James Blatt

An Encino attorney has been fined $1,000 for delaying a Ventura County murder trial so he could, among other things, attend his son's college football bowl game. Ventura County Superior Court Judge Lawrence Storch imposed the sanction this week on James Edward Blatt, attorney for Scott M. Kastan. It was the maximum fine under a Penal Code section that states that both the public--represented by prosecutors--and criminal defendants have the right to a speedy trial.

Looking like a young banker in a dark suit and striped tie, accused killer Jesse James Hollywood testified in his own defense Monday, giving a concise overview of his lucrative marijuana business in the San Fernando Valley.

Looking like a young banker in a dark suit and striped tie, accused killer Jesse James Hollywood testified in his own defense Monday, giving a concise overview of his lucrative marijuana business in the San Fernando Valley.

Business Environment Q.: Do you believe businesses are leaving California due to a hostile business environment? If yes, how would you make California more attractive to business? Blatt: Yes. I would promote legislation that would reduce the cost of operating a business in this state including, but not limited to, reducing the amount of fraudulent workers' compensation claims. Boland: Yes. Reduce excessive regulation.

Republican Assemblywoman Paula L. Boland would seem to have a relatively painless path to reelection this fall. She is running unopposed in the June primary and the 38th District, which includes the northwest San Fernando Valley and the Ventura County cities of Simi Valley and Fillmore, is 49% registered Republican and 40% Democrat. She also has an enormous lead in fund raising over her challengers.

Business Environment Q.: Do you believe businesses are leaving California due to a hostile business environment? If yes, how would you make California more attractive to business? Blatt: Yes. I would promote legislation that would reduce the cost of operating a business in this state including, but not limited to, reducing the amount of fraudulent workers' compensation claims. Boland: Yes. Reduce excessive regulation.

Los Angeles County jail inmates have used corrupt guards to penetrate tight security at lockups, helping fuel a lucrative drug trade behind bars, according to interviews and documents reviewed by The Times. Three sheriff's guards have been convicted and a fourth fired in recent years for smuggling or attempting to smuggle narcotics into jail for inmates. Sheriff's investigators are probing allegations that at least three more deputies took drugs or other contraband into the jails.

Nearly every day, former movie actor Erik Aude writes to his mother from his prison cell in Pakistan. He tells her about the beatings he has endured, the executions he has witnessed. He tells her about his boredom and despair, and the wasting away of his once-chiseled weightlifter's body. Sometimes, the 23-year-old muses about suicide. He tells her he is not a drug smuggler, despite the 3.6 kilos of opium found in his suitcase at the Islamabad airport.

After three hours' deliberations, a jury on Wednesday gave a life sentence rather than the death penalty to Jesse James Hollywood, the former marijuana dealer convicted last week in the slaying of a 15-year-old West Hills boy. Found guilty of kidnapping and first-degree murder, Hollywood, 29, was portrayed by prosecutors as the ringleader of a convoluted plot to avenge a $1,200 drug debt owed by Nicholas Markowitz's older half brother.

A Van Nuys man who authorities said had a history of violent disputes with his mother was sentenced to six years in state prison Wednesday for killing the 61-year-old woman by pushing her out a second-story window. Under a plea bargain, William Morris, 37, pleaded no contest to voluntary manslaughter in the Aug. 10, 1991, death of his mother, Marjorie Morris.

Republican Assemblywoman Paula L. Boland would seem to have a relatively painless path to reelection this fall. She is running unopposed in the June primary and the 38th District, which includes the northwest San Fernando Valley and the Ventura County cities of Simi Valley and Fillmore, is 49% registered Republican and 40% Democrat. She also has an enormous lead in fund raising over her challengers.

An Encino attorney has been fined $1,000 for delaying a Ventura County murder trial so he could, among other things, attend his son's college football bowl game. Ventura County Superior Court Judge Lawrence Storch imposed the sanction this week on James Edward Blatt, attorney for Scott M. Kastan. It was the maximum fine under a Penal Code section that states that both the public--represented by prosecutors--and criminal defendants have the right to a speedy trial.

A Reseda dentist charged with five sexual assault counts was ordered to stand trial after one woman testified Friday that the doctor put his hand under her shirt and in her pants. Following a preliminary hearing, Municipal Judge Michael E. Knight ordered Dr. Kamal Matian, 46, to appear in Superior Court for arraignment April 30. Until then, Matian will remain free on $60,000 bail.

An Iraqi-born American citizen collected intelligence on Assyrian groups in the United States for former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein and didn't notify U.S. government officials, a prosecutor said Tuesday during opening statements in a federal court trial. William Shaoul Benjamin, 67, of Los Angeles is charged with conspiracy, failing to register as an agent of a foreign government and making false statements. If convicted, he faces up to 20 years in prison. Assistant U.S. Atty.