LA Podcast

Spiking cases and hospitalizations prompt a new Safer at Home. Actions in El Sereno and outside the Mayor's house. The history and current status of Baldwin Hills Crenshaw Plaza. And three members of the Hillside Villa Tenants Association, RENE ALEXZANDER, ROSA HERNANDEZ, and MARINA MALOUF, talk about their fight to preserve their building as affordable housing.

LA reaches an unprecedented COVID emergency right before a holiday where people see their families. A photo throws Mayor Garcetti's career future into question. And BEN ORESKES and DOUG SMITH of the LA Times join to discuss their new reporting on the political and policy impacts of LA's bridge housing program for people who are homeless.

The LA Times op-ed section does it again. Who from LA is on Biden’s transition team? More Garcetti DOT murmurs. Villanueva in more trouble. COVID is very bad again and our leaders are not handling it well. And an interview with Councilmember-elect NITHYA RAMAN.

WHAT A WEEK. Local election results. LA is championed nationwide as the home of a progressive anti-carceral movement. Our long national nightmare is over but what does Biden mean for LA? Will Garcetti stay or go? And LAPD announces cuts.

It’s the day before the election. What did we see in the last week of early voting? How much money have candidates raised, and where from? What’s going to happen tomorrow? City Council votes once again on whether to recommence sweeps, with unexpected results. Links discussed in this episode: https://theappeal.org/the-past-present-and-future-of-the-los-angeles-district-attorneys-office/ https://loc...

A sexual harassment scandal in the Mayor’s Office blows up. New moves against the Sheriff and DA. The City’s headed for a financial cliff. Hollywood NOW at war with itself over endorsements. Target Husk becomes a real boy. Links referenced in this episode: https://thelapod.com/guide-to-la/ https://www.la101.guide/ https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZAtdOqppzwiGNHaD_c0Wz6Uvft4BocqcGiJ https:...

The Council District Four race leaves the rails, never to return. Garcetti plays coy about the Cabinet job he definitely wants. The history of the deadly Exide facility in Vernon, and the deal the federal government approved this week. Metro wants to widen more freeways and tear down your house. Articles referenced in this episode: https://www.lamag.com/mag-features/nithya-raman-david-ryu-council-...

One of the developers that bribed Jose Huizar signs a non-prosecution agreement. LA has to pay the accountant it's suing over the DWP billing fiasco. David Ryu goes negative against Nithya Raman. More endorsements for George Gascon. Playgrounds are open! And the hosts make ten predictions for what will win and what won't on November 3rd.

Mayor Garcetti was at the first presidential debate. The LA Times wrote something unfortunate about it. An arrest made in the shooting of two deputies. A different deputy was shot by another deputy. Who is going to run against Alex Villanueva? Three more LAPD officers are charged with falsifying evidence. And we announce our NOVEMBER 2020 VOTER GUIDE

Cuts to Metro go through. Buses will remain too crowded. More beatings of protestors by LASD. A scuffle at an LAPD station. The LA Times reckons with its racist history. In its presence, it makes some endorsements. Councilmember Ryu goes on the offense against Nithya Raman. And EUNISSES HERNANDEZ, co-chair of Yes on Measure J, joins the show to talk about why this county ballot measure is so impor...

The earthquake we needed right now. A string of lies from the Sheriff's department and calls for the Sheriff's resignation. A report on low usage at cooling centers. Why hotels didn't participate in Project Roomkey. A "tsunami" of hotel closures. And hasta la vista to LA Al Fresco. Articles referenced in this episode: https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2020-09-16/hotels-not-participating-in-...

The sky is weird and the air smells bad. Ongoing protests and fallout related to Dijon Kizzee's killing by LASD. Two deputies are shot in Compton. LA uses a vigilante app for contact tracing. New reports on the cost of HHH units. The guy who wrote Point Break put some big rocks under a bridge. Paul Koretz kills another bike lane.  Articles referenced in this episode: https://lacontroller.org/audit...

New record high temperatures in LA: where do people go to cool down? More details on the killing of Dijon Kizzee by LASD and the protests that followed. How LA's park spaces became distance learning centers. After six months of COVID, where did we think we would be? Articles referenced in this episode: https://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-lapd-traffic-stops-20190124-story.html https://laist.c...

Scott, Alissa, and Hayes wrap up the disastrous end to California's legislative session and LA's City Council's vote to furlough 15,000 city workers.

Rising tension between the LAPD's union and elected officials. Beverly Hills prosecuting curfew violations. Bizarre turns in the City Council District 4 race. Metro hurtles toward service cuts. And the tourism board needs your help.  Articles referenced in this episode: https://www.latimes.com/projects/chicano-moratorium/east-la-protest-gave-voice-chicano-movement/ https://www.latimes.com/californ...

A new theme song. Fires in California. Gangs in the Sheriff's Department. Declining COVID-19 numbers. The start of the LAUSD school year. Shuttered emergency shelters. Resumed sweeps in Venice. A QAnon protest in Hollywood. A police killing in Pasadena. A Postal Board Governor in San Marino. And one of the last bills in the state housing package. Articles referenced in this episode: https://www.la...

Potentially the worst heat wave in a decade helps start two fires and leads to rolling blackouts across California. COVID hospitalizations are dropping but the data remains an issue. LASD gives a press conference on Andres Guardado's shooting, and the LAPD Chief says sorry for a police lie about a Councilmember. What does it mean for local politics if Biden and Harris win? And an interview with NR...

Scott and Hayes Prop It Like It's Hot with a rundown of every proposition on the California state ballot for November. BUT FIRST: where did a local news reporter get police records he used to smear a Councilmember? And how much closer did LAUSD get to a reopening plan? Articles referenced in this episode: https://laist.com/2020/07/30/ppp_loans__charter_schools_coronavirus_small_business_aid_los_an...

"Community Safety Partnership Bureau" and why does LAPD want to start one? Does any LA law enforcement department not have gangs? Did City Council vote to resume sweeps? Did you feel the earthquake? Why was Karen Bass talking about Scientology? Articles referenced in this episode: https://twitter.com/sahrasulaiman/status/1287904853553889280 https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2020-08-01/socia...

Scott, Hayes and Alissa are joined by COUNCILMEMBER MARQUEECE HARRIS-DAWSON of Council District Eight for a conversation about LA's response to the COVID-19 pandemic, future possibilities of relief for tenants, possibilities for reimagining public safety in LA, and the city's new political reality thanks to the Black Lives Matter protests.

A summary of everything LA elected officials have done in response to the COVID-19 pandemic in LA. Also: Is LA Al Fresco real? What's going on with Slow Streets? What was Charter Amendment C, and why did it possibly lead to an officer getting to keep his job after murdering someone in Costco? And what did a deputy post online that led to him getting demoted? Articles referenced in this episode: ht...

The LA County Medical Examiner-Coroner defies Sheriff Villanueva's orders. Three LAPD officers are charged with falsifying data. LA hits another peak in its COVID-19 outbreak. UTLA votes against reopening schools. Should the City Council be removed from land use decisions? And ALBERT CORADO returns to talk about the recent activity of the People's City Council and this Sunday's march to honor of t...

Increasingly dire numbers for LA's COVID-19 outbreak, and another walkback for LA Al Fresco. The LA County Sheriff comes even more unglued. Upheaval at the LA Times. And some progress made in defunding the police.

As L.A. waffles over re-opening, Scott and Alissa reckon with the city's mixed messaging surrounding COVID-19. A $100 million rental assistance program begins July 1st. And, predictably, there's an update on the Tampon Frappucino.

A sitting LA City Councilmember is arrested. Scott, Alissa, and Hayes talk about the new federal charging documents, what happened, and what could be next. PLUS: tampon Frappucino.