Attorneys for Jack Iker have asked a Texas court for permission to challenge the authority of Provisional Bishop Ted Gulick Jr. and the standing committee of the Episcopal Diocese of Fort Worth.
Iker, who left The Episcopal Church in 2008 but refused to relinquish church property or assets, is responding to a pending lawsuit filed by The Episcopal Church and the continuing Diocese of Fort Worth in April to establish the authority of the new diocesan leadership and to recover diocesan assets, according to chancellor Kathleen Wells.
He and his attorneys are "still operating under this faade that they're the Diocese of Fort Worth which, of course, is easily refutable," added Wells in a telephone interview on August 31.
A September 9 hearing has been set to consider Iker's motion, filed in 141st District Court in Tarrant County, Texas. The motion seeks "the court's permission to bring in Bishop Gulick and members of our standing committee as third party defendants," Wells said.
Basically, Iker and his attorneys are asking the court to declare that Gulick and the current standing committee "are not the real bishop and standing committee of the Diocese of Fort Worth which, of course, they are," she added.Another motion challenges the authority of Jon Nelson and Wells to serve as diocesan attorneys.
Iker disaffiliated from TEC in November 2008, citing longstanding theological differences over the ordination of women and gays, a fact omitted in the court filings, according to a statement released by the Episcopal Diocese of Fort Worth.
"All those on whose behalf these motions were filed have voluntarily left the Episcopal Church and thus are no longer officials of the diocese or the diocesan corporation," the statement said. "The vacancies left by their departure have been filled by Episcopalians as part of the same reorganized and continuing Episcopal Diocese of Fort Worth," according to the statement.
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Monday, December 28, 2009
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
LAUSD's Finest: Los Angeles School Police
Three years ago, Los Angeles School Police Officer Ian Mitchell King walked into a high school ceramics class at University Senior High School in West L.A. and asked an attractive blonde senior, Regina Shapiro, to take a “stroll” with him to his on-campus security office. There, he told her to sit on his couch and declared, “This is about us. I’ve taken a personal interest in you.”
Shapiro, bewildered and nervous, later described to a judge how King subjected her to 40 minutes of relentless sexual innuendo, told her she had a reputation as a “ho” and asked if she gave “blowjobs under the table.” Despite her protests, he finally succeeded in pressuring the upset girl to lift her shirt so King could take a prurient peek at her belly ring.
King was a sworn police officer allowed to carry a gun for the Los Angeles School Police Department, a tiny, little-watched and never-reformed force that operates far below the radar of most Angelenos yet has the power to pull over, question or arrest almost any resident — student or adult — in a 710-square-mile area. King stood close to the door, Shapiro’s only escape route, and she remembers looking out the window of his half-daylight basement office, watching the rain, to shake her foreboding sense of not being free to leave. When King finally led her back to class, she later recounted, he said he was “going to make me like” him and warned, “Don’t say anything to anyone because we don’t want rumors going on about you.”
The outrageous event and Shapiro’s recollections are contained in court transcripts and documents obtained by L.A.Weekly. Shapiro refuses to comment. But although the girl promptly reported to her principal King’s leering come-on, the 340-officer police department sworn to protect Los Angeles schoolchildren failed her on almost every level: The school district’s Internal Affairs unit let crucial weeks slip by without interviewing Shapiro — a huge no-no. Two months later, Shapiro has since testified, an anonymous man identifying himself only as a lieutenant or sergeant with the department called her late one night and pressured the teenage girl to drop her complaint. She recalled the voice saying, “You’re going to be here every two weeks in trial. . Your college plans are going to be ruined.”
The manner in which School Police Chief Lawrence Manion handled the allegations against Officer King would have chilled to the bone any parent.
King was not fired. In fact, the Weekly found, Manion rewarded him. After giving King “light duty” at headquarters, Manion handed him a coveted new assignment as a “patrol officer” with the power to approach and arrest any Angeleno almost anywhere in L.A., young women included. Ian King became the quasi–LAPD officer he always dreamed of being, crawling the city’s streets in his black-and-white Crown Victoria.
Source
Shapiro, bewildered and nervous, later described to a judge how King subjected her to 40 minutes of relentless sexual innuendo, told her she had a reputation as a “ho” and asked if she gave “blowjobs under the table.” Despite her protests, he finally succeeded in pressuring the upset girl to lift her shirt so King could take a prurient peek at her belly ring.
King was a sworn police officer allowed to carry a gun for the Los Angeles School Police Department, a tiny, little-watched and never-reformed force that operates far below the radar of most Angelenos yet has the power to pull over, question or arrest almost any resident — student or adult — in a 710-square-mile area. King stood close to the door, Shapiro’s only escape route, and she remembers looking out the window of his half-daylight basement office, watching the rain, to shake her foreboding sense of not being free to leave. When King finally led her back to class, she later recounted, he said he was “going to make me like” him and warned, “Don’t say anything to anyone because we don’t want rumors going on about you.”
The outrageous event and Shapiro’s recollections are contained in court transcripts and documents obtained by L.A.Weekly. Shapiro refuses to comment. But although the girl promptly reported to her principal King’s leering come-on, the 340-officer police department sworn to protect Los Angeles schoolchildren failed her on almost every level: The school district’s Internal Affairs unit let crucial weeks slip by without interviewing Shapiro — a huge no-no. Two months later, Shapiro has since testified, an anonymous man identifying himself only as a lieutenant or sergeant with the department called her late one night and pressured the teenage girl to drop her complaint. She recalled the voice saying, “You’re going to be here every two weeks in trial. . Your college plans are going to be ruined.”
The manner in which School Police Chief Lawrence Manion handled the allegations against Officer King would have chilled to the bone any parent.
King was not fired. In fact, the Weekly found, Manion rewarded him. After giving King “light duty” at headquarters, Manion handed him a coveted new assignment as a “patrol officer” with the power to approach and arrest any Angeleno almost anywhere in L.A., young women included. Ian King became the quasi–LAPD officer he always dreamed of being, crawling the city’s streets in his black-and-white Crown Victoria.
Source
Saturday, November 28, 2009
California arsonist may face death penalty for Los Angeles widlfire, prosecutors say
Two firefighters died when their vehicle crashed off the road as they worked with a group of inmates battling the blaze during some of the most intense hours of the operation.
Sheriff Lee Baca has said police have launched a murder investigation following the deaths during the biggest fire in the history of Los Angeles County.
A law enforcement source told The Los Angeles Times on Saturday that "material that didn't belong there" has been found at the site suspected to be where the fire started, a twice-scorched slope near Mile Marker 29 along Angeles Crest Highway.
The suspicious substance was reportedly found in the brush off the highway and has been sent for laboratory testing.
The fire, which was 42 per cent contained by Saturday morning, has destroyed more than 154,000 acres and 76 homes. It has cost more than $37 million to fight but the much greater damage to property, wildlife is still being assessed.
There is a recent precedent for an arsonist receiving the death penalty.
In June, Raymond Lee Oyler, a mechanic, was sentenced to die for setting the 2006 Esperanza blaze that claimed the lives of five firefighters.
Even if the fire was accidental, the newspaper reported that the starter could face jail time if charged and convicted of involuntary manslaughter or negligent homicide resulting from a tossed cigarette, fuel spill or other careless act that caused the fire.
"For first-degree murder, the key for the state would be to prove intent to take the lives of the victims," Stanford law professor Kara Dansky, executive director of the school's Criminal Justice Center, said.Under the state's felony murder rule, a defendant who intentionally and premeditatively sets a fire can be found guilty of first-degree murder if someone dies as a result, she said.
"This is a homicide investigation and could result in murder charges depending on what the district attorney decides to file," said Sheriff's Department spokesman Steve Whitmore.
Gov Arnold Schwarzenegger announced a $100,000 reward on Friday night for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the individual or individuals who set the fire. Los Angeles county may add another $50,000 reward.
The weekend weather forecast called for cooler temperatures and slightly higher humidity that could help firefighters further surround the blaze, which has cost fire agencies $37 million to fight.
At least a dozen investigators were working to analyse clues found at a charred hillside, including incendiary material reported to have been found there. Officials said the fire was arson but were still investigating who started it and how.
"We are in the early stages, just beginning to put things together," said Los Angeles County sheriff's Lt. Liam Gallagher, who is heading the homicide investigation. "Firefighters losing their lives in the line of duty is an added incentive, but we work every case to the fullest."
Near a large shade tree where crews get their twice daily briefings, firefighters set up a makeshift memorial for Capt. Tedmund Hall and Specialist Arnaldo Quinones. The fallen firefighters helped save about 60 members of an inmate fire crew last Sunday as flames approached their camp when they set a backfire that allowed the group to get to safety.
Source
Sheriff Lee Baca has said police have launched a murder investigation following the deaths during the biggest fire in the history of Los Angeles County.
A law enforcement source told The Los Angeles Times on Saturday that "material that didn't belong there" has been found at the site suspected to be where the fire started, a twice-scorched slope near Mile Marker 29 along Angeles Crest Highway.
The suspicious substance was reportedly found in the brush off the highway and has been sent for laboratory testing.
The fire, which was 42 per cent contained by Saturday morning, has destroyed more than 154,000 acres and 76 homes. It has cost more than $37 million to fight but the much greater damage to property, wildlife is still being assessed.
There is a recent precedent for an arsonist receiving the death penalty.
In June, Raymond Lee Oyler, a mechanic, was sentenced to die for setting the 2006 Esperanza blaze that claimed the lives of five firefighters.
Even if the fire was accidental, the newspaper reported that the starter could face jail time if charged and convicted of involuntary manslaughter or negligent homicide resulting from a tossed cigarette, fuel spill or other careless act that caused the fire.
"For first-degree murder, the key for the state would be to prove intent to take the lives of the victims," Stanford law professor Kara Dansky, executive director of the school's Criminal Justice Center, said.Under the state's felony murder rule, a defendant who intentionally and premeditatively sets a fire can be found guilty of first-degree murder if someone dies as a result, she said.
"This is a homicide investigation and could result in murder charges depending on what the district attorney decides to file," said Sheriff's Department spokesman Steve Whitmore.
Gov Arnold Schwarzenegger announced a $100,000 reward on Friday night for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the individual or individuals who set the fire. Los Angeles county may add another $50,000 reward.
The weekend weather forecast called for cooler temperatures and slightly higher humidity that could help firefighters further surround the blaze, which has cost fire agencies $37 million to fight.
At least a dozen investigators were working to analyse clues found at a charred hillside, including incendiary material reported to have been found there. Officials said the fire was arson but were still investigating who started it and how.
"We are in the early stages, just beginning to put things together," said Los Angeles County sheriff's Lt. Liam Gallagher, who is heading the homicide investigation. "Firefighters losing their lives in the line of duty is an added incentive, but we work every case to the fullest."
Near a large shade tree where crews get their twice daily briefings, firefighters set up a makeshift memorial for Capt. Tedmund Hall and Specialist Arnaldo Quinones. The fallen firefighters helped save about 60 members of an inmate fire crew last Sunday as flames approached their camp when they set a backfire that allowed the group to get to safety.
Source
Sunday, November 15, 2009
Competency trial begins for accused child killer
INDIO, Calif.—A mental competency trial began Monday for a convicted killer accused in the kidnap-murder of a 10-year-old boy more than a decade ago.
At issue is whether Joseph Edward Duncan III is mentally fit to stand trial for the 1997 crimes against Anthony Martinez. The boy was abducted as he played with his brother near their Beaumont home, and his nude and battered body was found two weeks later in the desert east of Los Angeles.
A judge decided earlier this year to suspend criminal proceedings against Duncan until his mental competency is determined. Riverside County district attorney spokesman Michael Jeandron said the competency trial is expected to last four weeks.
Duncan was convicted last year in Idaho of the 2005 kidnapping, sexual abuse and torture of 9-year old Dylan Groene and his 8-year old sister Shasta, and Dylan's murder. He was also convicted of killing the children's older brother, mother and fiance at their home near Coeur d'Alene, Idaho.
He received three death sentences and multiple life sentences for those crimes.
In the California case, defense and attorneys and prosecutors are both relying on testimony from psychiatrists. Defense attorneys say Duncan is delusional and suffers from mental illness, while prosecutors say he has been competent while in a local jail, the Press-Enterprise reported Monday.
Duncan previously had been sentenced to 20 years in prison for sexually assaulting a 14-year old boy in
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Tacoma, Wash., in 1980. He was paroled in 1994 but was returned to prison in 1997 after breaking the conditions. He was released in 2000.
Source
At issue is whether Joseph Edward Duncan III is mentally fit to stand trial for the 1997 crimes against Anthony Martinez. The boy was abducted as he played with his brother near their Beaumont home, and his nude and battered body was found two weeks later in the desert east of Los Angeles.
A judge decided earlier this year to suspend criminal proceedings against Duncan until his mental competency is determined. Riverside County district attorney spokesman Michael Jeandron said the competency trial is expected to last four weeks.
Duncan was convicted last year in Idaho of the 2005 kidnapping, sexual abuse and torture of 9-year old Dylan Groene and his 8-year old sister Shasta, and Dylan's murder. He was also convicted of killing the children's older brother, mother and fiance at their home near Coeur d'Alene, Idaho.
He received three death sentences and multiple life sentences for those crimes.
In the California case, defense and attorneys and prosecutors are both relying on testimony from psychiatrists. Defense attorneys say Duncan is delusional and suffers from mental illness, while prosecutors say he has been competent while in a local jail, the Press-Enterprise reported Monday.
Duncan previously had been sentenced to 20 years in prison for sexually assaulting a 14-year old boy in
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Tacoma, Wash., in 1980. He was paroled in 1994 but was returned to prison in 1997 after breaking the conditions. He was released in 2000.
Source
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Arson trial under way in Carbondale wildfire
GLENWOOD SPRINGS — A 12-person jury is being asked to decide whether a rancher is responsible for starting a wildfire that burned a fisherman and homes in the Carbondale area last year.
Attorneys made opening arguments Tuesday in the criminal trial of Larry Gerbaz. They said the unusual case hinges on the question of whether the fire burned because of what Gerbaz did or some other cause.
Gerbaz faces felony and misdemeanor arson charges in connection with the April 15, 2008, wildfire. Several homes were damaged and many more were threatened. Larry Garfinkel, a retired Los Angeles police detective, was seriously burned
Gerbaz had burned a debris pile on his uncle’s property three days earlier. Prosecutors say high winds kicked up the remnants of the fire and caused it to spread after Gerbaz had gone to Denver.
“He didn’t forget to turn out the lights. He forgot to put his fire out,” prosecutor Ed Veronda told the jury Tuesday.
Veronda said several neighbors will testify they saw the fire originate on the burning debris pile, and some of them were forced to flee for their lives.
Garfinkel suffered hand and arm burns when nearby brush caught fire. He saved himself by jumping into a creek.
Defense attorney Tom Silverman told the jury Gerbaz took numerous precautions to manage and put out his fire, and the wildfire occurred during spring burning season, when many landowners in the area had obtained permits and were doing burning.
“No one knows what the point of origin was, and no one knows who was responsible, and it would be completely inappropriate to try to make Larry Gerbaz the scapegoat,” Silverman said.
He said the wind was blowing in every direction the day of the wildfire, making it impossible to trace the cause of the fire and raising the possibility that embers were blown a long distance to start the wildfire.
Carbondale Fire Chief Ron Leach testified that although winds may have been swirling, they came predominantly from one direction. He said several other landowners’ fires in the area were too far away to have been the wildfire’s source.
The trial is scheduled to last two weeks. Two full days were required just to seat a jury, partly because of the high amount of local media coverage the case has received.
Gerbaz also faces civil legal action over the fire.
Source
Attorneys made opening arguments Tuesday in the criminal trial of Larry Gerbaz. They said the unusual case hinges on the question of whether the fire burned because of what Gerbaz did or some other cause.
Gerbaz faces felony and misdemeanor arson charges in connection with the April 15, 2008, wildfire. Several homes were damaged and many more were threatened. Larry Garfinkel, a retired Los Angeles police detective, was seriously burned
Gerbaz had burned a debris pile on his uncle’s property three days earlier. Prosecutors say high winds kicked up the remnants of the fire and caused it to spread after Gerbaz had gone to Denver.
“He didn’t forget to turn out the lights. He forgot to put his fire out,” prosecutor Ed Veronda told the jury Tuesday.
Veronda said several neighbors will testify they saw the fire originate on the burning debris pile, and some of them were forced to flee for their lives.
Garfinkel suffered hand and arm burns when nearby brush caught fire. He saved himself by jumping into a creek.
Defense attorney Tom Silverman told the jury Gerbaz took numerous precautions to manage and put out his fire, and the wildfire occurred during spring burning season, when many landowners in the area had obtained permits and were doing burning.
“No one knows what the point of origin was, and no one knows who was responsible, and it would be completely inappropriate to try to make Larry Gerbaz the scapegoat,” Silverman said.
He said the wind was blowing in every direction the day of the wildfire, making it impossible to trace the cause of the fire and raising the possibility that embers were blown a long distance to start the wildfire.
Carbondale Fire Chief Ron Leach testified that although winds may have been swirling, they came predominantly from one direction. He said several other landowners’ fires in the area were too far away to have been the wildfire’s source.
The trial is scheduled to last two weeks. Two full days were required just to seat a jury, partly because of the high amount of local media coverage the case has received.
Gerbaz also faces civil legal action over the fire.
Source
Monday, September 7, 2009
Outrageous and Unique Tell-All Exposes Los Angeles Municipal Court, in a Book by Gary Kramer
He began writing in earnest after watching the
Mr. Kramer worked as a clerk in the Los Angeles Municipal Court System from 1967 to 1981. During this time he claims to have witnessed many strange and unethical practices as well as outright criminal violations. He claims to have witnessed a well-organized group of judges commit numerous felony criminal violations, obstruction of justice, conspiracy to obstruct justice, forging counterfeit documents and other violations --involving judges, police officers, personnel from the governor's office, and many attorneys, including two of O.J. Simpson's attorneys.
He says, "The statute of limitations for prosecuting the crimes expired more than twenty years ago, so these people don't have to worry about charges being filed against them. Some of the judges have been removed publicly from the bench for judicial misconduct and other charges, and some of the attorneys have been disbarred." But he believes it is possible that many of the unethical and illegal practices continue, and Kramer wants "Injustice For All" to help bring it to a halt.
"The misconduct outlined in this book entails the most insidious kind of official lawlessness and disregard for the statuary and constitutional rules by which a society of millions and a heritage of centuries have sought to preserve fundamental fairness within a legal system that cannot escape the inherent imperfections of mankind."
"Injustice For All" is shocking and controversial, but it is also a humorous look at this period in Kramer's career. He gives the reader a rare glimpse into the court's lesser known chambers to witness some wacky and generally unprofessional behavior.
Was it ok for an attorney who represented
Source
Monday, August 24, 2009
Mongols leader makes plea deal in racketeering case
Former Mongols motorcycle gang leader Ruben "Doc" Cavazos faces up to life in prison after pleading guilty to a single racketeering charge among 86 counts accusing gang members of murder, assault, robbery and drug-trafficking, court documents show.
The plea deal between Cavazos and the U.S. attorney's office in Los Angeles was made in January but sealed until June 29, when the government filed for forfeiture of the gang's registered trademarks under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Practices Act.
The plea deal between Cavazos and the U.S. attorney's office in Los Angeles was made in January but sealed until June 29, when the government filed for forfeiture of the gang's registered trademarks under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Practices Act.
The RICO charges have allowed the government to shut down the gang's website and bar commercial use of registered trademarks as financial activity in service to criminal enterprise.
In filing for forfeiture, the U.S. attorney's office said Cavazos' guilty plea allowed the government to force the gang to give up its assets despite an attempt late last year by then-Mongols President Hector Gonzalez to transfer ownership to a new gang.
The proceeds generated by the Mongols' enterprise was valued at $5 million and its property subject to forfeiture includes a West Covina residence, as well as the Mongols' trademarked insignia, according to the 177-page indictment brought in October.
A three-year undercover sting operation infiltrated the gang of about 600 bikers that was active in a dozen states as well as Mexico and Canada.In filing for forfeiture, the U.S. attorney's office said Cavazos' guilty plea allowed the government to force the gang to give up its assets despite an attempt late last year by then-Mongols President Hector Gonzalez to transfer ownership to a new gang.
The proceeds generated by the Mongols' enterprise was valued at $5 million and its property subject to forfeiture includes a West Covina residence, as well as the Mongols' trademarked insignia, according to the 177-page indictment brought in October.
Among the allegations made against Cavazos and a handful of other leaders in the Mongols' mother chapter were charges of conspiracy with the Mexican Mafia and other Los Angeles-based gangs to control drug-trafficking by means of murder, robbery, extortion, money-laundering and witness intimidation.
Congress enacted RICO "to provide new weapons of unprecedented scope for an assault upon organized crime and its economic roots," the indictment said.
Several others among the 79 gang members arrested last year have also entered guilty pleas, documents filed in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles reveal. Thom Mrozek, spokesman for the U.S. attorney's office, declined to specify how many defendants have entered guilty pleas, saying that some aspects of the case remain under seal.
Mrozek said Cavazos will face up to life in prison when he is sentenced in February, but the details of his plea deal were not disclosed.
Other defendants who have entered guilty pleas to the same charge face maximum sentences of 20 years.
Source
Monday, August 10, 2009
City attorney wants to know how L.A. got on the hook for Michael Jackson expenses
Newly elected Los Angeles City Atty. Carmen Trutanich exhibited a bit of the aggressive style he promised during his campaign when he made an unusual appearance today before the City Council.
Trutanich told officials he was investigating how the city ended up on the hook for police costs surrounding the Michael Jackson memorial.
He assured the council that his new management team was going to find out how the city got into the position of providing support for the event and how it could recoup some of the money. His staff is also researching legislation “so we won’t be caught in this lurch again,” he said.
Trutanich announced his team of eight top aides last week – they are a mix of law enforcement veterans, former assistants to Los Angeles County Dist. Atty. Steve Cooley, friends from Trutanich’s years as a deputy district attorney in the 1980s and members of his campaign organization.
William Carter, chief deputy and chief of staff, worked with Trutanich in the district attorney’s office. Carter spent two decades prosecuting environmental crimes, first as a state prosecutor and then as a federal prosecutor. In the U.S. attorney’s office for the Central District of California, he also focused on public corruption and government fraud. Most recently, he was a partner with Musick, Peeler & Garrett.
Curt Livesay, Trutanich’s chief legal adviser, worked for 30 years as a prosecutor with the district attorney's office, also serving as chief deputy to Cooley. He is designated as a contract employee.
Jane Usher, who served for three years as president of the Los Angeles Planning Commission before stepping down in December 2008, was an aide to Trutanich during his campaign and will be his be special assistant. Usher previously served as counsel to Mayor Tom Bradley and associate general counsel of the 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Games.
William Mangan, a former commander in the L.A. County Sheriff’s Department who also directed Cooley’s Bureau of Management and Budget, will serve as Trutanich’s budget analyst. The new city attorney said it was important to “bring in someone who is used to shepherding large bureaucracies through a financial crisis.”
John Franklin, who retired as a commander from the Sheriff’s Department after 37 years and volunteered as a driver for Trutanich during the campaign, was named senior media adviser. He previously supervised the sheriff’sCorrectional Services Division and will do double duty as an investigator.
David Berger, a onetime city attorney candidate and a former deputy district attorney in the major fraud division, was tapped as a special assistant to Trutanich in the areas of ethics and public integrity. Berger, who was the harshest critic of Trutanich’s chief rival Jack Weiss in the primary campaign, became close friends with Trutanich during the race.
Gary Schram will head Trutanich’s new bureau of investigations after a nearly 40-year law enforcement career. He previously helped run a similar bureau within the district attorney’s office.
James Bell, a former investigator whom Trutanich credits with saving his life while they were investigating a murder case in the district attorney’s office, will head special projects in the new bureau of investigation. Trutanich said Bell “will be the lead person on things that I personally put him in charge of that I want to make sure get done correctly.”
Trutanich also named Pedro Echeverria, a veteran assistant city attorney, as chief of the civil division. Echeverria joined the office in 1973 and worked in the general counsel section for 17 years before becoming chief assistant city attorney of the civil branch. Most recently, he served as special counsel.
To head the criminal division, Trutanich chose Earl Thomas, who joined the city attorney’s office in 1980. Most recently Thomas was senior assistant city attorney in the criminal branch.
Source
Trutanich told officials he was investigating how the city ended up on the hook for police costs surrounding the Michael Jackson memorial.
He assured the council that his new management team was going to find out how the city got into the position of providing support for the event and how it could recoup some of the money. His staff is also researching legislation “so we won’t be caught in this lurch again,” he said.
Trutanich announced his team of eight top aides last week – they are a mix of law enforcement veterans, former assistants to Los Angeles County Dist. Atty. Steve Cooley, friends from Trutanich’s years as a deputy district attorney in the 1980s and members of his campaign organization.
William Carter, chief deputy and chief of staff, worked with Trutanich in the district attorney’s office. Carter spent two decades prosecuting environmental crimes, first as a state prosecutor and then as a federal prosecutor. In the U.S. attorney’s office for the Central District of California, he also focused on public corruption and government fraud. Most recently, he was a partner with Musick, Peeler & Garrett.
Curt Livesay, Trutanich’s chief legal adviser, worked for 30 years as a prosecutor with the district attorney's office, also serving as chief deputy to Cooley. He is designated as a contract employee.
Jane Usher, who served for three years as president of the Los Angeles Planning Commission before stepping down in December 2008, was an aide to Trutanich during his campaign and will be his be special assistant. Usher previously served as counsel to Mayor Tom Bradley and associate general counsel of the 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Games.
William Mangan, a former commander in the L.A. County Sheriff’s Department who also directed Cooley’s Bureau of Management and Budget, will serve as Trutanich’s budget analyst. The new city attorney said it was important to “bring in someone who is used to shepherding large bureaucracies through a financial crisis.”
John Franklin, who retired as a commander from the Sheriff’s Department after 37 years and volunteered as a driver for Trutanich during the campaign, was named senior media adviser. He previously supervised the sheriff’sCorrectional Services Division and will do double duty as an investigator.
David Berger, a onetime city attorney candidate and a former deputy district attorney in the major fraud division, was tapped as a special assistant to Trutanich in the areas of ethics and public integrity. Berger, who was the harshest critic of Trutanich’s chief rival Jack Weiss in the primary campaign, became close friends with Trutanich during the race.
Gary Schram will head Trutanich’s new bureau of investigations after a nearly 40-year law enforcement career. He previously helped run a similar bureau within the district attorney’s office.
James Bell, a former investigator whom Trutanich credits with saving his life while they were investigating a murder case in the district attorney’s office, will head special projects in the new bureau of investigation. Trutanich said Bell “will be the lead person on things that I personally put him in charge of that I want to make sure get done correctly.”
Trutanich also named Pedro Echeverria, a veteran assistant city attorney, as chief of the civil division. Echeverria joined the office in 1973 and worked in the general counsel section for 17 years before becoming chief assistant city attorney of the civil branch. Most recently, he served as special counsel.
To head the criminal division, Trutanich chose Earl Thomas, who joined the city attorney’s office in 1980. Most recently Thomas was senior assistant city attorney in the criminal branch.
Source
Monday, July 20, 2009
LAPD Chief: Jackson Case Could Turn Criminal; Coroner Subpoenas Medical Records
Michael Jackson's family and the rest of the world aren't the only ones waiting for that final coroner's report on what really killed the King of Pop.
Los Angeles Police Department Chief William Bratton says that, depending on what the toxicology tests turn up, the nature of their investigation into Jackson's death could change.
"We are still awaiting corroboration form the coroner's office as to cause of death," Bratton told CNN.com. "That is going to be very dependent on the toxicology reports that are due to come back. And based on those, we will have an idea of what it is we are dealing with. Are we dealing with a homicide or are we dealing with accidental overdose?"
The use of those potentially inflammatory words comes as the Los Angeles Times reports that the county coroner's office has subpoenaed Jackson's medical records from a number of doctors who treated the Thriller artist over the years, including dermatologist Dr. Arnold Klein.
"It was a standard form subpoena and we turned over medical records to the medical examiner in response," attorney Richard Charnley said of the one served to Klein, who said yesterday that he isn't the father of Jackson's children—as far as he knows.
Several search warrants for unidentified locations have also been issued in connection with the probe into Jackson's prescription drug use.
The federal Drug Enforcement Administration and the California Attorney General's Office are also aiding the LAPD in its investigation.
Jackson's county-performed autopsy revealed that he had been taking prescription meds. On June 29, the coroner's office confiscated various drugs and medical equipment from the Holmby Hills mansion the singer had been renting.
"At the time of the death, with search warrants, we were able to seize a number of items from the residence where the death occurred and those will assist in the investigation," Bratton said.
"We've got very good investigators," the chief of police added. "They will be prepared to deal with whatever the coroner's findings may be."
The coroner "has his role and responsibility, we have our role and responsibility. The next move, really, is his."
Dr. Klein said on Larry King Live last night that he had never prescribed Jackson anything stronger than Demerol, and that he had warned his patient against using Diprivan, a potent anesthetic that was found in Jackson's house.
Source
Los Angeles Police Department Chief William Bratton says that, depending on what the toxicology tests turn up, the nature of their investigation into Jackson's death could change.
"We are still awaiting corroboration form the coroner's office as to cause of death," Bratton told CNN.com. "That is going to be very dependent on the toxicology reports that are due to come back. And based on those, we will have an idea of what it is we are dealing with. Are we dealing with a homicide or are we dealing with accidental overdose?"
The use of those potentially inflammatory words comes as the Los Angeles Times reports that the county coroner's office has subpoenaed Jackson's medical records from a number of doctors who treated the Thriller artist over the years, including dermatologist Dr. Arnold Klein.
"It was a standard form subpoena and we turned over medical records to the medical examiner in response," attorney Richard Charnley said of the one served to Klein, who said yesterday that he isn't the father of Jackson's children—as far as he knows.
Several search warrants for unidentified locations have also been issued in connection with the probe into Jackson's prescription drug use.
The federal Drug Enforcement Administration and the California Attorney General's Office are also aiding the LAPD in its investigation.
Jackson's county-performed autopsy revealed that he had been taking prescription meds. On June 29, the coroner's office confiscated various drugs and medical equipment from the Holmby Hills mansion the singer had been renting.
"At the time of the death, with search warrants, we were able to seize a number of items from the residence where the death occurred and those will assist in the investigation," Bratton said.
"We've got very good investigators," the chief of police added. "They will be prepared to deal with whatever the coroner's findings may be."
The coroner "has his role and responsibility, we have our role and responsibility. The next move, really, is his."
Dr. Klein said on Larry King Live last night that he had never prescribed Jackson anything stronger than Demerol, and that he had warned his patient against using Diprivan, a potent anesthetic that was found in Jackson's house.
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