Raquelle De La Rocha

In a move that could prop up an important political base, Los Angeles Mayor James K. Hahn on Thursday appointed San Fernando Valley activist Corina Alarcon to the Police Commission, giving the five-person panel a second member from the Valley. Hahn won the Valley vote in the 2001 mayoral election but his relationship with voters north of Mulholland Drive has been strained since he led the successful campaign to defeat a Valley secession initiative in 2002.

Daniel Jay Bussel, the husband of Los Angeles Police Commissioner Raquelle de la Rocha, was convicted of vehicular manslaughter Friday, nearly a year after he struck two pedestrians in a Van Nuys crosswalk, killing one. Bussel, 40, a UCLA Law School professor, faces a maximum sentence of one year in County Jail, a one-year revocation of his driver's license and a $1,000 fine. Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Elizabeth A. Lippitt set sentencing for Monday.

Re "Does Los Angeles Really Want a Strong Ethics-Code Enforcer?" by Xandra Kayden, Opinion, Oct. 29: Los Angeles government is consistently bringing new meaning to "shooting oneself in the foot." The latest debacle is the further thwarting of the city Ethics Commission mandate. Under the leadership of Ben Bycel, the Ethics Commission has done its job with vigor and vision. Its members pursued breaches of the public trust regardless of the perpetrator's status. I guess they stepped on one too many toes.

Reaching out to more conservative voters in the June 5 runoff election for Los Angeles city attorney, Councilman Mike Feuer on Wednesday trumpeted endorsements that included that of the politically active Los Angeles Police Protective League. "I want to announce how proud I am to have the support of Los Angeles' law enforcement team," Feuer said at a news conference outside the offices of the league, which is the police officers union.

Saying they want to empower their civilian watchdog, Los Angeles Police Commission members Tuesday approved a set of "work rules" by which their inspector general is supposed to operate. The rules, a significantly revised version of those that the commissioners took under consideration last week, define the inspector general's access to information and his ability to provide confidentiality to complainants, issues that have been hotly contested for three years.

There is a lot going on regarding the Los Angeles Police Department's corruption scandal. The City Council awaits Mayor Richard Riordan's signature on a federal consent decree that will govern sweeping reforms and appoint an outside monitor to ensure they are accomplished. The council is also set to approve Rampart-related legal settlements that will bring the direct payouts by taxpayers to about $13 million.

The Ethics Commission on Thursday approved in concept a plan to prohibit city commissioners from being paid to lobby other Los Angeles officials, part of a series of reforms considered in the wake of recent investigations of conflict of interest and other wrongdoing by a Riordan administration appointee. "Its purpose is, fundamentally, the restoration of public trust in government . . .

In an embarrassing about-face, Mayor Richard Riordan was forced Wednesday to rescind a recent merit raise he gave to Police Chief Bernard C. Parks after Riordan's staff discovered that, under the new City Charter, only the Police Commission has the authority to boost the chief's pay. "After reviewing . . .

The Los Angeles Police Commission on Tuesday turned up the pressure on the Boy Scouts of America over its discrimination against gays and lesbians by signaling it might drop the venerable, Scout-affiliated Explorer police cadet program. The commission called on the national Scouting organization to end its discriminatory practices when its governing board meets in mid-February.

The Los Angeles Police Commission on Tuesday rejected a proposal to shift more firearms practice from Elysian Park to a shooting range in Granada Hills, citing increased cost and other problems. The action was a relief to residents who have complained bitterly of noise from the new San Fernando Valley facility.