Ted Soqui

Christopher Jordan Dorner Manifesto Highlights

We redacted most of the names mentioned in the "manifesto" after the LAPD expressed concern for the safety of its personnel. The man who cops say gunned down a young Irvine couple is an ex-LAPD cop who had a beef with the father of one of the victims. In an alleged manifesto, the suspect appears t ... More >>

L.A. River Boating Launches For Real This Summer

Boating down the L.A. River has been a rite of passage for journalists and urban adventurers, mainly because it's such a trash-strewn concrete jungle that it presents an ironic challenge. Traversing the waterway was almost a dare: We dare you to make it down the river without being shot, tagged, or ... More >>

L.A. Riots: LAPD Tried to Displace its Racism Problem And 'Put it On a Korean Merchant,' Says Former Times Reporter John Lee

The riots that were sparked on April 29, 1992 put L.A.'s burgeoning Korean American population in the spotlight. It seems that for every generation there's a group of immigrants green-lit for no-holds-barred hatred, and Koreans in 1992 were it. John Lee covered the community and the riots for the L ... More >>

5 Most Influential L.A. Architectural Shifts in 2011

What were the five most influential shifts in Los Angeles' architectural realm this year? It turns out they're not about pretty pictures. Or at least that's the feedback we got when we took a poll to come up with this LA Weekly best of 2011 list. Instead of touting singular designs, the answers o ... More >>

Sarah Mason, TIME's Protester of the Year: More Photos, Details Behind Occupy L.A. Cover

UPISarah Mason, TIME covergirl sans beanie and bandana, far left.​Updated on second page with even more up-close shots of Mason -- these ones taken by Ted Soqui, the LA Weekly photographer behind the TIME cover. Originally posted December 15 at 4:40 p.m. Ah, the elusive Sarah Mason -- she of ... More >>

Prop 8 Overturned? Nope: Year-Old HuffPost Article on California Gay Marriage Goes Viral

PHOTO BY TED SOQUIFrom our own West Hollywood slideshow on victory day 2010.​Come on, guys -- this is how rumors get started! A Huffington Post article from August 2010 (and updated in May 2011) was littered all over Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr and the rest of the Internet this morning. "Prop 8 ... More >>

Occupy L.A. Arrestees Say Bathrooms Off Limits For Hours so They Went on Buses: Sheriff's Department Looking Into it

Ted Soqui​Allegations that Occupy L.A. detainees were not allowed to use the restroom for hours as they waited on buses headed to jails are being checked out this week by the L.A. County Sheriff's Department, says spokesman Steve Whitmore. Accusations of rough and inhumane treatment of Occupy ... More >>

5 Reasons Why Carmageddon Failed to Materialize on the Westside

Ted SoquiCarma-what-now?​So Carmageddon turned out to be a bust. No 100-year traffic jam. No car-to-car shootings. Not even a report of roadkill. In fact, unless you were under a Prius all weekend, you know that the 405 closure ended early -- at about noon Sunday -- instead of abutting the Mo ... More >>

Parent Trigger Regulations Approved by California State Board of Education: Let the Reform Begin!

PHOTO BY TED SOQUIThe absence of regulations meant trouble for a recent Parent Trigger attempt in Compton.​Huge victory today for the education-reform camp, and charter groups ready to flip public schools into places of learning, not administrator-heavy cesspools of FAIL: At about 10:20 this ... More >>

Robert Rizzo, Accused Ringleader of Bell Salary Scandal, Gets Iconic Street Art Treatment

Ted SoquiR to the Izzo.​Andre the Giant, George W. Bush and President Obama have all been immortalized by L.A. street artists. Now our favorite alleged misuser of public funds, Robert Rizzo, is getting the icon treatment too (see it on the next page). His bloated, frog-like face is perfect f ... More >>

Manuel Jamines: Protest Near MacArthur Park Tonight After L.A. Police Commission, D.A. Say Cop Was Right to Shoot Immigrant

Ted SoquiPolice last summer in Westlake.​Update: The mayor's statement, after the jump. Following conclusions today that last summer's shooting of a Guatemalan day laborer in the Westlake district was within policy and not a crime, immigrants rights activists planned a 5 p.m. protest near Mac ... More >>

Was Banksy's Sunset Blvd Billboard 'Livin' the Dream' Really Just a Slick Advertisement?

Ted SoquiBanksy's 'Livin' the Dream.'​Update: A spokeswoman for the billboard advertiser says it ain't so, after the jump. Was Banksy's "Livin' the Dream" billboard art all an inside job? That's the report being echoed in blogland this week following the British artist's whirlwind tour of L. ... More >>

Valuable Banksy Public Art Piece in Malibu Towed Away, to be Sold?

Ted SoquiBanksy's 'Elephant' as it once stood in Malibu.​It looks like another Banksy piece from his days in L.A. for the Academy Awards has bitten the dust. But at least this one might ultimately be saved:

Six-Figure Banksy Piece Ripped From Sunset Boulevard Billboard Just Not Good Enough For CBS Outdoor

Ted SoquiBanksy is just not CBS Outdoor material.​Banksy might be a world-renowned street artist whose work can fetch six-figure prices. But don't tell that to CBS Outdoor, the advertising company that ripped the Brit's "Livin' the Dream" piece from a billboard above Sunset and Crescent Heigh ... More >>

Did Lindsay Lohan Try to Walk Out of Venice Jewelry Store With Diamond Earring Too?

Ted SoquiLindsay Lohan heads to court to face a theft allegation.​Photos by Ted Soqui Maybe Lindsay Lohan is just forgetful. TMZ is reporting that days before her fateful meeting with a $2,500 necklace at a Venice jewelry store she almost walked out with a diamond earring she had tried on. ... More >>

Valley Industry and Commerce Association Endorses Measure L and More Funding for L.A.'s Public Libraries

Ted SoquiRichard J. Riordan Central Library​Another major organization has jumped on the pro-Measure L bandwagon, which seeks to boost the budget of Los Angeles public libraries by giving them a larger percentage of existing monies in the city's general fund. There's no proposed tax increas ... More >>

(UPDATED With L.A. Road Closures, Rain Aftermath) L.A. Readies Itself For West Coast Rainpocalypse To Rival SnowLoko

PHOTO BY TED SOQUILast Wednesday in Los Angeles​Updated after the jump: Here we go again. Pacific Coast Highway closes, the I-5 floods and more. Originally posted Dec. 28 at 8:30 a.m. We were gloating yesterday as the East Coast took a beating from the weather gods, but karma's a bitch: It's ... More >>

Proposition 8 Hearing Underway at U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, Jesse Jackson In Favor of Gay Marriage

Ted SoquiGay marriage supporters in West Hollywood.​The Proposition 8 hearing is underway at the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco, with pro-Prop. 8 attorney Charles Cooper laying out his case for why anti-gay marriage forces have legal standing to appeal U.S. District Cour ... More >>

L.A. Advertisers And Anti-Billboard Activists Pissed Over City Council's Bright Idea To Slap Billboards With A 12 Percent Tax

PHOTO BY TED SOQUI​The Weekly has long had an eye on sketchy billboard deals throughout Los Angeles. In 2008, we reported that 4,000 of the city's 11,000 billboards were illegal, built without permits or earthquake regulations. Then came the Westside "Mad Men," fat-cat entrepreneurs who were ... More >>

Meg Whitman Wants Nicky Diaz Deported, Also Wants To Make Coats From Puppies' Fur

Ted SoquiNicky Diaz​When the Nicky Diaz story broke, Meg Whitman steadfastly refused to say whether she thought her former housekeeper should be deported. It was a no-win situation. If she said yes, she looked cruel; if she said no, then she didn't believe in the rule of law.Whether that was the b ... More >>

L.A. Leads Nation When It Comes To Library Closures

Ted Soqui​In Thursday's LA Weekly staff writer Patrick Range McDonald takes a look at the city's decision to shut down all its libraries twice a week in the face of a historic budget deficit. The closures make L.A. the only major American city besides Detroit to make such a move. And in a sur ... More >>

LAPD Union Not Happy With Chief Beck For Releasing Names Of Officers Involved In Deadly Westlake Confrontation

Ted SoquiPolice in Westlake.​While praising him for defending a controversial officer-involved shooting, the union that represents Los Angeles police over the weekend criticized Chief Charlie Beck for releasing the names of officers involved in the early September clash that set off three nigh ... More >>

Daniel Cortez, Man Who Allegedly Assaulted Cops With Slingshot During Westlake Unrest, Pleads Not Guilty

Ted Soqui​A man who allegedly shot projectiles at police using a slingshot pleaded not guilty recently to two counts each of assault on a police officer and assault with a deadly weapon, the Los Angeles City Attorney's offie announced Monday. The alleged attack happened on one of three nights ... More >>

McCourt Divorce Trial, Day Three: Screwing The Fans

Frank McCourt​Day Three. The Dodgers began the day 6.5 games out the wild card, but fell 7.5 games back with an afternoon loss to the Phillies. How's this for karma? At the same moment that Roy Oswalt was mowing down Dodger hitters this afternoon, David Boies was grilling Frank McCourt ab ... More >>

Washington Times Brings Gangs, Graffiti And Illegal Immigrants To Bell Salary Story

Ted SoquiI see brown people ... at a Bell City Council meeting.​The Bell salary scandal, in which a city manager was found to be taking home as much as $1.5 million in compensation, has inspired headlines from coast to coast. But none of the coverage has been as dark as that of the Washington ... More >>

Proposition 8 Trial Video and Document Evidence Released on Federal Web Site

Ted SoquiGay marriage supporters at a West Hollywood rally last week.​Judge Vaughn Walker has released video and document evidence for the Proposition 8 trial on the official web site for the United States District Court for the Northern District of California. Such things as political ads f ... More >>

Prop. 8 Ruling: Thousands Rally In West Hollywood, Long Beach

Steve La​ Hours after a federal judge struck down the Prop. 8 ban on gay marriage, using strong language to affirm the civil rights of gays and lesbians, demonstrators began celebrating Wednesday evening. The joy and satisfaction were tempered with the knowledge, however, that an appeal is com ... More >>

Obama 'Joker' Poster: It's All About Race

Ted Soqui​Was it something I said?Early last week I posted a brief blog noting the appearance of those "Obama Socialism" posters, in which the president's face is made up to resemble Heath Ledger's Joker character from The Dark Knight. That Batman-film derived image had been Photoshopped by Firas ... More >>

L.A. River Really Floats Their Boats

Lawbreaking kayakers try to change an urban river's sad course

Parks and Wreck: L.A.'s Fight for Public Green Space

In search of the Emerald City

The Voyeur

Holiday Reinhorn on her Big Cats

Sofas and the City

Spare Parts

Bolt Gallery turns scrap metal into beautiful monsters

A Night at LAWMA 2004

Getting There

Initiation by Fire

Hard lessons learned by a paper and a journalist when the city burned

Manic Monday

Raging against the Establishment

JOHN PICONE, Action Figure

The Well-Worn Pad

A Venice man tries to keep his apartment of nearly five decades

Shipwrecked

Swimming with sharks in a sea of arts funding

Ward Connerly’s Race

Once again outrunning the Left

Collateral Damage

Life Goes On

At City Hall, tragedy begets absurdity

Heaven on Earth: The Seminar

It’s Chinatown, Jake

The behind-closed-doors transformation of the downtown rail yards

Red Line Blues

Up and down the new Metro Rail stations

The Rookie

Chris Klein sweetens American Pie

Parade's End

The new charter is too big to stop

The Quietest Killing

Silent night for Siripongs

Fast Track

I got railroaded and now I’m hooked