Steps Taken to End Car Break-Ins Near Courts

Responding to a rash of automobile break-ins, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday called for tighter security measures at a public parking lot near the Municipal and Superior courthouses in Van Nuys.

Acting on a motion by board Chairman Ed Edelman, whose district includes Van Nuys, the board ordered its staff to fence an open area along the south side of the lot on Calvert Street, to consider increasing patrols of the lot and to improve the training of security officers there.

“The situation clearly presents an intolerable risk to the safety of citizens and public employees using this facility,” Edelman said in his motion, which was approved by the board without discussion.

June Bachman, Edelman’s deputy in the San Fernando Valley, said she received a complaint last week from a deputy district attorney whose car was broken into twice in one week. Between Nov. 8 and Nov. 20, there were eight break-ins, three in one day, despite the presence of a security guard who was recently assigned to the lot, authorities said.