Compton

The report on present-day Compton ("Black Middle Class Keeps the Faith for Compton," Part I, June 26) and its proud residents is a lucid testimonial not only on pride of ownership, but also pride of community. The article should be read by all ethnic groups who, despite social stigma and stereotypes nurtured by bigots believing in "exclusive neighborhoods," continue to think that the latter is the sole way to go on the road to the American success story. The Compton story defies this.

SAN DIEGO —UC San Diego officials have reached an agreement with the federal government to end an investigation into racial tensions on campus that began after white students held an event laced with racial stereotypes during Black History Month. In a settlement announced Friday with the federal departments of Justice and Education, UC San Diego promised to maintain an Office for the Prevention of Harassment and Discrimination to receive, investigate and resolve complaints. Among other things, administrators will offer training sessions for staff and students on the university's policy against harassment, and will make more efforts to interest low-income and minority students in attending UC San Diego, where about 2% of the undergraduate student body is African American.

The Compton mayor's allegations of fraud at City Hall have at least temporarily killed the cash-strapped city's ability to get a line of credit to pay bills and prompted the resignation this week of the interim city manager. The city, which owes millions of dollars to the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, among other debts, had been trying to get a line of credit to help deal with a $41-million deficit. Mayor Eric Perrodin had sent a letter to State Controller John Chiang in December, asking him to do a forensic audit of the city and suggesting that the general fund deficit was caused by "possible fraud, waste and abuse.

There was a time when Compton was overwhelmingly African American. But like much of Southern California, Compton has undergone profound demographic change. Today, nearly two-thirds of its 96,000 residents are Latino. As is 28% of its voting-age population. With numbers like that, you would think that Latinos would be represented in Compton city government. Yet no Latino has ever held city office there; the mayor and the members of the City Council are all African American. How has that happened?

I would certainly agree that the current dilapidated condition of the former home of President George Bush (Santa Fe Gardens Apartments) in Compton reveals the stark disparity between the "kinder, gentler" Compton in 1949 (when the President lived there) and the Compton of today--a symbol of the "urban abandonment" throughout America in the past 12 years. However, I must take exception to your statement that a proposed monument to the President's historic presence in Compton is an "unnecessary" gesture (editorial, Aug. 4)

Compton Mayor Walter R. Tucker III wants to declare as a city landmark an apartment that George Bush called home for a mere six months in 1949. That's a nice thought perhaps, but an unnecessary gesture. Tucker's proposal brings to mind the contrast between the Compton of mid-century and the Compton of today. Back then the area attracted an ambitious oilman with a young family. Today, the Santa Fe Gardens apartment complex that was home to a man who would be President is quite troubled.

Known for her flamboyant hats and dazzling jewelry, Bernice Woods relished being in the public eye. So when the longtime community volunteer and former Compton city councilwoman died last month, her children opted to place her open casket in the drive-thru display window of Robert L. Adams Mortuary in Compton. "My mother was a community person," said Gregory W. Woods, 55, the youngest of the deceased woman's 10 children. "She meant so much to so many people. It is only fitting and proper that she would be viewed this way. " Adams funeral parlor, a fixture in Compton since 1974, brings to the business of death a convenience of the living: drive-thru viewing of the dead.

Compton's finances are in such disarray that the city amassed $369,000 in late fees over the last year because it could not pay its policing contract with the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department on time. The city has already laid off about 15% of its workforce, and city leaders warn that more cuts may be on the way. City Hall has slashed spending, even canceling the city's popular gospel concert. But most disconcerting is the city's looming deficit of $39 million, a sum that represents about 80% of its annual general fund budget.

Barbara Jones said she had a warning ready for her grandchildren whenever they visited her Compton home. Keep an eye out for her neighbor, Julian Carter.  "I'd tell them, 'If you see Julian walk up, come inside. I'm too old to be fighting with him,' " the 61-year-old Jones said Monday. "I'll fight with him, but I don't think I can win." Carter, 25, on Monday was accused of killing his 5-year-old niece, placing her body in a plastic trash bag and stuffing it into the closet of the family's home, which is next door to Jones' home.

Sophia Taylor fidgeted with the drawstrings of her hooded sweat shirt as she sat inside the darkened examination room. It had been more than five years since her last vision exam, and her sight had gotten worse. When the doctor entered, he asked the 24-year-old a series of questions: Why has it been so long? Had she ever worn glasses? Does she still wear them? Taylor explained that she lost her last pair of glasses, which were never replaced. That was in the seventh grade. "My mom said I didn't need them," the Long Beach woman said.

Responding to long-standing complaints that Latinos are grossly underrepresented in local government, the city of Compton has agreed to settle a voting rights lawsuit with a plan that could change how officials are elected. The suit was aimed at making it easier for Latinos, who now account for nearly two-thirds of the city's 96,000 residents, to gain greater clout at City Hall, where all council members and most of the top city leaders are black. This imbalance has been the subject of much debate over the years as Compton's Latino population has grown and its black population has declined, part of a larger trend that has been reducing African American political clout across L.A. County.

In the calculus of cross-border human smuggling, Maria Lopez-Diaz allegedly concluded that black instead of brown equals green. The 60-year-old Compton woman, prosecutors say, tried to cash in on racial profiling by operating a human smuggling ring that hired mostly African American drivers who didn't speak a word of Spanish to ferry small groups of immigrants from Mexico to Los Angeles. In the end, the alleged venture failed. Authorities announced charges Thursday against Lopez-Diaz and four others, including conspiracy and transporting and harboring illegal immigrants.

For years, Bernice Abram was a well-regarded manager at the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department. She rose through the ranks, eventually making captain at the department's Carson station, where some 160 deputies served under her command. As the city's de facto police chief, Abram was well-liked, hosting "coffee with the captain" meet-and-greets at local restaurants. But last April, Abram's ascent was unexpectedly halted, sources said, after federal agents wiretapping an alleged Compton drug trafficker overheard what they believed was the captain's voice.

The Compton mayor's allegations of fraud at City Hall have at least temporarily killed the cash-strapped city's ability to get a line of credit to pay bills and prompted the resignation this week of the interim city manager. The city, which owes millions of dollars to the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, among other debts, had been trying to get a line of credit to help deal with a $41-million deficit. Mayor Eric Perrodin had sent a letter to State Controller John Chiang in December, asking him to do a forensic audit of the city and suggesting that the general fund deficit was caused by "possible fraud, waste and abuse.

No one disputes that former California Highway Patrol Officer Tomiekia Johnson had a tumultuous relationship with her husband. What's in question is whether she fatally shot him in the head two years ago by accident or in cold blood. On the opening day of trial Tuesday for Johnson, 32, who is charged with murder in the death of her husband, Marcus Lemons, attorneys presented jurors two differing versions of what happened on the side of a road in Compton the night of Feb. 21, 2009.

Two women who sued the city of Compton, alleging that the city's election system violates the rights of Latino voters, have not presented enough evidence to decide the case without a trial, a judge has ruled. The plaintiffs, both Latinas, asked the court for a summary judgment, arguing that the facts show without dispute that the city's at-large voting system impairs the ability of Latino voters to elect the candidates of their choice. Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Elizabeth Allen White ruled Friday that the women had not presented strong enough evidence to decide the case on the spot, meaning it will go to trial as scheduled in February.

The best meals of the year aren't necessarily about foie gras and truffles, or indulgent tasting menus, or even the technically best cooking of 2011. They're those dinners that surprised and delighted, that wove food and wine and friendship together in a meal that stands crisp and clear in memory. Some of them are unrepeatable, like the subtle Indian feast a friend cooked or the dinner for more than 100 outside at one long table in front of a historic chateau in France. Or the wild crayfish that a Rioja producer pulled out of a pond next to his winery and cooked up for lunch.

Many of the top high school baseball players in Southern California will play in a charity game Saturday to raise funds for former Santa Ana Mater Dei standout Cory Hahn. All proceeds from the 1 p.m. game at the Urban Youth Academy in Compton will help support Hahn, who was paralyzed after a collision near second base while playing for Arizona State last season. Hahn, The Times' high school player of the year as a senior at Mater Dei in 2010, was injured in his second college game.