Saturday, August 20, 2011

2 shot after Raiders-49ers football game at Candlestick Park

Two people were wounded Saturday night after a pre-season game between the Oakland Raiders and San Francisco 49ers.

Few details were immediately available. But San Francisco police Sgt. Michael Andraychak told the Associated Press the shooting occured after 8 p.m.

He said the victims were in their 20s; one is expected to survive, the other suffered life-threatening injuries.

Videotape might help solve fatal Hollywood subway stabbing

WEST HOLLYWOOD (KTLA) -- The Fourth Annual Sunset Strip Music Festival is set to close today in grand style with legendary heavy metal rockers Motley Crue, who are set to headline the finale of the two-day event.

MONTECITO (KTLA) -- Reality star Kim Kardashian and basketball pro Kris Humphries exchanged vows Saturday in an exclusive ceremony set to air on the family's reality show in October.

TORONTO -- A charter flight crashed Saturday afternoon in Canada's Arctic, killing 12 people and injuring three others, according to Canadian airline First Air.

MANHATTAN, N.Y. (KTLA) -- Parents of a 16-year-old model are suing Urban Outfitters for using images of the young girl posed provocatively on merchandise and their website.

TEHRAN (Reuters) - Two Americans held in Iran for more than two years have been convicted as spies and sentenced to eight years' jail, Iranian TV reported on Saturday, a verdict that will further strain already very poor relations with Washington.

Victim Identified in Deadly Stabbing on Metro Red Line in Hollywood

Detectives are hoping Red Line surveillance video footage can help them solve a fatal stabbing Friday night on the Metro subway.

The attack sent passengers scurrying to the rear of the rolling subway car as the victim, Jesse Garay, 59, of North Hollywood, collapsed, his blood pooling on the floor.

The suspect had been arguing with Garay, and was reportedly advised by a pair of young female passengers on how he should escape.

The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, which patrols the area's public transit system, also appealed to the public Saturday for information on the suspect, who bolted from the train at the Hollywood and Vine station about 7:30 p.m.

Sheriff's Lt. John Hocking said it was too early in the investigation to say whether the stabbing was in self-defense. "Investigators want to talk to anybody who witnessed the stabbing or can help with the investigation in any way," Hocking said.

Anyone with information is asked to contact the homicide bureau at (323) 890-5500.

RELATED:

Witnesses recount Hollywood subway killing, stabber's escape

Man stabbed, killed on Red Line in Hollywood

-- Gale Holland

Photo: Scene outside subway station after stabbing. KTLA News

Two shot and killed at Sun Valley party

Two men were fatally shot at a party in Sun Valley early Saturday when another man opened fire in an attack that police described as “possibly gang-related.”

The shooting occurred about 1:30 a.m. in the 8100 block of Coldwater Canyon Avenue.

North Hollywood detectives had identified a suspect in the slaying, but he was not in custody Saturday afternoon, said Officer Cleon Joseph.

Police did not release the identities of the two victims. One died at the scene, and the other was taken to a nearby hospital where he was pronounced dead, Joseph said.

-- Doug Smith

 

Reader photos: Southern California Moments, Day 232

Click through for more photos of Southern California Moments.In memoriam: Surfers join hands in memory of surfer and surf photographer Leroy Grannis off the Hermosa Beach Pier in this photo taken by Brian McStotts on June 24.

Every day of 2011, we're featuring reader-submitted photos of Southern California Moments. Follow us on Twitter and visit the Southern California Moments homepage for more on this series.

Southwestern pond turtle shows signs of a comeback

Turtle

Modern life has been tough on the southwestern pond turtles that once were populous in the coastal part of San Diego County.

Development ravaged the turtle's natural habitat. Then came the rise of invasive species that challenged the turtles for food or, with some species, liked to dine on the turtles.

The African clawed frog, red-eared slider and crayfish have been particularly mean to the turtles, who lived in pools within natural streams and sloughs.

In 2003 the U.S. Geological Survey's Western Ecological Research Center could find only 120 pond turtles in five locations in the San Diego region. Without help, the turtle was looking like a goner in the region.

For one thing, two-thirds of the females were huddled together in one location -- not a smart way to keep the population growing.

In 2009 the USGS, the San Diego Zoo, the California Department of Fish and Game and the San Diego Assn. of Governments started a "save the turtles" program for the county.

Eggs would be hatched at the zoo and then young turtles relocated in the wild when they could avoid predation. Invasive species were removed.

The pond turtle still has a long way to go before it's out of danger.

But this week Thomas Owens, a senior keeper in the zoo's herpetology department, reported encouraging progress in a report to the annual Symposium on the Conservation and Biology of Tortoises and Freshwater Turtles in Orlando, Fla.

"Just last week, researchers saw new young pond turtles at the study site," Owens said.

Twelve pond turtles are on exhibit at the zoo's Elephant Odyssey and 10 at the Reptile House.

-- Tony Perry in San Diego

Photo: A southwestern pond turtle being raised at the San Diego Zoo is checked by a keeper. Credit: Ken Bohn / San Diego Zoo

 

 

Man accused of nine bank robberies arrested

The suspected Tri-Cities bandit leaving a Pasadena Wells Fargo branch on July 19.

A man suspected of being the “Tri-Cities Bandit” was arrested Friday by Los Angeles County Sheriff's deputies after robbing a First California Bank in Westlake Village, FBI spokeswoman Laura Eimiller said.

Ernest Viana, 39, was apprehended along with a suspected accomplice, Oleg Gorokhovsky, 42.

Viana was linked to nine bank robberies in several cities, including one in Glendale, one in Burbank and two in Pasadena. He is suspected of robbing two banks, one in Pasadena and one in LaVerne, Wednesday evening, according to Glendale News-Press.

Gorokhovsky is suspected of being Viana’s  getaway driver.

ALSO:

Newport Beach doctor missing in Arizona

Reward offered in case of slain couple dumped in trash

2 tombstones found during drug raid were stolen, police say

-- Ana Facio-Krajcer, Times Community News

Photo: The suspected "Tri-Cities Bandit" leaves a Pasadena Wells Fargo branch on July 19. Credit: Pasadena Police Department

Southwestern pond turtle making a comeback in San Diego County

This week, a senior keeper at the San Diego Zoo’s herpetology department reported encouraging progress in the repopulation of southwestern pond turtles in coastal San Diego County. The once populous creature has suffered a drop in numbers due to development and competition from other species. Read more.

 

 

Training is booming at Camp Pendleton this weekend

Harrier 
This could be a noisy weekend for neighbors of Camp Pendleton.

Starting at 6 a.m. Sunday, Marines are set to conduct live-fire training with high-explosive ordnance. Training will last until midnight and continue until Friday.

Also on Sunday, AV8 Harrier jets will be dropping 500-pound bombs into the training area, base officials said.

Depending on cloud cover, the explosions might be heard 50 miles away from the sprawling base.

-- Tony Perry in San Diego

Photo: A Harrier jet. Credit: Anne Cusack / Los Angeles Times

 

Brush fires caused by target shooting a worry in San Diego County

M4

As brush fire season continues in San Diego County, firefighters are concerned about an increase in the number of fires caused by target shooting in rural areas.

So far the county has had 10 fires caused by target shooting, compared with only two last year, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal-Fire).

Two kinds of ammunition found at these locations are also puzzling. One is a Russian-made bullet and the other is used with the M4 rifle, which, by law, is restricted for sale to the U.S. military, law enforcement and U.S. military allies.

In both cases, the bullets are either steel tipped or steel cored. When they strike rocks or come apart, sparks can ignite fires.

Culprits have been located in five of the 10 fires blamed on target shooting, Cal-Fire said. Bills totalling more than $250,000 for the cost of fighting the fires have been issued.

Recreational target shooters are asked to find locations cleared of brush and to look behind their targets to see where rounds may end up, Cal-Fire officials said. Restricting shooting to cooler times of the day is also helpful in preventing fires, officials said.

ALSO:

Fullerton police sued over wrongful 2010 arrest

Retailer's 'Graffiti Starter Kit' raises councilman's ire

Driver who killed pedestrian while texting pleads no contest

-- Tony Perry in San Diego

Photo: A Hungarian defense official test fires an American-made M4. Credit: Attila Kisbenedek / AFP/Getty Images

 

Driver who killed pedestrian while texting banned from using car phone

A 21-year-old Tujunga woman who struck and killed an 80-year-old Glendale man with her car last year while she was texting will not be allowed to have a cellphone in her car under a plea deal worked out with prosecutors.

Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Patrick Hegarty ordered Ani Voskanian to serve three years formal probation, 300 hours of community service and to develop a lecture program for junior and high school students on the dangers of texting while driving, officials said.

Voskanian, who pleaded no contest to a felony manslaughter charge for killing Misak Ranjbar, will not be allowed to possess a cellphone while inside a vehicle, officials said. Her license was also revoked for three years, her attorney said.

Glendale police Det. Ashraf Mankarios, who was the lead investigator in the case, told the Glendale News-Press that Ranjbar’s son, Roger Ranjbar, also offered in court to go to the schools with Voskanian and lecture on the risk of texting while driving. Ultimately, Misak Ranjbar’s family wanted to “save one life” to highlight the consequences of texting while driving, Mankarios said.

ALSO:

Newport Beach doctor missing in Arizona

Reward offered in case of slain couple dumped in trash

2 tombstones found during drug raid were stolen, police say

-- Veronica Rocha, Times Community News

LAPD officers are shot at while conducting routine stop

Officers with the L.A. Police Department were shot at in South Los Angeles on Friday night while conducting a pedestrian stop, an official said.

The officers were making the stop around Main Street and Century Boulevard when the shooting occurred.

At least one police officer returned fire. No officers were hurt, said LAPD Sgt. Robyn Petillo.

It’s unclear if either of two suspects were hit. A search for both is ongoing.

ALSO:

Newport Beach doctor missing in Arizona

Reward offered in case of slain couple dumped in trash

2 tombstones found during drug raid were stolen, police say

-- Andrew Blankstein and Robert Faturechi

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