Front page: Los Angeles Times | Sunday, October 19, 2014

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A family outing, then a deadly Border Patrol shooting

Brian Bennett, who covers homeland security and immigration, and Joseph Tanfani, investigative reporter, tell the story of Guillermo Arevalo Pedraza who was at a family picnic when he was shot and killed by a Border Patrol agent aboard an airboat. Bennett and Tanfani's investigation raises questions about whether the agent who fired overstated the threat from shore, and whether the shooting was justified. Read the story

Too many maverick moments finally led to Deasy's undoing at LAUSD

Howard Blume, education reporter, and James Rainey, who writes about politics, government and the media, report that L.A. schools Supt. John Deasy's 3 1/2 years as head of the nation's second-largest school district ended with his resignation last week, but his path was unusual from the very outset of his tenure at L.A. Unified. Read the story

More than a decade later, SARS offers lessons on Ebola

Melissa Healy, health and science reporter, and David Pierson, who covers food and agriculture, write that the SARS outbreak made it clear that the public health of even the most developed nation rests on the ability of poorer countries to manage their disease outbreaks. Read the story

Analysis: High court action on Texas ID law shows mixed record on voting rights

David G. Savage, who has covered the Supreme Court and legal issues for The Times in the Washington bureau since 1986, writes, "In the last decade, the high court has issued a series of rulings striking down limits on campaign contributions as 1st Amendment violations, but it has yet to issue a clear ruling upholding the constitutional right to vote." Read the story

Kurds say U.S.-led airstrikes halting Islamic State advance on Kobani

Patrick J. McDonnell, who covers the Middle East for The Times, writes that less than two weeks ago, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan declared that Kobani "was about to fall" to Islamist State. But an abrupt reversal in fortune, aided by U.S.-led airstrikes, appears to have blunted the prospect of a speedy conquest by the militants. Read the story