Woman, father killed in domestic dispute, police say

An apparent domestic argument in Costa Mesa turned deadly Tuesday night when a gunman opened fire on a woman and her father, killing the pair in front of a home, according to police.

A 36-year-old man was apprehended at the scene after officers responded to a call of shots fired shortly before 6 p.m. in the 3400 block of Santa Clara Circle, said Lt. Bryan Glass of the Costa Mesa Police Department.

Some question tax breaks for downtown hotels

The downtown J.W. Marriott has done brisk business since it opened last year, filling up rooms and producing much-needed tax revenue for the cash-strapped city of Los Angeles.

But that revenue will come at a price. To get the 54-story skyscraper built, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and the City Council decided to let the developer, Anschutz Entertainment Group, keep as much as $270 million in city taxes through 2035.

Boy charged in father's death had problems with violence and aggression

A 10-year-old Riverside boy charged with fatally shooting his father, local neo-Nazi leader Jeffrey R. Hall, had past problems with aggression and violence after being caught in the middle of a bitter divorce fraught with abuse allegations, court records show.

Legal experts said it was extraordinarily rare for such a young person to face a murder charge, and legal barriers prohibit detectives and prosecutors from discussing a juvenile case.

Former L.A. immigration officer took bribes, provided documents to illegal immigrants

A former supervising immigration officer charged with taking bribes to provide visas and other documents to illegal immigrants was found guilty Tuesday in federal court in Los Angeles, authorities said.

Fernando Jacobs, 72, who lives in Upland, was convicted on seven counts of conspiracy, bribery and honest services wire fraud, according to the U.S. attorney's office in Los Angeles.

Two slain in Costa Mesa after domestic dispute ends in gunfire

An apparent domestic argument in Costa Mesa turned deadly Tuesday night when a gunman opened fire on a woman and her father, killing the pair in front of a home, according to police.

A 36-year-old man was apprehended at the scene after officers responded to a call of shots fired shortly before 6 p.m. in the 3400 block of Santa Clara Circle, said Lt. Bryan Glass of the Costa Mesa Police Department.

Two former San Diego redevelopment officials charged in embezzling public funds

Two former officials of a San Diego redevelopment agency were charged Tuesday with approving lavish bonuses and salary increases for themselves and other employees without approval from the agency's governing board.

Carolyn Smith, former president of the Southeastern Economic Development Corp., and Dante Dayacap, the former finance director, were charged with conspiracy, embezzlement of public funds and misappropriation of public funds.

Habitual O.C. sex offender convicted of having images showing children being tortured and raped

An Orange County sex offender with nine prior convictions was sentenced to 25 years to life Tuesday for possessing thousands of pornographic images of children and photos showing children being tortured and mutilated, authorities said.

Vaughn Robert Biby, 47, a Fullerton resident, was charged with having pictures and videos showing showing infants and young children bathing, swimming in pools and being potty trained, according to the Orange County district attorney's office.

City attorney sues medical marijuana dispensaries

The Los Angeles city attorney has sued seven medical marijuana dispensaries, restarting a costly and plodding legal process to close hundreds of stores that opened without city approval.

The city plans to ask a judge for injunctions to bar the pot shops from storing, selling, distributing or giving away marijuana. It could also seek fines of up to $2,500 a day, as well as a $25,000 fine for violating state narcotics laws. The lawsuits, which name the store and building owners, also aim to force the landlords to oust their tenants.

Santa Monica synagogue bomb suspect indicted by federal grand jury

A 60-year-old homeless man was indicted Tuesday on federal explosives charges in connection with a blast last month outside a Santa Monica synagogue.

Ron Hirsch faces charges including detonating an explosive device April 7 outside the Chabad House, according to the U.S. attorney's office in Los Angeles.

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Body found in Chantry Flat identified as that of suspect in friend's slaying

A body found in Angeles National Forest with an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound was identified Tuesday as that of a Huntington Beach man suspected of killing his longtime friend, authorities said.

The body of 55-year-old Kevin Wolfe Pochter was found Monday near the Chantry Flat campground a short distance from where his longtime friend, Dean Albert, 53 of Arcadia was found Thursday with multiple gunshot wounds. Albert later died from those injuries.

Former Thousand Oaks City Council candidate sentenced for threatening to kill prosecutors

A former candidate for the Thousand Oaks City Council has been sentenced to six years and four months in prison for threatening to kill six prosecutors in the Ventura County district attorney's office.

Danny Avila was sentenced Monday after being convicted last month of six counts of making criminal threats and six counts of threatening public officials for threatening the prosecutors from jail in 2008.

Stretch of Newport Beach closed after sewage spill

Health officials closed a short stretch of beach Tuesday around the Balboa Pier in Newport Beach after a small sewage spill.

A sewer line on private property broke and released 500 gallons of sewage, according to a statement by the Orange County Health Care Agency.

11 alleged Central Coast gang members arrested on drug trafficking charges

Eleven members and associates of two Central Coast gangs were arrested Tuesday after being charged in federal indictments with drug trafficking, said U.S Atty. André Birotte Jr.

FBI special agents and local police detectives penetrated the drug trafficking network of a Lompoc-based subset of the Six Deuce Brims Bloods and the Northwest (Santa Maria) street gang, the largest Latino gang on the Central Coast, which is affiliated with the Mexican Mafia prison gang, federal officials said.

Four hurt, fire breaks out when SUV crashes into a Del Taco in the City of Industry

Four people were hurt and a fire erupted at a Del Taco in the City of Industry on Tuesday when a sport utility vehicle careened into the fast-food restaurant.

The crash occurred in 18200 block of East Gale Avenue about 8:15 a.m., said L.A. County Fire Inspector Quvondo Johnson.

Comedian Andy Dick arrested for public intoxication at Marie Callender's

In yet another brush with the law, comedian and actor Andy Dick was booked on suspicion of public intoxication Tuesday after Temecula police responded to a disturbance at a restaurant, department officials said.

Officers were called to the Marie Callender's restaurant in the 29300 block of Rancho California Road shortly after 9 p.m. after a caller reported an "intoxicated male subject who was causing a disturbance inside the restaurant."

Car-theft suspect arrested after pursuit

Los Angeles police used a bean-bag round and batons Tuesday to break out the windows of a car and arrest a suspected vehicle thief after a pursuit in Boyle Heights and the San Gabriel Valley.

Officers initially tried to stop the white sedan and later learned it was a stolen car. With helicopter support, they pursued the man through Boyle Heights, Alhambra, San Gabriel, San Marino and Pasadena.

Police: Young son intentionally shot white supremacist leader; motive unclear

Police are trying to make sense of the shooting death Sunday of a well-known white-supremacist leader, allegedly at the hands of his young son.

Authorities believe the boy, whose age was not released, did not shoot his father by accident.

Illegal immigrants smuggled by boat to Carlsbad, by van to Anaheim 'drop house,' federal authorities say

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Northridge standoff ends in woman's arrest

A woman who held police at bay during a tense standoff on a residential street in Northridge was taken into custody Tuesday, authorities say.

The woman, who had not been identified by police, allegedly threatened her brother Monday evening, brandishing a rifle.