SEE PAGE 3 for largest food distribution company sued
SEE PAGE 4 for no discrimination against lgbt workers bill MONDAY, JULY 28, 2014 - AUGUST 3, 2014
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California approves bill to minimize concussion risk for youth footballers by jennifer schlueter
nor Jerry Brown signed the AB2127 law, which will prohibit full-contact practices taking longer than 90 minutes a day in middle and high schools. Full-contact practices will be limited to twice a week, and completely banned during offseason. Furthermore, if a head injury is suspected, players cannot return to the game at all or before gaining approval from
hicle in Rancho Palos Verdes and deemed a vehicle burglary because the car was parked in a subterranean parking structure. On July 17, 2014, Lomita Station detectives were viewing video footage of the crime. The Please see page 2
Please see page 2
a medical professional. These regulations aim to prevent and reduce severe concussions in young football players. The rules, supported by the California Interscholastic Federation and sponsored by Assemblyman Ken Cooley (DRancho Cordova), will be enforced starting January 1, 2015. Please see page 4
Identity theft crew targeting Southern California arrested in Lomita On July 17, 2014, Arnulfo Rodarte, resident of San Pedro and Sylvester Curameng, resident of Torrance were arrested for burglary, identity theft and possession of personal profiles belonging to over twenty victims in numerous cities across Southern California. Andrea Serrao, resident of San Pedro,
was also arrested. Serrao was arrested for embezzlement. On July 6, 2014, Rodarte and Curameng used a victim’s stolen credit card to make purchases at a Target store in San Pedro. They were captured on video committing the crime. The credit card was found to be stolen from an unlocked ve-
Boys & Girls Club teens attend leadership conference at Olympic Training Center From July 12-15, 2014 two teen members and two staff at the Boys & Girls Club of Cypress attended the Triple Play Leadership Club Summit in Colorado Springs, CO. The four-day conference focused on physical fitness, leading a healthy lifestyle, and establishing leadership skills for teens ages 13-18 years old. The Summit was hosted by the Boys & Girls Clubs of America at the Olympic Training Center for over 160 young leaders and their advisors from 45 different Boys & Girls Clubs nationwide. The Triple Play program is the Boys & Girls Clubs of America’s comprehensive health and wellness program developed in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The mission of the program is to improve the overall health of Club members by increasing their daily physical activity, teaching them good nutrition, and helping them develop healthy relationships. The Summit attendees had the unique experience of not only staying on-site at the Olympic Training Center, but also got to eat alongside the Olympic and Paralympic athletes, train in world-class facilities, and learn a variety of sports
La Salle quarterback gets tackled with an opponents head last season. Luckily no one was injured in this incident but it helps illustrate the need for legislation.- Photo by Terry Miller
With more and more football players suing the National Football League because of severe head injuries and the increasing awareness of the public about the tragic aftermath of such concussions, the NFL and college leagues reacted by limiting full-contact practices, which has already proven to reduce concussions. Last Monday, Gover-
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Identity theft crew arrested Continued from page 1
Booking photos of Sylvester Curameng (left) and Arnulfo Rodarte - Courtesy Photos
detectives immediately recognized one of the suspects as Arnulfo Rodarte, who they had arrested in the past. Lomita detectives immediately obtained a search warrant targeting Rodarte. During the execution of the search warrant, detectives arrested Rodarte and were able to identify his crime partner, Sylvester Curameng, who they believed was the second suspect captured on video. The detectives also found numerous pieces of mail and a notebook containing identifying information belonging to over twenty victims from the cities of Rancho Palos Verdes, Rolling Hills Estates, Alhambra, Arcadia, Carson, Cerritos, Chino Hills, Diamond Bar, El Monte, Hawthorne, Hermosa Beach, Harbor City, Long Beach, La Puente, Menifee, Moreno Valley, Ontario, Pacoima, Palos Verdes Estates, Pasadena, Rancho Cordova, Rosemead, San Pedro, San Dimas, Torrance,
West Covina and Whittier. Many of these victims were already confirmed victims of identity theft. Also during the service of the search warrant, Andrea Serrao was arrested for embezzlement. She was a named suspect in a vehicle embezzlement case out of Los Angeles Police Department, Pacific Division. It is alleged that Serrao rented a 2013 Mercedes Benz C250 from Enterprise Rental Car and never returned it. It is believed she obtained the vehicle for Rodarte and Curameng, who used the Mercedes to commit their crimes. Curameng and Rodarte are being held at the Inmate Reception Center with a bail set at $20,000, and Serrao is being held at the Century Regional Detection Facility with a bail set at $25,000. All three are due in Torrance Court on July 21, 2014, where they will be arraigned on the above charges.
Judy Chu visits Southwest border in Texas Congresswoman Judy Chu (D-CA), along with a delegation of Members of Congress, visited the Southwest border in Texas last week. The trip included visits to the U.S. Customs and Border Protection station in McAllen, Texas, and a Department of Health and Human Services facility where unaccompanied children are being transferred and housed in Lackland, Texas. The delegation also met with local advocates who are assisting in the minors’ crisis. “Today, I saw firsthand the humanitarian crisis at our Southwest border and heard directly from law enforcement on the front lines. Seeing the legal process on the ground and hearing the heart-wrenching stories of the children makes it clear – Congress must maintain the due process protections for unaccompanied children in the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act,” said Rep. Chu. “I urge swift Congressional
action to approve the supplemental spending necessary to address the desperate situation at the border while leaving legal protections intact.” Since 2011, the number of unaccompanied minors attempting to cross the Southwest border has drastically increased. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) predicts that an estimated 90,000 unaccompanied children will attempt to enter the country by the end of this year. Many of the children attempting to cross into the U.S. are fleeing extremely violent environments in El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras – collectively known as the Northern Triangle of Central America. Drug cartel and gang-related activity are the main cause for most of the violence occurring in the region. According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, as many as 58 percent of the minors could qualify for international protection.
Leadership conference Continued from page 1
skills from the Olympians themselves. The Paralympic and Olympic athletes taught a majority of the conference sessions, led daily workouts, and gave motivational speeches to the members about how to reach their goals and persevere through difficult situations. Highlights of the Triple Play Leadership Summit included sports activities led by professionals in badminton, volleyball, lacrosse, and handball. The members also loved learning a variety of Paralympic sports as well such as wheelchair basketball and goal ball. In addition to sports training, the conference also focused on leadership skills and taught the importance of inclusive play activities. The attendees also received CPR training and met with representatives from the
Red Cross to discuss emergency preparedness. Boys & Girls Club of Cypress Site Director Samantha Johnson stated, “It was an invaluable experience to be able to swap ideas, build friendships, and make connections with different Boys & Girls Club members and advisors from all over the nation. I feel that the Summit is a wonderful opportunity for these kids and it has really increased our teen members’ leadership skills and confidence. I look forward to putting the skills we’ve learned into action at our own Club!” For more information about the Triple Play Leadership Club, or any other programs offered at the Boys & Girls Club of Cypress, please call 714-527-2697 or visit www. boysandgirlsclubofcypress. com.
JULY 28, 2014 - AUGUST 3, 2014 | 3
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Largest US food distribution company sued for holding perishable food in unrefrigerated sheds The nation’s largest food distribution company, Sysco Corporation, will pay nearly $20 million dollars in a consumer protection settlement for illegally holding perishable foods, such as seafood, milk and raw meat, in unrefrigerated, unprotected storage sheds. This is the largest settlement of a food safety prosecution in California history. This case was investigated by the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) and prosecuted by The California Food, Drug and Medical Device task force, made up of the District Attorney’s Offices of Orange, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, Alameda, Marin, Solano, Napa, Sonoma, Monterey and Shasta Counties. The case was filed in Santa Clara County. Deputy District Attorney Tracy Hughes of the Consumer Protection Unit prosecuted this case for the Orange County District Attorney. Circumstances of the Case: Sysco is the largest food distribution company in the nation and among the largest worldwide. California law requires food distribution companies to register all vehicles and sites used to transport or store food with CDPH, which regulates food distribution and storage of perishable items to protect consumers from unsanitary conditions and food-borne illness. Beginning in or after 2010, Sysco used unregistered storage facilities and vehicles to store and transport smaller food shipments to commercial restaurants, schools and hospitals. Sysco trucks routinely delivered food orders to unrefrigerated mini-storage units, the same type in which people store extra furniture and other household items. Most of these units had no refrigeration and some were unsanitary. The shipments included products such as seafood, pork, beef and dairy products, all of which are extremely perishable. These smaller orders were dropped secretly at these unreg-
istered locations for employees to transport later to commercial customers. Sales representatives transported these smaller shipments in personal, unrefrigerated vehicles, also in violation of California law. The practice was uncovered by a reporter in Northern California. State inspectors subsequently found that Sysco had used at least 22 unregistered storage sites throughout California. Food coming through these sites reached commercial customers, and ultimately consumers, throughout the state. Furthermore, Sysco engaged in misleading advertising, falsely claiming to use only “state of the art distribution warehouses,” and
go “above and beyond government regulations.” Sysco trucks also bear the slogan, “Quality Assured.” Sysco has agreed to strict injunctive terms to cease the unlawful and unsafe practices. As terms of the settlement, they will be required to pay $15 million in civil penalties, $3.3 million to fund a food inspection program administered by the CDPH, Food Safety Division, and to implement a company-wide food safety and food safety education program. Sysco will also provide $1 million worth of fresh food to California food banks to be distributed based on need. Approximately $55,000 of fresh food will go to Orange County food banks.
Long Beach Office 3780 Kilroy Airport Way Suite 360 Long Beach, CA 90806 Ph. (562) 472-0071 Fx. (562) 689-0071 Los Angeles Office 5701 South Eastern Avenue Suite 100 Los Angeles, CA 90040 Ph. (323) 727-1144 Fx. (323) 727-9198 www.heger-industrial.com Lic. #00814086
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President signs executive order banning discrimination against LGBT workers Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA), vice chair of the Congressional LGBT Equality Caucus (Equality Caucus), released the following statement after President signed an executive order last week prohibiting federal contractors and agencies from discriminating against employees on the bases of sexual orientation and gender identity: “With Republicans still unwilling to bring up the Employment Non-Discrimination Act in the House – despite bipartisan support during passage in the Senate – the President was right to act to protect LGBT workers in the federal government from
being discriminated against. We should be using every avenue available to fight discrimination – it’s just the right thing to do. “Nevertheless, this does not free Congress from the responsibility to pass ENDA and protect all workers from discrimination and we must continue to call for such action, and work to narrow the exemption granted to religious organizations.” Schiff earlier led an effort urging President Obama to issue such an Executive Order. The announcement is an important step towards ending discrimination against LGBT employees and ensuring that they
are judged based on the quality of their work and not because of who they are or who they love. The executive order, when implemented, will only protect employees of federal contractors and federal agencies. Schiff is an original cosponsor of the bipartisan Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA), which passed the U.S. Senate in November 2013. ENDA currently has 205 cosponsors in the U.S. House of Representatives. The Employment Non-Discrimination Act would establish basic protections in the workplace to prevent discrimination based
on sexual orientation and gender identity. There are currently only 18 states (including California) and the District of Columbia that prohibit discrimination on bases of sexual orientation and gender identity, and an additional 3 states that prohibit discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. ENDA would provide a basic level of protection against workplace discrimination in a manner modeled closely on Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and would apply to private employers as well as local, state, and federal government employers.
California approves bill to minimize concussion risk for youth footballers Continued from page 1
California will then be one out of 20 states to prohibit off-seasonal full-contact practices. The CIF additionally voted on limiting weekly practice hours to 18 per week. According to the LA Times, Cooley said: “AB 2127’s practice guidelines will reassure parents that their kids can learn football safely through three hours of fullcontact practice … to maximize conditioning and skill development while minimizing concussion risk.”
A study by Dawn Levine, a clinical neuropsychologist and assistant director of the Youth Sports Concussion Program for Kaiser Permanente, demonstrates that one-third of the average 600 hits to a high school player’s head occur during practice. Former New Orleans Saints executive Terry O’Neil estimates that per season, high schoolers endure 100,000 concussions - 60-75 percent of them during practice, The Sports Legacy Institute claims. Levine agrees with the bill, because less
full-contact practices will reduce the number of injuries, and thus, the “risk of any long-term damage,” the LA Times reports. According to the same LA Times article, Sen. Steve Knight (R-Palmdale) and Sen. Joel Anderson (R-San Diego) voted against the bill. In Knight’s opinion, the law makes California high schoolers less competitive for college scholarships, whereas Anderson believes that legislature should not interfere with sports practices. LA Roosevelt High School football coach Javier Cid said in an interview with the Times that full-contact practices are necessary to determine starters. “Concussion can change a kid’s life,” Cooley told Reuters. “Viewed through that lens, this bill is not crazy. It’s good for kids and it’s good for parents.” For the assemblyman, the players’ health and the concerns of their families are more important than a possible impact on football practices: “I anticipate other states will follow our lead as they consider the interests of kids and families,” he said in a press release. “We have a multitude of evidence that this does not just affect professional
athletes, but that younger kids who are still developing are just as susceptible and the effects of impacts. Research has shown hits don’t have to produce a concussion to have long-lasting effects.” In 2006, Zackary Lystedt, a middle school football player, had suffered severe head injury from a game. After a three month coma, and despite several therapies, Lystedt “still walks with a cane and has limited speaking abilities,” said the Washington post. Together with his parents, he fights for stronger regulations of football practices and awareness of concussions and their consequences. According to the LA Times, Loyola High School in Los Angeles has already taken an exceptional step to detect concussions. Principal Frank Kozakowski demands every single one of his students at the all-boy Catholic school to participate in a baseline test to assess “the student’s balance and brain functions [with the help of memory and problem solving skills] so it can be used and compared with a similar exam if the student is suspected of having a concussion.”