Man fatally shot in Paramount; suspect at large

L.A. County sheriff's detectives Tuesday were investigating the fatal shooting of a man in Paramount.

The shooting occurred shortly before midnight Monday on the 8040 block of Howe Street.

The victim was pronounced dead at the scene.

No suspect had been arrested as of Tuesday morning.

No further details were immediately available.

ALSO:

Conrad Murray could face significant prison time

Water main breaks close Ventura Boulevard in Studio City

Animal activists protest elephant rides at San Diego County Fair

-- Abby Sewell

Huntington Beach bans sex offenders from parks

Huntington Beach has voted to forbid registered sex offenders from entering city parks.

The City Council vote Monday makes the law even more stringent than Orange County's ordinance that bans registered sex offenders in county parks, the Huntington Beach Independent reported.

Huntington Beach Mayor Joe Carchio and Councilman Matthew Harper asked the City Council in May to consider adopting an ordinance similar to the one approved by the county in April.

The county's ordinance gives the Orange County Sheriff's Department the discretion to issue permits for registered sex offenders to temporarily enter county parks on a case-by-case basis.

Huntington Beach's ordinance, which takes effect in 30 days, does not have any room for flexibility.

Animal activists protest elephant rides at San Diego County Fair

Two high-profile animal-rights groups are asking the governing board of the San Diego County Fair to cut ties with a company that brings elephants to the fair for children to ride.

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals and Animal Defenders International want the fair to stop hiring Have Trunk Will Travel, which has brought elephants to the annual fair in Del Mar for 27 years.

The groups claim Have Trunk Will Travel of Perris regularly abuses its animals, an accusation the company denies.

The fair -- formerly known as the Del Mar Fair -- "has no business being complicit in cruelty to animals or encouraging unsuspecting members of the public to patronize an abusive enterprise," said PETA Executive Vice President Tracy Reiman.

Have Trunk Will Travel also has provided elephant rides at the Orange County and Los Angeles County fairs, and the Santa Ana Zoo.

The issue of whether to hire it for the 2012 fair is to be discussed at Tuesday's meeting in Del Mar of the 22nd District Agricultural Assn. board of directors, whose members are gubernatorial appointees.

"We take these allegations very seriously," said fair spokeswoman Linda Zweig. "We've worked very closely with Have Trunk Will Travel. They have a stellar record in treating their animals."

ALSO:

Irvine police say man stole 100 packages from homes

Two rare female wolves arrive at San Diego Zoo for breeding

Visitor found dead at UCLA fraternity house; drugs suspected

-- Tony Perry in San Diego

Photo: Asian elephants Becky and Trixie arrive at Orange County Fair last summer. Credit: Allen Schaben / Los Angeles Times

Water main breaks close Ventura Boulevard in Studio City

City crews worked Tuesday to stop the flooding from two water main breaks that forced the closure of Ventura Boulevard in Studio City.

The first break occurred about 8:15 p.m. Monday in the 12000 block of Ventura Boulevard, closing the busy thoroughfare between Whitsett and Coldwater Canyon avenues. That portion of the boulevard remained closed Tuesday morning as crews worked to repair the break.

The flooding broke the pavement and shut off water service to about 95 customers, mostly businesses, said MaryAnne Pierson, a spokeswoman for the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power.

Another break occurred in a water pipe at Ventura near Lankershim Boulevard about 3:40 a.m. Tuesday, Pierson said. It closed a southbound lane on Ventura Boulevard.

About 20 businesses in the area were without water service, she said.

No private property damage was reported, and the cause of the breaks was not immediately known, Pierson said.

In September 2009, a 62-inch water main burst in the same area, severely damaging Coldwater Canyon Avenue just south of Ventura Boulevard. The ensuing torrent washed away cars and flooded several homes.

ALSO:

Irvine police say man stole 100 packages from homes

Visitor found dead at UCLA fraternity house; drugs suspected

Two rare female wolves arrive at San Diego Zoo for breeding

-- Sam Quinones

twitter.com/samquinones7

Photo: Flooding on Ventura Boulevard at the scene of one of the water main breaks. Credit: KTLA

The Michael Jackson trial and the doctor as drug dealer

Medication: just what the stressed pop star wants

If you wanna feel real nice

Just ask the rock n roll doctor tonight

Those lambent lyrics come, of course, from the great Lowell George in his masterly "Rock n Roll Doctor". Poor George could have done with the services of a decent medic himself, dying as he did at the terribly young age of 34 – leaving a daughter, Inara – from complications following a drug overdose (probably a speed ball, a mixture of heroin and cocaine taken intravenously, though it depends on which account you read).

I have this to add to Neil McCormick's wise words on Conrad Murray and Michael Jackson: that "personal physician" (PP) is a show business concept through and through. Only in show business do young, healthy individuals require their own doctor, paid a retainer to look after only one patient, all year round, often night and day. The job description is likely to emphasise keeping the show on the road – and keeping the performer upright and coherent. This is not always an easy task, as Dr George Nichopolous ("Dr Nick"), Elvis Presley's personal physician for the last 10 years of life, could surely testify. Elvis in the 1970s concerts could often be seen clinging to the microphone stand for dear life, as if it was the only thing holding him up.

The only other people I can think of, apart from singers and film stars, who have this kind of round-the-clock medical care are dictators. Most people, after all, don't need to see a doctor unless they're ill. This fact – that the star is basically young and fit – points to the unusual role of the PP.

The PP aims to make his patient "better than well". This involves any amount of wacky nostrums. A favourite over the years has been B12 injections, designed to boost performance, usualy administered in the muscle of the hip or bum. A lot of these pick-me-ups have speed, amphetamine, as the active ingredient. For example, Max Jacobson, JFK's physician, added a brain-bursting 30 to 50mg of amphetamine to his booster shots, in addition to "multivitamins, steroids, enzymes, hormones, and solubilized placenta, bone marrow, and animal organ cells", it is said.

No wonder Dr Jacobson boasted that his customers "went out the door singing". And no wonder his list of show business patients was so long, and adorned with such stellar names as Anthony Quinn, Tennessee Williams, Eddie Fisher, Truman Capote and Alan Jay Lerner.

The question always arises: how culpable are these doctors if their clients drop dead of the drugs they're prescribed? Well, these days the doctors cannot get away with saying they didn't know what they were getting in to. The path is well-trodden by now: spoilt, headstrong, infantile and tantrum-prone star who's bored and unhappy and wants to sleep a lot; compliant doctor who yields too easily to the patient's demands – for if he doesn't prescribe the dangerous medicines, someone less responsible happily will, or so the argument goes.

It's hard to think that, these days, any respectable doctor would willingly take on a patient like Michael Jackson as Conrad Murray did: it's just too risky. It is also a fundamentally corrupt and corrupting therapeutic relationship – a sick relationship.

The doctor's proper job, to paraphrase Sir William Osler's dictum, is to persuade his patients not to take medicine. Yet in these cases his job, tacitly understood, is prescribe – generously. And there are other pitfalls. For one thing, no doctor should be entirely financially dependent on his patient. For another, it is not healthy for a doctor to be star-struck, though this must happen often: Dr Nick was in awe of Elvis, for instance, and it's hardly surprising – Elvis was the greatest popular singer who has ever lived. Dr Nick also erred a bit, I'm afraid, by entering into business deals with Elvis over racketball courts, and receiving fabulous presents. What's more, it is unwise for a doctor to have only one patient.

Where I think we do go wrong, however, is in pinning all the blame on the doctor for celebrity deaths, as has happened with Conrad Murray. This is naive, and it removes responsibility from the real actor – the patient. The patient wills his own destruction in these cases, one way or another. The doctor is only a tool.

A Heartburn-Free Thanksgiving

Delicious no-meat recipes for your holiday table.

If you think heartburn and Thanksgiving always go together, think again. Choosing the right foods and being careful not to overeat can put you well on your way to a heartburn-free holiday.

For Well’s Vegetarian Thanksgiving series, Dr. Jamie Koufman, author of “Dropping Acid: The Reflux Diet Cookbook and Cure,” offers delicious but low-acid recipes for the holiday table, including a vegetable frittata made with quinoa, a sweet potato and green bean salad, a festive mushroom stew and a Parmesan and dill popcorn snack. To learn more about low-acid eating, read my latest Science Times column, “Tired of Feeling the Burn? Low-Acid Eating May Help.” And visit the interactive recipe collection to see all the dishes in Well’s Vegetarian Thanksgiving so far; we will be adding new dishes daily.

Dropping Acid’s
Vegetable Frittata With Quinoa

2 cups vegetable stock
1 cup parsnips, peeled and diced into roughly 1/2-inch cubes
1 cup cauliflower, broken into florets
1 cup zucchini, cut into roughly 1/2-inch slices
1/2 cup quinoa, uncooked
1/2 cup red plum tomato, cored and diced
2 teaspoons Herbs de Provence (or equal parts thyme, oregano, marjoram, basil and sage)
2 teaspoons Roquefort or other blue cheese
4 eggs

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

2. Heat stock in a saucepan over medium heat to boiling. Add parsnips and cook 5 to 7 minutes, until al dente. Remove parsnips from stock with a slotted spoon and put in large bowl. Reserve stock; it will be used to cook other frittata ingredients.

3. Add cauliflower to heated stock and cook 5 to 7 minutes, until al dente. Remove cauliflower and add to bowl with parsnips.

4. Add zucchini to stock and cook about 1 minute, then remove and add to vegetables in bowl.

5. Add quinoa to simmering stock, bring to a boil and cook about 5 minutes, or until al dente. Remove the quinoa from the stock and add to vegetables in bowl. (The broth, enriched with flavor and vitamins from the vegetables, can be stored and re-used.)

6. Add diced tomato, herbs and Roquefort to the cooked vegetables and quinoa. Mix until the cheese combines completely with the other ingredients.

7. In a small bowl, whisk the eggs with a fork until whites and yolks are mixed. Add the eggs to the vegetable mixture and stir gently.

8. Rub 1 teaspoon butter on the bottom of a 10-inch nonstick ovenproof fry pan (or coat with nonstick spray). Heat the pan on the stovetop on medium until the butter is frothy, lower the temperature to medium-low and add the frittata mixture. Cook for a few minutes, then finish in the oven until done to your taste. (Leaving them slightly runny makes for a velvety texture.)

9. Flip onto a plate by holding the plate upside down on top of the pan and flipping pan and plate together. You can brush the top of the frittata with melted butter and serve with toast.

Yield: 6 servings.

Nutritional information per serving: 138 calories; 8 grams protein; 18 grams carbohydrates; 5 grams fat.

Dropping Acid’s
Sweet Potato and Green Bean Salad

1 pound green beans, both ends removed, cut into pieces about 2-inches long
1 cup pineapple juice
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
2 bay leaves
1/4 cup maple syrup
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 pound sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes
Zest from 1 washed lemon, to yield about 2 teaspoons
3 cups baby arugula or watercress
1 teaspoon sesame seeds, toasted

1. Place the green beans in boiling salted water and cook until al dente.
Remove and place in ice-cold water so they keep their bright green color. Drain.

2. Place the pineapple juice, cumin and bay leaves in a small saucepan. Simmer on low heat until reduced by half.

3. Pour the pineapple juice reduction in a bowl and mix with maple syrup and soy sauce.

4. Place the olive oil in a pan over high heat, add the sweet potatoes and cook until golden brown on all sides.

5. Place the sweet potatoes in a bowl and add the green beans, lemon zest and the maple-pineapple dressing. Toss until mixed. Mixing the dressing with the sweet potatoes while they are still warm allows even distribution of the dressing throughout the salad. Cool to room temperature.

6. Place the arugula or watercress on the bottom of a plate and place the vegetables on top. Sprinkle with the toasted sesame seeds. Serve immediately.

Yield: 6 servings.

Nutritional information per serving: 253 calories; 3 grams protein; 39 grams carbohydrates; 10 grams fat.

Dropping Acid’s
Mad Mushroom Stew

2 tablespoons olive oil
8 ounces (3 cups) cremini mushrooms
8 ounces (3 cups) shiitake mushrooms
1 pound (6 cups) domestic mushrooms
1/4 cup dried porcini mushrooms
1 cup red potatoes, skin on, washed, diced into 1/2-inch cubes
1 cup golden-fleshed potatoes, skin on, washed, diced into 1/2-inch cubes
1 cup Yukon Gold potatoes, skin on, washed, diced into 1/2-inch cubes
1 cup of parsnips, peeled, diced into 1/2-inch cubes
1 tablespoon parsley, stems removed and chopped coarse
1 tablespoon rosemary, stems removed and chopped coarse
1 tablespoon sage, stems removed and chopped coarse
1 tablespoon thyme, stems removed and chopped coarse
1 cup vegetable stock
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan
1 1/2 teaspoons salt, or to taste

1. Heat a sauté pan over high heat. Add the olive oil and sauté all the mushrooms together. Do not shake the pan excessively, as that will render water from the mushrooms and they will boil instead of browning.

2. When golden brown, add the potatoes, parsnip, parsley, rosemary, sage, thyme and stock. Bring to a boil, then lower heat to simmer. Cover. Potatoes will take 10 to 15 minutes to cook. If too much stock evaporates during cooking, add more as needed.

3. Place in a bowl or crock and sprinkle with Parmesan. Serve immediately.

Yield: 5 servings.

Nutritional information per serving: 226 calories; 10 grams protein; 34 grams carbohydrates; 7 grams fat.

Dropping Acid’s
Parmesan and Dill Popcorn

1 cup popping-corn kernels
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon grated vegetarian Parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons fresh dill, washed, stems removed and chopped fine (optional, or use an herb of your choice)

1. Heat a pan that is large enough to hold the popcorn in a single layer over
medium heat.

2. When the pan is hot, add the oil and the corn and stir until the corn starts to pop, about 3 to 5 minutes.

3. Cover the pan and lower the temperature.

4. Once the popcorn has stopped popping, remove from heat immediately.

5. Pour the corn into a bowl, and sprinkle with the grated Parmesan and fine-chopped dill. Stir to mix evenly, and serve promptly.

Yield: 10 servings.

Nutritional information per serving: 32 calories; 1 gram protein; 4 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams fat.

Water main break closes streets in Studio City

A broken 12-inch water main has flooded and closed streets in Studio City, and city crews were working Monday night to fix the rupture, officials said.

A pipe in the 1200 block of Ventura Boulevard broke about 8:15 p.m. Monday, said MarryAnne Pierson, a spokeswoman for the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power.

Ventura Boulevard is closed in both directions between Whitsett and Coldwater Canyon avenues, said Brian Humphrey with the Los Angeles Fire Department. The flooding caused no injuries or evacuations, but it did cause cause some pavement breakage, he said. No structures have been threatened.

In September 2009, a 62-inch water main burst in the same area, severely damaging Coldwater Canyon Avenue just south of Ventura. The torrent, three feet deep in some places, washed away cars and flooded several residences.

ALSO:

Irvine police say man stole 100 packages from homes

Visitor found dead at UCLA fraternity house; drugs suspected

Two rare female wolves arrive at San Diego Zoo for breeding

-- Hailey Branson-Potts