Los Angeles

LA County sues Pepsi, Coca-Cola over pollution caused by plastic bottles

Los Angeles County is taking on Pepsi and Coke for their role in plastic pollution. In a lawsuit filed Wednesday, the county alleged PepsiCo and Coca-Cola companies have misled the public about the recyclability of their plastic bottles and downplayed the negative environmental and health impacts of plastic disposal. "Coke and Pepsi need to stop the deception and take responsibility for the plastic pollution problems your products are causing," LA County supervisor Lindsey Horvath said in a statement. "Los Angeles County will continue to address the serious environmental impacts caused by companies engaging in misleading and unfair business practices." Coca-Cola owns brands like Dasani, Fanta, Sprite, Vitamin Water, and Smartwater, while PepsiCo owns Gatorade, Aquafina, Mountain Dew, and more. The two companies have been ranked as the world's top plastic polluters for five consecutive years, and Coca-Cola has taken the number one spot for six years, according to global environmental

India to open new consulates in Boston, Los Angeles: PM Modi in US visit

India will open two new consulates in Boston and Los Angeles, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Sunday, meeting the long-pending demand of the fast-growing Indian American community in these two large American cities. While Boston is considered as the education and pharma capital of the US, Los Angeles, home to Hollywood, is hosting the next summer Olympics and current US Ambassador to India Eric Garcetti is the city's former mayor. Friends last year, I had announced that our government had plans to open a new consulate in Seattle. It is now operational. I had asked for suggestions from you for two more consulates. I am happy to announce that after reviewing your suggestions, India has decided to open two new consulates in Boston and Los Angeles, Modi announced during his address to Indian Americans in New York's Nassau Veterans Coliseum. India currently has six consulates in New York, Atlanta, Chicago, Houston, San Francisco and Seattle. The Embassy is in Washington DC. The ...

Wildfires burn out of control in Southern California, 4,500 people affected

Apocalyptic-looking plumes of smoke filled skies east of Los Angeles on Tuesday as firefighters battled three major wildfires that erupted amid a blistering heat wave and threatened tens of thousands of homes and other structures. Evacuation orders were expanded Tuesday night as the fires grew and included parts of the popular ski town of Big Bear and the entire community of Wrightwood, with about 4,500 residents. Authorities implored people to leave their homes. "There is no property that is worth risking your life for," Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna said. In recent years wildfires have regularly burned in and around Wrightwood, a picturesque mountain town 60 miles (97 kilometers) east of Los Angeles known for its 1930s cabins. Authorities expressed frustration in 2016 when only half the residents heeded orders to leave. Janice Quick, the president of the Wrightwood Chamber of Commerce, said a friend texted to tell her that the friend's home had been consumed by fire, whi

Doc charged in Matthew Perry death case to appear in court after plea deal

One of two doctors charged in connection with Matthew Perry's death is set to appear Friday in a federal court in Los Angeles, where he is expected to plead guilty to conspiring to distribute the surgical anesthetic ketamine. Dr. Mark Chavez, 54, of San Diego, reached a plea agreement with prosecutors earlier this month and would be the third person to plead guilty in the aftermath of the Friends star's fatal overdose last year. Chavez agreed to cooperate with prosecutors as they pursue others, including the doctor Chavez worked with to sell ketamine to Perry. Also working with the U.S. Attorney's Office are Perry's assistant, who admitted to helping him obtain and inject ketamine, and a Perry acquaintance, who admitted to acting as a drug messenger and middleman. The three are helping prosecutors as they go after their main targets: Dr. Salvador Plasencia, charged with illegally selling ketamine to Perry in the month before his death, and Jasveen Sangha, a woman who authorities say

This American city found to be least desirable due to crimes, living cost

According to the Clever study, 73 per cent of Americans are content where they are, but 59 per cent feel dissatisfied, and 43 per cent admitted to feeling embarrassed by their state

At least 1 arrest made in connection to Matthew Perry's death: Reports

Authorities have arrested at least one person in connection with Matthew Perry's death from an accidental ketamine overdose last year, a law enforcement official tells The Associated Press. The official was not authorised to discuss details of the ongoing investigation and spoke to AP on condition of anonymity. Authorities have scheduled a news conference in Los Angeles to announce details in the case later Thursday morning. Los Angeles police said in May that they were working with the US Drug Enforcement Administration and the US Postal Inspection Service with a probe into why the 54-year-old had so much of the surgical anesthetic in his system. An assistant found Perry face down in his hot tub on October 28, and paramedics who were called immediately declared him dead. His autopsy, released in December, found that the amount of ketamine in his blood was in the range used for general anaesthesia during surgery. The decades-old drug has seen a huge surge in use in recent years as

4.4 magnitude quake felt in LA, San Diego; buildings sway, no big damage

A 4.4 magnitude earthquake was strongly felt from the Los Angeles area all the way to San Diego, swaying buildings, rattling dishes and setting off car alarms, but no major damage or injuries were immediately reported. Monday's quake was centred near the Los Angeles neighbourhood of Highland Park, about 6.5 miles (10.5 kilometres) northeast of Los Angeles' City Hall, and about 7.5 miles (12.1 kilometres) below the surface, the US Geological Survey said. The quake was felt from greater Los Angeles south to San Diego and east to the Palm Springs desert region, according to the USGS community reporting page. A small number of reports were filed from the southern San Joaquin Valley about 100 miles (160 kilometres) northwest of LA. It shook a medical building, a live interview on ESPN was interrupted, and the ground swayed in Anaheim, where Disneyland is located in Orange County. Dishes rattled in the storied LA neighbourhood of Laurel Canyon, home to many celebrities, and photos on soci

Los Angeles looks ahead for next Olympics, hopes to turn a profit

LA28 has an estimated budget of nearly $7 billion to cover costs including the opening and closing ceremonies

Harvey Weinstein's lawyers argue he was denied fair trial in LA rape case

Harvey Weinstein's lawyers argue in an appeal that he did not get a fair trial when he was convicted of rape and sexual assault in Los Angeles in 2022 and sentenced to 16 years in prison. The brief filed Friday with California's Second District Court of Appeal comes six weeks after his similar landmark #MeToo conviction and 23-year prison sentence in New York were overturned by the state's highest court. The California appeal argues the trial judge wrongly excluded evidence that the Italian model and actor he was convicted of raping had a sexual relationship with the director of a film festival that had brought both Weinstein and the woman to Los Angeles at the time of the alleged attack. Weinstein's lawyers argued that the judge deprived him of "his constitutional rights to present a defence and led to a miscarriage of justice. The attorneys say the judge was wrong to allow jurors to know about Weinstein's previous, now-vacated conviction in New York, and that the jury was unfairl

From London to LA, Iranians overseas cheer & fear, after president's death

Among Iranian communities from London to Los Angeles, few tears are being shed over the death of President Ebrahim Raisi, killed in a weekend helicopter crash. But there are not always loud cheers, either. While some hope the demise of a powerful figure in Iran's authoritarian Islamic government may bring change, others fear it could result in more repression. It's a better world without him, said Maryam Namazie, a UK-based women's rights campaigner. He is one of the pillars of the Islamic regime of Iran. He has been there since its inception. But, she added: Raisi, however much of a pillar he was, is expendable. There are many others to take his place. Inside Iran, authorities are keeping a tight lid on reaction to the crash that killed Raisi, Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian and six others. The government declared five days of mourning, encouraging people into the streets in displays of public grief and support. Prosecutors have warned Iranians against any public ...

15 suffer injuries in tram accident at LA's Universal Studios theme park

More than a dozen people suffered minor injuries when a tram used for tours crashed into a railing at Universal Studios Hollywood near Los Angeles, authorities and the company said. Los Angeles County Fire Department units responded shortly after 9 p.m. Saturday to the theme park in Universal City, about 10 miles (16 kilometers) northwest of downtown LA, the agency said in a social media post. A Universal Studios Hollywood spokesperson confirmed in an email to The Associated Press that there were multiple minor injuries but didn't provide details on the accident. The fire department said 15 people were transported to hospitals with minor injuries. Sheriff's Lt. Maria Abal said the four-car tram used for movie studio backlot tours might have experienced an issue with its brakes. The California Highway Patrol will lead the investigation, the fire department said. The tram circuit, called the World-Famous Studio Tour, offers a glimpse behind the scenes of Universal movies including

Thieves steal $30 mn in cash in one of the biggest heists in Los Angeles

Thieves got away with $30 million in cash from a money storage facility in Los Angeles by breaking into the building on Easter Sunday and cracking the safe. Now detectives are seeking to unravel the brazen cash heist, reportedly one of the largest on record in Los Angeles. Police Cmdr Elaine Morales told The Los Angeles Times, which broke the news of the crime, that the thieves were able to breach the building, as well as the safe where the money was stored. The operators of the business did not discover the massive theft until they opened the vault. Media reports identified the facility as a location of GardaWorld, a global cash management and security company, in Sylmar. The Canada-based company, which also operates fleets of armoured cars, did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The Associated Press. LAPD Officer David Cuellar, a department spokesperson, confirmed that officers received a call for service at 4:30 am Sunday at a business on the street where ...

United Airlines plane makes safe emergency landing in LA after losing tyre

A United Airlines jetliner bound for Japan made a safe landing in Los Angeles on Thursday after losing a tyre while taking off from San Francisco. Video shows the plane losing one of the six tyres on its left-side main landing gear assembly seconds after takeoff. The tyre landed in an employee parking lot at San Francisco International Airport, where it smashed into a car and shattered its back window before breaking through a fence and coming to stop in a neighbouring lot. No one was injured, airport spokesman Doug Yakel said in a statement. Fire engines stood by at Los Angeles International Airport but weren't needed, as the Boeing 777 made an uneventful landing and stopped about two-thirds of the way down a runway. Airport spokesman Dae Levine said the plane landed safely. It was then towed away. The flight carried 235 passengers and a crew of 14, United said. The airline said that the plane, built in 2002, was designed to land safely with missing or damaged tyres. The passenge

Billions awarded in Indian brothers' Los Angeles real estate court feud

The trial, over allegations that Haresh breached a long-standing partnership with his siblings, continues with a punitive damages hearing Monday that could add to the award

Elon Musk backs lawsuit against Walt Disney over 'Mandalorian' firing

Carano's lawsuit filed in federal court in Los Angeles claims Disney and Lucasfilm Ltd. violated California law in terminating her from the Star Wars spinoff in Feb 2021 due to her political views

Los Angeles sees more than 300 mudslides during storm, no deaths reported

One of the wettest storms in Southern California history began to ease up on Tuesday after bombarding Los Angeles with nearly half of its seasonal rainfall in just two days. Although the rain was tapering off, the threat of potentially deadly landslides persisted. The slow-moving storm that parked itself over the region on Monday and dumped a record amount of rain on sections of the nation's second-largest city could linger into Wednesday, the National Weather Service said. Scattered showers and possible thunderstorms were expected to bring light to moderate rain to the region, but some places could get brief yet fierce downpours that could dump up ton an inch (roughly 2.5 centimeters) of rain in an hour. Crews have responded to 307 mudslides and five buildings have been deemed uninhabitable since the atmospheric river-fuelled storm moved into the region over the weekend, Los Angeles Fire Chief Kristin Crowley said at a news conference on Tuesday. Despite the torrents of rain, ...

Record-setting storm dumps rain on LA, flash flood alerts still in effect

A storm of historic proportions dumped a record amount of rain over parts of Los Angeles on Monday, sending mud and boulders down hillsides dotted with multimillion-dollar homes while people living in homeless encampments in many parts of the city scrambled for safety. About 710,000 people statewide were without power Monday evening. The storm was the second one fueled by an atmospheric river to hit the state over the span of days. Virtually all of Southern California was under flash flood advisories and watches, including the Los Angeles area, where between 5 and 10 inches (12.7 to 25.4 centimeters) of rain had fallen and more was expected, according to the National Weather Service. At the downtown measuring station, 6.7 inches of rain had fallen by Monday afternoon, nearly half the yearly average of 14.25 inches. It was already the third-wettest two-day period since 1877, the service said. So far officials have attributed three deaths to the storm that first hit Northern Californ

Grammy Awards 2024: Shankar Mahadevan, Zakir Hussain win for best album

Grammy Awards 2024: The 66th Annual Grammy Awards 2024 are being held in Los Angeles

Los Angeles Times fires 20% employees, largest in its 142-year-old history

Paper's owner Dr Patrick Soon-Shiong, defended the move, saying the organisation first needed to make progress towards building higher readership to make up for the heavy financial losses

Critics Choice Awards 2024: Oppenheimer leads with 8 awards, Barbie wins 6

The prestigious Critics Choice Awards 2024 is happening in Los Angeles on Sunday (Monday in India) and the winners are being declared. Oppenheimer was the biggest winner at the Critics Choice Awards