California Dolphin

Representatives of the UCLA Academic Senate have voted against censuring or making a “no confidence” statement against UCLA Chancellor Gene Block, rejecting a call to issue a formal disapproval of his leadership amid criticism over the university’s response to a violent mob attack at pro-Palestinian campus encampment more than two weeks ago. On a “no confidence” resolution, 79 faculty members approved, 103 opposed, five abstained, and seven members were present but did not vote, with only 43% of voters voting against UCLA’s top leader. On censure, 88 faculty members approved, 88 opposed three abstained and 15 were present but did not vote. Since the vote was split 50% for and against censure, it did not pass as it needed a majority to succeed. “This shows that many faculty support Chancellor Block and they understand that he was adhering to UC policy,” said a source who was not authorized to speak publicly. “People are realizing that Chancellor Block was put in an impossible situation.” The decision by the academic senate, even if the motions passed, would have been a largely symbolic vote with no legal authority

After discussions held over the course of a week, the UCLA Academic Senate ultimately rejected a pair of resolutions to formally censure and declare no confidence in university Chancellor Gene Block over the handling of a pro-Palestinian encampment and its ultimate dismantling by police. According to the Los Angeles Times, the no-confidence resolution failed on a tally of 79 yes votes, 103 no votes and five abstentions. The censure resolution failed on an 88-88 vote, with three abstentions, the paper reported. A source familiar with the situation told the paper, “This shows that many faculty support Chancellor Block and they understand that he was adhering to UC policy. People are realizing that Chancellor Block was put in an impossible situation.” The resolutions were initially considered by the Academic Senate last week, but no decisions were made, with the issue carrying over to this week. The Senate met again Thursday. The resolutions had contended that Block “failed to ensure the safety of our students and grievously mishandled the events” surrounding an attack on the encampment by counter-protesters and its dismantling by police the following night. The

Two Los Angeles City Council members Friday introduced a motion seeking to update the city charter to require a special election take place any time a seat is vacant with 12 months or more remaining on the term. Councilwomen Monica Rodriguez’s motion, seconded by Imelda Padilla, will be considered by the Ad Hoc Committee on Government Reform and the Rules, Elections, Intergovernmental Relations Committee for further consideration. The councilwomen hope to better define the amount of time a council district could be without an elected official of their choice. Under the charter, there’s a section that outlines the procedures for filling vacancies in the offices of the mayor, city attorney, controller and City Council. It states that the City Council may fill a vacancy by appointing a person to the office for the remaining part of the unexpired term or call for a special election to fill the seat. Special elections can cost millions of dollars and can take up nearly nine months to complete, often prompting city officials to appoint a caretaker of a district left vacant by an elected official. According to the

The Los Angeles Public Health Department is looking into a recent Hepatitis A case traced to a local grocery store. Officials say an employee at a Beverly Hills Whole Foods, located at 239 North Crescent Drive, tested positive for the virus. The employee worked at the seafood counter, prompting Public Health to recommend that anyone who purchased products from the seafood counter section of the store between April 20 and May 13 to receive hepatitis A vaccine if they are not already immune. This is the second time in recent days that L.A. County officials are warning the public about Hepatitis A. Public Health says multiple unhoused individuals tested positive for the virus since mid-March. Hepatitis A impacts the liver and is spread from person to person, many of whom don’t know that they have the virus. Medical officials can only diagnose the infection through a person’s blood or stool. Although the current risk to the public is low, Public Health recommends residents take the following actions to help prevent the spread of disease: Check if you have been vaccinated for hepatitis A. If you haven’t, contact

The New Orleans-based filmmaking brothers Bill and Turner Ross have made a name for themselves over the past 15 years with their lyrical, poetic documentaries. But with 2020’s “Bloody Nose, Empty Pockets,” they blurred the line between fiction and nonfiction, setting up an imaginary scenario in an actual dive bar on its last night of business, observing a curated group of regulars as they shut it down for good. The new “Gasoline Rainbow” is their first official narrative feature, informed by their documentary roots and eye for capturing spontaneous beauty. During the Covid-19 quarantine of 2020, Bill and Turner Ross dreamed up a wild road film, which they loosely scripted and cast with five young first-time actors from Oregon. They play a group of friends from a small town called Wiley, who hit the road with the only things you need for an adventure: a dream, a posse, a van and the abiding belief that “anywhere’s better than here.” The dream is to see the Oregon coast, 513 miles from their landlocked town. The posse is three boys — Makai Garza, Micah Bunch and Tony

Hall & Oates are officially “Out of Touch.” John Oates, half of the legendary duo responsible for hits including “You Make My Dreams Come True” and “Rich Girl,” has spoken publicly for the first time regarding the pair’s recent legal disputes. The two haven’t worked together creatively in almost 20 years: Their last full studio album together was 2003’s “Do It for Love,” followed by a 2006 Christmas album that contained only two original songs. Their legal troubles began in November 2023 when Hall filed suit against Oates over the latter’s plan to sell his share of their company Whole Oats Enterprises. Hall argued that the sale would violate their business agreement, and he also requested a restraining order against Oates. Oates said he was just frustrated by what he characterized as the company’s complex legal issues and found the company wasn’t making him happy, so he decided to bow out. “I said, ‘You know what? Daryl has always wanted to be his own man. I’m gonna give him the opportunity to do that. If I sell my half, he can do what he wants,’”

Representatives of the UCLA academic senate have voted against censuring or making a “no confidence” statement against UCLA Chancellor Gene Block, rejecting a call to issue a formal disapproval of his leadership amid criticism over the university’s response to a violent mob attack at pro-Palestinian campus encampment more than two weeks ago. On a “no confidence” resolution, 79 faculty members approved, 103 opposed, five abstained, and seven members were present but did not vote, with only 43% of voters voting against UCLA’s top leader. On censure, 88 faculty members approved, 88 opposed three abstained and 15 were present but did not vote. Since the vote was split 50% for and against censure, it did not pass as it needed a majority to succeed. “This shows that many faculty support Chancellor Block and they understand that he was adhering to UC policy,” said a source who was not authorized to speak publicly. “People are realizing that Chancellor Block was put in an impossible situation.” The decision by the academic senate, even if the motions passed, would have been a largely symbolic vote with no legal authority

DNA analysis has helped identify a woman whose body was found at the bottom of a cliff in the Bay Area nearly 60 years ago, authorities said. The woman’s decomposed remains were found Feb. 3, 1967, at the base of a cliff on Highway 1, near Jenner, about 80 miles north of San Francisco, according to a Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office news release. Multiple fractures to her skull and ribs were determined to be the cause of death, but it was unknown how she sustained those injuries. Efforts to identify her were unsuccessful. She was eventually listed as Jane Doe and laid to rest at the County of Sonoma Cemetery shortly afterward, authorities said. DNA analysis has helped identify a woman whose body was found at the bottom of a Bay Area cliff nearly 60 years ago as Lillian Marie Cardenas, who was born in 1928 and last lived in San Francisco. (Sonoma County Sheriff’s Department) In 2009, the woman’s body was exhumed with the help of anthropology professor Mark Griffin of San Francisco State University, authorities said. Her death was then determined to be

A man from Ojai has been sentenced to 18 years in federal prison for the 2019 slaying of his friend. Authorities say 28-year-old Cameron Scott Lykins killed Houston Auer on May 12, 2019, at Auer’s grandmother’s home on the 1100 block of Meyer Road in Ojai. Lykins and Auer got into an altercation in a bedroom of the home, which led to Lykins using a sledgehammer to bludgeon Auer to death. Following the killing, Lykins dragged Auer’s body out of a window and dumped the victim’s remains in the Angeles National Forest. Lykins then went to his mother’s home in Lone Pine, where he arranged to contact authorities and admit to the crime. Ventura County Sheriff’s Department deputies arrested Lykins a day later and he was charged with Auer’s murder. The victim’s body was located in the Angeles National Forest by a warden with the Department of Fish and Wildlife more than a month later on June 23, 2019. A Nissan Frontier that investigators believe was used to transport a homicide victim’s body is seen in photos released May 14, 2019, by the Ventura County

Home prices in California reached a new record high in April as sales activity increased despite the state’s seemingly insurmountable housing shortage. The median price of a single-family home climbed to $904,210 last month, nearly 6% higher than March and 11% above April 2023, according to data released on Friday by the California Association of Realtors. Home sales also increased month over month and year over year by low single-digits. “Both sales and prices are going up despite all the speed bumps that we’ve had along the way with the Federal Reserve and rates going up, which is hurting purchasing power,” said Jordan Levine, the association’s chief economist. On Friday, the average fixed-rate, 30-year mortgage was 7.02%, roughly three-quarters lower than October 2023 but still significantly above the historic lows of two to three percent seen during the COVID-19 pandemic. Region/County April 2024 March 2024 April 2023 Month-over-month price change % Year-over-year price change % Statewide $904,210 $854,490 $811,510 5.8% 11.4% Condo/Townhomes $688,000 $675,000 $634,000 1.9% 8.5% Los Angeles Metropolitan Area $840,000 $801,000 $740,000 4.9% 13.5% Central Coast $1,077,500 $950,000 $1,020,000 13.4% 5.6% Central Valley

Authorities are searching for a suspect after a man was found shot to death in South Los Angeles. The victim was identified as Jesus Fabian Castillo, 31, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.  On April 24, authorities responded to the intersection of 91st Street and Compton Avenue at around 1:52 a.m. Arriving deputies found Castillo’s body lying on the road with fatal gunshot wounds.  No suspects or weapons were found in the area, said LASD. The motive behind Castillo’s murder remains unclear.  Detectives are asking for the public’s help as the suspect remains at large. Jesus Fabian Castillo, 31, is seen in a photo from the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. Anyone with information on the case is urged to call LASD’s Homicide Bureau at 323-890-5500 with any information regarding this case. Anonymous tips can be provided to L.A. Regional Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 or online at lacrimestoppers.org.