Morning Scoop: furlough Friday, illegal immigrants, Breathalyzer tests
Happy Friday from the City Desk. A sampler of California stories from today's Los Angeles Times:
Readers often ask us -- and especially now, given the state budget crisis -- how much illegal immigrants cost the state. We take a look.
The assessed value of all L.A. County properties slips for the first time in 13 years.
Michael Jackson's medical history is so complicated, he had so many doctors, that it isn't easy for investigators to form a clear picture. (Make sure to take a look, by the way, at The Times' new interactive timeline of Jackson's life.)
Accused drunk drivers have more ammunition now to challenge Breathalyzer results, thanks to the state Supreme Court.
California IOUs won't be accepted at big banks after today.
Ali Abdelhadi Mohd was cleaning anti-Arab graffiti off the walls of his family's vacated Yermo home when he was killed in an explosion. The FBI is investigating his death as a possible hate crime.
The Orange County Fair opens today -- and it's big, despite the economy.
Most state offices are closed today because of furloughs.
We'll bring you more news as we get it.
-- Nita Lelyveld
Leave us your comments here or follow @latimescitydesk on Twitter.
Take a look at the LAT story on how much illegal immigrants cost the state. In the article they mention a woman by the name of Godinez. She a 43-year-old illegal Mexican immigrant who left an abusive family. She now lives in transitional housing. Four of her five children are citizens and receive a total of about $650 each month from the state's CalWorks program. She also receives about $500 in federal food stamps and other vouchers. So she obviously left Mexico with one child. Illegally comes to the United States and proceeds to have FOUR more children. Why? She probably had no money; why did she have more kids? The answer is obvious...to collect all those great U.S. benefits! Where are the fathers of these kids? Unbelievable.
Posted by: Nancy | July 10, 2009 at 11:40 AM
you can cry for them all you want to folks! we do NOT get any benefits, they do, where does that come from? YOU! your tax dollar! feel better now? here is a link of SOME american citizens who lost their lives to illegals American citizens killed by illegal aliens!
http://www.ojjpac.org/memorial.asp
Mexico's second highest income is from illegals sending money home! google it! do you understand how really HUGE that is?? how many of them MUST be here illegally to make that happen?? 12 million? HA! more like 40 million?? we are being invaded, without one shot being fired! does anybody have a CLUE?? whos job it is to protect and defend the United States?? to ABIDE by the CONSTITUTION???? what does it mean? to break the law? why all the infighting? they broke the LAW! period! google "operation w*tback" Eisenhower had this very same problem. he quietly and EFFECTIVLY took care of it! why can we not do the same??? they walked, rode, swam over here. they can do the same going home taking their anchor babies with them! and then, if they want. they can GET IN LINE. like all the rest of the "LAW ABIDING " people that do it the RIGHT WAY!!!
Posted by: steve | July 11, 2009 at 06:36 AM