WASHINGTON, D.C. — On Jan. 27, Donald Trump issued an executive order to temporarily ban about 218 million people from seven Muslim-majority countries from entering the United States.
Hundreds of opponents to the order protested at major airports in the country, where Muslim refugees and people with visas to enter the country were detained. Sixteen Democratic state attorneys general issued a joint statement calling Trump’s move “unconstitutional.” On Jan. 30, Trump fired Acting U.S. Attorney General Sally Yates for questioning the constitutionality of his actions.
The ban took effect immediately and is expected to continue for at least 90 days. However, officials said that this may just be a first step. The order bars people from Iraq, Syria, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen. Those countries have been labeled “countries of concern.” The order exempts diplomats and members of international organizations from the ban.
Homeland Security also was directed to do 30-day review to see which countries don’t give certain information about their citizens. As part of his orders, Trump also stopped admitting all refugees for four months.
USS Iowa Plugs into 21st Century Technology
SAN PEDRO – On Jan. 23, the Port of Los Angeles and Battleship Iowa announced that the ship had become the latest vessel to plug into clean, electric shore-side power. The ship’s operational systems previously ran on a diesel generator.
Plugging a ship into Alternative Maritime Power® for a 24-hour period achieves the same air quality improvements as taking 33,000 cars off the road.
Alternative Maritime Power® technology allows vessels to shut down their diesel engines while at berth and plug into clean shore-side power to run on-board systems.
SpaceX Rocket Docks in San Pedro
SAN PEDRO — On Jan. 17, a SpaceX Falcon 9 booster docked in San Pedro’s outer-harbor. The 156-foot-tall, first-stage rocket, welded vertically onto its specially made barge, arrived before dawn, following a sea journey from San Diego, where it landed from Vandenberg Air Force Base. This was the seventh booster that Space Exploration Technologies Corp. has recovered in the Pacific Ocean.
LASD Searching for Information on Dead Man near 110 Freeway
HARBOR CITY — The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department is seeking information about a dead man found near the 110 Freeway and 223rd Street in the unincorporated area of Harbor City.
The man, whose name has not been disclosed, was taken to a local hospital where deputies responded at about 7:15 p.m. Jan. 20. The man succumbed to his injuries at the hospital.
Anyone with information about this incident is encouraged to call (323) 890-5500 or visit http://lacrimestoppers.org.
Deadly Shooting in Harbor City
HARBOR CITY — On Jan. 18, Los Angeles Police Department’s Harbor Area Homicide detectives found a 29-year-old Juan Ignacio Alcala dead, at about 6:30 p.m., on the 1200 block of West 256th Street in Harbor City.
LBPD officials are asking for public assistance in identifying the killer. Alcala was found in his backyard with gunshot wounds. Investigators say an unknown suspect approached him and shot him several times. When the Long Beach Fire Department arrived he was declared dead at the scene.
Anyone with information is urged to call (310)726-7882 or visit www.lacrimestoppers.org.
SCAQMD Proposes Toxic Hydrofluoric Acid Ban in South Bay Refineries
TORRANCE — On Jan. 17, the South Coast Air Quality Management District proposed a ban on highly toxic hydrofluoric acid at South Bay refineries.
The SCAQMD has stated that a series of safety mishaps and community risk information from a PBF Energy-owned refinery in Torrance prompted the proposal, called Rule 1410.
The acid can create a potentially lethal toxic cloud.
The proposal was based, in part, on technical analyses Torrance Refinery Action Alliance, a six-member scientific advisory panel formed in 2015, performed. The refinery is a big source of tax revenue for Torrance. City officials signed on an additive reduction that created a higher risk to the community.
LBPD Promotes New Leaders
LONG BEACH — On Jan. 19, the Long Beach Police Department announced the promotion of eight employees. The employees and their ranks are as follows:
Promoted to Lieutenant:
Sgt. James Foster
Sgt. Omar Martinez
Promoted to Administrative Analyst III:
Asst. Admin. Analyst II Nicole Gross
Promoted to Sergeant:
Officer Demetrio Alonzo
Officer Jason Lacey
Officer Eduardo De La Torre
Officer Sean Hunt
Officer Jonathan Ornelas
Lieu, Markey Introduce Restricting First Use of Nuclear Weapons Act of 2017
WASHINGTON, D.C. — On Jan. 24. Rep. Ted W. Lieu and Sen. Edward J. Markey, a Democrat from Massachusetts, introduced the Restricting First Use of Nuclear Weapons Act of 2017.
This legislation would prohibit the president from launching a nuclear first strike without a declaration of war by Congress. The crucial issue of nuclear “first use” is more urgent than ever now that President Donald Trump has the power to launch a nuclear war at a moment’s notice.
“It is a frightening reality that the U.S. now has a Commander-in-Chief who has demonstrated ignorance of the nuclear triad, stated his desire to be ‘unpredictable’ with nuclear weapons, and as President-elect was making sweeping statements about U.S. nuclear policy over Twitter,” said Lieu, in an issued statement. “Congress must act to preserve global stability by restricting the circumstances under which the U.S. would be the first nation to use a nuclear weapon.”
Markey agreed.
“Nuclear war poses the gravest risk to human survival,” said Markey, in an issued statement. “Yet, President Trump has suggested that he would consider launching nuclear attacks against terrorists.”
OIS Stems from Attempted Murder
LONG BEACH — On Jan. 22, Long Beach Police Department officer shot a man in Carson after a crossfire stemming from an attempted murder incident.
The attempted murder took place a day earlier. At about 11 p.m. Jan. 21, LBPD officers were dispatched to the 900 block of Via Wanda in Long Beach to investigate shots heard in the neighborhood.
When they arrived they found a 40-year-old man with a gunshot wound to the upper torso. The man was taken to a local hospital in critical condition.
Gang enforcement detectives responded to begin their investigation of that attempted murder. The next day, at about 11 a.m., detectives identified the suspect, which lead them to a residence in the 2700 block of E. 220th Place in Carson.
The SWAT was activated. As SWAT officers were setting up their containment and making an approach on the suspect’s known location, the residence of an acquaintance, the suspect fled out the back and proceeded to jump multiple fences, in an attempt to get away. Several SWAT officers on the perimeter containment saw the suspect was armed with a handgun and relayed the information to other officers via their police radios.
As the suspect was fleeing, officers gave multiple commands for him to stop and surrender, but he refused, and then forced his way into the home of a family on the same block. The occupants of that residence quickly fled their home, and advised officers that family members were still inside. Knowing they had a hostage situation, SWAT officers made immediate entry into the house to rescue the remaining family members. As they entered, the suspect fled out the back and over a fence into the yard of a different house, again on the same block. The suspect attempted to hide from officers by barricading himself in a utility shed attached to the outside of that house.
SWAT officers established two-way communication with the suspect, attempting to persuade him to surrender, however he refused. They saw an opportunity to attempt to resolve the dangerous situation utilizing less lethal options. SWAT officers fired numerous 40mm rubber baton rounds, as well as tear gas into the shed, however, the suspect still refused to surrender.
At about 5:10 p.m., SWAT officers were then confronted by the suspect, who was armed with a handgun, and an officer involved shooting occurred. The suspect was struck by gunfire and was determined deceased at the scene by Long Beach Fire Department personnel, who were staged nearby. The handgun was recovered at the scene.
No officers were injured in the incident.
Two minors who were inside the family home the suspect had broken into were unharmed.
The incident is being investigated as gang-related.
Anyone with information regarding this incident is encouraged to call (562) 570-7244 or visit www.lacrimestoppers.org.
Galperin Reports on Income-Restricted Affordable Housing
LOS ANGELES — On Jan. 23, City Controller Ron Galperin released an audit entitled Income-Restricted Affordable Housing Units in Los Angeles: A Review of the City’s Density Bonus Incentives and Overall Oversight.
The review found density bonus incentives have had minimal impact in incentivizing private developers to include affordable housing in their projects. The audit also highlights the lack of adequate tools to ensure income-restricted units are best going only to those who qualify.
Accompanying the audit, the controller has created a map of the city’s overall stock of 28,482 income-restricted units monitored by the Housing and Community Investment Department. Click here to view the map at www.lacontroller.org/geopanel_la.
Density Bonus Law Has Not Lived Up to Its Potential
The audit found that 21 percent of new multi-family projects of five units or more, built between 2008 and 2014 (169 of 790 projects) utilized some aspect of the density bonus program — resulting in 4,463 units designated as affordable. However, just 329 of these units were created in market-rate projects throughout the city — an arguably minimal impact when considering the city’s overall affordable housing needs.
The audit recommends modifying and, in some cases, increasing incentives offered through the density bonus program. Specific recommendations include:
- Create additional incentives, such as additional density or permitting micro units;
- Streamline processes through modifications to the current process of site plan review and expedited processing of Environmental Impact Reports;
- Conduct a legal analysis of what opportunities might exist, within the density bonus program, to allow market-rate developers to create income-restricted units off-site — or to pay equivalent values into a fund which would build income-restricted units throughout Los Angeles;
- Review how Area Median Income levels are defined for the purpose of the density bonus program so that it is more aligned with state policy.
Galperin said that the city’s stated goal is 100,000 new units by 2021 — of which at least 15,000 wouldbe officially affordable.
The City’s Monitoring Program
The Controller’s audit also examined oversight and monitoring of the City’s overall stock on 28,482 income-restricted units. This includes density bonus units, Section 8 units, Community Redevelopment Agency project units, and other income-restricted units. While auditors found reasonably adequate monitoring by the city’s contractor, and a 93 percent compliance rate, better oversight tools are needed to deal with conditions of some owners collecting more rent than allowed and some tenants exceeding income guidelines.
Based on a thorough analysis of information available for 2014, the audit found the following:
- For 1,482 units (5.2 percent) — landlords charged higher rents to tenants than allowable under covenants to which landlords agreed. When such circumstances are identified, the Housing and Community Investment Department’s contractor is charged with sending letters to owners demanding remediation.
- For 464 units (1.6 percent) — tenant earnings exceeded program guidelines. In more than two-thirds of such instances, tenants reported incomes that exceeded limits by at least $5,000 per year and in one case, by $149,000.
- For 1,056 units (3.7 percent) — tenant incomes were not verified when tenants moved in.
- For 1,181 tenants, no tenant income was reported at all.
Councilman Mike Bonin, who represents the Westside, announced that he would introduce legislation on Jan. 24, to correct many of the issues raised by the Controller’s report.
The audit released by the Controller’s Office evaluated a data sample between 2008 to 2014. It focused on units with a signed covenant agreement and monitored by the Housing and Community Investment Department. Affordable housing units that may be under the authority of other agencies such as Housing Authority of Los Angeles), Los Angeles Homeless Service Authority, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, were not included in this study.
The audit, along with the Controller’s other audits, reports, open data and more, is available at www.lacontroller.org.