline Sciamma
“Prayers for the Stolen (Mexico) – Director: Tatiana Huezo

Best Editing

Joi McMillon – “Zola”
Affonso Gonçalves – “A Chiara”
Ali Greer – “The Nowhere Inn”
Enrico Natale – “The Killing of Kenneth Chamberlain”
Lauren Hadaway, Nathan Nugent – “The Novice”

Best Cinematography

Edu Grau – “Passing”
Lol Crawley – “The Humans”
Tim Curtin – “A Chiara”
Ante Cheng, Matthew Chuang – “Blue Bayou”
Ari Wegner – “Zola”

Robert Altman Award (Award given to one film’s director, casting director and ensemble cast)

“Mass” – Director: Fran Kranz; Casting Directors: Henry Russell Bergstein, Allison Estrin; Ensemble Cast: Kagen Albright, Reed Birney, Michelle N. Carter, Ann Dowd, Jason Isaacs, Martha Plimpton, Breeda Wool

TELEVISION CATEGORIES

Best New Scripted Series (Award given to the Creator, Executive Producer, Co-Executive Producer)

“Reservation Dogs” – Creators/Executive Producers: Sterlin Harjo, Taika Waititi; Executive Producer: Garrett Basch
“Blindspotting” – Creators/Executive Producers: Rafael Casal, Daveed Diggs; Executive Producers: Jess Wu Calder, Keith Calder, Ken Lee, Tim Palen, Emily Gerson Saines, Seith Mann
“It’s a Sin” – Executive Producers: Russell T Davies, Peter Hoar, Nicola Shindler
“The Underground Railroad” – Creator/Executive Producer: Barry Jenkins; Executive Producers: Adele Romanski, Mark Ceryak, Brad Pitt, Dede Gardner, Jeremy Kleiner, Colson Whitehead, Richard Heus, Jacqueline Hoyt
“We Are Lady Parts” – Creator: Nida Manzoor; Executive Producers: Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner, Surian Fletcher-Jones, Mark Freeland

Best New Non-Scripted or Documentary Series (Award given to the Creator, Executive Producer, Co-Executive Producer)

“Black and Missing” – Series By/Executive Producers: Soledad O’Brien, Geeta Gandbhir; Executive Producers: Jo Honig, Patrick Conway, Nancy Abraham, Lisa Heller, Sara Rodriguez
“The Choe Show” – Creator/Executive Producer: David Choe; Executive Producers; Matt Revelli, Christopher C. Chen, Hiro Murai, Nate Matteson
“The Lady and the Dale” – Executive Producers: Mark Duplass, Jay Duplass, Mel Eslyn, Allen Bain, Andre Gaines, Nick Cammilleri, Alana Carithers, Zackary Drucker, Nancy Abraham, Lisa Heller
“Nuclear Family” – Series By: Ry Russo-Young; Produced By: Dan Cogan, Warren Fischer; Executive Producers: Liz Garbus, Julie Gaither, Jon Bardin, Leah Holzer, Peter Saraf, Alex Turtletaub, Jenny Raskin, Geralyn White Dreyfous, Lauren Haber, Maria Zuckerman, Christine Connor, Ryan Heller, Barbara Dobkin, Eric Dobkin, Andrea Van Beuren, Joe Landauer
“Philly D.A.” – Creators: Ted Passon, Yoni Brook, Nicole Salazar; Produced By: Josh Penn, Michael Gottwald; Executive Producers: Dawn Porter, Sally Jo Fifer, Lois Vossen, Ryan Chanatry, Gena Konstantinakos, Jeff Seelbach, Patty Quillin; Co-Executive Producers: Nion McEvoy, Leslie Berriman

Best Male Performance in a New Scripted Series

Lee Jung-Jae – “Squid Game”
Olly Alexander – “It’s a Sin”
Murray Bartlett – “The White Lotus”
Michael Greyeyes – “Rutherford Falls”
Ashley Thomas – “THEM: Covenant”

Best Female Performance in a New Scripted Series

Thuso Mbedu – “The Underground Railroad”
Deborah Ayorinde – “THEM: Covenant”
Jasmine Cephas Jones – “Blindspotting”
Jana Schmieding – “Rutherford Falls”
Anjana Vasan – “We Are Lady Parts”

Best Ensemble Cast in a New Scripted Series

“Reservation Dogs” – Ensemble Cast: Devery Jacobs, D’Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai, Lane Factor, Paulina Alexis, Sarah Podemski, Zahn McClarnon, Lil Mike, FunnyBone

Super Bowl: Warm Weather Drives Tourists, Locals Alike To Beach On Super Bowl Eve

Sun, 13 Feb 2022 05:14:51 +0000

SANTA MONICA (CBSLA) — With less than 24 hours until Super Bowl LVI, featuring the hometown Los Angeles Rams and the Cincinnati Bengals, Southern California beaches were far more crowded than normal on Saturday.

Over 100,000 football fans set to attend the big game, many actually headed away from SoFi Stadium, and instead to the sand in an attempt to take in the uncharacteristic summer day in February.

Since many of the people heading into the Southland hail from Ohio, or other Midwest states, 80 degree beach weather is far from normal, in fact, on Saturday in Cincinnati, there was a high of 23 degrees with a likelihood for snow.

So when Becky Matheny, a Bengals fan from Louisville, KY saw today’s weather she made sure she went to thaw out of her winter freeze at the beach, “I love it here,” she said.

Despite her newfound love for Southern California, she refused to drop her lasting passion for the Bengals.

“Because it’s the Bengals! We got Burrow, we got ’em all!” she told CBS reporter Nicole Comstock, “We got the best kicker in the NFL!”

Ironically, another Bengals fan named Becky spoke with Comstock while she was in Santa Monica.

Becky Shelton, who hails from Cincinnati, disclosed that today was her first time on the West Coast. But like the other Becky, she refused to give up on her Bengals, despite being in enemy territory. “We’re not going back to Cincy without a win,” she said.

Larry Wasser was of another mind, “Well, what happens when you’re in L.A., you become a Rams fan,” the Toronto transplant disclosed, “there’s no choice.”

Regardless of what team beachgoers were rooting for come Sunday, local shops and restaurants were reaping the benefits of the Super Bowl, like many other businesses across the Southland, even ahead of the big game.

Big Dean’s Ocean Front Cafe, located just off the Santa Monica Pier, was one of the many businesses that was overwhelmed by the sudden influx of consumers.

“We’ve been very busy,” said Mary Francis Bonzoni, a supervisor at Big Dean’s.

Despite the craze, employees were grateful for a change of tone when it came to their customers, especially those with the Midwestern hospitality in mind.

“Theres’s a lot of people from out of town, these people are really nice – you can tell the difference!,” Bonzoni continued.

Mike Morris was yet another Cincinnati local who took the 2,175 mile trip west to watch his team play in the Super Bowl for the first time in 31 years.

“I’ve been enjoying your city,” he said, “Did the tourist thing yesterday, hit all the big stops and today we’re hanging out at the pier; tomorrow’s the big game!”

The warm weather is expected to last again through Super Bowl Sunday, and stretch into Monday before winter weather re-descends upon the Southland, bringing back a little bit of normalcy for Los Angeles County in the wake of Super Bowl LVI.

Megan Mullally And Nick Offerman To Host Film Independent Spirit Awards

Sat, 12 Feb 2022 03:03:34 +0000

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) — Megan Mullally and Nick Offerman are set to host the 2022 Film Independent Spirit Awards on March 6.

“We are sincerely excited to be hosting the 2022 Film Independent Spirit Awards,” the couple said in a joint statement. “We hope to get a little rowdy, but it’ll mainly be legitimate cinematic discourse. Although, with the two of us involved, it’s more likely to be intercourse. Either way, it’ll be legit.”

The Spirit Awards ceremony will be held in Santa Monica after being held virtually last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The event will be broadcasted on IFC.

Mullally is best known for her role as Karen Walker on “Will & Grace,” and Offerman is best known for his work on “Parks and Recreation.”

Water Use Warnings In Effect At Several LA County Beaches

Sat, 29 Jan 2022 17:06:51 +0000

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) – Officials have issued health warnings for ocean water use at several beaches in Los Angeles County due to bacterial levels exceeding health standards when last tested.

The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health is cautioning residents to avoid swimming, surfing or playing in ocean waters at the following beaches:

— Mother’s Beach in Marina del Rey;

— Santa Monica Pier;

— Malibu Lagoon at Surfrider Beach;

— Pico-Kenter Storm Drain at Santa Monica Beach (Santa Monica Tower 20);

— Herondo Street Storm Drain at Hermosa Beach (Hermosa Tower TK).

The warnings were issued Friday.

Meanwhile, warnings were lifted for Topanga Canyon Beach and Leo Carrillo State Beach in Malibu, where recent sample results identified water quality levels within state standards.

Recorded information on beach conditions is available 24 hours a day on the county’s beach closure hotline at 1-800-525-5662. To view a map of impacted locations and for more information, go here.

Authorities Searching For Missing Teen Girl Allegedly Taken By Her Mother

Wed, 26 Jan 2022 05:59:18 +0000

SANTA MONICA (CBLSA) – On Tuesday, police sought the public’s help to locate a 14-year-old girl who was reported missing in Santa Monica after allegedly being taken by her mother.

Isabela Belani was last seen about 4 p.m. on Jan. 11 during a planned visitation with her 52-year-old mother Shari Jackowitz, according to the California Highway Patrol, which issued a missing persons advisory on behalf of the Santa Monica Police Department.

Isabela is 5 feet, 5 inches tall and weighs 130 pounds, with black hair and brown eyes. She was last seen wearing a hoodie, gray shirt, gray jacket and black pants.
Jackowitz is 5 feet, 8 inches tall and weighs 127 pounds, with brown hair and brown eyes. She is also known to drive a black 2018 Audi S7 with the Florida license plate DISJ14.

Anyone with information on their whereabouts was asked to call 911.

ENDANGERED MISSING ADVISORY – Los Angeles County.@SantaMonicaPD
IF Seen Call 9-1-1 pic.twitter.com/9nLrq4hq6O

— CHP – Alerts (@CHPAlerts) January 26, 2022

Actor Peter Dante, Regular In Adam Sandler Movies, Accused Of Antisemitic Remarks In Recent Lawsuit

Sun, 23 Jan 2022 00:09:07 +0000

SANTA MONICA (CBSLA) – Actor Peter Dante has been sued by a man who alleges that Dante called him an “old Jew” and a sissy and chased him around
a Santa Monica restaurant earlier this month.

BOSTON, MA – JUNE 09: Peter Dante attends the That’s My Boy Boston Premiere at Regal Fenway Theater on June 9, 2012 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Marc Andrew Deley/Getty Images)

Plaintiff Scott Burns’ Santa Monica Superior Court lawsuit alleges assault, defamation-slander and both intentional and negligent infliction of emotional distress. Burns seeks $1.5 million in damages in the suit brought Thursday.

A representative for the 53-year-old “Grandma’s Boy” actor could not be immediately reached for comment.

On Jan. 3 at about 5:15 p.m., Burns went to Lares, a Mexican food restaurant on Pico Boulevard where he regularly dines, the suit states. Burns, who is elderly and has heart disease, entered through the back door due to management’s COVID-19 safety protocols and was directed to his table after his temperature was taken and he showed his vaccination card, the suit states.

Dante was “purposefully blocking” the area Burns needed to pass through and although the plaintiff excused himself, a visibly drunk Dante began “verbally assaulting” him, according to the suit.

Dante then began asking Burns invasive and personal questions in a menacing tone, and called the plaintiff’s answers “stupid,” the suit states.

“Plaintiff was humiliated in the small space in front of the staff whom he knows well and the other diners,” the suit states.

Dante, who allegedly ignored Burns’ requests to stop talking to him, called the plaintiff a “sissy” and asked if he was going to do anything about it, but Burns responded that he did not want to fight, according to the suit.

Dante made antisemitic remarks about Burns’ appearance, saying he was an “old Jew” with a “Jew nose,” the suit alleges.

Dante later approached Burns’ table and stood over the plaintiff in a threatening manner, leaving Burns feeling he was about to be attacked, the suit states. When Burns told a waiter he was leaving, Dante yelled, “See sissy running away,” according to the suit.

Dante chased Burns around a large table and the plaintiff was able to call the police, telling the operator to stay on the phone with him because he feared for his safety, the suit states.

The restaurant owner’s daughter approached and kept Dante away from Burns, then told the actor, “Pay your bill and get out. You’re out of here,” the suit states.

Dante eventually left. Burns, who felt humiliated and believes his reputation was damaged, has continued to have nightmares as well as a feeling of apprehension when he is in public places, especially while visiting Lares, according to the suit.

One Killed In Deadly Freeway Crash After Driving On Wrong Side Of Freeway

Sat, 22 Jan 2022 14:38:55 +0000

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) – A Lynwood man was killed in a two-vehicle collision Saturday in Los Angeles.

The crash occurred just before 4:30 a.m. on the eastbound 10 Freeway, when a man driving on the wrong side of the road crashed head-on with another vehicle driving in the opposite direction.

The driver of the vehicle which caused the collision has been identified as 27-year-old Danny R. Silva.

He was driving a 2018 Mazda MX5 Miata, when he collided with an unnamed individual driving a 2012 Infiniti EX35 SUV. The Infiniti attempted to swerve around the oncoming vehicle, but was unable to avoid the collision.

The SUV driver suffered moderate injuries in the collision, both drivers were the sole occupants of the vehicles involved in the incident.

One of the vehicles overturned in the crash and the other ended up on the right shoulder of the freeway.

The collision closed the La Cienega off ramp and the No. 4 lane of the freeway for an unknown duration.

CHP officials are investigating the cause of the crash.

Microsoft To Acquire Santa Monica-Based Activision Blizzard In $68.7 Billion Deal

Tue, 18 Jan 2022 17:33:55 +0000

SANTA MONICA (CBSLA) — Microsoft announced Tuesday it would acquire Santa Monica-based Activision Blizzard for $68.7 billion in cash to gain a foothold in the metaverse.

Sign on facade of office of videogame publisher Activision in the Silicon Beach area of Los Angeles, California, December 10, 2018. (Photo by Smith Collection/Gado/Getty Images)

Activision Blizzard — whose studios are behind several successful PC, console, and mobile video game franchises such as “Warcraft,” “Diablo,” “Overwatch,” “Call Of Duty,” and “Candy Crush” — employs nearly 10,000 people around the world. The Santa Monica video game company also has a global eSports franchises like “Overwatch League,” “Call of Duty League,” “Hearthstone Grandmasters,” and “World of Warcraft Arena World Chamionship.”

“Gaming is the most dynamic and exciting category in entertainment across all platforms today and will play a key role in the development of metaverse platforms,” Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said in a statement.

Microsoft says Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick and his team will remain in their positions, reporting to Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer once the deal closes sometime this year.

“The combination of Activision Blizzard’s world-class talent and extraordinary franchises with Microsoft’s technology, distribution, access to talent, ambitious vision and shared commitment to gaming and inclusion will help ensure our continued success in an increasingly competitive industry,” Kotick said in a statement.

The acquisition comes just a few months after the company’s leadership came under fire due to their lack of response to a lawsuit alleging harassment and inequality. Several hundred employees at the Santa Monica headquarters staged a walkout last summer, and in a statement to one report from the Wall Street Journal, Activision Blizzard says it has made “significant improvements, including a zero-tolerance policy for inappropriate conduct” at Kotick’s direction.

Fresno Man Rahmad Parke, Wanted In Murders Of Mother And Grandfather, Known To Frequent Santa Monica, Van Nuys And Sherman Oaks

Thu, 13 Jan 2022 21:01:46 +0000

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) — Homicide detectives say a Fresno man suspected of murdering his mother and grandfather could be trying to hide in Southern California.

(credit: Fresno County Sheriff’s Office)

Rahmad Kerel Parke, 25, is the sole suspect in the murders of his mother, 58-year-old Melba Abdelaziz, and his grandfather, 90-year-old Mel Abdelaziz. Melba Abdelaziz had been living with her father so she could provide medical care for the aging former church pastor, according to the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office.

The Abdelazizs were found dead at their home in the 5100 block of E. Tulare Avenue in Fresno last Thursday. The former pastor’s body was found in the home’s front yard, and his daughter’s body was inside the home, authorities said.

(credit: Fresno County Sheriff’s Office)

Parke, who authorities say fled the scene of the crime, was identified by detectives as being responsible for the murders of his mother and grandfather. He was described as a 5-foot-10, 185-pound Black man with brown eyes and black hair with possible facial hair.

Authorities say he is a transient known to frequent Fresno and Los Angeles County, specifically Santa Monica, Van Nuys, and Sherman Oaks.

Investigators are asking for help finding Parke, but anyone who sees him or knows where he is staying should not approach him, but should instead call law enforcement immediately. Anyone with information about the case can contact Detective Jose Diaz at (559) 600-8204 or (559) 448-7089.

Signs Of Inbreeding Among Southern California Mountain Lions Raise Extinction Fears

Sat, 08 Jan 2022 18:59:04 +0000

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) – Scientists tracking two local mountain lion populations, one in the Santa Monica Mountains and another in the Santa Anas, have identified the first reproductive signs of inbreeding among these groups, which are cut off from breeding options by busy freeways.

According to the UCLA-led study — which is available online and will be published in the January 2022 edition of the journal Theriogenology — the animals averaged a 93% abnormal sperm rate, while some also displayed physical signs of inbreeding, like deformed tails or testicular defects.

The mother of a mountain lion that attacked a 5-year-old boy near Calabasas, is pictured.

Researchers have long had genetic evidence of inbreeding, but the malformed sperm is the first evidence that inbreeding is manifesting in the reproductive system.

“This is a serious problem for an animal that’s already endangered locally,” said the study’s lead author, Audra Huffmeyer, a UCLA postdoctoral researcher who studies fertility in large cat species and is a National Geographic Explorer. “It’s quite severe.”

Researchers said the results lend urgency to the need for wildlife crossings, structures that allow the mountain lions and other animals to roam further and find a broader pool of potential mates. Mountain lions — also known as cougars — are a bellwether species, making them a leading indicator that inbreeding could soon cause problems for other species in the Santa Monica and Santa Ana mountains, the authors said.

The California Department of Transportation has scheduled groundbreaking for early 2022 on one such wildlife crossing, a bridge over the Ventura (101) Freeway in Agoura Hills, thanks to a mix of public and private funding.

Biologists and land managers hope this project will lead to more crossings. Early plans are being formulated for a possible structure over Interstate 15 in Riverside County.

The latest study draws on work by scientists from UCLA, the National Park Service’s Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area and the UC Davis Wildlife Health Center. Both the NPS and UC Davis are carrying out long-term studies of Southern California mountain lion populations, currently following 17 cats.

Over the past year, the research team identified nine adult males from the Santa Monica and Santa Ana ranges with signs of inbreeding, including the first evidence of reduced fertility.

Their findings are similar to the signs of severe inbreeding seen early on among most Florida panthers in the 1990s, including the kinked tails, undescended testes and teratospermia (60% or more abnormal sperm), Huffmeyer noted. The Florida panther population only recovered with the introduction of mountain lions from Texas.

“The Florida panthers were also severely isolated and severely inbred, so the fact that we’re seeing the same traits in our mountain lion population is alarming,” she said. “If we don’t do anything to introduce more genetic diversity to the Southern California mountain lions, we will have more males with reproductive problems, fewer kittens and a lower rate of kitten survival.”

The scientists cited a real risk of extinction for the mountain lions in the Santa Monica and Santa Ana ranges. Once significant inbreeding depression is found — meaning decreased fertility and reduced kitten survival – – extinction is predicted to occur within 50 years, according to 2016 and 2019 papers evaluating population viability that included scientists from UCLA, NPS, UC Davis, the University of Wyoming, and the University of Nebraska.

While a few mountain lions — in particular the cougar known as P-22, who frequents Griffith Park — have successfully crossed freeways, far more have been killed trying to do so.

How To Watch: Santa Monica Pier Countdown To 2022

Sat, 01 Jan 2022 05:05:43 +0000

SANTA MONICA (CBSLA) — The Santa Monica Pier is geared up to head into 2022, with a virtual show and countdown displayed in lights on the Santa Monica Ferris Wheel.

The pier invites the public to join them in counting down to 2022 with a show on the world-renowned Ferris Wheel, which will display the “West Coast New Year’s Eve Countdown 2022 on The Pacific Wheel.”

People are invited to view the show from the bluff at Pacific Palisades, or online via stream here. There will also be a live YouTube feed of the show available for public viewing on Pacific Park’s YouTube Channel.

Despite the show taking place at 11:30, the Santa Monica Pier closes at 10 p.m. on both New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day, and there will be no fireworks shows.

With over 174,000 lights adorning the 90-foot tall ferris wheel, the show will feature a dazzling display of lights and patterns, including a 60-second countdown to ring in 2022. Afterwards, “Happy New Year” will scrawl across the ferris wheel in 16 different languages.

The show will continue until around 1 a.m., January 1, 2022.

Happy New Year!

New Princess Diana Exhibit To Open In Santa Monica

Tue, 30 Nov 2021 15:25:32 +0000

SANTA MONICA (CBSLA) – A new Princess Diana walk-through exhibit will open Wednesday in Santa Monica.

“Princess Diana Exhibition: Accredited Access” features never-before-told stories from world-famous royal photographer Anwar Hussein, who spent four decades with the British royal family.

“There is a difference between a celebrity and an icon, and the humanitarianism, she didn’t have a PR agency moving around telling her do things, she was out there trying to change the world, make it a better place,” Curator Cliff Skeilliter told CBSLA Tuesday.

The exhibit, located at Santa Monica Place, at 315 Colorado Ave., is slated as a “walk through documentary experience” that features “larger-than-life images, bespoke creations and art installations.”

Tickets start at $25. The exhibit will be open Wednesday through Sunday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Wednesday and Thursday, and 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Friday through Sunday. Proof of vaccination is required to enter. All visitors will also be required to wear masks.

Man Robbed In Santa Monica Follows Gunman, Who Fires Back At Him From Moving Car

Thu, 18 Nov 2021 23:31:56 +0000

SANTA MONICA (CBSLA) — Police say an armed robbery turned into a car-to-car shooting in the middle of a neighborhood near the Santa Monica Airport.

Santa Monica police say a man who had just parked in the 2600 block of 34th Street at about 2 p.m. Monday was immediately blocked off by a black sedan. The front passenger got out and pulled out a gun, demanding the man’s cell phone and wallet.

(credit: Santa Monica Police Department)

The driver gave up his property, but then got back in his car to follow the suspect vehicle, according to Santa Monica police. As both vehicles drove eastbound on Pico Boulevard, the gunman leaned out of the passenger-side window and fired several times at the driver following behind them.

The suspects were last seen driving eastbound onto the 10 Freeway onramp at Centinela Avenue.

The incident is a reminder that members of the public should not try to take matters into their own hands when it comes to violent crimes, Santa Monica police spokesman Rudy Flores said.

“It is important that we remind our community that we do not encourage anyone to endanger themselves further by trying to follow or chase a suspect involved in a serious crime,” he said in a statement. “We ask that they focus on being a good witness and try to obtain a detailed description of the vehicle and parties involved then immediately contacting the police for assistance.”

The suspect vehicle was described as a newer black Nissan Versa or similar 4-door sedan with dark tinted windows, and black and chrome wheels. The gunman was described as a white or Hispanic man in his late 20s with straight, shoulder-length brown hair, brown or gray eyes, wearing a hoodie and a black bandanna covering the lower half of his face. No information was available about the driver.

Anyone with information about the robbery or shooting can contact Detective Tavera at (310) 458-2256.

Interest In All-Electric And Hybrid Vehicles Spiking Alongside Gas Prices

Tue, 16 Nov 2021 01:56:20 +0000

SANTA MONICA (CBSLA) – As gas prices in Southern California skyrocket, interest in the potential cost-cutting value of alternate-fuel vehicles is also rising.

“It’s my husbands, one of his cars, and now I drive it a lot probably because of the gas prices are crazy,” said Tesla owner Leslie Gifford.

The demand for gas has spiked and experts don’t see an end in sight yet.

“We don’t anticipate that the demand for fuel is going to decrease anytime soon,” Spokesperson Doug Shupe, with the American Automotive Association, said.

Triple A also said there’s a direct correlation from the introduction of the vaccine to people wanting to free themselves from lockdown over the course of this year.

“Even though it sucks to have such high gas prices, maybe a little bit of good will come out of it, people start shifting to electric and hybrid,” Benji Miller said.

Experts report that’s exactly what’s happened, something like a domino-effect. According to Kelley Blue Book and Cox Automotive second quarter data, electrified vehicle sales are up 200% year over year.

Miller owns a Prius and said his mother, Lee, owns an all-electric BMW.

“She hasn’t been to a gas station in years,” Miller said.

“Literally, I haven’t been to a gas station in five years,” his mother responded.

Triple A said with technology improving, electric vehicles can travel father on a charge and hybrids now come in SUVs, for example, providing more variety for everyone.

“There’s so many more options on the market these days that in addition to the higher gas prices, and the environmental benefits, people are considering them because they just make sense for some families,” Shupe said.

The automotive association also urged people to do their research before buying a hybrid or all-electric vehicle, to ensure that the car will fit your specific needs.

Pedestrian Killed In Fatal Hit-And-Run In Santa Monica

Mon, 15 Nov 2021 00:40:24 +0000

SANTA MONICA (CBSLA) – Santa Monica Police have reported a fatal hit-and-run that occurred around 8:00 p.m. on Saturday evening.

The incident took place on 10th Street and Pico Boulevard, when a pedestrian was struck by what authorities are now stating is a white Dodge Challenger with red racing stripes on the hood.

According to officials, the pedestrian was initially struck by the Challenger, before getting hit again by a second vehicle. The driver of the second vehicle stayed on scene and cooperated with authorities.

The accident was reported by the second driver.

The man was pronounced dead at the scene by emergency personnel. Initial reports suggest that the man is aged somewhere between 50 and 60 years.

It is currently unclear whether or not the victim was in a crosswalk when he was hit.

Residents are frustrated with the situation, as the roads have just been repaved and have yet to undergo fresh coats of paint for crosswalks, lanes and traffic directions.

Santa Monica Police Departments Major Accident Response team has opened an investigation, and are searching for surveillance footage in the area.

Anyone with information on the hit-and-run driver was to call Santa Monica police Detective Evan Raliegh at 310-458-8954 or he department at 310-458-8461.

Authorities Seeking Assistance In October Hit-And-Run Incident

Fri, 12 Nov 2021 21:17:33 +0000

(Photo Courtesy of the Santa Monica Police Department.)

SANTA MONICA (CBSLA) – Authorities are seeking public assistance in finding the alleged suspect in a hit-and-run that nearly killed a pedestrian at 1 a.m. on October 31.

The incident occurred around Wilshire Boulevard and Third Street according to the Santa Monica Police Department. The driver hit a pedestrian who sustained serious injury.

The authorities are looking for a white Infiniti G-Series sedan that has no front license plate. They also state that there should be major damage to the front passenger side of the vehicle.

So far, this is the only information available on the suspect, with no additional information on the motorist known at this time.

Anyone with information on the case was urged to contact Investigator Evan Raleigh at 310-458-8954 or via email at evan.raleigh@santamonica.gov; or the watch commander at 310-458-8461.

Man Stabbed During Confrontation In Santa Monica Vons Store Over Mask-Wearing

Tue, 09 Nov 2021 19:30:05 +0000

SANTA MONICA (CBSLA) – A man was stabbed late Monday night by a security guard at a Vons grocery store in Santa Monica after he purportedly became violent when employees asked him to put on a mask.

Nov. 8, 2021. (RMG News)

The stabbing occurred at about 10:35 p.m. at a Vons located at 710 Broadway.

Witnesses said the victim entered the Vons a little before closing, appeared disheveled and was not wearing a mask.

Witnesses told Santa Monica police that when Vons staff approached him, the victim became belligerent and assaulted an employee. When a security guard intervened and tried to escort the man out of the store, the man attacked the guard, police said.

The security guard then produced a pocket-knife and stabbed the suspect several times.

According to police, the security guard called 911 and reported that he had stabbed the victim in self-defense. Officers arrived to find the victim outside the grocery store.

“When somebody came up to break it up, pull them apart, but then that guy was bleeding profusely, where he’d (the guard) gotten him,” witness Andre Berryman said. “So that was pretty much what happened. It was all behind him not wearing a mask.”

The victim was taken by ambulance to a hospital with multiple stab wounds, police said,. He underwent surgery and was last reported to be stable. The man has allegedly refused to provide investigators with his name or any forms of identification.

Footage from the scene showed the security guard sitting on the curb surrounded by officers. It’s unclear if he will face any criminal charges.

“I don’t have the specifics on the actual knife, if it’s a pocket folding knife, then, yes, it is legal and he can be armed with it,” Santa Monica police Lt. Rudy Flores said.

There was no word regarding whether footage of the altercation was caught on the store’s security cameras.

Tom Hanks Crashes Santa Monica Beach Wedding

Fri, 29 Oct 2021 14:21:32 +0000

SANTA MONICA (CBSLA) – The nicest guy in Hollywood strikes again.

Tom Hanks crashed a beach wedding in Santa Monica, Calif., for couple Tashia and Diciembre Farris. Oct. 22, 2021. (Courtesy: Farris family)

Last week, a San Dimas couple was in the middle of their dream wedding on a beach in Santa Monica, with friends and family, when none other than actor Tom Hanks showed up and crashed their wedding.

Tashia and Diciembre Farris had just wrapped up their ceremony on the beach Oct. 22 when a familiar face appeared in the crowd.

“A guy walks through the crowd, and I’m like, ‘Who is this guy walking in our photos?’” Tashia told CBSLA. “And the crowd is like, ‘That’s Tom Hanks!’ And I’m like, ‘What? No way!’ Right? And he took off his hat and he starts talking and immediately we knew it was Tom Hanks.”

“He said, you know, ‘Is the groom around?’” Diciembre said. “And we said, ‘There’s no groom, it’s bride and bride.’ And that’s when you see him say, ‘Get out of town!’”

Hanks was the delight of the brides and their guests and kids, who kept looking for Woody from “Toy Story.”

“The kids are looking for actual Woody from ‘Toy Story,’ and they’re like, ‘that’s not him,'” Diciembre said.

Hanks is something of a wedding crashing professional. In 2016, he popped into a couple’s photo session in New York City’s Central Park and posed with the newlyweds.

“Tom Hanks had such an amazing personality,” Tashia said. “(He) accepted us for who we are, showed us love like we were family. Stuck around and took pictures with our guests. He was great.”

For Diciembre, Hanks’ visit meant something extra special.

“It wasn’t until later that evening my sister called me and said, ‘You will not guess when Tom Hanks’ birthday is.’ And it was July 9, which is my brother’s birthday,” Diciembre said.

Diciembre’s brother, who died in 2017, had a seat reserved at the ceremony. Hanks dropping by felt like fate for the couple.

“Wow, out of all people on this day, Tom Hanks showed up to let us know my brother was there,” Diciembre said.

Before he left, Hanks had these parting words for the blushing brides.

“If we’re ever in the same room, or the same airport, or something like that, come on by, push your way through and say ‘I remember (you),’” Hanks said.

‘Survivor’ Contestant Michelle Yi Describes Frightening Santa Monica Assault

Thu, 28 Oct 2021 17:23:39 +0000

SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) — Former ‘Survivor’ contestant Michelle Yi, who goes by “Piper,” spoke exclusively to KPIX 5’s Betty Yu about a vicious attack that may have left her with a detached retina.

“I never thought I would be the victim of an attack like this,” said Yi.

The Season 16 favorite in Fiji shared photos of her injuries from the October 14th assault. She was preparing to teach her first Pilates class of the day at a Santa Monica studio, when police said 25-year-old Alexandria Diaz assaulted her.

“She had a rusty metal saw in one hand and a metal pipe in the other,” said Yi. “She starts shouting more nonsense and actually lunges into the studio and stabs me in my left bicep with the knife, and then strikes me twice with the pipe. First time, just striking my hand, shattering my watch, getting my fingers pretty good, and then the second time just straight over the head.”

The attacker hit Yi so hard it split her eyebrow wide open, and she received stitches at the hospital.

Police said Diaz had been reported missing from Fresno. She had assaulted two other victims moments before she attacked Yi. One of the victims was an older Asian man. Police added that the suspect was not on her prescribed medications at the time of the assaults.

Yi could not be certain whether she was targeted because of her race, but said:

“I think that if I were a different person, I’m not so sure she would have attacked me. I think being an Asian woman and not very large in size, it makes for a much easier target, as well as the elderly Asian gentlemen. You know, there were other people around in Santa Monica.”

Santa Monica Police are still investigating whether the attack was a hate crime. Diaz has been charged with three counts of assault with a deadly weapon.

Yi said while she is doing better physically, the emotional wounds will take longer to heal. She is planning to return to work this week.

Police Searching For Suspect Who Set Homeless Man On Fire As He Slept In Santa Monica’s Ozone Park

Thu, 21 Oct 2021 22:30:21 +0000

SANTA MONICA (CBSLA) — Police asked for help Thursday in catching whoever set a sleeping homeless man on fire.

The incident happened last Saturday at about 11:35 p.m. at Ozone Park, 727 Ozone St., according to Santa Monica police. A homeless man who was sleeping was doused with an unknown liquid, then set on fire, police said.

The man, who was not identified, was taken to a hospital. He suffered burns to about 50% of his body and a 2-inch cut to the top of his head from possible blunt force trauma.

Police are investigating this incident as an attempted murder and are looking to identify a man who was seen in the area. He is described as a man between 5-feet-6 and 5-feet-8 with a medium build, wearing a hat, long-sleeved white shirt, and dark shorts.

Anyone with information about this incident can contact Detective Tavera at (310) 458-22256 or the Santa Monica police watch commander at (310) 458-8427.

‘Survivor’ Contestant Michelle Yi Stabbed, Beaten In Santa Monica; Woman In Custody

Wed, 20 Oct 2021 00:21:19 +0000

SANTA MONICA (CBSLA) — A former “Survivor” contestant was brutally attacked on the street in Santa Monica last Thursday. A woman was taken into custody for the attack and was also accused of other attacks that same morning.

Michelle Yi, who appeared on season 16 of “Survivor” in Fiji, was stabbed and beaten on her way to teach a pilates class

Last Thursday, police say Yi was walking to her pilates studio on 2nd street when a woman hit Yi with a metal pole and stabbed her with a knife.

Canadian journalist Murtz Jaffer, who’s a friend of Yi and broke the story, said she’s devastated by what happened.

“It’s one of those things where it’s like I wasn’t surprised, which speaks volumes given the number of incidents like these that are happening across the U.S.,” Jaffer said.

Yi was heading to teach a pilates class at 6 a.m. when police say a woman, who was reported missing from Fresno, assaulted her.

Authorities say the alleged attacker was not on her prescribed medications at the time.

Santa Monica police reported the suspect, 25-year-old Alexandria Diaz, is linked to two other attacks.

Jaffer said he learned one of the victims is also Asian and he believes it was racially motivated.

“At the time she wasn’t sure if it was a hate crime or motivated by race or something,” Jaffer said. “That was the assumption based on the identity of the other person who was attacked”

Investigators say they have no information to determine if Yi’s attack was a hate crime, but they are still investigating.

People who live and work in the area are stunned by what happened and say the incident serves as a reminder to always be on guard.

“I always make sure I’m walking with somebody I don’t do it by myself,” said one person.

Yi went to the hospital to get checked out. She is expected to be OK.

New Climate Models Show Much Of Southern California Underwater

Fri, 15 Oct 2021 05:53:42 +0000

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) – A climate centered nonprofit has shown in models how some 50 cities around the world could potentially change or even disappear as a result of climate change.

“Their ability to exist into the future depends on the actions we take,” said Benjamin Strauss, CEO of Climate Central.

Strauss’s nonprofit Climate Central did the research and created startling images of landmarks around the world, including a few parts of Southern California like Long Beach and Huntington Beach, being impacted by rising sea levels.

The Santa Monica Pier is a landmark seen from both the ground and the skies above, but these models show it could all disappear and, in 100 years, might look quite different.

The model shows the Santa Monica Boardwalk underwater, projections climate scientists said could come true in the next few centuries if temperatures and sea levels rise without humans intervening.

“It’s really sad to think it could disappear one day beneath the rising sea,” Strauss said.

The projections range from 1 to 4 degrees of warming, with the worst case scenarios showing seas rising by more than 20 feet.

Climate model visualization of Long Beach. (credit: Climate Central)

In pictures of Long Beach, high tides push in all the way to the 405 Freeway and much of Huntington is also underwater.

“Really, neighborhoods from Golden West all the way out to Los Altos would be all well below sea level, could be 10 feet almost,” said Strauss.

While images like these could be thousands of years into our future, scientists said climate change is already wreaking havoc along our coastline.

“This is not some thing that’s off into the future. This is happening right now,” said John Dorsey, a Loyola Marymount Professor.

Dorsey studies rising sea levels and points out out losing our beaches and the tourists they bring could drain our local economy. He also said we’d lose infrastructure, like water lines, sewer lines and highways.

“IF we get this coastal erosion that could erode in and start destroying that kind of infrastructure, we will be paying billions of dollars to try to move that inlands,” Dorsey said.

Climate scientists say some of this could be avoided if we take major steps to cut emissions in the next decade.

On Thursday, it was announced that President Biden will travel to Europe for the United Nations Annual Climate Change Conference in just a few weeks.

Eleven-Year-Old Boy With Rare Cancer Is Youngest Patient To Receive Gene Targeted Cancer Therapy

Thu, 23 Sep 2021 00:04:15 +0000

SANTA MONICA (CBSLA) – A Seattle father brought his son to Santa Monica in hopes of one thing: finding a cure for his 11-year-old son who is battling a rare form of cancer.

Kian Faghih was diagnosed with rhabdomyosarcoma (RMS), a cancer of the heart and skeletal muscle which originated from another part of his body and has now spread to his lungs.

“At the end they said that there is no cure for him and we cannot do anything for him. That’s why we started looking,” Jamshid Faghih, Kian’s father said.

Kian has battled with cancer for two and a half years. After being told that there were no other options, his father found Dr. Erlinda Gordon from the Sarcoma Oncology Center in Santa Monica. The Faghihs reached out to Dr. Gordon to see if Kian could receive an experimental treatment she created called, DeltaRex-G, an innovative gene-targeted cancer therapy.

Gordon said yes, making Kian the youngest patient to receive DeltaRex-G.

“His prognosis, really, this is his last hope. He’s tried everything … as soon as he got here, we were able to give it to him the same day he arrived,” Gordon said.

For almost three weeks, Kian has been receiving infusions of DeltaRex-G. Unlike chemotherapy, there are no harsh side effects with this treatment since it’s a genetic medicine that directly targets the tumor.

“It will go there and nowhere else so it doesn’t cause collateral damage,” Gordon said. “What it does is it sends the message to the cancer cell to stop dividing. It’s not only the cancer cells themselves that Delta Rex kills. It also kills the blood supply of the tumor.”

Jamshid has already seen improvements in Kian, who will be receiving his last treatment of DeltaRex-G on Friday.

“The medication that he’s getting here (Kian) started having better breathing and he was feeling more comfortable,” Jamshid said. “It feels great, it’s like a miracle for us.”

However, this treatment is not available through drug or insurance companies, but through a non-profit public charity founded by Dr. Gordon. The Fanghihs have started a GoFundMe campaign to raise money to get more medicine for Kian and other cancer patients treated through the AVENI Foundation.

Additional information on the AVENI Foundation can be found here.

Heal The Bay Beach Cleanup Effort Slated For Saturday At Santa Monica Beach

Thu, 16 Sep 2021 22:43:36 +0000

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) — Tens of thousands of volunteers are expected to take part in Heal the Bay’s California Coastal Cleanup Day this Saturday, removing trash from local beaches and neighborhoods.

Heal the Bay will host events at 9 a.m. Saturday at Santa Monica Beach, north of the Santa Monica Pier, along with dozens of clean-up locations countywide.

Coastal Cleanup Day registration is now open for 25+ inland, river & beach sites in LA County on Saturday, Sept. 18 from 9am – Noon! https://t.co/Wjw2cAZEY6

Thanks to our sponsors Portland Potato Vodka & Ocean Conservancy

Artwork by Kelsey Davenport pic.twitter.com/gJevSxleaj

— Heal the Bay (@HealTheBay) September 10, 2021

“From wildfires to waste, clean water is so important for us to sustain in L.A., to protect the places and people we love, and to fight against the increasingly severe impacts of climate change,” according to a statement from Heal the Bay.

In 2020, Heal the Bay volunteers removed more than 40,000 pieces of trash from neighborhoods, parks, trails and beaches.

Volunteers can register at healthebay.org/coastalcleanupmonth.

All participants are asked to wear a mask, use gloves and stay home if not in good health. Available spots will be limited at each clean-up site due to the COVID- 19 pandemic.

Few Voting Issues Reported With California Recall Election

Wed, 15 Sep 2021 18:49:37 +0000

SACRAMENTO (AP) — Californians voted to keep Gov. Gavin Newsom in office on Tuesday, ending a statewide recall election that saw some Republicans again float unfounded claims of voter fraud.

Days before the polls closed, the campaign of one of the leading Republican candidates promoted a website urging people to sign a petition that declared Newsom had already won because of voter fraud. That language was lifted from a petition circulated to help former President Donald Trump’s effort to overturn last year’s presidential election results.

By Tuesday afternoon, that language was removed from the website, leaving only a form for people to report “irregularities, interference, or intimidation while voting.” A spokeswoman for Elder said the website is operated by a third party and that “websites update their language all the time.”

Elder did not revive any such claims Tuesday night, quickly conceding the race and urging booing supporters to “be gracious in defeat.”

The claims of fraud — both from Elder and former President Donald Trump — prompted a rebuke from Newsom in an election night victory speech.

“Democracy is not a football. You don’t throw it around,” Newsom said. “It’s more like a, I don’t know, an antique vase. You can drop it and smash it into a million different pieces. And that’s what we’re capable of doing if we don’t stand up to meet the moment and push back.”

There were few reported problems with voting on Tuesday. A polling center in Tulare County was closed because of a wildfire, with voters redirected to nearby alternatives. And a poll worker at a West Hollywood voting site was removed for wearing a pro-Trump shirt, according to the Los Angeles County Registrar’s Office.

In the Woodland Hills neighborhood last weekend, some people who showed up said they were told they had already voted, which the registrar’s office said was caused by settings on some computers used to check in voters. The office said those affected were allowed to cast provisional ballots, which act as placeholders until voter eligibility is determined. Similarly, a Newsmax reporter tweeted Tuesday that he was told he had already voted at an Orange County polling place. The county registrar said he couldn’t comment on this case, but anecdotally this situation happens “but in small numbers” and often there is an explanation. He, too, was allowed to cast a provisional ballot.

Some Republicans worried the fraud claims from some party leaders could suppress turnout. Harmeet Dhillon, an attorney and the national committeewoman of the Republican National Committee for California, said she made a video with her husband showing them casting ballots by mail and urging everyone to do the same.

But Dhillon also said she could not say whether California’s election would be secure, saying she and a team of attorneys monitoring voting have witnessed dozens of problems.

“There will be a lot of questions and potentially litigation after this election about this sloppy-at-best treatment of people’s ballots and their right to vote,” Dhillon said.

The GOP’s predicament was similar to that in last year’s presidential election, when many in the party feared that Trump’s claims about widespread fraud from expanded mail-in voting would backfire by persuading Republicans to stay home.

In California, the GOP needed all the help it could get.

Democrats make up 46.5% of all registered voters, while Republicans make up just 24%. Independent voters are roughly equivalent to Republicans, but tend to vote Democratic. Republicans have not won a statewide office since 2006, when Arnold Schwarzenegger won reelection as governor.

Firefighters On Bike Ride To Mark 20th Anniversary Of 9/11 On Approach To New York

Wed, 08 Sep 2021 18:20:36 +0000

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) — Firefighters on a bike ride across the country to honor the 20th anniversary of 9/11 are in their final stretch of their journey.

Members of the Fire Velo Club, which includes firefighters from the Los Angeles County Fire Department, rode out from the Santa Monica Pier on Aug. 1. This week, they are on the final stretch of their 4-day, 3,300-mile journey to New York.

“I think we want to get it done. We want to get to Ground Zero, that place that pays tribute to all those lost,” said Buck Buchanan, a retired battalion chief and Fire Velo vice president.

More than 400 members of FDNY and NYPD have lost their lives from post-9/11 illnesses, and the group also wants to raise awareness of the firefighters who are still living with health problems likely caused from exposure at Ground Zero.

The group is hoping to raise $100,000 to donate to firefighter-related charities.

LA Beaches Packed For Holiday Weekend, With Bigger Crowds Expected On Labor Day

Mon, 06 Sep 2021 01:23:13 +0000

SANTA MONICA (CBSLA) – While some Southland residents are playing it safe during the pandemic and avoiding crowds this holiday weekend, many beachgoers in Santa Monica were just glad to be outside, masks or not.

“The weather’s amazing. It’s a lot of fun here,” said one beachgoer.

Crowds packed Santa Monica Beach Labor Day Weekend. (credit: CBS)

Beaches were crowded this weekend and for the most part, few people were wearing masks.

One couple said they heeded the recommendation to avoid travel this weekend, and decided on a day at the beach just to play it safe.

“We live down the street. We have been relaxing, and it’s good to be outside,” the man said.

A surfer said that he was ready to enjoy some time off work, surfing and parties, and said he’s not too worried about COVID at this point and feels ready to celebrate.

“Gonna go party later, go to some pool parties, maybe at the bars, yeah,” he said.

More people are expected to hit the sand and surf on Labor Day.

Heal The Bay Announces Coastal Cleanup Day In September

Tue, 24 Aug 2021 00:20:40 +0000

SANTA MONICA (CBSLA) — Heal the Bay announced Monday that its 32nd Coastal Cleanup Day will be held on Sept. 18.

Heal the Bay Beach Clean Up – Fans assist the Kings and NHL in simultaneous beach clean-ups across three different Los Angeles cities.

The annual event to collect trash and debris from Southland beaches and neighborhoods will kick off at 9 a.m. Sept. 18 at Santa Monica Beach, north of the Santa Monica Pier, with dozens of other clean-up locations planned in the county.

Online volunteer registration is set to begin next week beginning at 10 a.m. Sept. 1.

“From wildfires to waste, clean water is so important for us to sustain in L.A. to protect the places and people we love and to fight against the increasingly severe impacts of climate change,” according to a statement from Heal the Bay.

In 2020, Heal the Bay volunteers removed more than 40,000 pieces of trash from neighborhoods, parks, trails and beaches. PPE was among the top 10 types of trash recovered.

All participants are asked to wear a mask, use gloves and stay home if they are feeling sick. Spots will be limited at cleanup sites due to the COVID- 19 pandemic.

Information on all events can be found at healththebay.org/coastalcleanupmonth.

LA County Issues Warnings At Two Beaches

Mon, 09 Aug 2021 20:08:06 +0000

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) — Beach-goers were advised Monday of potentially hazardous water conditions at two Los Angeles County beaches.

The county Department of Public Health told people to use caution swimming, surfing and playing in the water at Mothers Beach in Marina del Rey and near the Santa Monica Pier, particularly around discharging storm drains, creeks and rivers.

Recorded information on beach conditions is available 24 hours a day on the county’s beach closure hotline: 1-800-525-5662.

Information is also available online at PublicHealth.LACounty.gov.

Man Struck, Killed By Hit-Run Driver In Santa Monica

Mon, 02 Aug 2021 18:30:54 +0000

SANTA MONICA (CBSLA) – Authorities are searching for a driver who struck and killed a man in Santa Monica early Monday morning.

Aug. 2, 2021. (CBSLA)

The hit-and-run wreck occurred in the 3100 block of Santa Monica Boulevard just after 1 a.m.

Santa Monica police officers responded to find the man injured at the scene. He was taken to Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center, where he died. His name was not released.

The suspect vehicle was described as a dark-colored newer sedan last seen driving east on Santa Monica Boulevard. It’s unclear if detectives have obtained any security video.

Anyone with information should call the police department at 310-458-8427.

Santa Monica Boulevard was briefly shut down, but has since reopened.

Homeless Man Charged With Hate Crime, Yelling Racial Slurs While Attacking Korean Woman In Santa Monica For Her Purse

Tue, 27 Jul 2021 22:11:02 +0000

SANTA MONICA (CBSLA) — A homeless man was charged Tuesday with a hate crime after police say he yelled racial slurs while trying to rob a Korean woman in Santa Monica.

(credit: Santa Monica Police Department)

Melvin Taylor, 65, whose last known address was in Compton, has been charged with attempted robbery, assault with a deadly weapon, assault likely to produce great bodily injury and a hate crime allegation enhancement.

The woman, who had been with her father-in-law, said she had been trying to feed a meter when Taylor confronted her, asked her about her ethnicity and demanded money from her. When she refused to give him money, and tried to get back into her car, police say Taylor kicked the car door, pinning her down, and hit her repeatedly while yelling racial slurs.

Santa Monica police say Taylor wasn’t affected when the woman tried to pepper spray him, and he took her phone and threw it on the ground while trying to take her purse. The attack was interrupted when nearby witnesses intervened, according to police.

Taylor is being held without bail and was scheduled to be arraigned Tuesday.

Search Suspended For Woman Possibly Missing In Ocean Near Santa Monica Pier

Mon, 26 Jul 2021 16:45:53 +0000

SANTA MONICA (CBSLA) – A search was suspended Monday morning for a woman who may have gone missing in the ocean waters near the Santa Monica Pier.

July 25, 2021. (CBSLA)

The U.S. Coast Guard reported that a woman was seen at clinging to the pilings underneath the pier at around 9 p.m. Sunday, prompting a search and rescue effort.

The Coast Guard actively searched the waters Sunday night with rescue divers, two boats and a helicopter with assistance from several other agencies, including the Santa Monica fire and police departments and the Los Angeles County Fire Department.

July 26, 2021. (CBSLA)

The search temporarily resumed Monday morning. However, at around 10 a.m., the L.A. County Fire Department Lifeguard Division tweeted that the search had again been suspended “pending more information.”

The missing woman’s identity was not known. Santa Monica police have not yet received any reports of a missing person which may have matched her description.

#PierIC *Update* The search has been suspended pending further information. Land based Lifeguard Units and Lifeguard Rescue Boats will continue periodic patrols.

— LACoFD Lifeguards (@LACoLifeguards) July 26, 2021

Indicted Trump Ally Thomas Barrack Granted $250 Million Bond, Ordered To Wear GPS Monitoring Bracelet

Fri, 23 Jul 2021 22:30:44 +0000

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) — A grant package that includes a $250 million bond secured by $5 million in cash was granted Friday to Thomas Barrack, a longtime Trump friend and chair of the former president’s inaugural committee.

Thomas Barrack, Executive Chairman and CEO, Colony Capital, participates in a panel discussion during the annual Milken Institute Global Conference at The Beverly Hilton Hotel on April 28, 2019 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Michael Kovac/Getty Images)

Barrack, 74, of Santa Monica, was indicted this week on charges he and two others used his position as a friend and confidant of former President Trump in order to lobby on behalf of the United Arab Emirates.

In addition to the bond package, U.S. Magistrate Judge Patricia Donahue also ordered Barrack to wear a GPS monitoring bracelet, barred him from transferring any money overseas, and restricted his travel to Southern California and New York. He was also ordered to appear Monday in federal court in Brooklyn, New York for arraignment, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

Barrack, who founded LA-based Colony Capital Inc.,was one of Trump’s top fundraisers and served as chairman of his inaugural committee. Since his arrest on Tuesday, Barrack also resigned from the USC Board of Trustees.

Trump Inaugural Chair Thomas Barrack Arrested, Accused Of Being Unregistered Lobbyist For United Arab Emirates

Tue, 20 Jul 2021 20:25:48 +0000

SANTA MONICA (CBSLA) — Thomas Barrack, a former adviser to President Trump and chair of his inaugural committee, was arrested Tuesday in the Los Angeles area after a federal indictment accused him of being an unregistered agent of the United Arab Emirates.

The seven-count indictment unsealed Tuesday in a New York federal court accuses 74-year-old Barrack, of Santa Monica, and two fellow defendants of working to advance the interests of a foreign government in the United States.

The indictment – which also names 27-year-old Matthew Grimes of Aspen, Colo. And 43-year-old UAE national Rashid Sultan Rashid Al Malik Alshahhi – alleges the trio acted and conspired to act as agents of the UAE between April 2016 and April 2018. Barrack is additionally charged with obstruction of justice and making false statements during a June 2019 interview with federal law enforcement agents.

“The defendants repeatedly capitalized on Barrack’s friendships and access to a candidate who was eventually elected President, high-ranking campaign and government officials and the American media to advance the policy goals of a foreign government without disclosing their true allegiances,” Mark Lesko, acting assistant attorney general of the Justice Department’s National Security Division, said in a statement.

Barrack, who founded LA-based Colony Capital Inc., served as an informal adviser to the Trump campaign before the 2016 Election and as chairman of Trump’s inaugural committee between November 2016 and January 2017. Federal prosecutors say Barrack sought appointment to a senior administration post, including the role of Special Envoy to the Middle East.

According to the Department of Justice, Barrack regularly and repeatedly used his position to advance the interests of the UAE. Prosecutors say Barrack inserted language praising the UAE into a May 2016 Trump campaign speech about U.S. energy policy, and sought direction from UAE officials in advance of an op-ed he published in a national magazine in October of 2016. Following Trump’s election, prosecutors say Barrack continued to advance the UAE’s interests by promoting the candidacy of an unidentified person for the position of U.S. Ambassador to the UAE, and advising against a proposed summit with Qatar and other Middle Eastern governments at Camp David that the UAE opposed.

Barrack, Grimes, and Alshahhi did not provide the required notification to the Attorney General that they were acting in the U.S. as agents of a foreign government, prosecutors said.

Barrack is expected to appear in federal court in downtown Los Angeles on Tuesday afternoon. Grimes was also arrested on Tuesday, but Alshahhi remains at large.

LA County Sheriff’s Deputies Called On To Help Address Growing Homelessness Crisis On Santa Monica’s Third Street Promenade

Wed, 14 Jul 2021 01:25:19 +0000

SANTA MONICA (CBSLA) — A Santa Monica man is suing the city over conditions in the downtown area due to the growing homeless population.

John Alle, along with other Promenade property and business owners, say they are not getting help from city officials so they’re turning to L.A. County Sheriff’s Department for answers.

“My goal is to have this return to Santa Monica’s living room. Right now, it’s a bathroom,” said property owner John Alle.

Alle owns three spaces along the Third Street Promenade, which he says are now struggling to keep the foot traffic flowing because of the homeless population.

“The urine, the defecation — no one should have to pass that,” he said. “The bottom line is there’s 65% vacancy and a lot of the stores you see here are month-to-month. It’s definitely keeping people away. The word spreads.”

Alle and others said they’ve reached out to several leaders, but to no avail.

“I’ve asked the mayor, I’ve asked the former city manager and I’ve asked the current interim city manager to come walk, let’s solve this together, but they don’t want to. Their main goal is to tear the building down,” Alle said.

Santa Monica Mayor Sue Himmelrich sent CBSLA a statement saying in part:

“One of the most critical needs right now is permanent supportive housing and we are addressing this need in a number of different ways… including moving forward with a project to convert an outdated parking structure in our downtown into affordable and supportive housing.”

To help control the growing crisis, Alle and others are considering hiring off-duty sheriff’s deputies to patrol the Promenade area. However, the Santa Monica city attorney and California’s attorney general said they don’t believe that would be legally feasible.

“They would work for the property owners, move people along, enforce the laws,” Alle said.

The sheriff has been assisting with the homelessness crisis in Venice as well, which Alle said gave him the idea to have Sheriff Alex Villanueva survey the Promenade area.

The 2020 Greater L.A. Homeless Count recorded 66,433 people living on the streets of L.A. County, a 12.7% increase from the previous year.

Sheriff Villanueva did not immediately respond to CBSLA’s request for comment.

Swimmer Dies After Being Pulled From Water Near Santa Monica Pier

Thu, 08 Jul 2021 23:30:24 +0000

SANTA MONICA (CBSLA) — A swimmer has died after being pulled out of the ocean near the Santa Monica Pier Wednesday evening.

According to authorities, crews were initially called out for reports of two swimmers needing help. One of the swimmers was able to make it out of the water on their own, but lifeguards with the Los Angeles County Fire Department needed to pull the second swimmer to safety.

Sky9 was overhead as paramedics performed CPR on the second swimmer. The Santa Monica Fire Department took the second swimmer to Santa Monica Hospital, where they later died.

The Santa Monica Police Department said it believed the death to be the result of an accidental drowning.

Sean Graves Of Long Beach Arrested After Fatal Stabbing Near Third Street Promenade In Santa Monica

Tue, 22 Jun 2021 17:01:33 +0000

SANTA MONICA (CBSLA) — A Long Beach man was booked on suspicion of murder after a deadly stabbing near the Third Street Promenade in Santa Monica.

Sean Alexander Graves, 28, was arrested in connection with the Monday night stabbing, according to Santa Monica police.

Police were called to the 300 block of Broadway at about 7:30 p.m. Monday on a report of shots fired in the area. Officers instead found a man on the ground who had been stabbed in the neck.

The man was rushed to a hospital, where he died. His name has not been released.

Witnesses told police the man had been in some type of fight with a man and a woman near the pier before the stabbing. At some point during the altercation, a shot was fired, and officers found a spent .45 caliber casing. Police say witnesses were able to give them a description and where the suspects were last seen.

Officers surrounded the area, and stopped a man and a woman in the are of 6th and Santa Monica. Witnesses identified them as the two people involved in the fight, and they were taken into custody.

A knife believed to have been used in the stabbing was recovered.

One of the suspects was identified as Graves, and he was taken into custody. The woman Graves was with was interviewed by officers and has been released, according to Santa Monica police.

Graves is being held on $2 million bail and is scheduled to make his first court appearance Wednesday.