Newsletter: Today: How Trump Could Tip the Scales of Justice. The Judge, the Detective and the Dog Droppings.

I’m Davan Maharaj, editor-in-chief of the Los Angeles Times. Here are some story lines I don’t want you to miss today, including our weekly look back into the archives.

TOP STORIES

How Trump Could Tip the Scales of Justice

Donald Trump campaigned as a “law and order” candidate. Now, he’s poised to have a large and lasting effect on the justice system. If confirmed as U.S. attorney general, Sen. Jeff Sessions could be a game-changer in immigration law: hiring tougher judges, going after low-level violations and cutting off some law enforcement money to sanctuary cities. As for filling the Supreme Court vacancy, Judge William H. Pryor Jr. is the odds-on favorite. He happens to be a Sessions protégé who called the Roe vs. Wade decision the “worst abomination in the history of constitutional law.”

The Judge, the Detective and the Dog Droppings

It began as a dispute over dog droppings in a Chatsworth neighborhood between a housekeeper and a Superior Court judge. After an LAPD investigation, a battery charge was filed against the judge. So how did one of the finest homicide detectives in the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department get involved?

The Westside Considers Getting Quake-Ready

The city of L.A. already has the nation’s toughest earthquake safety law for buildings. Now, Beverly Hills, Santa Monica and West Hollywood are looking at similar requirements to strengthen thousands of structures. That could be a big step forward in the push to retrofit buildings at risk of collapse in an earthquake, but seismologists warn that the changes in smaller communities around the state are too slow in coming.

Lover, Come Back: Chinese Firms Drive Away Mistresses

In China, mistresses are known as xiao san, or “little three.” By all indications, they’ve become a big issue in the relationships of some businessmen and government officials. Enter the “mistress hunters,” a cottage industry that specializes in sabotaging extramarital affairs by steering lovers away from cheating spouses. Their tactics are also raising lots of legal and ethical questions.

Meet the New Hardest-Working Man in Show Business

Before he was an Original King of Comedy, Steve Harvey was once homeless. Now, he’s the head of a multibillion-dollar empire with projects inside and outside entertainment. You know him from “Family Feud,” his daily syndicated talk show, his nationally syndicated radio show, his bestselling 2011 book, “Act Like a Lady, Think Like a Man,” and more. Did you also know he co-owns a latex glove manufacturing plant?

THANKSGIVING WEEKEND

-- How you can help the less fortunate this holiday season.

-- Our interactive holiday gift guide.

-- “Moana,” “Allied” and other new films to see in theaters.

-- The best college football games to watch.

-- Skip the mall, go to a museum: 16 ways to gobble up SoCal culture.

CALIFORNIA

-- A report says a record high of more than 1 million foreign students came to America for higher education last school year, with four of the top 20 host institutions located in California.

-- Trump expressed his support for Los Angeles’ 2024 Olympic bid during a phone call with Mayor Eric Garcetti.

-- A Northern California woman missing for three weeks was released by her captors and found along Interstate 5 in Yolo County on Thanksgiving morning, authorities say.

-- No joke: A priest, a rabbi and a social scientist consider the election’s emotional fallout.

HOLLYWOOD AND THE ARTS

-- Florence Henderson, the onetime Broadway star who became a TV icon as the ever-cheerful mom, Carol Brady, in “The Brady Bunch,” has died at age 82.

-- Movie review: Jessica Chastain galvanizes in the timely political melodrama “Miss Sloane.”

-- We caught up with Dev Patel and the young man he plays in the film “Lion,” who found his way home in India after having been adopted away as a boy.

-- Here’s how the Audrey Hepburn film “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” was painstakingly restored.

-- The documentary “On the Map” reveals the basketball contest that gave Israel a sense of sporting and national pride.

NATION-WORLD

-- Thanksgiving was anything but warm and cozy at the Dakota Access pipeline protest camp.

-- How did Trump spend Thanksgiving? He said he’s trying to save an Indiana air conditioning factory.

-- The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade went off without a hitch amid tight security in New York City.

-- Wildfires swept through neighborhoods in Haifa, Israel. Israeli politicians said they were possibly the result of politically motivated arson attacks.

-- New research may help explain why yo-yo dieters so often fail to maintain their hard-won weight loss.

BUSINESS

-- David Lazarus: Here’s why you might want to skip those offers for store credit cards.

-- Pop-up shops were once a sign of desperation. Now they’re part of the business plan.

SPORTS

-- In terms of the standings, this football game doesn’t carry much weight. But, c’mon, it’s USC versus Notre Dame.

-- The Clippers and their fans know the team’s fast start is just the beginning of a slow process.

OPINION

-- Black Friday bargain-hunting rots the spirit of gift giving.

-- Hollywood’s golden age in China is coming to an end.

BACK IN TIMES

Today, we have Black Friday. In L.A. of yore, we had Dollar Day. Before the rise (and fall) of malls, downtown L.A. was the main shopping destination in town. Merchants held Dollar Day usually in the spring and fall. In 1940, The Times reported that one event drew 200,000 people. By the ’70s, Dollar Day was essentially done. See more photos and learn about L.A.’s old shopping habits here.

WHAT OUR EDITORS ARE READING

-- Wilbur Ross, a likely pick for Commerce secretary, once said government regulation is investors’ biggest challenge. (Fortune)

-- How Tila Tequila went from social media star to self-proclaimed “alt-reich queen.” (BuzzFeed)

-- Crash test video: The differences between a car sold in the U.S. and one sold in Mexico. (NPR)

ONLY IN L.A.

L.A.’s traffic has long been legendary. And the traffic before Thanksgiving? Forget about it. But this year, a traffic jam on the 405 gained “epic” status in media around the world. Some of the headlines: “Horrendous.” “Nightmare.” “World’s worst traffic jam?” “A sparkling candy cane river.” Eh, just another day in paradise.

Please send comments and ideas to Davan Maharaj.

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