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Invisible People •

Safe Parking Lots Offer Stability To Working Angelenos Living In Cars. Budget Cuts Could End Them.

Every weekday morning at 5 a.m., Steven F. pulls out of a parking lot in Reseda and begins the long drive to Marina del Rey, where he works full time as a production assistant for Electronic Arts. At night, after an hour or more in traffic, he returns to the same lot—one of the few places in Los Angeles where he can legally and safely sleep in his car.“I felt safer sleeping in my Jeep than I did in a shelter,” Steven said. “Here, I can rest, go to work, and try to get back on my feet.”Steven, 63...
L.A. Focus Newspaper •

Keith Porter Funeral: Faith Leaders Center a Mother’s Grief After Fatal New Year’s Eve Shooting - L.A. Focus Newspaper

Media were not permitted inside the church, but from the sidewalk, the magnitude of grief surrounding Keith Porter’s funeral was unmistakable.

      Hundreds of mourners—many dressed in black—lined the block as ushers reached capacity inside the sanctuary and overflow rooms. Some family members who arrived late were turned away at the doors, leading to quiet but emotional moments as they stood outside, unwilling to leave. Cars filled the surrounding streets, their license plates stretching acro...
Los Angeles Wave Newspaper Group •

City Council president discusses priorities for 2026 - Los Angeles Wave Newspaper Group

By Stephen Oduntan
Contributing Writer
LOS ANGELES — As Los Angeles City Council returns from its winter recess, Council President Marqueece Harris-Dawson says the city is entering another year of fiscal strain — one that will test its ability to preserve services, continue progress on homelessness and public safety, and avoid widespread layoffs.
In an interview, Dawson said the council’s immediate focus in the first quarter will be preparing the city’s next budget amid lingering economic uncert...
L.A. Focus Newspaper •

Crime or No Crime? Questions Linger as Ambiguity Clouds Day Two of the Curren Price Preliminary Hearing - L.A. Focus Newspaper

LOS ANGELES — On the second day of a preliminary hearing to determine whether Los Angeles City Councilmember Curren Price should face a jury trial, prosecutors continued pressing the argument that Price should have known — and disclosed — a conflict of interest tied to his wife’s consulting business, even as defense attorneys and supporters questioned whether the lengthy testimony had established a crime at all.

Price, who represents much of South Los Angeles, was charged in 2023 with 10 felony...
L.A. Focus Newspaper •

DA Confirms LAPD Leading Probe in Off-Duty ICE Shooting of Keith Porter - L.A. Focus Newspaper

As court documents appear to identify the off-duty federal immigration agent involved in the fatal New Year’s Eve shooting of 43-year-old Keith Porter in Northridge, the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office confirmed it is relying on the Los Angeles Police Department to complete its investigation before determining whether any charges will be filed.

      In an email response to LA Focus, a spokesperson for District Attorney Nathan Hochman said the office’s Justice System Integrity Div...
L.A. Focus Newspaper •

Trial, Evidence in Question: Curren Price Preliminary Hearing Gets Underway - L.A. Focus Newspaper

The preliminary hearing in the public corruption case against Los Angeles City Councilmember Curren Price began Tuesday with testimony centered less on alleged wrongdoing and more on the mechanics of California’s conflict-of-interest laws and disclosure requirements.      Price, who has pleaded not guilty to multiple felony counts including conflict of interest, perjury by declaration, and embezzlement of public funds, appeared in Los Angeles County Superior Court as prosecutors opened their cas...
Los Angeles Wave Newspaper Group •

Family demands answers in ICE killing - Los Angeles Wave Newspaper Group

By Stephen Oduntan
Contributing Writer
LOS ANGELES — Nearly two weeks after 43-year-old Keith Porter, a father of two, was fatally shot by an off-duty federal immigration agent, his family and community advocates took their demands directly to the Los Angeles Police Commission, pressing for transparency, accountability and the public identification of the agent who fired the fatal shots.
Holding a photograph of her cousin, Jsané Tyler stood alone before the commission during public comment Jan....
Invisible People •

When Housing Comes With An Expiration Date

On a humid May afternoon, Yvonne LeMon signed a one-year lease on an apartment in Philadelphia, believing a federally funded program would cover her rent and support her transition from homelessness. By June, she was already confronting a new threat: her housing, she learned, might vanish months before her lease ended — not because she had failed, but because no one had told her how the program really worked.LeMon had arrived at the apartment after months of living in her minivan and cycling thr...
L.A. Focus Newspaper •

The High-Stakes Battle Over Ticketmaster’s Grip on Live Entertainment (And How It Impacts Your Pocketbook) - L.A. Focus Newspaper

Mackenzie McClain Hill had purchased resale tickets through a resale site — $700 each — to see Brandy and Monica perform at the Kia Forum hoping for a rare night out with her mother. They were running late, but as they crossed the parking lot, they could hear the music already playing. Kelly Rowland had just begun her set.

      That’s when Hill realized she couldn’t get into the concert.

      Standing outside the venue in the cold, Hill tried to pull up the tickets she had purchased. Instead...
Invisible People •

Trying Not To Become Homeless

Sandra Gregston measures time by eligibility windows and waiting periods.Once prompted, she spoke in long, continuous explanations, naming places, dollar amounts, notices, and rules—the language of someone who had learned to navigate systems long before she needed them herself.Late August, when the 60-day notice arrived. Late September, when the three-day notice followed. October 20, when she handed over her key. And the days after, when she slept in her SUV while waiting to hear whether help wo...
Los Angeles Wave Newspaper Group •

Kwanzaa: still spreading — or just misunderstood? - Los Angeles Wave Newspaper Group

By Stephen Oduntan
Contributing Writer
LOS ANGELES — As December arrives each year, Kwanzaa returns to public conversation — often framed by a familiar question: Why hasn’t it become as widely practiced as other cultural holidays?
Created in 1966 by the Black nationalist organization US — whose name signifies “us” as opposed to “them” — Kwanzaa emerged during a period of intense political organizing aimed at cultural self-definition and collective responsibility among Black people in the United...
L.A. Focus Newspaper •

After Years of Silence, California Mandates Family Notification in Custody Deaths - L.A. Focus Newspaper

Nearly a decade after independent watchdogs warned that Los Angeles jails were failing people in custody — and years after one family went days without knowing their loved one had died — California has enacted a new law requiring authorities to notify families within 24 hours when someone in custody is hospitalized for a serious medical condition or dies.

      The measure, AB 1269, known as Wakiesha’s Law, was signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom in September and took effect immediately. It was inspire...
L.A. Focus Newspaper •

California Designates Historic South L.A. as State’s First Black Cultural District - L.A. Focus Newspaper

California designated Historic South Los Angeles as the state’s first Black Cultural District on Dec. 12, a milestone supporters say formally recognizes generations of Black cultural influence — and one that arrives amid intensifying concerns about displacement, rising property values, and the preservation of community institutions that have long anchored Black life in the area.

      The designation follows a unanimous vote by the California Arts Council and was announced during a press confer...

Protest exposes split in Black Lives Matter – Los Angeles Wave Newspaper Group

Black Lives Matter Grassroots organizer Sheila Bates stands among protesters outside the Taglyan Cultural Complex in Hollywood Dec. 9, where demonstrators accused Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation Chair Cicely Gay of financial mismanagement during a gala event. 


Photo by Stephen Oduntan


By Stephen Oduntan


Contributing Writer


HOLLYWOOD — The chanting carried down Lexington Avenue Dec. 9, rising over a row of brake lights glowing red along the narrow block outside the Taglya...

Officers who killed Black motorist won’t face charges – Los Angeles Wave Newspaper Group

District Attorney Nathan Hochman is taking heat from justice advocates for dismissing a case against two Torrance police officers who shot and killed a man seated in a car in 2018. Hochman said a key piece of evidence was inadmissable, making it hard to convict the officers.


Courtesy photo


By Stephen Oduntan


Contributing Writer


LOS ANGELES — For many Black Angelenos, the story sounds familiar: a young man is killed by police, an investigation drags on for years, charges are filed — a...
Invisible People •

Job Loss Is The Domino That Pushes People Into Homelessness

Homelessness is not caused by personal failure — it is what happens when work no longer protects people from poverty. That is the central finding of new research published in the Journal of Social Distress and Homelessness, which shows how a single lost paycheck can trigger rapid downward spirals for people surviving on razor-thin margins.The study draws on 365 in-depth interviews from the California Statewide Study of People Experiencing Homelessness (CASPEH). Researchers found that people work...

Boys to men, L.A. style – Los Angeles Wave Newspaper Group

LAUSD brings male students into nationwide mentor program







A mentor adjusts a student’s tie during the induction ceremony for the 5000 Role Models of Excellence program, where nearly 400 young men from across the Los Angeles Unified School District received their first red tie as a symbol of leadership and responsibility.Photo by Stephen Oduntan





By Stephen Oduntan


Contributing Writer


SOUTH LOS ANGELES — Nearly 400 young men from across the Los Angeles Unified School Distri...

Lakers’ legend spreads early holiday cheer – Los Angeles Wave Newspaper Group

Abdul-Jabbar’s foundation gives shoes, backpacks





Kareem Abdul-Jabbar gives a high five to a student at  UCLA Community School Nov. 17. About 100 fourth, fifth and sixth graders received free Adidas shoes and backpacks as part of the program.Photo by Lorenzo Gomez





By Stephen Oduntan


Contributing Writer


KOREATOWN — The buzz started with whispers. More than a 100 fourth-, fifth- and sixth- graders sat cross-legged on the gym floor at UCLA Community School, glancing toward a side...
L.A. Focus Newspaper •

Edison Pulls Out of Altadena Town Hall, Sparking Backlash From KBLA, Residents - L.A. Focus Newspaper

ALTADENA — A town hall meant to address wildfire recovery in Altadena has instead escalated into a public confrontation between Southern California Edison and KBLA Talk 1580 — and deepened tensions with residents who say they still feel unheard nearly a year after losing their homes.

      Just 72 hours before the Nov. 6 event, Edison informed KBLA that it would no longer participate. The last-minute withdrawal blindsided organizers and residents who saw the forum as a rare chance to question c...

MLK Parade organizer weighs next steps – Los Angeles Wave Newspaper Group

Adrian Dove, longtime organizer of Los Angeles’s Kingdom Day Parade, stands with Mayor Karen Bass during a 2024 event. Dove is still angry over losing the permit to the 2026 parade, but had dropped plans to hold a counter event or disrupt the parade itself.


Courtesy photo


Adrian Dove says he will petition city officials over parade decision





By Stephen Oduntan


Contributing Writer


SOUTH LOS ANGELES — The longtime organizer of the Kingdom Day Parade says he will petition city off...

9th District preparing for political shift  – Los Angeles Wave Newspaper Group

Jose Ugarte





Jorge Nuño





By Stephen Oduntan


Contributing Writer


SOUTH LOS ANGELES — A quiet but consequential transition is underway in the 9th City Council District as Councilman Curren Price prepares for his last year in office, forced out by City Charter-mandated term limits.


Price has endorsed his longtime aide, José Ugarte, to replace him in next June’s primary election. 


The endorsement hasn’t quieted critics. Rival candidate Jorge Nuño argues that next year’s race...

New coalition tackles racial wealth gap – Los Angeles Wave Newspaper Group

Black leaders seek to build pipelines for small businesses





Sarah R. Harris, president and CEO of the Black Business Association, speaks at the launch of the Greater Los Angeles Black Leaders Collective Oct. 22. The collective hopes to close racial wealth gaps, strengthen community power and shape how billions of dollars in economic growth will be shared.


Courtesy photo







By Stephen Oduntan


Contributing Writer


CRENSHAW — The room inside Chase Bank’s Crenshaw Community Cen...
Invisible People •

The System Sending Homeless Patients Back Into Crisis

The woman wasn’t discharged so much as shuffled through a system that had nowhere to put her. A survivor of human trafficking in her late 30s, she had finished a short hospital stay but needed long-term mental-health treatment.The hospital social worker told Hannah Laflin, a licensed alcohol and drug counselor with a master’s in health care administration, that there were no appropriate placements available.“I don’t feel comfortable dropping her off at a homeless shelter,” the social worker said...
L.A. Focus Newspaper •

CalFresh Delays to Hit 1.5 million L.A. County Residents Amid Federal Shutdown - L.A. Focus Newspaper

Los Angeles County officials warned Sunday that CalFresh benefits will be delayed for November, a shutdown-driven disruption that could affect 1.5 million residents and ripple through small grocers and farmers markets across the region.

      “This is going to be a stressful time,” Supervisor Holly J. Mitchell said during her monthly “Sipping My Tea” livestream. “CalFresh benefits will be delayed for the month of November due to the federal government shutdown.”

      CalFresh depends on feder...
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