Agents with the Department of Homeland Security showed up at two elementary schools in Los Angeles this week, but were refused entry amid the Trump administration&#8217;s crackdown on illegal immigration.
The two agents “identified themselves as representatives of a federal agency” and went into the main office, but school administrators refused to allow them on campus, and the agents left, the Los Angeles Unified School District <a href="https://www.nbclosangeles.com/news/local/federal-employees-denied-entry-to-two-lausd-schools/3675573/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a>.
The two public schools were Lillian Street Elementary and Russell Elementary.
The district <a href="https://ktla.com/news/local-news/2-l-a-schools-deny-entry-for-federal-agents-as-immigration-enforcement-fears-ramp-up/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> the agents were from Homeland Security, and no Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents showed up. It is not clear exactly what the agents were hoping to do at the schools.
About one in four of the nearly 30,000 immigrant students in the Los Angeles school district, so about 7,500 students are illegal immigrants, <a href="https://utla.net/resources/immigration-resources-community/#:~:text=LAUSD%20alone%20serves%20an%20immigrant,them%20with%20safe%20spaces%2Fresources" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according</a> to the local teachers&#8217; union, United Teachers Los Angeles.
“We want to reaffirm the District’s unwavering commitment to the well-being and education of all students,&#8221; the district said in a message to the community.
The district&#8217;s message included a <a href="https://www.lausd.org/weareone" target="_blank" rel="noopener">link</a> to the district&#8217;s immigration resources, which promise that the district &#8220;has protocols for responding to immigration personnel requests for information&#8221; and &#8220;will do everything in its power to protect and defend students, families, and staff.&#8221;
&#8220;Our schools are places of inspiration, protection, empathy, and knowledge. Fear and threat shall be met with courage and determination,&#8221; Superintendent Alberto Carvalho said.
The Los Angeles district also alerted other school districts about “reports of immigration enforcement activity.”
The agents&#8217; visit to the schools comes after the Trump administration <a href="https://www.dhs.gov/news/2025/01/21/statement-dhs-spokesperson-directives-expanding-law-enforcement-and-ending-abuse" target="_blank" rel="noopener">scrapped</a> the Biden administration&#8217;s policy barring immigration agents from &#8220;sensitive&#8221; areas.
“Criminals will no longer be able to hide in America’s schools and churches to avoid arrest,” former acting Homeland Security Secretary Benjamine Huffman said in January.
“The Trump Administration will not tie the hands of our brave law enforcement, and instead trusts them to use common sense,” he said.
This week&#8217;s visit by the agents is believed to be the first time immigration agents have shown up at a public school since President Donald Trump took office.
About 98,000 illegal migrant students graduate from U.S. high schools across the country every year, the Los Angeles teachers union <a href="https://utla.net/resources/immigration-resources-community/#:~:text=LAUSD%20alone%20serves%20an%20immigrant,them%20with%20safe%20spaces%2Fresources" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a>.
For years, sanctuary cities like Los Angeles have refused to cooperate with federal authorities on immigration enforcement, not just in schools, but in criminal cases.
Oftentimes local law enforcement is directed not to hold illegal migrant crime suspects until ICE agents can get there to arrest and deport them, meaning the suspects get released back onto the streets.

Homeland Security

Federal Immigration Agents Denied Access To Los Angeles Public Schools

California

Education

Illegal Immigration

Immigration

Los Angeles

Public Schools

U.S.

The wife of Scott Shriner, bassist for the popular rock band Weezer, was shot by police and was then arrested on suspicion of attempted murder during an incident that occurred on Tuesday afternoon.
Los Angeles Police Department officers were searching the Eagle Rock neighborhood in pursuit of a person suspected of a hit-and-run when they observed Jill Shriner holding a pistol while standing in the backyard of the home next to the one they were searching.
“The officers ordered Shriner to drop the handgun numerous times; however, she refused. Shriner then pointed the handgun at the officers, and an Officer-Involved Shooting occurred,” a news release from the LAPD <a href="https://x.com/LAPDPIO/status/1910089847509066135">said</a>. “Shriner was struck by gunfire and fled into her residence. She later exited and was taken into custody.”
She was transported to a hospital to be treated for her injuries.
Shriner was released Wednesday after posting a $1 million bond, CNN <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2025/04/09/entertainment/weezer-scott-jillian-shriner-shot-arrested/index.html">noted</a>. She has been ordered to attend court on April 30.
Per the report, Shriner did not appear to have anything to do with the suspected hit-and-run incident, which inspired the manhunt in the first place. 
The band Weezer formed in Los Angeles in 1992. Scott Shriner joined the band as a bass player in 2001. Their 1994 debut record, “The Blue Album,” earned four Grammy nominations. Weezer won a Grammy in 2009 for Best Short Form Music Video for &#8220;Pork and Beans.&#8221; 
Some mainstream Weezer songs include “Buddy Holly,” “Say It Ain’t So,” “Beverly Hills,” and “Island in the Sun.” 
According to <a href="https://variety.com/2025/music/news/weezer-bassist-wife-shot-arrested-attempted-murder-1236365398/">Variety</a>, Weezer was just added to the Coachella lineup for this coming weekend. As of Thursday morning, neither Shriner nor the band has issued a statement on the shooting incident or given an update on whether they will appear at the music festival as planned.

Scott Shriner Jill Shriner

Weezer Bassist’s Wife Shot By Police, Arrested On Suspicion Of Attempted Murder

Weezer Bassist's Wife Shot By Police, Arrested For Attempted Murder

Crime

Entertainment

Murder might get you the death penalty in Los Angeles.
Lost Angeles County&#8217; new district attorney, Nathan Hochman ended his progressive predecessor&#8217;s blanket ban on capital punishment this week.
&#8220;Effective immediately, the prior administration’s extreme and categorical policy forbidding prosecutors from seeking the death penalty in any case is rescinded,&#8221; the Los Angeles County District Attorney&#8217;s Office <a href="https://da.lacounty.gov/media/news/da-hochman-announces-important-policy-changes-prosecutions-murders-special-circumstances" target="_blank" rel="noopener">announced</a> Tuesday in a news release.
Under California law, prosecutors may only seek the death penalty for murder with special circumstances, which can include multiple homicides, murder of a police officer, or murder of a witness to another crime.
Prosecutors should seek the death penalty &#8220;only after an extensive and comprehensive review and only in exceedingly rare cases,&#8221; and it should be &#8220;restricted to the most egregious sets of circumstances&#8221; the Los Angeles County District Attorney&#8217;s office said.
The only other possible sentence for murder with special circumstances is life in prison without the possibility of parole.
“I remain unwaveringly committed to the comprehensive and thorough evaluation of every special circumstance murder case prosecuted in Los Angeles County, in consultation with the murder victim’s survivors and with full input on the mitigating and aggravating factors of each case, to ensure that the punishment sought by the Office is just, fair, fitting, and appropriate,” Hochman said in a statement.
However, the new death penalty policy may not have any practical effect yet since Governor Gavin Newsom <a href="https://www.gov.ca.gov/2019/03/13/governor-gavin-newsom-orders-a-halt-to-the-death-penalty-in-california/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">placed</a> a moratorium on all executions back in 2019 and closed the state&#8217;s main execution chamber at San Quentin State Prison.
Hochman, a former federal prosecutor campaigned on reinstating the death penalty when he ran for district attorney last year, even <a href="https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2023-10-22/los-angeles-district-attorney-2024-election-candidates-george-gascon" target="_blank" rel="noopener">comparing</a> Los Angeles to “Gotham City” with its “rampant crime.”
Hochman defeated his progressive predecessor, George Gascon, in a landslide in November. Gascon was previously the subject of two recall attempts, but both efforts failed to make the ballot.
Gascon was criticized as soft on crime amid rising crime in Los Angeles County. Critics <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/us/los-angeles-deputy-da-gascon-creating-ticking-time-bomb-releasing-murderers-back-on-streets" target="_blank" rel="noopener">pointed</a> to cases where violent criminals, including murder convicts, were released onto the streets.
Los Angeles County Public Defender Ricardo Garcia criticized the new death penalty policy, calling it a &#8220;step backward&#8221; and saying the death penalty is &#8220;a cruel and irreversible punishment that is racially biased, and ineffective as a deterrent.&#8221;
California has <a href="https://www.cdcr.ca.gov/capital-punishment/condemned-inmate-list-secure-request/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">nearly</a> 600 inmates on death row, the most of any state, but it has not executed anyone since 2006.
More than half of U.S. states still <a href="https://deathpenaltyinfo.org/state-and-federal-info/state-by-state" target="_blank" rel="noopener">allow</a> the death penalty, although 23 states have abolished it.

US-ENTERTAINMENT-CRIME-JUSTICE-MENENDEZ

The Death Penalty Is Back In Los Angeles

Death Penalty

A leader of a street gang turned anti-gang activist was arrested this week after the Department of Justice (DOJ) charged him in a criminal complaint alleging he led an operation that engaged in various racketeering crimes, including extortion, human trafficking, fraud, and a murder.
Eugene Henley Jr., who led Los Angeles’ Rolling ‘60’s Neighborhood Crips street gang before re-inventing himself as an anti-gang activist, turned himself in after the DOJ filed the criminal complaint.
The DOJ specifically <a href="https://www.justice.gov/usao-cdca/pr/longtime-rollin-60s-crips-leader-and-show-business-entrepreneur-charged-federal">alleges</a> that “Big U Enterprises,” Henley’s criminal group, “operated as a mafia-like organization that utilized Henley’s stature and long-standing association with the Rollin’ 60s and other street gangs to intimidate businesses and individuals in Los Angeles.”
“The allegations in the complaint unsealed today reveal a criminal enterprise that engaged in murder, extortion, human trafficking, and fraud – all led by a supposed anti-gang activist and purported music entrepreneur who was nothing more than a violent street criminal,” said Joseph McNally, the Acting United States Attorney for the Central District of California.
The DOJ alleges that Henley killed an aspiring musician in 2021 after he was signed to a music label run by Henley and another alleged member of the criminal enterprise Mark Martin. When the man recorded a song disparaging Henley, the defendant allegedly shot and killed the musician, identified by the DOJ as R.W.
Henley’s criminal organization also stands accused of defrauding donors and taxpayers through non-profits it controlled, including Developing Options, an anti-gang group. That group, the DOJ says, was used to solicit donations from celebrities, companies, and even the City of Los Angeles’s Mayor’s Office, that were pocketed by Henley.
His music label, meanwhile, allegedly lied about its profitability and submitted a fraudulent COVID-19 pandemic relief loan application.
“The lead defendant and others in this case have for too long gotten away with violent acts and stealing money from taxpayers and well-intentioned donors whether they use intimidation tactics or wield influence as purportedly rehabilitated original gangsters,” said the Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI&#8217;s Los Angeles Field Office, Akil Davis.
“Mr. Henley allegedly duped the County of Los Angeles by running a charitable organization that promoted anti-gang solutions while continuing criminal activity that was directly contrary to his charity,” stated Special Agent in Charge Tyler Hatcher, IRS Criminal Investigation, Los Angeles Field Office.
Also arrested in the case are Mark Martin and Sylvester Robinson, two men believed to be members of the criminal enterprise. Ten total alleged members were arrested on charges ranging from drug trafficking to racketeering conspiracy.

Henley

Gang Leader Turned Anti-Gang Activist Arrested By DOJ On Racketeering, Murder Charges

Department of Justice

Murder

On Monday, the U.S. Department of Justice <a href="https://link.mediaoutreach.meltwater.com/ls/click?upn=u001.wmJVV7EIOKgMqWuqPA8IcXakfZGbJqyH6YrxY7zl6VQtxSgY2CGvil4c4yQrFSv-2B2C185iB3Y-2F5QpgrbYA61oh3jxHb-2FtkEi8IfdJfixNzg-3DCWgM_03HZEuPE3hkcx2fMUSyQ63zYk0dEzg0x5dq45YpE12w9VZ7X5-2BCSHojkEG5GhTxSEBpdsKU-2F3K1QrAcJyEWsgtRkDwcU40iQUik8SMvQV9G6UPoh3vgWW7vvd0gOy-2FqxxEg55K6GjyaJMwCFIB1PTF-2BmSgf3aK-2BYwd9t5CBYPYSVEBuoCLwD8l1looT4XBMAZfTVXjHxwznBv5Y8yrid4Jd2NuMW83KoOLOCm1Xm4DkIxzZZKoDVLTyJIAbMDLN7VrSZf9jDpQ0bJYqxCh-2BwdS2Er5h2wutDtiSFOdG7sJIoWJmCytsuFaB-2FoWX-2FSmYrmKjNrc3CpiAcfphB5beFy4iCm8z6NLoD9ddyF5WHL4RT6J5C9munGjaxbqYWBXgd" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://link.mediaoutreach.meltwater.com/ls/click?upn%3Du001.wmJVV7EIOKgMqWuqPA8IcXakfZGbJqyH6YrxY7zl6VQtxSgY2CGvil4c4yQrFSv-2B2C185iB3Y-2F5QpgrbYA61oh3jxHb-2FtkEi8IfdJfixNzg-3DCWgM_03HZEuPE3hkcx2fMUSyQ63zYk0dEzg0x5dq45YpE12w9VZ7X5-2BCSHojkEG5GhTxSEBpdsKU-2F3K1QrAcJyEWsgtRkDwcU40iQUik8SMvQV9G6UPoh3vgWW7vvd0gOy-2FqxxEg55K6GjyaJMwCFIB1PTF-2BmSgf3aK-2BYwd9t5CBYPYSVEBuoCLwD8l1looT4XBMAZfTVXjHxwznBv5Y8yrid4Jd2NuMW83KoOLOCm1Xm4DkIxzZZKoDVLTyJIAbMDLN7VrSZf9jDpQ0bJYqxCh-2BwdS2Er5h2wutDtiSFOdG7sJIoWJmCytsuFaB-2FoWX-2FSmYrmKjNrc3CpiAcfphB5beFy4iCm8z6NLoD9ddyF5WHL4RT6J5C9munGjaxbqYWBXgd&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1742396223728000&amp;usg=AOvVaw1jcU1d9_V5j1M_-nVE4NEq">filed</a> a brief supporting Jewish students and a professor in their lawsuit against UCLA for helping anti-Semitic activist agitators block Jews from the campus.
“In <a href="https://link.mediaoutreach.meltwater.com/ls/click?upn=u001.wmJVV7EIOKgMqWuqPA8IcUmvkedBiJLqOK2A3uOlENB6xKgBHeVB-2Bi9A-2BrP0CFn7TAisU-2FJ30qxdPDqvSLhIUB9IH9j20zy9lL8YxdjIeqt2I3t0YoS-2BrPUnGo-2BdUS-2F7uMEt_03HZEuPE3hkcx2fMUSyQ63zYk0dEzg0x5dq45YpE12w9VZ7X5-2BCSHojkEG5GhTxSEBpdsKU-2F3K1QrAcJyEWsgtRkDwcU40iQUik8SMvQV9G6UPoh3vgWW7vvd0gOy-2FqxxEg55K6GjyaJMwCFIB1PTF-2BmSgf3aK-2BYwd9t5CBYPYSVEBuoCLwD8l1looT4XBMAZfTVXjHxwznBv5Y8yrid4Cy-2FPnyURB0K03D8qZmb3NPXZ9Ls1IlF5POfIkKESnbHLie615V2hmN5TdGD40EQyCJjas-2F7nN2PdcbTdbsW8GD6P5BzFjQu3xEzj-2BqndjBTOvkSuyUFA160h8TOAzqtLZju4aHQXripEvkXtzOCtqTbuuf8ak0iJgc88bZVwqhc" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://link.mediaoutreach.meltwater.com/ls/click?upn%3Du001.wmJVV7EIOKgMqWuqPA8IcUmvkedBiJLqOK2A3uOlENB6xKgBHeVB-2Bi9A-2BrP0CFn7TAisU-2FJ30qxdPDqvSLhIUB9IH9j20zy9lL8YxdjIeqt2I3t0YoS-2BrPUnGo-2BdUS-2F7uMEt_03HZEuPE3hkcx2fMUSyQ63zYk0dEzg0x5dq45YpE12w9VZ7X5-2BCSHojkEG5GhTxSEBpdsKU-2F3K1QrAcJyEWsgtRkDwcU40iQUik8SMvQV9G6UPoh3vgWW7vvd0gOy-2FqxxEg55K6GjyaJMwCFIB1PTF-2BmSgf3aK-2BYwd9t5CBYPYSVEBuoCLwD8l1looT4XBMAZfTVXjHxwznBv5Y8yrid4Cy-2FPnyURB0K03D8qZmb3NPXZ9Ls1IlF5POfIkKESnbHLie615V2hmN5TdGD40EQyCJjas-2F7nN2PdcbTdbsW8GD6P5BzFjQu3xEzj-2BqndjBTOvkSuyUFA160h8TOAzqtLZju4aHQXripEvkXtzOCtqTbuuf8ak0iJgc88bZVwqhc&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1742396223728000&amp;usg=AOvVaw0wJziPLmnl0BO_tB4Soe6i">Frankel v. Regents of the University of California</a>, a federal judge ordered UCLA last year to stop assisting the agitators, calling the exclusion of Jews from campus ‘abhorrent’ and ‘unimaginable,’” The Becket Fund <a href="https://becketfund.org/media/breaking-justice-department-condemns-ucla-for-jew-exclusion-in-groundbreaking-court-filing/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a>. “The students and professor recently asked the court to make its ruling permanent so that Jews will never again face antisemitic exclusion.”
The DOJ brief states, “Even though UCLA may not dispute that the antisemitic campus environment at UCLA last year was ‘unimaginable’ and ‘abhorrent,’ the Individual Defendants moved to dismiss this action to evade liability for what happened on the campus that they are supposed to lead and protect. The United States has a significant interest in the proper application of federal laws that ensure equal access to educational opportunities and facilities.”
“The United States, therefore, has a strong interest in ensuring the proper application of Title VI, particularly when the Court has already found that in 2024 on UCLA’s campus ‘Jewish students were excluded from portions of the UCLA campus because they refused to denounce their faith,’” the brief continues. “Additionally, as described in the White House’s Executive Order on Additional Measures to Combat Anti-Semitism, it is the policy of the United States to combat antisemitism vigorously, using all available and appropriate legal tools to prosecute.”
“UCLA helped the agitators by providing metal barriers, stationing security to shoo Jews away, and catering to the wishes of the agitators instead of ensuring safe passage for Jewish students, faculty, and staff,” Becket noted. “These actions were documented in a <a href="https://link.mediaoutreach.meltwater.com/ls/click?upn=u001.wmJVV7EIOKgMqWuqPA8IcXgIOUgk5dAHBtrCiP6Bq6PY5FpeSynPKQXka4awOsdMLtOF_03HZEuPE3hkcx2fMUSyQ63zYk0dEzg0x5dq45YpE12w9VZ7X5-2BCSHojkEG5GhTxSEBpdsKU-2F3K1QrAcJyEWsgtRkDwcU40iQUik8SMvQV9G6UPoh3vgWW7vvd0gOy-2FqxxEg55K6GjyaJMwCFIB1PTF-2BmSgf3aK-2BYwd9t5CBYPYSVEBuoCLwD8l1looT4XBMAZfTVXjHxwznBv5Y8yrid4MW6LsfxpK1BkctV40wd3KtttA1RVRzs8HGUXu8nKDMm5PBHKLRGQzULSwqXRI2w5D-2FwwFjUhPH6ToNzQCZQACxDdxYgW9yCHFhdQcjEwkepNUl9rPjEtniGVMLx1FHnuLzkrm9700pSOXJtxF8b2S02LeeSyHb5x9dNfbK6OP19" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://link.mediaoutreach.meltwater.com/ls/click?upn%3Du001.wmJVV7EIOKgMqWuqPA8IcXgIOUgk5dAHBtrCiP6Bq6PY5FpeSynPKQXka4awOsdMLtOF_03HZEuPE3hkcx2fMUSyQ63zYk0dEzg0x5dq45YpE12w9VZ7X5-2BCSHojkEG5GhTxSEBpdsKU-2F3K1QrAcJyEWsgtRkDwcU40iQUik8SMvQV9G6UPoh3vgWW7vvd0gOy-2FqxxEg55K6GjyaJMwCFIB1PTF-2BmSgf3aK-2BYwd9t5CBYPYSVEBuoCLwD8l1looT4XBMAZfTVXjHxwznBv5Y8yrid4MW6LsfxpK1BkctV40wd3KtttA1RVRzs8HGUXu8nKDMm5PBHKLRGQzULSwqXRI2w5D-2FwwFjUhPH6ToNzQCZQACxDdxYgW9yCHFhdQcjEwkepNUl9rPjEtniGVMLx1FHnuLzkrm9700pSOXJtxF8b2S02LeeSyHb5x9dNfbK6OP19&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1742396223729000&amp;usg=AOvVaw2P_D9cFNiCvDS6mu3qy5mn">report</a> filed by UCLA’s own Task Force to Combat Antisemitism and Anti-Israel Bias, which admitted the University had fostered an antisemitic environment.”
“Jews should never have to fear for their safety when they step foot on a college campus,” said Yitzchok Frankel, the father of four and third-year law student at UCLA who filed the initial lawsuit. “I’m grateful that the federal government has condemned UCLA for kowtowing to antisemites, and I hope this sends a clear message to other universities that think they can do the same.”
“DOJ has thrown down the gauntlet: if university administrators aid and abet mistreatment of Jews, they will pay the price,” Mark Rienzi, president of Becket, stated. “This is a wake-up call for every university that allows antisemitic hatred to fester unchecked. No Jewish student or professor should ever again face this kind of terror on their own campus.”

US-ISRAEL-PALESTINIANS-CONFLICT-GAZA-PROTEST

DOJ Joins Lawsuit Targeting UCLA For Anti-Semitism

Anti-Semitism

Courts

UCLA

Matt Richtman won the 40th annual Los Angeles Marathon on Sunday, becoming the first American to come in first place in the event in 31 years.
The long-distance runner, an Illinois native, had a personal-best time of 2 hours, 7 minutes, 56 seconds, per <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2025/03/17/us/matt-richtman-los-angeles-marathon-hnk/index.html">CNN</a>. The Los Angeles Marathon started at Dodger Stadium and continued through downtown LA, Hollywood, Beverly Hills, and Brentwood before ending in the Century City neighborhood, the outlet noted.
“I didn’t really have a super big plan coming into this. It’s always so tough, the marathon, just because so much can happen,” Richtman said. “I just told myself to stay in that pack until about the halfway mark and then if I felt good I could make a move. Ended up going a little bit to the lead and no one really came with me.”
Athanas Kioko from Kenya came in second with a time of 2 hours, 10 minutes, 55 seconds. Moses Kurgat, also from Kenya, rounded out the top three with a time of 2 hours, 13 minutes, 13 seconds.
&#8220;It’s definitely a surprise,&#8221; Richtman said, per <a href="https://abc7.com/post/matt-richtman-illinois-becomes-1st-american-man-win-los-angeles-marathon-31-years/16033566/">ABC7</a>. &#8220;You know, I came in feeling really good; it’s really hard to judge where you stack up against competition, but it was a really good group out there today, and I was really happy to run with those guys and then ultimately win it.&#8221;
&#8220;It’s such a great day, you know, the 40th anniversary (of the race), there’s so many legacy runners out here, and the crowd out here was amazing,&#8221; he continued. &#8220;There were people throughout the whole course and it really helps. It&#8217;s amazing how much a crowd can change the course of what you’re doing.&#8221; 

Richtman, 25, finished fourth at the Twin Cities Marathon last fall with a time of 2:10:47. He was a cross-country runner while attending Montana State University, earning All-America honors as a junior in 2022-23.
The last time an American won the L.A. Marathon was when Paul Pilkington came in first place in 1994 with a time of 2 hours, 12 minutes, 13 seconds.

Matt Richtman

An American Wins Los Angeles Marathon For The First Time In 31 Years

General

Sports

United States

Los Angeles Democratic Mayor Karen Bass’ text messages from around the time the destructive Palisades Fire began were not saved, a report has found.
The Los Angeles Times <a href="https://www.latimes.com/california/newsletter/2025-03-09/mayor-karen-bass-is-deleting-her-text-messages-raising-eyebrows-and-questions-essential-california" target="_blank" rel="noopener">sought</a> the text messages as part of its reporting, requesting “all text messages sent and received by the mayor as she was returning from Africa on Jan. 7 or Jan. 8 that specifically mentioned fire response or travel plans.”
David Michaelson, counsel to the mayor, responded to the request saying that Bass’ phone was set not to save text messages, the Times reported. Michaelson further claimed that there was “no requirement that a city official or employee” save their text messages. The Times, however, noted that the city’s own <a href="https://ens.lacity.org/clk/rmdroot/clkrmdroot108519379_05052004.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">document retention policies</a> say records must be kept for at least two years. Michaelson argued that such retention does not apply to text messages.
There is no setting on most smartphones that keeps them from automatically saving text messages. On iPhone and Android, users can set their phone to delete text messages after a certain amount of time, with the lowest usually being 30 days. The Times says it filed a records request within three days of the fires starting in Los Angeles. Michaelson did not respond to a Daily Wire inquiry.
Bass was out of the country, in Ghana, when the fires started despite previously telling constituents she would never leave the country in her capacity as mayor. She left Ghana that evening and was back in L.A. the next day, with access to her phone for the entire trip.
It took Bass’ office two months to respond to the Times’ request, saying there were “no responsive records.”
Bass was heavily criticized for slashing nearly $18 million from the fire department’s $837 million budget, with critics arguing that budget decrease left the city ill-prepared to fight the fires that raged through L.A. for nearly a month. The fires consumed nearly 60,000 acres, killed at least 29 people, and destroyed more than 16,000 structures, causing billions in property damage.
At the time, President-elect Donald Trump accused California Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom of failing to properly manage water in the state. He alleged that Newsom&#8217;s incompetence led to fire hydrants drying up when crews tried to put out the fires. So-called experts in urban water supply <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/weather/2025/01/10/la-fires-fire-hydrants-water-supply/">dismissed</a> Trump&#8217;s claims.
“Governor Gavin Newscum refused to sign the water restoration declaration put before him that would have allowed millions of gallons of water, from excess rain and snow melt from the North, to flow daily into many parts of California, including the areas that are currently burning in a virtually apocalyptic way,” Trump published on <a href="https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/113793724958051185" target="_blank" rel="noopener">social media</a>.

Karen Bass

L.A. Mayor’s Phone Was Not Set To Save Text Messages, So None Exist Relating To Wildfire

Fire

Politics

On Monday, after having seen the Trump administration cancel $400 million in federal funding to Columbia University over its failure to address anti-Semitism on its campus, UCLA announced an initiative to combat hostility against Jewish people.
On Friday, the Department of Education <a href="//3DD52ADE-3C84-4587-AB7B-E2FB9BDB038E/v" target="_blank" rel="noopener">stated</a>, “Today, the Department of Justice (DOJ), Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Department of Education (ED), and the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) announced the immediate cancelation of approximately $400 million in federal grants and contracts to Columbia University due to the school’s continued inaction in the face of persistent harassment of Jewish students. These cancelations represent the first round of action and additional cancelations are expected to follow.”
On Monday, Chancellor Julio Frenk wrote to the UCLA community and announced the initiative, <a href="https://chancellor.ucla.edu/messages/initiative-to-combat-antisemitism" target="_blank" rel="noopener">writing</a>, “UCLA is at an inflection point. Building on past efforts and lessons, we must now push ourselves to extinguish antisemitism, completely and definitively. The principles on which UCLA was founded — and which we continue to advance — point us toward a clear course of action: We must persevere in our fight to end hate, however it manifests itself. This is an opportunity for UCLA to rise to the challenge of being an exemplary university.”
Last August, a federal district court issued an injunction against UCLA to stop the university from permitting and aiding anti-Semitic agitators blocking Jews from the campus. The injunction was the first in the nation against a university for permitting an anti-Semitic encampment.
Yitzchok Frankel, Joshua Ghayoum, and Eden Shemuelian sued the regents of the University of California after the university helped anti-Israel activists erect encampments where they blocked Jewish students from going to class, the library, or other areas on campus.
“With the knowledge and acquiescence of UCLA officials, the activists enforced what was effectively a ‘Jew Exclusion Zone,’ segregating Jewish students and preventing them from accessing the heart of campus, including classroom buildings and the main undergraduate library,” UCLA Professor Eugene Volokh <a href="https://reason.com/volokh/2024/06/06/lawsuit-filed-by-jewish-students-against-ucla/#:~:text=With%20the%20knowledge%20and%20acquiescence,and%20the%20main%20undergraduate%20library." target="_blank" rel="noopener">wrote</a> in Reason. “In many cases, the activists set up barriers and locked arms together, preventing those who refused to disavow Israel from passing through. To enter the Jew Exclusion Zone, a person had to make a statement pledging their allegiance to the activists’ views and have someone within the encampment ‘vouch’ for the individual’s fidelity to the activists’ cause.”
“UCLA reinforced these zones—both by providing metal barriers and by sending away Jewish students—while taking no effective action to ensure safe passage for Jewish students,” Becket, which represented the Jewish students, <a href="https://www.becketlaw.org/media/breaking-federal-court-orders-ucla-to-stop-helping-antisemitic-activists-target-jews/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">noted</a>.

UCLA Football Pro Day

UCLA Sees Trump Canceling $400M To Columbia, Suddenly Announces Anti-Semitism Initiative

Columbia University

Trump Administration

When I was growing up in Los Angeles, the bumper stickers proclaimed “Work Union, Live Better.”
For more than two decades as an educator, I lived by those words, serving actively in the United Teachers Los Angeles (UTLA), even representing my colleagues in the House of Representatives.
But in January 2022, I made the difficult decision to leave the union I once cherished.
The U.S. District Court in Los Angeles will be deciding a landmark case brought by Jewish teachers — with the support of the Freedom Foundation — challenging UTLA’s legal status as their exclusive representative.
This case isn&#8217;t just about workplace discrimination. It’s about the transformation of a once-proud teachers’ union into a platform for anti-Semitism and radical politics.
The change began about six years ago when a group called Union Power seized control of UTLA’s leadership. Instead of focusing on teacher welfare, fair wages and workplace protections, it began pushing divisive social and political agendas.
The monthly union newspaper, which had long provided transparency into union operations, mysteriously ceased publication. UTLA’s new leadership endorsed the anti-Semitic Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement and voted to demand the immediate cessation of U.S. aid to Israel.
The hostility toward Jewish members became increasingly overt. Jewish teachers have been systematically removed from online meetings for questioning anti-Semitic stances.
During a UTLA ethnic studies meeting, President Cecily Myart-Cruz declared the Museum of Tolerance — a Holocaust museum — the union’s “enemy.” At the same event, protesters shouted “F*** Israel” alongside calls for violence.
A UTLA chapter chair even taught students that life in Palestine was comparable to Holocaust concentration camps — a grotesque distortion of history that minimizes the systematic murder of six million Jews.
This isn’t about choosing sides in global conflicts. It’s about a union betraying its fundamental purpose — protecting and supporting all of its members, regardless of their faith or heritage.
The union’s increasingly toxic culture extends beyond anti-Semitism. The LAUSD headquarters houses what teachers grimly call the “Teachers in Trouble” room — essentially a holding pen where educators under investigation languish for days, weeks or months while UTLA does little to defend them.
It’s a stark example of how far the union has strayed from its mission to protect teachers.
After the election of President Trump, Myart-Cruz stoked racial tensions by warning that, “Parents of black and brown children really need to pay closer attention this week to their kids’ classes. Remember, 55 percent of white women voted for Trump, and they are nearly 80 percent of the teaching profession.”
During board meetings, union members openly maintain databases of parents who dare to speak out against their agenda. They’ve even threatened to visit dissenting parents at their homes.
UTLA collects nearly $120 monthly from each of its 30,000 members, totaling more than $43 million annually. Yet when teachers need real support, the union often fails them.
Its legal department routinely abandons educators facing workplace issues, forcing many to seek costly private representation. The union’s standard response to teachers in trouble has become a cynical question, “How close are you to retirement?”
The Freedom Foundation has been instrumental in exposing these practices and supporting teachers who wish to opt out of UTLA’s discriminatory regime. The ongoing legal challenge represents a crucial effort to hold this union accountable for its systemic failures and discriminatory practices.
While opting out of membership provides some relief, Jewish employees still face a fundamental challenge: Under current labor law, UTLA remains their exclusive bargaining representative regardless of membership status.
This means they continue to be associated with the union’s positions even after leaving.
Teachers unions should unite educators, not divide them. They should fight for better working conditions, not propagate hatred.
They should protect all members, not discriminate based on faith or ethnicity.
The reality is, UTLA has abandoned its core mission of protecting teachers’ rights and dignity in favor of anti-Semitic rhetoric and divisive politics. Until fundamental change occurs in UTLA’s leadership, I’ll keep my $1,440 in annual dues and my conscience clear.
Thanks to the Freedom Foundation, teachers have support in challenging UTLA’s discriminatory practices. This court case offers hope for change.
It’s an opportunity to hold UTLA accountable and remind them of their true purpose: supporting and protecting all educators, regardless of their faith, ethnicity, or political beliefs.
Our schools, our teachers and, most importantly, our students deserve nothing less.
* * *
Barry Blisten is a teacher in the Los Angeles Unified School District.
The views expressed in this piece are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of the Daily Wire.

Los Angeles Skyline Palm Trees

I Teach In Los Angeles. Anti-Semitism Has Taken Over Our Union.

antisemitism

Israel

Opinion

Pro-Hamas

Teachers

Teachers Unions

Over the course of the entire Biden administration, the United States Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California charged 128 illegal immigrants with the crime of illegal reentry. It has already matched that less than two months into President Donald Trump&#8217;s term.
Joseph McNally, the acting U.S. Attorney for the district, told The Daily Wire that he&#8217;s already charged 126 illegal aliens for reentering the country after previously being removed. He said this is more charges on this crime than the office has ever charged for the crime in a single month in its history.
McNally says there was no shortage of potential offenders in Los Angeles and the six other California counties the office covers, but the previous leadership had no interest in enforcing immigration laws. He says that the office he now leads only charged 128 illegal aliens with illegal reentry from 2021-2024.
“The U.S. Attorney’s Office is enforcing long-standing immigration laws, and illegal aliens who defy lawful removal orders by returning to this nation will be prosecuted,” charged McNally, who was named to his position this year. “These charges promote respect for the immigration laws. The individuals charged over the past week include sex offenders, narcotics dealers, violent criminals, and others who pose a danger to the public.”
The charges are part of a whole-of-government approach to combat illegal immigration and prosecute illegal aliens who have crossed into the United States on multiple occasions, with many going on to commit other crimes once they entered the country. Though former President Joe Biden said his hands were tied without legislation from Congress to tackle the illegal immigration crisis, Trump has touted the near-complete shutdown of border activity without any new legislation to make a different point: &#8220;All we really needed was a new President.&#8221;
McNally says the key to increased activity against illegal immigrants was the creation of the Domestic Security and Immigration Section within the U.S. Attorney&#8217;s Office.
The immigration enforcement actions come thanks to McNally’s newly created Domestic Security and Immigration Section within the U.S. Attorney&#8217;s Office.
“I launched the Domestic Security and Immigration section in early February,” McNally said, explaining that the entity is “focused on prosecuting alien smuggling and criminal aliens who returned to the United States after being deported who have felony convictions.”
Among those charged is 50 year old Oscar Parra-Reyes, a child sex offender who has been deported four times, and 59 year old Ricardo Reynoso-Garica, who had also been removed from the United States four times and was previously convicted of voluntary manslaughter.
“We’re working to identify aliens who are in jails, and prisons,” he said before noting that California’s illegal alien sanctuary policies have made it more difficult for federal agents to identify criminal illegal aliens. “California passed Bill SB 54 that prohibited Homeland Security from working in the jails. We’re now using fingerprint hits in other information to identify the criminal aliens and file criminal complaints.”
Those found guilty could face a variety of different punishments, depending on their criminal histories.
“The crime of being found in the United States following removal carries a base sentence of up to two years in federal prison, defendants who were removed after being convicted of a felony face a maximum 10-year sentence, and defendants removed after being convicted of an aggravated felony face a maximum of 20 years in federal prison,” the Department of Justice explained.
Earlier this month, McNally&#8217;s office announced that it had busted a Guatemalan illegal alien smuggling ring that was responsible for trafficking 20,000 people into the United States.
Six illegal aliens connected to the ring have been apprehended, with four potentially facing the death penalty. One of the illegal aliens even threatened to decapitate a federal law enforcement agent and his family.
READ MORE: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/smugglers-busted-by-feds-brought-20000-illegals-into-u-s-threatened-to-decapitate-agent">Smugglers Busted By Feds Brought 20,000 Illegals Into United States, Threatened To Decapitate Agent</a>

ICE Arrest

California Prosecutor Says He’s Already Charged More Illegals Than Biden Did In Four Years

A Russian national classified as a known or suspected terrorist allegedly attempted to bite off a deportation officer’s pinky as he was being apprehended in downtown Los Angeles.
The 35-year-old Russian national, Maksim Zaitsev, was <a href="https://nypost.com/2025/02/27/us-news/suspected-russian-terrorist-bit-ice-officers-finger-during-arrest/">reportedly</a> classified as a known or suspected terrorist when he was taken into custody by federal authorities at an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) office in downtown Los Angeles.
Zaitsev was asked to come to the ICE office so that the agency could review his immigration status. Federal immigration enforcement officials were waiting for him at the office and took him into custody before the Russian national allegedly resisted arrest and even bit the pinky finger of one deportation officer, drawing blood and breaking the man’s finger, the federal prosecutor’s office <a href="https://www.justice.gov/usao-cdca/pr/russian-national-charged-federal-criminal-complaint-alleging-he-bit-and-injured'">said</a>.
“The men and women of Immigration and Customs Enforcement are critical to protecting national security and public safety and upholding the rule of law,” said Acting United States Attorney Joseph T. McNally. “As alleged in the felony criminal complaint, the defendant attacked a deportation officer. He will be held accountable for his actions.”
Zaitsev has been charged with assault on a federal employee resulting in physical injury and could now face up to 20 years in prison if he is found guilty.
Law enforcement and federal prosecutors in the Central District of California, which covers Los Angeles county and adjacent counties, have recently worked to bust other foreign nationals in the Los Angeles area, recently nabbing a ring of alleged human smugglers.
McNally’s office recently busted a group of <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/smugglers-busted-by-feds-brought-20000-illegals-into-u-s-threatened-to-decapitate-agent">Guatemalan human smugglers</a> who are believed to be responsible for trafficking 20,000 people into the United States. Six men were captured, with four of them potentially facing the death penalty for their role in trafficking operations that resulted in the deaths of seven different people, including a four-year-old boy. McNally’s office alleges that one of the men caused a car accident in Oklahoma, resulting in the deaths of the seven individuals.

HSI Agent

Russian Suspected Terrorist Attempts To Bite Off Finger Of Deportation Officer, Prosecutor Says

Deportations

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)

Russia

Mel Gibson blasted Democrat California Governor Gavin Newsom on Wednesday, calling for the recall of the governor over his “gross mismanagement” of the state, especially when it comes to the massive wildfires in Southern California.
During a <a href="https://x.com/TONYxTWO/status/1894948199934079110">press conference</a> in Los Angeles, the 69-year-old actor told the crowd that both Newsom and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass let them down after Gibson became one of the numerous people who lost their homes in the Palisades Fire and Eaton Fire.
“Governor Newsom and Karen Bass let us all down,” Gibson said, pointing out how much California residents pay in taxes. “Now for that kind of money, we deserve much more and much better, and there is absolutely no adequate excuse the governor or mayor can make for this gross mismanagement and failure to preemptively deal with what they knew was coming.”
“Was it incompetence? Was it indifference, complacency, carelessness? Was it negligence? Absolutely,” he added, asking the crowd if the mayor or governor “give a damn about you,” to which the crowd replied, &#8220;no.&#8221; “Newsom … has brought us nothing but rampant crime, acute homelessness, horrendous inflation.”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Mel Gibson speaks at Newsom recall event 🔥
“Governor Newsom and Karen Bass let us all down.”
“There is absolutely no adequate excuse the Governor or Mayor can make for this gross mismanagement and failure to preemptively deal with what they knew was coming.” <a href="https://t.co/jwH61x4EYG">pic.twitter.com/jwH61x4EYG</a>
— TONY™ (@TONYxTWO) <a href="https://twitter.com/TONYxTWO/status/1894948199934079110?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 27, 2025</a></blockquote>
“I mean, the industry I work in, the film industry, this used to be the Mecca of filmdom. It is no more. All of my fellow citizens who have lost their homes, they have no recourse, no insurance payouts because the carriers dropped them,” Gibson continued, per The <a href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/mel-gibson-slams-mayor-bass-governor-newsom-altadena-press-conference-1236148644/">Hollywood Reporter</a>. “Even the carriers realized that California was ill-prepared and had scant resources to deal with the inevitable fires. They knew that. So are we supposed to believe that our elected officials didn’t know that? Of course they knew that. Of course.”
At one point, “The Passion of the Christ” director praised the firefighters who worked hard to try and save the homes.
“The firefighters, I have to say they were practically in tears. You know why? Because they thought they had let us down,” Gibson said. “I want to say loudly right here: You did not let us down.”
The event, which was organized by <a href="https://savingcalifornia.vote/">Saving California</a>, is focused on recalling Newsom and fixing the state’s economy, per its website.
In January, Gibson opened up about how he wasn’t even in town when the fires consumed his Malibu home because he was in Austin, Texas, recording an episode with Joe Rogan for “The Joe Rogan Experience” podcast, as previously <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/your-heart-just-breaks-jeff-bridges-mel-gibson-and-others-become-latest-to-lose-homes-in-fires" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a>.
“I was doing the Rogan podcast. … And [I was] kind of ill at ease while we were talking, because I knew my neighborhood was on fire, so I thought, I wonder if my place is still there. But when I got home, sure enough, it wasn’t there,” Gibson said. “I went home and I said to myself, well, at least I haven’t got any of those pesky plumbing problems anymore.”
The actor admitted he was still dealing with the “devastating” impact of losing the home that he’d lived in for more than a decade.
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/your-heart-just-breaks-jeff-bridges-mel-gibson-and-others-become-latest-to-lose-homes-in-fires" target="_blank" rel="noopener">‘Your Heart Just Breaks’: Jeff Bridges, Mel Gibson, And Others Become Latest To Lose Homes In Fires</a>

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