Crime & Courts

LA Times reporter Andrew Blankstein -- who deserves a day off -- is reporting that the judge in the 2006 Carson gas station slayings was arrested in Los Angeles on suspicion of DUI.

Check out his story on Judge John Thaddeus Doyle.

Prosecutors filed explosives charges on Thursday against two men arrested in connection to an illegal fireworks bust in Torrance.

Brian Flanigan, 40, in whose home the 3,400 pounds of explosives were discovered, is charged with possession of ingredients to make a destructive device and possession of an explosive, according to Sandi Gibbons, a spokeswoman for the District Attorney's office.
Patrick German, 39, of Redondo Beach, was charged with one count of possession of an explosive, Gibbons said.

They're both scheduled to be arraigned in Torrance Superior Court on July 8, 2004.
The pair were arrested Wednesday following an investigation that began with a tip in Redondo Beach the previous day.

At Flanigan's home in the 1600 block of Beech Avenue, investigators say they found enough explosives to have destroyed surrounding homes had they ignited.

Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Alex Kozinski was rebuked by his colleagues over on the Third Circuit, and apologized. Case closed.

Previously: An in-depth look at RPV resident/federal judge's humor

From the Los Angeles Police Protective League:

LAPPL Directors and other public safety experts will be regularly posting items at http://www.lapd.com/blog/ and invite their members and those interested in policing issues to join the dialogue. Reader feedback is welcomed and encouraged as the LAPPL broadens its communications efforts with both its membership and the public.

"The goal of the blog is to provide insight into law enforcement from a police officer's perspective," said Paul M. Weber, LAPPL President. "As officers, we want Los Angeles residents to know the challenges we face in policing the city.  At the same time, we want residents to share their perspective on public safety issues with us, hopefully resulting in a lively and constructive forum."

The LAPPL blog will also follow a number of other law enforcement-related blogs, serving as a one-stop resource for relevant news and commentary.  Additionally, the League is preparing to integrate Twitter into the blog, according to Weber

A man sought for exposing himself to girls in El Segundo has struck again.

The man dropped his shorts in front of two girls at 7:55 p.m. Monday near California Street and Palm Avenue, police said Wednesday.

The girls were walking south on California when a car blocked a driveway. The man got out, exposed himself and drove away.

The man was white, in his mid to late 20s, 6 feet tall with blonde hair in a buzz cut. He was wearing a gray T-shirt and dark blue basketball shorts. He drove what might be a 2006-2009 silver 4-door Honda Civic.

Police said he matches the description of a man who committed four similar crimes

• Nov. 6 in the alley north of the 800 block of Grand Avenue.
• Jan. 8 in the alley east of the 400 block of Standard Street.
• March 13 in the 300 block of West Mariposa Avenue.
• April 4 in the 300 block of West Pine Avenue.

Anyone with information is asked to contact Detective Pat Goodreau at 310-524-2216 or Detective Vince Martinez at 310-524-2263.

My story on the illegal fireworks seizure will be posted shortly.

Here's the mug shots of the two guys arrested: Brian Flanigan, 40, of Torrance, left, and Patrick German, 39, of Redondo Beach. Firefighters and police say Flanigan had so many illegal fireworks stored at his house that it could have leveled his neighborhood had it caught fire.

Redondo Beach police and fire have just made a large fireworks seizure in Torrance on Beech near Crenshaw and Torrance. I'm heading over.

**UPDATE:

Police and firefighters have recovered several thousand pounds of illegal fireworks stored at a house in the 1600 block of Beech Avenue in Torrance. Firefighters say the situation was so dangerous it could've caused a catastrophe had it caught fire.

The seizure occurred early this morning following a tip to Redondo Beach Police Department that the resident was selling fireworks. Firefighters say the resident also was manufacturing home-made fireworks, and discovered 400 pounds of black powder in the house.

"Had he had an accident, and had the garage blown up, it would've leveled and killed the people in every house around him," said Redondo Beach fire Division Chief Steve Hyink.

We'll have photographs, identities and more details soon.

A man who allegedly shot at Redondo Beach police officers as they tried stop him from firing at someone else was charged Tuesday with attempted murder.

Brayon Martinez, 29, of Lawndale, pleaded not guilty in Torrance Superior Court to two counts of attempted murder, assault on a peace officer, evading and possession of a firearm by a felon, according to Deputy District Attorney Paulette Paccione.

The attempted murder counts also carry allegations that Martinez used a firearm.

He has a prior conviction for domestic violence in 2001, according to Paccione. Court records show he was also convicted in 1999 for using violence on a spouse.

Martinez faces the possibility of life in prison, she said. He returns to court July 16.

Martinez was spotted by the officers in the 4500 block of 170th Street as they passed through Lawndale on a routine patrol Saturday night about 11:40 p.m.

He was allegedly firing a gun at a man on the sidewalk, according to the sheriff's department.
He allegedly fled in a BMW, but returned and shot at the officers, who returned fire and struck him in the arm.

Soon after Joe Nino and Miguel Torres were convicted - for the second time - in May, Nino's former girlfriend sent a letter to Deputy District Attorney Craig Hum claiming she was with Nino on Dec. 2, 2001 - the night Juan Vasquez was shot and killed execution style in a drainage ditch by a Rolling Hills school.

Why the Arizona prison guard waited nearly eight years and two trials to present herself as an alibi is not known. Nino's attorney, Jeff Gray, told Torrance Superior Court Judge Eric Taylor he investigated the claim and believes she is one of several reasons why his client should have a new trial.

However, Miguel Torres' attorneys - Jaclin Awad, who was in court, and Matthew Fletcher, who was not - asked for more time to prepare. Gray didn't want to put off arguing his new trial motion, but his client did. Because Hum will be involved in another murder trial downtown for a couple months, Nino and Torres will return for their motion and sentencing hearing on Oct. 1.

Outside of court, Hum called the former girlfriend's statement "interesting," especially since Nino gave a statement to police about his activities that night and nothing he said mentioned her. She was also interviewed by police back then, but only said Nino's car didn't have an alarm (neighbors near the crime scene reported hearing a car alarm).

Meanwhile, on our last story about the trial, the user comments are quite heated - both from those who know the parties involved and those who don't.

Previously:

Tight security and tense emotions during Rolling Hills murder verdict

It's been nearly three years since a Torrance jury couldn't agree on what crime to convict Cameron Brown with. Now, the case is poised once again for trial - this time in a downtown Los Angeles courtroom.

Brown is charged with murder for the Nov. 8, 2000, death of his 4-year-old daughter, Lauren Sarene Key, who died after going over a 120-foot cliff in Rancho Palos Verdes. Prosecutors believe Brown, 48, threw the girl to avoid paying child support. He's also facing the special circumstance allegations of lying in wait and killing for financial gain. He is facing the possibility of life in prison without the possibility of parole.

Deputy District Attorney Craig Hum, who handled the first 2006 trial, said today that there will be some pretrial motions in the case's new home before Judge Michael Pastor on Thursday. Specifically, Pastor will decide if the jurors in the second trial, like those in the first, will take a field trip to Inspiration Point. Jury selection is expected to begin July 9. Trial should go through mid-September.

Our story on the first mistrial is after the jump.

Previously:

Question: Cameron Brown retrial?

Update: Cameron Brown RPV cliff-death case

Cameron Brown shank case dismissed