Pico Rivera

Times are tough enough for Californians; they're even tougher for Californians' teeth. "One-quarter of all adults and 28% of children in California have untreated dental caries [cavities]," says Len Finocchio, a senior program officer at the California Healthcare Foundation, a health advocacy group. "Our research tells us that many people in California have been avoiding routine care that might have cost about $100 for a checkup and cleaning, and then find themselves in the emergency room, where they get only an antibiotic, a bill that can average over $600 and instructions to see a dentist."

Weeks after news about Wal Mart Stores Inc.'s alleged bribery and coverup in Mexico surfaced, rank-and-file workers at the world's largest retailer have taken their calls for change to the Internet. Venanzi Luna, a department manager at a Wal-Mart store in Pico Rivera, has created an online petition for fellow employees and customers at Change.org, a website that seeks to promote social change. The petition urges Wal-Mart to undertake "a thorough and independent investigation" into allegations of widespread bribery by company officials to gain approval for new stores in Mexico.

Residents in the northern part of the city will have higher water bills beginning this month as a result of a 15% rate increase by the Pico Water District. The increase means the average monthly water bill will be about $1.86 higher after Jan. 1, according to Hal Maupin, general manager of the district, which serves 21,000 homes here. Maupin said the increase was needed to raise $1.2 million to pay for replacing 39 miles of pipe.

A man convicted of murder after tattooing detailed images of the crime on his chest is now facing charges that he and two family members were part of a ring attempting to smuggle drugs into Los Angeles County Jail. While investigating Anthony Garcia's role in a Pico Rivera slaying, Sgt. Kevin Lloyd of the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department said he found evidence that Garcia, his brother, mother and two others were conspiring to smuggle in heroin and methamphetamines. All five have been arrested and are facing felony attempted narcotics smuggling charges.

The City Council has unanimously agreed to pay more than half of the $1.3-million widening of Whittier Boulevard between the city limits and Paramount Boulevard. The 1 1/2-mile project, which is scheduled to begin in December, is a key element in the city's cleanup of its downtown business district. The city will pay about $690,000 of the street improvements, while Caltrans will pay about $600,000.

Pico Rivera population: 59,177 Election: April 14 On the ballot: Six candidates for two at-large seats INCUMBENT Garth G. Gardner Age: 69 Occupation: Real estate appraiser Remarks: "I've been on the board 20 years. . . . I'm proud of the upward movement the city has taken in its image . . . proud of the development of the city, the parks and Whittier Boulevard."

The Pico Rivera City Council has adopted an urgency ordinance prohibiting the display and use of replica firearms in a threatening manner. The ordinance was considered at the request of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, which has adopted a similar ordinance and asked that all cities in the county do the same.

City officials have decided not to oppose South El Monte's efforts to annex a 264-acre industrial area on Pico Rivera's north side. Because the county is developing a regional park between Pico Rivera and the undeveloped industrial park land, it would be too expensive and impractical for Pico Rivera to annex the property, City Manager Dennis Courtemarche said.

A senior planner from the city of Rancho Palos Verdes has been hired as Pico Rivera's new planning director. Ann Negendank, 37, has worked for Rancho Palos Verdes since March, 1981. Before that, she was an associate planner in South Gate and also worked in the Planning Department of Tacoma, Wash. She is a graduate of UC Berkeley.

Councilman Gilbert De La Rosa of Pico Rivera has been appointed to the environmental quality policy committee of the League of California Cities. The committee reviews legislation proposed in Sacramento and makes recommendations to the league board of directors on policies concerning refuse sites and water resources. De La Rosa, 61, is a retired banker.

The process was routine. L.A. County Sheriff's homicide investigator Kevin Lloyd was flipping through snapshots of tattooed gang members. Then one caught his attention. Inked on the pudgy chest of a young Pico Rivera gangster who had been picked up and released on a minor offense was the scene of a 2004 liquor store slaying that had stumped Lloyd for more than four years. Each key detail was right there: the Christmas lights that lined the roof of the liquor store where 23-year-old John Juarez was gunned down, the direction his body fell, the bowed street lamp across the way and the street sign — all under the chilling banner of RIVERA KILLS, a reference to the gang Rivera-13.

A predawn earthquake sent a sharp jolt across the Los Angeles area Tuesday, but the magnitude 4.4 temblor was barely strong enough to knock items off shelves. It was, however, sharp enough to frazzle residents, many of whom felt a "strong bang." The epicenter was 10 miles southeast of downtown Los Angeles in Pico Rivera, and the quake was felt as far away as San Diego and Ventura County. Los Angeles County fire official Ed Pickett, who was in East Los Angeles, said the jolt at 4:04 a.m. felt "like the building dropped."

To hear Summer Brown and Briana Biddle talk about it, their upcoming wedding and civil commitment will be a fairy tale, complete with happily ever after. But fairy tales can turn dark pretty quickly, and a look at the couple's finances shows that the poisoned apple in this story could be money. Let's start with the wedding: Brown has a $986 wedding dress and a $2,600 engagement ring, both bought on credit. Then there are older debts: a $20,000 time share on which Biddle is not making payments and $17,000 in student loans for Brown, among others.

Re "Deeper cuts enrage state Democrats," July 29, and "Capitol sausage-making," July 28 As a lifelong, and active, Republican, I was appalled by the cynical and illegal activities of the Bush/Cheney administration, and now I find myself confronted by your photo of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger grinning as he signs a budget that penalizes the most vulnerable and needy of our state's citizens. Whatever happened to the original GOP ethic that protected and benefited people like that? Where are you, Abe?

Three men were shot to death Saturday evening at Slauson Avenue and Passons Boulevard, Los Angeles County sheriff's deputies said. The shooting, which may have left several others wounded, occurred about 6:40 p.m. Deputies said the three men died at the scene. No other details were available Saturday night. -- Dan Weikel

An El Monte police officer is seen on TV news footage kicking a car chase suspect in the head Wednesday after the suspect appears to surrender. Video from KTTV Channel 11 News and KNBC-TV Channel 4 News shows the incident at the end of a car chase that wound through the San Gabriel Valley, ending in a collision in Pico Rivera. The suspect, whom authorities later identified as 23-year-old Richard Rodriguez of El Monte, jumped out of his car and ran.

Bill Medrano is more attuned than most Pico Rivera residents to a series of sales tax increases that -- starting today -- will push the rate in his blue-collar suburb to nearly 11%, the highest in the state and one of the steepest in the nation. And he's not happy. "It's almost as if we're getting punished," the 32-year-old security firm assistant manager complained this week on a trip to one the town's large retail centers. "It all adds up: a penny here, a penny there. . . .