Category Archives: #courts

LAPD Charged With Racism

Posted on August 1, 2009 by lmharnisch

June 23, 1959: The NAACP urges the City Council to investigate allegations of police brutality toward blacks and Mexicans. In March 1959, Municipal Judge David Williams made headlines by dismissing charges against 25 African Americans with accusations that the LAPD … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, Countdown to Watts, LAPD | 1 Comment

Small Boys in Trouble!

Posted on July 31, 2009 by lmharnisch

    July 31, 1889: This looks like a dull, gray page. But read some of the stories: A saloon fight … a feud between neighbors over dirt thrown down a well … a man writes an insulting letter to … Continue reading →

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Sanity Hearing for Clara Lightfoot

Posted on July 30, 2009 by lmharnisch

  July 30, 1889: Former Mother Superior Clara Lightfoot is suffering from acute mania. She will be taken to the asylum today … Henry Penk and J.H. Gomer shoot a dog and are arrested for discharging firearms within the city … Continue reading →

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Police Court

Posted on July 29, 2009 by lmharnisch

  July 29, 1899: John Hasty pleads not guilty to begging — and may get a bath.

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Mary Lascomb Gets Roaring Drunk

Posted on July 29, 2009 by lmharnisch

  July 29, 1889: A drunk Mary Lascomb makes the night "hideous with her yells and shrieks" and gets taken away by the police.

Posted in #courts, Food and Drink, LAPD | Comments Off on Mary Lascomb Gets Roaring Drunk

County Asks U.S. to Help Fight Border Drug Traffic; Hearing on Chavez Ravine

Posted on July 28, 2009 by lmharnisch

July 28, 1959: Vice President Richard Nixon's "kitchen debate" with Nikita Khrushchev bolsters his political stature, but Republican leaders are being careful not to overemphasize his new prestige.  And questions arise about the fire at the home of boxing promoter … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, City Hall, Dodgers, Downtown, Film, Hollywood, Richard Nixon | 1 Comment

Charges Dismissed in Attack

Posted on July 27, 2009 by lmharnisch

      July 27, 1899: Charges are dismissed against Frank McVey, an African American accused of attacking a white man who was allegedly living with his sister.

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Indian Jim Dies

Posted on July 27, 2009 by lmharnisch

  July 27, 1889: The Times receives word on the passing of "Indian Jim" of Yuma, Ariz. … a follow-up on the abandoned baby story … the "White Caps" trial … and home-wrecker Robert Sykes must stay in jail.

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Jealous Neighbor Kills Woman, Attempts Suicide

Posted on July 26, 2009 by lmharnisch

    July 26, 1899: E.V. Methever, 52, a Long Beach shoemaker who was infatuated with Dorothy McKee, a neighboring shopkeeper, rammed her bicycle with his bike and shot her to death, then tried to commit suicide.

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Mother Charged With Abandoning Baby

Posted on July 26, 2009 by lmharnisch

July 26, 1889: A broken promise of marriage … a wronged woman … an abandoned baby … Police Chief Glass has his hands full! … Cantankerous people plague the district attorney's office.

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Remembering Armida Wiltsey

Posted on July 25, 2009 by lmharnisch

Karen Davis writes of Armida Wiltsey, whose 1978 killing was solved through DNA analysis: My family has been following the news stories since the real killer was found and each time I read another update, the angrier I became as … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, Homicide, LAPD, Obituaries | 1 Comment

A Kinder, Simpler Time Dept: Your Officer-Involved Shooting of a Teenager

Posted on July 24, 2009 by lmharnisch

July 24, 1946: Anthonette Montenegro swings her purse at officers during a corner's inquest that determined that Deputy H.H. Hodges was justified in killing her 13-year-old son, Eugene, a burglary suspect.

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Director Refuses to Censor ‘In Cold Blood’; NL Wins All-Star Game

Posted on July 24, 2009 by lmharnisch

July 24, 1969: Richard Brooks turns down $1 million from CBS for TV broadcast of three films, including "In Cold Blood"  because the network wanted to cut the final hanging sequence of the film.  Blame it all on the weather. … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, books, Film, Hollywood | 1 Comment

July 23, 2009: Darryl Thomas Kemp, Paroled Sex Killer Strikes Again, Gets Death Penalty for the Third Time

Posted on July 23, 2009 by lmharnisch

July 17, 1959: Darryl Thomas Kemp is linked to the killing of Marjorie Hipperson. He killed again a few months after being paroled in 1978. The nylon stocking murder of nurse Marjorie Hipperson, one of the most sensational Los Angeles … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, Homicide, LAPD | 3 Comments

Rape, Molestation Case Reveals ‘Depths of Depravity’

Posted on July 23, 2009 by lmharnisch

July 23, 1889: Siegel the Hatter has flannel shirts! July 23, 1889: The marriage of James Edgecomb and the ensuing trial, below. But the story gets better…  Aug. 3, 1889: "Depths of Depravity" — now there's a headline that says: … Continue reading →

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Man Sought in Oklahoma Killing Arrested in L.A.

Posted on July 21, 2009 by lmharnisch

July 21, 1899: Clyde Mattox, a murder suspect wanted in Oklahoma, talks to a reporter because they are both members of the Knights of Pythias. "In 1889 when but 19 years of age, Mattox was a member of the police … Continue reading →

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New Theater Planned for Plaza

Posted on July 21, 2009 by lmharnisch

July 21, 1889: Plans for a new theater on the Plaza … and a nasty dispute between a landlady and her tenant. He won't pay the bill or move. "Tracy, on his side, says that Mrs. Fuller was very abusive … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, Architecture, Downtown, Stage | 1 Comment

A Kinder, Simpler Time Dept.: The Follies Closes

Posted on July 20, 2009 by lmharnisch

July 20, 1942: The Follies Theater, 327 S. Main St., which was once the Belasco, closes. I have another address for the Belasco of 335 S. Main, which I'm guessing was part of the same building. Update: Michael, you raise … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, Architecture, Downtown, Stage | 4 Comments

A Brutal Sport Hounded to Extinction

Posted on July 19, 2009 by lmharnisch

Coursing as depicted in The Times on Dec. 12, 1897. "The rabbit dodged this way and that, squatted suddenly to the ground while the hound rushed past. Once, the dog's teeth sank in the hindquarters of the rabbit, jerked the … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, #games, 1897, 1898, Animals, City Hall, LAPD, Long Beach, Parks and Recreation, Politics | Comments Off on A Brutal Sport Hounded to Extinction

Police Botch Raid on Club

Posted on July 19, 2009 by lmharnisch

July 19, 1899: Police testified about a raid on the Republican Club, run by African Americans, but although they described debauchery, they couldn't cite specific instances. They just said it was a bad place: "Officers who testified were woefully lacking … Continue reading →

Posted in #courts, Blues, Food and Drink, LAPD, Music, Nightclubs, Politics | 1 Comment