Tour operator sentenced in HB hotel fire
A man who set fire to a car parked under a fully occupied Hermosa Beach hotel was sentenced to nearly a year in jail and probation on Friday. Derek Padraig O'Donnell, 37, of North Hollywood previously pleaded no contest in Torrance Superior Court to one arson charge, according to a court clerk. He was sentenced to time served and three years probation, but will return to court April 8 for a restitution hearing.
After the July 6 pre-dawn blaze under the Quality Inn at 901 Aviation Blvd., investigators estimated the damage at about $60,000. O'Donnell, an aspiring comedian and actor who leads tours of move stars' home, was staying at the hotel with two friends. He is seen on surveillance video standing next to rented 2008 Jeep Commander just before he sets it on fire, fire investigators said.
About the Blogger
Larry Altman has covered crime in the South Bay since 1990. He's seen it all - the missing model who turned up dead in the desert, the wives found dead in trunks, the high-school coaches who get a little too close to their players. He drives his young colleagues nuts with his "I remember when" stories. He welcomes your tips and observations about the present, and you can mix in a little Lakers basketball talk if you like.
E-mail Larry at larry.altman@dailybreeze.com.
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About the Blogger
Denise Nix knew as young as grade school, when she spent every summer working on the camp newspaper, that she wanted to be a journalist. Denise has spent most of the last 12 years of her career in the courtroom. She joined the Daily Breeze in 2001, where she tracks and reports on hundreds of cases at every level of the justice system. And she's never, ever, seen a judge use a gavel.
E-mail Denise at denise.nix@dailybreeze.com.
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