Newsletter: Essential California: L.A. students’ ‘terror day’ off

Good morning. It is Wednesday, Dec. 16. The patients at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles got a special visit this month from Darth Vader and company. Here's what else is happening in the Golden State:

TOP STORIES

LAUSD closes down

Public schools throughout Los Angeles were shuttered Tuesday by a threat that law enforcement agents and politicians later came to believe was a hoax. Supt. Ramon Cortines said he made the unprecedented call to close for the day because he didn’t want to risk something happening to the district’s 640,000 children. School police swept every school, while the FBI launched an investigation into the email that threatened an attack with explosives and AK-47s. Los Angeles Times

Two responses

Officials in Los Angeles and New York received virtually the same message threatening their public schools. So why did the two metro areas have such vastly different responses? Educators in L.A. shut down their 900 schools for the day, while New York’s mayor and police chief effectively laughed off what they saw as a hoax. “Everybody has to operate within their own reality and our reality in Southern California was recently shaped by San Bernardino. ... The superintendent and his folks have to make a decision with that in mind,” said police Chief Charlie Beck. Los Angeles Times

Not so home alone

The unexpected closures left many parents scrambling for childcare Tuesday. Throughout the city, parents took off from work, grandparents stepped in to help, and the city’s recreation centers opened up to provide free daycare. Los Angeles Times

DROUGHT AND CLIMATE

Helpful explainer: Here’s a comprehensive guide to El Niño. (Hint: turns out it’s a lot more than an old Chris Farley sketch). Vox (video)

L.A. AT LARGE

Student killed: A 17-year-old student was struck and killed by a city truck Tuesday as he walked to school in the Highland Park neighborhood of Los Angeles. The teen had recently been accepted to Cal State Los Angeles. The driver of the truck is a 27-year employee with the city of Los Angeles. Authorities said it was not immediately clear who had the green light at the intersection. Los Angeles Times

Train report: When a Metrolink train derailed near Oxnard earlier this year, it was equipped with flawed parts that were supposed to help keep trains on the track after a crash, according to a confidential report. However, it’s unclear what role those parts played in the derailment. Los Angeles Times

Utility costs: A proposal to increase water rates in the city of Los Angeles is moving ahead. The Board of Water and Power Commissioners agreed to raise rates 4.7% each year for the next five years. Utility officials say they need the added revenue to upgrade the city’s water pipes and infrastructure. “No one likes to raise rates, but the price of inaction will be much higher for all of L.A.'s residents,” said Mayor Eric Garcetti. Los Angeles Times

Methane levels: The gas leak near Porter Ranch may be one of the single largest releases of methane in the state’s history. “People I speak with who are experts in the field say this is the biggest, most complex leak that they have ever seen,” said Tim O’Connor with the Environmental Defense Fund. Marketplace

POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT

Official resigns: L.A. County’s Probation Department chief is stepping down amid allegations that he had an inappropriate romantic relationship with a top deputy. Jerry Powers' resignation is effective Jan. 4. Los Angeles Times

Costly crisis: San Bernardino city officials are hoping that state and federal funds can help them pay down the $1 million they spent responding to the Dec. 2 shooting at the Inland Regional Center. It’s a city that’s still recovering after its bankruptcy filing three years ago. “Obviously, we should be able to come up with it, though it still represents a pretty sizable hit for us,” said City Manager Allen Parker. Los Angeles Times

Cost structure: A proposed ballot measure would take away doubts about the legality of tiered pricing for water — essentially the more water you use, the more expensive it becomes. The proposal is sponsored by the League of California Cities. LA Weekly

Veterans’ affairs: A federal program intended to shorten the time a veteran must wait before seeing a doctor has had the opposite effect in parts of the Southland, where wait times have now doubled. “Their frustration is not lost on us,” said Rich Beam, spokesman for the Long Beach VA. Orange County Register

CRIME AND COURTS 

Racial profiling: The Police Commission wants a “deep-dive briefing” from the LAPD after officers reported that not one biased policing complaint was upheld from 2012 to 2014. “I don't think anybody believes that there are actually no incidents of biased policing. The problem is we don't have an effective way of really adjudicating the issue,” said Commissioner Matt Johnson. Los Angeles Times

Crime stats: The Standard Hotel is blaming a deadly shooting outside of its downtown location on “increasing street crime and gun violence in Los Angeles.” Early Sunday morning, an argument in the hotel spilled out into the street, where one person was shot dead and three others were injured, police said. LA Weekly

Mystery man: In the fog of war, police believed there was a third suspect in the Dec. 2 mass shooting in San Bernardino. So who was the man police thought they saw flee the now-infamous gun battle with the two shooters? And why does misinformation about him continue to circulate? San Bernardino Sun

HOUSING

Housing costs: Could rent control laws be expanding in the city of San Francisco? Buildings constructed after 1979 are not subject to rent control, but one county supervisor is hoping to change that. “Even if you’re paying top dollar, the next year, your rent can be raised another thousand dollars a month. It’s not equitable,” said Supervisor Aaron Peskin. KQED (audio)

International buyers: When the largest mixed-used complex on the West Coast, Metropolis, opens in 2018, it will likely draw huge interest from China. And while those buyers typically pay all-cash, they can also be absentee tenants. “I always advise my bank clients to make sure 80% of the residents are going to stay there full-time, because what you don’t want to do is create a ghost town,” according to the chairman and CEO of East-West Bank. 89.3 KPCC (audio)

Fewer beds: Walk-ups will no longer be accepted at the Santa Ana and Fullerton National Guard armories, which are serving as winter shelters for the homeless. Fire authorities recently lowered the occupancy levels at each facility, though the situation is described as fluid. “We’re just hoping there’s some kind of happy resolution to all the changes that are coming,” said Mercy House board member Kathleen Janson. Orange County Register

CALIFORNIA CULTURE

#NoSchool: Comedy is often defined as "tragedy plus time," so here are the best tweets about Tuesday’s school closures in Los Angeles. BuzzFeed

Memory lane: Check out Los Angeles’ Victorian home styles with this map. Curbed LA

CALIFORNIA ALMANAC

San Francisco will be partly sunny with a high of 55. Los Angeles will be mostly sunny and 63. Riverside will have a windy morning, followed by sunshine and a high of 61. San Diego will be mostly sunny and 63.

AND FINALLY

Today's California Memory comes from Wilhelm Kast:

“Wow, I recall my night of terror back in '71. Had flown a group of Michigan business executive prospects to San Francisco to investigate our computer for their company. The last night there, the top guy wants to see Carol Doda. Fast forward, we have a front-row table, the grand piano comes down through the ceiling and Doda does her thing. So far so good, but our top guy, obviously having lubricated his throat already back at his hotel room, gets loud, wants to talk to Doda, waiter tries to quieten him, top guy pulls a gun, getting other patrons agitated, management threatens to call police, we pay in a hurry and move our guy to fresh air.

"There is a happy end! After a few weeks, his company orders the new computer. Turned out to be a great customer.”

If you have a memory or story about the Golden State, share it with us. Send us an email to let us know what you love or fondly remember about our state. (Please keep your story to 100 words.)

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