latimes--2020-08-20--Compton Executioners deputy gang lied about guns and hosted inking parties, deputy says

At the Compton sheriff ’ s station , it ’ s called a ghost gun : a weapon a deputy says he spots on a suspect but that is never found when colleagues respond to the scene and search for it .
That ’ s because the call-out is based on a lie .
The deputy didn ’ t actually see a gun , but his suspect could turn out to be armed and an arrest or recovered firearm could pad his reputation .
It ’ s the kind of behavior that plays out regularly at the station , according @ @ @ @ @ @ @ five years and recounted other sensational allegations in a recent deposition obtained by The Times in a federal civil rights lawsuit .
“ In reality , they ’ ve never seen the gun , ” L.A. County Sheriff ’ s Deputy Austreberto Gonzalez said under oath .
“ And then at the end when their containments are set up , you know , the gun is never recovered .
You know , they ’ ll call it a day and say , ‘ Thank you for rolling .
We ’ re going to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ was never recovered.
” Gonzalez says the scheme is employed in Compton by tattooed deputies who call themselves the Executioners , the clandestine gang many believe runs the station .
His allegations add to a growing body of information about the Compton clique , one of several tattooed deputy groups within the Sheriff ’ s Department with names such as the Grim Reapers , Banditos and Jump Out Boys .
The Sheriff ’ s Department has been aware of the groups for decades but has struggled to crack down , despite repeated internal @ @ @ @ @ @ @ members are accused of misconduct .
Gonzalez ’ s statements were introduced in an excessive-force lawsuit filed against the Sheriff ’ s Department by Sheldon Lockett .
The judge hearing the case cited the evidence when tentatively deciding to advance the case for trial .
“ Accepting the deputy ’ s testimony , there is evidence that the clique existed in Compton and that it routinely violated the rights of suspects , ” Magistrate Judge Patrick J. Walsh said in his ruling .
“ The testimony also establishes that the command staff at @ @ @ @ @ @ @ only did not stop it but it encouraged the behavior and placed its members in positions of authority where they could help other members.
” The Sheriff ’ s Department said the FBI is now involved in an investigation of the Executioners .
Following The Times ’ reporting , Compton officials issued formal requests to the state and federal attorney generals to investigate allegations of pervasive civil rights violations .
In his deposition , Gonzalez identified Miguel Vega , the Compton station deputy who killed 18-year-old Andres Guardado in a shooting in June @ @ @ @ @ @ @ his partner , Chris Hernandez , as prospective members of the Executioners .
Their attorneys said Wednesday that those allegations are false .
“ Deputy Vega does not have one single tattoo on his body , much less a deputy gang tattoo , ” his attorney Adam Marangell said .
“ He doesn ’ t have one nor does he plan on getting one.
” The Sheriff ’ s Department said in a statement that it had not yet received the transcript of Gonzalez ’ s testimony .
“ Once we do , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ appropriately , ” a spokesman said .
County attorneys have argued that Gonzalez ’ s testimony about the Executioners was nothing more than speculation and conjecture , as he ’ s not in the group and has no personal knowledge about it .
Lockett alleges he was targeted by deputies “ chasing ink ” when he was beaten and falsely arrested for attempted murder in 2016 , his attorneys said .
He sued in 2018 .
Deputies that day pulled up to Lockett outside his godmother ’ s home and jumped out of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ they said he matched the description of a shooting suspect .
Lockett froze , then ran .
The deputies , Samuel Aldama and Mizrain Orrego , radioed that Lockett had a gun , which he says was a lie .
No gun was found .
They chased him until they found him hiding in a backyard , where Lockett says he surrendered .
Even so , he says , Aldama punched him in the head five times while using the N-word .
He alleged that one of the deputies rammed the end of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , which caused permanent damage , and that he was kicked in the back of the head .
The county has denied the allegations .
Lockett was arrested on suspicion of attempted murder and other gun charges and spent eight months in jail .
In August , prosecutors dropped charges because of insufficient evidence and after a witness testified that she was mistaken when she identified him , according to a district attorney ’ s office spokeswoman .
After the arrest , Lockett ’ s mother filed a complaint to the Sheriff ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , ” Lockett ’ s attorney John Sweeney said during a hearing this week .
Instead , he says , they served a search warrant on her home in retaliation .
Several months after Lockett ’ s arrest and three weeks after charges were dropped , Aldama and Orrego shot at and killed Donta Taylor , 31 , during a foot chase .
Deputies said Taylor had a handgun , but no weapon was found .
“ Had that been investigated ... Donta Taylor would still be alive , ” Sweeney said .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ sport kill and an attempt to getting into this gang .
And instead of being prosecuted , what happened ?
There were inking parties and celebrations.
” Aldama admitted under oath to having a tattoo on his calf depicting a skull with a rifle and a military-style helmet emerging from flames .
The letters “ CPT , ” for Compton , appear on the helmet .
Aldama said he was one of as many as 20 deputies selected to get the same tattoo after “ working hard ” by making arrests and answering @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a club .
L.A. County settled a lawsuit brought by Taylor ’ s family for $ 7 million .
Deputies with alleged ties to these cliques , which are accused of using violent and aggressive tactics similar to those of criminal street gangs , have cost taxpayers $ 55 million in settlements and payouts in incidents that date to the 1990s , according to county records obtained by The Times .
Walsh said three Compton deputies , including Aldama and Orrego , have denied in other court proceedings that they were part of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to “ serendipity.
” The depositions of those three deputies are under seal , but Lockett ’ s attorney Steven Glickman argued during a court hearing Thursday that their tattoos are numbered .
In their depositions , Glickman said Aldama testified that his tattoo ’ s No .
38 was a nod to his first gun ; Orrego ’ s said his tattoo , which was covered up , was never numbered and he got it in solidarity with Aldama , his friend who had cancer ; and Deputy Rogelio Benzor ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ which he explained as a reference to his retirement in 2040 .
The county had argued that Lockett ’ s attorneys failed to produce evidence that there was a clique and show that the county knew about it .
“ Obviously , these rogue officers are not going to simply admit that they had formed an unlawful group bent on assaulting minorities , ” the judge wrote .
“ And , presumably , the clique would not be issuing membership cards , or taking minutes at membership meetings , or doing anything else @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Thus , it would seem impossible for a plaintiff to find tangible evidence to prove that the officers were lying when they denied the existence of their group.
” Just last week , Sheriff Alex Villanueva said he was moving to discipline 26 employees with firings or suspensions for their roles in a fight at an off-duty East L.A. station party at Kennedy Hall , a nearby event space , where deputies say they were attacked by inked members of the Banditos , who allegedly wielded power at the station .
But he @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s Department .
“ There is zero evidence of three or more deputies engaged in criminal activity with a unifying symbol whose primary purpose is to commit crime , ” Villanueva said .
Two deputies who said they were assaulted and knocked unconscious are among those facing discipline for policy violations that include failing to report the Kennedy Hall incident to superiors , their attorney Vincent Miller said .
“ My guys are in trouble for not reporting the Banditos to the Banditos , ” Miller said , adding that his clients @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a lieutenant they trusted .
Prosecutors declined to file criminal charges against the deputies who Miller says attacked his clients .
But an administrative investigation found that some employees at the East L.A. station were acting as so-called shot callers , controlling scheduling and events at the station , Cmdr .
April Tardy said , using a term often used to describe top leaders in prisons and gangs .
In Compton , the Executioners ruled the station using a similar structure , Gonzalez testified .
About 15 to 20 deputies are Executioners , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ handful more are prospective members who are “ chasing ink.
” He said “ it ’ s the word out ” that only two deputies are inked each year — women and Black people aren ’ t allowed .
A vast majority of members and prospects , he said , have been involved in high-profile shootings or beatings .
After a shooting , members will have a party at a bar and call it a “ 998 debrief , ” referencing the code for a deputy-involved shooting .
Some say it ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ he said .
But often , Gonzalez said , after the party , the deputy and his partner will get inked .
Gonzalez said he ’ d never been invited to nor attended one .
“ I think it is some type of reward , ” Gonzalez testified .
He added later : “ So we call it ‘ ink chasers ’ because they ’ re out there trying to show the rest of the members , the rest of the inked members that , you know , they ’ re worthy of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ joined the department as a deputy in 2008 .
He was investigated by Los Angeles police in 2012 on an allegation of sexual misconduct .
The district attorney ’ s office declined to file charges .
He said in his deposition that he was relieved of duty for the off-duty incident but that the allegation was unfounded and he was not disciplined .
Gonzalez ’ s attorney Alan Romero said that disclosing the allegation about his client “ is totally irrelevant to the heroism of his coming forward to protect the public , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ future whistleblowers from coming forward.
” “ The L.A. Times would be sending a clear message : If you want to blow the whistle on public corruption , be warned that we will dig into your history and disclose any false allegations that [ were ] ever made against you.
” Gonzalez said in the deposition that Jaime Juarez , a deputy he identified as the Executioners ’ shot caller , carried out a work slowdown last year when the acting captain refused to install a member as scheduling deputy .
The powerful @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , controls scheduling , days off and overtime , Gonzalez said .
“ There was nobody being arrested .
Very minimal arrests were being done at that time , ” Gonzalez said of the work slowdown .
“ We have a booking line .
We would hardly ever see a unit in the booking line with , you know — you know , with suspects in their back seats .
It was so obvious that , you know , we all noticed that.
” The Times has requested arrest records from the Compton @ @ @ @ @ @ @ occurred .
Juarez did not respond to a request for comment .
In 2017 , Gonzalez said , the Compton station captain at the time had turned to that deputy to boost arrest statistics after the captain was reprimanded for low numbers at the station .
Monthly arrests per deputy more than doubled and that captain was eventually promoted , he said .
Gonzalez testified that he faced blowback earlier this year after anonymously reporting an Executioner to the Internal Affairs Bureau for assaulting a fellow deputy .
After Gonzalez made his report @ @ @ @ @ @ @ him a rat .
He was warned by another deputy to be careful .
“ They know it was you , ” Gonzalez recalled being told .
He filed a legal claim against the county in June alleging retaliation .
One deputy told Gonzalez he didn ’ t want to partner with him out of fear of getting “ screwed with , ” he said .
Gonzalez testified that he feared for his safety from the clique .
“ I think that I now call them a gang because that ’ s what @ @ @ @ @ @ @ people , ” he said.
`` I call that a gang .
Their focus is not the station , their focus is not the department , and their focus is not their job .
Their focus is their group .
”

At the Compton sheriff’s station, it’s called a ghost gun: a weapon a deputy says he spots on a suspect but that is never found when colleagues respond to the scene and search for it.
That’s because the call-out is based on a lie. The deputy didn’t actually see a gun, but his suspect could turn out to be armed and an arrest or recovered firearm could pad his reputation.
It’s the kind of behavior that plays out regularly at the station, according to a whistleblower who worked there for five years and recounted other sensational allegations in a recent deposition obtained by The Times in a federal civil rights lawsuit.
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“In reality, they’ve never seen the gun,” L.A. County Sheriff’s Deputy Austreberto Gonzalez said under oath. “And then at the end when their containments are set up, you know, the gun is never recovered. You know, they’ll call it a day and say, ‘Thank you for rolling. We’re going to call it,’ and a gun was never recovered.”
Gonzalez says the scheme is employed in Compton by tattooed deputies who call themselves the Executioners, the clandestine gang many say runs the station.
His allegations add to a growing body of information about the Compton clique, one of several tattooed deputy groups within the Sheriff’s Department with names such as the Grim Reapers, Banditos and Jump Out Boys.
The Sheriff’s Department has been aware of the groups for decades but has struggled to crack down, despite repeated internal and independent investigations and instances in which members are accused of misconduct.
Gonzalez’s statements were introduced in an excessive-force lawsuit filed against the Sheriff’s Department by Sheldon Lockett. The judge hearing the case cited the evidence when tentatively deciding to advance the case for trial.
“Accepting the deputy’s testimony, there is evidence that the clique existed in Compton and that it routinely violated the rights of suspects,” Magistrate Judge Patrick J. Walsh said in his ruling. “The testimony also establishes that the command staff at the station knew about it and not only did not stop it but it encouraged the behavior and placed its members in positions of authority where they could help other members.”
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The Sheriff’s Department said the FBI is now involved in an investigation of the Executioners. Following The Times’ reporting, Compton officials issued formal requests to the state and federal attorney generals to investigate allegations of pervasive civil rights violations.
In his deposition, Gonzalez identified Miguel Vega, the Compton station deputy who killed 18-year-old Andres Guardado in a shooting in June that sparked weeks of protests, and his partner, Chris Hernandez, as prospective members of the Executioners. Their attorneys said Wednesday that those allegations are false.
“Deputy Vega does not have one single tattoo on his body, much less a deputy gang tattoo,” his attorney Adam Marangell said. “He doesn’t have one, nor does he plan on getting one.”
The Sheriff’s Department said in a statement that it had not yet received the transcript of Gonzalez’s testimony. “Once we do, counsel will review and we can respond appropriately,” a spokesman said. County attorneys have argued that Gonzalez’s testimony about the Executioners was nothing more than speculation and conjecture, as he’s not in the group and has no personal knowledge about it.
Lockett alleges he was targeted by deputies “chasing ink” when he was beaten and falsely arrested for attempted murder in 2016, his attorneys said. He sued in 2018.
Deputies that day pulled up to Lockett outside his godmother’s home and jumped out of their car with their guns drawn because they said he matched the description of a shooting suspect. Lockett froze, then ran. The deputies, Samuel Aldama and Mizrain Orrego, radioed that Lockett had a gun, which he says was a lie. No gun was found.
They chased him until they found him hiding in a backyard, where Lockett says he surrendered. Even so, he says, Aldama punched him in the head five times while using the N-word. He alleged that one of the deputies rammed the end of a police baton into his eye socket, which caused permanent damage, and that he was kicked in the back of the head. The county has denied the allegations.
Lockett was arrested on suspicion of attempted murder and other gun charges and spent eight months in jail. In August, prosecutors dropped charges because of insufficient evidence and after a witness testified that she was mistaken when she identified him, according to a district attorney’s office spokeswoman.
After the arrest, Lockett’s mother filed a complaint to the Sheriff’s Department.
“They did nothing,” Lockett’s attorney John Sweeney said during a hearing this week. Instead, he says, they served a search warrant on her home in retaliation. Several months after Lockett’s arrest and three weeks after charges were dropped, Aldama and Orrego shot at and killed Donta Taylor, 31, during a foot chase. Deputies said Taylor had a handgun, but no weapon was found.
“Had that been investigated ... Donta Taylor would still be alive,” Sweeney said. “This was nothing more than a sport kill and an attempt to getting into this gang. And instead of being prosecuted, what happened? There were inking parties and celebrations.”
Aldama admitted under oath to having a tattoo on his calf depicting a skull with a rifle and a military-style helmet emerging from flames. The letters “CPT,” for Compton, appear on the helmet. Aldama said he was one of as many as 20 deputies selected to get the same tattoo after “working hard” by making arrests and answering calls. He denied being part of a club.
L.A. County settled a lawsuit brought by Taylor’s family for $7 million. Deputies with alleged ties to these cliques, which are accused of using violent and aggressive tactics similar to those of criminal street gangs, have cost taxpayers $55 million in settlements and payouts in incidents that date to the 1990s, according to county records obtained by The Times.
Walsh said three Compton deputies, including Aldama and Orrego, have denied in other court proceedings that they were part of a clique and attributed their matching tattoos to “serendipity.”
The depositions of those three deputies are under seal, but Lockett’s attorney Steven Glickman argued during a court hearing Thursday that their tattoos are numbered. In their depositions, Glickman said Aldama testified that his tattoo’s No. 38 was a nod to his first gun; Orrego’s said his tattoo, which was covered up, was never numbered and he got it in solidarity with Aldama, his friend who had cancer; and Deputy Rogelio Benzor’s tattoo has a No. 40, which he explained as a reference to his retirement in 2040.
The county had argued that Lockett’s attorneys failed to produce evidence that there was a clique and show that the county knew about it.
“Obviously, these rogue officers are not going to simply admit that they had formed an unlawful group bent on assaulting minorities,” the judge wrote. “And, presumably, the clique would not be issuing membership cards, or taking minutes at membership meetings, or doing anything else that normal, lawful organizations do. Thus, it would seem impossible for a plaintiff to find tangible evidence to prove that the officers were lying when they denied the existence of their group.”
Just last week, Sheriff Alex Villanueva said he was moving to discipline 26 employees with firings or suspensions for their roles in a fight at an off-duty East L.A. station party at Kennedy Hall, a nearby event space, where deputies say they were attacked by inked members of the Banditos, who allegedly wielded power at the station. But he denied that gangs exist within the Sheriff’s Department.
“There is zero evidence of three or more deputies engaged in criminal activity with a unifying symbol whose primary purpose is to commit crime,” Villanueva said.
Two deputies who said they were assaulted and knocked unconscious are among those facing discipline for policy violations that include failing to report the Kennedy Hall incident to superiors, their attorney Vincent Miller said.
“My guys are in trouble for not reporting the Banditos to the Banditos,” Miller said, adding that his clients did report the incident right away to a lieutenant they trusted.
Prosecutors declined to file criminal charges against the deputies who Miller says attacked his clients. But an administrative investigation found that some employees at the East L.A. station were acting as so-called shot callers, controlling scheduling and events at the station, Cmdr. April Tardy said, using a term often used to describe top leaders in prisons and gangs.
In Compton, the Executioners ruled the station using a similar structure, Gonzalez testified. About 15 to 20 deputies are Executioners, he said, and at least a handful more are prospective members who are “chasing ink.” He said “it’s the word out” that only two deputies are inked each year — women and Black people aren’t allowed. A vast majority of members and prospects, he said, have been involved in high-profile shootings or beatings.
After a shooting, members will have a party at a bar and call it a “998 debrief,” referencing the code for a deputy-involved shooting. Some say it’s to celebrate that a deputy survived, he said. But often, Gonzalez said, after the party, the deputy and his partner will get inked. Gonzalez said he’d never been invited to nor attended one.
“I think it is some type of reward,” Gonzalez testified. He added later: “So we call it ‘ink chasers’ because they’re out there trying to show the rest of the members, the rest of the inked members that, you know, they’re worthy of that tattoo.”
Gonzalez, 42, joined the department as a deputy in 2008. He was investigated by Los Angeles police in 2012 on an allegation of sexual misconduct. The district attorney’s office declined to file charges. He said in his deposition that he was relieved of duty for the off-duty incident but that the allegation was unfounded and he was not disciplined.
Gonzalez’s attorney Alan Romero said that disclosing the allegation about his client “is totally irrelevant to the heroism of his coming forward to protect the public, and only serves to deter and frighten future whistleblowers from coming forward.”
“The L.A. Times would be sending a clear message: If you want to blow the whistle on public corruption, be warned that we will dig into your history and disclose any false allegations that [were] ever made against you.”
Gonzalez said in the deposition that Jaime Juarez, a deputy he identified as the Executioners’ shot caller, carried out a work slowdown last year when the acting captain refused to install a member as scheduling deputy. The powerful position, which Juarez had previously held, controls scheduling, days off and overtime, Gonzalez said.
“There was nobody being arrested. Very minimal arrests were being done at that time,” Gonzalez said of the work slowdown. “We have a booking line. We would hardly ever see a unit in the booking line with, you know — you know, with suspects in their back seats. It was so obvious that, you know, we all noticed that.”
The Times has requested arrest records from the Compton station to determine whether such a slowdown occurred. Juarez did not respond to a request for comment. Elizabeth Gibbons, an attorney representing Juarez, denied the allegations against him on Friday but declined to comment further, citing the ongoing Sheriff’s Department investigation.
In 2017, Gonzalez said, the Compton station captain at the time had turned to that deputy to boost arrest statistics after the captain was reprimanded for low numbers at the station. Monthly arrests per deputy more than doubled and that captain was eventually promoted, he said.
Gonzalez testified that he faced blowback earlier this year after anonymously reporting an Executioner to the Internal Affairs Bureau for assaulting a fellow deputy. After Gonzalez made his report, graffiti appeared at the station calling him a rat. He was warned by another deputy to be careful.
“They know it was you,” Gonzalez recalled being told. He filed a legal claim against the county in June alleging retaliation.
One deputy told Gonzalez he didn’t want to partner with him out of fear of getting “screwed with,” he said.
Gonzalez testified that he feared for his safety from the clique.
“I think that I now call them a gang because that’s what gangs do. They beat up other people,” he said. “ I call that a gang. Their focus is not the station, their focus is not the department, and their focus is not their job. Their focus is their group.”


latimes--2020-08-19--'I'm dying right here': Injured L.A. firefighters recount narrow escape from downtown blast

Los Angeles firefighter Andrew Tom hadn ’ t been inside the downtown building long when he heard the boom .
Other firefighters said it was like a jet engine rocketing to life .
Tom just knew it meant something terrible was about to happen .
Seconds later , as flames consumed the room and lapped at his LAFD gear , Tom thought about his fire academy training and what he ’ d been told about a “ flash over ” — the amount of time that combustible materials will take to ignite during an enclosed fire .
“ They always @ @ @ @ @ @ @ re gon na die .
Five seconds went by .
Ten seconds went by ...
I was like there ’ s no way I ’ m getting out , at all , ” Tom said .
“ That ’ s where my mind went into : It ’ s over .
I ’ m gon na die in here.
” One of 11 firefighters who narrowly escaped a May explosion inside a downtown L.A. warehouse , Tom and several others spoke about the hellish experience Wednesday as they were reunited with the staff @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Grossman Burn Center in West Hills .
“ It ’ s the phone call you never want to get , when you ’ re told there ’ s 11 firefighters burned , and you don ’ t know how bad .
...
It ’ s amazing they survived , ” Los Angeles Fire Chief Chief Ralph Terrazas said .
The explosion inside an East 3rd Street warehouse prompted a sprawling criminal investigation by the U.S. Department of Alcohol , Tobacco , Firearms and Explosives as well as the Los Angeles Police Department , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of shops throughout the city that sell hazardous materials .
Terrazas said Wednesday that those inspections have led to the closure of 11 businesses since May .
The blast happened in a section of downtown nicknamed “ bong row ” because of the concentration of retailers selling rolling papers , butane and other supplies associated with vaping , tobacco and the extraction of THC for marijuana vape cartridges .
Those in the legal cannabis industry say many of the stores on 3rd , Boyd and Wall streets supply butane and other items in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ATF spokeswoman said Wednesday that the cause of the blast remains unknown .
The owner of Smoke Tokes , the business where the explosion happened , has not responded to requests for comment .
Carbon dioxide and butane canisters were found inside the business , authorities have said .
Smoke Tokes is not a cannabis business , and law enforcement sources previously told The Times that no extraction laboratory setup or cannabis was found inside the building .
A criminal investigation has focused on whether volatile substances were stored improperly , the sources @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a 13-year LAFD veteran who was still wearing some protective coverings on his hand and leg to protect burns he suffered months ago , said the scene “ looked like a war zone ” as he and others tried to escape a blast that caused a 30-foot fireball to burst from the structure .
Soriano was one of several firefighters who had to escape from the roof of the building , and remembers clinging to a ladder as flames shot up around him .
“ When I was stuck , and I couldn @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , I ’ m done , ” Soriano said .
“ I ’ m dying right here.
” Once outside , Soriano said he saw the fire truck he ’ d ridden to the station in had also been torched , and remembers seeing other firefighters with their skin severely burned as they were transported to the hospital .
Soriano said he required two surgeries , and was only recently cleared to return to duty .
An LAFD spokesman said just two of the 11 firefighters burned that day have been able to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Victor Aguirre was hospitalized for more than two months and suffered burns so severe he lost the use of his hands .
For some hurt that day , the battle remains mental , even as their physical injuries begin to fade .
Tom , who sustained second- and third-degree burns to his back , ears and shoulder blades and still sports angry red scarring around his stomach and rib cage , said he remains unsure if he will return to his Watts firehouse .
“ I still get the flashbacks .
… @ @ @ @ @ @ @ I was trying to get out , ” he said .
“ I can hear all the other guys screaming .
”

L.A. City Firefighter Andrew Tom, who has burns to his waist and legs, greets L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti at a reunion for injured firefighters at the Grossman Burn Center in West Hills on Wednesday.
Los Angeles firefighter Andrew Tom hadn’t been inside the downtown building long when he heard the boom.
Other firefighters said it was like a jet engine rocketing to life. Tom just knew it meant something terrible was about to happen.
Seconds later, as flames consumed the room and lapped at his LAFD gear, Tom thought about his fire academy training and what he’d been told about a flashover — the amount of time that combustible materials will take to ignite during an enclosed fire.
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“They always say five seconds, or you’re gonna die. Five seconds went by. Ten seconds went by ... I was like there’s no way I’m getting out, at all,” Tom said. “That’s where my mind went into: It’s over. I’m gonna die in here.”
One of 11 firefighters who narrowly escaped a May explosion inside a downtown L.A. warehouse, Tom and several others spoke about the hellish experience Wednesday as they were reunited with the staff who helped heal their injuries at the Grossman Burn Center in West Hills.
“It’s the phone call you never want to get, when you’re told there’s 11 firefighters burned, and you don’t know how bad. ... It’s amazing they survived,” Los Angeles Fire Chief Chief Ralph Terrazas said.
The explosion inside an East 3rd Street warehouse prompted a sprawling criminal investigation by the U.S. Department of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives as well as the Los Angeles Police Department, and led Terrazas to order increased inspections of shops throughout the city that sell hazardous materials.
Terrazas said Wednesday that those inspections have led to the closure of 11 businesses since May.
The blast happened in a section of downtown nicknamed “bong row” because of the concentration of retailers selling rolling papers, butane and other supplies associated with vaping, tobacco and the extraction of THC for marijuana vape cartridges. Those in the legal cannabis industry say many of the stores on 3rd, Boyd and Wall streets supply butane and other items in bulk to unlicensed cannabis distributors.
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An ATF spokeswoman said Wednesday that the cause of the blast remains unknown. The owner of Smoke Tokes, the business where the explosion happened, has not responded to requests for comment.
Carbon dioxide and butane canisters were found inside the business, authorities have said. Smoke Tokes is not a cannabis business, and law enforcement sources previously told The Times that no extraction laboratory setup or cannabis was found inside the building. A criminal investigation has focused on whether volatile substances were stored improperly, the sources said in May.
Ian Soriano, a 13-year LAFD veteran who was still wearing some protective coverings on his hand and leg to protect burns he suffered months ago, said the scene “looked like a war zone” as he and others tried to escape a blast that caused a 30-foot fireball to burst from the structure.
Soriano was one of several firefighters who had to escape from the roof of the building, and remembers clinging to a ladder as flames shot up around him.
“When I was stuck, and I couldn’t move, I was like, I’m done,” Soriano said. “I’m dying right here.”
Once outside, Soriano said he saw the fire truck he’d ridden to the station in had also been torched, and remembers seeing other firefighters with their skin severely burned as they were transported to the hospital. Soriano said he required two surgeries, and was only recently cleared to return to duty.
An LAFD spokesman said just two of the 11 firefighters burned that day have been able to return to work so far. Capt. Victor Aguirre was hospitalized for more than two months and suffered burns so severe he lost the use of his hands.
For some hurt that day, the battle remains mental, even as their physical injuries begin to fade. Tom, who sustained second- and third-degree burns to his back, ears and shoulder blades and still sports angry red scarring around his stomach and rib cage, said he remains unsure if he will return to his Watts firehouse.
“I still get the flashbacks. … I can go into the moment where I was trying to get out,” he said. “I can hear all the other guys screaming.”
Times staff writer Richard Winton contributed to this report.


latimes--2020-08-22--Firefighters 'running on fumes' as Bay Area blazes spread, with more lightning looming

Wildfires ravaged and menaced communities from Napa ’ s wine country to the coast above Santa Cruz on Friday , forcing California officials to make tough choices on which ones to fight as the state braced for a weekend that could include more lightning strikes .
In some places , officials said they were being turned down for state help and left to beg equipment and manpower from volunteers and local agencies .
More than 930,000 acres have burned so far in Northern and Central California — an area larger than the land mass of Rhode Island — with little @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are stretched beyond capacity by the number of blazes .
On Thursday , 376 fires burned in the state , according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection .
But by Friday , there were about 560 active blazes , including two separate groups of fires , known as the LNU Lightning Complex and the SCU Lightning Complex , that have resulted from the convergence of about two dozen fires .
The two complexes are among “ the largest fires the state of California has had to battle in recent memory @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” said Gov .
Gavin Newsom during an afternoon briefing .
A third massive blaze has also grown in rural areas in San Mateo and Santa Cruz counties .
Scott Lewis , a professor of fire science at UC Berkeley , said some of the new burns were probably from a massive lightning storm last weekend that saw more than 12,000 bolts hit California , many unusually close to cities including San Francisco .
Those strikes may be causing “ holdover fires ” that can ignite and appear days or weeks later after @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Scardina , deputy regional forester for the U.S. Forest Service , said the state ’ s 18 federal parks have also seen up to a 300 % increase in campfires sparking wildfires this year , as more people seek the wilderness as a getaway from pandemic quarantines .
The National Weather Service in Sacramento issued a weather watch from Sunday through Tuesday mornings for dry lightning from the state capital to Lassen County near the Oregon border .
Though the heat wave that helped explode so many recent fires has broken , the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ many firefighters , 12,000 of whom are battling both flames and fatigue .
“ Many of these firefighters have been on the lines for 72 hours , and everybody is running on fumes , ” said Assemblyman Jim Wood ( D-Healdsburg ) , whose district includes wine country areas currently under siege .
“ Our first responders are working to the ragged edge of everything they have.
” With more need than can be met by the crews available , fire experts said state officials are now forced to prioritize which fires will @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are being used .
Though officials often deploy crews and equipment to surround fires with defensible lines so that they can be contained , fire experts said the focus is now is on saving lives and structures , and predict that the current blazes will burn for weeks .
“ At the statewide level , we do get into this mode where we start wondering where the biggest loss is going to be , what ’ s the highest priority , and that is where the resources are going to go , ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with the University of California Cooperative Extension .
Scardina , the U.S. Forest Service official , said priorities are being set by state and federal authorities continually evaluating the larger picture of where they will have the most impact to protect lives , property and infrastructure , but the calculations are difficult .
“ At this point we have to triage , we have to set priorities , we have to make some tough choices , ” Scardina said .
“ Every fire manager , every leader at a local level , every @ @ @ @ @ @ @ fire obviously and for valid reasons .
...
The best we can do is ... be transparent and honest with people about the limitations that we have [ and ] be clear with them about how we set priorities.
” The lack of equipment and outside fire crews was evident Friday as a smoky evening fell in Ben Lomond , a heavily forested town in the Santa Cruz Mountains .
The fire there has destroyed scores of homes and structures and is burning up steep hills that crest near the campus of UC @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of 18,000 students .
Ben Lomond Fire Chief Stacie Brownlee said she requested help from Cal Fire and was told it had nothing to offer .
The rejection startled her .
In the 10 years she ’ s been chief and 36 years she ’ s served , she said she ’ s never seen the state unable to help .
She said she is running out of basic equipment , including hoses , radios and hand tools , and feels as though they ’ ve been abandoned .
“ We ’ re @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” she said .
“ We ’ re just trying to get a handle on this.
” Matt Sanders , a volunteer firefighter for Ben Lomond , said he and his colleagues have barely slept since Monday .
Their force , which is 27 strong , is being supplemented by retirees , many fighting to save their own homes .
Todd Ellis , a Menlo Park Fire Department training captain who lives in town and is captain of the volunteer force , on Friday persuaded his chief to send a engine , which @ @ @ @ @ @ @ at a retreat center amid redwoods .
Billy See , one of the Cal Fire incident commanders , said personnel on this fire increased by almost 100 from the previous night , up to about 1,000 , but it ’ s “ still not enough.
” Farther north , the LNU Lightning Complex — now the second-largest fire in state history , having consumed more than 302,000 acres — brought mixed news .
In the Solano County city of Vacaville , halfway between Sacramento and San Francisco , some residents were able to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ officials reported the blaze was 15 % contained .
But on the northern part of that fire , new evacuation orders were issued for the Napa County enclave of Guerneville , where the blaze was burning strongly in rugged territory .
Newsom said the state sent assistance to that fire overnight , nearly doubling the number of firefighters from about 587 yesterday to more than 1,000 Friday .
California in recent weeks has also hired 830 seasonal firefighters meant to replace prison crews that are not available due to early releases prompted by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that 10 states had offered mutual aid to California so far , and he has sent out more requests , including to Canada and Australia .
So far , dozens of extra engines , manpower , airplanes and other resources have arrived from Oregon , Arizona and other states .
But there is also the threat of a long fire season , with the current blazes burning for weeks — a scenario experts said was possible with containment a lesser priority .
Smoke is also hampering aerial firefighting .
There are so many @ @ @ @ @ @ @ hopscotching across the state trying to slow ones that pose the greatest threats , officials said .
Smoke from the LNU Lightning Complex fire has at times settled over the area and kept scouting aircraft from descending low enough to see where the blaze was most active .
Such “ air attack ” provides intelligence for crews on the ground and guides other aerial endeavors .
“ You just avoid the areas where there ’ s no visibility , ” said Scott Ross , public information officer on the LNU Complex fire .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ air attack , you wouldn ’ t have fixed-wing tankers , helicopters , they ’ d all just be flying up there willy-nilly.
” Meanwhile , the SCU Lightning Complex fire , threatening rural areas around Silicon Valley , has only three water-dropping helicopters helping at a given time because the flames have stayed mostly in rugged terrain , said public information officer Dominic Polito .
Nationally , the fire threat is also at its highest level .
Some 90 large fires have burned in 14 states , leaving many places taxed for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
“ We have more people , but it ’ s not enough , ” said Newsom .
“ We have more air support , but it ’ s still not enough .
”

Susanne Rust, Joseph Serna, Rong-Gong Lin II, Anita Chabria

Firefighter Ian Johnson watches as an air tanker drops retardant to keep the River fire from reaching a home in Salinas. (Noah Berger / Associated Press)
A home in the Sky Ranch community burns in the Carmel fire near Carmel Valley. (Nic Coury / Associated Press)
Flames consume a cabin at the Nichelini Family Winery in unincorporated Napa County as the Hennessey fire burns in Napa County. (Noah Berger / Associated Press)
Horses stand in an enclosure as the LNU Lightning Complex fire tears through the Spanish Flat community in unincorporated Napa County. (Noah Berger / Associated Press)
Seen in a long-exposure photograph, embers burn along a hillside above Lake Berryessa as the LNU Lightning Complex fire tears through unincorporated Napa County. (Noah Berger / Associated Press)
Matt Nichols sprays water while trying to save his home as the LNU Lightning Complex fire tears through Vacaville. (Noah Berger / Associated Press)
Seen in a long-exposure photograph, embers burn along a hillside as the LNU Lightning Complex fire tears through unincorporated Napa County. (Noah Berger / Associated Press)
Bill Nichols, 84, works to save his home as the LNU Lightning Complex fire tears through Vacaville. (Noah Berger / Associated Press)
An air tanker drops retardant as the LNU Lightning Complex fire tears through the Spanish Flat community in unincorporated Napa County. (Noah Berger / Associated Press)
Flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires jump Interstate 80 in Vacaville on Wednesday. The highway was closed in both directions shortly afterward. (Noah Berger / Associated Press)
A firefighter walks through an area burned by the Hennessey fire along Solar Hills drive in Vacaville. (Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times)
Firefighters from Eugene, Ore., walk beside an area burning along Pine Flat Road during the CZU August Lightning Complex fire in Felton. (Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times)
A plume of smoke billows over Healdsburg as the LNU Lightning Complex fire continues to burn. (Noah Berger / Associated Press)
Charles Chavira, left, and Thomas Henney watch a plume of smoke spread over Healdsburg as the LNU Lightning Complex fire continues to burn. (Noah Berger / Associated Press)
A crew cuts down foliage and trees near some structures in preparation in Boulder Creek. (Kent Nishimura/Los Angeles Times)
Ben Lomond firefighters work on a blaze at The Sequoia Retreat Center during the CZU August Lightning Complex Fires on Friday. (Kent Nishimura/Los Angeles Times)
Firefighters keeps watch as the fire line creeps up on Highway 9 during the CZU Lightning complex fire. (Kent Nishimura/Los Angeles Times)
Smoke hangs low in the air at Big Basin Redwoods State Park as some redwoods are still on fire on Saturday. (Kent Nishimura/Los Angeles Times)
The Big Basin Redwoods State Park Headquarters & Visitor Center which was built in 1936 was one of the structures lost to the blaze that tore through the state park. (Kent Nishimura/Los Angeles Times)
Hand crews work on a hillside above the Boulder Creek Community Church as the fire line creeps up on Highway 9 during the CZU Lightning complex fire on Sunday. (Kent Nishimura/Los Angeles Times)
Firefighters watches as the fire line creeps up on Highway 9 during the CZU Lightning complex fire on Sunday. (Kent Nishimura/Los Angeles Times)
Burned vehicles and rubble from homes are left after the CZU Lightning Complex Fire tore through Sunday in Boulder Creek, Calif. (Marcio Jose Sanchez / Associated Press)
Firefighters protect a home in the Berryessa Estates neighborhood of unincorporated Napa County, Calif., as the LNU Lightning Complex fires burn on Friday. The blaze forced thousands to flee and destroyed hundreds of homes and other structures. (Noah Berger / Associated Press)
Wildfires ravaged and menaced communities from Napa’s wine country to the coast above Santa Cruz on Friday, forcing California officials to make tough choices on which ones to fight as the state braced for a weekend that could include more lightning strikes.
In some places, officials said they were being turned down for state help and left to beg equipment and manpower from volunteers and local agencies.
For the record: An earlier version of this story misidentified UC Berkeley professor Scott Lewis Stephens as Scott Lewis.
“Many of these firefighters have been on the lines for 72 hours, and everybody is running on fumes,” said Assemblyman Jim Wood (D-Healdsburg), whose district includes wine country areas currently under siege. “Our first responders are working to the ragged edge of everything they have.”
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More than 930,000 acres have burned so far in Northern and Central California — an area larger than the land mass of Rhode Island — with little containment, in part because firefighting resources are stretched beyond capacity by the number of blazes.
On Thursday, 376 fires burned in the state, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. But by Friday, there were about 560 active blazes, including two separate groups of fires, known as the LNU Lightning Complex and the SCU Lightning Complex, that have resulted from the convergence of about two dozen fires.
The two complexes are among “the largest fires the state of California has had to battle in recent memory, arguably in modern recorded history,” said Gov. Gavin Newsom during an afternoon briefing.
A third massive blaze has also grown in rural areas in San Mateo and Santa Cruz counties.
Scott Lewis Stephens, a professor of fire science at UC Berkeley, said some of the new burns were probably from a massive lightning storm last weekend that saw more than 12,000 bolts hit California, many unusually close to cities including San Francisco. Those strikes may be causing “holdover fires” that can ignite and appear days or weeks later after smoldering undetected, he said.
Tony Scardina, deputy regional forester for the U.S. Forest Service, said the state’s 18 federal parks have also seen up to a 300% increase in campfires sparking wildfires this year, as more people seek the wilderness as a getaway from pandemic quarantines.
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The National Weather Service in Sacramento issued a weather watch from Sunday through Tuesday mornings for dry lightning from the state capital to Lassen County near the Oregon border. Though the heat wave that helped explode so many recent fires has broken, the possibility of new storms were crushing to many firefighters, 12,000 of whom are battling both flames and fatigue.
With more need than can be met by the crews available, fire experts said state officials are now forced to prioritize which fires will get resources and change how those resources are being used. Though officials often deploy crews and equipment to surround fires with defensible lines so that they can be contained, fire experts said the focus is now is on saving lives and structures, and predict that the current blazes will burn for weeks.
“At the statewide level, we do get into this mode where we start wondering where the biggest loss is going to be, what’s the highest priority, and that is where the resources are going to go,” said Lenya Quinn-Davidson, a fire expert with the University of California Cooperative Extension.
Scardina, the U.S. Forest Service official, said priorities are being set by state and federal authorities continually evaluating the larger picture of where they will have the most impact to protect lives, property and infrastructure, but the calculations are difficult.
“At this point we have to triage, we have to set priorities, we have to make some tough choices,” Scardina said. “Every fire manager, every leader at a local level, every community, is really focused on their fire obviously and for valid reasons. ... The best we can do is ... be transparent and honest with people about the limitations that we have [and] be clear with them about how we set priorities.”
The lack of equipment and outside fire crews was evident Friday as a smoky evening fell in Ben Lomond, a heavily forested town in the Santa Cruz Mountains. The fire there has destroyed scores of homes and structures and is burning up steep hills that crest near the campus of UC Santa Cruz, normally an education hub of 18,000 students.
Ben Lomond Fire Chief Stacie Brownlee said she requested help from Cal Fire and was told it had nothing to offer. The rejection startled her. In the 10 years she’s been chief and 36 years she’s served, she said she’s never seen the state unable to help.
She said she is running out of basic equipment, including hoses, radios and hand tools, and feels as though they’ve been abandoned.
“We’re sleeping just two to five hours,” she said. “We’re just trying to get a handle on this.”
Matt Sanders, a volunteer firefighter for Ben Lomond, said he and his colleagues have barely slept since Monday. Their force, which is 27 strong, is being supplemented by retirees, many fighting to save their own homes. Todd Ellis, a Menlo Park Fire District training captain who lives in town and is captain of the volunteer force, on Friday persuaded his chief to send a engine, which arrived in time to fight a blaze at a retreat center amid redwoods.
Billy See, one of the Cal Fire incident commanders, said personnel on this fire increased by almost 100 from the previous night, up to about 1,000, but it’s “still not enough.”
Farther north, the LNU Lightning Complex — now the second-largest fire in state history, having consumed more than 302,000 acres — brought mixed news.
In the Solano County city of Vacaville, halfway between Sacramento and San Francisco, some residents were able to return home from evacuations Friday, and officials reported the blaze was 15% contained. But on the northern part of that fire, new evacuation orders were issued for the Sonoma County enclave of Guerneville, where the blaze was burning strongly in rugged territory.
Newsom said the state sent assistance to that fire overnight, nearly doubling the number of firefighters from about 587 yesterday to more than 1,000 Friday.
California in recent weeks has also hired 830 seasonal firefighters meant to replace prison crews that are not available due to early releases prompted by the pandemic.
Newsom also said Friday that 10 states had offered mutual aid to California so far, and he has sent out more requests, including to Canada and Australia.
So far, dozens of extra engines, manpower, airplanes and other resources have arrived from Oregon, Arizona and other states.
But there is also the threat of a long fire season, with the current blazes burning for weeks — a scenario experts said was possible with containment a lesser priority. Smoke is also hampering aerial firefighting.
There are so many conflagrations in California that aircraft have been hopscotching across the state trying to slow ones that pose the greatest threats, officials said.
Smoke from the LNU Lightning Complex fire has at times settled over the area and kept scouting aircraft from descending low enough to see where the blaze was most active. Such “air attack” provides intelligence for crews on the ground and guides other aerial endeavors.
“You just avoid the areas where there’s no visibility,” said Scott Ross, public information officer on the LNU Complex fire.
“If you didn’t have air attack, you wouldn’t have fixed-wing tankers, helicopters, they’d all just be flying up there willy-nilly.”
Meanwhile, the SCU Lightning Complex fire, threatening rural areas around Silicon Valley, has only three water-dropping helicopters helping at a given time because the flames have stayed mostly in rugged terrain, said public information officer Dominic Polito.
Nationally, the fire threat is also at its highest level. Some 90 large fires have burned in 14 states, leaving many places taxed for resources, according to federal fire authorities.
“We have more people, but it’s not enough,” said Newsom. “We have more air support, but it’s still not enough.”


latimes--2020-08-22--She ripped Trump for her dad's COVID-19 death. She hopes her fame will drive change

Few people are as prepared for overnight notoriety as Kristin Urquiza .
On Monday , the San Francisco woman skyrocketed to further fame during a three-minute televised segment of the Democratic National Convention .
In her debut on the national stage , Urquiza issued a scathing condemnation of President Trump , blaming him for the spread of the coronavirus that killed her father more than six weeks earlier in Arizona .
“ My dad was a healthy 65-year-old , ” she said on the broadcast .
“ His only preexisting condition was trusting Donald Trump , and for that he @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s road to the convention started after her father died and she penned a letter to the Arizona Republic , her father ’ s hometown newspaper .
The 39-year-old social justice advocate wanted her natal community and city to know her dad didn ’ t have to die .
She thinks he would still be alive if Trump and Arizona Gov .
Doug Ducey had not downplayed the severity of the coronavirus , relaxed shelter-in-place rules and suggested the disease was a hoax .
Her father had believed them .
“ He shouldn @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said Thursday afternoon , sitting on a park bench in Golden Gate Park , across the street from the apartment she shares with her partner and now communications manager , Christine Keeves .
Until she received an unexpected call from convention organizers , Urquiza said she had no aspirations of addressing a national audience in the service of Joe Biden ’ s presidential bid .
But when her moment came , she was prepared for it — and also the inevitable fallout .
Trump supporters have told her they are glad her father @ @ @ @ @ @ @ been praised for sharing her family ’ s harrowing story .
“ It was a powerful expression of how COVID is personally tearing people apart , ” said Rob Stutzman , a Sacramento-based GOP political consultant and Trump critic .
Although Stutzman doubts Urquiza ’ s story will move many swing voters to Biden ’ s side , her “ personal testament had great magnitude , ” he said , that likely resonated with millions of Americans .
Urquiza grew up in Maryvale , a community outside of Phoenix populated almost entirely by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ parents , both born in the U.S. , were the children of migrant agricultural workers .
Her dad , Mark Anthony Urquiza , worked in the fields as a teen and young man .
She was an only child , and her parents raised her , she said , to believe in herself and not be afraid to use her voice .
An exceptional student , she earned a spot at Yale University , and in August 1999 , she purchased a $ 69 one-way ticket to New Haven , Conn. , on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that ’ s how most people got there , ” she said .
She was wrong .
The world that greeted her at the elite , Ivy League institution was more foreign and intimidating than anything she could have imagined .
“ It wasn ’ t like I ’ d trained for softball and ended up playing football , ” she said .
“ It was like I ’ d trained for softball and ended up in a different galaxy where nothing made sense , and I was the only one who didn @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the adjustment difficult , and for the first time in her life , she largely kept her mouth shut and listened .
But she gradually made friends and connections through the university ’ s children ’ s theater — a program for the underserved communities and people of New Haven .
It was at Yale that she first became acutely aware of what she described in her speech as two different worlds — universes occupying the same space , but operating in parallel .
There was one in which people knew how to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , influence , money and social connections .
And then there was the other , filled with people like her , who were denied or didn ’ t have access to change , manage or influence these systems .
Since graduating in 2003 , she ’ s been an advocate for social and environmental justice — building a career around mobilizing others to address and change inequities , from her adopted San Francisco to the Amazon .
During the winter , she said , she ’ d been actively campaigning to conserve rainforests @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for human health — releasing and spreading novel diseases .
“ The timing was weird , ” she said , because it was at this time that the first reports of the coronavirus began trickling in from China .
“ I was terrified , ” she said .
And she made sure to warn her parents as the disease began to spread .
In early June , however , he contracted the disease , shortly after visiting a karaoke bar with friends following Arizona ’ s lifting of the stay-at-home order .
He @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , alone .
Stricken by grief and enraged by what she saw as reckless misinformation from political leaders , Urquiza penned her father ’ s obituary to run the day of his funeral .
She invited the governor to attend , as well as representatives from the Arizona Star Republic .
None of them , she said , responded .
But one man saw her obituary and posted it on Twitter .
The following day , Urquiza ’ s phone was “ blowing up , ” she said .
She had hundreds of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ — including requests for appearances from CNN and the “ Today ” show .
A savvy activist , she recognized the national platform she ’ d been given and decided to use it : She and her partner , Keeves — a communications specialist — have started an organization , markedbycovid.com , to represent and advocate for people who ’ ve been hit by COVID-19 .
These include the survivors , the ones left behind and essential workers — such as teachers — who are at risk of getting it .
They ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , in which schoolteachers have written their own obituaries and sent them to local newspapers — in anticipation of getting the disease .
“ This is a growing demographic , ” Urquiza said .
As governments implement policies and relief packages in the coming months and years , “ They need to have a seat at the table.
” “ This disease isn ’ t going away , ” Urquiza added .
“ It ’ s here to stay .
”

In this image from video, Kristin Urquiza of San Francisco speaks during the first night of the Democratic National Convention on Monday, when she blamed President Trump for the spread of the coronavirus, which killed her father.
Few people are as prepared for overnight notoriety as Kristin Urquiza.
On Monday, the San Francisco woman skyrocketed to further fame during a three-minute televised segment of the Democratic National Convention.
In her debut on the national stage, Urquiza issued a scathing condemnation of President Trump, blaming him for the spread of the coronavirus that killed her father more than six weeks earlier in Arizona.
“My dad was a healthy 65-year-old,” she said on the broadcast. “His only preexisting condition was trusting Donald Trump, and for that he paid with his life.”
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Urquiza’s road to the convention started after her father died and she penned a letter to the Arizona Republic, her father’s hometown newspaper. The 39-year-old social justice advocate wanted her natal community and city to know her dad didn’t have to die. She thinks he would still be alive if Trump and Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey had not downplayed the severity of the coronavirus, relaxed shelter-in-place rules and suggested the disease was a hoax.
Her father had believed them.
“He shouldn’t have died,” she said Thursday afternoon, sitting on a park bench in Golden Gate Park, across the street from the apartment she shares with her partner and now communications manager, Christine Keeves.
Until she received an unexpected call from convention organizers, Urquiza said she had no aspirations of addressing a national audience in the service of Joe Biden’s presidential bid. But when her moment came, she was prepared for it — and also the inevitable fallout.
Trump supporters have told her they are glad her father died. But she’s also been praised for sharing her family’s harrowing story.
“It was a powerful expression of how COVID is personally tearing people apart,” said Rob Stutzman, a Sacramento-based GOP political consultant and Trump critic.
Although Stutzman doubts Urquiza’s story will move many swing voters to Biden’s side, her “personal testament had great magnitude,” he said, that likely resonated with millions of Americans.
Urquiza grew up in Maryvale, a community outside of Phoenix populated almost entirely by Mexican and Latin American immigrants. Her parents, both born in the U.S., were the children of migrant agricultural workers. Her dad, Mark Anthony Urquiza, worked in the fields as a teen and young man.
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Kristin Urquiza, standing at Golden Gate Park, wrote an obituary about her father that caught fire on Twitter. Then, the national media and Democratic National Convention organizers came calling. (Susanne Rust / Los Angeles Times)
She was an only child, and her parents raised her, she said, to believe in herself and not be afraid to use her voice. An exceptional student, she earned a spot at Yale University, and in August 1999, she purchased a $69 one-way ticket to New Haven, Conn., on a Greyhound bus.
“I figured that’s how most people got there,” she said.
She was wrong. The world that greeted her at the elite, Ivy League institution was more foreign and intimidating than anything she could have imagined.
“It wasn’t like I’d trained for softball and ended up playing football,” she said. “It was like I’d trained for softball and ended up in a different galaxy where nothing made sense, and I was the only one who didn’t get it.”
She found the adjustment difficult, and for the first time in her life, she largely kept her mouth shut and listened. But she gradually made friends and connections through the university’s children’s theater — a program for the underserved communities and people of New Haven.
It was at Yale that she first became acutely aware of what she described in her speech as two different worlds — universes occupying the same space, but operating in parallel.
There was one in which people knew how to operate the systems around them with power, influence, money and social connections. And then there was the other, filled with people like her, who were denied or didn’t have access to change, manage or influence these systems.
Since graduating in 2003, she’s been an advocate for social and environmental justice — building a career around mobilizing others to address and change inequities, from her adopted San Francisco to the Amazon.
During the winter, she said, she’d been actively campaigning to conserve rainforests, highlighting the dangers that deforestation poses for human health — releasing and spreading novel diseases.
“The timing was weird,” she said, because it was at this time that the first reports of the coronavirus began trickling in from China.
“I was terrified,” she said. And she made sure to warn her parents as the disease began to spread.
Kristin Urquiza’s father, Mark, is shown during a video call she had with him in June as he lay in a Phoenix hospital fighting the coronavirus. “He shouldn’t have died,” she says. (Kristin Urquiza)
In early June, however, he contracted the disease, shortly after visiting a karaoke bar with friends following Arizona’s lifting of the stay-at-home order. He died after five days on a ventilator, alone.
Stricken by grief and enraged by what she saw as reckless misinformation from political leaders, Urquiza penned her father’s obituary to run the day of his funeral. She invited the governor to attend, as well as representatives from the Arizona Republic. None of them, she said, responded.
But one man saw her obituary and posted it on Twitter. The following day, Urquiza’s phone was “blowing up,” she said. She had hundreds of voicemails, emails and social media tags — including requests for appearances from CNN and the “Today” show.
A savvy activist, she recognized the national platform she’d been given and decided to use it: She and her partner, Keeves — a communications specialist — have started an organization, markedbycovid.com, to represent and advocate for people who’ve been hit by COVID-19. These include the survivors, the ones left behind and essential workers — such as teachers — who are at risk of getting it.
They’ve already begun a campaign in Iowa, in which schoolteachers have written their own obituaries and sent them to local newspapers — in anticipation of getting the disease.
“This is a growing demographic,” Urquiza said. As governments implement policies and relief packages in the coming months and years, “They need to have a seat at the table.”
“This disease isn’t going away,” Urquiza added. “It’s here to stay.”


latimes--2020-08-22--LAPD fires projectiles as protesters clash at Trump rally

The Los Angeles Police Department fired projectiles as two groups of protesters clashed in Tujunga on Friday afternoon , authorities said .
About 3 p.m. , officers with the LAPD ’ s Foothill division responded to the area by Lowell Avenue and Foothill Boulevard to disperse a crowd of supporters of President Trump and counter-protesters , the department said in a news release .
LAPD spokesman Officer Mike Chan said that about 200 people had arrived to rally against a pro-Trump demonstration often organized in the area .
About 100 Trump supporters had showed up on Friday , he said @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and at one point , a counter-protester hit a Trump supporter with a pipe , according to the department .
While officers tried to take the protester into custody , a second counter-protester tried to prevent the arrest .
Both protesters were then taken into custody .
Police declared an unlawful assembly and told the crowd to leave .
Officials said that the protesters then began throwing objects at officers who were trying to disperse the crowd .
“ Less lethal ” munitions like fired projectiles were used in response , Chan said @ @ @ @ @ @ @ how many rounds were fired or by how many officers .
The department , he said , is investigating whether any civilians were injured as a result .
“ The LAPD will continue to provide the necessary resources to ensure the safe and peaceful expression of opinions , ” the department said in a statement .
“ When demonstrators begin to violate the law and create unsafe conditions for the demonstrators , officers , and the public , department personnel will continue to take appropriate enforcement action.
” By about 6 p.m. , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ authorities said .

The Los Angeles Police Department fired projectiles as two groups of protesters clashed in Tujunga on Friday afternoon, authorities said.
About 3 p.m., officers with the LAPD’s Foothill division responded to the area by Lowell Avenue and Foothill Boulevard to disperse a crowd of supporters of President Trump and counter-protesters, the department said in a news release.
LAPD spokesman Officer Mike Chan said that about 200 people had arrived to rally against a pro-Trump demonstration often organized in the area. About 100 Trump supporters had showed up on Friday, he said.
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The groups began to clash, and at one point, a counter-protester hit a Trump supporter with a pipe, according to the department. While officers tried to take the protester into custody, a second counter-protester tried to prevent the arrest. Both protesters were then taken into custody.
Police declared an unlawful assembly and told the crowd to leave. Officials said that the protesters then began throwing objects at officers who were trying to disperse the crowd. “Less lethal” munitions like fired projectiles were used in response, Chan said.
Chan said he did not know how many rounds were fired or by how many officers. The department, he said, is investigating whether any civilians were injured as a result.
“The LAPD will continue to provide the necessary resources to ensure the safe and peaceful expression of opinions,” the department said in a statement. “When demonstrators begin to violate the law and create unsafe conditions for the demonstrators, officers, and the public, department personnel will continue to take appropriate enforcement action.”
By about 6 p.m., both groups of protesters had dispersed, authorities said.


latimes--2020-08-22--Earthquake: 2.5 shakes Huntington Beach

Earthquake: 2.5 shakes Huntington Beach

A magnitude 2.5 earthquake was reported Friday evening at 11:19 p.m. Pacific time in Huntington Beach , according to the U.S. Geological Survey .
The earthquake occurred less than a mile from Seal Beach , one miles from Westminster , two miles from Midway City and three miles from Garden Grove .
In the past 10 days , there has been one earthquake of magnitude 3.0 or greater centered nearby .
An average of 59 earthquakes with magnitudes between 2.0 and 3.0 occur per year in the greater Los Angeles area , according to a recent three year data sample @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of 9.1 miles .
Did you feel this earthquake ?
Consider reporting what you felt to the USGS .
Even if you didn ’ t feel this small earthquake , you never know when the Big One is going to strike .
Ready yourself by following our five-step earthquake preparedness guide and building your own emergency kit .
This story was automatically generated by Quakebot , a computer application that monitors the latest earthquakes detected by the USGS .
A Times editor reviewed the post before it was published .
If you ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ system , visit our list of frequently asked questions .

A magnitude 2.5 earthquake was reported Friday at 11:19 p.m. in Huntington Beach, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
The earthquake occurred less than a mile from Seal Beach, one mile from Westminster, two miles from Midway City and three miles from Garden Grove.
In the last 10 days, there has been one earthquake of magnitude 3.0 or greater centered nearby.
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An average of 59 earthquakes with magnitudes between 2.0 and 3.0 occur per year in the greater Los Angeles area, according to a recent three-year data sample.
The earthquake occurred at a depth of 9.1 miles. Did you feel this earthquake? Consider reporting what you felt to the USGS.
Even if you didn’t feel this small earthquake, you never know when the Big One is going to strike. Ready yourself by following our five-step earthquake preparedness guide and building your own emergency kit.
This story was automatically generated by Quakebot, a computer application that monitors the latest earthquakes detected by the USGS. A Times editor reviewed the post before it was published. If you’re interested in learning more about the system, visit our list of frequently asked questions.


latimes--2020-08-22--More lightning could hit Northern California fire zone

Meteorologists expressed worry about the possibility of the return of dry lightning Sunday to parts of Northern and Central California , regions already hit hard by lightning-sparked fires .
As a result , the National Weather Service has issued a wide-ranging fire weather watch for large swaths of Northern and Central California beginning Sunday morning through Tuesday , saying “ fast moving … thunderstorms may lead to a risk of dry lightning and new fire starts.
” The dome of heat that crawled up from Arizona last week and baked Northern California is going to reestablish itself , although temperatures @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , said San Jose State atmospheric scientist Alison Bridger .
At the same time , another storm off the Mexican coast is poised to feed that heat dome moisture , which would destabilize it , laying the groundwork for thunderstorms .
“ And then all you need is a little energy to spark it and you ’ ll get more lightning and thunder , ” Bridger said .
The storms would develop fairly rapidly , so it won ’ t be clear whether there will be lightning and where it would strike until @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Since Saturday , more than 931,000 acres of California ’ s forests and shrub lands have burned , many of them sparked by a weekend lightning storm stretching hundreds of miles and stoked by one of the worst heat waves in recent memory .
The blazes include the LNU Lightning Complex fire , which at more than 302,000 acres is the second-largest fire in California history .
The SCU Lightning Complex fire , currently covering more than 274,000 acres , is fourth largest .

Meteorologists expressed worry about the possibility of the return of dry lightning Sunday to parts of Northern and Central California, regions already hit hard by lightning-sparked fires.
As a result, the National Weather Service has issued a wide-ranging fire weather watch for large swaths of Northern and Central California beginning Sunday morning through Tuesday, saying “fast moving … thunderstorms may lead to a risk of dry lightning and new fire starts.”
The dome of heat that crawled up from Arizona last week and baked Northern California is going to reestablish itself, although temperatures won’t reach the same extremes, said San Jose State atmospheric scientist Alison Bridger.
At the same time, another storm off the Mexican coast is poised to feed that heat dome moisture, which would destabilize it, laying the groundwork for thunderstorms.
⚠Dry t-storms will be possible again Sun - Tue. Any t-storms that occur will bring the potential for new fire starts, so a Fire Weather Watch has been issued. Remember, always have an emergency plan during fire season in case a fire starts near you. https://t.co/YNs31lEDDm #CAwx pic.twitter.com/zmWwsj66fu — NWS Bay Area (@NWSBayArea) August 21, 2020
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“And then all you need is a little energy to spark it and you’ll get more lightning and thunder,” Bridger said.
The storms would develop fairly rapidly, so it won’t be clear whether there will be lightning and where it would strike until possibly Sunday morning, she added.
Since Saturday, more than 931,000 acres of California’s forests and shrub lands have burned, many of them sparked by a weekend lightning storm stretching hundreds of miles and stoked by one of the worst heat waves in recent memory.
The blazes include the LNU Lightning Complex fire, which at more than 302,000 acres is the second-largest fire in California history. The SCU Lightning Complex fire, currently covering more than 274,000 acres, is fourth largest.


latimes--2020-08-21--LAPD resumes enforcement to clear tents in Venice Beach

In an abrupt turnaround , Los Angeles police will resume enforcing a ban on homeless people pitching tents and lean-tos on the beach and grass areas around the Venice boardwalk .
On Wednesday , LAPD Chief Michael Moore emailed Venice homeowner and activist Mark Ryavec that he and Westside City Councilman Mike Bonin had decided police would not enforce an anti-camping law in Venice in light of concerns from health officials that displacing homeless people could spread the novel coronavirus .
But the next day , Moore said in a follow up email to Ryavec that Bonin had decided to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Department officials chose to reverse course , saying officers will begin cracking down on camps on the sand immediately and those on grass areas after the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority has had a chance to find spots in shelters for people .
Ryavec , who heads Venice Stakeholders Assn.
, said the homeless people violated safety guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control by moving in over the last few weeks as the virus continued to spread .
“ All new arrivals have traveled from somewhere else so they are in violation @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Lisa Redmond , a Catholic Workers homeless services volunteer , said homeless people are arriving in Venice in greater numbers in part because the city has recently revived a practice of conducting intensive cleanups of homeless encampments that commonly pop up around city homeless shelters .
Redmond said a couple recently told her they left San Pedro for Venice after losing their belongings in one such cleanup .
“ A lot of their items were all thrown away and they knew it was going to be consistently happening , ” Redmond said @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for these people to go.
” And more homeless people have come to the area as the pandemic has cut off their usual sources of food and other services , Redmond added .
“ Local church volunteers stopped bringing food , but a lot of people would bring leftover catering food , food from film productions and office conferences .
All of that stopped as well .
“ Ryavec said the city is doing “ a terrible job ” providing homeless people with shelter and housing , but added that it is leaving @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Alley.
” LAPD Deputy Chief Justin Eisenberg objected to the notion police would be “ clearing camps , ” saying officers will ask people to take down their tents voluntarily and cite violators .
Nightly counts in the area around the boardwalk tally about 50 tents , he said , and police have seen an increase in violent crime this month , including four shootings and a stabbing .
“ It should be noted that encampment compliance and enforcement measures actually help achieve CDC guidelines in improving sanitary conditions and reducing bulk to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said .
The Venice cleanup flap is part of a decades-long fight over how the city should deal with homeless encampments and the sanitation issues that arise in them .
.
Early in the pandemic , the City Council voted to stop requiring homeless people to drop their tents in the daytime , so they could shelter in place in adherance with orders aimed at slowing the spread of the virus .
City officials since then have repeatedly assured critics that intensive camp cleanups in streets and parks had been largely suspended because @ @ @ @ @ @ @ tents down and move out of the way for sanitation equipment , potentially exposing them to the virus .
But the hands-off approach was upended somewhat late last month , when the City Council voted to resume the aggressive cleanups around shelters.Councilmembers including Joe Buscaino , who represents San Pedro , said the streets were increasingly filthy and the city needed to fulfill its promise to keep additional encampments from forming around the shelters .
Bonin voted against the measure .
Civil rights lawyers in April obtained a preliminary injunction barring the city @ @ @ @ @ @ @ belongings without a warrant .
And earlier this week , they filed a motion to hold the city in contempt for allegedly crushing and discarding a homeless person ’ s tent and violating notification rules during an August camp cleanup .

A man drags his bedding after a sweep of homeless encampments on the Venice Beach boardwalk on June 26.
In an abrupt turnaround, Los Angeles police will resume enforcing a ban on homeless people pitching tents and lean-tos on the beach and grass areas around the Venice boardwalk.
On Wednesday, LAPD Chief Michael Moore emailed Venice homeowner and activist Mark Ryavec that he and Westside City Councilman Mike Bonin had decided police would not enforce an anti-camping law in Venice in light of concerns from health officials that displacing homeless people could spread the novel coronavirus.
But the next day, Moore said in a follow up email to Ryavec that Bonin had decided to leave the decision to the LAPD. Department officials chose to reverse course, saying officers will begin cracking down on camps on the sand immediately and those on grass areas after the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority has had a chance to find spots in shelters for people.
Ryavec, who heads Venice Stakeholders Assn., said the homeless people violated safety guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control by moving in over the last few weeks as the virus continued to spread.
“All new arrivals have traveled from somewhere else so they are in violation of CDC guidance,” said Ryavec.
Lisa Redmond, a Catholic Workers homeless services volunteer, said homeless people are arriving in Venice in greater numbers in part because the city has recently revived a practice of conducting intensive cleanups of homeless encampments that commonly pop up around city homeless shelters. Redmond said a couple recently told her they left San Pedro for Venice after losing their belongings in one such cleanup.
“A lot of their items were all thrown away and they knew it was going to be consistently happening ,” Redmond said. “They need to have places for these people to go.”
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And more homeless people have come to the area as the pandemic has cut off their usual sources of food and other services, Redmond added. “Local church volunteers stopped bringing food, but a lot of people would bring leftover catering food, food from film productions and office conferences. All of that stopped as well. “
Ryavec said the city is doing “a terrible job” providing homeless people with shelter and housing, but added that it is leaving Venice “looking like a Third-World Gasoline Alley.”
LAPD Deputy Chief Justin Eisenberg objected to the notion police would be “clearing camps,” saying officers will ask people to take down their tents voluntarily and cite violators. Nightly counts in the area around the boardwalk tally about 50 tents, he said, and police have seen an increase in violent crime this month, including four shootings and a stabbing.
“It should be noted that encampment compliance and enforcement measures actually help achieve CDC guidelines in improving sanitary conditions and reducing bulk to allow for increased spacing,” Eisenberg said.
The Venice cleanup flap is part of a decades-long fight over how the city should deal with homeless encampments and the sanitation issues that arise in them. .
Early in the pandemic, the City Council voted to stop requiring homeless people to drop their tents in the daytime, so they could shelter in place in adherance with orders aimed at slowing the spread of the virus. City officials since then have repeatedly assured critics that intensive camp cleanups in streets and parks had been largely suspended because they force homeless people to take their tents down and move out of the way for sanitation equipment, potentially exposing them to the virus.
But the hands-off approach was upended somewhat late last month, when the City Council voted to resume the aggressive cleanups around shelters.Councilmembers including Joe Buscaino, who represents San Pedro, said the streets were increasingly filthy and the city needed to fulfill its promise to keep additional encampments from forming around the shelters. Bonin voted against the measure.
Civil rights lawyers in April obtained a preliminary injunction barring the city from destroying homeless people’s large belongings without a warrant. And earlier this week, they filed a motion to hold the city in contempt for allegedly crushing and discarding a homeless person’s tent and violating notification rules during an August camp cleanup.