CALIFORNIA BRIEFING / WEST HOLLYWOOD
A 47-year-old transient is in custody for allegedly destroying three trees in the Matthew Shepard Human Rights Triangle, authorities said.
Bruce Bartmann was arrested Wednesday by sheriff’s deputies after he allegedly vandalized trees in the tribute garden last month, said Los Angeles County sheriff’s spokesman Steve Whitmore.
He said investigators are not sure why Bartmann chose to vandalize the trees, which are a tribute to local gay leaders. The vandalism is not considered a hate crime.
Bartmann is suspected of uprooting one tree entirely and inflicting a combined $1,700 worth of damage. He was being held in lieu of $20,000 bail at the Twin Towers jail downtown.
-- Richard Winton
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
