Francis Polytechnic High School

One man was injured Friday when gunfire broke out after rival gangs exchanged hand signs outside John H. Francis Polytechnic High School in Sun Valley, Los Angeles police said. The victim, who was treated at Holy Cross Medical Center in Mission Hills, was hit in the chest and left arm as he sat in a car outside the school at 12431 Roscoe Blvd., Sgt. Richard Thomas said. His injuries are not life-threatening. Two students and one adult who were in the car with the victim were not injured.

We have been following the stories about Robert Davis, the John H. Francis Polytechnic High School student recently arrested for living above the school's auditorium. It would seem more appropriate for Principal Virginia Holt to have referred him to a school counselor or social worker for housing assistance. The city attorney's time would be better spent appealing decisions that return students who have assaulted teachers to the classroom. This procedural mentality is the foundation of the educational crisis.

A 14-year-old Francis Polytechnic High School student stole a teacher's car Thursday and led officers on a chase through two counties that reached 110 mph, the California Highway Patrol said. It began at 1:06 p.m. when a school security guard called police on his cell phone to say that he was following the youth west on the Ronald Reagan Freeway. For 40 minutes, officers followed the teenager in the stolen Thunderbird to Ventura County and back into Los Angeles County.

Thank you for your kind article by David Wharton about football at Poly High in Sun Valley (Oct. 17). It is wonderful to see Poly's pride and community support coming together to forge a great foundation for future successes. These guys are going to be winners in school and in life. Too bad Wharton didn't get a chance to thumb through some of the old student newspapers from the original Francis Polytechnic High School, which was located near downtown. He would have found some great reports of the then-Poly "Mechanics" playing such schools as USC. Now, how many high schools can boast of doing that?

Police were looking Sunday for a suspect in the fatal shooting of a 16-year-old Sun Valley boy who played football for John H. Francis Polytechnic High School. Edward Satterstron was struck several times in the chest while walking near the intersection of Laurel Canyon and Roscoe boulevards about 9:15 p.m. Saturday, said Officer Julianne Sohn of the Los Angeles Police Department. The teen walked into a nearby Taco Bell restaurant and collapsed, then was transported to a nearby hospital, where he died, she added.

Three men pleaded not guilty Thursday to charges of murder and conspiracy in the slaying of a 15-year-old Francis Polytechnic High School student last month, authorities said. Angel Rodriguez, 19, of Sun Valley; Mauricio Martin Montes, 18, of Panorama City; and Christian Omar Hernandez, 18, of Van Nuys were held without bail. The alleged shooter, Juan Manuel Chavez, 21, of Pacoima is still at large, said Jane Robison, a spokeswoman for the district attorney's office.

We all know that education in Los Angeles is in the midst of a financial crisis. For the past few years we have heard that the only way that this problem is going to be solved is for local businesses to team up with our schools to educate future employees. Sounds like a great idea. Now reality has set in. This year John H. Francis Polytechnic High School in Sun Valley has been involved in an innovative program to teach algebra. It is a self-paced computerized program called Learning Logic.

Citing recent reports on health concerns for schools near trash dumps, Los Angeles City Councilman Hal Bernson asked his colleagues Friday to delay approving expansion of Sunshine Canyon Landfill until a health survey of the area is conducted. In a letter hand-delivered to all council members, Bernson said the state has decided to examine whether two former landfills have caused health problems for Francis Polytechnic High School in Sun Valley and Towne Avenue Elementary School in Carson.

Two Pacoima teen-agers were arrested in the shooting of a rival gang member who was gunned down last week as he left the parking lot of a Sun Valley school the day before classes began, Los Angeles police said. A 15-year-old boy was arrested Tuesday and a 17-year-old was taken into custody Wednesday, Detective Mark Aragon said. Both were being held at Sylmar Juvenile Hall on suspicion of attempted murder. Manuel Yepiz, 15, of Sun Valley suffered a serious spinal injury when he was shot Sept.