An LA attorney has been in a Venezuela prison for a year. His family wants him home

• April 3, 2023

It’s been one year since Eyvin Hernandez has hugged his family. It’s been one year since he’s been home.

And it’s been one year since the Los Angeles County public defender has been able to argue for a defendant’s innocence.

Except this time, Hernandez is the defendant.

Hernandez, a criminal defense attorney who grew up in the South Bay, was arrested at the Venezuelan-Colombian border a year ago while on a two-week vacation. Since then, he has been detained in a Venezuelan cell, with his family and the United States government describing Hernandez as a wrongfully detained political prisoner.

His loved ones have also described the Los Angeles resident’s living conditions as dire – and they want him back home as soon as possible.

That’s why Hernandez’s family and friends, about 40 people in all, gathered in front of the Clara Shortridge Foltz Criminal Justice Center, in downtown Los Angeles, last week to publicly urge the U.S. government – President Joe Biden in particular – to help bring him home.

His friends also have a change.org petition to call for political actions, which had accumulated 6,504 signatures as of Friday morning. A GoFundMe account had raised more than $34,800 for legal fees and financial help for when Hernandez comes home.

The rally took place on Thursday, March 30 – a day before the one-year anniversary of Hernandez’s arrest. Those who know the 44-year-old pleaded with the Biden administration to intervene on his behalf.

“The president has the power to bring him home,” Hernandez’s father, Pedro Martinez, told the Daily Breeze after the rally. “It’s (been) a year already. He deserves to be home as soon as possible.”

A State Department spokesperson, in a statement provided to the Southern California News Group, said officials are working to free him – and all captive Americans.

“The U.S. Government continues to work aggressively to bring home all U.S. nationals wrongfully detained or held captive abroad and also to prevent and deter future hostage-takings and wrongful detentions,” the spokesperson said. “These are top priorities for the President and the Secretary of State.”

In March 2022, Hernandez was on vacation in Colombia. One day, he accompanied a friend to Cucuta, a city near the border with Venezuela, to get her passport stamped. He never intended to enter Venezuela and was due to return home in a few days, his family said.

The two were walking down a dirt road asking for directions when a man told them to pay a $100 bribe to cross into Venezuela. After they refused, the pair were approached by heavily armed men, accused of being American spies and turned over to Venezuelan officials, his family said.

It’s unclear if Hernandez’s friend was on vacation with him and information on her is sparse. But Hernandez’s family said she is Venezuelan, not American.

Either way, their arrests  were unsurprising within the context of Venezuela’s current unrest.

The State Department urges Americans not to travel to the country and in March 2019, the U.S. withdrew all diplomatic personnel from its embassy in Caracas.

Violence is common in Venezuela, according to the State Department, and the government of longtime President Nicolás Maduro has been accused of human rights abuses.

“Violent crimes, such as homicide, armed robbery, kidnapping, and carjacking, are common,” the State Department says about Venezuela on its website.

And U.S. officials have determined Americans who travel there would be at risk for detention.

“Reports from the Independent International Fact-Finding Mission document human rights abuses attributed to the Maduro regime,” the State Department website says, “including torture, extrajudicial killings, forced disappearances, and detentions without due process and/or fair trial guarantees or as a pretext for an illegitimate purpose.”

Hernandez, meanwhile, has been locked in a maximum security prison for political prisoners since his arrest, and has been charged with criminal association and conspiracy against the Venezuelan government.

His family has insisted he is innocent. If found guilty, Hernandez could spend up to 16 years in prison, his family said.

Seven months into his detention, the State Department determined Hernandez was “wrongfully detained,” which means his case gets enhanced resources from the government.

But one year has passed, and there is still no clear sign of a release date or his return to the U.S.

Hernandez’s last time in court came in August for a pretrial hearing, said his younger brother, Henry Martinez.

“They say they are working on it,” his father said, “but we don’t see action.”

But those efforts are ongoing, the State Department spokesperson said, while declining to provide details.

“We continue to press for the immediate and unconditional release of Mr. Hernandez at every opportunity and will continue to do so,” the spokesperson said. “Beyond that, we are not going to discuss ongoing diplomatic conversations or negotiations.”

Hernandez’s capture, meanwhile, has caused significant angst among those who know him.

Martinez, for example, said his son, who has dedicated his career seeking fair treatment for vulnerable people, is needed here in Los Angeles, not just by the family – but also by those he served.

Drew Havens, who attended Thursday’s rally, witnessed Hernandez’s dedication to his job personally. Hernandez trained Havens when he was a new public defender, he said.

Hernandez is a “very inspirational, very diligent, excellent attorney,” Havens said, and he “really cared about the people that he was training.

“He taught me what it means to fight for justice,” he added. “Eyvin has dedicated his entire life to serving the most marginalized people in Los Angeles County. He’s a dedicated public servant. He doesn’t deserve to be held captive from his family in Venezuela.”

Hernandez was born in El Salvador in 1978.

His family moved to the US, when Hernandez was a toddler, to seek a better life.

He graduated from Leuzinger High School in Lawndale and attended El Camino College, where he discovered his passion for physics. He eventually transferred to UCLA, earning a bachelor’s degree in physics and mathematics.

He then went to law school – which was unexpected

Karlene Nguyen is a friend of Hernandez who studied with him at El Camino College before they both transferred to UCLA.

She was initially surprised when he decided to become a lawyer, Nguyen said.

Their graduation in the early 2000s coincided with the dot com bubble bursting, forcing many fledgling internet and communication companies to shutter after a brief period of rapid growth.

There were no jobs at the time, Nguyen said, and she thought Hernandez, who had studied physics and mathematics in college, would be eager to become a physicist or an engineer.

But instead, he chose to go to law school.

In 2006, Hernandez joined the LA County Public Defender’s Office, where he’s spent his entire career.

His most recent assignment was at the Clara Shortridge Foltz Courthouse handling felony cases. Hernandez has also volunteered his time advocating for children in the juvenile justice system.

“It makes sense now that he’s never been focused on money,” Nguyen said about her friend’s decision to study and practice law. “He always was very principled. He wanted to do something bigger for the community, and so money was never his priority.”

Those who care deeply about Hernandez said the slow response from the government, as they described it, is frustrating.

They aren’t sure, for example, why it took so long for Hernandez to be classified as wrongfully detained, despite overwhelming evidence that he was unjustly taken, Hernandez’s brother said.

“They don’t provide us with a game plan,” he said. “I think we get the repetitive quotes that other families get, which is, simply, ‘We’re working on it. Eyvin’s case is a top priority and we’re doing what we can.’”

But during a House Foreign Affairs Committee meeting last month, Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said he had spoken with the family in late January, and that his staff engages with them on a regular basis.

Roger Carstens, the U.S. special envoy for hostage affairs, and the head of the state department’s Venezuela Affairs Unit, have traveled to Venezuela multiple times to try to free Americans who have been wrongfully detained, including Hernandez, the secretary said.

“We will continue that effort,” Blinken said, “until we bring Eyvin and any others home.”

Pedro Martinez confirmed Blinken’s conversation with the family. But even though he appreciates what the State Department officials are doing, the elder Martinez said, he also wants immediate action.

“As Secretary Blinken has said,” the State Department spokesperson said, “he is personally focused on bringing home U.S. nationals held hostage or wrongfully detained abroad.”

The last time Hernandez’s family spoke with him was March 26.

Even though he’s desperate, his family said, Hernandez is trying to stay as positive as he can

But his loved ones say they are worried about his health. The light in his cell remains on 24/7, so he has not had adequate sleep in a year. He has not eaten nutritious food.

And he has not yet had a trial.

Bahar Mirhosseni, a criminal defense/human rights lawyer and a friend of Hernandez, said it pains her to know that Hernandez is locked up in “deplorable conditions”– thousands of miles from his family.

“We are not saying that he should be freed because he’s an amazing human rights lawyer,” she said. “We’re saying he should be freed because no one deserves this.

“Even one minute is one minute too much,” Mirhosseni added, “and we’re talking about an entire year of a human being’s life.”

​ Orange County Register 

NHRA’s Winternationals finish with a bang

• April 3, 2023

POMONA – For the second day in a row, Funny Car racer J.R. Todd played a starring role at the 63rd NHRA Winternationals at the In-N-Out Pomona Dragstrip – if you’re talking about video footage and still photos.

In the first round of Sunday’s elimination finals, Todd’s car blew up in explosion as massive as any you will see in drag racing, or any kind of racing.

This was one day after Todd was involved in a spectacular crash with 73-year-old John Force, requiring Todd to use a spare car on Sunday. Now that one is destroyed too.

The day ended in spectacular fashion as well, with some of the most prominent names in drag racing squaring off in the Top Fuel and Funny Car semifinals and finals.

In Top Fuel, John Force Racing teammates Austin Prock and Brittany Force squared off in one semifinal, with Prock winning when Force spun her tires. In the other semifinal, up-and-coming superstar Justin Ashley beat Antron Brown by .006 seconds. Ashley and Brown call each other teammates since they are in the second year of an analytical alliance.

Ashley, currently the hottest driver in drag racing, won his second straight event when he nipped Prock by .049 seconds in the final. It made for a clean sweep Ashley, with the 29-year-old from Farmingdale, N.Y., also qualifying No. 1 and winning the new Saturday challenge event involving the four semifinalists from the previous week.

“I have to say this was the best weekend of my career,” Ashley said.

In Funny Car, longshot Terry Haddock’s surprisingly good day ended when he lost to Matt Hagan in the semifinals. In the other semifinal, defending national champion Ron Capps eliminated Bob Tasca III.

Hagan, of Tony Stewart Racing, then nipped Capps by .436 seconds for the event title. Hagan had qualified 10th. “It was a tough climb back,” Hagan said.

The Pro Stock winner was Dallas Glenn of Mooresville, N.C.

As for Funny Car’s Todd, a veteran driver from Jupiter, Fla., he was fortunate to escape both weekend incidents uninjured.

He was particularly lucky on Saturday. He instinctively pulled his parachutes as he approached the finish, slowing just enough to avoid getting T-boned in full force by Force’s car that had bounced around and into Todd’s lane and then got tangled up in his chutes before crashing into a concrete protective wall.

Todd crossed the finish line in 3.935 seconds at 328.86 mph, good enough for him to qualify as the fifth-seeded driver going into Sunday’s action, which for Todd didn’t last long.

“If you knew a weekend like this was coming, you’d rather stay home,” he said. “More than anything, I just hate all the work that’s been created for all my guys – especially right before an off weekend. They needed an off week. Now they have a ton more work to get done before we go to Las Vegas.”

Todd’s first round opponent, 12th-seeded Alex Laughlin, was eliminated in the second round by Tasca.

The biggest upset during the first round in Funny Car came when John Force Racing’s Robert Hight, seeded third and the defending Winternationals champion, spun his tires and allowed veteran Terry Haddock to advance. Haddock, 52, who has been racing off and on since 1998, was seeded 14th.

Haddock, from Temple, Texas, made it to the semifinals, where he lost to Hagen.

John Force, driving his spare car and seeded 16th, spun his tires and lost to top-seeded Cruz Pedregon in Sunday’s first round. That left Force Racing without a driver in Funny Car.

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“Robert and I suffered the same fate,” Force said at the time. “At least we still have Brittany (Force’s daughter) and Austin Prock in Top Fuel.”

An oddity this event was that the top executive at a sponsoring body was also a competitor. Lynsi Snyder, the owner and president of In-N-Out, raced in the top sportsman class, losing in the first round of the finals on Friday. It had been five years since the lifelong drag racing enthusiast had competed.

“It took a long time for me to get my car,” she quipped.

Besides being the naming sponsor of Pomona’s legendary raceway, In-N-Out is also the name sponsor for the NHRA Finals, which are annually run here in November.

The multiyear deal was announced last November. Snyder said Denny Warnick, the company’s chief operating officer, alerted her of the possible deal with the NHRA.

“I get a lot of messages thrown my way,” Snyder said. “But when Denny Warnick passed along one from the NHRA, I took notice.”

​ Orange County Register 

Ducks suffer 8th straight loss, falling to the Flames to end road trip

• April 3, 2023

CALGARY, Alberta (AP) — Milan Lucic and Michael Stone scored in the third period and the Calgary Flames rallied to beat the Anaheim Ducks 5-4 on Sunday.

Nick Ritchie had a goal and an assist, and Andrew Mangiapane and Nikita Zadorov also to help Calgary win a season-high fourth straight game. Tyler Toffoli had two assists.

Jacob Markstrom gave up two goals on nine shots in the first period and was replaced by Dan Vladar, who stopped 11 shots over the final two periods to pick up the win.

Calgary remained two points behind Winnipeg for the second wild card in the Western Conference. The Jets beat New Jersey 6-1 earlier Sunday.

Frank Vatrano had two goals and an assist, Max Comtois had a goal and an assist, and Scott Harrington also scored for Anaheim. Kevin Shattenkirk had two assists and Lukas Dostal made 36 saves as the Ducks suffered their eighth consecutive loss.

Lucic tied the score 4-4 at 6:26 of the third. After defenseman MacKenzie Weegar blocked a shot in the defensive zone, Blake Coleman fed Lucic to score far side off the rush for his seventh of the season.

Stone, playing his first game for the Flames since Feb. 18 because of a lower-back injury, let loose a slap shot from the point that beat Dostal for the go-ahead goal with 2:38 remaining. It was his sixth.

Vatrano gave the Ducks a 1-0 lead at 4:17 of the first with a rising shot that beat Markstrom’s glove. It marked the 10th time Calgary gave up a goal on an opponent’s first shot of the game — the ninth time against Markstrom.

Markstrom stopped Max Jones on a breakaway with eight minutes remaining in the opening period.

Comtois doubled the lead with 2:10 remaining in the opening period as he converted the rebound of Vatrano’s shot.

The Flames scored the next three goals to take the lead.

Mangiapane got Calgary on the scoreboard with a power-play goal 33 seconds into the second period. With Colton White serving a hooking penalty, Mangiapane wired a wrist shot from the top of the faceoff circle over Dostal’s stick for his 16th.

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Zadorov got a pass from Jonathan Huberdeau and rifled the puck far side over Dostal’s glove for his 10th at 7:12 of the middle period to tie the score.

Ritchie put the Flames ahead 3-2 a little more than a minute later as he tipped Troy Stecher’s shot from the point past Dostal. It was his 13th.

Vatrano’s second of the night and 20th of the season tied it at 9:16 as he knocked in a rebound over Vladar’s glove.

Harrington put the Ducks ahead 4-3 with 7:04 left in the second as he beat Vladar with a point shot through traffic.

UP NEXT

Ducks: Host Edmonton on Wednesday night.

​ Orange County Register 

Kings clinch playoff spot with win over Canucks

• April 3, 2023

VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP) — Alex Iafallo scored twice, Joonas Korpisalo made 21 saves and the Kings wrapped up an NHL playoff spot with a 4-1 victory over the Vancouver Canucks on Sunday night.

Arthur Kaliyev and Blake Lizzote — into an empty net — each had a goal and an assist for the Kings. Anze Kopitar added a pair of assists.

Los Angeles improved to 45-22-10, winning for the second straight night after topping Seattle on Saturday.

Brock Boeser scored for the Canucks and Thatcher Demko stopped 21 shots. The Canucks were eliminated from postseason contention earlier in the night when Winnipeg beat New Jersey. Vancouver has missed the playoffs three straight years and seven of eight.

Iafallo put away his second goal of the night — and 14th of the season — on a power play 3:25 into the second after Jack Studnicka was called for tripping.

Viktor Arvidsson fired a shot off the post and the rebound fell into traffic in front of the Vancouver net, where Iafallo muscled it in to give the Kings a 2-1 lead.

With Vancouver’s Anthony Beauvillier and L.A.’s Quinton Byfield in the box, Iafallo ripped a one-timer past Demko from the bottom of the faceoff circle for his first goal of the night.

UP NEXT

Kings: Host Edmonton on Tuesday night.

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​ Orange County Register 

Ruoning Yin wins LA Open in playoff on final hole for first LPGA title

• April 3, 2023

PALOS VERDES — Ruoning Yin’s rollercoaster-like round on Sunday’s final day of the LPGA DIO Implant LA Open at Palos Verdes Golf Course created some anxious moments, but the 20-year-old ultimately survived the white-knuckle ride to claim her first LPGA title.

Yin’’s final round 1-under 71 included six birdies and five bogeys but it was a two-foot par putt on the par-4 18th hole that sealed the one-stroke victory at 15 under. Georgia Hall who fired a final round 67 to finish second for the second straight week finished at 14 under. Hall missed a 5-foot birdie putt on 18 to try and force a playoff. Former UCLA standout Patty Tavatanakit and Hyo Joo Kim tied for third at 12 under.

Yin said she expected Hall to make her birdie putt on 18 and that she was mentally preparing for a playoff. When Hall’s putt missed, Yin stepped up and calmly knocked in her short par putt. As the ball dropped, Yin did a Tiger Woods-like first pump, celebrating her first LPGA victory.

“I fought so hard today,” a relieved Yin said. “After I made three bogeys in a row on the front nine, I’m so happy that I fought back. Like I said yesterday, I knew I can make birdies at this course for sure, and I just told myself to be patient. I was nervous on the back nine thinking about maybe winning. My hands were shaking a lot before I hit the last putt. I am very happy to win.”

Yin is now the second player in Tour history from the People’s Republic of China to win an LPGA event, joining Shanshan Feng who retired last year with 10 wins. She was asked what joining Feng means to her and for golf in China.

“Being the second Chinese player after Shanshan Feng (to win on the LPGA Tour), that means a lot,” Yin said. “I think maybe I can push little more Chinese kids to play golf and push more people to focus on China golf. During the round I heard a lot of Chinese fans rooting for me, which made me exciting. Yeah, like I said yesterday, if I’m going to win today it’s going to be a big day for me and for China golf.”

For the second straight round, Yin made three straight bogeys on the front nine, but despite the adversity, she regained her focus on managed to make four straight birdies to finish the front nine.

Seemingly back on track as she made the turn, Yin pushed her drive on the par-4, 10th hole into the rough and then hit a tree on her second shot. With the pressure mounting she hit her third shot to the back of the green and two-putted for bogey.

“I had a goal that I cannot make three-putts, and I cannot make any double bogeys,” Yin said. “After I hit the tree, I said, ‘Let’s just make bogey here.’ I didn’t even think about make par, but I had to make bogey.”

While there were many key moments throughout the day that helped Yin reach the winner’s circle, none were bigger than what happened on the par-5 14th hole. Coming off a bogey on the par-3, 13th hole that cut Yin’s lead to single stroke over Hall, Yin’s second shot hit a tree. Somehow instead of bouncing into the rough, Yin’s ball instead bounded into the fairway. Taking advantage of the good fortune, Yin knocked her third shot to 5 feet and then made the birdie putt.

Conversely, Hall’s approach shot from the fairway flew the green, leading her to settle for a par, as Yin’s lead increased to two.

As she watched her ball heading toward the tree, Yin actually thought it had a chance to bounce out into the fairway. When it did, her caddie told her it was a good number for her and to go and make birdie.

“That hole just sums up golf,” Hall said. “Obviously she got lucky and managed to have a full shot in. Then I slightly tugged mine and had to scramble to get up and down for par. So things just swing in roundabouts. It comes and goes. It went her way, and obviously she played really great apart from that and she deserved to win.”

Trailing by four shots at the start of the day, Hall knew she needed to play extremely well in order to give herself a chance. After making four birdies on the front nine, she was in prime position to overtake Yin if she could keep the momentum going.

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Over the final nine holes Hall struggled with her swing, but time and time again her short game bailed her out and allowed her to keep the pressure on. Over the final nine holes she was a perfect four for four with sand saves.

“That back nine was really tough and the wind got up as well, and I did miss a lot of greens actually on the back nine,” Hall said. “I managed to get up and down a lot. I felt a little like Seve out there, so just to have a chance on the last hole and gave myself the best opportunity. Unfortunately, the greens this time of day are very bobbly and it was tough to know what was the right line to pick. Unfortunately, it just bobbled off line.”

Hall called the last two weeks a rollercoaster of emotions, coming close to wins twice but falling just short both times.

“It’s very mentally draining,” Hall said. “Obviously gutted not to get a win. But two second place finishes show me I am right where I need to be to start the season, so very happy.”

​ Orange County Register 

Sweeping plan to ‘depopulate’ LA County jails embraced by supervisors

• April 3, 2023

A sweeping proposal calling for depopulation and decarceration of the Los Angeles County jails will be considered Tuesday by the Board of Supervisors, drawing the ire of an organization representing police chiefs for 45 law enforcement agencies.

The plan advanced by Supervisors Hilda Solis and Lindsey Horvath would declare a “humanitarian crisis” in the jails and advocate for or instruct several county agencies to evaluate, create and expand programs that would keep more people out of a jail, even after they are convicted of misdemeanors and some felonies.

“To depopulate and decarcerate is a monumental task, and the Board is committed to redress historical wrongs, deeply rooted in systemic racism and prejudice, and reverse status quo responses to poverty, mental health and medical needs, and substance use dependencies,” the supervisors wrote in their motion.

The Los Angeles County Police Chiefs Association says it was blindsided by the proposal, only learning about it on Friday, and believes it is conspicuously timed to occur during the same week as two major local law enforcement events — the Baker to Vegas Challenge Cup Relay and the Tri-County Police Chiefs Conference.

“In the midst of surging crime rates, pre-arrest decriminalization policies, and a complete shift away from sound public safety responses, it appears the County BOS is poised to exacerbate our current plight,” says a letter from the group to the supervisors, obtained by the Southern California News Group. “We do not stand against reform and we have been active participants in these efforts. However, we are concerned with the rushed motion under conspicuous circumstances, that does not allow for stakeholder participation.”

Solis and Horvath could not be reached for comment Sunday.

‘Care first, jails last’

The latest series of recommendations advances the board’s “care first, jails last” agenda, by asking for changes from the county courts and the state, granting new authority to the sheriff to release more of the incarcerated population, and removing systemic barriers in the county departments that intersect with the justice system.

The Board of Supervisors adopted a “Care First and Community Investment Budget Policy” in 2021 that allocated $200 million from the voter-approved Measure J to community youth programs, job training, rental assistance and developing alternatives to incarceration through “community-based services and non-custodial pretrial, diversion, re-entry and restorative justice programs.”

That same year, it created the “Jail Closure Implementation Team” with the mandate to “safely close and demolish” the Men’s Central Jail without building a replacement.

“For these reasons and to respond to the County’s mass incarceration crisis in a more humane way, the Board must move forward with celerity to utilize its complete authority to advocate for support and reforms from our State and Judicial partners to ensure this County is a truly ‘jails last’ County,” the motion states.

The Police Chiefs Association said it opposes the outright closure of the Men’s Central Jail and the formation of any group to facilitate such an effort without input from police chiefs and representatives of Los Angeles County’s independent cities.

“We are simply asking for more detailed vetting and building of replacement alternatives, and for a seat at the table,” the letter states, requesting that the agenda item be tabled.

Most of the recommendations are aimed at keeping people out of jail to begin with, through reduced bails, pretrial diversion programs and cite-and-release ticketing. Others are designed to help convicted inmates exit the system sooner, through expedited processing and alternative sentencing, in which some or all of a sentence would be spent under house arrest instead.

What the plan would do

Specifically, the motion would:

Ask the Los Angeles County Superior Court to extend court hours and reimplement a zero bail policy for most offenses, excluding serious and violent felonies, or those that pose a risk to others, such as driving under the influence or stalking.
Direct the sheriff and director of the Justice, Care and Opportunities Department to work with Los Angeles County’s 45 municipal law enforcement partners to increase the use of “cite-and-release” countywide.
Instruct the Public Defender’s Office to develop a plan to expand expungement clinics and help more people resolve “failure to appear” warrants.
Request that the sheriff develop rules allowing individuals held on bail in county jails for either felonies or misdemeanors to be released back into their communities when safe to do so.
Explore opportunities to subsidize transportation to and from court for individuals released pretrial
Ask the Sheriff’s Department and district attorney to increase the use of “split sentencing,” a program that divides a sentence between jail and house arrest, as an alternative to incarceration.
Develop a pilot to arraign as many individuals as possible via video conferencing to reduce the number of people transferred from local jails to county jails.
Direct the county’s chief probation officer to make it more difficult to send someone back to jail for a Post Release Community Supervision violation and to develop alternatives “that do not result in individuals being incarcerated.”

Efforts similar to the current proposal from Solis and Horvath, including Proposition 47 and  Assembly Bill 109 also known as the California Public Safety Realignment Act of 2011, have resulted in predictable, tragic outcomes from an influx of offenders released into communities, according to the LACPCA

“The consequences have been a steady rise in crime, reduced quality of life, and increased fear within our communities,” says the letter. “Closing Men’s Central Jail will have a very similar effect on communities if the county does what the state did by releasing large numbers of inmates arbitrarily and without community protections in place. Predictable is preventable.”

Proposition 47 was approved by California voters in 2014 to reduce the penalties for certain lower-level drug and property offenses to prioritize prison and jail space for higher-level offenders.

Assembly Bill 109 allows for current nonviolent, nonserious and nonsex offenders to be supervised at the county level after they are released from California state prisons.

The LACPCA said the proposal before the supervisors leaves many questions unanswered, including where inmates will go if Men’s Central is closed and who will supervise their release.

“More importantly, who will ensure the community is protected when these inmates are simply pushed back into communities where resources are stretched and police efforts muted by a host of forced factors?” asks the letter from the chiefs to the supervisors.

Los Angeles County jails currently house more than 1,464 individuals who have been sentenced to state prison. Part of the motion includes sending a letter to Gov. Gavin Newsom and the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation to expedite transfers and release of inmates held on behalf of the state and allow the Sheriff’s Department to release those individuals directly from local custody when applicable.

The supervisors also would support legislative proposals that call for an end to non-safety-related towing of vehicles; a statewide zero bail schedule, similar to the Superior Court system used during the pandemic; and permanent funding for pretrial diversion services.

If the motion is approved, county officials will be tasked with developing tools to track and model jail populations and to help better assess individuals who could qualify for early release.

Los Angeles County’s Justice, Care and Opportunities Department is expected to provide timelines on the implementation of the motion within 60 days and quarterly progress reports to the board.

‘Dangerous and reckless’

Eric Siddall, vice president of the Association of Deputy District Attorneys, which represents about 900 LA County prosecutors, calls the proposal from Solis and Horvath “dangerous and reckless,” and claims it guts portions of the legal system without input from valuable stakeholders.

“The authors sought no advice from those who know and understand public safety issues,” he said in an email Sunday. “They seek to lower the jail population without addressing the root causes of crime or protecting the public.”

Siddall noted the proposal directs law enforcement to cite and release suspects for offenses such as illegally carrying a gun, domestic violence, possession of child pornography and some violent crimes, including residential burglary, robbery, and assault with a firearm.

“This catch-and-release program comes without any plan or infrastructure to protect the community from violent criminals apprehended by law enforcement,” he said. “Further, it creates no lockdown facilities for the mentally ill. This program benefits no one, except career criminals. We need to make sure the most dangerous offenders don’t get out, that first-time offenders don’t come back, and that those with serious mental illnesses get appropriate care and help. This does none of that.”

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The proposal seems to be the major last step in fulfilling the progressive decarceration ambitions of the supervisors and progressive Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón, said Steve Cooley, a former district attorney for the county.

“The biggest danger to public safety and quality of life in Los Angeles County happens to be some members of the Board of Supervisors and the Los Angeles County District Attorney,” Cooley said in an email. “This sort of thinking pervades at the state level. Los Angeles County has done an awful job with diversion programs in general, dealing with the mentally ill, and the plethora of drug addicts who litter the streets.

“Those on the board trying to slip this through without any real notice to or comment from the public should be called out.”

​ Orange County Register 

Katie Johnson’s header lifts Angel City FC to victory on final play

• April 3, 2023

Katie Johnson’s goal on the final play of the match gave Angel City a 2-1 victory against the Orlando Pride in the lone National Women’s Soccer League match on Sunday.

Claire Emslie converted on a penalty for Angel City (1-1-0) in the first half at Orlando’s Exploria Stadium after Alyssa Thompson, selected first in the 2023 NWSL draft, was taken down on a breakaway in the box. Emslie sent Pride goalkeeper Anna Moorhouse diving in the other direction and slotted her penalty to the right corner.

Rookie Messiah Bright scored her first NWSL goal in the 51st minute for Orlando (0-2-0), dribbling between two Angel City defenders before sliding it to the left corner to tie the game.

Emslie got a second chance from the penalty spot in the 89th minute when a handball was called in the box, but Moorhouse came up with a big save. Angel City nearly won another penalty, but it was called off due to an offside violation in the build-up.

On the final play of the match, substitute Johnson headed in Emslie’s corner kick, giving Angel City the win. It was the latest game-winning goal in a regular-season NWSL match.

#ad A game winner
Katie Johnson’s goal after an amazing corner kick from Claire Emslie.
Play of the Match from #ORLvLA#AngelCityFC | @JohnnieWalkerUS pic.twitter.com/G2WjDlynsH

— Angel City FC (@weareangelcity) April 3, 2023

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​ Orange County Register 

Lakers crush the Rockets, led by Anthony Davis’ 40-point game

• April 3, 2023

HOUSTON (AP) — Anthony Davis scored 40 points, LeBron James had 18 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds to tie Jason Kidd for fourth place with his 107th triple-double and the Lakers beat the Houston Rockets 134-109 on Sunday night.

The Lakers (40-38) moved two games over .500 and into a tie for seventh with the New Orleans Pelicans in the Western Conference with four games to go. Los Angeles has won six of its last seven games and owns the tiebreaker over the Pelicans.

Davis scored 27 in the first half en route to his first 40-point performance since scoring 55 against the Washington Wizards on Dec. 4 and his third of the season. James played just 29 minutes.

Lakers starter D’Angelo Russell, acquired in a three-team trade from the Minnesota Timberwolves on Feb. 9, did not return to play in the second half due to left foot soreness. Russell had six points, four assists and three rebounds in 15 minutes.

In his 13 games with the Lakers, Russell had been averaging 18 points, 6.5 assists and three rebounds.

Alperen Sengun notched his third straight double-double for the Rockets with 18 points and 15 rebounds, Jalen Green scored 24 points and Kevin Porter Jr. chipped in 20 points. Prior to this stretch, Sengun had one double-double over the previous nine games played.

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The Lakers owned a 70-60 halftime lead, which the Rockets cut to six with 9:38 to go in the third quarter on a reverse layup by Green.

With 30.3 seconds left in the third quarter, James got a roar from the Lakers fans with an emphatic one-handed tomahawk dunk to bring the Lakers’ lead back to 16. That was a part of a 20-7 run by Los Angeles to extend the lead to 117-90 with 7:56 to go.

TIP-INS

Lakers: Rui Hachimura scored 20 points and had a season-high 12 rebounds … Austin Reaves scored 16 points … Malik Beasley scored 13 points off the bench.

Rockets: All five starters scored in double digits. … Rockets coach Stephen SIlas received a technical foul with 8:30 left in the game … Houston Texans new coach DeMeco Ryans was introduced prior to the game and did the Rockets “First Shot”.

UP NEXT

Lakers: Visit the Utah Jazz on Tuesday night.

​ Orange County Register