'Angelenos Against Gridlock' protests delays in 405 widening

A group calling itself Angelenos Against Gridlock plans a demonstration Saturday afternoon to protest delays in the 405 Freeway widening project.

David Murphy, the group's president, said the 2 p.m. protest would be held on the sidewalk outside the Westwood Federal Building at 11000 Wilshire Boulevard.

Months of delays and added costs recently announced at a Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority construction meeting "will have an onerous effect on commuters, businesses and residents," Murphy said.

Metro said much of the delay relates to the complexities of locating and moving utility lines along Sepulveda Boulevard through the Sepulveda Pass. Most of that work has been completed, but it took longer than expected.

The $1-billion-plus project's key goal is to add a 10-mile carpool lane between the 10 and the 101 freeways. To accomplish that, workers have had to demolish and rebuild a number of bridges and entrance and exit ramps.

After three years of work, Metro reported this week that the project was two-thirds complete. It said segments would continue to be opened in phases.

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Digital billboard company issues $100-million threat against L.A.

This post has been corrected. See note below for details.

A billboard company fighting to preserve dozens of digital signs it has erected across Los Angeles warned this week that it would go to court to seek more than $100 million from City Hall if it is ordered to remove its electronic signs.

In an 11-page letter sent Friday, Clear Channel Outdoor described its digital signs as “valuable assets that the city cannot attempt to take away without paying just compensation.”

The letter comes two months after a three-judge panel struck down an agreement approved by the City Council in 2006 that allowed Clear Channel and CBS Outdoor to replace 840 existing billboards with  digital billboards.

That panel ordered a lower court to invalidate all digital conversions permitted under the agreement. But Sara Lee Keller, Clear Channel's lawyer, warned that if the council instructs the company to turn off the signs “it would be exposed to liability to Clear Channel for the fair market value of such signs, which substantially exceeds $100 million.”

“While litigating these claims would be costly and time-consuming for all … we believe it is important to be clear about the consequences,” Keller wrote. Clear Channel managed to install 79 digital billboards before the agreement was blocked.

The letter drew a sharp response from Summit Media, a competing sign company that successfully sued to block the 2006 agreement. Phil Recht, the company’s attorney, said in a statement that Clear Channel made it clear that it has “no regard for the rule of law.”

“Clear Channel is trying to bully the city into submission so that they can continue to make hundreds of millions of dollars in illegal profits from these digital billboards two courts ruled to be illegal,” he said.

The threat was sent one day before neighborhood activists and outdoor advertising lobbyists –- including Clear Channel and its representatives -- participated in a working group to discuss possible digital sign legislation. One proposal up for discussion would allow new digital billboards to be installed in exchange for the removal of a greater number of static billboards.

Clear Channel and a handful of other billboard companies have contributed tens of thousands of dollars in recent weeks to Proposition A, which is on the March 5 ballot and would hike the sales tax rate to 9.5%. That measure, if passed, would generate more than $200 million annually for the city budget.

Meanwhile, Lamar Advertising, which has proposed its own plan for converting signs to digital formats, has been spending $5,000 per candidate on outdoor advertising promoting the City Council campaigns of Councilman Joe Buscaino, Assemblymen Bob Blumenfield (D-Woodland Hills) and Gil Cedillo (D-Los Angeles), and former Assemblyman Felipe Fuentes, as well as the city controller campaign of Councilman Dennis Zine.

'Swatting' call to Clint Eastwood home doesn't make LAPD's day

It didn't make the LAPD's day when officers dispatched to a home owned by Clint Eastwood in Bel-Air quickly found out the legendary actor was apparently the latest victim of a "swatting" incident.

Police had been told there were men with assault weapons at the residence.

But officers quickly determined no one was in danger at the home, avoiding the full-scale tactical response that has arrived at "swatting' incidents at the home of other celebrities, Lt. Andrew Neiman said.

Officers said that, as in earlier cases, the 911 call was likely the work of pranksters seeking to unleash a large police presence at the home of a celebrity.

The call to Eastwood's residence occurred Tuesday; it was unclear if anyone was actually staying there at the time.

On Thursday, a "swatting" call was made in an effort to bring a large police response to the Playboy mansion. Again, police were quickly able to confirm nothing dangerous was occurring at the Holmby Hills mansion.

This week's incidents are the latest in a recent rash of hoax 911 calls reporting fake crimes at celebrities' homes. What began as a prank among party-line callers and gamers in recent months has spread to target celebrities, authorities say.

Victims in recent months include Ashton Kutcher, Justin Bieber, Tom Cruise and Simon Cowell. Earlier this month, a 12-year-old was charged with making 911 calls and reporting fake crimes to police, sending them to Kutcher's home and a Wells Fargo Bank branch.

Law enforcement officials have said that swatting is a problem because it diverts resources from real emergencies.

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Photo: Clint Eastwood. Credit: Joe Klamarjoe/Getty Images

In their words: L.A. mayor candidates answer The Times' questions

Los Angeles Police Chief Charlie Beck has a good chance of keeping his job if any of the three most prominent candidates for mayor manages to win. But embattled Fire Chief Brian Cummings? Not so much.

When The Times posed a series of questions about major issues facing Los Angeles, those were among the views expressed by the eight candidates to replace termed-out Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa. In late January, the candidates were given several days to mull what they would say before emailing comments back to the newspaper.

Their answers appear in full on The Times' "Where they stand" page. Readers will find that some are clear and emphatic, and some are carefully hedged. A couple of candidates left questions unanswered. But in a race where the competitors are scrambling to break away from the pack, voters can find a few revealing contrasts.

WHERE THEY STAND: Los Angeles mayoral candidates in their own words

After years of historically low crime rates, City Hall veterans Eric Garcetti, Wendy Greuel and Jan Perry say they would like to see Police Chief Beck serve a second term. Former talk-show host Kevin James flatly says “no,” without explaining why. (In answering another question about public safety, James, the only Republican in the race, takes issue with Beck’s decision to stop impounding the cars of unlicensed drivers, many of whom are illegal immigrants.)

Candidate Emanual Pleitez says he wants to talk with Beck before making any commitment. And Norton Sandler -- a member of the Socialist Workers Party -- advocates abolishing the LAPD altogether, calling it “an instrument of capitalist rule.”

Fire Chief Cummings, meanwhile, draws support only from Councilwoman Perry. She says Cummings “has been straightforward in his dealings with the city, and is doing a great job.” Garcetti, also a council member, and Greuel, the city controller, are less inclined to support the fire chief. Both cite the controversy surrounding his department’s failures to keep accurate emergency response-time data: “I believe confidence needs to be restored in the Fire Department’s management,” Garcetti says.

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Other highlights:

Should we keep building a so-called subway to the sea? The candidates deliver an almost unanimous yes.

CHP ends stolen-SUV pursuit with bump maneuver in West L.A.

Police pursued a stolen vehicle suspect across local freeways Wednesday morning before CHP officers ended the chase in West Los Angeles by bumping the vehicle and causing it to spin out.

LAPD officers from the Mission Division began pursuing the Nissan Pathfinder about 9 a.m. The SUV sped east on the 118 Freeway and then transitioned to the southbound 405 Freeway, where California Highway Patrol officers took over the pursuit.

The chase continued into the Westside of Los Angeles from the San Fernando Valley. The driver exited the Pico Boulevard offramp and after a brief pause to turn, CHP officers performed a "pit maneuver," which entails bumping a moving vehicle from behind, causing it to lose control.

The suspect, who was not immediately identified, was taken into custody without incident about 10:45 a.m.

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City Beat: Elizabeth Taylor's engagement ring, jewels on display

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West Hollywood plastic bag ban goes into effect today

A ban on single-use plastic bag bans at checkout lines in West Hollywood’s large retailers goes into effect Wednesday.

The City Council adopted an ordinance in August prohibiting hundreds of pharmacies and grocery and retail stores including clothing stores and newsstands in the 1.9-square-mile city from distributing the bags.

Large retailers — those with buildings of 10,000 square feet or more — will be required to stop using plastic bags Wednesday. Smaller stores have until Aug. 20 to comply with the ban. Farmers markets, restaurants and other food service providers are excluded from the ban.

"Local governments have been charged, I think rightfully so, to reduce the amount of waste we put in the waste system," said West Hollywood Mayor Jeffrey Prang before the council’s vote on the ban.

Plastic bags, he said, "are costing us money and filling up landfills.”

City Beat: Elizabeth Taylor jewels on display on Rodeo Drive

It isn't easy sometimes to be an ordinary person in Los Angeles -- so near to and yet so far from the city's glamorous big events.

You hear about the grand Oscar parties but you'll never be invited. The award ceremony may be happening walking distance from where you live, but you watch it at home, on TV, in your sweatpants -- just as you might do if you were in Dubuque.

Rodeo Drive's most chic boutiques can make you feel like an outsider too. As you stroll the gleaming sidewalks of downtown Beverly Hills, you stare in the windows at baubles and trinkets that you could never in three lifetimes afford.

Which is why it feels rather nice to be encouraged to make a private appointment at Bulgari -- the fine Italian jeweler in business since 1884. 

Starting Wednesday, Bulgari will welcome the public to a small exhibit on its boutique's second floor featuring eight signature pieces of jewelry once owned by Elizabeth Taylor.

Bulgari reacquired them after Taylor's death -- in particular, spending many millions at a 2011 Christie's auction. 

Among the pieces are emeralds and diamonds galore, in the engagement ring Richard Burton gave to Taylor and a brooch and necklace he gave her to celebrate their engagement and marriage, respectively. The brooch and the necklace each went for more than $6 million at Christie's.

There are no visible price tags at Bulgari. And Taylor's jewels are not for sale. But Bulgari expects many people to want to see them while they're on display, through March 10. 

It may be possible to walk in off the street, but making an appointment is best, the staff says. The phone number for Bulgari in Beverly Hills is (310) 858-9216.

Look for my next City Beat on Elizabeth Taylor's jewels.

Keep reading here to see the story, in photos and videos, I sent out on Twitter from the scene:

L.A. Votes: Hollywood, Texas billionaire weigh in on mayor's race

Los Angeles' election day is rapidly approaching. That's clear from the candidates' frenzied schedules, the money pouring into increasingly ubiquitous television campaign ads and the glossy pitches and hit pieces piling into mailboxes. 

Spending by independent groups not controlled by the candidates just topped $1.5 million. And another fundraising reporting period ended Saturday, after potential donors were bombarded with last-minute pleas for cash. The latest financial numbers will be available later this week.

The candidates also are touting their most recent endorsements. Eric Garcetti got the nod from the L.A. Times' editorial board. Kevin James has the backing of former Mayor Richard Riordan. And Wendy Greuel received the backing of a young Latino Democrats group in the Valley, a local Teamsters union and a Realtors' coalition.

L.A. ELECTIONS 2013: Sign up for our email newsletter

With just over two weeks before the March 5 election day, the candidates hopscotched across the city all weekend, opening new field offices, speaking at an education event at a downtown middle school, marching in a Chinese New Year parade and attending Sunday services at an African American church.

Here are other developments in the mayoral race as reported by The Times:

Texas billionaire Harold Simmons has no obvious business in the city of Los Angeles but is bankrolling the Super PAC that just began airing TV ads for James, an attorney and former talk show host. The sole Republican in the race, James is considered a long shot in heavily Democratic L.A. But backing from Simmons -- a major GOP donor who has helped fund some controversial campaigns in the past -- could boost James' profile.

$1 million-plus Beverly Hills jewel heist caught on video

 

A $1-million-plus armed jewelry heist at an upscale Beverly Hills jeweler was caught on video and now authorities are releasing the recording along with a $50,000 reward they hope will nab the well-dressed robbery crew.

The robbery unfolded Jan. 25 shortly before 7 p.m. when a male and female posing as customers entered the store, Jason of Beverly Hills on Wilshire Boulevard, and asked to see pieces of jewelry in a display case, Beverly Hills police detectives said.

The man is dressed in a beige suit with shirt, tie and glasses, and woman  has long hair and is wearing a brown leather jacket appear, the video shows. As the clerk is showing them items, a second, larger man enters the store and produces a handgun.

He then is seen removing several large pieces of jewelry from a display case in the center of the room after it was opened by the store clerk. The man, with a possibly fake beard, is seen putting the items into a bag before walking out of the store, according to detectives. The alleged accomplices then follow.

Investigators believe all three suspects are 25 to 30 years old. Detectives said they fled the area in a 2011 to 2013 white Kia Optima. A reward of $50,000 is being offered for information leading to their arrest and conviction and the recovery of the stolen items.

Beverly Hills police are asking anyone with information to contact Det. Eric Hyon at (310) 285-2156.

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Southern California heating up for Valentine's Day

With a little help from Mother Nature, it’s going to be a warm, cozy weekend for Southern Californians starting on Valentine’s Day.

The National Weather Service forecasts temperatures rising to the low to mid-70s Thursday and peak in the 80s Friday as Santa Ana winds blow across Los Angeles.

Forecasters expect 10 mph winds through the region, with areas between Malibu and the Hollywood Hills getting stronger gusts up to 35 mph, the weather service predicted.

Wind advisories will go into effect Thursday at 6 p.m. in the mountains and 10 p.m. along the coast and will last through Saturday.

Temperatures will drop to the 40s or 50s overnight, said weather service meteorologist Curt Kaplan.

“Through Saturday it’s going to be nice and warm,” Kaplan said.

Then, a trough of cold air from Alaska is supposed to roll through the region by the end of the weekend, bringing in cold air and rain.

Forecasters predict a 40% chance of rain Tuesday night and 30% chance of rain on Wednesday.

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Photo: Palms sway and a flag flutters in gusty winds in Fontana. Credit: Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times