2010 Small Business of the Year Award California Small Business Association (41st District)
Little Voices (ages 5-7) Tuesdays and Thursdays only
www.GreenBrooms.com 1445 6th St • Ground Floor • Santa Monica
310-444-4444
20th Anniversary
310.310.2623
Hybrid • Mercedes-Benz
not valid from hotels or with other offers • SM residents only • Expires 8/31/10
TUESDAY, DECEMBER 7, 2010
SM to LAX $30
SantaMonicaTaxi.com
Volume 10 Issue 21
Santa Monica Daily Press
WIKILEAKS STRIKES AGAIN SEE PAGE 10
We have you covered
THE IT’S BEEN A GOOD RUN ISSUE
Docs: Slain model was calling 911; killer hung up BY THE ASSOCIATED PRESS LOS ANGELES An aspiring young model and actress who was slain in her Santa Monica apartment in 2008 was calling 911 for help when her killer grabbed the phone and hung up, according to grand jury transcripts. The frantic phone call was among the revelations in newly unsealed transcripts of October grand jury proceedings against Kelly Soo Park, the woman charged with murdering 21-year-old Juliana Redding in 2008, the Los Angeles Times reported Sunday. The transcripts also include the testimony of investigators who said DNA matching Park, a 45-year-old close associate of Redding’s former boyfriend, was found on SEE MURDER PAGE 8
HIGH SCHOOL GIRLS’ BASKETBALL
COMING DOWN
Brandon Wise brandonw@smdp.com People brave the rain Sunday during the Bayside District's Winterlit tree lighting ceremony on the Third Street Promenade in Downtown Santa Monica. Parts of the event were cancelled due to the weather and took place on Monday night.
Samohi’s Verdugo stepping down BY DANIEL ARCHULETA Managing Editor
District defends handling of sexual harassment case BY NICK TABOREK Daily Press Staff Writer
SMMUSD HDQTRS More than 140 people have signed a letter expressing disapproval with the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District’s handling of a sexual harassment case at Santa Monica High School and asking for more information about the incident. The letter, written by a district parent
PROMOTE YOUR BUSINESS HERE! Yes, in this very spot!EVERYDAY Call 310-458-7737 for details
named Michael Chwe, concerns the case of a Samohi math teacher who was accused in 2008 of having an inappropriate relationship with a female student. It asks for information about the district’s investigation into the teacher and questions the actions of Superintendent Tim Cuneo related to the case. According to a letter dated Dec. 4, 2008 from then-Assistant Superintendent Mike Matthews, the teacher was put on leave that school year after an investigator hired by
the district determined he had violated SMMUSD’s sexual harassment policy. The teacher was again placed on leave the following school year after a complaint surfaced that he had engaged in inappropriate communications with students over Facebook, according to people knowledgeable about the case. He has returned to Samohi as a classroom teacher this school year.
SAMOHI In a short tenure that has included four trips deep into the playoffs and even a California Interscholastic Federation Southern Section title, Head Coach Marty Verdugo has made his mark on Santa Monica High School’s girls’ basketball team. Now, he says, it’s time to move on. Following this season, his fifth, he said that he plans to leave the coaching post and pursue other interests in the sport. The announcement Sunday came just a day after his Vikings won the Inglewood Circle of Champions Tournament, the first preseason tourney win in his time leading the team. Verdugo said that he isn’t being forced out by any means, but instead said that this was all part of his five-year plan when he took the job. “I’ve accomplished what I hoped to
SEE DISTRICT PAGE 8
SEE VERDUGO PAGE 9
LIST KRONOVET, START PACKING!
IZZY'S DELI DOES TURKEY!
WITH
Fresh Roasted Turkey TURKEY MEATLOAF • TURKEY BURGERS • TURKEY CHILI TURKEY SALAD • TURKEY SAUSAGE • TURKEY BACON TURKEY GUMBO SOUP • TURKEY DINNERS TURKEY SANDWICHES
AND
310-829-9303
1433 Wilshire Boulevard, at 15th Street
310-394-1131 | OPEN 24 HOURS
Robert Kronovet is a California Association of Realtors Director.
DRE # 01128992
sales@Kronovet.com