CRIME: The FBI reported Saturday that last...

CRIME: The FBI reported Saturday that last year’s downward trend in serious crimes continues in 1994. The survey compares the total murders, rapes, robberies and other crimes reported in the first six months of 1994 to the same period last year (B1). . . . In a simultaneous report, the agency released crime rates in 1993, showing that Los Angeles, Palmdale and Lancaster had more crime than the national average, but smaller cities in the San Fernando Valley area had less.

FASCINATING: Attorney Leslie Abramson, who defended Erik Menendez at the Van Nuys trial, became a newsworthy figure in her own right. So much so that TV’s Barbara Walters has named her one of “The 10 Most Fascinating People of 1994” . . . An ABC special on the group will air Dec. 13.

S.O.S.: The dawning of the Information Superhighway, you say? Residents of the rural Antelope Valley would be thrilled just to have phone service and are more determined than ever to get it (B1) . . . Crusader Debbie Robinson nearly died from a snake bite recently because she could not dial 911.

OOPS: When editors of CSUN’s literary magazine placed an ad requesting “UNSAFE TEXTS” for an upcoming issue, the campus newspaper goofed. Instead, the ad in the Sundial requested submissions on “UNSAFE SEX.” . . . For the record, Northridge Review editor Sue Few wrote that staffers at her publication “in no way advocate the practice of unsafe sex.” The error was corrected in later editions.

WINGING IT: Quarterback Jim Arellanes of Valley College posted four Orange County Bowl marks while leading the Monarchs to a 36-28 victory over Rancho Santiago (C12). . . . Arellanes set records of 26 completions, 425 yards passing, five touchdowns and 402 total yards.

Crime Drop

Reports of serious crime decreased across the San Fernando Valley region in the first six months of 1994, in most cases exceeding a nationwide downward trend in cities of more than 100,000. Los Angeles: -13.0% Lancaster: -12.3% Glendale: -8.8% Santa Clarita: -3.7% National: -3.0% Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation