Most viewed in 2011

Louis Gonzalez III stood accused of unspeakable acts: kidnapping, torture, sexual assault. If convicted, he faced life behind bars. Simi Valley Police Det. David Del Marto, above, thought the assault on Tracy West pointed to an uncommon level of sophistication -- to a man who took extraordinary pains to avoid leaving fingerprints or traces of his DNA. But the puzzle pieces didn't fit. Story

Louis Gonzalez III stood accused of unspeakable acts: kidnapping, torture, sexual assault. If convicted, he faced life behind bars. Simi Valley Police Det. David Del Marto, above, thought the assault on Tracy West pointed to an uncommon level of sophistication -- to a man who took extraordinary pains to avoid leaving fingerprints or traces of his DNA. But the puzzle pieces didn’t fit. Story  (Anne Cusack / Los Angeles Times)

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Arnold Schwarzenegger

Former California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and his wife, Maria Shriver, separated after she learned he had fathered a child more than a decade ago before his first run for office -- with a longtime member of their household staff. Story | Photos  (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

Phonehenge West

Alan Kimble Fahey’s 20,000-square-foot labyrinth of buildings, called Phonehenge West, in Acton is a 30-year labor of love. But county code enforcement officials want him to tear it down, so he’s going to trial. Story | Photos  (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)

Online poker

The founders of the three largest online poker sites were indicted in April in what could serve as a death blow to a thriving industry. Eleven executives at PokerStars, Full Tilt Poker, Absolute Poker and a number of their affiliates were charged with bank fraud and money laundering in an indictment unsealed in a Manhattan court. Above, a man plays poker on his computer connected to an Internet gaming site from his home in Manassas, Va.Story  (Karen Bleier/AFP/Getty Images)

Earthquake in Japan

Hundreds were killed after the worst earthquake in generations struck off the northeast coast of Japan on March 11, setting off a devastating tsunami that swallowed swaths of coastal territory and fanned out across the Pacific Ocean, threatening everything in its path. The 8.9-magnitude earthquake -- the world’s fifth-largest since 1900 and the biggest in Japan in 140 years -- struck at 2:46 p.m. local time, shaking buildings violently in Tokyo for several minutes and sending millions fleeing for higher ground. Story | Photos  (Itsuo Inouye / Associated Press)

Mexico's Sinaloa drug cartel

As drug smugglers from the Sinaloa cartel in Mexico sent a never-ending stream of cocaine across the border and into a vast U.S. distribution web in Los Angeles, DEA agents were watching and listening. Story | Photos  (Don Bartletti / Los Angeles Times)

Porn industry

An adult film performer tested HIV positive in August, prompting a temporary shutdown of adult film productions across Los Angeles. The weeklong shutdown was lifted after the performer, who previously tested positive for HIV, tested negative. Above, an AIDS Healthcare Foundation protest in February. Story   (Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times)