The Los Angeles Times from Los Angeles, California • Page 30

LOS ANGELES TIMES 1FORN B4 WEDNESDAY, MAY 17, 2000 A news summary The Local Review QUTHERN caj DEVELOPMENTS IN LOS ANGELES COUNTY The Regional Review WTT? I 7 wye umrv 1 lflJM it mux A i I fll I If I 1 1 Mfar. www 4 Council Overrides Veto, Preserves Anti-Gang Program LOS ANGELES The City Council on Tuesday voted unanimously to override Mayor Richard Riordan's veto of its decision to continue funding the controversial L.A Bridges anti-gang program. The decision came one day after the council agreed to spend nearly $9 million next year on the initiative. In a recent audit, City Controller Rick Tuttle found that Bridges is so poorly managed it was unclear whether it helped to keep young people out of gangs. Riordan's budget suggested funding the program through September to give the city time to come up with a new anti-gang program.

Council members said they would rather fix Bridges. "We have stepped up to the plate," Councilman Mark Ridley-Thomas told dozens of teenagers and other Bridges supporters who attended the council meeting. The council fell one vote short of overriding another Riordan veto, this one on whether to put the city's risk management functions into the newly created Department of Finance. Officials plan to revisit the issue next week. Stiffer Rules on Censure of Council Members OKd LOS ANGELES Despite some misgivings, the City Council adopted voter-approved rules Tuesday that set higher standards for the council to censure its members.

Currently, the 15-member council can censure a member for any reason, as long as there are eight votes. The new rules, which would mirror a City Charter amendment approved last year by the voters, would allow censure when there are at least 10 votes to conclude that a colleague is guilty of a "gross failure to meet the highest standards of personal and professional conduct." "There has to be a higher burden of proof to censure than what is currently in law," said Councilman Rudy J-. CAROLYN COLE Los Angeles Times Lucrecia Padilla shouts her opinions at protest Tuesday over Compton's plan to dismantle its Police Department. Residents Protest Proposal to Disband Compton Police DEVELOPMENTS IN ORANGE, RIVERSIDE, SAN BERNARDINO AND VENTURA COUNTIES Parents of Girl Killed in Crash Sue Nightclub VENTURA COUNTY The parents of a teenager killed in a high-speed crash last month have sued an Oxnard nightclub, alleging that club owners sold their 15-year-old daughter and her friend liquor before the accident. In the wrongful-death suit, Alfonso and Beatrice Elizarraras of Oxnard say club owners knowingly allowed their underage daughter, Sophia, and her 18-year-old friend, Patricia Castro, into the bar on April 6 and served them alcohol.

Castro later lost control while driving more than 115 mph on the Ventura Freeway, according to the California Highway Patrol. The car overturned, hitting a metal light pole and several trees. Both girls died of head and chest and authorities said neither was wearing a seat belt. The lawsuit by Sophia's parents in Ventura County Superior Court alleges that the crash occurred as a "direct result" of negligence by owners of Wagon Wheel Road. No one from the club could be reached for comment Tuesday.

Gang Violence Plunges to Lowest Level in Decade ORANGE COUNTY Gang violence in Orange County plunged last year to its lowest level in a decade, fueled in part by an aggressive crackdown on "bully gangs" operating in the South County, according to a district attorney's office report released Tuesday. Violent crimes committed by gang members dropped by 10, from 1,584 to 1,421, and gang homicides declined at an even greater rate. There were 26 gang-related murders in 1999, compared with 32 the year before and 70 in 1995, the report stated. Prosecutors based the study on crime reports and court records from all 33 Orange County cities. They found: The number of people who weren't gang members victimized by gang crime dropped 32 last year to about 990.

Despite the declining crime rate, the number of gangs actually rose last year. Four new gangs were formed in 1999, bringing the total in Orange County to 404, the report said. The number of identified gang members rose to 19,521, up 1,136 over 1998. A "bully gang" accused of various violent crimes across the South County has essentially been put out of business since several members were convicted last fall of attempted murder. According to records, the Slick 50s gang has not committed a single crime since the convictions.

While gang violence is still a problem in South County, officials said, incidents are generally decreasing. Dist. Atty. Tony Rackauckas praised the Sheriff's Department's anti-gang unit, TARGET, for helping reduce problems. "There had been increasing gang activities for some years in certain parts of South County, and I think the TARGET unit has been key in identifying them and prosecuting them," he said.

Ballot Measure to Be Sought on Tobacco Funds ORANGE COUNTY Health care advocates plan to file 117,000 signatures today to put an initiative on the November ballot to let voters decide how Orange County should spend an estimated $763 million in national tobacco settlement funds over the next 25 years. The decision to go directly to voters came Tuesday, immediately after the Orange County Board of Supervisors voted 3 to 2 against a compromise plan to divide the tobacco windfall, with 60 for health care and anti-smoking programs and the remaining 40 for jail construction and debt reduction. The initiative, proposed by a health care coalition and backed by the county's major physician and hospital groups and lawmakers from both political parties, would require that 80 of the money be spent on health and anti-smoking programs, with 20 reserved for law enforcement. Members of CHARTS, Citizens Health Alliance to Reinvest the Tobacco Settlement, had worked with county officials for the past month on the compromise plan. After it was rejected, coalition members moved forward with the also attended the rally.

"Our sole motivation in marching tonight is to awaken in the people the knowledge that they can fight for justice," he said. Council members said they favor the move which would make Compton the 41st city in the county to contract with the Sheriff's Department because the city needs the extra police services the county can provide to fight crime. The contract would cost Compton $12 million, significantly less than the $20 million the city now spends on its own department. damaged facility at 600 beds, rather than the 750 sought by legislators. The board voted to oppose the legislation by Assemblyman Antonio Villaraigosa (D-Los Angeles) over the objections of Supervisor Gloria Molina, who has long battled with her colleagues over the fate of the hospital in her district.

"It is a shame to go on record opposing this legislation," said Molina, who has joined with many medical experts who say a 600-bed hospital will be too small for the county's burgeoning population of uninsured residents. With pressure from the federal government to cut its reliance on hospitals after its brush with bankruptcy, supervisors voted in 1998 to downsize the rebuilt hospital. They ran into opposition, not only from Molina, but from an unusually united group of Latino legislators who have withheld state funds from the county over the years to encourage the board to reconsider. The battle has soured the relationship between the board and Sacramento. County Chief Administrative Officer David Janssen said he recommended that the board oppose Villaraigosa's legislation because it flies in the face of board policy that decisions should be made at the local level.

Bus Passenger Arrested in Assault on Driver NORTH HOLLYWOOD With a load of riders on board, a bus driver was hit over the head with a bottle Monday night by an irate passenger, police said. The Metropolitan Transportation Authority driver had picked up the passenger about 9:20 p.m. at Tujunga Avenue and Magnolia Boulevard, said Gary Wosk, spokesman for the agency. The passenger, Ruben Gonzalez, refused to pay his fare, said Police Sgt. Gary Patton.

Gonzalez, 22, allegedly hit the driver over the head with the bottle as he was exiting at Coldwater Canyon Avenue and Burbank Boulevard, Wosk said. Other passengers helped detain Gonzalez until officers arrived. He was arrested on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon and booked into Van Nuys Jail, Patton said. The driver was able to drive himself to his doctor's office, where he was treated for a bump on his head. Man, 19, Shot to Death While Sitting in Car LONG BEACH A 19-year-old man was killed and the woman he was with slightly injured early Tuesday morning when shots were fired at the car they were sitting in, police said.

Lamont Halcomb died after being taken to Long Beach Memorial Medical Center. Tina Bennett, 34, was treated for minor injuries and released, authorities said. Police are looking for two men who opened fire about 2:20 a.m. on the brown Cadillac at Long Beach Boulevard and 20th Street. The two men were on foot when they approached the car, which was parked in a rvwu tl i.

But police union officials, who joined the protest, charged that the contract plan is fueled by Mayor Omar Bradley's desire to retaliate against police officers who were involved in a recall campaign against him, said Ed Aguirre, president of the Compton Police Officer's Union. At the City Council meeting, the subject of the protest shifted to include complaints by Latino residents that they are not included in city government, and that this decision is another example. Sheriff's officials say they have entered into the talks without regard to potential financial or political issues. residential neighborhood, said department spokeswoman Jana Blair. Police said they do not have a motive and have a poor description of the suspects.

They asked anyone with additional information to contact homicide investigators at (562) 570-7244. Fired City Manager Settles Suit With Police Union REDONDO BEACH A former city manager has settled his lawsuit against the local police union, which he said conspired with the City Council to have him ousted from his job four years ago. Attorneys for former City Manager Bill Kirchhoff said the fired administrator filed a motion to dismiss the case on May 5. Attorneys for both sides declined to reveal the terms of the settlement. The civil rights lawsuit, which was filed in August 1997, alleged that police union officials offered City Council members valuable election endorsements in exchange for Kirchhoff's ouster.

Union officials wanted the city manager out of the picture because he was investigating police overtime abuses, said Chuck Greaves, Kirchhoff's attorney. Mayor Greg Hill adamantly denied those charges, and said the council fired Kirch-: hoff because he was "incompetent and insubordinate." In March, the City Council agreed to pay Kirchhoff more than $850,000 to settle a separate civil rights lawsuit he filed against the city he had managed for six years. Hill said city officials settled the case, not because it had merit, but because it was cheaper than taking it to trial and because the city's insurance company insisted on a settlement. Woman Wins $682,000 in Sex Harassment Suit CHATSWORTH A 34-year-old woman' was awarded more than $682,000 in a sexual harassment lawsuit against her former employer and her supervisor, who has since left the business. Susan Zavatto, who worked two years at Chatsworth-based Clifford Electronics Inc.

as a marketing executive, sued the company and its former president, Alex Wijnen, after he allegedly invited her to his hotel room during a 1999 business trip to Las Vegas. On two occasions, Zavatto said, Wijnen asked if she wanted to "take a bath" with him. After the trip, Zavatto said, she complained to the company's human resources department but no action was taken. Three weeks later, she was fired. A Los Angeles Superior Court jury found in Zavatto's favor last Friday and compensated her for lost wages and emotional distress.

The jury deadlocked on punitive damages. Clifford, which manufactures car alarm systems, was ordered to pay $582,000 and Wijnen about $100,000, according to Zavatto's attorney, Craig Horowitz. Neither defendants' attorney was available Tuesday for comment. COMPTON About 200 Compton residents, angry about a proposal to disband the city's Police Department and turn law enforcement over to the county Sheriff's Department, marched through town Tuesday night to demand a city-wide vote on the issue in November. "Let the people decide," said protest organizer Lorraine Cervantes, an ardent critic of the council's decision last month to pursue a contract with the sheriff.

The proposed contract is under study for a possible City Council vote this summer. Father Stan Bosch, a priest at Our Lady of Victory Roman Catholic Church, guilty to all charges. Several family members and friends testified last Friday that Carney would not be a flight or security risk if he were released. Supporters have worked for months on a defense fund for the 23-year Sheriff's Department veteran and former school board president. Carney was charged in January with 17 felony counts of child molestation, sexual abuse and oral copulation.

Some of the alleged incidents date to 1990, when Carney supervised a child-abuse unit of the Sheriff's Department. While in jail, Carney resigned after just two months on the Palmdale City Council. He was arrested on Oct. 29 after a 14-year-old girl went to the Lancaster sheriff's station and said she had been molested. Carney was elected to the council four days later.

Trucker to Stand Trial in Theft of Oscars LOS ANGELES The Roadway Express truck driver charged with stealing 55 Oscar statuettes from the loading dock where he worked will stand trial on one charge of grand theft, a judge ruled Tuesday. Lawrence Edward Ledent, 38, is so far the only man charged in connection with the March 8 incident, when the Academy Awards shipment valued at $17,000 disappeared from the Roadway Express shipping facility in Bell. Ledent and a second Roadway Express employee, dockworker Anthony Keith Hart, were arrested March 20, but prosecutors declined to file charges against Hart, 38, citing insufficient evidence. At Tuesday's preliminary hearing, Superior Court Judge Michael K. Kellogg found there was sufficient evidence to order Ledent to stand trial and rejected Ledent's bid to have his charge reduced to receiving stolen property.

He is to be arraigned May 30. Los Angeles Police Det. Marc Zavala testified that Ledent had said he and Hart stole items from the Roadway Express dock on several previous occasions. But the detective said Ledent told him that he didn't initially realize the shipment contained the Oscars, and that when he discovered the statuettes, he panicked and decided to dump them. Fifty-two of the Oscars were found by junk salvager Willie Fulgear while rummaging through trash in Koreatown.

Three of the statuettes are still missing. Deputy Dist. Atty. Susan Navas said the investigation into Hart's case is continuing. Investigators also suspect that at least one other person was involved in the theft.

Supervisors to Oppose Hospital Bed Legislation LOS ANGELES In the latest skirmish in the seemingly unending war over the size of County-USC Medical Center, the Board of Supervisors voted Tuesday to oppose legislation in Sacramento that would compel them to conduct a study and hold public hearings if they rebuilt the quake- SvorinichJr. Councilmen Hal Bernson and Nate Hol-den voted against the rule change. Bernson said it was unnecessary because the new City Charter already requires the higher burden of proof and provides for a two-thirds vote. Holden said adopting the rules allowing censure might invite abuse. "This is political," Holden said.

"You have a mechanism in place to really embarrass someone." Rep. Kennedy Won't Be Charged in LAX Incident LOS ANGELES The city attorney's office declined Tuesday to file battery charges against Rep. Patrick J. Kennedy over a confrontation with an airport security guard that was videotaped. "It was my opinion that what went on in that videotape was worthy of being discussed and resolved in a hearing, rather than in a criminal filing," said Deputy City Atty.

Peter Covette, who declined to describe the tape's contents. Kennedy, 32, was accused of battery by Los Angeles International Airport security guard Delia Patton, 58, after an incident at a baggage X-ray machine March 26. The city attorney's office called Kennedy and Patton to a hearing last week. Such hearings typically resolve minor cases without the filing of charges. The office did not plan to release the tape.

Kennedy, the son of Sen. Edward M. Kennedy has admitted acting rudely and apologized, but denied hurting Patton. He said the incident had been blown out of proportion. Patton's attorney, George L.

Mallory said he probably would approach Kennedy about a settlement and file a civil suit if those talks fail. "We'll either resolve this case or we'll move forward with a lawsuit," said Mallory, adding that he was not disappointed by Tuesday's decision. Patton said Kennedy shoved and grabbed her after she told him his bag was too big to fit through the X-ray scanner. Patton remains arthritic, primarily in the shoulder, and is seeking workers' compensation, Mallory said. She has not worked since the incident.

At the meeting with the city attorney's hearing officer, Kennedy and Patton viewed the videotape, which police have said showed "physical contact." Conviction on a misdemeanor battery charge would have carried a penalty of up to six months in jail and a $2,000 fine. Ex-Official Free on Bail in Molestation Case PALMDALE Kevin Carney, the former Palmdale city councilman and sheriffs sergeant charged with molesting four Antelope Valley girls, has been released on bail. Carney's release follows last Friday's decision by a Superior Court judge to reduce his bail from $1 million to $500,000. Since January, Carney, 48, had been held in an isolation cell at the Men's Central Jail in downtown Los Angeles. His initial bail was $2 million but was lowered to $1 million in March.

He has pleaded not i.