Judge to Hit-and-Run Perpetrator: Don’t Do it Again or it Will Be Considered Murder
"If you drink and drive and kill someone again, [this time] it will carry a charge of murder with a minimum sentence of 15 years," the judge told 21-year-old Wendy Villegas at her sentencing hearing. "Do you understand?"*
April 22, 2014
Plaza 2.0: When People St. Plaza Projects are More Than Just Plaza Projects
The request that I sign the petition for Leimert Park Village's People St. plaza application that landed in my inbox the other day made me smile.
April 18, 2014
Got the Munchies?: South L.A. Market Conversion Project Takes Unique Approach to Health
I first met Nelson Garcia almost two years ago at an L.A. Food Policy Council (LAFPC) training event for small business owners looking to transform their stores into healthier community resources.
April 11, 2014
CicLAvia Highlights Need for Better Bike Infrastructure for Cycling to Grow as a Transportation Option
"Stay to the right!" rang out over the megaphone from a passing police car. "That means you, young lady!"
April 8, 2014
Plea Deal for Drunk Driver that Killed Andy Garcia Does Little to Ease Pain of Victims, Friends, and Families
Even the judge looked confused when the plea deal offered to Wendy Villegas was read out in court, says a somber Mario Lopez.
April 4, 2014
Make a Little Noise, Get a Little Bus Stop Love: Random Thoughts on Mobility
Oh, honey, no... I thought as I watched the obviously strung-out woman yank up her miniskirt and gesture insistently that passersby partake of her unkempt lady offerings.
April 2, 2014
Pop-Up Plaza Enhances Art Walk, Hints at What Could Be in Leimert
As we watched the group led by female elders drumming their way toward us, Rashida, a vendor of wonderful-smelling body scrubs, leaned over and said, "You can't get this anywhere else in L.A.!"
April 1, 2014
Leimert Takes Steps Toward Re-Branding with Pop-Up Plaza and More this Weekend
As I listened to speakers on the "Creative Industry Business Development, Tourism Markets, Branding, Marketing, Event Management, Business Alliances, and Program Partnerships" panel at the Leimert Park Design Charrette this past January, one question kept bothering me:
March 27, 2014
St. John’s New Health and Wellness Campus Promises Good Things for South L.A.
"Is that yours?" a surprised 9-year old had asked me as I had unlocked my bike from a post at the Martin Luther King Jr. Rec Center in South L.A. last weekend.
March 25, 2014
To Be or Not To Be a Gang-Banger: Is that Really the Question?
AS WE CONCLUDE our conversation, he takes a deep breath, adjusts his belt, and asks – this time, I think, as a person and not a police officer – if I really believed kids in Watts didn’t have much choice about whether or not to get involved with gangs.
March 21, 2014
