Los Angeles Times

In prison and seemingly unable to escape a destructive cycle that began when he was a child, Ahmed Bellozo spent hours watching investigative journalism shows, educational documentaries and Huell Howser’s homespun travelogue, “California’s Gold.” It was a way, he said, to distract from his pain.Years later, out of prison and …

Perhaps what I miss most is the mundanity of our lives in Altadena. An easy run around the block or to the trailhead on a Friday. Buying a pack of AAA batteries at Altadena Hardware. Participating in block parties our neighbors organize for Easter and Halloween. Meeting friends at Unincorporated …

When a massive fire erupted at one of the world’s largest lithium-ion battery storage facilities in Monterey County, it didn’t just send plumes of smoke over nearby communities — it cast a pall over the future of California’s clean energy industry.The fire at the Moss Landing Power Plant, which ignited …

Calmer winds and higher humidity helped firefighters make progress Saturday battling an unprecedented fire siege that has devastated the foothill community of Altadena and coastal enclave of Pacific Palisades — but officials warned that Santa Ana gusts will pick up again next week and cautioned the public to stay on …

A fire was burning out of control Tuesday in Pacific Palisades, destroying homes and forcing residents to abandon their vehicles and flee amid a potentially “life-threatening and destructive” windstorm.Wide swaths of Pacific Palisades, Topanga and Malibu were under an evacuation order by the afternoon, as residents fought traffic jams and …

Ben Schwartz is sitting in the green room at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre with his shoes off, looking relaxed. The writer-actor-director-improvisor comedian appears to be far more zen than a man who spent the last two weeks traveling between Brazil, London, Los Angeles and soon New York City promoting …

It was an ordinary day at his Los Angeles law office when John Nadolenco opened a letter from Brazil enlisting his help in a mission to retrieve a stolen, and quite possibly cursed, 836-pound emerald.The year was 2014, the heyday of the Nigerian prince email scam, and the up-and-coming attorney …

The ex-wife of a Woodland Hills doctor has been arrested along with four others in his execution-style slaying outside his medical practice this summer, according to police. Hamid Mirshojae was shot in the back of the head as he walked to his car after work on Aug. 23. The shooting …

Chef Karla Tatiana Vasquez has made a career out of highlighting the complexities of Central American cooking.“It’s a fusion cuisine because we have influences that tie us back to the Silk Road,” she said. “We use spices that did not originate from the Americas, but we also use tomatoes, chiles, …

Chef Karla Tatiana Vasquez has made a career out of highlighting the complexities of Central American cooking.“It’s a fusion cuisine because we have influences that tie us back to the Silk Road,” she said. “We use spices that did not originate from the Americas, but we also use tomatoes, chiles, …

Inmates at a recently closed, scandal-plagued Bay Area women’s prison dubbed “the rape club” have reached a historic settlement that will increase oversight and protections for about 500 inmates transferred out of that facility and into federal prisons across the U.S.In August 2023, eight inmates formerly housed at the Federal …

The year 2024 had us hugging our cookbooks. They brought us solace, nostalgia, inspiration, delight, reclamation, beauty and deliciousness when much of the rest of the world seemed to induce fear and uncertainty. Our list of favorites for 2024 includes something for every kind of food book lover. Recipes came …

A woman told Monterey police that Pete Hegseth, President-elect Donald Trump’s pick for Defense secretary, took her phone, blocked her from leaving his hotel room and sexually assaulted her, according to a newly released police report. The Monterey Police Department on Wednesday night released a 22-page report revealing graphic details …

Supporters of measure DD, which would allow noncitizen voting in local Santa Ana elections, say the defeat won’t deter them.

Two weeks ago, Brittanie Bibby, husband Kenneth and their 15-month-old baby moved from Arizona to Camarillo to live in the home she inherited from her father, maxing out their credit cards to turn the dilapidated property into a safe place to live. On Wednesday, that safe place burned to the …

More details about Liam Payne’s death emerge: Argentine officials have charged three suspects in connection with the pop star’s sudden demise.

Election night results were too close to call in the California Congressional District 45 contest between GOP Rep. Michelle Steel and Democratic challenger Derek Tran.

The last time Donald Trump was president, California led the liberal resistance to his agenda. Now it is poised to reprise the role.

Most Californians are voting early by mail or drop-off, a new poll found. Two in three California voters believe Trump would not accept defeat, while nearly the same number think Harris would.

Oil companies, prison guards, Uber and labor unions are spending big to influence which Democrat will be sent to the Legislature by voters.

Two major state programs to combat illegal cannabis recently sent out news releases lauding their collective seizures of some $544 million worth of illicit weed. But when it comes to reining in California’s sprawling black market, experts say it’s just a drop in the bucket.Those in the thick of the …

Former President Clinton attends events for Orange County Democrats Derek Tran and Dave Min, who are part of two races that could determine control of Congress.

California has stopped destroying records that contain key details about the state’s underground puppy market after a Times investigation found that some unscrupulous resellers import hundreds of dogs from the Midwest with little oversight.

In a tight Orange County congressional race, mailers sent by GOP Rep. Michelle Steel link Democrat Derek Tran to Mao Zedong and socialism, while Tran’s ads say Steel can’t be trusted to “stand up to China”

For the young and upwardly mobile hipsters of Northeast L.A., the Frogtown Flea Crawl was the hot new event of their perfectly Instagrammable dreams.For many residents of the historically working-class Latino community, it was their breaking point.This fall, the event became an unexpected flash point in L.A.’s debate over gentrification …

Measure TC on the Torrance ballot asks voters to approve a full-time salary for the mayor and City Council members, who are paid a small stipend.

Details about singer Liam Payne’s cause of death emerged less than a day after the One Direction alumnus died falling from a hotel balcony in Buenos Aires.

Michelle Chambers, who is running for California’s 35th Senate District in South L.A., said she took a plea deal because she could not afford a lawyer.