Tom Henning

A convicted Los Angeles slumlord was ordered Friday to perform 1,485 hours of community service--a record amount of time, according to City Atty. James K. Hahn--at a nonprofit organization assisting the homeless on Skid Row. Municipal Court Commissioner Barry Kohn also sentenced Tom Henning, 38, of Hawthorne to two years of informal probation. Henning pleaded no contest Dec.

So, soccer fans, who deserves to be punished more heavily, Chelsea's Didier Drogba for going ballistic at an inept referee or Guadalajara's Hector Reynoso for pretending to spread an infectious disease? Do they get a slap on the wrist and a fine, or are they banned for periods long enough to make them realize the stupidity and unacceptability of their actions?

So, soccer fans, who deserves to be punished more heavily, Chelsea's Didier Drogba for going ballistic at an inept referee or Guadalajara's Hector Reynoso for pretending to spread an infectious disease? Do they get a slap on the wrist and a fine, or are they banned for periods long enough to make them realize the stupidity and unacceptability of their actions?

A convicted Los Angeles slumlord was ordered Friday to perform 1,485 hours of community service--a record amount of time, according to City Atty. James K. Hahn--at a nonprofit organization assisting the homeless on Skid Row. Municipal Court Commissioner Barry Kohn also sentenced Tom Henning, 38, of Hawthorne to two years of informal probation. Henning pleaded no contest Dec.

A Hawthorne resident, who pleaded no contest to nine violations of various fire, health and building codes at a 36-unit apartment building in Los Angeles, has been sentenced to do 1,485 hours of community service for the homeless on Skid Row. Tom Henning, 38, was also ordered to pay $2,102 in restitution to the investigating agencies and was placed on two years' summary probation by Los Angeles Municipal Court Commissioner Barry Kohn, officials announced.

Italy goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon on Friday pulled off one of the most dramatic and important saves not just in soccer's Euro 2008 tournament but in the 44-year history of the European Championship. It came on a penalty kick in the 81st minute of the Italians' game against Romania at the Letzigrund stadium in Zurich, Switzerland. The match was tied, 1-1, when defender Christian Panucci fouled Daniel Niculae, and Norwegian referee Tom Henning Ovrebo pointed to the penalty spot.

Didier Drogba as goal scorer? Sure. Happens all the time. Drogba as peacemaker? Not so common, but it happened at the Rose Bowl on Tuesday night. Drogba as fantasist, inventor of surprising passes and superlative moves? Sure. Apparently there isn't much the Ivory Coast international is not capable of doing on a soccer field. Tormentor of referees? User of sometimes shocking language?

There was anguish and outrage in London. In Barcelona, there was nothing but bedlam. What else to expect after FC Barcelona had plunged a Spanish dagger into Chelsea soccer hearts Wednesday night, scoring a goal 2:12 into stoppage time to earn a 1-1 tie in a nail-biting European Champions League semifinal at Chelsea's Stamford Bridge stadium?

Germany and Spain go head-to-head on Sunday in the final of soccer's European Championship, but there is one thing that both coaches, both teams and both sets of fans agree upon: referee Roberto Rosetti should not be deciding the game's outcome. If Rosetti can remain invisible, if he can officiate the match so that the winner is decided on the field by the skill of the players and not by the whistle of the Italian referee, then all will be well.

One would have thought that Sweden's Martin Hansson and Norway's Tom Henning Ovrebro would have learned their lessons by now. On Wednesday, in two absorbing European Champions League matches played in Portugal and Germany, the two Scandinavian referees once again were at the center of twin storms because of controversial calls that directly affected the outcome of the two round-of-16 matches. In Portugal, Hansson, already infamous for not spotting Thierry Henry's hand ball for France in its pivotal World Cup qualifier against Ireland last fall, this time allowed FC Porto to take a quick free kick only yards from the Arsenal goal.

Gays throughout California on Wednesday bemoaned the passage of Proposition 22 but disagreed sharply over how best to focus their energies now that voters have rejected same-sex marriage. Some argued for a full-court press in the Legislature, where several bills would build on the few benefits that now exist for domestic partners.

Dale Alexander, the information technology director for Albuquerque public schools, was hardly a fan of filtering software designed to block pornography and Web sites deemed inappropriate for children. But when Congress required it of schools that receive certain technology grants, Alexander had no trouble deciding whether to install the software. After all, as much as $14.7 million was at stake. "There was a lot of money on the table," he said.