Local News
Feds, Los Angeles crack down on human trafficking in South LA – NBC Los Angeles
A portion of Figueroa Street in South Los Angeles surrounded by nearly two dozen churches and several schools has been a breeding ground for human trafficking, prompting officials from the federal, Los Angeles city and county agencies to launch an unprecedented crackdown initiative, officials announced Wednesday.
The Figueroa Corridor Human Trafficking Initiative will target sex traffickers who often exploit girls as young as 11 years old with violence, intimation and psychological abuse along the Figueroa Corridor, a 3-and-a-half-mile stretch of Figueroa Street between Gage Avenue and Imperial Highway, U.S. Attorney Martin Estrade said while standing next to Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, Los Angeles Police Chief Dominic Choi, Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón, Los Angeles City Attorney Hydee Felstein Soto.
‘Outdoor bordello’ in South Los Angeles
The Figueroa Corridor has been plaguing the neighborhood made up of businesses and residences for years, according to Estrada.
“There are 23 churches in the area and five middle schools and elementary schools. But this area is also ground zero for human trafficking where children and women are exploited and abused each and every day,” the U.S. Attorney said.
Conditions in the Figueroa Corridor are so horrendous, Estrada said, as young girls and women are being forced into commercial sex work even during daytime. And at night, the area turns into an “outdoor bordello,” Estrada explained.
“We see underage girls walking around and next to nothing, regardless of the weather, with pimps lurking nearby in cars supervising everything,” he described.
Through the initiative, Los Angeles authorities coordinate with federal investigators, aiming to identify, arrest and prosecute human traffickers.
Targeting foster children for sex trafficking
Among the recent arrests and indictments, two people are accused of luring a 13-year-old girl who lived in a group home before forcing her to engage in prostitution.
Nanci Jasmin Castillo, 31, and Jonathan Gonzalez-Reyes, 38, both of Anaheim, befriended the teen by first providing her with alcohol, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said. Then they allegedly sexually assaulted her before filming and taking pictures of the attack.
The collaboration between the federal and Los Angeles agencies has also led to the conviction of 33-year-old Donavin Dwayne Brandford, who is now serving a life sentence in federal prison for recruiting teenage girls from group homes and forcing them to work as prostitutes along the Figueroa Corridor and other places.
Trafficking victim as young as 11 years old
Mayor Bass welcomed the success of the multi-agency initiative to clean up the Figueroa Corridor, which “has been a problem for many, many years,” as she highlighted many of the victims are young girls, who were already abused and neglected by their family before being put in the foster care system.
“What is common is 12 years old is the common age that girls are brought into trafficking,” Bass said. “With the launch of this effort, I know that we will be able to bring the scourge to an end.”
She also applauded federal and local authorities for recognizing the young girls on Figueroa Street are victims.
“ I was just extremely proud to hear the officers refer to the children as trafficked and as victims. That is a cultural change,” Bass said. “It’s taken many years to get society to view the girls as victims and not as criminals, and to understand that it is a failure of our society.”
In the last six months alone, Los Angeles Police have rescued 84 minors from the area, including one as young as 11 years old, LAPD Chief Choi said.
Naked people on the street
As those who live near the Figueroa Corridor have been complaining about prostitution in their neighborhood, one woman said her concerns have deepened as her 5-year-old daughter becomes older.
“My child couldn’t come outside and play because somebody might be up and down the street naked,” Helen Elaine Lee said.
Lee said, as her daughter gets older, she’s asking more questions about what she’s seeing in her neighborhood.
“She would see someone young like her niece or younger cousins. Now she’s wondering why that girl gets to walk down the street with that type of outfit on, (saying) ‘Isn’t that for the swimming pool or the beach?’”
Local News
How to add California driver’s license to iPhone, Apple Watch – NBC Los Angeles
California driver’s license holders can now add their state ID to Apple Wallet on their IPhone and Apple Watch, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced Thursday.
The digital IDs will be accepted at Transportation Security Administration (TSA) check points, including Los Angeles International Airport and San Francisco Airport, as well as select businesses.
“With this new integration, we’re working to better serve the people of California in the 21st Century,” Newsom said in a statement.
Here’s how to add your ID to Apple Wallet
- Go to Apple Wallet
- Click the + button on the top right-hand corner
- Under the “Add to Wallet” section, tap “Driver’s License or State ID” to select “California mDL Pilot.
- Scan the front and back sides of your California ID
- Scan your face
- Take a picture
- Wait for verification from the California DMV.
But there’s a catch
The mobile driver’s license (mDL) pilot program is currently only limited to 1.5 million participants.
If your license is expired or suspended, your mDL will be rejected.
Other factors that could impact your mDL applications are:
- Wearing headwear
- Not using plain background
- Lack of consistent lighting
- Other faces in the frame
- Wearing sunglasses
More tips can be found here.
Last month, the state announced the DMV addition of Google Wallet as an option to hold driver’s licenses and identification cards.
Local News
New LA City Council president begins leadership role – NBC Los Angeles
Los Angeles City Council President Paul Krekorian will hand over the position Friday to Council President Pro Tem Marqueece Harris-Dawson in a leadership shakeup for the 15-member panel.
First elected to in 2015, the 54-year-old Harris-Dawson represents Council District 8, where he won his first election with 62-percent of the vote in an area that includes Baldwin Hills, Chesterfield Square, Crenshaw, Jefferson Park and other communities.
Born and raised in Los Angeles, Harris-Dawson won his bid for the top council post in May and vowed to focus on the city’s homeless crisis. The chair of the city’s Planning and Land Use Management Committee co-authored Prop HHH, which was a $1.2 million bond measure to provide permanent supportive housing.
The council voted 14-0 to name Harris-Dawson as Krekorian’s successor as president.
As president, Harris-Dawson will preside as chair over council meetings, have the power to assign council committees and handle parliamentary duties such as ruling motions in or out of order. He was elected president pro tempore to replace Curren Price, who stepped down after he was charged in June 2023 with embezzlement, perjury and conflict of interest.
Harris-Dawson is expected to serve as president through mid-December. Following November’s election and once new council members assume their offices, another election will be held to elect a council president for a new term.
Krekorian received an ovation Thursday at his final meeting as council president. The Council District 2 representative will leave the body in December due to term limits. Councilman Bob Blumenfield unveiled plans to rename two sites in honor of Krekorian — the Victory Valley Child Care Center at 6451 Saint Clair Ave., and the Valley Plaza Sports Fields at 6980 Whitsett Ave. in North Hollywood.
Krekorian, whose district includes east San Fernando Valley neighborhoods, was first elected to the council in late 2009. He was elected council president in the wake of a leaked audio recording of colleagues, including then-President Nury Martinez, that shook City Hall.
Martinez resigned in 2022 after being heard in a recorded racially charged conversation with two other council members and a county labor official discussing the council’s redistricting process. The recorded conversation included racist comments about a colleague’s young Black adopted son.
Krekorian stepped into the council presidency during the tumultuous time at City Hall.
“I couldn’t do the work for the next 79 days and I couldn’t do the work as council president, and I couldn’t have done the work as an Assembly member or anything else without the support, guidance and love that I’ve received from my wife, Tamar, for the last quarter of the century almost,” Krekorian said.
He also thanked his staff.
“To all my staff, I hope you noticed that a number of members of this council specifically recognized you and that’s because you do extraordinary work — not only for me, our constituents, but for the entire city of Los Angeles,” Krekorian said.
Local News
Find Riverside County Airport Fire recovery assistance – NBC Los Angeles
Residents impacted by the Airport Fire in Riverside County can visit a local assistance center in Lake Elsinore.
Residents seeking assistance with food, health care support and more are welcomed to visit the one-stop resource center located at the Lake Community Center. The center will be open from noon to 9 p.m. Thursday and Friday, and 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday.
The Riverside County Department of Public Social Services, Public Health, Housing & Workforce Solutions and other local agencies will be joined by representatives from the California Office of Emergency Services and several nonprofit organizations to provide information on how to get financial, medical and related aid.
Residents seeking help also can click here.
On Tuesday, the Riverside County Board of Supervisors approved an emergency declaration, enabling the county to seek state and federal allocations for infrastructure repairs or improvements and general recovery of expenses stemming from the blaze.
As of Thursday, the Airport Fire was 41% contained at more than 23,500 acres in Orange and Riverside counties.
For information about Orange County recovery resources, click here.
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