Juvenile uncle arrested in niece's 'negligent' death; Prisoner cap for Cali?; Bell Gardens' politico under the legal microscope

Teen uncle arrested in baby niece's death
A 17-year-old boy has been arrested on murder charges when the pellet rifle he was holding went off, striking his 2-month-old niece. That's right, a pellet rifle. The baby died hours later. We'll see if the murder charges stick in this one.
See infant dies in shooting at LAPD blog

California court considering a cap on maximum number of inmates in prison
Arguing that overcrowded prison conditions have long been ignored, a group of lawyers are asking a California court to invoke a federal law that could release thousands of prisoners in the state.

Mahoning County got one. So did the District of Columbia. Today, the California prison system finds itself in line to get slapped with an inmate population cap under a hardly used federal legal process that has been on the books for 11 years.
From the Sacramento Bee

Bell Gardens Councilman under legal scrutiny again
IN March, Bell Gardens City Councilman Mario Beltran was found guilty of filing a false police report to allegedly hide what prosecutors' characterized as an embarrassing boys night out . On Wednesday, Beltran's home and office were raided by LAPD officers with assistance from the FBI over possible criminal threats and eavesdropping, according to an LA Weekly story. In the article, Beltran's attorney, who is appealing the earlier conviction, questions the timing of the search warrant.
LA Weekly story here