Arcadia mayor, city respond to council’s censure
By Joe Taglieri joet@beaconmedianews.com
MayorSharonKwan and officials responded Wednesday to the Arcadia City Council’s vote to censure her, the first such action in city history.
“I am so grateful for my neighbors and friends who came (Tuesday) night in support of me,” Kwan said in a statement to HeySoCal. com. “The City Council was not at its best. I heard the residents and the overwhelming majority of the speakers last night said they want to see City Council stop this bickering and get back to the business of the City of Arcadia.”
Kwan, who is the city’s first female Asian American mayor, added that she is “ready to put this behind us and move forward serving the community that elected us to keep our streets safe, our water flowing and the lights on. If censuring me is what helps the other Councilmen get over this bitter feud, then so be it. Tomorrow, I will wake up, forgive my colleagues and get to work.”
City Attorney Michael Maurer, Mayor Pro Tem Eileen Wang and Councilmen Paul Cheng, Michael Cao and David Fu did not respond to requests for comment.
The Arcadia City Manager’s Office issued a statement to HeySoCal.com:
“The work of the City Council is essential, and we respect the diverse roles and perspectives of our elected leaders, which can occasionally result in friction among members. However, the current events of the City Council do not diminish Arcadia’s commitment to delivering transparent, responsible, and high-quality services to the entire community.”
In a previous statement, Kwan said the censure action was “a smear campaign” designed to counter her recent allegations of sexual
harassment and discrimination by Fu.
“He does not like being challenged by a woman, and now these three Asian men on City Council are sending a dangerous message that Chinese women need to be submissive, obedient, and silent — or else face punishment.”
At the regular council meeting Aug. 19, Fu, Cao and Cheng voted for a censure hearing. City law requires three council members to advance a censure action. Wang did not vote after her three colleagues moved the censure forward, but she was the fourth vote in favor of censure on Tuesday.
Arcadia officials were mum on Kwan’s report to the city’s Human Resources Division accusing Fu of sexual harassment and discrimination.
“As a matter of practice, the City does not comment on personnel-related investigations,” according to the statement. “Any such allegations raised by a Council Member are referred to an independent third-party
investigator for review.”
Fu’s council-approved censure resolution accuses Kwan of “making unfounded accusations of sexism and sexual harassment against councilmembers and staff whenever disagreements arise to deflect argument against her ill-conceived and unfounded positions on substantive issues.”
Kwan in recent months has questioned the city’s projected balanced budget and small surplus after former Councilwoman April Verlato raised the issue in June. Verlato spoke during the public comments portion of the censure hearing Tuesday.
“I thought this was about the conduct of our Mayor Kwan, but actually it has nothing to do with her conduct, it has nothing to do with what she’s said or done here on the dais,” Verlato said. “What it has to do with is the contracts. We’re still here about the contracts.”
Verlato then referenced
members of city employee unions in attendance and a 20% increase in employee compensation.
“They’re all here because they’re mad. They’re mad that Mayor Kwan voted against their contracts last year,” Verlato said. “They’re mad that I voted against it. They still got their raises, but they hate that she continues to talk about the budget and how we are spending more money than we have on these contracts. It was a 20% increase in employee costs last year. That’s what the contracts did to us.”
In a statement, city officials responded, “When the labor contracts were approved in 2024 for Arcadia’s five employee associations, a $2.3 million budgetary imbalance was projected at that time. Due to a combination of strong revenues from local spending, reduced discretionary expenses, and refined employee benefit estimates, the City ended Fiscal Year 2024-25 with
White House border czar Tom Homan has said federal officials will “ramp up” immigration enforcement actions in so-called sanctuary cities across the country, including Los Angeles, but did not provide details.
“You’re going to see a ramp-up of operations in New York,” Homan told reporters at the White House. “You’re going to see a ramp-up of operations continue in LA, Portland, Seattle, all these sanctuary cities that refuse to work with (Immigration and Customs Enforcement).”
The comments were made just before immigration agents carried out another raid outside a Home Depot store in the Westlake area Thursday morning. ABC7 reported that eight people were arrested during the action, carried out by masked and armed agents who were seen on video emerging from unmarked vans.
“Three of those arrested had extensive rap sheets for crimes including visa overstay, possession of a controlled substance and grand theft,” the Department of Homeland Security said in a statement to ABC7. “One individual also had a final order of deportation from an immigration judge.” ICE has been conducting stepped-up enforcement in the Los Angeles area since early June. U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem wrote on social media Tuesday that the agency had made its 5,000th arrest in the area.
“That’s 5,000 criminal illegal aliens, gang members, child predators, and murderers taken off our streets,” Noem wrote. “Precious lives saved. Families protected. American taxpayers spared the cost of their crimes AND the burden of their benefits. THANK YOU to our brave law enforcement officers. Make no mistake: if you are here illegally, we will find you, arrest you, and send you back.”
She added, “This is just the beginning.”
By City News Service
Arcadia’s government center. | Photo courtesy of Arcadia City Hall/Facebook
Tom Homan, White House border czar. | Photo courtesy of U.S. Secretary of Defense/Wikimedia Commons (CC0)
LA church leaders, elected officials express sorrow after Minneapolis shooting
By City News Service
Southland church leaders and elected officials Wednesday expressed sorrow -- and promised increased security -- after an assailant fired a rifle through the windows of a Catholic school church in Minneapolis, killing an 8-year-old and a 10-year-old in the pews and injuring 17 others.
The students at Annunciation Catholic School were celebrating their first Mass of the new school year when the shooting took place.
“We are praying for our brothers and sisters in Minneapolis,” Archbishop Jose H. Gomez of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles posted on social media. “We pray for those who died and those who were injured in this morning’s shooting at Annunciation Catholic School. May God grant eternal rest to those whose lives were taken, and may he give comfort to their families and loved ones.”
Paul Escala, senior
director and superintendent of Catholic schools for the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, said the diocese was working with local law enforcement agencies to ensure campuses are safe.
Calling the tragedy “shocking news for all of us in the ministry of Catholic Schools,” Escala said the Archdiocese is “focused on providing support to our schools to help our students and staff process the impact of this senseless act of violence.
“Our schools are committed to providing a safe and supportive environment for all in our school communities,” he said. “As with every start of the school year, our schools have reviewed and implemented safety protocols. These protocols are reviewed on an ongoing basis, and in light of this event we will work with our law enforcement partners to do all we can to ensure the
Southern California businesses, schools, homeowners associations and other institutions that choose to replace grass with more sustainable landscaping will receive additional financial assistance to help with the effort, the Metropolitan Water District announced Thursday.
Beginning Monday, the water agency will double their turf replacement rebate for non-residential property owners from $3 per square foot to $7 per square foot — the highest amount offered regionwide. The increase comes as the agency aims to boost water conservation efforts and adapt to climate change.
Additionally, the agency aims to prepare businesses and institutions for a new state law prohibiting the use of potable water on grass that is not used for recreation other purposes, also known as nonfunctional turf, which will impact non-residential properties beginning in 2027.
“Southern California’s landscape is changing. But looking around, you still see a challenge everywhere — grass that isn’t played on, or picnicked on or even walked on except when it is
safety of our schools.”
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said the Los Angeles Police Department was increasing its vigilance around Catholic schools and churches.
“In light of the attack in Minnesota, LAPD is conducting extra patrols at all Catholic schools (and) places of worship while (Los Angeles Unified School District) is advising their safety teams to increase high- visibility patrols at schools as well,” Bass wrote on social media. “The city remains vigilant in its efforts to keep Angelenos safe.”
Los Angeles County Supervisor Janice Hahn issued a statement urging Congress to pass gun violence prevention legislation.
“The American people have had enough thoughts and prayers from politicians,” Hahn said in a social media post. “These children were literally in Mass when they were murdered. Congress has the power to act on gun violence -- what’s missing is the courage.”
Pope Leo also expressed his sadness at Wednesday’s shooting. In a statement, the pontiff said he sends his
“heartfelt condolences and the assurance of spiritual closeness to all those affected by this terrible tragedy, especially the families now grieving the loss of a child.”
The attacker, identified as Robin Westman, 23, who is believed to be a former student at the school, died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound in the rear of the church. Of the 17 people injured, 14 were children, and two were in critical condition, Minneapolis police said.
Metropolitan Water District doubles turf rebate
By City News Service
being mowed. It’s outside large buildings, in business parks and on medians,”
Michael Camacho, vice chair of the Metropolitan’s Board of Directors, said in a statement.
“This rebate helps these properties comply with the new state mandates while also switching to an alternative that is water-efficient, beautiful and supports our local ecosystems,” he added.
The new rebate expires at the end of 2026, or sooner if funding runs out. Business owners and institutions are encouraged to apply for the program by March 1, and
must complete their projects within 180 days.
To apply or get more information, including design resources, plant lists and a list of certified landscapers, visit bewaterwise.com.
The agency was able to offer an increase to its rebate program as a result of a $30 million grant from California’s Department of Water Resources, and through $96 million in federal funding from the Bureau of Reclamation’s Lower Colorado Basin System Conservation and Efficiency Program.
“DWR is proud to continue its investment and
support of programs like regional turf replacement that offer solutions to stretch California’s limited water supplies,” Salomon Miranda, water manager at DWR’s Southern Region Office, said in a statement. “By making turf replacement more affordable through increased rebates, we are improving water supply reliability and ensuring that water is available for residential needs, manufacturing, agriculture and the environment.”
Water officials made the announcement at a news conference in Los Angeles, where they also showcased
a new water-efficient garden at the American Legion Post 43. Metropolitan Water District recently awarded Post 43 a “One Water Award” for its water-saving landscape transformation.
About 70% of water usage in Southern California is used on outdoor irrigation, according to the water agency. For more than 15 years, Metropolitan has overseen programs to incentivize residents and business owners to replace their grass lawns with more water-efficient landscaping, which uses up to 80% less water compared to a tradi-
tional lawn.
The Turf Replacement Program has resulted in the removal of more than 230 million square feet of grass, and annually saves enough water to meet the demands of more than 83,000 homes.
A recent study found that more homeowners were inspired to convert their lawns to more sustainable landscapes. The research found a so-called “multiplier effect” in which for every 100 homes that changed their lawns with help from the rebate, another 132 nearby homes also swapped out their lawns without financial help for their projects.
Elise Goldman, water efficiency manager for Metropolitan, emphasized that more Southern California are eager to swap out their lawns for low-water landscapes. She added that businesses and other institutions have been slower to make that swap.
“The people who manage these properties need to make a business case for turf replacement,” Goldman said in a statement. “They need to understand how switching to a water-efficient landscape helps their bottom line.”
Minneapolis city leaders hold a press conference Wednesday morning. | Screenshot courtesy of the city of Minneapolis / YouTube
| Photo courtesy of the Metropolitan Water District
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Trump’s pick to help run the FBI has a history of prosecuting influential
Democrats
n late July, Missouri state troopers walked into St. Louis County government headquarters and seized the cellphone of one of the most prominent Democratic officials in this solidly red state.
Two days later, a grand jury indicted Sam Page, the St. Louis County executive. Acting as a special prosecutor, Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey, a Republican, secured two felony counts of stealing by deceit and two election-law violations.
For Bailey, bringing felony charges against the leader of the state’s biggest blue stronghold added to the resume of a MAGA warrior who had already interviewed for a key position in President Donald Trump’s administration.
Less than three weeks later, Trump tapped Bailey to help run the FBI. He’ll serve as co-deputy director with Dan Bongino, a former Secret Service agent and conservative podcast host. Bailey said he’ll resign as Missouri’s attorney general on Sept. 8 to take the post. A spokesperson said he was not taking questions from the media.
The case against Page was the latest in a string of legal strikes against Democrats by Bailey, bringing the full weight of the state on a political adversary. It wasn’t about bribery or self-dealing. Page, the top elected official in a county with about 1 million residents, wasn’t accused of stealing a dime for himself.
Instead, the charges turned on something mundane: the printing and mailing of flyers weeks before about a measure on the ballot in April — the kind of informational material local governments often send to voters and the sort of action that experts said had never led to criminal charges in Missouri.
The election asked voters to give the County Council the power to fire the county’s department heads and its top attorney. Page spent more than $25,000 of taxpayer money to print and mail flyers to voters outlining the measure. The flyer at issue did not overtly tell voters to vote no, but it listed groups that opposed it, including the police board and NAACP, and it
By Jeremy Kohler, ProPublica
quoted a state judge’s ruling that the ballot language was misleading and unfair. It also suggested that a yes vote would allow directors to be fired for political reasons or in emergencies and that a no vote would maintain stable leadership.
Documents filed in the case against Page also showed that he did not follow a county lawyer’s advice to make some changes to the flyer. Bailey alleged that the flyer crossed the line from providing information, which is legal, to urging a no vote, which he said was an unlawful use of tax dollars — and, in his view, grounds to seek felony charges.
If convicted on the most serious count, Page could face three to 10 years in prison and $10,000 in fines. He could also face removal from office and sanctions against his medical license; he’s an anesthesiologist, though he doesn’t currently practice full time.
“Public officials must follow the law,” Bailey wrote in a news release, “and my Office will work to ensure that they always do.”
The playbook was familiar: Trump has talked about arresting California Gov. Gavin Newsom and New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani. Federal agents just raided the home of John Bolton, the former national security adviser in the first Trump administration and a prominent Trump critic.
Attorney General Pam Bondi appointed Ed Martin, who had worked as an attorney in Missouri, to head the U.S. Department of Justice’s Weaponization Working Group and to investigate two prominent Democrats, New York Attorney General Letitia James and U.S. Sen. Adam Schiff of California, on allegations of mortgage fraud.
“Bailey really was auditioning for that role, or something like it, and what better way to show loyalty than to do exactly what Trump wants on the federal level, but replicated on the state level,” said Paul Nolette, the director of the Les Aspin Center for Government at Marquette University. “It’s a template for what type of approach Bailey is going to take on the federal level. Political opponents are going to get targeted.”
Bailey has called himself a defender of the rule of law, portraying his high-profile lawsuits and investigations in Missouri as necessary to protect the state from what he has described as illegal or unconstitutional actions by the federal government and abandonment of the rule of law by the left.
Page became county executive in 2019 after a federal corruption case toppled his predecessor, Steve Stenger. Page had led a bipartisan bloc on the County Council against Stenger, who was sentenced
to nearly four years in federal prison for a pay-toplay scheme that steered county contracts to political donors. (St. Louis County wraps around — but does not include — the much smaller independent city of St. Louis.)
The cooperative spirit collapsed as Page set St. Louis County on the aggressive end of Missouri’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic, issuing early emergency orders limiting gatherings and indoor dining. That stance put him at odds with state officials who were moving to curb local power.
Despite this and other political battles, Page has twice won countywide elections — first in 2020 to finish Stenger’s term, then in 2022 to a full four-year term. He has said he will decide by the end of the year whether to run again in 2026. He was scheduled to be arraigned on Friday.
“I don’t think I did anything wrong,” he said in brief remarks to local news reporters at a ribbon-cutting for a county road project.
A Page spokesperson referred questions to his lawyer, Jeff Jensen, a former U.S. attorney in Missouri during Trump’s first term. Jensen did not respond to requests for comment. Many have questioned the legitimacy of
This story was originally published by ProPublica. ProPublica is a Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative newsroom. Sign up for The Big Story newsletter to receive stories like this one in your inbox.
Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey. | Photo courtesy of Missouri Attorney General’s Office
Study: Central CA major hotspot for factory farms
By Suzanne Potter, Producer, Public News Service
California’sCentral Valley has the largest concentrationof animal feeding operations in the country, and those farms have a big impact on the environment and the community, according to a new study from the University of Michigan.
Researchers mapped large cattle and pig farms around the country, finding that California hosts almost 1,400 cattle animal feeding operations, known as AFOs.
Sanaz Chamanara led the study while earning her PhD in Michigan and now works as a researcher at the University of California, Santa Barbara.
She said that air pollution measures 28% worse in areas near cattle AFOs –specifically, researchers find
more fine particulate matter that's under 2.5 micrometers in length.
"Two-point-five is a concern," said Chamanara, "because it lingers in the air, and its association with asthma, lung cancer, cardiovascular diseases, and leukemia."
The pollution comes from dust kicked up by cattle and from massive lagoons of waste found near AFOs.
The industry trade group Western United Dairies criticizes the study, claiming it doesn't take pollution from transportation and human sources into account, something the authors deny.
Tulare County has the most feedlots in the Central Valley, with 304 facilities in the region. When
a facility has more than 1,000 animals, it is called a concentrated animal feeding operation or CAFO.
Chamanara said communities near CAFOs tend to have a lot in common, with many of them hosting a high percentage of vulnerable, low-income Latino residents.
"The poverty is higher, the uninsured people are higher," said Chamanara. "But we should mention that actually the unemployment rate is lower, because these CAFOs also offer job opportunities."
This study forms the first national database of its kind. Earlier this month, a federal judge tossed a lawsuit seeking to force AFOs to report air pollutants to local and state agencies.
| Photo by lazy fri13th CC BY 2.0
the case and whether Bailey’s successor, Catherine Hanaway, will see it through. Hanaway, also a former U.S. attorney, as well as a former speaker of the Missouri House of Representatives, did not respond to questions.
“It certainly seems, based on my reading of it, a stretch,” said Peter Joy, a law professor at Washington University in St. Louis and an expert in legal ethics and trial practice. “It would be an uphill battle for the state to make this charge stick.”
Ken Warren, a political scientist and pollster at Saint Louis University, said the charges were “totally phony” but that “the more outrageous you are, the more you are going to attract the attention of Donald Trump.”
“Let’s say the same thing occurred but the county executive happened to be a Republican,” Warren said. “Would Bailey go after him? Of course not.”
Missouri has become a proving ground of sorts for Trump appointees. Martin — a longtime state GOP insider with a record of stoking controversies — was named the U.S. attorney for Washington, D.C. After it became apparent he couldn’t win Senate confirmation, he was moved to the administration’s pardon office and the Justice Department’s weaponization group.
John Sauer, a former Missouri solicitor general and anti-abortion activist who last year helped bankroll a campaign to defeat Missouri’s abortion rights ballot issue, defended Trump’s claim to presidential immunity before the Supreme Court. Now, as U.S. solicitor general, he serves as the federal government’s
top advocate before the Supreme Court.
Will Scharf, who lost a primary bid last year to unseat Bailey, pivoted straight into Trump’s legal inner circle. Then there’s Billy Long. The six-term ex-congressman was confirmed in June as IRS commissioner — despite having once pushed to abolish the agency — amid scrutiny over his ties to questionable tax-credit plans. He was recently ousted and said he will become ambassador to Iceland.
That roster of loyalists is no accident. Over the past two decades, Missouri has moved from being a competitive bellwether state to a deep-red stronghold, with a political environment that rewards the kind of hard-line conservatism and culture-war ethos that Trump prizes.
John Danforth, a Republican who served as Missouri’s attorney general from 1969 to 1976 and then as a U.S. senator until 1995, said the office has shifted dramatically from its core mission.
Under him, he said, the job was to represent state agencies, handle every felony appeal, respond to legal opinion requests and manage litigation with a small staff. Asked about a move last year in which Bailey investigated a St. Louis-area school district after a student was beaten during school hours — blaming its diversity policies and removal of resource officers for safety failures — Danforth said, “I wouldn’t have done it.”
As the state has shifted right, many races are effectively decided in the primary. Candidates don’t need to win over most voters, according to political experts and observers —
just the small, very political group that shows up for low-turnout, winner-takeall primaries. That favors hard-line candidates.
Nowhere is that change clearer than in the attorney general’s office.
Bailey is a U.S. Army veteran who served two tours in Iraq as an armored cavalry officer. He started his career as an assistant Missouri attorney general, then worked as a prosecutor. He joined the governor’s office as deputy general counsel in 2019 and later served as general counsel to then-Gov. Mike Parson.
His politicization of the attorney general’s office follows a path blazed by two predecessors, Josh Hawley and Eric Schmitt, who each used relatively brief tenures as the state’s attorney general to launch themselves into the U.S. Senate. In Hawley’s case, out-of-state political consultants were embedded in the office from his first weeks on the job, directing taxpayer-funded staff, shaping his policy rollouts and boosting his national profile ahead of his Senate run. Schmitt used the office to wage headline-grabbing legal fights, from suing China over COVID-19 to challenging pandemic restrictions, elevating his profile as he prepared his own Senate campaign.
Neither Hawley nor Schmitt could be reached for comment.
After Schmitt was elected to the Senate in November 2022, Parson announced that he would appoint Bailey to fill the vacancy. That set up a highprofile Republican primary last year against Scharf, a candidate with backing from the conservative establishment. Bailey won 63% of the vote and cruised
to an easy general-election victory in November.
Within a week, Bailey was interviewing with Trump for the job of U.S. attorney general in the new administration.
With no Democrats holding statewide office and a GOP supermajority in the legislature, Bailey has turned his fire on Democratic officials in Missouri’s two largest cities. He pressured St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner to resign by filing a lawsuit to remove her from office that alleged willful neglect of duty and a failure to prosecute violent crimes, and he recently sought to remove St. Louis Sheriff Alfred Montgomery, accusing him of misconduct. Gardner repeatedly denied any wrongdoing before resigning; later she acknowledged misusing some public funds. Montgomery has denied wrongdoing and has refused to resign.
Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas has also been a frequent target: Bailey threatened a Missouri Human Rights Act investigation into Lucas and his staff after a city-run social media account, responding to
a speech by the Kansas City Chiefs football player Harrison Butker about women being homemakers, named the suburb where Butker lived. The city deleted the post and apologized. Bailey framed the post as discrimination against Christians.
Last year, Lucas suggested the city could benefit from asylum-seeking immigrants joining the local workforce, then clarified that he meant immigrants who were in the U.S. legally. Bailey — who had sued the Biden administration over what he called an “illegal” parole program for migrants from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela — accused Lucas of trying to involve Missouri businesses in a “fundamentally unlawful program.” He posted a letter on the social media platform X calling Lucas’ comments “wildly irresponsible” and said he was “putting him on notice that it is a Class D felony to knowingly transport an illegal alien in the State of Missouri.”
Lucas responded in a statement then that Bailey’s letter was “a political campaign press release with no legal effect.”
“It’s not effective
lawyering,” Lucas said in a recent interview. “It’s a whole new branch of lawyering that I, as a lawyer, didn’t grow up knowing, which is: If you get a story out, who cares if you drag people through the mud?”
Bailey, on the other hand, has stepped up to defend Republican allies. His office intervened to defend three GOP state senators who were sued for false light invasion of privacy after wrongly identifying a Kansas man as the shooter at a Super Bowl parade honoring Kansas City’s NFL team — and falsely calling him an undocumented immigrant.
Two of the senators called the lawsuits frivolous, while Bailey has argued the posts were protected by legislative immunity, as the senators were acting in their official capacity.
Lawsuits against two of the officials, who are represented by the Missouri deputy solicitor general, a high-ranking lawyer in the attorney general’s office, remain pending in federal court.
Republished with Creative Commons License (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0).
California paint stewardship program reports growth, plans expansion
By City News Service
InCalifornia,leftover paintis one of the most common household hazardous wastes and tossing it out the wrong way can create costly environmental problems.
Nationally, most Americans said recycling has had positive effects but only about one in six feel they know what happens to their materials. California’s paint stewardship program offers one answer through PaintCare, a nonprofit created by paint manufacturers which runs more than 800 drop-off sites and a free large-volume pickup service.
Terri Marsman,
Califor-
nia program manager for PaintCare, said the group’s 2024 report showed the efforts are making a measurable difference.
"I think that demonstrates our commitment to following the waste hierarchy: Reduce, reuse, recycle," Marsman outlined. "Of the 3.5 million gallons collected in 2024, 4% of the latex paint that we collected was reused and 85% of the latex paint collected was recycled and 12% was landfilled."
She pointed out the process involves partnering with retailers, household hazardous waste facilities
and local governments to ensure leftover paint is managed responsibly. She noted the program also handled more than 1,000 large-volume pickups for businesses and community projects last year, helping conserve resources and reduce costs for local governments.
Marsman stressed the program’s value goes beyond just collecting paint. Recycled paint is turned into new products, some partner sites give good-quality paint back to the public for free and local governments save money by keeping materials out of the waste stream. She under-
scored the program is also preparing for changes under new legislation.
"SB 1143 was signed into law on Sept. 29, 2024," Marsman explained. "That will allow the inclusion of aerosol coatings, coatingrelated products, and nonindustrial coating products by Jan. 1, 2028."
She added the change will give Californians more convenient options for disposing of hazardous products and help reduce costs for local governments. More details, including how to find a nearby drop-off site or schedule a pickup, are available at PaintCare.org.
Dodgers’ preliminary 2026 schedule announced
By City News Service
The Dodgers will open their 2026 season by hosting the Arizona Diamondbacks on March 26 at Dodger Stadium, according to the preliminary schedule announced Tuesday by Major League Baseball.
ACalStateChannel Islandsprofessorwho was arrested during an immigration raid at a Camarillo cannabis farm pleaded not guilty Monday in a Los Angeles federal courtroom to interfering with an ICE takedown.
Jonathan Caravello, 37, a U.S. citizen and a lecturer in CSUCI's math department, was detained by immigration agents during a massive raid that unfolded last month at the Glass House Farms cannabis operation in Camarillo, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.
In addition, the Dodgers will play interleague games at Dodger Stadium next season against the Cleveland Guardians March 30-April 1; the Texas Rangers April 10-12; the Angels June 5-7; the Tampa Bay Rays June 15-17; the Baltimore Orioles June 19-21; the Seattle Mariners July 28-30; the Boston Red Sox July 31-Aug. 2; and the Kansas City Royals Aug. 10-12.
Memorial Day, Father’s Day, Independence Day and Labor Day. As is customary, they will be at home for Jackie Robinson Day, April 15.
The Dodgers will be at home for Mother’s Day,
The traditional opening date of March 26 will be the earliest in Major League
history, excluding special season-openers and international openers. Previously, the earliest traditional Opening Day for MLB had been March 27 -- this season.
MLB will announce its games outside of North America later, an MLB spokesperson told City News Service.
The Dodgers’ 2026 preliminary schedule on a month-by-month basis is available at mlb.com/ dodgers/schedule/2026-03.
Cal State Channel Islands professor pleads not guilty to interfering with ICE
By City News Service
U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli issued a statement on X in July saying Caravello was charged with assaulting, resisting or impeding an officer. The professor was arrested on suspicion of throwing a tear-gas canister at law enforcement, Essayli said. At his arraignment Monday, a tentative trial date of Oct. 14 was set.
During a previous court hearing in downtown Los Angeles, U.S. Magistrate Judge Maria A. Audero ordered Caravello released on
a $15,000 bond.
According to some media reports, Caravello was trying to dislodge a tear gas canister that was stuck underneath someone's wheelchair when he was taken into custody. However, Essayli alleges Caravello was arrested for throwing a canister.
CSUCI previously released a statement on Caravello's arrest, saying the university was "currently gathering additional information to fully understand the circumstances of the incident."
The statement said, "At
this time, it is our understanding that Professor Caravello was peacefully participating in a protest -- an act protected under the First Amendment and a right guaranteed to all Americans. If confirmed, we stand with elected officials and community leaders calling for his immediate release.
"The California State University remains committed to the principles of free expression, academic freedom, and due process, and will continue to monitor the situation closely."
Photo by Astrid Schaffner on Unsplash
Jonathan Caravello. | Photo courtesy of UCSB
HeatherHoney,a high-profile denier of Donald Trump’s loss in the 2020 election, has been appointed to a senior position in the U.S. Department of Homeland Security in which she’ll help oversee the nation’s election infrastructure.
Honey is a protege of Cleta Mitchell, a lawyer who tried to help Trump overturn the 2020 election results. In 2024, ProPublica reported that Honey had played a key role in Mitchell’s behindthe-scenes effort to change Georgia’s election rules to allow Republican officials to contest a potential Trump loss in that year’s presidential race. Honey also promoted election conspiracy theories, including one Trump cited in a speech to his followers before they stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
Though states do the on-the-ground work of running elections, DHS supports them with tasks beyond their capacities, such as protecting IT infrastructure and voter databases from foreign intrusions. The agency, with bipartisan support, took on this role in the aftermath of Russia’s interference in the 2016 election.
Experts on voting and state election officials warned that Honey’s appointment as DHS’ deputy assistant secretary of election integrity could erode trust between state and federal officials, prompting states not to share information with the agency.
“We are witnessing a dangerous trend: the elevation of known bad-faith actors like Heather Honey,” said Adrian Fontes, Arizona’s Democratic secretary of state, in a statement, citing Honey’s “well-documented history of spreading election lies that have been debunked in court.”
Fontes called her involvement with DHS “deeply troubling” and said “when the agency gives a platform to individuals who have actively worked
She pushed to overturn Trump’s loss in the 2020 election. Now she’ll help oversee U.S. election security.
By Doug Bock Clark, ProPublica
to erode public trust, it becomes harder to view DHS as a reliable partner in election security.”
A DHS spokesperson did not answer questions from ProPublica on Honey’s appointment or the exact nature of her responsibilities. Honey didn’t respond to calls or emails. The White House also didn’t respond to a request for comment. Her name is listed on the organization’s leadership structure online, and her appointment was first reported by the website Democracy Docket.
In the first Trump administration, the federal government set up programs designed to shield U.S. elections from foreign interference, including the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, an arm of DHS. But Trump soured on this and other initiatives after the director of CISA publicly rebutted his claims that the 2020 election was stolen.
Since the start of the second Trump presidency, the administration has gutted those programs, cutting hundreds of employees at CISA. Its director, Chris Krebs, is now under
federal investigation, DHS has said; Krebs told CNN that the investigation appeared to be an act of political retribution. The Justice Department has also rolled back a program aimed at combatting foreign influence campaigns. Attorney General Pam Bondi wrote in a memorandum that the Justice Department’s program was disbanded to “free resources to address more pressing priorities, and end risks of further weaponization and abuses of prosecutorial discretion.”
David Becker, the executive director of the Center for Election Innovation and Research, a nonprofit focused on building trust in American elections, said the cuts had dismantled “nearly all” of DHS’ capacity to protect election infrastructure. He said state elections officials feared that Honey’s appointment, combined with the program cuts, signaled the Trump administration’s intent to eliminate bulwarks of fair U.S. elections.
“The hiring of an election conspiracy theorist with no election knowledge or expertise is the culmination of this reversal,” Becker
said. “DHS now appears poised to become a primary amplifier of false election conspiracies pushed by our enemies.”
Two sources familiar with Honey’s hiring at DHS said she began working for the agency last week. An organizational chart dated Aug. 18 on the department’s website identifies her as a leader in the agency’s Office of Strategy, Policy and Plans. Her position wasn’t on a version of the website archived in July, and officials in former administrations said that there’s been no such job previously.
It’s not clear yet what Honey will oversee, but former DHS officials said that deputy assistant secretaries are typically the agency’s top experts in their subject areas. They’re often involved in drafting executive orders and crafting policies. They also serve as liaisons to the White House and the National Security Council.
Since Honey started, Trump has announced “a movement to get rid of” mail-in ballots and voting machines via executive order, though a top aide subsequently said
the administration would pursue those goals through legislative action. DHS has also threatened to cut off about $28 million in grants to help states prepare for terrorism and disasters if they don’t change voting rules to conform to the administration’s priorities, NPR has reported.
Honey’s duties likely would include helping to organize the government’s policy responses if foreign actors make intrusions into the nation’s election systems, former officials said. To do this, and to assess the security of election infrastructure, someone in her position would typically have access to classified information, including the government’s electionrelated intelligence.
Experts expressed concern about Honey’s portfolio, given her history of spreading misinformation.
“Heather Honey’s past misleading claims about vote counts in Pennsylvania, among other things, have helped fuel false conspiracy theories about stolen elections,” said Larry Norden, an election expert at the Brennan Center for Justice at NYU Law, a nonpartisan
law and policy group.
Before becoming swept up in the “Stop the Steal” movement, Honey had no experience in the federal government or as an election administrator, working as a Pennsylvania-based private investigator.
After the 2020 election, she became a contractor for a Republican-backed audit seeking proof of fraud in ballots cast in Maricopa County, Arizona. According to emails between employees working on the review, which ended up reaffirming Biden’s win, Honey helped draft the final report.
Since then, Honey has led at least three organizations devoted to transforming election systems in ways championed by conservatives, such as tightening eligibility requirements for people to be on voter rolls. Members of Honey’s Pennsylvania Fair Elections, a state chapter of Mitchell’s nationwide Election Integrity Network, have challenged the eligibility of thousands of residents to be on voter rolls.
Honey has also been involved in numerous other efforts to transform elections around the country, including a successful push to get many states with Republican leadership to pull out of a bipartisan interstate partnership to share data to make voting more secure.
Do you have information you can share about Heather Honey or elections work being done in the federal government, especially at the Department of Homeland Security? Contact reporter Doug Bock Clark at doug.clark@propublica. org or on Signal at 678-2430784. If you’re concerned about confidentiality, check out ProPublica's advice on the most secure ways to share tips.
Christopher Bing and William Turton contributed reporting.
Republished with Creative Commons License (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0).
Vice President JD Vance stands alongside President Donald Trump. | Photo by Phil Mistry / PHIL FOTO's CC BY-NC-SA 2.0 via Flickr
Bonta announces oversight of Torrance Police Department after review
By City News Service
The California Department of Justice has entered into an enforceable reform agreement with the Torrance Police Department to improve policies and accountability after an independent review found instances of excessive force, racist text messages and other misconduct at the agency, officials announced.
The review was initiated four years ago after the previous Torrance chief of police requested assistance in identifying and correcting potential systemic failures at the department amid news reports of bigoted text messages being exchanged among TPD officers.
As part of the five-year plan, the city of Torrance and TPD will implement a set of reforms to be overseen by an independent monitor to improve the department’s practices and its relationship with the community, California Attorney General Rob Bonta said in a statement Thursday.
“Today’s enforceable agreement is an important step toward improving Torrance Police Department’s
practices and policies and strengthening trust between its officers and the community they serve,” Bonta said.
“While my office is no stranger to investigating and addressing systemic deficiencies within law enforcement agencies — and we do not take lightly the concerning circumstances that led to
this independent review — TPD is a rare agency to proactively seek a review of its policies and practices,” he said. “I am optimistic that TPD’s cooperation throughout this process, and its commitment to reform, will lead to real results that will allow it to better protect the safety of the community it
serves and support the wellbeing of its personnel.”
In August 2021, two former TPD officers were charged with felony vandalism and conspiracy to commit vandalism for allegedly spray painting a swastika on a car they had been involved in impounding a year earlier. The inves-
tigation revealed that more than a dozen officers had allegedly exchanged racist, homophobic and antisemitic messages. Following a request for assistance from then-TPD Chief Jay Hart, DOJ initiated an independent review to identify and address systemic failures in TPD’s policies and practices.
OC bookie involved in Ohtani interpreter betting scandal gets prison time
By City News Service
AnOrangeCounty bookiewhose gambling customers included Dodger star Shohei Ohtani’s former interpreter was sentenced Friday to a year in federal prison and ordered to pay more than $1.6 million in restitution.
Mathew Bowyer, 50, of San Juan Capistrano, pleaded guilty last August to operating an unlawful gambling business, money laundering and subscribing to a false tax return.
Federal prosecutors said Bowyer took in unlawful bets from Ippei Mizuhara, Ohtani’s former interpreter, who pleaded guilty last year to charges of stealing nearly $17 million from the Dodger slugger’s bank account to pay off illegal gambling debts. Mizuhara was sentenced earlier this year to 57 months in prison.
Bowyer also acted as a bookie for what court papers described only as “a professional baseball player for a Southern California-based baseball club” as well as a
former minor league player, documents allege.
“(Bowyer’s) crimes were not a single indiscretion, but instead a multi-year operation that raked in millions of dollars for (Bowyer) and his associates to gamble and live an extravagant lifestyle, often through the exploitation of people (Bowyer) recognized were addicted and extending themselves beyond their means, money that was routed through multiple accounts and ultimately not reported to the government on (Bowyer’s) taxes,” according to a prosecution sentencing memorandum.
According to his plea deal, Bowyer operated an unlicensed and illegal bookmaking business that focused on sports betting and violated California law. Bowyer’s gambling business remained in operation for at least five years until October 2023 and at times had more than 700 bettors, court documents say. The business operated out of various locations in Los Angeles and Orange counties
Robert Dunn, TPD’s interim chief, promised Thursday to fully support his agency’s reforms.
“The message to our employees, elected leaders, and the community is clear: The Torrance Police Department has a zero-tolerance policy for hate and discrimination and is committed to constitutional policing,” he said. “We will diligently work to implement these reforms while fulfilling our mission to keep our community safe and secure.”
Added Torrance Mayor George K. Chen: “Change does not happen overnight and requires the support of personnel and budget. We are committed to working together with the DOJ to improve our police department and create a better future for the city of Torrance.”
As part of the agreement, TPD will address systems for standards, supervision, oversight and accountability; disparities and bias in policing; use of force; community policing; employment practices; and organizational health, Bonta said.
as well as in Las Vegas, prosecutors said.
According to court papers, Bowyer hired casino hosts and others who worked for his illegal gambling business and were paid a portion of the losses bettors incurred and paid. His unlawful business used several Costa Rica-based websites and a call center so agents and customers could place and track bets. At times, Bowyer operated his illegal business while gambling at a casino, prosecutors said.
From September 2021 until January 2024, prosecutors say, Mizuhara placed at least 19,000 bets with Bowyer’s illegal gambling business, winning a total of at least $142 million. His losses totaled at least $182 million, leaving Mizuhara owing roughly $40 million, according to the government.
Bowyer also admitted in his plea agreement to falsely reporting his taxable income to the IRS on his 2022 tax return. Bowyer reported $607,897 in total income on the return, but his unreported
income for that year was over $4 million, he admitted.
As a result of the false information, Bowyer owed
million, not including interest and penalties, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
said.
Ohtani was cleared of any wrongdoing
involvement in gambling activities, prosecutors
Mathew Bowyer. | Photo courtesy of mathewbowyer/TikTok
| Photo courtesy of the Torrance Police Department
LA28 seeks to move diving to Pasadena venue
By City News Service
ACity Council commit-
teeWednesday approved a proposal from LA28 to relocate Olympic diving events to the Rose Bowl Aquatics Center in Pasadena.
In a unanimous vote, the seven-member Ad Hoc Committee on the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games advanced the proposal, which will head to the full City Council for consideration. LA28 officials said the move was necessary to address athlete safety and financial concerns.
“This presents a significant opportunity to deliver successful marquee events, with greater budget certainty, while also ensuring an exceptional competition venue for our diving athletes, with their safety remaining our top priority,” LA28 CEO Reynold Hoover
said in a statement.
Earlier this year, the City Council approved several updates to the venue plan, which officials said will save more than $150 million in combined cost savings and boost revenues.
Among the updates, LA28 planned to use the John C. Argue Swimming Stadium at Exposition Park, which was also used for swimming events in the 1932 Olympic Games. Recently, the organizing committee determined the Rose Bowl Aquatics Center would be best suited to host diving events in 2028.
Shana Ferguson, LA28 chief of sport and games delivery, told committee members Wednesday morning the stadium was not up to international and domestic standards for swim competition -- in addition to issues related to the diving
towers.
In exchange, LA28 offered to make certain improvements to the stadium pool, bringing it up to national and international standards. LA28 noted moving diving events to Pasadena would result in nearly $18 million in savings.
“LA28 determined that the Swim Stadium pool would require a complete reconstruction in order to meet Olympic standards,” according to a report from city officials. “The necessary reconstruction is not able to occur simultaneously with the LA Memorial Coliseum track construction projects due to limited space within the surrounding footprint. The historical nature and close proximity of these facilities adds further complexity and cost.”
The stadium pool improvements are estimat-
ed at less than $2 million to $3 million, Ferguson noted.
Councilwoman Katy Yaroslavsky, chair of the Budget and Finance Committee, raised concerns about the city being left with the cost of construction at a time when city spending is tight.
“I would love to see the pool brought up to that
standard, but maybe on the back end, if you have money left over, then we can improve the pool so that it can be an asset for Angelenos,” Yaroslavsky said.
Councilwoman Monica Rodriguez emphasized the need to ensure that communities are not left behind and working class neigh-
borhoods receive investments in preparation for the Games.
Ultimately, all members of the Ad Hoc Committee advanced the proposal to move diving out of Los Angeles to Pasadena and the deal to improve the stadium pool for residents in South Los Angeles.
Delta agrees to $78.8M settlement over 2020 fuel dump in LA, OC
By City News Service
Delta Air Lines has reached a nearly $79 million settlement in a class-action lawsuit over a 2020 fuel dump that doused tens of thousands of properties, including homes and schools, in Los Angeles and Orange counties, according to court papers obtained Thursday.
Delta has denied wrongdoing in the incident.
The settlement, which is awaiting a judge’s approval in LA federal court, will be distributed among 38,000 property owners and residents, attorneys said.
Filippo Marchino, a lawyer for the plaintiffs, said
the agreement was fair and reasonable.
“We are especially pleased to obtain this result for residents of the Southeast Los Angeles communities, comprised of hard-working families who asked only for respect and just treatment and rightly deserve this result,” the attorney said in a statement sent to City News Service.
A hearing in the case is scheduled for Sept. 15 in downtown Los Angeles before U.S. District Judge John A. Kronstadt.
The case stemmed from a January 2020 incident in which a Delta flight to
Shanghai from Los Angeles International Airport lost thrust shortly after takeoff.
The pilots jettisoned about 15,000 pounds of jet fuel from the Boeing 777 before returning to LAX.
A Federal Aviation Admin-
istration investigation later cleared the pilots of wrongdoing, according to Delta.
Property owners argued that the pilots needlessly dumped fuel at a low altitude over densely populated areas, instead of dumping it over
the Pacific Ocean or at a high altitude so it would dissipate, or by burning fuel by flying in a holding pattern.
Los Angeles County Supervisor Hilda Solis issued a statement calling the settlement “a long-overdue acknowledgment of the harm inflicted on working families, schoolchildren, and educators in Bell, Cudahy, and surrounding Southeast Los Angeles communities.”
“What happened that day was nothing short of an environmental injustice,” she said.
“Jet fuel was dumped without warning over neighborhoods already overburdened by chronic air pollution, heavy
industry, and decades of environmental neglect. This was the result of poor judgment and disregard for the health and safety of communities that have historically been treated as expendable.”
During the incident, jet fuel “rained down on playgrounds, schoolyards, and homes,” Solis said.
“Children were burned. Teachers were forced to care for students in crisis with no notice and no protective equipment. Families were left to navigate the aftermath with few answers and no accountability. ... We must ensure this never happens again.”
a $34,000 surplus, while a surplus of $88,400 is projected for Fiscal Year 2025-26.”
Arcadia Firefighters’ Association President Jonathan Ansell said union members attended the meeting Tuesday “not out of animosity or anger toward any council member’s voting record, but because it was a historic moment in Arcadia’s governance — the first time a censure motion was brought before the council. As stakeholders invested in the city’s operations and future, our members were
there to observe this significant proceeding, reflecting our commitment to engaging with local government processes.
“We hold no ill will toward how any council member votes,” Ansell said. “We value the diversity of thoughts and opinions that contribute to robust decision-making, including Mayor Kwan’s continued discussions on the city’s budget. We fully support a fiscally responsible council, as a stable financial position
benefits all city employees, enabling us to provide highquality services to residents.”
On the 20% increase in employee compensation, Ansell said, “(City Manager Dominic Lazzaretto) was asked directly if the city could sustain these raises, and he affirmed that it could. Moreover, the city ended the fiscal year with a balanced budget, demonstrating that these raises were financially manageable. These adjustments were critical to address market imbalances
in compensation.”
Ansell said the city’s fire department “had been losing talented, experienced firefighters to neighboring agencies offering competitive pay, jeopardizing our ability to maintain staffing levels and response times essential for public safety. The raises were about retention and fairness, not excess. Since the raises were implemented, our department has not lost any members to other agencies.”
The police union and
Public Works union President Marcos Garcia did not respond to requests for comment. Contact information was not immediately available for the Arcadia Civilian Employee Association and the Arcadia Police Civilian Employees Association. The three civilian employee unions do not have social media accounts, websites or known physical addresses outside the city’s Huntington Drive administrative complex.
The censure resolution
chastises Kwan for accusing police and firefighters “of impropriety and corruption because labor organizations chose not to support her or her cronies. These unfair and baseless allegations contribute to loss of public trust in our law enforcement and public safety agencies, and cause meaningless conflict based on false statements made for political gain.”
A public hearing on censure penalties for Kwan is set for Tuesday at the council’s regular meeting.
Rose Bowl Aquatics Center. | Photo by IK’s World Trip via Flickr CC BY 2.0
A jetliner dumps fuel. | Photo courtesy of Lahiru k/Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.5)