latimes--2020-02-15--New ICE crackdown in sanctuary cities sparks backlash in L.A.

Los Angeles law enforcement officials are pushing back against a new federal immigration push to add more resources in sanctuary cities as the Trump administration continues to target those migrants who have entered the U.S. without legal documents .
The relationship between ICE and many local law enforcement agencies has long been fraught .
Since Trump took office , it has grown only more tenuous as police grapple with maintaining communication with ICE while also balancing transparency with community and civic leaders .
Those tensions are especially evident in California , where local law enforcement must abide by a “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , which went into effect in 2018 to provide protection for immigrants in the country illegally .
In L.A. , the police department stopped engaging in joint operations with ICE that directly involve civil immigration enforcement and no longer transfers people with certain minor criminal convictions to ICE custody .
In the latest flash point , U.S. Customs and Border Protection spokesman plans to deploy 50 Border Patrol agents and 50 field operations customs officers in nine areas , according to the agency .
Specially trained officers will be sent to cities including @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Additional agents are expected to be sent to San Francisco , Boston , New Orleans , Detroit , Newark , N.J. , and other cities , according to the agency .
The deployment of the teams will run from February through May .
What has been the reaction in Los Angeles ?
Mayor Eric Garcetti and LAPD chief Michel Moore released a video Friday saying local police won ’ t be working with ICE .
“ Regardless of your immigration status , I want every Angeleno to know your city is on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , our police department does not coordinate with ICE or participate in immigration enforcement , ” Garcetti said on Twitter .
“ Immigration is a federal matter .
Safety is a police matter .
And we ’ re not going to mix those two , ” Moore added .
L.A. County Sheriff Alex Villanueva also released a statement Friday saying , “ I strongly oppose this irresponsible deployment of federal SWAT agents in Los Angeles County for civil immigration enforcement .
“ This poorly thought-out plan can only be seen as a tactic @ @ @ @ @ @ @ drive them deeper into the shadows , ” the statement said .
“ We are not any safer if an entire segment of our population is afraid to report crimes to local law enforcement.
” Q : What are federal immigration officials saying ?
Customs and Border Patrol agents and officers being detailed to help ICE will come from different sectors and job positions , including some trained in tactical operations , according to the agency .
“ ICE is utilizing CBP to supplement enforcement activity in response to the resource challenges stemming @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Matthew Albence said in a statement .
Albence said in the statement that the action was being taken in response to sanctuary-city law enforcement agencies not cooperating with federal authorities by turning over immigrants being held in local jails .
As a result , the statement continued , federal officers “ are forced to make at-large arrests of criminal aliens who have been released into communities.
” “ This effort requires a significant amount of additional time and resources , ” Albence said .
“ When sanctuary cities release these criminals back to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of preventable crimes , and more importantly , preventable victims.
” The number of non-detained cases increased from 2.6 million in fiscal year 2018 to over 3.2 million in the following fiscal year , according to DHS .
“ With 5,300 ERO [ Enforcement and Removal Operations ] law enforcement officers — some of whom were detailed to the border — ICE does not have sufficient resources to effectively manage the sustained increase in non-detained cases which is exacerbated by the rise of sanctuary jurisdictions , ” the agency said in a statement @ @ @ @ @ @ @ local governments for refusing to do the administration ’ s bidding , ” said Naureen Shah , senior policy and advocacy counsel on immigrants ’ rights for the American Civil Liberties Union , said in a statement .
“ It will put lives at risk by further militarizing our streets .
Local governments should not face reprisals for focusing on local community needs and using taxpayer money responsibly , instead of helping to deport and detain community members.
” Advocates said that rapid response networks , which provide hotlines for immigrants facing arrest @ @ @ @ @ @ @ observers to raids , will be on high alert over the weekend .
Hamid Yazdan Panah , advocacy director of Immigrant Defense Advocates in the Bay Area , said the operation is part of a repeated pattern by the Trump administration of using fear for political gain : “ Sanctuary policies are a reflection of the shared values and the fabric of that community .
This escalation isn ’ t going to stop that .
”

Brittny Mejia, Molly Hennessy-Fiske, Leila Miller

Los Angeles law enforcement officials are pushing back against a new federal immigration push to add more resources in sanctuary cities as the Trump administration continues to target those migrants who have entered the U.S. without legal documents.
The relationship between ICE and many local law enforcement agencies has long been fraught. Since Trump took office, it has grown only more tenuous as police grapple with maintaining communication with ICE while also balancing transparency with community and civic leaders.
Those tensions are especially evident in California, where local law enforcement must abide by a “sanctuary” law, Senate Bill 54, which went into effect in 2018 to provide protection for immigrants in the country illegally. In L.A., the police department stopped engaging in joint operations with ICE that directly involve civil immigration enforcement and no longer transfers people with certain minor criminal convictions to ICE custody.
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California It took a while, but L.A. formally declares itself a ‘city of sanctuary’ It took nearly a year and a half, but officials voted Friday to declare Los Angeles a “city of sanctuary,” long after other left-leaning cities took a similar stand against the Trump administration’s policies toward immigrants who lack legal status.
In the latest flash point, U.S. Customs and Border Protection spokesman plans to deploy 50 Border Patrol agents and 50 field operations customs officers in nine areas, according to the agency. Specially trained officers will be sent to cities including Los Angeles, Chicago and New York.
Additional agents are expected to be sent to San Francisco, Boston, New Orleans, Detroit, Newark, N.J., and other cities, according to the agency. The deployment of the teams will run from February through May.
What has been the reaction in Los Angeles?
Mayor Eric Garcetti and LAPD chief Michel Moore released a video Friday saying local police won’t be working with ICE.
“Regardless of your immigration status, I want every Angeleno to know your city is on your side. Here in Los Angeles, our police department does not coordinate with ICE or participate in immigration enforcement,” Garcetti said on Twitter.
Regardless of your immigration status, I want every Angeleno to know your city is on your side. Here in Los Angeles, our police department does not coordinate with ICE or participate in immigration enforcement.
Know your rights: https://t.co/2zfY8lUAyn pic.twitter.com/nYf1fXhBnU — Mayor Eric Garcetti (@MayorOfLA) February 15, 2020
“Immigration is a federal matter. Safety is a police matter. And we’re not going to mix those two,” Moore added.
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L.A. County Sheriff Alex Villanueva also released a statement Friday saying, “I strongly oppose this irresponsible deployment of federal SWAT agents in Los Angeles County for civil immigration enforcement.
“This poorly thought-out plan can only be seen as a tactic to intimidate an already vulnerable population and drive them deeper into the shadows,” the statement said. “We are not any safer if an entire segment of our population is afraid to report crimes to local law enforcement.”
Q: What are federal immigration officials saying?
Customs and Border Patrol agents and officers being detailed to help ICE will come from different sectors and job positions, including some trained in tactical operations, according to the agency.
“ICE is utilizing CBP to supplement enforcement activity in response to the resource challenges stemming from sanctuary-city policies,” ICE Director Matthew Albence said in a statement.
Albence said in the statement that the action was being taken in response to sanctuary-city law enforcement agencies not cooperating with federal authorities by turning over immigrants being held in local jails. As a result, the statement continued, federal officers “are forced to make at-large arrests of criminal aliens who have been released into communities.”
“This effort requires a significant amount of additional time and resources,” Albence said. “When sanctuary cities release these criminals back to the street, it increases the occurrence of preventable crimes, and more importantly, preventable victims.”
The number of non-detained cases increased from 2.6 million in fiscal year 2018 to over 3.2 million in the following fiscal year, according to DHS.
“With 5,300 ERO [Enforcement and Removal Operations] law enforcement officers — some of whom were detailed to the border — ICE does not have sufficient resources to effectively manage the sustained increase in non-detained cases which is exacerbated by the rise of sanctuary jurisdictions,” the agency said in a statement.
What about immigrant rights groups?
“This is transparent retaliation against local governments for refusing to do the administration’s bidding,” said Naureen Shah, senior policy and advocacy counsel on immigrants’ rights for the American Civil Liberties Union, said in a statement. “It will put lives at risk by further militarizing our streets. Local governments should not face reprisals for focusing on local community needs and using taxpayer money responsibly, instead of helping to deport and detain community members.”
Advocates said that rapid response networks, which provide hotlines for immigrants facing arrest by immigration officers and dispatch trained legal observers to raids, will be on high alert over the weekend.
Hamid Yazdan Panah, advocacy director of Immigrant Defense Advocates in the Bay Area, said the operation is part of a repeated pattern by the Trump administration of using fear for political gain: “Sanctuary policies are a reflection of the shared values and the fabric of that community. This escalation isn’t going to stop that.”


latimes--2020-02-15--As Harvey Weinstein's fate heads to jurors, who will they believe?

One by one , the women shook , cried , stammered and struggled to recount the horrors they said Harvey Weinstein inflicted upon them .
Annabella Sciorra wept as she told jurors the mogul had barged through her front door and forced her onto a bed .
Mimi Haley hung her head as she recalled a night when she didn ’ t want to have sex with Weinstein , but simply “ laid there ” out of a fear that she couldn ’ t escape a producer who physically dwarfed and overpowered her .
Jessica Mann , exhausted by her @ @ @ @ @ @ @ relationship with Weinstein , had to be helped from the stand as she sobbed between panicked breaths .
During three weeks of testimony , the former Hollywood titan sat in relative silence .
He scribbled on a notepad or stared at the jury as his attorneys scrutinized each accuser ’ s motives and behavior , confronting them with cordial emails they wrote to the mogul while trying to recast each woman ’ s account as nothing more than an edited version of a consensual affair .
When a jury of seven men and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Weinstein ’ s fate , experts say they will have to determine which framing of the case they will follow : The tearful words the accusers delivered , the praise-heavy missives they later sent to Weinstein calling him a “ genius ” or seeking his help finding work — or the prosecution ’ s assertion that both conditions can exist at the same time .
In her closing arguments Friday , prosecutor Joan Illuzzi-Orbon told the jury that Weinstein had underestimated his accusers .
“ He made sure he had contact with the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ little check to make sure that one day , they wouldn ’ t walk out from the shadows and call him exactly what he was : an abusive rapist , ” she said .
“ He was wrong.
” The prosecution ’ s final argument was designed to undercut the seeds of doubt painstakingly planted by Weinstein ’ s attorneys .
They have repeatedly seized on the fact that and Mann kept in contact with Weinstein after their alleged assaults , while also insisting the women were not victims , but opportunists seeking @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the point Friday that rape can occur within otherwise consensual and committed relationships .
Even still , the accusers ’ continued communication with Weinstein — coupled with gaps in their testimony about the dates and times of the attacks — could sway the jury toward an acquittal , legal experts say .
“ I think the most important part is the emails ... that ’ s tough to refute at that moment .
They were saying something other than they were saying now , ” said Dmitriy Shakhnevich , a criminal defense attorney @ @ @ @ @ @ @ School of Criminal Justice in Manhattan .
To overcome that correspondence , Shakhnevich said prosecutors will have to hope jurors focus on the testimony of forensic psychologist Barbara Ziv , who attempted to knock down so-called rape myths — including the notions that victims always fight back against their rapists , or that the truthfulness of a rape allegation can be evaluated by how an accuser behaves afterward .
Mann ’ s consensual sexual interactions with Weinstein after the alleged attack may be a sticking point for one or more jurors , said @ @ @ @ @ @ @ violence law at New England Law in Boston and a former sex crimes prosecutor .
Even when the laws around rape are clear and the evidence is powerful , she said , there may be jurors who will “ have a tough time valuing what happened to that woman ’ s body as a serious enough crime to warrant a criminal conviction ” because of a “ historic disrespect for women in this country , and rape victims in particular.
” Illuzzi-Orbon said that Weinstein kept in contact with his victims in order @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Miramax co-founder dangled roles in front of his accusers , she said , some of whom were trying to establish their acting careers .
The prosecution outlined the ways in which the accounts of abuse were strikingly similar : Interactions with Weinstein that fluctuated between validating and humiliating .
The producer ’ s rapid changes in demeanor , which could sometimes swing from friendly to menacing in a matter of moments .
And efforts to trick and trap the accusers in ways they said appeared premeditated .
“ When you have to trick @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” Illuzzi-Orbon said , “ then you know that you don ’ t have consent.
” In her closing arguments Thursday , lead to focus on the evidence presented at trial rather than the maelstrom of negative press Weinstein has received between the start of the # MeToo movement and his trial .
In all , more than 90 women have come forward with sexual misconduct allegations against Weinstein .
“ You may have had a gut feeling that Harvey Weinstein was guilty , ” Rotunno said .
“ Throw that gut feeling @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s jury was chosen specifically for their professed ability to ignore media coverage and decide the case based only on evidence heard in court .
But that doesn ’ t mean jurors won ’ t be biased against Weinstein when they make their decision .
Take Bill Cosby ’ s rape case , Murphy said .
By her evaluation , the comedian had a good chance of winning his mistrial under Pennsylvania law .
“ Had he been a run-of-the-mill guy , if he hadn ’ t been the subject of so many @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , ” Murphy said .
Rotunno also argued that Weinstein ’ s accusers made the choice to go to his apartment or his hotel room , that they made the choice to engage in sex with him , and that they should take responsibility for those choices .
“ If you take the short way home and walk through a dark park and get robbed , nobody ’ s going to say , ‘ You shouldn ’ t have been walking through the dark park , ’ ” Illuzzi-Orbon said .
Weinstein , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the New York trial , including rape , criminal sexual assault and predatory sexual assault .
He faces a minimum of 25 years in prison and could be locked away for the rest of his life if convicted on the last charge .
The charges stem from accusations by Haley a former employee of Weinstein ’ s production company who alleges he forcibly performed oral sex on her in 2006 , and Mann , a former aspiring actress who testified that the producer raped her in a New York hotel room in 2013 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ predatory sexual assault charge , prosecutors must convince jurors that Weinstein assaulted Haley or Mann , as well as Sciorra , the “ Sopranos ” actress .
The nature of the predatory sexual assault statute could also work against the prosecution , Shakhnevich said .
To convict on either of those two counts , jurors must believe Weinstein assaulted Sciorra and Haley or Sciorra and Mann .
While Shakhnevich described Sciorra as the prosecution ’ s strongest witness because she cut contact with Weinstein after the date of the alleged assault , the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ accusation alone .
Three other women testified that Weinstein assaulted them .
Those alleged crimes were either too old to prosecute or happened outside the jurisdiction of the Manhattan district attorney ’ s office , but the allegations of one of the women , Lauren Young , about an assault that she said occurred in a Beverly Hills hotel , led prosecutors to file charges against Weinstein in Southern California .
Weinstein has denied any wrongdoing and pleaded not guilty to all charges .
Jury deliberations are expected to begin Tuesday .
In @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s argument that Weinstein ’ s accusers sought attention through their involvement in the sensational case , Illuzzi-Orbon said they were instead “ compelled by their own morality.
” “ Would they put themselves through the stress ?
Did it look like they were having fun up there ?
Did it look like that was a party , was that a premiere ?
” Illuzzi-Orbon said .
“ Or did it look like that was horrible and grueling ?
” Newberry reported from New York .
Queally reported from Los Angeles .

One by one, the women shook, cried, stammered and struggled to recount the horrors they said Harvey Weinstein inflicted upon them.
Annabella Sciorra wept as she told jurors the mogul had barged through her front door and forced her onto a bed. Mimi Haley hung her head as she recalled a night when she didn’t want to have sex with Weinstein, but simply “laid there” out of a fear that she couldn’t escape a producer who physically dwarfed and overpowered her.
Jessica Mann, exhausted by her marathon testimony about a tumultuous and complex relationship with Weinstein, had to be helped from the stand as she sobbed between panicked breaths.
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During three weeks of testimony, the former Hollywood titan sat in relative silence. He scribbled on a notepad or stared at the jury as his attorneys scrutinized each accuser’s motives and behavior, confronting them with cordial emails they wrote to the mogul while trying to recast each woman’s account as nothing more than an edited version of a consensual affair.
When a jury of seven men and five women convene next week to decide Weinstein’s fate, experts say they will have to determine which framing of the case they will follow: The tearful words the accusers delivered, the praise-heavy missives they later sent to Weinstein calling him a “genius” or seeking his help finding work — or the prosecution’s assertion that both conditions can exist at the same time.
In her closing arguments Friday, prosecutor Joan Illuzzi-Orbon told the jury that Weinstein had underestimated his accusers.
“He made sure he had contact with the people he was worried about as a little check to make sure that one day, they wouldn’t walk out from the shadows and call him exactly what he was: an abusive rapist,” she said. “He was wrong.”
The prosecution’s final argument was designed to undercut the seeds of doubt painstakingly planted by Weinstein’s attorneys. They have repeatedly seized on the fact that Haley and Mann kept in contact with Weinstein after their alleged assaults, while also insisting the women were not victims, but opportunists seeking connections and acting roles.
Illuzzi-Orbon made the point Friday that rape can occur within otherwise consensual and committed relationships. Even still, the accusers’ continued communication with Weinstein — coupled with gaps in their testimony about the dates and times of the attacks — could sway the jury toward an acquittal, legal experts say.
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“I think the most important part is the emails ... that’s tough to refute at that moment. They were saying something other than they were saying now,” said Dmitriy Shakhnevich, a criminal defense attorney who now teaches at the John Jay School of Criminal Justice in Manhattan.
To overcome that correspondence, Shakhnevich said prosecutors will have to hope jurors focus on the testimony of forensic psychologist Barbara Ziv, who attempted to knock down so-called rape myths — including the notions that victims always fight back against their rapists, or that the truthfulness of a rape allegation can be evaluated by how an accuser behaves afterward.
Mann’s consensual sexual interactions with Weinstein after the alleged attack may be a sticking point for one or more jurors, said Wendy Murphy, a professor of sexual violence law at New England Law in Boston and a former sex crimes prosecutor.
Even when the laws around rape are clear and the evidence is powerful, she said, there may be jurors who will “have a tough time valuing what happened to that woman’s body as a serious enough crime to warrant a criminal conviction” because of a “historic disrespect for women in this country, and rape victims in particular.”
Illuzzi-Orbon said that Weinstein kept in contact with his victims in order to control and isolate them. The Miramax co-founder dangled roles in front of his accusers, she said, some of whom were trying to establish their acting careers.
The prosecution outlined the ways in which the accounts of abuse were strikingly similar: Interactions with Weinstein that fluctuated between validating and humiliating. The producer’s rapid changes in demeanor, which could sometimes swing from friendly to menacing in a matter of moments. And efforts to trick and trap the accusers in ways they said appeared premeditated.
“When you have to trick somebody to be in your control,” Illuzzi-Orbon said, “then you know that you don’t have consent.”
In her closing arguments Thursday, lead defense attorney Donna Rotunno implored the jury to focus on the evidence presented at trial rather than the maelstrom of negative press Weinstein has received between the start of the #MeToo movement and his trial.
In all, more than 90 women have come forward with sexual misconduct allegations against Weinstein.
“You may have had a gut feeling that Harvey Weinstein was guilty,” Rotunno said. “Throw that gut feeling right out the window.”
Weinstein’s jury was chosen specifically for their professed ability to ignore media coverage and decide the case based only on evidence heard in court. But that doesn’t mean jurors won’t be biased against Weinstein when they make their decision.
Take Bill Cosby’s rape case, Murphy said. By her evaluation, the comedian had a good chance of winning his mistrial under Pennsylvania law.
“Had he been a run-of-the-mill guy, if he hadn’t been the subject of so many news stories, he would have walked,” Murphy said.
Rotunno also argued that Weinstein’s accusers made the choice to go to his apartment or his hotel room, that they made the choice to engage in sex with him, and that they should take responsibility for those choices.
Illuzzi-Orbon rebuffed those claims.
“If you take the short way home and walk through a dark park and get robbed, nobody’s going to say, ‘You shouldn’t have been walking through the dark park,’” Illuzzi-Orbon said.
Weinstein, 67, faces five felony charges in the New York trial, including rape, criminal sexual assault and predatory sexual assault. He faces a minimum of 25 years in prison and could be locked away for the rest of his life if convicted on the last charge.
The charges stem from accusations by Haley , a former employee of Weinstein’s production company who alleges he forcibly performed oral sex on her in 2006, and Mann, a former aspiring actress who testified that the producer raped her in a New York hotel room in 2013.
To earn a conviction on the predatory sexual assault charge, prosecutors must convince jurors that Weinstein assaulted Haley or Mann, as well as Sciorra, the “Sopranos” actress .
The nature of the predatory sexual assault statute could also work against the prosecution, Shakhnevich said. To convict on either of those two counts, jurors must believe Weinstein assaulted Sciorra and Haley or Sciorra and Mann. While Shakhnevich described Sciorra as the prosecution’s strongest witness because she cut contact with Weinstein after the date of the alleged assault, the jury cannot legally convict on her accusation alone.
Three other women testified that Weinstein assaulted them. Those alleged crimes were either too old to prosecute or happened outside the jurisdiction of the Manhattan district attorney’s office, but the allegations of one of the women, Lauren Young, about an assault that she said occurred in a Beverly Hills hotel, led prosecutors to file charges against Weinstein in Southern California.
Weinstein has denied any wrongdoing and pleaded not guilty to all charges. Jury deliberations are expected to begin Tuesday.
In a direct rebuke of the defense’s argument that Weinstein’s accusers sought attention through their involvement in the sensational case, Illuzzi-Orbon said they were instead “compelled by their own morality.”
“Would they put themselves through the stress? Did it look like they were having fun up there? Did it look like that was a party, was that a premiere?” Illuzzi-Orbon said. “Or did it look like that was horrible and grueling?”
Newberry reported from New York. Queally reported from Los Angeles.


latimes--2020-02-15--Column: He'd like to get past the Columbine High shooting, but life has been a struggle

Former Columbine High School student Richard Castaldo did not look well when he arrived at the summit for victims of gun violence in downtown Los Angeles last September .
“ I went up and hugged him and thought , ‘ Oh my God , he ’ s just burning up , ’ ” said Hollye Dexter , who was hosting the event as a member of Women Against Gun Violence .
Dexter and others in the gun control movement knew that Castaldo — shot eight times in the 1999 massacre in Colorado and paralyzed from the waist down — was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ They had urged him to attend the event to try to get some help .
But when Dexter and others saw Castaldo that day , they realized he was too sick to be there , so they called 911 , and he was whisked off to the hospital .
Five months later , Castaldo is recovering in a convalescent home in West L.A. What turned out to be a raging infection has been treated and he ’ ll be ready for discharge soon , but he ’ s lost his apartment and has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ m still trying to figure that out , ” Castaldo told me .
“ I ’ ve had friends offer places , but I need something wheelchair accessible and that ’ s not always the easiest thing.
” Dexter is one of a handful of women who have looked after Castaldo , visiting him in the hospital and the convalescent home over the last five months .
They bring him food or take him out for meals , and they work the phones trying to find a place for him to live .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ about his current plight , they warned that Castaldo guards his privacy .
He doesn ’ t want to always have to be that guy — the guy forever identified by what happened on the worst day of his life .
He wants to be Richard Castaldo , regular guy , with hopes and fears and a desire to look forward rather than back .
“ I guess what I mean is , I know , obviously , that there ’ s no way not to mention it , ” he told me @ @ @ @ @ @ @ anyone seems to want to focus on all the time , which gets redundant.
” For the most part , during the course of two visits , we didn ’ t talk much about that day .
But as Castaldo said , there ’ s no way not to mention it .
It ’ s been 21 years since two Columbine students shot and killed 12 classmates and one teacher in what at the time was the largest mass murder at a school in the United States .
Castaldo was one of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 1999 .
He was having lunch with a female friend on campus when the shooting began .
His friend was killed .
A bullet severed Castaldo ’ s spine .
He was 17 at the time , and was paralyzed from the waist down .
He is now 38 and has been in a wheelchair ever since .
Columbine was not the first school shooting .
But it provided horrifying proof that there are no safe places , that firearms are everywhere , that we can ’ t protect our children , let @ @ @ @ @ @ @ been an awakening that demanded action ; instead it was the beginning of legislative paralysis on gun control and a gradual numbing of our outrage .
So many school shootings have followed , we ’ re less shocked each time .
The fatalities are counted , righteous cries for reforms trail off , we move on .
It ’ s not that way for the wounded survivors , or for their loved ones .
They have scars : physical , mental , or both .
The daily reminders , especially for those permanently @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ Over a hundred thousand people are shot and wounded every year in the U.S. , ” said Dexter , whose own brother survived a gunshot wound to the head as a young boy .
“ I think there should be a benefit for every one of them .
What I keep saying is that we have a war on our own streets.
” Castaldo shares a room with two other patients at the convalescent home .
There is virtually no privacy .
On the wall at the foot of his bed is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with a red , white and blue school backpack .
Lady Liberty is wearing a bullet-proof vest .
The day I met him , he held his head in his hands , rubbed his weary eyes , and took his time answering questions .
He ’ s a handsome young guy with spools of dark hair , and there is something compelling in his eyes — an arresting blend of anger , independence , humility .
He wants no one ’ s pity .
Dexter noticed that he was struggling with his wheelchair @ @ @ @ @ @ @ jacked up , ” Castaldo said , making it harder for him to maneuver around the convalescent home , where his neighbors include amputees , elderly patients with cognitive loss and people learning to walk again after traumatic injuries .
Castaldo was distressed about a call from his mother , in Colorado , who had seen a story that suggested he would soon be homeless .
He didn ’ t want to talk about that call , but made clear that relations with his relatives have been strained at times .
His mother @ @ @ @ @ @ @ call her when she heard I was working on a story .
When I did , she told me she sometimes cries at night , worrying about her son .
He is sweet and good-hearted , she said , and in her opinion he has been taken advantage of by people he has befriended and sometimes sheltered while living in Los Angeles .
Michalik said a trust was established with money from donations and settlements after the Columbine shooting .
She said several properties were purchased with the money , and the plan @ @ @ @ @ @ @ pay her son ’ s living expenses .
But two of the properties went into foreclosure , and the plan didn ’ t work out .
Ultimately , Castaldo also lost the condo he was living in after moving to Los Angeles more than a decade ago .
He then moved into a series of apartments , but lost those , too , and then got sick .
Michalik said she has helped pay her son ’ s bills for years , and offered Castaldo a home she owns in Nevada .
But @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with family in San Diego , where he spent his early years , and where relatives will be available to look after him .
“ I want him to come home , ” Michalik said .
“ I need him to come home .
I don ’ t want him to be in L.A. by himself anymore.
” I told Castaldo what his mother had said .
He listened , head down as he thought things over .
When he lifted his eyes , he said : He thought some more and said @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to be checked up on.
” Castaldo wants to be , needs to be , independent .
He wants to be 38 , not 17 .
Coming to Los Angeles was a way to start anew , he said .
He was interested in music and video and went to school to become a sound engineer .
He ’ d like to finally find steady work in that industry , get his own place again , pay his bills .
He ’ s done open-mic comedy a few times .
People have recommended @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s not so sure about revisiting the past .
Few people know it , and fewer still voted for him , but Castaldo ran for Congress in 2010 , representing the Peace and Freedom Party ( Henry Waxman was the victor in a landslide ) .
He is now rooting for Bernie Sanders to be president , because he ’ ll take on Wall Street and fix the healthcare system , as Castaldo sees it .
Castaldo met Sanders at a campaign rally in California and is hoping to get out of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to Nevada for the primary there , possibly with his fellow activist and friend Carlos Marroquin , who runs a local Bernie Brigade .
Marroquin told me he met Castaldo “ in the days of Occupy , when [ he was losing his condo ] and we tried to help him.
” Marroquin said Castaldo jumped into the fight with gusto .
“ Every time we tried to help someone else save their house , he would show up .
We want him with us when we go out there .
He inspires @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Castaldo began showing up at Women Against Gun Violence events a couple of years ago but didn ’ t want to be identified as “ the Columbine survivor.
” He was there , passionate but low key , lending his support .
Richard ’ s Crew , as Dexter calls the cadre of women , are returning the favor now .
The crew includes Lorraine Morland , a gun violence survivor herself .
Karen Goss , a counselor at Valley Beth Shalom .
Shanna Caputo , a Las Vegas shooting survivor .
And @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Castaldo ’ s who told the other women about him .
A local lawyer , Stuart Zimring , is working pro bono to sort through the details of Castaldo ’ s trust and see if he can get Social Security disability benefits , which had been denied because Castaldo had assets .
Meanwhile , the social worker at Castaldo ’ s convalescent home is trying to find a placement for him , and I spoke to an executive at the St. Joseph Center , which has agreed to try to help .
Despite @ @ @ @ @ @ @ end up , Castaldo didn ’ t seem to be despairing .
He ’ s gotten through so much already ; he ’ ll handle this .
“ I guess everyone wonders why Columbine happened and I don ’ t know , frankly .
I think America is part of the problem .
The American culture is so violent , ” Castaldo told me .
“ I think when Trump said he could shoot someone on Fifth Avenue and not lose any supporters , I think that right there capsulizes everything that ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ I think that ’ s the bottom-line sickness of America right there.
” When I visited him the next day , he added one thought to that sentiment .
“ As if shooting someone is some kind of joke , ” he said .

Former Columbine High School student Richard Castaldo did not look well when he arrived at the summit for victims of gun violence in downtown Los Angeles last September.
“I went up and hugged him and thought, ‘Oh my God, he’s just burning up,’” said Hollye Dexter, who was hosting the event as a member of Women Against Gun Violence.
Dexter and others in the gun control movement knew that Castaldo — shot eight times in the 1999 massacre in Colorado and paralyzed from the waist down — was losing his apartment in Los Angeles. They had urged him to attend the event to try to get some help. But when Dexter and others saw Castaldo that day, they realized he was too sick to be there, so they called 911, and he was whisked off to the hospital.
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Five months later, Castaldo is recovering in a convalescent home in West L.A. What turned out to be a raging infection has been treated and he’ll be ready for discharge soon, but he’s lost his apartment and has nowhere to go.
“I’m still trying to figure that out,” Castaldo told me. “I’ve had friends offer places, but I need something wheelchair accessible and that’s not always the easiest thing.”
Dexter is one of a handful of women who have looked after Castaldo, visiting him in the hospital and the convalescent home over the last five months. They bring him food or take him out for meals, and they work the phones trying to find a place for him to live.
When the women reached out to me about his current plight, they warned that Castaldo guards his privacy. He doesn’t want to always have to be that guy — the guy forever identified by what happened on the worst day of his life. He wants to be Richard Castaldo, regular guy, with hopes and fears and a desire to look forward rather than back.
“I guess what I mean is, I know, obviously, that there’s no way not to mention it,” he told me. “But it’s all anyone seems to want to focus on all the time, which gets redundant.”
For the most part, during the course of two visits, we didn’t talk much about that day. But as Castaldo said, there’s no way not to mention it.
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A memorial overlooking Columbine High School in Littleton, Colo., in 1999. (Bebeto Matthews / Associated Press)
It’s been 21 years since two Columbine students shot and killed 12 classmates and one teacher in what at the time was the largest mass murder at a school in the United States. Castaldo was one of the first targets that day in April of 1999. He was having lunch with a female friend on campus when the shooting began.
His friend was killed. A bullet severed Castaldo’s spine. He was 17 at the time, and was paralyzed from the waist down. He is now 38 and has been in a wheelchair ever since.
Columbine was not the first school shooting. But it provided horrifying proof that there are no safe places, that firearms are everywhere, that we can’t protect our children, let alone anyone else.
It should have been an awakening that demanded action; instead it was the beginning of legislative paralysis on gun control and a gradual numbing of our outrage. So many school shootings have followed, we’re less shocked each time. The fatalities are counted, righteous cries for reforms trail off, we move on.
It’s not that way for the wounded survivors, or for their loved ones. They have scars: physical, mental, or both. The daily reminders, especially for those permanently disabled, have no expiration date.
“Over a hundred thousand people are shot and wounded every year in the U.S.,” said Dexter, whose own brother survived a gunshot wound to the head as a young boy. “I think there should be a benefit for every one of them. What I keep saying is that we have a war on our own streets.”
Castaldo shares a room with two other patients at the convalescent home. There is virtually no privacy. On the wall at the foot of his bed is an image of the Statue of Liberty with a red, white and blue school backpack. Lady Liberty is wearing a bullet-proof vest.
The day I met him, he held his head in his hands, rubbed his weary eyes, and took his time answering questions. He’s a handsome young guy with spools of dark hair, and there is something compelling in his eyes — an arresting blend of anger, independence, humility. He wants no one’s pity.
Dexter noticed that he was struggling with his wheelchair.
“One of the wheels is jacked up,” Castaldo said, making it harder for him to maneuver around the convalescent home, where his neighbors include amputees, elderly patients with cognitive loss and people learning to walk again after traumatic injuries.
Castaldo was distressed about a call from his mother, in Colorado, who had seen a story that suggested he would soon be homeless. He didn’t want to talk about that call, but made clear that relations with his relatives have been strained at times.
His mother, Connie Michalik, asked me to call her when she heard I was working on a story. When I did, she told me she sometimes cries at night, worrying about her son. He is sweet and good-hearted, she said, and in her opinion he has been taken advantage of by people he has befriended and sometimes sheltered while living in Los Angeles.
Michalik said a trust was established with money from donations and settlements after the Columbine shooting. She said several properties were purchased with the money, and the plan was to generate enough rental income to pay her son’s living expenses.
But two of the properties went into foreclosure, and the plan didn’t work out. Ultimately, Castaldo also lost the condo he was living in after moving to Los Angeles more than a decade ago. He then moved into a series of apartments, but lost those, too, and then got sick.
Michalik said she has helped pay her son’s bills for years, and offered Castaldo a home she owns in Nevada. But she wants for him to move in with family in San Diego, where he spent his early years, and where relatives will be available to look after him.
“I want him to come home,” Michalik said. “I need him to come home. I don’t want him to be in L.A. by himself anymore.”
I told Castaldo what his mother had said. He listened, head down as he thought things over. When he lifted his eyes, he said:
“That’s not home to me.”
He thought some more and said:
“I don’t want to be checked up on.”
Castaldo wants to be, needs to be, independent.
He wants to be 38, not 17.
Coming to Los Angeles was a way to start anew, he said. He was interested in music and video and went to school to become a sound engineer. He’d like to finally find steady work in that industry, get his own place again, pay his bills. He’s done open-mic comedy a few times. People have recommended he write a book, but he’s not so sure about revisiting the past.
Few people know it, and fewer still voted for him, but Castaldo ran for Congress in 2010, representing the Peace and Freedom Party (Henry Waxman was the victor in a landslide). He is now rooting for Bernie Sanders to be president, because he’ll take on Wall Street and fix the healthcare system, as Castaldo sees it.
Castaldo met Sanders at a campaign rally in California and is hoping to get out of the convalescent home in time to go to Nevada for the primary there, possibly with his fellow activist and friend Carlos Marroquin, who runs a local Bernie Brigade.
Marroquin told me he met Castaldo “in the days of Occupy, when [he was losing his condo] and we tried to help him.” Marroquin said Castaldo jumped into the fight with gusto. “Every time we tried to help someone else save their house, he would show up. We want him with us when we go out there. He inspires other people.”
Dexter told me that Castaldo began showing up at Women Against Gun Violence events a couple of years ago but didn’t want to be identified as “the Columbine survivor.” He was there, passionate but low key, lending his support.
Richard’s Crew, as Dexter calls the cadre of women, are returning the favor now. The crew includes Lorraine Morland, a gun violence survivor herself. Karen Goss, a counselor at Valley Beth Shalom. Shanna Caputo, a Las Vegas shooting survivor. And Deborah Gitell, a former neighbor of Castaldo’s who told the other women about him.
A local lawyer, Stuart Zimring, is working pro bono to sort through the details of Castaldo’s trust and see if he can get Social Security disability benefits, which had been denied because Castaldo had assets. Meanwhile, the social worker at Castaldo’s convalescent home is trying to find a placement for him, and I spoke to an executive at the St. Joseph Center, which has agreed to try to help.
Despite the uncertainty of where he’ll end up, Castaldo didn’t seem to be despairing. He’s gotten through so much already; he’ll handle this.
“I guess everyone wonders why Columbine happened and I don’t know, frankly. I think America is part of the problem. The American culture is so violent,” Castaldo told me.
“I think when Trump said he could shoot someone on Fifth Avenue and not lose any supporters, I think that right there capsulizes everything that’s wrong with America to me. I think that’s the bottom-line sickness of America right there.”
When I visited him the next day, he added one thought to that sentiment.
“As if shooting someone is some kind of joke,” he said.
steve.lopez@latimes.com


latimes--2020-02-15--Sex slavery and forced labor charges lodged against La Luz del Mundo church

When leaders of La Luz del Mundo church said they needed money , she turned over all her earnings .
When they wanted sex , she gave them her body , beginning at age 9 .
And when they wanted her to recruit other children to be groomed for sexual slavery , she did that too , she said — until the weight of it all , combined with brutal beatings doled out when she balked , drove her to attempt suicide and then flee the church in October 2016 .
These are the claims in a federal lawsuit filed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , 33 , against the Guadalajara-based megachurch .
“ For nearly 22 years , I was made to work for , travel for , lie for and give my body to an organization that saw me as nothing more than a source of profit and sexual pleasure , ” Martin said .
Her claims come amid a sweeping criminal case filed last year that accuses church leader Naasón Joaquín Garcia , 50 and others of human trafficking , production of child pornography , forcible rape of a minor and other felonies .
While @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the scandal has roiled the church both in the United States and Mexico .
La Luz del Mundo — or Light of the World — is the largest evangelical church in Mexico .
It has branches in 50 countries and boasts more than 5 million members .
Jack Freeman , a minister who has been with the church for 28 years , said he “ completely rejects ” the allegations and thinks they were timed to disrupt the organization ’ s Holy Supper .
This week ’ s celebration , which he described @ @ @ @ @ @ @ event of the year , drew tens of thousands of worshipers to the Pomona Fairplex , he said .
“ It is not about abuse .
It is not about this fantastic story she ’ s come up with , ” Freeman said of the lawsuit .
“ It ’ s about attention and trying to interfere with the holy event the church is doing.
” He said those who have accused church officials of misconduct represent a small fraction of its global congregation .
“ We continue to have baptisms .
We @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
“ So you ’ re hearing from one individual , and we have over 5 million that would testify otherwise that everything she is saying is untrue and that we are a church of good , decent , honorable people with ministers who care about and love their members and a director who is guiding this church in a very decent way.
” Since the charges were filed by California Atty .
Gen. Xavier Becerra , church officials have mounted an aggressive and public defense of their leader .
But the lawsuit @ @ @ @ @ @ @ complaint , detailing what attorneys describe as an institutionalized culture of abuse and exploitation that primed church members to turn over their money , labor and children to church leaders , whom members are taught to regard as God ’ s messengers on Earth .
The civil complaint , which names La Luz del Mundo , Garcia and a dozen other high-ranking church members , seeks damages for involuntary servitude , forced and unpaid labor , human trafficking , racketeering and sexual battery .
“ There are various dimensions to this case .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
It ’ s a case about the sexual abuse of children , ” said attorney Josh Robbins , a former federal prosecutor .
“ But it is also a case about organized crime .
... And it ’ s been happening right here in our backyard.
” Martin was born in Monterey Park and raised by her aunt , a prominent member of La Luz del Mundo who offered her as a sexual servant to the church ’ s former leader , Samuel Joaquín Flores , and then to his successor and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Flores ’ father founded La Luz del Mundo in 1926 , and he , Flores and Garcia all became charismatic leaders of the fast-growing church .
While serving as leader , each man was considered by congregants to be the apostle of Jesus Christ , infallible as God and incapable of sin .
Members are taught they can achieve salvation only by worshiping the apostle , the lawsuit states .
Martin was first taught to perform erotic dances for Flores at age 9 ; groomers provided her with revealing outfits and taught @ @ @ @ @ @ @ be touched , she said in the lawsuit .
By age 12 , Martin was regularly performing private dances for Flores , and over the next four years , she said she regularly served him in various states of undress .
As part of their training , she and other children were made to memorize Bible passages that their groomers said explained why being “ loved ” by Flores was a gift from God , the lawsuit states .
When she turned 14 , Martin was required to make regular payments to the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ working for the church itself , producing segments for a radio station that eventually grew into its media and propaganda division , according to the lawsuit .
Martin said she never received any compensation , and the lawsuit estimates she worked more than 30,000 unpaid hours .
The expectation for church members to provide free labor and donate their property , including titles to real estate holdings , is a common one , she said .
“ For far too many La Luz del Mundo members , everything they have is taken by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said .
“ Every dollar they make goes to La Luz del Mundo because they truly believe their money will be used to do the work of God on Earth.
” But Martin witnessed church leaders finance lavish lifestyles on the backs of their followers , the lawsuit alleges .
It states that Garcia and his family members used donations to buy designer clothing , expensive art and multimillion-dollar estates , including mansions in Malibu and Palos Verdes and ranches in Texas and Redlands that housed menageries of exotic animals , as well @ @ @ @ @ @ @ cars .
On one occasion , Martin recalled , church members in Southern California were encouraged to donate to Garcia any gold heirlooms and jewelry they owned .
The donations were melted down and used to paint the moldings in a Los Angeles home he ’ d recently had built , according to the lawsuit .
In December 2014 , Flores died and Garcia took over the church , assuming the title of apostle .
The abuse against Martin intensified , according to the lawsuit .
By then , she was living in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ member whom she ’ d married with the church ’ s approval , and she ’ d given birth to a girl .
Garcia forced her to uproot her life and travel to Guadalajara for months at a time , where he became “ entirely unlimited in his sexual demands , ” according to the lawsuit .
He also assigned Martin a new role as recruiter and groomer for his child sex harem , the lawsuit states .
“ For the last year before [ I left the church ] , when I @ @ @ @ @ @ @ nightmare , ” Martin said .
“ Through my entire life , it was a bad dream .
I was just living it over and over .
But toward the last year , I just saw and lived so many things.
” According to the lawsuit , Garcia once ordered Martin to perform a sex act on a 14-year-old boy , and when she refused , he beat her until she lost feeling in her right leg .
Martin later learned the boy was forced to have sex with another groomer , and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ videotaped .
She said she fell into a deep depression and attempted suicide by washing down painkillers with alcohol .
Martin ’ s husband eventually became so concerned for her mental well-being that he began investigating her behavior and in October 2016 , he found explicit photo and text message exchanges with Garcia on her phone , she said .
“ He said , ‘ This is very wrong .
You ’ re all being used , and this is not a church of God , ’ ” she said .
After the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ subjected to a campaign of intimidation and harassment by its members that got worse once they realized she was working with law enforcement on the criminal investigation into Garcia , she said .
Several weeks after Garcia ’ s arrest , two people walked into her Ensenada home , introduced themselves as private investigators hired by Garcia ’ s criminal defense team and made vaguely threatening comments about her plans to testify , the lawsuit says .
One of them flashed an LAPD business card , Martin said .
But in December , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in a long-term hotel in the San Diego area , a man whom church members know as “ the enforcer ” followed her in an attempt to intimidate her , the lawsuit claims .
Martin was forced to find new accommodations .
She continues to live in fear , she said .
Attorney Jeff Anderson said the allegations amount to “ the gravest peril ” his firm has faced and emphasized that Martin is likely one of hundreds of victims .
“ We are here today standing with Sochil to sound the alarm @ @ @ @ @ @ @ predators that are active as we speak — not just for trafficking ... but in the silencing of anybody that would speak against them , ” he said .
Martin said she hopes she ’ ll inspire others who were abused to also come forward .
“ What happened to us is not right , ” she said , her voice trembling .
“ It is not a blessing .
It is not from God .
It is not right .
”

Sochil Martin, seen at a news conference in downtown Los Angeles on Thursday, said she was groomed from a young age to provide sex to Naasón Joaquín Garcia, leader of La Luz del Mundo church.
When leaders of La Luz del Mundo church said they needed money, she turned over all her earnings.
When they wanted sex, she gave them her body, beginning at age 9.
And when they wanted her to recruit other children to be groomed for sexual slavery, she did that too, she said — until the weight of it all, combined with brutal beatings doled out when she balked, drove her to attempt suicide and then flee the church in October 2016.
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These are the claims in a federal lawsuit filed this week by former member Sochil Martin, 33, against the Guadalajara-based megachurch.
“For nearly 22 years, I was made to work for, travel for, lie for and give my body to an organization that saw me as nothing more than a source of profit and sexual pleasure,” Martin said.
Her claims come amid a sweeping criminal case filed last year that accuses church leader Naasón Joaquín Garcia, 50 and others of human trafficking, production of child pornography, forcible rape of a minor and other felonies. While the defendants have pleaded not guilty, the scandal has roiled the church both in the United States and Mexico.
La Luz del Mundo — or Light of the World — is the largest evangelical church in Mexico. It has branches in 50 countries and boasts more than 5 million members.
Jack Freeman, a minister who has been with the church for 28 years, said he “completely rejects” the allegations and thinks they were timed to disrupt the organization’s Holy Supper. This week’s celebration, which he described as the church’s biggest U.S. event of the year, drew tens of thousands of worshipers to the Pomona Fairplex, he said.
“It is not about abuse. It is not about this fantastic story she’s come up with,” Freeman said of the lawsuit. “It’s about attention and trying to interfere with the holy event the church is doing.”
Sochil Martin, who said she is a former sex slave of La Luz Del Mundo leader Naason Joaquin Garcia, at a news conference in downtown Los Angeles. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)
He said those who have accused church officials of misconduct represent a small fraction of its global congregation.
“We continue to have baptisms. We continue to grow,” he said. “So you’re hearing from one individual, and we have over 5 million that would testify otherwise that everything she is saying is untrue and that we are a church of good, decent, honorable people with ministers who care about and love their members and a director who is guiding this church in a very decent way.”
Since the charges were filed by California Atty. Gen. Xavier Becerra, church officials have mounted an aggressive and public defense of their leader.
Advertisement
But the lawsuit goes beyond the allegations in the criminal complaint, detailing what attorneys describe as an institutionalized culture of abuse and exploitation that primed church members to turn over their money, labor and children to church leaders, whom members are taught to regard as God’s messengers on Earth.
The civil complaint, which names La Luz del Mundo, Garcia and a dozen other high-ranking church members, seeks damages for involuntary servitude, forced and unpaid labor, human trafficking, racketeering and sexual battery.
“There are various dimensions to this case. It’s a human rights case. It’s a case about the sexual abuse of children,” said attorney Josh Robbins, a former federal prosecutor. “But it is also a case about organized crime. ... And it’s been happening right here in our backyard.”
Martin was born in Monterey Park and raised by her aunt, a prominent member of La Luz del Mundo who offered her as a sexual servant to the church’s former leader, Samuel Joaquín Flores, and then to his successor and son, Garcia, the lawsuit claims.
Flores’ father founded La Luz del Mundo in 1926, and he, Flores and Garcia all became charismatic leaders of the fast-growing church. While serving as leader, each man was considered by congregants to be the apostle of Jesus Christ, infallible as God and incapable of sin. Members are taught they can achieve salvation only by worshiping the apostle, the lawsuit states.
Martin was first taught to perform erotic dances for Flores at age 9; groomers provided her with revealing outfits and taught her how and where he wanted to be touched, she said in the lawsuit.
By age 12, Martin was regularly performing private dances for Flores, and over the next four years, she said she regularly served him in various states of undress. As part of their training, she and other children were made to memorize Bible passages that their groomers said explained why being “loved” by Flores was a gift from God, the lawsuit states.
When she turned 14, Martin was required to make regular payments to the church. At 16, she started working for the church itself, producing segments for a radio station that eventually grew into its media and propaganda division, according to the lawsuit. Martin said she never received any compensation, and the lawsuit estimates she worked more than 30,000 unpaid hours.
The expectation for church members to provide free labor and donate their property, including titles to real estate holdings, is a common one, she said.
“For far too many La Luz del Mundo members, everything they have is taken by La Luz del Mundo,” Martin said. “Every dollar they make goes to La Luz del Mundo because they truly believe their money will be used to do the work of God on Earth.”
But Martin witnessed church leaders finance lavish lifestyles on the backs of their followers, the lawsuit alleges. It states that Garcia and his family members used donations to buy designer clothing, expensive art and multimillion-dollar estates, including mansions in Malibu and Palos Verdes and ranches in Texas and Redlands that housed menageries of exotic animals, as well as a private museum of restored vintage cars.
On one occasion, Martin recalled, church members in Southern California were encouraged to donate to Garcia any gold heirlooms and jewelry they owned. The donations were melted down and used to paint the moldings in a Los Angeles home he’d recently had built, according to the lawsuit.
In December 2014, Flores died and Garcia took over the church, assuming the title of apostle. The abuse against Martin intensified, according to the lawsuit.
By then, she was living in Ensenada with her husband, a fellow member whom she’d married with the church’s approval, and she’d given birth to a girl.
Garcia forced her to uproot her life and travel to Guadalajara for months at a time, where he became “entirely unlimited in his sexual demands,” according to the lawsuit.
He also assigned Martin a new role as recruiter and groomer for his child sex harem, the lawsuit states.
“For the last year before [I left the church], when I was with Naasón, it was a nightmare,” Martin said. “Through my entire life, it was a bad dream. I was just living it over and over. But toward the last year, I just saw and lived so many things.”
According to the lawsuit, Garcia once ordered Martin to perform a sex act on a 14-year-old boy, and when she refused, he beat her until she lost feeling in her right leg. Martin later learned the boy was forced to have sex with another groomer, and then with his mother, which Garcia videotaped. She said she fell into a deep depression and attempted suicide by washing down painkillers with alcohol.
Martin’s husband eventually became so concerned for her mental well-being that he began investigating her behavior and in October 2016, he found explicit photo and text message exchanges with Garcia on her phone, she said.
“He said, ‘This is very wrong. You’re all being used, and this is not a church of God,’” she said.
After the couple fled the church, Martin was subjected to a campaign of intimidation and harassment by its members that got worse once they realized she was working with law enforcement on the criminal investigation into Garcia, she said.
Several weeks after Garcia’s arrest, two people walked into her Ensenada home, introduced themselves as private investigators hired by Garcia’s criminal defense team and made vaguely threatening comments about her plans to testify, the lawsuit says. One of them flashed an LAPD business card, Martin said.
Terrified, she fled to California.
But in December, when she was staying with her family in a long-term hotel in the San Diego area, a man whom church members know as “the enforcer” followed her in an attempt to intimidate her, the lawsuit claims.
Martin was forced to find new accommodations. She continues to live in fear, she said.
Attorney Jeff Anderson said the allegations amount to “the gravest peril” his firm has faced and emphasized that Martin is likely one of hundreds of victims.
“We are here today standing with Sochil to sound the alarm and to expose the culture and the predators that are active as we speak — not just for trafficking ... but in the silencing of anybody that would speak against them,” he said.
Martin said she hopes she’ll inspire others who were abused to also come forward.
“What happened to us is not right,” she said, her voice trembling. “It is not a blessing. It is not from God. It is not right.”


latimes--2020-02-14--ICE plans to deploy more resources in 'sanctuary' cities, citing lack of cooperation

Federal immigration officials confirmed Friday that border agents and officers , including those in tactical units , will be deployed in Los Angeles and other so-called sanctuary cities to assist in the arrests of immigrants in the country illegally .
A U.S. Customs and Border Protection spokesman confirmed details of the planned deployment that were first reported in the New York Times .
The agency referred further questions to Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Department of Homeland Security .
CBP will deploy 50 Border Patrol agents and 50 field operations customs officers in nine areas , according to the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sent to cities including Chicago and New York .
Additional agents are expected to be sent to San Francisco , Boston , New Orleans , Detroit and Newark , N.J. , and other cities , according to the agency .
The deployment of the teams will run from February through May .
CBP agents and officers being detailed to help ICE will come from different sectors and job positions , including some trained in tactical operations , according to the agency .
“ ICE is utilizing CBP to supplement enforcement activity in response @ @ @ @ @ @ @ city policies , ” ICE Director Matthew Albence said in a statement .
Albence said in the statement that the action was being taken in response to sanctuary-city law enforcement agencies not cooperating with federal authorities by turning over immigrants being held in local jails .
As a result , the statement continued , federal officers “ are forced to make at-large arrests of criminal aliens who have been released into communities.
” “ This effort requires a significant amount of additional time and resources , ” Albence said .
“ When sanctuary @ @ @ @ @ @ @ street , it increases the occurrence of preventable crimes , and more importantly , preventable victims.
” The number of non-detained cases increased from 2.6 million in fiscal year 2018 to over 3.2 million in the following fiscal year , according to DHS .
“ With 5,300 ERO [ Enforcement and Removal Operations ] law enforcement officers — some of whom were detailed to the border — ICE does not have sufficient resources to effectively manage the sustained increase in non-detained cases which is exacerbated by the rise of sanctuary jurisdictions , ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Agents being deployed include those within the Border Patrol Tactical Unit ( BORTAC ) , an official confirmed .
The unit “ provides an immediate response capability to emergent and high-risk incidents requiring specialized skills and tactics , ” according to the CBP website .
John Sandweg , who headed ICE during the administration of former President Obama , called the latest move by the Trump administration “ dangerous.
” “ You ’ re pulling critical manpower off the border and you ’ re doing it really candidly for a political show of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ You ’ re also forcing the BORTAC units to operate in a dramatically different environment than what they ’ re used to .
It takes different skill sets to operate in an urban environment than it does in a border environment.
” Sandweg called it a move “ to offend so-called sanctuary cities ... by deploying a bunch of Army-looking Border Patrol agents.
” “ No ICE agent who is honest to you would ever say they need Border Patrol to bail them out .
Ever , ” he continued .
“ It @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are more than capable enough to take care of any threats out there and have and do.
” An official familiar with the deployment said BORTAC teams were sent not because they ’ re tactical units , but rather because they could deploy the quickest .
“ Everybody ’ s going to be dressed similar to an ICE officer , ” the official said , and Border Patrol agents will follow the lead of ICE counterparts .
“ They ’ re being led by ICE .
These are ICE-led daily operations.
” He @ @ @ @ @ @ @ cities where ICE needed help , not based on local sanctuary city policies , and noted that Houston is not a sanctuary city .
“ The reason those cities were chosen is because that ’ s where there was a greater need for additional staffing , ” he said .
“ Our goal is not to concern people.
” But the planned deployment could set up another clash between the Trump administration and cities such as Los Angeles and San Francisco that have vowed their law enforcement officials would not aid ICE in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the deployment may look like in Los Angeles .
An L.A.-area ICE spokesperson said the agency would not discuss planned operations or specific resource allocations .
On Friday , in a move not seen before in California , ICE officials served four administrative subpoenas to the San Diego County Sheriff ’ s Department for information on four Mexican nationals wanted for deportation .
The tactic was used Jan. 15 in Denver for what was believed to be the first time , then subsequently in New York and Connecticut .
The subpoenas are not @ @ @ @ @ @ @ but ICE said it could pursue such a court order if compliance is not forthcoming .
Last year , ICE launched a national operation aimed at making thousands of arrests .
Agencies such as the L.A. Police Department pushed back .
Mayor Eric Garcetti , who stood alongside LAPD Chief Michel Moore , told residents they did not have to open their doors for an ICE agent who did not have a warrant signed by a judge .
In a statement released Friday afternoon , Moore wrote , “ LAPD has received no @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in the Los Angeles region .
Consistent with our long-standing practices , we have not and will not participate in any immigration enforcement activities .
We continue our work building relationships with all immigrant communities in our shared effort to keep Los Angeles safe.
” L.A. County Sheriff Alex Villanueva also released a statement Friday saying , “ I strongly oppose this irresponsible deployment of federal SWAT agents in Los Angeles County for civil immigration enforcement .
“ This poorly thought-out plan can only be seen as a tactic to intimidate an already @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the shadows , ” the statement said .
“ We are not any safer if an entire segment of our population is afraid to report crimes to local law enforcement.
” The relationship between ICE and many local law enforcement agencies has long been fraught .
Since Trump took office , it has grown only more tenuous as police grapple with maintaining communication with ICE while also balancing transparency with community and civic leaders .
Those tensions are especially evident in California , where local law enforcement must abide by a “ sanctuary @ @ @ @ @ @ @ which went into effect in 2018 to provide protection for immigrants in the country illegally .
In L.A. , the Police Department stopped engaging in joint operations with ICE that directly involve civil immigration enforcement and no longer transfers people with certain minor criminal convictions to ICE custody .
“ This is transparent retaliation against local governments for refusing to do the administration ’ s bidding , ” Naureen Shah , senior policy and advocacy counsel on immigrants ’ rights for the American Civil Liberties Union , said in a statement .
“ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ further militarizing our streets .
Local governments should not face reprisals for focusing on local community needs and using taxpayer money responsibly , instead of helping to deport and detain community members.
” Advocates said that rapid response networks , which provide hotlines for immigrants facing arrest by immigration officers and dispatch trained legal observers to raids , will be on high alert over the weekend .
Hamid Yazdan Panah , advocacy director of Immigrant Defense Advocates in the Bay Area , said the operation is part of a repeated pattern by the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ gain .
“ This administration has a practice of trying to bully people into obtaining what it wants .
But I think sanctuary cities stand on firm legal ground , ” Yazdan Panah said .
“ Sanctuary policies are a reflection of the shared values and the fabric of that community .
This escalation isn ’ t going to stop that.
” Times staff writers Andrea Castillo and Leila Miller contributed to this report .

Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers looking for a fugitive migrant question his mother during a morning raid on his residence in Riverside.
Federal immigration officials confirmed Friday that border agents and officers, including those in tactical units, will be deployed in Los Angeles and other so-called sanctuary cities to assist in the arrests of immigrants in the country illegally.
A U.S. Customs and Border Protection spokesman confirmed details of the planned deployment that were first reported in the New York Times. The agency referred further questions to Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Department of Homeland Security.
CBP will deploy 50 Border Patrol agents and 50 field operations customs officers in nine areas, according to the agency. Specially trained officers will be sent to cities including Chicago and New York.
Additional agents are expected to be sent to San Francisco, Boston, New Orleans, Detroit and Newark, N.J., and other cities, according to the agency. The deployment of the teams will run from February through May.
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CBP agents and officers being detailed to help ICE will come from different sectors and job positions, including some trained in tactical operations, according to the agency.
“ICE is utilizing CBP to supplement enforcement activity in response to the resource challenges stemming from sanctuary city policies,” ICE Director Matthew Albence said in a statement.
Albence said in the statement that the action was being taken in response to sanctuary-city law enforcement agencies not cooperating with federal authorities by turning over immigrants being held in local jails. As a result, the statement continued, federal officers “are forced to make at-large arrests of criminal aliens who have been released into communities.”
“This effort requires a significant amount of additional time and resources,” Albence said. “When sanctuary cities release these criminals back to the street, it increases the occurrence of preventable crimes, and more importantly, preventable victims.”
The number of non-detained cases increased from 2.6 million in fiscal year 2018 to over 3.2 million in the following fiscal year, according to DHS.
“With 5,300 ERO [Enforcement and Removal Operations] law enforcement officers — some of whom were detailed to the border — ICE does not have sufficient resources to effectively manage the sustained increase in non-detained cases which is exacerbated by the rise of sanctuary jurisdictions,” the agency said in a statement.
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Agents being deployed include those within the Border Patrol Tactical Unit (BORTAC), an official confirmed. The unit “provides an immediate response capability to emergent and high-risk incidents requiring specialized skills and tactics,” according to the CBP website.
John Sandweg, who headed ICE during the administration of former President Obama, called the latest move by the Trump administration “dangerous.”
“You’re pulling critical manpower off the border and you’re doing it really candidly for a political show of force,” Sandweg said. “You’re also forcing the BORTAC units to operate in a dramatically different environment than what they’re used to. It takes different skill sets to operate in an urban environment than it does in a border environment.”
Sandweg called it a move “to offend so-called sanctuary cities ... by deploying a bunch of Army-looking Border Patrol agents.”
“No ICE agent who is honest to you would ever say they need Border Patrol to bail them out. Ever,” he continued. “It’s insulting to ICE agents who are more than capable enough to take care of any threats out there and have and do.”
An official familiar with the deployment said BORTAC teams were sent not because they’re tactical units, but rather because they could deploy the quickest.
“Everybody’s going to be dressed similar to an ICE officer,” the official said, and Border Patrol agents will follow the lead of ICE counterparts. “They’re being led by ICE. These are ICE-led daily operations.”
He said the BORTAC teams were sent to cities where ICE needed help, not based on local sanctuary city policies, and noted that Houston is not a sanctuary city.
“The reason those cities were chosen is because that’s where there was a greater need for additional staffing,” he said. “Our goal is not to concern people.”
But the planned deployment could set up another clash between the Trump administration and cities such as Los Angeles and San Francisco that have vowed their law enforcement officials would not aid ICE in its sweeps.
It is unclear what the deployment may look like in Los Angeles. An L.A.-area ICE spokesperson said the agency would not discuss planned operations or specific resource allocations.
On Friday, in a move not seen before in California, ICE officials served four administrative subpoenas to the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department for information on four Mexican nationals wanted for deportation. The tactic was used Jan. 15 in Denver for what was believed to be the first time, then subsequently in New York and Connecticut. The subpoenas are not court-ordered or signed by a judge, but ICE said it could pursue such a court order if compliance is not forthcoming.
Last year, ICE launched a national operation aimed at making thousands of arrests. Agencies such as the L.A. Police Department pushed back. Mayor Eric Garcetti, who stood alongside LAPD Chief Michel Moore, told residents they did not have to open their doors for an ICE agent who did not have a warrant signed by a judge.
In a statement released Friday afternoon, Moore wrote, “LAPD has received no information from ICE regarding any special deployments in the Los Angeles region. Consistent with our long-standing practices, we have not and will not participate in any immigration enforcement activities. We continue our work building relationships with all immigrant communities in our shared effort to keep Los Angeles safe.”
L.A. County Sheriff Alex Villanueva also released a statement Friday saying, “I strongly oppose this irresponsible deployment of federal SWAT agents in Los Angeles County for civil immigration enforcement.
“This poorly thought-out plan can only be seen as a tactic to intimidate an already vulnerable population and drive them deeper into the shadows,” the statement said. “We are not any safer if an entire segment of our population is afraid to report crimes to local law enforcement.”
The relationship between ICE and many local law enforcement agencies has long been fraught. Since Trump took office, it has grown only more tenuous as police grapple with maintaining communication with ICE while also balancing transparency with community and civic leaders.
Those tensions are especially evident in California, where local law enforcement must abide by a “sanctuary” law, Senate Bill 54, which went into effect in 2018 to provide protection for immigrants in the country illegally. In L.A., the Police Department stopped engaging in joint operations with ICE that directly involve civil immigration enforcement and no longer transfers people with certain minor criminal convictions to ICE custody.
“This is transparent retaliation against local governments for refusing to do the administration’s bidding,” Naureen Shah, senior policy and advocacy counsel on immigrants’ rights for the American Civil Liberties Union, said in a statement. “It will put lives at risk by further militarizing our streets. Local governments should not face reprisals for focusing on local community needs and using taxpayer money responsibly, instead of helping to deport and detain community members.”
Advocates said that rapid response networks, which provide hotlines for immigrants facing arrest by immigration officers and dispatch trained legal observers to raids, will be on high alert over the weekend.
Hamid Yazdan Panah, advocacy director of Immigrant Defense Advocates in the Bay Area, said the operation is part of a repeated pattern by the Trump administration of using fear for political gain.
“This administration has a practice of trying to bully people into obtaining what it wants. But I think sanctuary cities stand on firm legal ground,” Yazdan Panah said. “Sanctuary policies are a reflection of the shared values and the fabric of that community. This escalation isn’t going to stop that.”
Times staff writers Andrea Castillo and Leila Miller contributed to this report.


latimes--2020-02-14--How a fire in the Inland Empire could spell doom for the worldwide vinyl LP boom

One morning last week just after 8 a.m. , as Sarabjeet Ubbu was starting the day behind the counter of his 7 Star Food Store in Banning , Calif. , he noticed black smoke billowing from the roof of the building across the street .
The unassuming beige facility houses Apollo Masters .
Owners of a manufacturing plant and a closely held formula for making and mounting a specific mix of lacquer onto aluminum discs , the company supplies a reported 75 % of the world ’ s blank lacquers , the shiny circular plates essential for the production of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a small but vital part of the music industry .
Though it was impossible to know from where Ubbu stood , the smoke pouring from the windowless plant signaled a kind of doomsday scenario .
The business of selling vinyl albums , in the midst of an unexpected 14-year surge in sales , could have been facing its biggest existential threat since the rise of the compact disc .
Ubbu stepped outside to call 911 , but a police car had already arrived .
So he started recording video on his phone .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ the far side of his property .
Soon , he says “ five or six explosions ” shook the neighborhood as flames shot up and smoke blew across the I-10 a few hundred yards north .
Clumps of a black substance he described as tar rained down .
“ I said , my God , I ’ ve got propane gas here.
” The tanks didn ’ t blow up .
Luckily , no one was injured in the three-alarm inferno , and within a few hours firefighters had extinguished it .
By @ @ @ @ @ @ @ more than a shell .
Ubbu spent the next morning removing black goop from the 7 Star parking lot .
At some point a few people he knew to be Apollo employees stopped by to watch , but when he asked if they ’ d been in the plant , they told him they ’ d been recently laid off .
News of the fire quickly spread throughout the close-knit vinyl production community .
“ It sucks , man , ” says Rick Hashimoto , plant manager at Record Technology Inc. , a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the explosions , Hashimoto says , many had concerns about Apollo ’ s dominance .
“ It ’ s something that everybody in the industry has talked about : ‘ What if something happens to Apollo ?
What if they go under ?
’ ” He adds , “ But I don ’ t think anybody ever actually said , ‘ What if they have a fire ?
’ ” How did one Southern California company end up monopolizing the global market for blank lacquer discs ?
What happens now that it ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ environmental perspective , can such a facility even exist in California anymore ?
“ This is not something that ’ s going to be easily handled , emotionally , financially , aesthetically , artistically , ” says Len Horowitz , audio engineer and owner of History of Recorded Sound , a Culver City studio devoted to restoring and preserving recording and audio technologies .
“ It ’ s a billion-dollar industry .
[ Apollo ] has tentacles everywhere.
” The only other lacquer maker in the world , MDC in Japan , is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ t taking on new clients .
The demand for a rebuild is there .
In 2019 , U.S. vinyl sales grew by 14.5 % , part of a decade-plus uptick , for a total 18.8-million records .
Still , vinyl accounted for just 4 % of all U.S. music sales , compared with 82 % for streaming and the remaining 14 % for digital downloads and CD purchases .
Horowitz , who as part of his 50-year involvement in the recording technology business has served as a consultant for Apollo , says the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ You could start a GoFundMe page right now and raise a million dollars from this industry , ” he says , “ and they ’ ll put that plant back in that building as fast as you think .
Nobody would hesitate to throw money at it.
” Founded in New York in the mid-1930s as Apollo Disc , over the years the company devised and perfected its own process for making blank discs .
During the 1960s and ’ 70s vinyl boom times , it was owned by Capitol Records .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ the late ’ 80s , Capitol sold Apollo to GC International , a Camarillo-based precision parts foundry and manufacturer .
The company ’ s owner , Terry Carlson , whose father founded the company , did not reply to requests for comment .
Other than a general statement posted to Apollo ’ s website , the company has remained mum .
But that can ’ t last forever , Horowitz says .
“ They ’ re going to have to talk to us at some point or another.
” Until last week , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s place in the vinyl supply chain .
Unlike uploading a newly recorded project to a streaming service such as Spotify , manufacturing records relies on techniques , processes and machines honed over the decades .
The whole thing is best understood via a mess of metaphors .
In filmmaking terms , a blank lacquer is the original negative .
It ’ s the fresh cement into which you carve your initials .
Made with what Horowitz describes as “ the purest of absolutely flat aluminum , ultrasonically cleaned and prepared , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ like icing onto a doughnut , with a micro-thin layer of lacquer made with Apollo ’ s secret formula .
After undergoing a six-week drying and curing process , followed by another six weeks repeating the steps for side B , each blank disc comes out as smooth as a mirror .
A box of 25 costs about $ 900 .
He likens Apollo ’ s production methods to “ painting a Rolls-Royce every minute .
You can ’ t have any ripples .
You can ’ t have any orange peels [ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have any bubbles .
They have to be absolutely perfect , because it makes a mold that ’ s going to be on the planet forever.
” Blanks are only needed for new , previously unpressed albums .
Reorders don ’ t require a new lacquer .
Last year the top-selling vinyl LPs were catalog titles by Queen , the Beatles , Pink Floyd and Amy Winehouse , none of which required use of a blank .
Once a blank is on the cutting lathe and the studio tape is cued up , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ needle to cut a single long , intricate groove of sound waves onto the rotating disc .
After a magical but boring process involving nickel-plating , reverse stampers and more , the microscopic spiral carved into the lacquer is pressed onto 12-inch albums .
More than a week after flames consumed the 35,000-square-foot building at 101 W. Lincoln St. , pressing plants and mastering engineers are assessing the future .
Some have expressed fear that the fire will disrupt the global production of new album releases and slow the seemingly endless supply of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ It has already been a rough 2020 for the California vinyl industry .
Last month Rainbo Records , which had pressed records in Southern California for 80 years , was forced to close after its landlord raised the rent .
The block housing Apollo is still closed to traffic .
The cause of the fire remains under investigation , according to Fernando Herrera , Banning Fire Dept .
public information officer .
Herrera says that Banning officials have told Apollo that it won ’ t be permitted to rebuild until the property has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ chemicals used to produce the lacquer , it ’ s not clear whether current California environmental laws would even permit the company to rebuild .
RTI plant manager Hashimoto says that even before the fire , Apollo had been addressing manufacturing problems .
“ The last year or so they ’ ve been having some production issues , ” he says , adding that “ their quality has dipped a little bit , but people were still using them.
” In the short term , consumers and labels will be OK , he @ @ @ @ @ @ @ April ’ s annual Record Store Day marketing initiative have already been cut and sent to pressing plants .
Many of the established companies and mastering engineers buy their lacquer stock annually and have backups warehoused .
The concern is that a shortage will threaten new releases and boutique reissues in 2021 and beyond , after the stock has been depleted .
At that point , Hashimoto says , “ It ’ s going to affect the whole industry until somebody comes up with an alternative.
” Liz Dunster , president and owner @ @ @ @ @ @ @ West Coast ’ s largest vinyl pressing plant , is one of the lucky ones .
The fire won ’ t affect her production schedule , even if it “ is just devastating ” for the community .
“ My heart ’ s broken for what ’ s happened to Apollo , ” she says .
Erika , which will celebrate its 40th anniversary next year , sources its supply from both Apollo and MDC , and has enough lacquers to last a year .
Dunster estimates that her company uses between 100 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ will be independent labels that issue new releases by contemporary acts and earn more from vinyl sales than they do from streaming services .
Hashimoto says a shortage of lacquers will drive up prices , which will no doubt be passed on to buyers already spending upwards of $ 20 for a new record .
Still , Horowitz says that the greatest loss rests in the institutional knowledge that has driven Apollo ’ s business .
“ The skill level of the people who were in that place ?
We have to keep @ @ @ @ @ @ @ matter what happens , putting this back together requires their exact knowledge .
”

One morning last week just after 8 a.m., as Sarabjeet Ubbu was starting the day behind the counter of his 7 Star Food Store in Banning, Calif., he noticed black smoke billowing from the roof of the building across the street.
The unassuming beige facility houses Apollo Masters. Owners of a manufacturing plant and a closely held formula for making and mounting a specific mix of lacquer onto aluminum discs, the company supplies a reported 75% of the world’s blank lacquers, the shiny circular plates essential for the production of vinyl records.
The vinyl sector is a small but vital part of the music industry. Though it was impossible to know from where Ubbu stood, the smoke pouring from the windowless plant signaled a kind of doomsday scenario. The business of selling vinyl albums, in the midst of an unexpected 14-year surge in sales, could have been facing its biggest existential threat since the rise of the compact disc.
Advertisement
Ubbu stepped outside to call 911, but a police car had already arrived. So he started recording video on his phone. Eventually he retreated into his car on the far side of his property.
Soon, he says “five or six explosions” shook the neighborhood as flames shot up and smoke blew across the I-10 a few hundred yards north. Clumps of a black substance he described as tar rained down. “I said, my God, I’ve got propane gas here.” The tanks didn’t blow up.
Luckily, no one was injured in the three-alarm inferno, and within a few hours firefighters had extinguished it. By then, the Apollo facility was little more than a shell.
While April’s Record Store Day, the annual celebration of music retailers and vinyl, will be unaffected by the Apollo fire, the 2021 version could be impacted. (Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times)
Ubbu spent the next morning removing black goop from the 7 Star parking lot. At some point a few people he knew to be Apollo employees stopped by to watch, but when he asked if they’d been in the plant, they told him they’d been recently laid off. News of the fire quickly spread throughout the close-knit vinyl production community.
“It sucks, man,” says Rick Hashimoto, plant manager at Record Technology Inc., a Camarillo-based record pressing plant. Even before the explosions, Hashimoto says, many had concerns about Apollo’s dominance. “It’s something that everybody in the industry has talked about: ‘What if something happens to Apollo? What if they go under?’”
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He adds, “But I don’t think anybody ever actually said, ‘What if they have a fire?’”
How did one Southern California company end up monopolizing the global market for blank lacquer discs? What happens now that it’s out of commission? From an environmental perspective, can such a facility even exist in California anymore?
“This is not something that’s going to be easily handled, emotionally, financially, aesthetically, artistically,” says Len Horowitz, audio engineer and owner of History of Recorded Sound, a Culver City studio devoted to restoring and preserving recording and audio technologies. “It’s a billion-dollar industry. [Apollo] has tentacles everywhere.” The only other lacquer maker in the world, MDC in Japan, is operating at peak production and isn’t taking on new clients.
The demand for a rebuild is there. In 2019, U.S. vinyl sales grew by 14.5%, part of a decade-plus uptick, for a total 18.8 million records. Still, vinyl accounted for just 4% of all U.S. music sales, compared with 82% for streaming and the remaining 14% for digital downloads and CD purchases.
Horowitz, who as part of his 50-year involvement in the recording technology business has served as a consultant for Apollo, says the money’s out there too: “You could start a GoFundMe page right now and raise a million dollars from this industry,” he says, “and they’ll put that plant back in that building as fast as you think. Nobody would hesitate to throw money at it.”
The question? “Does Apollo want to?”
A sound engineer cuts sound waves onto a record lacquer. (Library of Congress)
Founded in New York in the mid-1930s as Apollo Disc, over the years the company devised and perfected its own process for making blank discs. During the 1960s and ’70s vinyl boom times, it was owned by Capitol Records.
After the rise of compact discs in the late ’80s, Capitol sold Apollo to GC International, a Camarillo-based precision parts foundry and manufacturer. The company’s owner, Terry Carlson, whose father founded the company, did not reply to requests for comment.
Other than a general statement posted to Apollo’s website, the company has remained mum. But that can’t last forever, Horowitz says. “They’re going to have to talk to us at some point or another.”
Until last week, only the most devoted audiophiles appreciated Apollo’s place in the vinyl supply chain. Unlike uploading a newly recorded project to a streaming service such as Spotify, manufacturing records relies on techniques, processes and machines honed over the decades.
The whole thing is best understood via a mess of metaphors. In filmmaking terms, a blank lacquer is the original negative. It’s the fresh cement into which you carve your initials. Made with what Horowitz describes as “the purest of absolutely flat aluminum, ultrasonically cleaned and prepared,” the disc is then coated, like icing onto a doughnut, with a micro-thin layer of lacquer made with Apollo’s secret formula. After undergoing a six-week drying and curing process, followed by another six weeks repeating the steps for side B, each blank disc comes out as smooth as a mirror. A box of 25 costs about $900.
He likens Apollo’s production methods to “painting a Rolls-Royce every minute. You can’t have any ripples. You can’t have any orange peels [dents]. You can’t have any bubbles. They have to be absolutely perfect, because it makes a mold that’s going to be on the planet forever.”
“If you love a record, that’s the mold,” concludes Horowitz.
Blanks are only needed for new, previously unpressed albums. Reorders don’t require a new lacquer. Last year the top-selling vinyl LPs were catalog titles by Queen, the Beatles, Pink Floyd and Amy Winehouse, none of which required use of a blank.
Once a blank is on the cutting lathe and the studio tape is cued up, a mastering engineer employs an Apollo-made sapphire-tipped needle to cut a single long, intricate groove of sound waves onto the rotating disc. After a magical but boring process involving nickel-plating, reverse stampers and more, the microscopic spiral carved into the lacquer is pressed onto 12-inch albums.
More than a week after flames consumed the 35,000-square-foot building at 101 W. Lincoln St., pressing plants and mastering engineers are assessing the future. Some have expressed fear that the fire will disrupt the global production of new album releases and slow the seemingly endless supply of reissues that major labels churn out.
Steve Sheldon, the owner of Rainbo Records in Canoga Park, inside the record-themed sound test room. The 80-year-old company is shutting down. (Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)
It has already been a rough 2020 for the California vinyl industry. Last month Rainbo Records, which had pressed records in Southern California for 80 years, was forced to close after its landlord raised the rent.
The block housing Apollo is still closed to traffic. The cause of the fire remains under investigation, according to Fernando Herrera, Banning Fire Department public information officer. Herrera says that Banning officials have told Apollo that it won’t be permitted to rebuild until the property has undergone hazardous waste remediation. Given the chemicals used to produce the lacquer, it’s not clear whether current California environmental laws would even permit the company to rebuild.
RTI plant manager Hashimoto says that even before the fire, Apollo had been addressing manufacturing problems. “The last year or so they’ve been having some production issues,” he says, adding that “their quality has dipped a little bit, but people were still using them.”
In the short term, consumers and labels will be OK, he says. Lacquers needed in advance of April’s annual Record Store Day marketing initiative have already been cut and sent to pressing plants. Many of the established companies and mastering engineers buy their lacquer stock annually and have backups warehoused.
The concern is that a shortage will threaten new releases and boutique reissues in 2021 and beyond, after the stock has been depleted. At that point, Hashimoto says, “It’s going to affect the whole industry until somebody comes up with an alternative.”
Liz Dunster, president and owner of Buena Park-based Erika Records, the West Coast’s largest vinyl pressing plant, is one of the lucky ones. The fire won’t affect her production schedule, even if it “is just devastating” for the community. “My heart’s broken for what’s happened to Apollo,” she says.
Erika, which will celebrate its 40th anniversary next year, sources its supply from both Apollo and MDC, and has enough lacquers to last a year. Dunster estimates that her company uses between 100 to 125 a month.
Hardest hit will be independent labels that issue new releases by contemporary acts and earn more from vinyl sales than they do from streaming services. Hashimoto says a shortage of lacquers will drive up prices, which will no doubt be passed on to buyers already spending upwards of $20 for a new record.
Still, Horowitz says that the greatest loss rests in the institutional knowledge that has driven Apollo’s business. “The skill level of the people who were in that place? We have to keep in touch with them, because no matter what happens, putting this back together requires their exact knowledge.”