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A 55-year-old Orange County man has been arrested for allegedly attempting to meet up with a teenager who turned out to be a cop. As reported by The Los Angeles Times, Huntington Beach police arrested the man during a sting. Officials say the man posted an advertisement soliciting sex on Craigslist and began sending explicit emails to someone whom he allegedly believed was a 13-year-old girl.

He was arrested when he traveled to a shopping center in the hopes of having sex with the minor, officials said. He faces felony charges for contacting a child with intent to commit a lewd act, meeting a minor with intent to engage in lewd contact, and attempting lewd acts upon a child under 14. He is a registered sex offender because he was previously convicted of possessing child pornography.

Attempting to meet up with a minor for sexual relations is a serious crime in California. According to California Penal Code 288.4, “Every person who, motivated by an unnatural or abnormal sexual interest in children, arranges a meeting with a minor or a person he or she believes to be a minor for the purpose of exposing his or her genitals or pubic or rectal area, having the child expose his or her genitals or pubic or rectal area, or engaging in lewd or lascivious behavior, shall be punished.”
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In 2006, Jessica’s Law went into effect in California preventing all registered sex offenders from living within 2,000 feet of schools or parks where children congregate. Since then, Orange County cities including Fullerton, Cypress and Seal Beach have passed ordinances that increase these types of restrictions. In Cypress, city ordinances prevent registered sex offenders from living within 2,000 feet of private schools and day care centers. It also prevents sex offenders from answering the door for trick-or-treaters on Halloween or from living in a single residence with another sex offender who is not a spouse or related by blood.

According to a news report in The Orange County Register, there are two lawsuits that have currently been filed against the city of Cypress because of these residency restrictions. A man who could legally return to his own home because of the new restrictions was the first to file a lawsuit against the city. He has been forced to either violate his parole condition and risk returning to prison or become homeless. A man who is not allowed to live with his fiancé because he was convicted of a sex offense in 1987 filed the second lawsuit.
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A former teacher at a Los Angeles elementary school will no longer have to wear a GPS monitor as he waits for his March hearing. According to an NBC Los Angeles news report, the man is one of two teachers who were arrested on allegations of child sex abuse at Miramonte Elementary School. After one teacher at the school was arrested in February of 2012 for lewd acts against 23 students, investigators carefully reviewed all allegations of abuse at the school. Within a week, a second teacher was arrested on suspicion of committing lewd acts with two children. Since the arrest, one of the accusers has recanted the accusation. The defendant claims that the touching was not sexual and his defense calls the case a “witch hunt.”

This case points out just how devastating allegations of lewd acts against a child can be to one’s career and reputation. It is common for the mere accusation of lewd behavior to result in a loss of employment, a tarnished reputation and restrictions on where you can live or work. It is common for suspects who are free on bail to have to wear a monitor to ensure that they do not go within 500 feet of a school, park or other location where children gather.
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Comedian and actor Katt Williams has followed up his recent spate of arrests by not appearing in court for an incident involving a police chase. On November 25, 2012 Williams led police on a chase through Sacramento while riding a three-wheeled motorcycle on the wrong side of the road. He was arrested on December 8, 2012 for that incident but was released after posting bail.

He was arrested again on December 28, 2012 for child endangerment after police found large quantities of illegal drugs and weapons in his home. All of his four children were taken away. According to a news report in The International Business Times, Williams was arrested the night of January 8, 2013 at his Los Angeles home for failing to appear in court in connection with the Sacramento incident. He is being held on $105,000 bail.
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Burbank police officers recently arrested a 69-year-old convicted sex offender for possessing images of underage girls in his car. According to The Los Angeles Times, police stopped the man for allegedly not wearing his seatbelt. During a search of his car, officers found clothing for young girls and 19 digital photos of underage girls involved in sex acts. He was being held in lieu of $380,000 bail.

California’s child pornography law is clearly defined in California Penal Code Section 311.3 (a): “A person is guilty of sexual exploitation of a child if he or she knowingly develops, duplicates, prints, or exchanges any representation of information, data, or image … that depicts a person under the age of 18 years engaged in an act of sexual conduct.” An individual who is convicted of a child pornography offense could face heavy fines, jail or prison time, and possible registration as a sex offender.
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LA Drunk Driving ArrestThe number of holiday drunk driving arrests was down for 2012 in Los Angeles County compared to 2011. According to a news report in The Glendora Patch, the 17-day anti-DUI campaign, which ended on New Year’s Day, yielded 2,168 arrests in Los Angeles County for driving under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs. Last year, during the same period, which was longer by two days, 2,433 arrests were reported. The driving under the influence (DUI) crackdown in Los Angeles County is by no means over. Law enforcement agencies are gearing up for Super Bowl Sunday in February, followed by St. Patrick’s Day in March and the summer.

Driving under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs is illegal under California Vehicle Code Section 23152 (a). During the holiday season, many police departments receive federal and state funding to combat the problem of drunk and impaired drivers. Agencies set up checkpoints and saturation patrols.
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A 56-year-old Culver City man has been sentenced to four years in state prison for watching child pornography on a library computer. According to a news report in The Santa Monica Mirror, the incident occurred at the library on Main Street in Santa Monica in October. Officials say that the man is a registered sex offender and that they observed him watching child pornography by assigning a plainclothes officer to the case. The man pleaded guilty and was sentenced this month.

Possession of child pornography is a serious offense in California. According to California Penal Code 311.11: “Every person who knowingly possesses or controls any matter, representation of information, data, or image that depicts a person under the age of 18 years personally engaging in or simulating sexual conduct is guilty of a felony.”

First-time sex offenders found in possession of child pornography will face felony charges in California punishable by imprisonment in a state prison for up to one year and a fine of $2,500. If the person who commits the violation has been previously convicted of child pornography possession, or is a registered sex offender, he or she will face felony charges punishable by imprisonment for two, four, or six years.
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During the “Avoid the 100 DUI Winter Campaign” of 2011, 2,406 arrests for DUI (driving under the influence) were made throughout Los Angeles County. This year, there will be a similar effort to crack down on drunk drivers. According to a news report in The Glendora Patch, between December 14, 2012 and January 1, 2013, there will be 72 DUI checkpoints, 153 local DUI saturation patrols, and 25 DUI warrant and probation sweeps in Los Angeles County. Additionally, the California Highway Patrol (CHP) will utilize all available officers during Christmas and New Year’s weekends.

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Motorists should be on the lookout for DUI checkpoints throughout Los Angeles County. On December 14, 2012 alone, there were DUI checkpoints in Claremont, Downey, El Segundo, Hollywood, City of Industry, Malibu, Redondo Beach, Huntington Park, and Pasadena. This is an indication of things to come in the next two weeks.
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A 29-year-old soap opera actor, and brother of “Captain America” star Chris Evans, has been arrested for allegedly trying to purchase drugs from an undercover officer. According to a news report in The Huffington Post, Scott Evans was arrested in Los Angeles. Officials say the up-and-coming actor was trying to purchase drugs from an undercover LAPD officer. There has been no mention of what types of drugs may have been involved in the arrest. He faces felony charges for attempting to possess a controlled substance.

Under California Health and Safety Code Section 11350, every person who possesses any controlled substance, which is classified in Schedule III, IV, or V which is a narcotic drug, “unless upon the written prescription of a physician, dentist, podiatrist, or veterinarian licensed to practice in this state, shall be punished by imprisonment.” Examples of drugs classified as controlled dangerous substances include: opiates, cocaine, heroin, peyote, hallucinogenic substances, GHB, and controlled prescriptions such as codeine and Vicodin.
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The Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) is currently enforcing a zero-tolerance policy regarding misconduct. According to a news report in The Huffington Post, this policy involves the creation of “teacher jail,” in which teachers are reassigned to office or administrative duty until their investigation concludes.

Officials say there are nearly 300 teachers who are currently collecting pay but are not being allowed to actually teach because of pending investigations. Many of these teachers were reportedly involved in alleged incidents as minor as tapping a student’s stomach or grabbing a student’s arm.

It is important to protect our children from dangerous sexual predators, but many have said that the current crackdown in LAUSD is nothing more than an unreasonable witch-hunt. It is not clear how many of the teachers who are currently not allowed to teach will face actual criminal charges.

The LAUSD’s actions were in response to two serious incidents that occurred this year. The first arrest involved a Miramonte Elementary School teacher who was accused of sexual misconduct against 23 students. Those allegations resulted in the removal of the entire school staff. A more recent incident involved a teacher at Telfair Elementary School who was arrested and sentenced to jail for molesting students.
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