South L.A. Structures on Shaky Foundations



Thousands of South L.A. homes are at risk for collapse during a large earthquake.| Flickr

Experts say thousands of  Los Angeles homes will collapse in a large earthquake.| Cameron23, Flickr Creative Commons

Imagine the Los Angeles skyline in its entirety. Include the apartment and commercial buildings; the houses old and new. Now, imagine 50 percent of those buildings gone—collapsed either partially or completely.

That is the bleak picture that U.S. Geological Survey seismologist Dr. Lucy Jones painted for attendees during the 2015 Great California ShakeOut Breakfast Leadership Summit on Sept. 30.

Los Angeles has not experienced a major earthquake in 20 years. The last large temblor to slam the region was the 1994 Northridge earthquake. Since then, California faults have been in a quiet period that Jones and other experts on her team insist won’t last.

The period of smooth sailing has caused home and commercial building owners to relax their approach to protecting structures against the damage they could sustain in the violent shaking during a substantial quake.

Lack of action to strengthen structures, however, renders the millions of people who live and work in the city’s 300,000 unstable buildings susceptible to displacement from work or homes, and even disaster-related death.

[Read more…]

Claims of racial profiling by USC campus security fuel demand for investigations



Najee Ali speaks outside the Galen Center. | Celeste Alvarez (Neon Tommy)

Najee Ali speaks outside the Galen Center. | Celeste Alvarez (Neon Tommy)

By Celeste Alvarez

Civil rights organization National Action Network held a press conference Tuesday on the recent allegations of racial profiling by members of USC’s Department of Public Safety.

Speaking in front of the Galen Center, Political Director Najee Ali of NAN demanded an independent state and federal investigation be conducted regarding racial profiling by USC Department of Public Safety officers following claims made by actress Taraji P. Henson.

“We take those claims very seriously and we know for a fact that several students have claimed they have been racially profiled by USC in recent years,” Ali said.

Henson told Uptown Magazine that she had initially planned for her 20-year-old son, Marcel Henson to transfer to USC, however decided against it after he allegedly experienced racial profiling by police officers on the campus.

The “Empire” star told the magazine police stopped him “for having his hands in his pockets.”

“I’m not paying $50K so I can’t sleep at night wondering is this the night my son is getting racially profiled on campus,” Henson told the magazine. She ultimately decided to have him attend her alma mater, Howard University, a historically Black institution.

In response, DPS Chief John Thomas released a statement Monday evening stating he was “deeply disturbed to read news reports about a prospective student who felt profiled on or near campus because of his race.”

He has also stated that he would like to meet with Henson and her son to “look into this matter further and better understand who was involved and what took place.”

Thomas also noted that as “someone who personally experienced racial profiling as a teenager, I have a stake in learning more about this incident and doing all I can to reach a just resolution.”

It is unclear which police department was involved in the incident with Marcel, but Thomas did note that “[a]ny allegation of bias or unequal treatment by university officers would trigger an investigation that [he] would supervise along with the university’s Office of Equity and Diversity.”

Ali expressed concern that any investigation conducted by USC officials will be biased when it comes to addressing issues of racial profiling conducted by DPS. He also noted that although NAN stands by Henson they have not been in contact with her directly.

He further discusses his own experience with racial profiling at USC in the video below.

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Visionaries to showcase South LA innovations and activism Feb. 26



VoicesofSouthLA-Feb-Flyer

This week the University of Southern California will host a lively forum featuring social justice organizations in South Los Angeles.

Panelists Ben Caldwell, of Kaos Network, Karen Mack, of LA Commons, Javier “JP” Partida, of Los Ryderz and Neelam Shara, of Community Services Unlimited, will explore pioneering efforts to mobilize South Los Angeles and improve the quality of life for its community members.

The second in a two-part series, Voices of South LA: Food, Recreation and the Arts as Social Justice, will take place at University of Southern California’s Bovard Auditorium on Thursday, Feb. 26 from 6 to 7:30 PM. [Read more…]

Worker delivers tearful plea to USC president to increase wages



Activists captured an awkward confrontation with millionaire University of Southern California President C.L. Max Nikias and a campus worker on video—right outside one of the school’s most expensive cafeterias.

After someone off-camera asked the college president if he would listen to workers seeking a living wage, Nikias enthusiastically told the heckler, “You have nothing to worry about it.”

But hospitality worker Abigail Lopez gave the university administrator a piece of her mind and relayed how campus workers earning poverty-level wages have plenty to worry about—like paying bills and buying food. What ensued was the longest elevator wait of Max Nikias’ entire life. Lopez couldn’t make it more than a few sentences before tearing up, much to the discomfort of Nikias. [Read more…]

Xinran Ji suffered fatal blows to head



Jonathan DelCarmen and Alberto Ochoa listen to witnesses give testimony as Rose Tsai, attorney for Xinran Ji's parents, watches from the audience. | Daina Beth Solomon

Jonathan DelCarmen and Alberto Ochoa listen to witnesses give testimony as Rose Tsai, attorney for Xinran Ji’s parents, watches from the audience. | Daina Beth Solomon

By Daina Beth Solomon, Celeste Alvarez and Olivia Lavoice

Xinran Ji died from swelling and bleeding inside his brain after being struck on the head at least six times with a blunt object, possibly a baseball bat, testified a L.A. County medical examiner Wednesday as prosecutors revealed evidence about the killing.

The 24-year-old from China was attacked last summer in an attempted robbery near his apartment, blocks from where he studied engineering at the University of Southern California.   

Deputy medical examiner Louis Pena said any one of six blows could have been fatal. Ultimately, the brain stem, which controls one’s breathing and heart rate, failed as capillaries ruptured and bled.  [Read more…]

USC student attempted to flee fatal attack



Rose Tsai, attorney for Xinran Ji's family, speaks to reporters at the court last summer.  Daina Beth Solomon

Rose Tsai, attorney for Xinran Ji’s family, speaks to reporters at the courthouse last summer, shortly following Ji’s death. | Daina Beth Solomon

By Daina Beth Solomon and Olga Grigoryants

Xinran Ji sprinted into the middle of the street toward his apartment near the University of Southern California last summer as three attackers dashed after, striking him one by one with a baseball bat. The 24-year-old engineering student then staggered home, where officers found him dead the next morning.

This was the account prosecutors presented in court Tuesday as they revealed video footage of the July 24 attack on Ji, a USC graduate student from China.

Deputy District Attorney John McKinney credited multiple surveillance cameras with helping bring murder charges against four teenagers.

“Once you know they were involved… it becomes clear who is who in the video, at least to me,” McKinney told reporters, holding a photo of Ji in graduation robes at his side. “And I think it will be to any fact finder.”

Jonathan DelCarmen, 19, and Andrew Garcia, 18, could face the death penalty for murder committed in the attempt of robbery. Two alleged accomplices, Alberto Ochoa, 17, and Alejandra Guerrero, 16 — exempt from capital punishment because they are minors — could face life in prison without parole. All are being held without bail.

USC tightened campus security following the spring 2012 murders of two graduate students from China, who were shot to death as they sat in a parked car near campus in what police called a robbery attempt gone wrong. And the university revved up safety measures yet again when an alleged gang member opened fire at a campus Halloween party the same year, wounding four people. Among the upgrades were installing security cameras and license plate readers.

See also: Brandon Spencer is paying a 40-year price for four shots that killed no one 

About seven camera recordings painted a picture of the evening’s events, said Los Angeles Police Det. Matthew Courtney, who retrieved the footage from USC along with private companies. A university-operated license plate reader led officers to the defendants, he said.

The suspects circled the neighborhood in a dark, 1993 Honda Accord for several minutes before stopping near 29th and Orchard streets, said Courtney. There, a nearby camera captured three suspects exit the car and confront Ji, who had left the apartment earlier that evening for a study group on campus.

Ochoa was the first to turn the baseball bat on Ji, said the prosecutor. The suspect then passed it to Garcia, who chased Ji around the corner and slammed him again. Guerrero came quickly after, also striking Ji. DelCarmen drove behind the group, picking up his alleged accomplices.

Courtney said Ji’s roommate heard Ji sniffling when he returned around 3 a.m., but attributed it to a cold. She found him the next morning curled in his bed under a purple and white striped comforter, unresponsive.

When detectives entered, they discovered blood smeared on the floor, walls and bathroom sink. Red stains mottled Ji’s sneakers and white pants. As the prosecutor brought up an image of Ji’s white T-shirt soaked through in crimson, onlookers gasped, with one muttering: “Oh, God.”

A trail of blood splatters — on lobby walls, a UPS box and sidewalks — led detectives to the first attack site. Here, they recovered Ji’s metal-rimmed glasses, shattered.

The defendants watched these images projected onto a large screen attentively, without acknowledging each other or their families sitting alongside Ji’s supporters in the courtroom. DelCarmen, wearing a blue jumpsuit, and Guerrero, in orange, sat most of the day slouched and inexpressive. Ochoa, also clad in orange, raised his eyebrows and jiggled his right foot as the prosecutor displayed evidence. When a video of the attack was played, Ochoa took off his glasses and became still.

Garcia will be addressed separately. A judge said that the alleged accomplice, who made an outburst in court the day before, may be “incompetent to go through proceedings.” His lawyer did not attend Tuesday’s hearing.

A fifth person may also be involved: Prosecutors say a 14-year-old girl sat in the backseat of DelCarmen’s car. She has not been charged in Ji’s death. However, she is being prosecuted in juvenile court in connection with a second robbery that the gang attempted later that night at Dockweiler Beach.

One of two victims, Claudia Rocha, testified that she was sitting on a curb with a friend near a roadway overlooking the beach when Ochoa approached with a baseball bat over his shoulder. As he aimed it at her friend, Rocha suddenly found herself fending off the two girls.

“We just want the keys to the car,” she recalled Guerrero saying. Rocha responded she didn’t have a car, and Guerrero said, “Then give us your purse.” As Rocha resisted, Guerrero pulled out a pocket knife and slashed at her purse strap.

Police arrested all five suspects by the following morning, quickly linking their license plate and the bat to Ji’s killing.

McKinney will present additional evidence Wednesday, planning to call on Rocha’s friend, the coroner and other detectives to provide further details of Ji’s death.

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Cecil Murray, South LA’s civic leader and spiritual guide



The respected pastor who helped put out fires of the 1992 riots now fosters religious dialogue at USC.

Cecil Murray

Cecil Murray gets settled in his USC office. | Jordyn Holman

Since late November, residents from South Los Angeles have been peacefully protesting courthouse decisions to not indict police officers in Missouri and New York who killed two young unarmed Black men in the line of duty.

For Rev. Dr. Cecil Murray, the former pastor of South L.A.’s First African Methodist Episcopal Church, the demonstrations in memory of Michael Brown and Eric Garner bring to mind L.A. protests of days gone by in that they aimed to shed light on the disconnect between police officers and the people they serve.

[Read more…]

Community seeks environmental study for South LA oil site



A packed house turned out at City Hall to discuss plans for the Budlong drill site. | Matt Tinoco

A packed house turned out at City Hall to discuss plans for the Budlong drill site. | Matt Tinoco

More than 150 Angelenos showed up at City Hall on Tuesday to voice concerns about oil giant Freeport McMoRan’s plans to expand operations in its urban-drilling facility located in South L.A. near the University of Southern California.

A room on the 10th floor of City Hall was filled with a sea of Angelenos from various walks of life, ranging from the working-class residents of apartment buildings bordering the facility to committed ecological warriors residing in Hollywood Hills.

Their collective demand was simple: Require a full environmental impact report before permitting the oil company to proceed with its plans for expansion. This meeting had been organized to allow the public to direct comments to Maya Zaitzevsky, associate zoning administrator for Los Angeles.

See also: West Adams neighbors seek to oust oil production [Read more…]

Timeline: South LA protests of the Ferguson decision



Like Intersections on Facebook, follow us on Twitter and sign up for the Newsletter to stay in the loop on news and views from South L.A. Email the author at [email protected] and follow him on Twitter at @kevintsukii.

Life without parole in USC murder case



By Ani Ucar and Celeste Alvarez

video platformvideo managementvideo solutionsvideo player

Javier Bolden, the last defendant involved in the 2012 murder of two USC graduate students, Ming Qu and Ying Wu, was sentenced to life without the possibility of parole Monday morning.

Judge Stephen Marcus announced the decision about three weeks after a jury of seven women and five men found Bolden guilty in two counts of first degree murder as well as two other charges including attempted murder and assault with a firearm for a separate shooting of two victims at a party in February 2012. [Read more…]