latimes--2020-06-11--LAPD's use of batons, other weapons appears to violate rules, significantly injuring protesters, Tim

LAPD's use of batons, other weapons appears to violate rules, significantly injuring protesters, Times review finds

As smoke from a nearby car fire billowed up , the police batons came raining down .
Deon Jones felt one lash across his back and shoulder as he ran .
Glancing back , he saw a Los Angeles police officer aim a tactical gun right at his face .
The pain was sudden and searing .
Ringing filled his ears .
At the hospital , a doctor told the 28-year-old protester that he would have been blinded had the police projectile struck an inch to the right — and dead had it hit an inch higher , at his @ @ @ @ @ @ @ cracked bones in his face , a head injury and stitches across his cheek .
“ We are protesting police brutality , ” Jones said , “ and then being brutalized by police while we ’ re protesting.
” A Times review of dozens of instances of police force during protests over the killing in police custody of George Floyd found that demonstrators suffered a range of injuries at the hands of the LAPD , from minor bruising from baton strikes and falls as police skirmish lines advanced , to serious injuries to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sponge bullets and beanbags being launched into crowds , sometimes from close range .
To date , there has been no formal assessment of how many protesters were hurt .
Many of the protesters ’ wounds are from incidents in which police appeared to have violated their own policies for how weapons like batons and “ less lethal ” munitions may be used , after they had declared large gatherings unlawful and subject to dispersal , the review found .
Others , including some of the most serious injuries to men ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of sanctioned uses — such as officers aiming projectiles directly at a man ’ s belt line .
Since the Rodney King beating nearly three decades ago , the LAPD has increasingly placed limits on how police use force , from wielding batons and flashlights to firing weapons and using certain choke holds .
Weapons such as beanbags and foam projectiles were ushered in to reduce police shootings .
But there are now calls from Black Lives Matter activists and others to restrict their use after the police response to protests , and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Ed Obayashi , a police force expert , said the protest videos underscored how the use of batons can quickly spin out of control and result in serious injury .
“ After one blow strikes , it is a self-fulfilling prophecy and you get casualties , ” he said .
Witnesses to the events say the police were at times responding to water bottles and other debris being thrown at them and fires and other vandalism occurring around them .
But other times , the police appeared to be lashing out at @ @ @ @ @ @ @ street .
“ We were standing there , and they were really not wanting us there anymore , ” said Matt McGorry , an actor who was shot in the stomach with a projectile , and whose videos from the front lines are among the most viewed online .
“ They just came after people , even when people had their hands raised .
They were swinging at people ’ s knees like they were trying to hit a home run.
” Police and city leaders , including Mayor Eric Garcetti and LAPD @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of police officers who clashed with protesters in recent weeks are under review .
Josh Rubenstein , an LAPD spokesman , said the department has committed 40 internal affairs investigators to the sole task of reviewing such interactions and assessing whether policy violations or more serious misconduct occurred .
More than 50 investigations have been launched into complaints about police behavior during the protests , including 28 alleging excessive force .
Seven police department employees have been taken out of the field pending the results , the department said Wednesday .
Moore has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ways he did not approve , though it ’ s not clear whether they are among those assigned to desk duties .
The recognition of failures is an evolution in tone from the early days of protest , when Garcetti and Moore repeatedly praised the department ’ s officers for their “ restraint.
” And they still maintain the police force performed admirably overall .
Garcetti and Moore have repeatedly lamented the fact that more than two dozen police officers were injured , including one with a skull fracture , but have attempted @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the hands of police .
According to The Times ’ reporting , there were a significant number , including many from a violent police confrontation with a large gathering of protesters near the Grove in the city ’ s Fairfax District on May 30 .
Police say a peaceful protest at Pan Pacific Park spiraled out of control as people in the crowd , whether protesters or infiltrators keen on inciting chaos , started to damage stores , light cars on fire and endanger other citizens and officers .
Protesters say police stirred @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and then hemming people into confined areas with no escape .
Cedars-Sinai Medical Center , about two miles away , treated several patients with injuries from tactical bullets , said Dr. Sam Torbati , medical director of the hospital ’ s emergency room .
Most patients had injuries such as bruising and lacerations and were discharged after receiving treatment , he said .
Hospital officials would not provide total figures for such injuries .
Asst .
Chief Robert Arcos , who oversees LAPD operations , said officers were deploying sponge and foam bullets @ @ @ @ @ @ @ projectiles at police , and not simply to disperse or push back crowds .
But he acknowledged many complaints of excessive force are being looked into .
Department policy for such weapons requires they be used only on individuals who present a clear and immediate threat and are specifically targeted , and from at least five feet away .
It mandates officers aim at individuals ’ navel or belt line first , and then their arms and legs if initial shots are ineffective .
Officers are not supposed to aim at people ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ not to use the weapons in response to verbal threats or “ mere noncompliance.
” They are not to fire the weapons at people running away .
Protesters said they were fired upon from point-blank range , that the weapons were fired indiscriminately into crowds and at people running away , and that the weapons were aimed at people ’ s heads and faces .
Arcos said batons were generally used to push people out of the area after dispersal orders , or to strike people in instances where officers were confronted with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ I know that there are video images that do not seem to support that , but there is more context that we have to look at — for example , the body-worn video from those officers , which we are doing , ” he said .
Protesters said the batons were used to beat protesters who were passively resisting dispersal orders , and at times when people were trying to disperse but weren ’ t doing so as quickly as officers wanted them to .
During the same protest in Fairfax where Jones @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Schuh was injured too .
The projectile that hit him snapped off one of his teeth , cracked several more and busted his lip open .
Schuh , 28 , said he was trying to help someone who had fallen in the crowd when he heard a bullet whiz by his ear .
He said he threw his hands up and tried to duck behind a car , but it was too late .
He saw the police officer aim his gun directly at him , he said .
“ The next second @ @ @ @ @ @ @ just coming out of my mouth like a faucet , and I remember being in intense , intense pain , ” said Schuh , who lives in Long Beach .
Schuh ’ s friend , Danyel Norman , 32 , was hit in the throat seconds before Schuh , she said .
Terrified , they rushed away and into an alley that resembled a triage ward , full of others with similar injuries , Norman said .
They were “ all on the ground treating each other , ” she said , when @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Suzee Dunn , 30 , a writer and producer , said she witnessed police corral crowds into tight spaces , only to start shooting projectiles wildly while jabbing people in the gut and striking them in the legs with batons .
She was shot in the leg .
“ It was just mass chaos and insanity and people hurt everywhere , ” she said .
Peter Murphy , 32 , a manager at a local deli , said police showed zero restraint with their batons .
“ They were shoving people with their @ @ @ @ @ @ @ people in their ribs , and then they would cock back their batons and full-force hit people , ” he said .
He said he witnessed police firing projectiles at random into large crowds of fleeing protesters .
“ The crowd started to scatter , people started to move and get out of the way , and rubber bullets kept being shot .
Even as people were retreating they kept getting hit , ” he said .
“ It seemed like the intention was to hurt people rather than just disperse them.
” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 28-year-old filmmaker , was hit by a police projectile in Hollywood .
An LAPD officer had grabbed a sign reading “ Defund the Police ” away from Montemayor and a friend , then shoved the friend to the ground , Montemayor said .
When he went to help his friend up , he felt intense pain , he said , and realized he ’ d been shot in the groin .
One of his testicles swelled to twice its usual size , and the other was also injured .
At a nearby hospital @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to save his testicles and his future ability to have children , he said .
Some medical experts have for years argued police give the wrong impression of such weapons when they refer to them as “ less than lethal ” or suggest they are a soft approach to enforcement .
Baton strikes can cause lasting injuries , and projectiles can be deadly .
A 2017 analysis of 1,984 people injured by rubber or plastic bullets found that 3 % were killed and 15 % permanently injured by the impact , left with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ amputations .
“ If you fired at a ton of people in the crowd , someone is going to get hit in the eye or in the face or in the scrotum or something like that and have permanent disabilities , ” said Dr. Rohini Haar , the study ’ s lead author and an emergency room physician .
Los Angeles Times reporters Joel Rubin and Cindy Chang contributed to this report .

Kevin Rector, Soumya Karlamangla, Richard Winton

As smoke from a nearby car fire billowed up, the police batons came raining down. Deon Jones felt one lash across his back and shoulder as he ran. Glancing back, he saw a Los Angeles police officer aim a tactical gun right at his face.
The pain was sudden and searing. Ringing filled his ears. At the hospital, a doctor told the 28-year-old protester that he would have been blinded had the police projectile struck an inch to the right — and dead had it hit an inch higher, at his temple. Instead, he had two cracked bones in his face, a head injury and stitches across his cheek.
“We are protesting police brutality,” Jones said, “and then being brutalized by police while we’re protesting.”
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A Times review of dozens of instances of police force during protests over the killing in police custody of George Floyd found that demonstrators suffered a range of injuries at the hands of the LAPD, from minor bruising from baton strikes and falls as police skirmish lines advanced, to serious injuries to their genitals and heads from foam and sponge bullets and beanbags being launched into crowds, sometimes from close range. To date, there has been no formal assessment of how many protesters were hurt.
Deon Jones felt one lash across his back and shoulder as he ran. Glancing back, he saw a Los Angeles police officer aim a tactical gun right at his face. (Handout)
Many of the protesters’ wounds are from incidents in which police appeared to have violated their own policies for how weapons like batons and “less lethal” munitions may be used, after they had declared large gatherings unlawful and subject to dispersal, the review found. Others, including some of the most serious injuries to men’s genitals, appeared to be the result of sanctioned uses — such as officers aiming projectiles directly at a man’s belt line.
Since the Rodney King beating nearly three decades ago, the LAPD has increasingly placed limits on how police use force, from wielding batons and flashlights to firing weapons and using certain choke holds.
Weapons such as beanbags and foam projectiles were ushered in to reduce police shootings. But there are now calls from Black Lives Matter activists and others to restrict their use after the police response to protests, and additional questions about the use of batons.
Ed Obayashi, a police force expert, said the protest videos underscored how the use of batons can quickly spin out of control and result in serious injury.
“After one blow strikes, it is a self-fulfilling prophecy and you get casualties,” he said.
Witnesses to the events say the police were at times responding to water bottles and other debris being thrown at them and fires and other vandalism occurring around them. But other times, the police appeared to be lashing out at peaceful protesters simply for being on the street.
“We were standing there, and they were really not wanting us there anymore,” said Matt McGorry, an actor who was shot in the stomach with a projectile, and whose videos from the front lines are among the most viewed online. “They just came after people, even when people had their hands raised. They were swinging at people’s knees like they were trying to hit a home run.”
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Police and city leaders, including Mayor Eric Garcetti and LAPD Chief Michel Moore, said the actions of police officers who clashed with protesters in recent weeks are under review. Josh Rubenstein, an LAPD spokesman, said the department has committed 40 internal affairs investigators to the sole task of reviewing such interactions and assessing whether policy violations or more serious misconduct occurred.
More than 50 investigations have been launched into complaints about police behavior during the protests, including 28 alleging excessive force. Seven police department employees have been taken out of the field pending the results, the department said Wednesday. Moore has said he witnessed officers using batons in ways he did not approve, though it’s not clear whether they are among those assigned to desk duties.
The recognition of failures is an evolution in tone from the early days of protest, when Garcetti and Moore repeatedly praised the department’s officers for their “restraint.” And they still maintain the police force performed admirably overall.
Garcetti and Moore have repeatedly lamented the fact that more than two dozen police officers were injured, including one with a skull fracture, but have attempted no public accounting of protester injuries at the hands of police.
According to The Times’ reporting, there were a significant number, including many from a violent police confrontation with a large gathering of protesters near the Grove in the city’s Fairfax District on May 30.
VIDEO | 07:04 LAPD’s use of force injures protestors and appears to violate policy, according to Times’ review. Watch LA Times Today at 7 PM/10PM on channel 1 on Spectrum News 1, and on Cox systems in Palos Verdes and Orange County on channel 99.
Police say a peaceful protest at Pan Pacific Park spiraled out of control as people in the crowd, whether protesters or infiltrators keen on inciting chaos, started to damage stores, light cars on fire and endanger other citizens and officers. Protesters say police stirred up trouble by amassing in riot gear and then hemming people into confined areas with no escape.
Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, about two miles away, treated several patients with injuries from tactical bullets, said Dr. Sam Torbati, medical director of the hospital’s emergency room. Most patients had injuries such as bruising and lacerations and were discharged after receiving treatment, he said.
Hospital officials would not provide total figures for such injuries.
Asst. Chief Robert Arcos, who oversees LAPD operations, said officers were deploying sponge and foam bullets at specific targets, including those throwing projectiles at police, and not simply to disperse or push back crowds. But he acknowledged many complaints of excessive force are being looked into.
Department policy for such weapons requires they be used only on individuals who present a clear and immediate threat and are specifically targeted, and from at least five feet away. It mandates officers aim at individuals’ navel or belt line first, and then their arms and legs if initial shots are ineffective. Officers are not supposed to aim at people’s heads or necks. They are not to use the weapons in response to verbal threats or “mere noncompliance.” They are not to fire the weapons at people running away.
Protesters said they were fired upon from point-blank range, that the weapons were fired indiscriminately into crowds and at people running away, and that the weapons were aimed at people’s heads and faces.
Arcos said batons were generally used to push people out of the area after dispersal orders, or to strike people in instances where officers were confronted with “aggressive or violent behavior.”
“I know that there are video images that do not seem to support that, but there is more context that we have to look at — for example, the body-worn video from those officers, which we are doing,” he said.
Protesters said the batons were used to beat protesters who were passively resisting dispersal orders, and at times when people were trying to disperse but weren’t doing so as quickly as officers wanted them to.
During the same protest in Fairfax where Jones was shot in the face, Eric Schuh was injured too. The projectile that hit him snapped off one of his teeth, cracked several more and busted his lip open.
Schuh, 28, said he was trying to help someone who had fallen in the crowd when he heard a bullet whiz by his ear. He said he threw his hands up and tried to duck behind a car, but it was too late. He saw the police officer aim his gun directly at him, he said.
“The next second I was looking down and blood was just coming out of my mouth like a faucet, and I remember being in intense, intense pain,” said Schuh, who lives in Long Beach.
Schuh’s friend, Danyel Norman, 32, was hit in the throat seconds before Schuh, she said. Terrified, they rushed away and into an alley that resembled a triage ward, full of others with similar injuries, Norman said.
They were “all on the ground treating each other,” she said, when police began firing into the alley.
Suzee Dunn, 30, a writer and producer, said she witnessed police corral crowds into tight spaces, only to start shooting projectiles wildly while jabbing people in the gut and striking them in the legs with batons. She was shot in the leg.
“It was just mass chaos and insanity and people hurt everywhere,” she said.
Peter Murphy, 32, a manager at a local deli, said police showed zero restraint with their batons.
“They were shoving people with their batons, using their batons to hit people in their ribs, and then they would cock back their batons and full-force hit people,” he said.
He said he witnessed police firing projectiles at random into large crowds of fleeing protesters.
“The crowd started to scatter, people started to move and get out of the way, and rubber bullets kept being shot. Even as people were retreating they kept getting hit,” he said. “It seemed like the intention was to hurt people rather than just disperse them.”
Days later, Ben Montemayor, a 28-year-old filmmaker, was hit by a police projectile in Hollywood.
An LAPD officer had grabbed a sign reading “Defund the Police” away from Montemayor and a friend, then shoved the friend to the ground, Montemayor said. When he went to help his friend up, he felt intense pain, he said, and realized he’d been shot in the groin.
One of his testicles swelled to twice its usual size, and the other was also injured. At a nearby hospital, he was rushed into emergency surgery to save his testicles and his future ability to have children, he said.
Some medical experts have for years argued police give the wrong impression of such weapons when they refer to them as “less than lethal” or suggest they are a soft approach to enforcement. Baton strikes can cause lasting injuries, and projectiles can be deadly.
A 2017 analysis of 1,984 people injured by rubber or plastic bullets found that 3% were killed and 15% permanently injured by the impact, left with vision loss, head injuries or limb amputations.
“If you fired at a ton of people in the crowd, someone is going to get hit in the eye or in the face or in the scrotum or something like that and have permanent disabilities,” said Dr. Rohini Haar, the study’s lead author and an emergency room physician.
Los Angeles Times reporters Joel Rubin and Cindy Chang contributed to this report.


latimes--2020-06-11--UC chief Napolitano leaves office with a mended legacy

Seven years ago , Janet Napolitano charged into the top office of the nation ’ s top public research university system with big ideas , a resume of powerful jobs and weighty political connections — including then-President Obama , who had appointed her as U.S .
Homeland Security secretary .
But the new University of California president had no experience in academic leadership .
Her top-down managerial style annoyed many chancellors and faculty leaders .
Students protested her record as “ deporter in chief ” under Obama .
She struggled to manage political relations in Sacramento , although the Board @ @ @ @ @ @ @ improve them .
And midway through her tenure , scandal erupted over interference by Napolitano ’ s aides in a state audit into her office ’ s operations .
But that low point in 2017 marked the start of a major reset .
As Napolitano prepares to step down August 1 , she leaves with a better ending than beginning , as fans and foes largely agree she learned from her mistakes .
They credit her with championing immigrant students and survivors of sexual misconduct , pushing forward initiatives on climate change and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ California students .
“ What I saw over time was the transition to a much more effective leadership model by the office of the president , ” said UCLA Chancellor Gene Block .
Rigel Robinson , a Berkeley City Council member who was a student activist at UC Berkeley during Napolitano ’ s tenure , said her unprecedented outreach to students changed his mind about her .
“ I was one of those students in 2014 who called for her removal and chanted , ‘ Dammit Janet , ’ ” he said .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ , I ’ m sad to see her go.
” Napolitano , for her part , acknowledged the transformative impact of the scandal ’ s fallout .
“ When you make a mistake , you have to acknowledge it , you have to fix it and own it , ” she said in an interview this week .
“ What came out of that was there was a better understanding by me of the desire for more consultation and participation by different stakeholders in decisions as they were being made , as opposed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , is a different style of leadership than I was used to .
“ I think I was called upon to make that adjustment , and I think I made it and we continue to move the university forward.
” Regents are planning to select Napolitano ’ s successor this month or next before she steps down August 1 .
Napolitano , 62 , was an unconventional choice to head the most complex university system in the nation — a $ 39.8-billion operation of 10 campuses , five medical centers , three national @ @ @ @ @ @ @ time , the UC system was being pummeled by financial pressures and political criticism that its costs were too high and its admission policies too skewed in favor of out-of-state students over Californians .
Regents hoped her national stature , fresh perspective and political skills as a successful Democratic governor in the red state of Arizona would help UC find a way forward , said Regent Sherry Lansing , who headed the search committee then .
Napolitano , who assumed office in September 2013 , took an initial listening tour at the campuses @ @ @ @ @ @ @ priorities : increase access to a UC education and harness the campuses ’ enormous brainpower into a systemwide effort to address sweeping issues .
She translated those ideas into quick action .
At her first major speech , that October , she announced $ 15 million in funding to support students who are undocumented and those pursuing graduate degrees and postdoctoral research opportunities .
The next month , Napolitano announced initiatives to increase California community college students transferring to UC , speed the development of UC research into profitable products and make the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ by 2025 .
Napolitano called climate change “ the existential issue of our time.
” The efforts , she said , have produced research on scalable solutions to climate change and an online curriculum ; UC also has purchased solar farms outside Fresno and its own electric utility plant that supplies renewable energy to several campuses .
But some of her initiatives , while praised for good intentions , caused consternation .
Many campus leaders and faculty complained that Napolitano failed to consult them , encroaching on work already being done .
Still @ @ @ @ @ @ @ inspired some UC members .
“ The University of California has these extraordinary individual campuses doing world-class research , ” said Monica Lozano , a former board chair .
“ How do you take the collective strength of these institutions and mold them into something that benefits society at a much higher scale ?
She was able to do that in ways I hadn ’ t seen other presidents do.
” Her political troubles began in 2014 , when she proposed a five-year plan to increase tuition to provide more funds if Sacramento @ @ @ @ @ @ @ angered Gov .
Jerry Brown and other state political leaders who served as ex officio regents and opposed the tuition plan .
A board majority , however , passed it .
After that , Brown zeroed out a planned funding increase for UC and the battle was on .
Brown and Napolitano subsequently formed their so-called Committee of Two to hash out a compromise and ultimately agreed on a multiyear plan for funding increases in exchange for a two-year tuition freeze and other items .
From a national standpoint , Napolitano ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ other states in increasing funding for higher education after the 2008 recession , according to Ted Mitchell , president of the American Council on Education .
“ She made clear that the University of California was a long-term treasure in the state and underfunding it would jeopardize the university and the state , ” he said .
Napolitano was circumspect about her negotiations with Brown , who declined to comment .
“ I think it ’ s fair to say we did not see eye to eye on everything , ” she said @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , when a state audit found that her office had not only amassed a $ 175-million undisclosed surplus but also interfered with efforts by auditors surveying campuses about Napolitano ’ s office services .
State Auditor Elaine Howle said she found “ nothing nefarious ” in the amassed surplus but offered several recommendations to make the budget more transparent , which the university has adopted .
At the time , Napolitano was not only battling fallout over the audit .
Her cancer returned in 2016 and led to grueling sessions of chemotherapy and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ The year 2016-17 was not a good year for me , ” Napolitano said , managing a laugh .
“ Sometimes it was very tough .
But I am totally clear now ” of cancer .
Napolitano ’ s troubles marked a major turning point .
After the audit scandal , she apologized and became more consultative — deepening ties , for instance , with the Academic Senate by agreeing to appoint a faculty advisor , include the provost in all major decisions and invite Senate leadership into her advisory group .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ she was a much more successful and effective president than she had been before , ” said Robert May , a UC Davis professor and former Senate chair .
Assemblyman Kevin McCarty ( D-Sacramento ) , one of the more critical legislators on UC issues , credited Napolitano for “ weathering the storm ” and moving forward .
“ We were able to work together to dramatically expand enrollment of California kids , ” he said .
“ That ’ s the issue my constituents care about most.
” Napolitano is widely praised @ @ @ @ @ @ @ including start-up funding for free legal services for them .
She and the Board of Regents also filed the nation ’ s first lawsuit challenging the Trump administration ’ s efforts to end protections for students brought to the country illegally as children , granted under a program known as Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals — which Napolitano started as Homeland Security secretary .
Napolitano has not won over all undocumented students .
But UC Student Assn .
President Varsha Sarveshwar said she has set a new standard in access to students as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with them .
Napolitano also made a mark in directing efforts to overhaul the UC system ’ s Title IX processes and crafting a compromise plan to phase out the SAT and ACT , which regents unanimously passed last month amid criticism that the tests are biased against disadvantaged students .
“ She ’ s been an extraordinary leader , ” Lansing said .
“ She ’ s unflappable .
She ’ s thoughtful .
She listens to both sides but then she ’ s decisive and gets things done.
” Despite the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ride has been well worth it .
“ The position of president of the University of California is a great platform to address some of the larger public issues of the day , from DACA to climate change to sexual harassment to racism , ” she said .
“ It ’ s a tough job and a complicated job , but I ’ m very glad I took it.
” The UC chief plans to take a yearlong sabbatical , then join the UC Berkeley Goldman School of Public Policy .
She has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ office , a Cabinet post — or an appointment to the U.S. Supreme Court .
“ I look good in black , ” she joked .

Janet Napolitano is stepping down as University of California president. “It’s a tough job and a complicated job, but I’m very glad I took it,” she said.
Seven years ago, Janet Napolitano charged into the top office of the nation’s top public research university system with big ideas, a resume of powerful jobs and weighty political connections — including then-President Obama, who had appointed her as U.S. Homeland Security secretary.
But the new University of California president had no experience in academic leadership. Her top-down managerial style annoyed many chancellors and faculty leaders. Students protested her record as “deporter in chief” under Obama. She struggled to manage political relations in Sacramento, although the Board of Regents hired her in part to improve them.
And midway through her tenure, scandal erupted over interference by Napolitano’s aides in a state audit into her office’s operations.
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But that low point in 2017 marked the start of a major reset.
As Napolitano prepares to step down August 1, she leaves with a better ending than beginning, as fans and foes largely agree she learned from her mistakes. They credit her with championing immigrant students and survivors of sexual misconduct, pushing forward initiatives on climate change and opening the UC system to many more California students.
“What I saw over time was the transition to a much more effective leadership model by the office of the president,” said UCLA Chancellor Gene Block.
Rigel Robinson, a Berkeley City Council member who was a student activist at UC Berkeley during Napolitano’s tenure, said her unprecedented outreach to students changed his mind about her.
“I was one of those students in 2014 who called for her removal and chanted, ‘Dammit Janet,’” he said. “But now, after seven years, I’m sad to see her go.”
Napolitano, for her part, acknowledged the transformative impact of the scandal’s fallout.
“When you make a mistake, you have to acknowledge it, you have to fix it and own it,” she said in an interview this week. “What came out of that was there was a better understanding by me of the desire for more consultation and participation by different stakeholders in decisions as they were being made, as opposed to being announced. That, frankly, is a different style of leadership than I was used to.
Advertisement
“I think I was called upon to make that adjustment, and I think I made it and we continue to move the university forward.”
Regents are planning to select Napolitano’s successor this month or next before she steps down August 1.
Napolitano, 62, was an unconventional choice to head the most complex university system in the nation — a $39.8-billion operation of 10 campuses, five medical centers, three national laboratories and global research.
At the time, the UC system was being pummeled by financial pressures and political criticism that its costs were too high and its admission policies too skewed in favor of out-of-state students over Californians. Regents hoped her national stature, fresh perspective and political skills as a successful Democratic governor in the red state of Arizona would help UC find a way forward, said Regent Sherry Lansing, who headed the search committee then.
Napolitano, who assumed office in September 2013, took an initial listening tour at the campuses. The visits helped her set early priorities: increase access to a UC education and harness the campuses’ enormous brainpower into a systemwide effort to address sweeping issues.
“When you make a mistake, you have to acknowledge it, you have to fix it and own it,” UC President Janet Napolitano said. (Dania Maxwell / Los Angeles Times)
She translated those ideas into quick action. At her first major speech, that October, she announced $15 million in funding to support students who are undocumented and those pursuing graduate degrees and postdoctoral research opportunities.
The next month, Napolitano announced initiatives to increase California community college students transferring to UC, speed the development of UC research into profitable products and make the UC system a zero net energy user by 2025.
Napolitano called climate change “the existential issue of our time.” The efforts, she said, have produced research on scalable solutions to climate change and an online curriculum; UC also has purchased solar farms outside Fresno and its own electric utility plant that supplies renewable energy to several campuses.
But some of her initiatives, while praised for good intentions, caused consternation. Many campus leaders and faculty complained that Napolitano failed to consult them, encroaching on work already being done.
Still, Napolitano’s vision and energy inspired some UC members.
“The University of California has these extraordinary individual campuses doing world-class research,” said Monica Lozano, a former board chair. “How do you take the collective strength of these institutions and mold them into something that benefits society at a much higher scale? She was able to do that in ways I hadn’t seen other presidents do.”
Her political troubles began in 2014, when she proposed a five-year plan to increase tuition to provide more funds if Sacramento failed to do so. The proposal angered Gov. Jerry Brown and other state political leaders who served as ex officio regents and opposed the tuition plan. A board majority, however, passed it. After that, Brown zeroed out a planned funding increase for UC and the battle was on.
Brown and Napolitano subsequently formed their so-called Committee of Two to hash out a compromise and ultimately agreed on a multiyear plan for funding increases in exchange for a two-year tuition freeze and other items.
From a national standpoint, Napolitano’s leadership appeared to help California outperform many other states in increasing funding for higher education after the 2008 recession, according to Ted Mitchell, president of the American Council on Education.
“She made clear that the University of California was a long-term treasure in the state and underfunding it would jeopardize the university and the state,” he said.
Napolitano was circumspect about her negotiations with Brown, who declined to comment. “I think it’s fair to say we did not see eye to eye on everything,” she said.
Her worst moments came in 2017, when a state audit found that her office had not only amassed a $175-million undisclosed surplus but also interfered with efforts by auditors surveying campuses about Napolitano’s office services. State Auditor Elaine Howle said she found “nothing nefarious” in the amassed surplus but offered several recommendations to make the budget more transparent, which the university has adopted.
At the time, Napolitano was not only battling fallout over the audit. Her cancer returned in 2016 and led to grueling sessions of chemotherapy and radiation, sometimes six hours long.
“The year 2016-17 was not a good year for me,” Napolitano said, managing a laugh. “Sometimes it was very tough. But I am totally clear now” of cancer.
Napolitano’s troubles marked a major turning point. After the audit scandal, she apologized and became more consultative — deepening ties, for instance, with the Academic Senate by agreeing to appoint a faculty advisor, include the provost in all major decisions and invite Senate leadership into her advisory group.
“In the last two years, she was a much more successful and effective president than she had been before,” said Robert May, a UC Davis professor and former Senate chair.
Assemblyman Kevin McCarty (D-Sacramento), one of the more critical legislators on UC issues, credited Napolitano for “weathering the storm” and moving forward. “We were able to work together to dramatically expand enrollment of California kids,” he said. “That’s the issue my constituents care about most.”
Napolitano is widely praised for her support of undocumented students, including start-up funding for free legal services for them. She and the Board of Regents also filed the nation’s first lawsuit challenging the Trump administration’s efforts to end protections for students brought to the country illegally as children, granted under a program known as Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals — which Napolitano started as Homeland Security secretary.
Napolitano has not won over all undocumented students. But UC Student Assn. President Varsha Sarveshwar said she has set a new standard in access to students as the first president to hold regular meetings with them.
Napolitano also made a mark in directing efforts to overhaul the UC system’s Title IX processes and crafting a compromise plan to phase out the SAT and ACT, which regents unanimously passed last month amid criticism that the tests are biased against disadvantaged students.
“She’s been an extraordinary leader,” Lansing said. “She’s unflappable. She’s thoughtful. She listens to both sides but then she’s decisive and gets things done.”
Despite the at-times rocky road, Napolitano said the ride has been well worth it.
“The position of president of the University of California is a great platform to address some of the larger public issues of the day, from DACA to climate change to sexual harassment to racism,” she said. “It’s a tough job and a complicated job, but I’m very glad I took it.”
The UC chief plans to take a yearlong sabbatical, then join the UC Berkeley Goldman School of Public Policy. She has not ruled out a run for political office, a Cabinet post — or an appointment to the U.S. Supreme Court.
“I look good in black,” she joked.


latimes--2020-06-12--Nearly 160 coronavirus vaccines are in the works. Here's a closer look at the science

In the world of virology , the nomenclature of war comes easy .
The human body is a citadel that relies on the immune system to defend it .
A virus is an attacking army that does everything it can to overrun those defenses .
Vaccines help .
Though they do not prevent the virus from causing an infection , they can control the infection before it leads to symptoms and disease .
By staging a scrimmage against the immune system , vaccines teach the body to enlist and train a specialized force of white blood cells and antibodies that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a life-threatening attack .
With more than 7.5 million confirmed cases worldwide , the new coronavirus has killed more than 420,000 .
Creating vaccines to protect humans against this threat is a top priority .
Nearly 160 COVID-19 vaccine candidates are in development in laboratories around the world .
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has singled out five contenders : Moderna ; a consortium of Oxford University and AstraZeneca ; Johnson & Johnson ; Merck ; and Pfizer .
Although all approaches are distinct , they are based on a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ around for years ; others are being tested for the first time .
Here ’ s a closer look at how they work and which laboratories are farthest along in their development .
Some researchers are attempting to use the entire SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus to create vaccines that will induce a broad immune response .
They are borrowing techniques developed over centuries by physicians and healers who knew that minor viral infections can inoculate patients against more serious disease .
An advantage of these methods is their proven efficacy .
They have helped defeat @ @ @ @ @ @ @ other diseases .
At least 12 laboratories are working to add COVID-19 to this list .
But these vaccines are challenging to create , and production is time-consuming .
They are often grown in chicken eggs , so millions of hens could be needed to mass-produce a vaccine for worldwide distribution , and working with a live virus is risky .
Developed in 1937 by virologist Max Theiler to create a yellow fever vaccine , this protocol takes a live virus and introduces it to mice , chicken embryos or other non-human species @ @ @ @ @ @ @ at replicating in nonhuman cells , it loses its ability to replicate in human cells .
However , when introduced back into the human body , attenuated viruses still trigger an attack by the immune system , which is then able to stave off disease in most cases .
Vaccines developed from attenuated viruses provide protection against measles , mumps , rubella , chicken pox and one type of rotavirus .
This protocol was used by Albert Sabin to create a polio vaccine that could be administered orally in a sugar cube .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ be injected , it is a less expensive way to inoculate people around the world .
No laboratories are currently in clinical trials with a live attenuated virus vaccine .
This protocol , pioneered by Jonas Salk in the early 1950s , takes live viruses and kills them so they can ’ t replicate .
The inactivated , or dead , virus is injected into the body , which prompts the creation of antibodies .
Because the entire virus is used , the body mounts a broad immune response that is not as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ attenuated viruses .
Inactivated virus vaccines often require periodic booster shots to re-stimulate the immune system .
This protocol was used to create Salk ’ s injectable polio vaccine , as well as the hepatitis A and rabies vaccines .
Four teams have advanced inactivated virus vaccines to clinical trials : the Wuhan Institute of Biological Products and Sinopharm ; the Beijing Institute of Biological Products and Sinopharm ; the Institute of Medical Biology , Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences ; and Sinovac .
Rather than use the entire coronavirus to induce an @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that a single protein on its surface can do the job .
The so-called spike protein , or S protein , plays an essential role in allowing the virus to bind and infiltrate a host cell and appropriate the genetic material it needs to replicate .
Disable the S protein , the theory goes , and the virus can ’ t access the host cell .
More than 100 laboratories are focused on stopping the S protein .
While technically challenging , this method for developing a vaccine might be easier and less @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
But some researchers have expressed concerns that if the S protein mutates , a vaccine that targets it will be ineffective .
Researchers begin by splicing genetic instructions for making the S protein into a harmless virus , which is then injected into the body .
The virus uses human cells to mass-produce the protein , and the immune system attacks both the virus and the protein with antibodies .
Sometimes the harmless virus has been modified so that it can not replicate inside the body .
Non-replicating viruses might require higher @ @ @ @ @ @ @ make more of the S protein as they infect more cells .
Researchers used this approach to develop an Ebola vaccine .
Two research groups have advanced non-replicating viral vector vaccine to clinical trials : Oxford University and AstraZeneca , and CanSino Biological and the Beijing Institute of Biotechnology .
A third group , headed by the Johnson & Johnson subsidiary Janssen , is said to be close to starting its clinical trial .
The pharmaceutical company Merck , working with the nonprofit research organization IAVI , is said to be close to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ viral vaccine .
Rather than teach the body to make antibodies against the S protein , researchers are trying to develop a “ particle ” that resembles the coronavirus on the outside but without the deadly genetic machinery on the inside .
Once introduced into the body , this harmless particle should appear threatening and foreign enough for the immune system to initiate an assault .
The human papillomavirus vaccine takes this approach .
It is believed to be effective because it is based not just on a single protein but a three-dimensional @ @ @ @ @ @ @ laboratories are currently in clinical trials with a virus-like particle vaccine .
Researchers hope that by injecting synthetically produced S protein — or parts of the S protein — into the body with no genetic material attached , they can induce an immune response that would prime the body to attack the coronavirus .
This type of vaccine does not require a virus to deliver the protein .
If this defense isn ’ t entirely successful , it could still prevent an infection from developing serious complications like pneumonia .
Some influenza vaccines @ @ @ @ @ @ @ methods being tracked , both new and old , protein-subunit vaccines are the most common and are currently being developed in 51 laboratories .
Only one laboratory has advanced this method to a clinical trial : Novavax .
Researchers have sequenced the SARS-CoV-2 genome and are using it to synthesize the virus ’ RNA .
Like many viruses , coronaviruses have RNA instead of DNA , and in some laboratories , scientists use the RNA to create the corresponding DNA .
Once the genetic material is injected into the body — without a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ taken up by cells that begin producing the S protein , triggering an immune response .
RNA- and DNA-based vaccines have not yet been tested on humans , although a gene therapy treatment for infants with spinal muscular atrophy uses a similar approach .
There is some concern that the vaccine ’ s DNA could be incorporated into the body ’ s cells and subvert the cell ’ s normal function .
But DNA has the advantage of being more stable than RNA , which readily degrades .
Thirty-three laboratories are taking this @ @ @ @ @ @ @ vaccine to a clinical trial : Inovio Pharmaceuticals .
Two other laboratories have reached the clinical trial stage with an RNA-based vaccine : Moderna ; and BioNTech , Fosun Pharma and Pfizer .
Sources : Paul Offit , Children ’ s Hospital of Philadelphia , University of Pennsylvania ; Brenda Huneycutt , FasterCures , Milken Institute ; Helen Keipp Talbot , National Foundation for Infectious Diseases , Vanderbilt University

Vials used to prepare syringes in a safety study of a potential coronavirus vaccine developed by the National Institutes of Health and Moderna Inc.
In the world of virology, the nomenclature of war comes easy. The human body is a citadel that relies on the immune system to defend it. A virus is an attacking army that does everything it can to overrun those defenses.
Vaccines help. Though they do not prevent the virus from causing an infection, they can control the infection before it leads to symptoms and disease. By staging a scrimmage against the immune system, vaccines teach the body to enlist and train a specialized force of white blood cells and antibodies that are called up in the event of a life-threatening attack.
With more than 7.5 million confirmed cases worldwide, the new coronavirus has killed more than 420,000. Creating vaccines to protect humans against this threat is a top priority.
Nearly 160 COVID-19 vaccine candidates are in development in laboratories around the world. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has singled out five contenders: Moderna; a consortium of Oxford University and AstraZeneca; Johnson & Johnson; Merck; and Pfizer.
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Although all approaches are distinct, they are based on a few simple strategies. Some have been around for years; others are being tested for the first time.
Here’s a closer look at how they work and which laboratories are farthest along in their development.
Traditional approaches
Some researchers are attempting to use the entire SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus to create vaccines that will induce a broad immune response. They are borrowing techniques developed over centuries by physicians and healers who knew that minor viral infections can inoculate patients against more serious disease.
An advantage of these methods is their proven efficacy. They have helped defeat polio, hepatitis A, rabies and other diseases. At least 12 laboratories are working to add COVID-19 to this list.
But these vaccines are challenging to create, and production is time-consuming. They are often grown in chicken eggs, so millions of hens could be needed to mass-produce a vaccine for worldwide distribution, and working with a live virus is risky.
A child gets a vaccine against yellow fever at an outpatient clinic in Sao Paulo, Brazil, in 2018. (Fernando Bizerra Jr. / EPA/Shutterstock)
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Live attenuated virus vaccine
Developed in 1937 by virologist Max Theiler to create a yellow fever vaccine, this protocol takes a live virus and introduces it to mice, chicken embryos or other non-human species. As the virus becomes more successful at replicating in nonhuman cells, it loses its ability to replicate in human cells.
However, when introduced back into the human body, attenuated viruses still trigger an attack by the immune system, which is then able to stave off disease in most cases.
Vaccines developed from attenuated viruses provide protection against measles, mumps, rubella, chicken pox and one type of rotavirus.
This protocol was used by Albert Sabin to create a polio vaccine that could be administered orally in a sugar cube. Because it doesn’t need to be injected, it is a less expensive way to inoculate people around the world.
No laboratories are currently in clinical trials with a live attenuated virus vaccine.
In this Oct. 7, 1954, photo, Dr. Jonas Salk, developer of the polio vaccine, holds a rack of test tubes in his lab in Pittsburgh. (Associated Press)
Inactivated virus vaccine
This protocol, pioneered by Jonas Salk in the early 1950s, takes live viruses and kills them so they can’t replicate. The inactivated, or dead, virus is injected into the body, which prompts the creation of antibodies.
Because the entire virus is used, the body mounts a broad immune response that is not as robust as with vaccines made from live attenuated viruses. Inactivated virus vaccines often require periodic booster shots to re-stimulate the immune system.
This protocol was used to create Salk’s injectable polio vaccine, as well as the hepatitis A and rabies vaccines.
Four teams have advanced inactivated virus vaccines to clinical trials: the Wuhan Institute of Biological Products and Sinopharm; the Beijing Institute of Biological Products and Sinopharm; the Institute of Medical Biology, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences; and Sinovac.
Newer approaches
Rather than use the entire coronavirus to induce an immune response, many researchers are hoping that a single protein on its surface can do the job.
The so-called spike protein, or S protein, plays an essential role in allowing the virus to bind and infiltrate a host cell and appropriate the genetic material it needs to replicate. Disable the S protein, the theory goes, and the virus can’t access the host cell.
More than 100 laboratories are focused on stopping the S protein. While technically challenging, this method for developing a vaccine might be easier and less expensive to produce than using traditional approaches.
But some researchers have expressed concerns that if the S protein mutates, a vaccine that targets it will be ineffective.
Protein Sciences staff scientist Guang Liu runs liquid through a purifying machine at the company’s laboratory in Meriden, Conn. The company is working to create a vaccine for the Ebola virus. (Michael McAndrews / TNS)
Replicating and non-replicating viral vector vaccine
Researchers begin by splicing genetic instructions for making the S protein into a harmless virus, which is then injected into the body. The virus uses human cells to mass-produce the protein, and the immune system attacks both the virus and the protein with antibodies.
Sometimes the harmless virus has been modified so that it cannot replicate inside the body. Non-replicating viruses might require higher doses or booster shots. Replicating viruses make more of the S protein as they infect more cells.
Researchers used this approach to develop an Ebola vaccine.
Two research groups have advanced non-replicating viral vector vaccine to clinical trials: Oxford University and AstraZeneca, and CanSino Biological and the Beijing Institute of Biotechnology.
Two others are said to be close to starting their clinical trials: the Johnson & Johnson subsidiary Janssen, and NantKwest and ImmunityBio. (Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong, owner of The Times, is chairman and CEO of NantKwest and ImmunityBio.)
The pharmaceutical company Merck, working with the nonprofit research organization IAVI, is said to be close to starting a clinical trial with a replicating viral vaccine.
Virus-like particle vaccine
Rather than teach the body to make antibodies against the S protein, researchers are trying to develop a “particle” that resembles the coronavirus on the outside but without the deadly genetic machinery on the inside. Once introduced into the body, this harmless particle should appear threatening and foreign enough for the immune system to initiate an assault.
The human papillomavirus vaccine takes this approach. It is believed to be effective because it is based not just on a single protein but a three-dimensional representation of the entire virus.
No laboratories are currently in clinical trials with a virus-like particle vaccine.
Protein-subunit vaccine
Researchers hope that by injecting synthetically produced S protein — or parts of the S protein — into the body with no genetic material attached, they can induce an immune response that would prime the body to attack the coronavirus. This type of vaccine does not require a virus to deliver the protein.
If this defense isn’t entirely successful, it could still prevent an infection from developing serious complications like pneumonia. Some influenza vaccines work this way.
Of all the methods being tracked, both new and old, protein-subunit vaccines are the most common and are currently being developed in 51 laboratories. Only one laboratory has advanced this method to a clinical trial: Novavax.
In this March 16 photo, Neal Browning receives a shot in the first-stage safety study clinical trial of a potential vaccine for COVID-19 at the Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute in Seattle. (Ted S. Warren / Associated Press)
RNA- and DNA-based vaccines
Researchers have sequenced the SARS-CoV-2 genome and are using it to synthesize the virus’ RNA. Like many viruses, coronaviruses have RNA instead of DNA, and in some laboratories, scientists use the RNA to create the corresponding DNA.
Once the genetic material is injected into the body — without a virus to carry it — it is taken up by cells that begin producing the S protein, triggering an immune response.
RNA- and DNA-based vaccines have not yet been tested on humans, although a gene therapy treatment for infants with spinal muscular atrophy uses a similar approach.
There is some concern that the vaccine’s DNA could be incorporated into the body’s cells and subvert the cell’s normal function. But DNA has the advantage of being more stable than RNA, which readily degrades.
Thirty-three laboratories are taking this approach. One has advanced a DNA-based vaccine to a clinical trial: Inovio Pharmaceuticals. Two other laboratories have reached the clinical trial stage with an RNA-based vaccine: Moderna; and BioNTech, Fosun Pharma and Pfizer.
Sources: Paul Offit, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, University of Pennsylvania; Brenda Huneycutt, FasterCures, Milken Institute; Helen Keipp Talbot, National Foundation for Infectious Diseases, Vanderbilt University


latimes--2020-06-12--Before pandemic, homelessness jumped 13% in L.A. County, 14% in the city

Despite hundreds of millions of dollars spent to curb homelessness , the number of people without a home in Los Angeles grew last year for the fifth time in the last six years , officials announced Friday .
And that was before the pandemic .
The double-digit increases reported in both the city and county reflected the status in January , when the annual count is taken , and before the novel coronavirus thrashed the region ’ s economy , raising the likelihood of a new wave of people losing their homes .
The count “ is not that helpful @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” said Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority Executive Director Heidi Marston .
“ This doesn ’ t take into account the almost 600,000 people that , since January , and even just since May , have lost their jobs due to COVID-19 , ” she said .
The annual point-in-time count released Friday estimated the county ’ s homeless population at 66,433 , up nearly 13 % from the prior year , the second consecutive double-digit increase .
The estimate for the city was 41,290 , up almost 14 % and only slightly @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of 16 % .
Those dismal numbers highlight the continuing incapacity of the region ’ s expanding homeless services institutions to get their arms around interwoven crises of affordable housing , income inequality and mental health that are playing out on city and county streets .
“ We hate these numbers , ” Marston said .
“ We hate seeing the increases.
” Since January , struggling to prevent the contagion from sweeping through the homeless population , LAHSA , along with the city and county , has rented thousands of beds in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ most medically frail and oldest .
But the number of sheltered pales in comparison with the estimates in academic reports projecting that the explosion in unemployment and the likelihood of looming evictions will probably exacerbate homelessness further .
A recent study from the UCLA Luskin Institute on Inequality and Democracy estimates that 120,000 households in Los Angeles County could become homeless for some period of time once eviction moratoriums are lifted .
“ Until America has a right to housing as an entitlement for the truly indigent , we ’ re not going @ @ @ @ @ @ @ country that solved homelessness has done that , ” Mayor Eric Garcetti said .
Garcetti said the grim numbers “ underscore the scope of the problem and needed solutions.
” Still , he said the ability to shelter thousands of people in response to the pandemic has given him some optimism .
“ We ’ ve shown the fastest acceleration I ’ ve seen in those six months , thanks to finally having a FEMA-like response to homelessness in the face of a pandemic that maybe , just maybe , we ’ re @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , not just to contain , but to begin to reverse the homelessness.
” One small measure of progress was that both the city and county saw declines in the unsheltered homeless population , which includes those in tents along with people living in cars , RVs and vans .
As of January , in the city of Los Angeles , 30 % of the homeless population was sheltered , up from 25 % the year prior .
That ’ s partially the result of a growth in the number of shelter beds @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Program , which has opened 20 shelters over the past two years .
But even with huge progress toward building a system that shelters and houses thousands of people each year , the latest homeless count numbers paint a grim picture of how the region ’ s most vulnerable population is growing .
“ The reality is that we continue to perform better every year and are unable to keep pace with the crisis , ” said Marston , who served as interim director since December and was selected for the post this @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in January when volunteers spread over all corners of the county counting cars , vans , tents and individuals .
The results come about six months later , allowing LAHSA to survey thousands of homeless people individually to construct a picture of their demographics and the rate at which people are becoming homeless .
LAHSA estimated that more than 82,000 people fell into homelessness last year , a 51 % increase over the year before .
Nearly two-thirds of those people became housed again on their own .
Added to the 23,000 LAHSA @ @ @ @ @ @ @ left nearly 7,500 more without a home .
The numbers would have been even worse without the gains supported by Measure H , the 2017 county sales tax measure to fund homeless services , Los Angeles County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas said .
But those gains , too , are in jeopardy because of the coronavirus .
Ridley-Thomas said the county expects a sales tax hit from business interruption that will drain nearly $ 200 million from Measure H over this fiscal year and next .
“ We know that there is tough sledding @ @ @ @ @ @ @ There is no question about that.
” The funds will have to be made up by the state and federal governments , he said .
“ We ’ ll appeal to the state .
The state will appeal to the feds.
” The homeless population continues to be about two-thirds male .
The racial dynamics of homelessness continue to be stark .
Black residents account for 8 % of the population in Los Angeles County , but 34 % of those who are homeless .
Marston said that structural racism means that Black @ @ @ @ @ @ @ likely to experience homelessness .
“ We have an obligation to look at this data very carefully in terms of the racial disparities and disproportionality ... and ask ourselves , can ’ t we , in fact , do a better job , particularly in light of the forceful presentation of racial intolerance , racial injustice , racial animus , racial antipathy and racism itself ?
” Ridley-Thomas said .
There was little growth in the population of homeless veterans , but both seniors and people aged 18 to 24 increased by 20 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ number of those classified as chronically homeless was also up , largely because of increases in the rates of substance use disorder and mental illness , which fit into the definition of chronic homelessness .
Marston said the doubling of the substance use rate may not have been an actual change but attributed it to adjustments made in the survey questions .
Jane Nguyen , secretary of the homeless outreach and advocacy group Ktown for All , issued a statement saying : “ The people of Los Angeles have said time and time @ @ @ @ @ @ @ issue facing our city , yet our leaders have failed to take meaningful action while simultaneously disinvesting in proven solutions.
” One worrisome sign was the increase of family homelessness , which saw a jump of nearly 46 % from 8,800 to 12,800 family members living without a home .
Officials said this increase was partially a result of better tracking .
The hard reality of homelessness set in for Nicole Bradley-Bibb , 40 , when her son , Dallas , was born five months ago at 31 weeks .
After Dallas spent @ @ @ @ @ @ @ neonatal intensive care unit , Bradley-Bibb might have been expected to be happy when doctors told her she could take her child home .
Except she wasn ’ t .
She , her fiance and her 9-year-old , Annalise , were living in a Chrysler Town & Country minivan .
During her pregnancy , she did drug education in schools and said she made $ 16 a hour .
Try as she might , she couldn ’ t find an apartment to rent on that salary .
“ I was living in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ see him every day , ” she said .
“ When they said he could leave [ the hospital ] , I was wondering : ‘ What are we going to do ?
’ ” She has fibromyalgia , which made it challenging to work .
This led her to stay in the van and motels along with her family for nearly three years .
As the pandemic became a reality , Bradley-Bibb ’ s family found beds at a shelter on skid row and later was connected with St. Joseph ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and homeless people in Los Angeles .
They placed her in a trailer in the Florence neighborhood of South L.A.
It ’ s a respite from the uncertainty and challenges of being without a home .
The roof over her head along with help from case managers have allowed her to sign up for disability benefits , she said .
Still , the prospect of finding an apartment she can afford is daunting .
Maia Eaglin , director of family services for St. Joseph ’ s Center , said that the lack of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ other challenges that families experiencing homelessness face .
A health event might be harder to recover from because of new bills .
A substance abuse issue might be exacerbated by the lack of stable accommodations , she said .
“ We didn ’ t catch this in time , ” Eaglin said of the investment Los Angeles has made in battling homelessness .
Elise Buik , president and chief executive of United Way of Greater Los Angeles , said the results of the count should not be surprising .
She said the nonprofit @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and county ballot measures to fund homeless services and housing , is shifting its focus to finding a new approach to filling the gap of affordable units .
United Way is pushing for a new countywide agency that would have the funding and authority to boost housing production , both market-rate and subsidized , in all the county ’ s cities .
“ We ’ ll never dig out of that deficit of half a million units if we do this city by city 88 times , ” Buik said .

Russell Terrell, 50, left, Scott Townsend, 65, and Martin Freeman, 56, all army veterans hangout at Boeing Plaza in Lancaster. Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority officials and volunteers conducted their annual homeless count, focusing on the Antelope Valley. (Irfan Khan/Los Angeles Times)
Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority employees Dale Wilson, right, and Daniel Ornelas canvas the grounds of the West LA VA campus to conduct the yearly homeless census. (Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times)
Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority employee Daniel Ornelas joins others at the West LA VA campus to conduct the yearly homeless census. (Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times)
Volunteers Kay Gabbard and L.A. County Sheriff Deputies look for signs of homeless in the Point Dume State Beach area in the city of Malibu. (Al Seib/Los Angeles Times)
Volunteer Kay Gabbard assisted by L.A. County Sheriff Deputy Santiago Cienfuegos finds a tent while looking for signs of homeless in the Point Dume State Beach area. (Al Seib/Los Angeles Times)
Volunteer Kay Gabbard assisted by Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Deputy Nicholas Barragan look for signs of homeless people or encampments in the City of Malibu as they participate in the annual Greater Los Angeles Homeless Count. (Al Seib/Los Angeles Times)
Volunteers and L.A. County Sheriff Deputies walk past piles of debris at an encampment in Zuma Canyon. (Al Seib/Los Angeles Times)
Anthoni Krawczyk, who is watching over his friends encampment in Zuma Canyon, watches as volunteer Kay Gabbard assisted by Los Angeles County Sheriff Deputy Santiago Cienfuegos, look for signs of homeless people or encampments in the Zuma Canyon and Zuma Lagoon area in the City of Malibu. (Al Seib/Los Angeles Times)
A homeless woman walks past a sleeping homeless man in North Hollywood Park on the first night of the 2020 Greater Los Angeles Homeless Count in North Hollywood Park in North Hollywood. (Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times)
Volunteers Aaron Smith, left, Lisa-Mone Lamontagne and Andre Gaona look for homeless people while participating in the annual Greater Los Angeles Homeless Count in North Hollywood. (Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times)
A homeless person carries his belongings in a shopping cart on the first night of the 2020 LA County Homeless Count in North Hollywood. (Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times)
Volunteers Lisa-Mone Lamontagne, left, Aaron Smith and Andre Gaona look for participate in the annual Greater Los Angeles Homeless Count at the North Hollywood Recreation Center in North Hollywood. (Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times)
A pair of camper trailers, which house homeless people, were counted by volunteers on the first night of the 2020 LA County Homeless Count in North Hollywood. (Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times)
A homeless person stands with his belongings on the first night of the 2020 LA County Homeless Count in North Hollywood Park in North Hollywood. (Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times)
Volunteers Lisa-Mone Lamontagne, left, Andre Gaona and Aaron Smith look for homeless people while participating in the annual Greater Los Angeles Homeless Count in North Hollywood. (Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times)
U.S. Army veteran Michelle Olbrich, photographed during the annual Greater Los Angeles Homeless Count in North Hollywood, has been living homeless on and off since 2011, served in Iraq and suffers from post traumatic stress disorder. (Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times)
Volunteers Aaron Smith, left, Lisa-Mone Lamontagne and Andre Gaona look for homeless people while participating in the annual Greater Los Angeles Homeless Count in North Hollywood. Volunteers will canvas more than 80 cities and 200 communities across Los Angeles County over three days to count the number of homeless people living on the streets. (Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times)
Gospel musician Clemmie Williams is homeless in North Hollywood Park. Williams has been working part-time jobs but it’s not enough to make first and last month’s rent for an apartment, he says. “It’s a struggle to get back to normalcy,” Williams said. (Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times)
Despite hundreds of millions of dollars spent to curb homelessness, the number of people without a home in Los Angeles grew last year for the fifth time in the last six years, officials announced Friday. And that was before the pandemic.
The double-digit increases reported in both the city and county reflected the status in January, when the annual count is taken, and before the novel coronavirus thrashed the region’s economy, raising the likelihood of a new wave of people losing their homes.
The count “is not that helpful because the whole landscape has changed,” said Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority Executive Director Heidi Marston.
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Kenny Welch, 57, builds a living structure under a 110 Freeway overpass in Los Angeles. (Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times)
“This doesn’t take into account the almost 600,000 people that, since January, and even just since May, have lost their jobs due to COVID-19,” she said.
The annual point-in-time count released Friday estimated the county’s homeless population at 66,433, up nearly 13% from the prior year, the second consecutive double-digit increase. The estimate for the city was 41,290, up almost 14% and only slightly less than last year’s increase of 16%.
Those dismal numbers highlight the continuing incapacity of the region’s expanding homeless services institutions to get their arms around interwoven crises of affordable housing, income inequality and mental health that are playing out on city and county streets.
“We hate these numbers,” Marston said. “We hate seeing the increases.”
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Since January, struggling to prevent the contagion from sweeping through the homeless population, LAHSA, along with the city and county, has rented thousands of beds in hotels and recreation centers to shelter the most medically frail and oldest.
But the number of sheltered pales in comparison with the estimates in academic reports projecting that the explosion in unemployment and the likelihood of looming evictions will probably exacerbate homelessness further.
A recent study from the UCLA Luskin Institute on Inequality and Democracy estimates that 120,000 households in Los Angeles County could become homeless for some period of time once eviction moratoriums are lifted.
‘We hate these numbers. We hate seeing the increases.’ — Heidi Marston, executive director of the L.A. Homeless Services Authority
“Until America has a right to housing as an entitlement for the truly indigent, we’re not going to solve homelessness in America. Every country that solved homelessness has done that,” Mayor Eric Garcetti said.
Garcetti said the grim numbers “underscore the scope of the problem and needed solutions.”
Still, he said the ability to shelter thousands of people in response to the pandemic has given him some optimism.
“We’ve shown the fastest acceleration I’ve seen in those six months, thanks to finally having a FEMA-like response to homelessness in the face of a pandemic that maybe, just maybe, we’re seeing the scale of what it takes, not just to contain, but to begin to reverse the homelessness.”
David Barker, 56, visits a friend living in a tent on skid row in Los Angeles. (Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times)
One small measure of progress was that both the city and county saw declines in the unsheltered homeless population, which includes those in tents along with people living in cars, RVs and vans.
As of January, in the city of Los Angeles, 30% of the homeless population was sheltered, up from 25% the year prior. That’s partially the result of a growth in the number of shelter beds through Garcetti’s A Bridge Home Program, which has opened 20 shelters over the past two years.
But even with huge progress toward building a system that shelters and houses thousands of people each year, the latest homeless count numbers paint a grim picture of how the region’s most vulnerable population is growing.
“The reality is that we continue to perform better every year and are unable to keep pace with the crisis,” said Marston, who served as interim director since December and was selected for the post this month.
The annual count is taken in January when volunteers spread over all corners of the county counting cars, vans, tents and individuals. The results come about six months later, allowing LAHSA to survey thousands of homeless people individually to construct a picture of their demographics and the rate at which people are becoming homeless.
LAHSA estimated that more than 82,000 people fell into homelessness last year, a 51% increase over the year before. Nearly two-thirds of those people became housed again on their own. Added to the 23,000 LAHSA helped to get permanent housing, that left nearly 7,500 more without a home.
The numbers would have been even worse without the gains supported by Measure H, the 2017 county sales tax measure to fund homeless services, Los Angeles County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas said.
But those gains, too, are in jeopardy because of the coronavirus. Ridley-Thomas said the county expects a sales tax hit from business interruption that will drain nearly $200 million from Measure H over this fiscal year and next.
“We know that there is tough sledding here,” Ridley-Thomas said. “There is no question about that.”
Gary Lindley, 68, who has been homeless off and on since 1989, at a temporary shelter at Martin Luther King Jr. Community Center in Long Beach. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)
The funds will have to be made up by the state and federal governments, he said. “We’ll appeal to the state. The state will appeal to the feds.”
The homeless population continues to be about two-thirds male. The racial dynamics of homelessness continue to be stark. Black residents account for 8% of the population in Los Angeles County, but 34% of those who are homeless. Marston said that structural racism means that Black men and women are four times more likely to experience homelessness.
“We have an obligation to look at this data very carefully in terms of the racial disparities and disproportionality ... and ask ourselves, can’t we, in fact, do a better job, particularly in light of the forceful presentation of racial intolerance, racial injustice, racial animus, racial antipathy and racism itself?” Ridley-Thomas said.
There was little growth in the population of homeless veterans, but both seniors and people aged 18 to 24 increased by 20% from the prior year.
The number of those classified as chronically homeless was also up, largely because of increases in the rates of substance use disorder and mental illness, which fit into the definition of chronic homelessness.
Marston said the doubling of the substance use rate may not have been an actual change but attributed it to adjustments made in the survey questions.
Jane Nguyen, secretary of the homeless outreach and advocacy group Ktown for All, issued a statement saying: “The people of Los Angeles have said time and time again that homelessness is the number one issue facing our city, yet our leaders have failed to take meaningful action while simultaneously disinvesting in proven solutions.”
One worrisome sign was the increase of family homelessness, which saw a jump of nearly 46% from 8,800 to 12,800 family members living without a home. Officials said this increase was partially a result of better tracking.
Nicole Bradley-Bibb lives with her two children, including a toddler named Dallas, at the St. Joseph Center’s South Los Angeles trailer shelter. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)
The hard reality of homelessness set in for Nicole Bradley-Bibb, 40, when her son, Dallas, was born five months ago at 31 weeks. After Dallas spent an extended period of time in the neonatal intensive care unit, Bradley-Bibb might have been expected to be happy when doctors told her she could take her child home.
Except she wasn’t. She, her fiance and her 9-year-old, Annalise, were living in a Chrysler Town & Country minivan. During her pregnancy, she did drug education in schools and said she made $16 a hour. Try as she might, she couldn’t find an apartment to rent on that salary.
“I was living in the van, going to the hospital to see him every day,” she said.
“When they said he could leave [the hospital], I was wondering: ‘What are we going to do?’”
She has fibromyalgia, which made it challenging to work. This led her to stay in the van and motels along with her family for nearly three years. As the pandemic became a reality, Bradley-Bibb’s family found beds at a shelter on skid row and later was connected with St. Joseph’s Center, a nonprofit that helps poor and homeless people in Los Angeles. They placed her in a trailer in the Florence neighborhood of South L.A.
Nicole Bradley-Bibb lives with her two children, Annalise and Dallas, at the St. Joseph Center’s South Los Angeles trailer shelter. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)
It’s a respite from the uncertainty and challenges of being without a home. The roof over her head along with help from case managers have allowed her to sign up for disability benefits, she said. Still, the prospect of finding an apartment she can afford is daunting.
Maia Eaglin, director of family services for St. Joseph’s Center, said that the lack of a living wage and high rents magnify other challenges that families experiencing homelessness face. A health event might be harder to recover from because of new bills. A substance abuse issue might be exacerbated by the lack of stable accommodations, she said.
“We didn’t catch this in time,” Eaglin said of the investment Los Angeles has made in battling homelessness.
Elise Buik, president and chief executive of United Way of Greater Los Angeles, said the results of the count should not be surprising.
She said the nonprofit, which led the campaigns for city and county ballot measures to fund homeless services and housing, is shifting its focus to finding a new approach to filling the gap of affordable units.
United Way is pushing for a new countywide agency that would have the funding and authority to boost housing production, both market-rate and subsidized, in all the county’s cities.
“We’ll never dig out of that deficit of half a million units if we do this city by city 88 times,” Buik said.


latimes--2020-06-12--Anti-Asian tirades appear to be from the same woman

A woman who gained notoriety making racist , anti-Asian comments to a woman exercising at Wilson Park in Torrance on Wednesday went viral again Thursday in another screaming social media confrontation .
This time , the woman calls out an Asian male sitting in the driver ’ s seat of his vehicle that ’ s parked next to her outside a shopping complex .
The unidentified woman tells the man , “ You know what , you need to go home , ” while glancing at his vehicle , which the man ’ s children are believed to be in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and a fishing cap , the woman tells the man she doesn ’ t care if he ’ s recording the incident and adds she doesn ’ t play games .
The man responds , “ I am home , ” before the woman tells him to stop playing games .
Then the woman used a profanity and threatened to kill the man .
He filmed the women ’ s license plate before she referred to him as a “ China man ” and complained his vehicle was parked too close to her @ @ @ @ @ @ @ was parked crookedly , thus causing the tight quarters .
The man continued to repeat to the woman somewhat calmly , “ Get educated ” and “ Respect.
” Torrance resident Kayceelyn Salminao told KCBS that she had been attacked by the woman at the Del Amo Fashion Center in October and filed a police report , but never heard back from authorities .
It is believed that Wednesday , this same woman accosted and threatened violence against another woman who was working out on a set of stairs at Wilson Park .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ said police were investigating the Wilson Park incident .
“ All visitors to our open spaces should always feel safe and free to exercise while practicing social distancing without conflict , ” Furey said .
“ Conduct like that displayed on the video can not be tolerated.
” While some media have identified the woman as white , that has not been confirmed .
“ There are definitely two incidents that we have an active criminal investigation ongoing , ” said Sgt .
Ron Salary of the Torrance Police Department .

A woman who gained notoriety making racist, anti-Asian comments to a woman exercising at Wilson Park in Torrance on Wednesday went viral again Thursday in another screaming social media confrontation.
This time, the woman calls out an Asian male sitting in the driver’s seat of his vehicle that’s parked next to her car.
The unidentified woman tells the man, “You know what, you need to go home,” while glancing at his vehicle, which the man’s children are believed to be in.
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Wearing sunglasses, a colorful scarf and a fishing cap, the woman tells the man she doesn’t care if he’s recording the incident and adds she doesn’t play games.
The man responds, “I am home,” before the woman tells him to stop playing games.
Then the woman used a profanity and threatened to kill the man.
He filmed the women’s license plate before she referred to him as a “China man” and complained his vehicle was parked too close to her Honda.
Footage showed that the Honda was parked crookedly, thus causing the tight quarters.
Our friend and attorney just sent us this video of a very racist and extremely disturbed old lady going off on him while his kids are in the car.... pic.twitter.com/DvkE7oKL5s — brendon mcnerney (@brendonmcnerney) June 11, 2020
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The man continued to repeat to the woman somewhat calmly, “Get educated” and “Respect.”
Torrance resident Kayceelyn Salminao told KCBS that she had been attacked by the woman at the Del Amo Fashion Center in October and filed a police report, but never heard back from authorities.
It is believed that Wednesday, this same woman accosted and threatened violence against another woman who was working out on a set of stairs at Wilson Park.
On Thursday, Torrance Mayor Patrick Furey said police were investigating the Wilson Park incident.
“All visitors to our open spaces should always feel safe and free to exercise while practicing social distancing without conflict,” Furey said. “Conduct like that displayed on the video cannot be tolerated.”
While some media have identified the woman as white, that has not been confirmed.
“There are definitely two incidents that we have an active criminal investigation ongoing,” said Sgt. Ron Salary of the Torrance Police Department.


latimes--2020-06-12--Black attorney accuses ACLU of 'flagrantly racist policies' in discrimination lawsuit

A former staff attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California has sued the nonprofit civil rights organization , alleging that as a Black woman , she was subjected to retaliation and discrimination for repeatedly complaining about systemic racism in the workplace .
In a lawsuit filed Tuesday in Los Angeles Superior Court , Sarah O. Clifton contends she was labeled as “ angry ” or “ aggressive ” for raising racial equity issues , endured an angry outburst from the ACLU ’ s executive director at a staff meeting , and that to compensate , she had @ @ @ @ @ @ @ dealing with a boss who was seemingly afraid of her .
`` [ Clifton ] purportedly was fired for being nothing more than an ‘ angry black woman ’ — a tired old racist stereotype that even mainstream publications have since caught on and written about , ” the 20-page lawsuit states .
She was terminated in February and offered a severance package that required arbitration to handle disputes .
“ The hypocrisy is rich given that the ACLU at a national level has always taken a public stance against ‘ forced arbitration @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s lawsuit , which cites an article published by the ACLU that lists the pernicious effects of arbitration agreements , among them preventing harassment and discrimination cases from ever seeing the light of day .
“ We filed the lawsuit with careful consideration and multiple attempts to try to reach an amicable resolution , ” said Clifton ’ s attorney , Kevin Chiang .
David Colker , a spokesman for the ACLU of Southern California , said in a statement , “ Our policy is not to comment on pending litigation that involves @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as the vaunted civil rights organization has seen a surge of membership and has positioned itself at the vanguard of the anti-Trump resistance , vigorously defending reproductive freedom , voting rights , a free press and the rights of immigrants .
The organization has also tackled abuses in L.A. County ’ s jail system , and most recently has taken on the cases of arrested protesters .
Last week , the ACLU joined with Black Lives Matter L.A. in a lawsuit that accused the Los Angeles Police Department of violating the rights of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the death in Minneapolis police custody of George Floyd .
The civil rights organization also joined with Black Lives Matter to sue the cities of Los Angeles and San Bernardino as well as law enforcement agencies , saying the curfews imposed during the unrest violated 1st Amendment rights .
In her lawsuit , which also names executive director Hector Villagra , Clifton accused the ACLU of “ using the plight of Black folks purely for self-interested gain ” and “ allowing flagrantly racist policies and procedures to reign supreme.
” Clifton , a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of Law , is the daughter of O. Rogeriee Thompson , a federal judge on the U.S. 1st Circuit Court of Appeals in Boston .
Her late father , William C. Clifton , was a longtime judge in Rhode Island , and her suit contends she “ selflessly eschewed her privilege ” to pursue public interest law rather than lucrative corporate work .
The ACLU hired her in 2018 , and initially she was to work for Peter Eliasberg and another attorney , but Clifton said she was instead reassigned to work for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and drug policy .
An ACLU spokesman did not make Farris available for comment .
Clifton accused Farris of having “ an actual , irrational fear towards her.
” Farris initially gave her a “ sub-par ” performance review , but when Clifton pushed back , the evaluation was revised to “ exceptional ” in all categories .
The lawsuit includes details of the positive performance review , which praises her for succeeding while facing “ a multitude of unusual and difficult situations.
” She contrasted the positive evaluation with her termination letter @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of being “ disruptive ” and “ insubordinate , ” alleging she resisted checking in with her supervisor and failed to properly supervise interns .
As a rebuttal , Clifton included positive testimonials from former interns .
Other instances of racism followed , she alleged .
At an ACLU National Conference in 2019 , a speaker exhorted delegates to root out “ white supremacy.
” Clifton said she gathered with Black women from other ACLU offices who attended the conference and said she “ was shocked to learn that all of them had @ @ @ @ @ @ @ racism.
” Back in L.A. , Clifton ’ s suit claimed that at an all-staff meeting last year , Villagra and other managers presented the ACLU ’ s “ mission statement ” on equity and inclusion .
At the end of the presentation , Clifton said she inquired about where “ the real change ” was with respect to racial equity .
“ Mr .
Villagra blew up , lost his temper , and started yelling and arguing with [ Clifton ] in front of everyone .
He also tried to cross-examine her @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for her arguments , ” the lawsuit states .
Staff members texted one another about Villagra ’ s alleged outburst , the suit says .
One colleague drafted a petition that called for greater equity and expressed how staff were frustrated with the pace of change , according to the suit .
Villagra eventually apologized in a staff email and vowed to do better , the lawsuit said .
An ACLU spokesman did not make Villagra available for comment .
By then , the ACLU had retained an investigator to review Clifton ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ organization terminated her on Valentine ’ s Day , in the middle of Black History Month , she said in the suit , and offered $ 48,000 in severance along with an agreement to arbitrate disputes confidentially .
Clifton declined .

Sarah Clifton is a former staff attorney for ACLU who is suing the organization for racial discrimination and workplace retaliation.
A former staff attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California has sued the nonprofit civil rights organization, alleging that as a Black woman, she was subjected to retaliation and discrimination for repeatedly complaining about systemic racism in the workplace.
In a lawsuit filed Tuesday in Los Angeles Superior Court, Sarah O. Clifton contends she was labeled as “angry” or “aggressive” for raising racial equity issues, endured an angry outburst from the ACLU’s executive director at a staff meeting, and that to compensate, she had to act “overly polite” in dealing with a boss who was seemingly afraid of her.
“[Clifton] purportedly was fired for being nothing more than an ‘angry black woman’ — a tired old racist stereotype that even mainstream publications have since caught on and written about,” the 20-page lawsuit states.
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She was terminated in February and offered a severance package that required arbitration to handle disputes.
“The hypocrisy is rich given that the ACLU at a national level has always taken a public stance against ‘forced arbitration,’” according to Clifton’s lawsuit, which cites an article published by the ACLU that lists the pernicious effects of arbitration agreements, among them preventing harassment and discrimination cases from ever seeing the light of day.
“We filed the lawsuit with careful consideration and multiple attempts to try to reach an amicable resolution,” said Clifton’s attorney, Kevin Chiang.
David Colker, a spokesman for the ACLU of Southern California, said in a statement, “Our policy is not to comment on pending litigation that involves private personnel matters.”
The lawsuit comes as the vaunted civil rights organization has seen a surge of membership and has positioned itself at the vanguard of the anti-Trump resistance, vigorously defending reproductive freedom, voting rights, a free press and the rights of immigrants. The organization has also tackled abuses in L.A. County’s jail system, and most recently has taken on the cases of arrested protesters.
Last week, the ACLU joined with Black Lives Matter L.A. in a lawsuit that accused the Los Angeles Police Department of violating the rights of protesters during demonstrations against police brutality and the death in Minneapolis police custody of George Floyd. The civil rights organization also joined with Black Lives Matter to sue the cities of Los Angeles and San Bernardino as well as law enforcement agencies, saying the curfews imposed during the unrest violated 1st Amendment rights.
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In her lawsuit, which also names executive director Hector Villagra, Clifton accused the ACLU of “using the plight of Black folks purely for self-interested gain” and “allowing flagrantly racist policies and procedures to reign supreme.”
Clifton, a graduate of USC’s Gould School of Law, is the daughter of O. Rogeriee Thompson, a federal judge on the U.S. 1st Circuit Court of Appeals in Boston. Her late father, William C. Clifton, was a longtime judge in Rhode Island, and her suit contends she “selflessly eschewed her privilege” to pursue public interest law rather than lucrative corporate work.
The ACLU hired her in 2018, and initially she was to work for Peter Eliasberg and another attorney, but Clifton said she was instead reassigned to work for Jessica Farris, who oversees criminal justice and drug policy. An ACLU spokesman did not make Farris available for comment.
Clifton accused Farris of having “an actual, irrational fear towards her.” Farris initially gave her a “sub-par” performance review, but when Clifton pushed back, the evaluation was revised to “exceptional” in all categories. The lawsuit includes details of the positive performance review, which praises her for succeeding while facing “a multitude of unusual and difficult situations.”
She contrasted the positive evaluation with her termination letter and highlighted discrepancies. She was accused of being “disruptive” and “insubordinate,” alleging she resisted checking in with her supervisor and failed to properly supervise interns. As a rebuttal, Clifton included positive testimonials from former interns.
Other instances of racism followed, she alleged. At an ACLU National Conference in 2019, a speaker exhorted delegates to root out “white supremacy.” Clifton said she gathered with Black women from other ACLU offices who attended the conference and said she “was shocked to learn that all of them had experienced some form of systemic or institutionalized racism.”
Hector Villagra, executive director of the ACLU of Southern California. (Willy Sanjuan / Invision)
Back in L.A., Clifton’s suit claimed that at an all-staff meeting last year, Villagra and other managers presented the ACLU’s “mission statement” on equity and inclusion. At the end of the presentation, Clifton said she inquired about where “the real change” was with respect to racial equity.
“Mr. Villagra blew up, lost his temper, and started yelling and arguing with [Clifton] in front of everyone. He also tried to cross-examine her, asking her to provide empirical evidence for her arguments,” the lawsuit states.
Staff members texted one another about Villagra’s alleged outburst, the suit says. One colleague drafted a petition that called for greater equity and expressed how staff were frustrated with the pace of change, according to the suit.
Villagra eventually apologized in a staff email and vowed to do better, the lawsuit said. An ACLU spokesman did not make Villagra available for comment.
By then, the ACLU had retained an investigator to review Clifton’s complaints about systemic racism.
The organization terminated her on Valentine’s Day, in the middle of Black History Month, she said in the suit, and offered $48,000 in severance along with an agreement to arbitrate disputes confidentially. Clifton declined.