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Is a young Spaniard L.A.'s most prolific home burglar? Should there be laxer rules for building downtown? Did Greece win in getting back an ancient wreath from the Getty? Those answers and more in the stories linked in today's Buzz. Click to enter.
News
One-man crime spree
Spaniard Roberto Caveda, if that's his real name, looted up to $15 million in jewelry, guns and artwork from dozens of Los Angeles homes and may hold the title of most prolific L.A. burglar. He faces trial in Van Nuys but authorities aren't even sure where he lived . DN
Planning breaks for downtown
The city is contemplating a changes to let downtown residential developers out of citywide limits on size and density, and requirements for affordable units, to encourage even more building. Included would be the freedom to build and sell tiny apartment units of perhaps 250 square feet. LAT, Op-Ed piece
NYT: Steve Barr a 'maverick'
In today's New York Times:
In just seven years, Mr. Barr’s Green Dot Public Schools organization has founded 10 charter high schools and has won approval to open 10 more. Now, in his most aggressive challenge to the public school system, he is fighting to seize control of Locke Senior High, a gang-ridden school in Watts known as one of the city’s worst....In the process, Mr. Barr has fomented a teachers revolt against the Los Angeles Unified School District. He has driven a wedge through the city’s teachers union by welcoming organized labor — in contrast to other charter operators — and signing a contract with an upstart union. And he has mobilized thousands of black and Hispanic parents to demand better schools.
Inspectors at King-Harbor
Federal surveyors arrived unannounced to inspect the troubled medical center in the Willowbrook area, Results of the examination could force its closure. LAT
UCLA researcher faked studies
James David Lieber, staff research associate at the Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, "knowingly and intentionally falsified and fabricated" interviews, urine samples and urine sample records in a study about female opiate addicts and methadone, says the Federal Register. LAT
Chick won't run in 5th district
Controller Laura Chick won't join Rick Tuttle in the race to succeed Jack Weiss on the City Council. LAT
New publisher likely in Santa Clarita
Jay Harn to take over the Signal. SCVTalk
Noted
Lobdell chat on LAT
Reporter William Lobdell chats live at 1 pm on LATimes.com about his weekend first-person story about being a religion writer.
Reporter in Athens
Sharon Waxman visits the ancient gold wreath that the Getty returned to Greece last year. Blog and photo
The paperless magazine
Lindsay Morris is senior editor of L.A.-based VIVmag, "an exclusively digital, interactive women's lifestyle magazine. Each issue arrives as a self-contained file of hundreds of editorial and ad pages. You can flip through, bookmark stories, make annotations and highlight text -- just like any other magazine on your physical newsstand, only minus the paper." Chicago Tribune
Debating gossip
The Times lets blogger Luke Ford and KTLA reporter Eric Spillman debate journalism ethics and credibility all week on the paper's opinion website.
Hilton item was old
The Nicky Hilton real estate item that the Times was so proud of had been reported elsewhere more than two weeks earlier.
Another new hire at HuffPost
Blogger Nico Pitney joins the Huffington Post as a political editor in the site's new Washington, D.C. office.
No thanks
The San Gabriel Valley anony-blogger(s?) who calls himself (themselves?) Publius tries to draw me into a public dialogue about anonymity by claiming some higher principle to masking his (their?) identity(ies?) — evading the personal accountability that most political bloggers and journalists face every day and hiding whatever conflicts of interest, biases and financial or political motives might lie behind his (their?) blind accusations against city officials.
Soboroff at the debate
Jacob Soboroff live-blogged the CNN-YouTube debate for WhyTuesday.
Laszlo Kovacs, 74
The cinematographer on Easy Rider, Five Easy Pieces and Ghostbusters died Saturday in his sleep in Beverly Hills. Variety, LAT
