Dzintra I Janavs

The U.S. Justice Department will reconsider three federal judgeship candidates whose nominations were blocked after they were recommended by Gov. Pete Wilson when he was a senator, a department official said Wednesday. "These are good, well-regarded people," said Murray Dickman, an assistant to U.S. Atty. Gen. Dick Thornburgh. "We will re-evaluate these three candidates." Dickman said a key Wilson aide, Ira Goldman, had misstated the reasons why the candidacies had not been approved. "Mr.

20th Century Insurance Fined: Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Dzintra Janavs, who is charged with hearing all Proposition 103 auto insurance rollback cases, fined 20th Century Insurance Co. and its lawyer, Gary Fontana, $9,200 for "court shopping." The judge said the company improperly sought another court to hear a case challenging Insurance Commissioner John Garamendi's order that 20th Century give $106.4 million in auto insurance premiums back to customers.

A bitter stalemate has emerged over the U.S. Department of Justice's refusal to accept three federal judgeship candidates who were recommended by Gov. Pete Wilson when he was a senator and endorsed by his successor, John Seymour. Approval has been blocked on a variety of grounds, according to some of those involved in the dispute: Los Angeles Superior Court Judge William A. Masterson is regarded by the department as too old at 60, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Dzintra I.

The U.S. Justice Department will reconsider three federal judgeship candidates whose nominations were blocked after they were recommended by Gov. Pete Wilson when he was a senator, a department official said Wednesday. "These are good, well-regarded people," said Murray Dickman, an assistant to U.S. Atty. Gen. Dick Thornburgh. "We will re-evaluate these three candidates." Dickman said a key Wilson aide, Ira Goldman, had misstated the reasons why the candidacies had not been approved. "Mr.

20th Century Insurance Fined: Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Dzintra Janavs, who is charged with hearing all Proposition 103 auto insurance rollback cases, fined 20th Century Insurance Co. and its lawyer, Gary Fontana, $9,200 for "court shopping." The judge said the company improperly sought another court to hear a case challenging Insurance Commissioner John Garamendi's order that 20th Century give $106.4 million in auto insurance premiums back to customers.

A Superior Court judge has rejected an attempt by the Long Beach Police Officers Assn. to limit Long Beach Police Chief Lawrence L. Binkley's power to transfer officers and initiate new policies. Judge Dzintra I. Janavs rejected most association claims in a lawsuit that police management violated fair labor practices on a series of issues. She agreed with the union in one area, ordering Binkley to consult with association officials before ordering officers going on stress-related leave to surrender their badges and guns.

A judge refused a request by South Gate police unions to temporarily block the city's implementation of several controversial measures, including the appointment of a new police chief. But Judge Dzintra I. Janavs agreed to hold a full hearing on the matter on July 3. City officials say the measures will enhance public safety. Among other things, all officers would be required to wear uniforms.

Dzintra I. Janavs, the Los Angeles County Superior Court judge who Thursday blocked legislation giving Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa partial control of city schools, gained notoriety during the June election when she was unseated by a Manhattan Beach bagel shop owner with little legal experience. Janavs, a 20-year veteran of the bench, lost by almost eight percentage points to Lynn Diane Olson amid speculation that perhaps her name, which is Latvian, had been a factor in some voters' minds.

The city won a court order today preventing the state Solid Waste Management Board from imposing limits on the amount of trash that may be dumped at the Lopez Canyon landfill in the San Fernando Valley. Envisioning streets flowing with garbage if, as the city argued, it must pay to deposit garbage at private landfills, Superior Court Judge Dzintra I.

Amwest Insurance Group Inc. won a legal victory last week when a Superior Court judge upheld the exemption of Amwest and other surety insurers from the major provisions of Proposition 103. The proposition calls for, among other things, a rollback in insurance rates. It was largely aimed at reforming auto insurance in California.

A bitter stalemate has emerged over the U.S. Department of Justice's refusal to accept three federal judgeship candidates who were recommended by Gov. Pete Wilson when he was a senator and endorsed by his successor, John Seymour. Approval has been blocked on a variety of grounds, according to some of those involved in the dispute: Los Angeles Superior Court Judge William A. Masterson is regarded by the department as too old at 60, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Dzintra I.