Newsletter: Today: Another USC Med School Dean Is Out

The USC medical school dean who took over from his disgraced predecessor last year has stepped down; a touching story of loss amid the Las Vegas shooting; and congressional action on “Dreamers” is being deferred.

TOP STORIES

Another USC Med School Dean Is Out

When USC selected Rohit Varma to succeed troubled Carmen Puliafito last year as dean of its Keck School of Medicine, university leaders praised the new leader as worthy of respect. What many students and staff didn’t know is that USC had formally disciplined Varma in 2003 after allegations he had sexually harassed a young researcher. As The Times was preparing to publish a story disclosing the case, USC announced that Varma was no longer dean.

Amid the Sorrow, a Brotherly Bond Endures

After the deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history, there are still few answers. Authorities revealed more details of the gunman’s actions leading up to Sunday. Republicans and the National Rifle Assn. say they will consider limits on “bump stocks,” the devices used by the killer to turn assault rifles into virtual machine guns. But mostly we’re left with the stories of those who lost those closest to them — including the story of two buddies from Alaska, one of whom talked his friend into going to the concert, only to die in his arms.

What Will Congress Do for ‘These Incredible Kids’?

The clock has run out for the so-called Dreamers to apply for DACA protection, now that the Trump administration has begun its phaseout of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. Will the clock run out on efforts to keep them in the U.S.? That’s the fear, given that Congress so far has made no progress on writing similar protections into law for “these incredible kids,” as President Trump described them. There are just five months to go before hundreds a day start losing their legal status.

More Politics

-- The civil rights law that prohibits discrimination in the workplace does not apply to transgender employees, Atty. Gen. Jeff Sessions has decided.

-- Trump appears on track to decertify the Iran nuclear deal next week, a decision that will open an unpredictable debate in Congress.

-- Trump, surrounded by military leaders and their spouses, made some cryptic but seemingly ominous remarks: “Maybe it’s the calm before the storm.”

A Movie Mogul Faces Allegations of Misconduct

Harvey Weinstein has been one of Hollywood’s most powerful and brash players, but the fate of his producing career could be decided today by the board of his namesake studio. After a New York Times article detailed decades of sexual harassment accusations against him, Weinstein says he’ll take a leave of absence from his company, and he apologized for behavior “with colleagues in the past [that] has caused a lot of pain.” At the same time, his lawyer threatened to sue over the story.

No Pressure: World Series or Else

When the Dodgers open the playoffs against the Arizona Diamondbacks today, they’ll do so with the high expectations that come from being the oft-proclaimed “best team in baseball,” even if they did have a disastrous late-summer stretch. Anything short of winning the World Series won’t fly. And no one will feel the pressure more than Dodgers manager Dave Roberts, who holds one of the most coveted and challenging jobs in baseball.

FLASHBACK FRIDAY

This week in 1943, the world was at war, and at the Santa Ana Army Air Base, which is now the site of the Orange County Fairgrounds and John Wayne Airport, pilot cadets were undergoing basic training. That included learning about the dangers of oxygen deprivation. Not everyone thought they needed to wear a mask: “Some of the older pilots still think it’s sissy stuff,” said one officer, “until they get into trouble.”

MUST-WATCH VIDEO

-- What to make of “Blade Runner 2049”? Film critic Kenneth Turan calls it a visually dazzling follow-up.

-- Film critic Justin Chang says “The Florida Project” is a magnificent portrait of a joyous, troubled childhood.

-- And in the riveting prison thriller “Brawl in Cell Block 99,” Vince Vaughn breaks free of expectations.

CALIFORNIA

-- Gov. Jerry Brown has signed landmark “sanctuary state” legislation, limiting whom state and local law enforcement agencies can hold, question and transfer at the request of federal immigration authorities.

-- Health officials say the state’s outbreak of hepatitis A, already the nation’s second largest in the last 20 years, could continue for many months, even years.

-- Prosecutors have dropped charges against an Oakland police officer in a big sex scandal, the fourth case in which charges against officers implicated in it have collapsed.

-- If you’ve ever been ticketed for stepping into a crosswalk after the countdown begins, you’ll be happy to know it will no longer be an offense starting Jan. 1.

YOUR WEEKEND

-- Soups, sides and more: 18 great recipes for beans.

-- Four pies served in Los Angeles you should probably eat as soon as you can.

-- California’s fall colors are off to the slowest start in years. By now, there are usually blankets of gold.

-- These seven fire-retardant plants may help save your home.

HOLLYWOOD AND THE ARTS

-- “It was like pulling a bandage off very, very slowly”: Steven Spielberg describes what it was like watching the HBO documentary about himself.

-- Why British writer Kazuo Ishiguro is a rarity and now a Nobel laureate.

-- A record 92 countries have submitted movies for consideration in the foreign-language film category for the Oscars. Welcome, Mozambique!

NATION-WORLD

-- Tropical Storm Nate was blamed for at least 17 deaths across Central America. It could make landfall on the U.S. Gulf Coast as a hurricane.

-- The killing of three U.S. commandos in a remote West African desert has focused attention on one of the many places America has boots on the ground to fight terrorism.

-- The Mexico City prosecutor’s office says it has opened up almost 150 investigations related to the earthquake, including inquiries into the collapse of 38 buildings in the capital.

-- Modern humans are a little more Neanderthal than we thought. As much as 2.6% of your DNA is from them.

-- The Nobel Peace Prize was awarded Friday to the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons.

BUSINESS

-- The annual ritual of selecting the right health plan for the coming year is rife with uncertainty this year, thanks to the White House.

-- The nation’s top consumer financial watchdog has issued tough regulations on payday and other short-term loans.

SPORTS

-- Washington Redskins receiver Terrelle Pryor apologized for cursing at and giving the middle finger to a Kansas City Chiefs fan, but he also said his behavior was a response to being called the N-word.

-- With a fresh voice behind the bench in coach John Stevens, the Kings opened up their NHL season by shutting out the Philadelphia Flyers.

OPINION

-- The gun industry’s drive to circumvent gun laws helped make the Las Vegas massacre worse.

-- No two natural disasters are alike, writes Greta Van Susteren.

WHAT OUR EDITORS ARE READING

-- Inside the death of a fraternity pledge at Penn State. (The Atlantic)

-- How products made by North Korean workers, including seafood, wind up being sold in U.S. stores. (Associated Press)

-- Constantly putting things off? Don’t wait! Look right now at these five strategies to overcome procrastination. (Harvard Business Review)

ONLY IN L.A.

Go to a sporting event and you’ll hear “The Star-Spangled Banner” and endless variations of “Charge!” Go to a Dodgers, Kings or Clippers game, and you’ll hear the organist play Mozart’s “Eine Kleine Nachtmusik,” the Mexican ranchero classic “El Rey” and Depeche Mode’s “Enjoy the Silence.” Meet Dieter Ruehle, whose fans include actor Rob Lowe and Tom Petty’s longtime keyboardist.

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