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Daily Local & Regional NewsWatch
LA Police Protective League

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Los Angeles
Police Protective League

the union that represents the
rank and file LAPD officers

 

Daily Local & Regional NewsWatch

Daily News Digest

from LA Police Protective League

February 25, 2011

Collective Bargaining

Wisconsin Assembly passes bill taking away union rights
The Wisconsin Assembly early today passed a bill that would strip most public workers of their collective bargaining rights - the first significant action on the new Republican governor's plan. The measure now goes to the Senate, where minority Democrats have been missing for a week, preventing a vote in that chamber. No one knows when - or if - the Senate Democrats will return from their hideout in Illinois. Republicans hold a 19-14 majority but need a quorum of 20 lawmakers to vote on spending bills.
MSNBC LAPPL Blog Los Angeles Times Editorial


Law Enforcement

Hollywood Hills mansion where firefighter died declared a crime scene
The Hollywood Hills house where a collapsing ceiling killed a firefighter has been declared a crime scene, police confirmed Thursday. The 12,500-square-foot home in the 1500 block of North Viewsite Drive is surrounded by yellow crime tape, with a police cruiser parked in front to bar access to the property without police permission and supervision. "It has been declared a crime scene," said Officer Diana Figueroa of the Los Angeles Police Department. "It's an active criminal investigation at this time.
Los Angeles Times

'American Idol' contestant's link to LAPD attacks brings no protest from police union
California's decision two years ago to allow former radical Sarah Jane Olson to serve parole in Minnesota instead of California drew strong criticism from the union representing Los Angeles police. The union said the former Symbionese Liberation Army member, who was then known as Kathleen Soliah, deserved no special treatment stemming from her 1975 conviction for the attempted assassination of two Los Angeles police officers. Now Olson is the focus of renewed attention as her daughter, Sophia Shorai, has been winning rave reviews on "American Idol."
Los Angeles Times

LAPD warns of a 'rash' of SUV 3rd seat thefts

The Los Angeles Police Department said Wednesday it was experiencing a rash of third row seats being taken from General Motors sport utility vehicles at parking lots and shopping malls, including the Topanga and Promenade malls in Woodland Hills. Police advise that if the seats are not being used, they should be taken out and secured in a safe place, Rachel Raigoza of the LAPD's Topanga Community Police Station said. The seats can also be attached to the floorboard of the vehicle with a bicycle type lock.
Torrance Daily Breeze


City & State Budget Crises

L.A.'s Measure L would boost library funding
Opponents fear Measure L would divert city spending away from police and fire services, but supporters contend that public libraries are also essential. More money for libraries means less for everybody else, said Kristi Sandoval, a director of the 9,900-member Police Protective League. "It creates more problems than it actually solves," she said. "You're basically borrowing from Peter to pay Paul."
Los Angeles Times


Gov. Jerry Brown tells legislators he will push for a $25-billion cut in California's budget unless voters OK tax extension
Gov. Jerry Brown said Thursday that he would hold out for a budget that cuts more than $25 billion from state services if voters and lawmakers do not approve more taxes. Brown made his comments to a panel of lawmakers who are working on a spending plan - the first time in nearly 50 years that a sitting governor has testified before the Legislature. "I want to make one thing clear," Brown said. "... If we don't get the tax extensions, I am not going to sign a budget [unless it is] an all-cuts budget."
Los Angeles Times


Homeland Security

FBI letter warns of fertilizer purchases for explosives
On the same day federal authorities announced the arrest of a Saudi Arabian man in Texas on charges of attempted use of a weapon of mass destruction, ABC News Thursday obtained a letter sent by the FBI to businesses across the country, warning them to watch out for anyone who might be planning a terrorist attack using fertilizer, chemical or pesticide-based explosives. The FBI's Denver field office has sent a letter to farm supply stores in its region warning employees to be aware of anyone who might be acting in a way that could indicate potential terrorist activity.
ABC News


Pensions

Commission's plan rolls back pensions for current workers
The bipartisan Little Hoover Commission recommended Thursday that California state and local governments roll back pensions for existing employees, dump guaranteed retirement payouts and put more of the pension burden on workers. Although any attempt to reduce pensions for current workers would prompt a legal battle, the commission says that public pension funds are in such dire financial straits that they'll never right themselves by reducing benefits for new hires. The recommendation would not affect current retirees.
Sacramento Bee

New criticism of CalPERS: rate hike too small
CalPERS bent the rules to avoid hitting state and local governments with a big rate increase after heavy losses in the stock market crash. Now it's being criticized for passing some of the cost for today's workers to future generations. The president of a new group working on a pension reform initiative, Dan Pellisier, said in a newspaper article last week that a CalPERS decision to remain underfunded is a "Ponzi scheme" and "intergenerational theft," legal but immoral.
Calpensions


Immigration

All of California now linked up to immigration enforcement network
The federal immigration agency has finally linked all California police agencies to reveal immigrants -- legal or not -- arrested for violating laws and subject to deportation. The action enables U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, to tag arrests and travel to all of the state's county jails to pick up immigrants accused of committing crimes. In essence, local police, willingly or not, have become an arm of the federal immigration agency.
Contra Costa Times

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About the LAPPL Formed in 1923, the Los Angeles Police Protective League (LAPPL) represents the more than 9,900 dedicated and professional sworn members of the Los Angeles Police Department. The LAPPL serves to advance the interests of LAPD officers through legislative and legal advocacy, political action and education. The LAPPL can be found on the Web at:

www.LAPD.com


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