Photo: FLLewis/A Writer’s Groove

A human rights issue in China stirred up the Burbank City Council meeting last night. I was there for the first public comments section and heard some passionate supporters of the Chinese health and spiritual movement Falun Gong speak out. They attempted to bear witness to the persecution of the practice by China, which considers Falun Gong a cult.

During a 10 year crackdown, thousands of Falun Gong devotees reportedly have been killed, tortured or thrown into jails or labor camps. One of the speakers, Yi-Yuan Chang, claims Falun Gong is practiced in more than 100 countries, including the U.S. — and specifically in Van Nuys.

What the speakers hoped to do was drum up support for the Falun Gong victims in China and backing for the U.S. House of Representatives House Resolution 605 which recognizes the persecution and calls for an end to the campaign. Instead, they were reminded by Mayor Gary Bric several times that the focus of public comments should be Burbank City business. While they got a sympathetic response from Vice-Mayor Anja Reinke, Councilman Dave Golonski insisted their cause was outside the parameters of Burbank city business.

Meanwhile, the city council reacted more positively to a group of South Victory Boulevard merchants. The council members offered words of encouragement to the merchants who returned for a second week to complain about the loss of curbside parking and the damaging effect that is having on their businesses. Again, Burbank Traffic Engineer Ken Johnson agreed to meet with the business owners to try to come up with a solution.

 What most of the merchants want is for the South Victory and West Alameda Avenue intersection to be changed back to the way it was, something city officials seems reluctant to do at this point. Apparently the traffic changes, including a second turn lane, were the result of a 1997 agreement, which was not revisited before being implemented.

Also, activist Mike Nolan appeared before the city council again and requested new information on the police department:”How many police personnel are on administrative leave?” Nolan wanted to know how much money the city is shelling out for those leaves. Later, Senior Assistant City Attorney Terry Stevenson would say only statistics could be released to Nolan. That means no names of officers.

Oh, there’s another development in that controversial case of those so-called leaked personnel files and documents of former Burbank Police Detective Chris Dunn. Yesterday Dunn’s attorney announced in a press release the filing of a lawsuit against the city. Jim Carlile broke the story on his blog.

The lawyer’s press release says Dunn has “…  filed a detailed complaint today against the City of Burbank seeking damages and injunctive relief after the city deliberately and illegally provided his confidential personnel file to a local newspaper. ”

“The complaint discloses that the City provided Christopher Cadelago of the Burbank Leader newspaper and other members of the media and the general public confidential documents from Dunn’s official personnel file in direct violation of specific provisions of California’s constitutional privacy protections, several state laws and numerous judicial orders.”  Check out more of the press release on Carlile’s blog.

 Also, over on The Burbank Leader’s new blog, Following the Leader, Burbank City Attorney Dennis Barlow answers some questions about the confidentiality of police officers’ personnel files. Interesting reading, but I don’t think Barlow’s answers really explain the actions of the City Attorney’s Office in regards to the Dunn lawsuit.  

Photo: Dr. Conrad Murray/Las Vegas Sun

Doctor Conrad Murray continues to be the focus of a criminal investigation into the death of the late pop superstar Michael Jackson. Yesterday, a team of Federal DEA Agents, Las Vegas Police, and LAPD Detectives swooped down on Dr. Murray’s Las Vegas medical office and home. During the raids, investigators reportedly carted off boxes of documents, medical records, cellphones, and other materials.

Earlier in the week, investigators searched the cardiologist’s Houston office as well. There are reports, authorities are looking for evidence that Murray may have injected Jackson with the powerful sedative propofol shortly before his death last month. Also, the Los Angeles Times reports, officers were looking for records that the entertainer may have been prescribed drugs under “…19 potential aliases.”

Everette “E” Lynn Harris (June 20, 1955 – July 23, 2009)

Over the weekend, a number of tributes and obituaries for the late writer E. Lynn Harris, a pioneer in popular black fiction.

 Last week during a book tour for his latest novel, “Basketball Jones,” the bestselling author became ill at a Beverly Hills hotel. Harris died last Thursday night, July 23, at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, according to the Los Angeles Times.

Harris self-published his first novel, “Invisible Life” and sold it out of the trunk of car, until he got a deal with big time publisher Doubleday in 1994. Harris created rich plots about the glamorous and complex lives of African-American professionals, both straight and gay. Harris is credited with being one of the first writers of mainstream fiction to portray male black characters living on the “down low,” in relationships with women, but secretively dating men.

Nine of Harris’ novels have hit the New York Times bestseller list, including “Just as I am: A Novel” (1994), “And This Too Shall Pass” (1996), “If This World Were Mine” (1997), and “I Say A Little Prayer” (2006). More than four million of Harris’ books are in print.

Harris was 54. So far, the cause of death has not been released.

Family films continue on a hot streak at the Box Office. This weekend, the animated 3D ”G-Force” debuted as the number one flick in the nation with an estimated take of $32 million. The cast of voices of this guinea pigs comedy include Nicholas Cage and Penelope Cruz.

Last week’s top flick “Harry Potter and The Half-Blood Prince” dropped to second place with an estimated $30 million. Still,  the two week run by the latest Harry Potter movie has raked in more than $200 million in the U.S. alone.  A new romantic comedy, “The Ugly Truth” grabbed third with around $27 million. “The Ugly Truth” stars Katherine Heigl and Gerard Butler. Some reviewers slammed this romantic tale for being too predictable. Apparently, moviegoers ignored those lukewarm reviews.

Another new movie, “Orphan,” a horror/thriller about a 9-year-old bad seed, scared up about $12.7 million for fourth, and rounding out the top five, the 3D animation “Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs” with $8.2 million.                

Photo: Los Angeles Dodgers

Dodger slugger Manny Ramirez heads for home after hitting an amazing grand slam into the Dodger Stadium seats last night. And the home crowd went wild!

 Ramirez was not in the line up because of a bruised left hand. He was called in to pinch-hit for pitcher Chad Billingsley. Manny helped power the Dodgers to a 6-2 win over the Cincinnati Reds.

This is Ramirez’s 21st grand slam, which ranks him second to the legendary Lou Gehrig who holds the record with 23. Also, Ramirez now has the first pinch-hit homer of his career. Oh yeah, Manny’s back!

Photo:FLLewis/A Writer’s Groove

At Burbank City Council meetings most of the face time goes to the council members and the staff. They’re the ones who are supposed to be handling city business, therefore, they get to do a lot of the talking. Still, I get a kick out of the public comment segments where we get a chance to hear what’s bugging some of the citizens of Burbank.

At last Tuesday’s city council meeting, Mayor Gary Bric called up more than 15 people to the podium to speak for five minutes or less on city business during the first public comment period.  A young group of male BMX bike riders asked the council to allow them to take their favorite set of wheels to the city’s skate park. One skater spoke out against the arrangement saying BMX bikes would damage the park and might cause accidents with skaters. Later the city council (minus Vice- Mayor Anja Reinke who is on vacation) would vote four-zip in support of Option One, which would expand the the skate park by 1,400 square feet and allow for BMX bikes. The council members requested staff come back with some ways to fund the project.

Also, some business owners spoke out about how their street curb parking on South Victory Boulevard near West Alameda Avenue vanished with very little notification recently. The shop owners of GH Shower Doors, Burbank House of Hobbies, and Dav-Tech were among those complaining about being blindsided. The reason behind the red-lining of that section of Victory Boulevard was due to traffic lane changes at the intersection, which included a new left turn lane onto West Alameda.

Burbank City Traffic Engineer Ken Johnson admitted his department had “dropped the ball” by not giving the business owners adequate notice about the street parking change: “I do apologize to the property owners.” Also, the shop owners got quite a bit of sympathy and promises to try to help ease some of their parking headaches from councilmen Dave Golonski, David Gordon, and Mayor Gary Bric.  

A number of the regulars took to the mic as well Tuesday night, most notably Esther Espinoza and Mike Nolan. Mrs. Espinoza made a heartbreaking emotional plea for help from the city and surprisingly, got no response from the city council. Oh, a staff member did offer Mrs. Espinoza some tissues to wipe her tears. Sure, her family issues may not be city related, but someone on staff should be able to help this Burbank resident get the aid she needs through the right agency. The city should really forget past grudges, step up and show some compassion in the case of Espinoza family.

As for Mike Nolan, the Burbank City Attorney’s office provided him with a list of 10 law firms, which have billed the city for police-related matters since 2004. Nolan had been asking for this type of information for weeks. The bottom line cost, $524, 005.35. Yes, a cool half-million bucks. Copies of the list were available to the public at the city council meeting.

Nolan pressed the city to reveal to the public what the reasons are behind those legal costs.  Nolan said it’s  ”…time to tell us what’s wrong…” in the police department. Many others agree with him, still we’ll have to wait and see if the City Attorney’s Office provides any background data on the list.

 Also, Nolan held up a document he said was from former Burbank Police Detective Chris Dunn’s personnel file and that it had been leaked to a local newspaper. Nolan asked, “How did that happen?” Nolan pushed even harder for answers during the second public comment section at the end of the city council meeting, but he didn’t get very far in his quest.

Now, Chris Dunn and his attorney, Solomon E. Gresen, have taken up the issue of those suspected leaked documents. Yesterday, Dunn filed a claim for damages against the city of Burbank. The claim alleges: “On or about July 16, 2009, Claimant Christopher Lee Dunn’s private personnel file and documents contained in that file were disclosed to Christopher Canelago of the Burbank Leader and other members of the press and general public.”

The claim goes on to say that “… the public employee or employees causing his injury, damage or loss include, without limitation, Dennis A. Barlow and Carol A. Humiston of the Burbank City Attorney’s Office, among others.”

You might remember that on July 16, Dunn became the sixth former or current Burbank Police Office to file a discrimination lawsuit against the city. On Jim Carlile’s blog there’s a press release from Dunn’s law firm with more on both legal actions.

Movie audiences can’t seem to get enough of those Harry Potter flicks. The latest, “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince” debuted at the top of the Box Office this weekend with a spectacular opening estimated to be at least $79 million. Since it hit movie screens on Wednesday, this sixth film in bestselling author J.K. Rowling’s fantasy-adventure series has earned somewhere around $159.7 million nationwide. The cast is led by Daniel Radcliffe who plays the young wizard, Harry Potter.

In second place, the animated 3D film, “Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs” pulled in about $17.7 million, followed by the sci-fi action picture, “Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen” with $13.8 million. Last week’s number one movie,  the R-rated comedy “Bruno,” took a steep slide to third managing only $8.4 million for the weekend.

Not far behind in fourth , another comedy, “The Hangover” with $8.32 million and in fifth, the romantic comedy, “The Proposal” rounds out the top five with $8.3 million.

Photo courtesy: Arizona State University

The gold standard of broadcast journalism Walter Cronkite died yesterday after a long illness. He was 92. For nearly 20 years, Cronkite was the anchorman of the “CBS Evening News.”  His trusting manner and steady demeanor earned him the respect of his colleagues and the public. Years after retiring, Cronkite was still considered the most trusted man in America.  

On the Los Angeles Times website, a nice article about Cronkite’s distinguished career.

Photo: FLLewis/A Writer’s Groove

The Burbank Police Commission’s July meeting yesterday at the Burbank Police and Fire Headquarters was very difference from the previous month. In June, the commission voted to adjourn before conducting any real business because of a cloud of uncertainty hanging over newly appointed commissioner, John Brady.

In a controversial move, the Burbank City Council voted to remove Brady from the police commission citing his probation for  a DUI as the reason. Nevertheless, the human rights activist showed up at yesterday’s commission meeting and sat with a small group of local citizens.

This time around, a written agenda was handed out to the public and those wanting to speak to the commission were given the chance during oral communications. Oddly, the June commission meeting did not have oral communications, even though the printed copies of the minutes of that meeting stated otherwise. Burbank resident David Piroli pointed this out to the commission, which acknowledged the error and said it would be corrected. The written minutes are the only official records of the police commission meetings.

The commissioners may have been a bit apprehensive when Brady stepped up to speak for five minutes. Brady soon put them at ease. There was no rancor or anger from him. Brady spoke politely about the importance of the commissioners handling their duties responsibly, “…power should not be taken lightly  …” and then, wished the commission well. Burbank resident Ester Espinoza used her five minutes before the commission to lay out some of the long running complaints she has about what she believes is  mistreatment of her family by the Burbank police.

The most hard hitting speaker was long time resident Mike Nolan who began by admitting, “I’m really pissed off.” Nolan proceeded to explain he has been asking a series of questions at Burbank City Council meetings for weeks and so far has not received any answers. Nolan’s questions pertain to the alleged lawsuits and investigations swirling around the city. For the commission, Nolan laid out the questions again, which included: “How many lawyers have been hired” to deal with the investigations? “How many law firms?” “When did you hear about the cowboys or cowgirls?”

Burbank Police Chief Tim Stehr responded by saying, “…not to my knowledge —not to my staff knowledge…” to Nolan’s question about a subversive group in his department. Both Chief Stehr and Burbank City Attorney’s Juli Scott attempted to assure Nolan that the information he requested was being gathered. Attorney Scott told Nolan he would probably get the information “… before next Tuesday’s” meeting of the city council.

Next, the commission elected new officers. Only five of seven commissioners were present: Robert Frutos, Hagop Hergelian, Claudia Bonis, Elise Stearns-Niesen, and James Etter. The Burbank City council has not appointed a replacement for Brady. Nathan Rubinfeld was absent, however, that did not stop his fellow commissioners from electing him vice-chairman. An odd decision, since Rubinfeld was not there to either accept nor reject the nomination for office. Also, Stearns-Niesen was elected secretary and Frutos chairman.

It appears the police commission and the police department have heard public concerns about the effectiveness of this board. There was quite a bit of discussion about the duties of the commission and how to stay connected with Burbank residents. Attorney Scott handed out memos on meeting procedures and an overview of the California Brown Act, which requires local government bodies, boards, and commissions to hold open public meetings. Also, Stearns-Niesen introduced a motion to request the city council to change the commission’s quarterly meetings to monthly. That motion passed four-to-one with only Bonis voting against it.

Also, Chief Stehr and members of his staff gave reports on crime statistics, budget, and recent activities in the police department. The most disheartening was an update on the Kitty Pants caper. Stehr reported that the latest efforts to get the adoptive family to give Kitty Pants back to its original owners, Amy and Jim Roach, have failed. So it looks like Kitty Pants will not be coming home any time soon.

Photo: Jason Reed/Reuters

More hard hitting questions today for U.S. Supreme Court nominee, Judge Sonia Sotomayor. The Senate Judiciary Committee confirmation hearings for the New York federal appeals judge kicked off yesterday.  At the hearing, senators have called upon Sotomayor to express her views on a number of controversial issues, including abortion, gun rights, and race.

Today, Sotomayor was quizzed on a statement made in a 2001 speech, in which she said “a wise Latina” might make a better legal decision than a white male. Sotomayor explained she was trying to be encouraging to Hispanics and women when she made that remark. Some Republicans have leaped on the comment as racist. “I do not believe that any ethnic, racial or gender group has an advantage in sound judgment,” Sotomayor explained.

This morning, President Obama sent out a glowing e-mail about Sotomayor and her appearance before the senate committee: “In Judge Sotomayor, our nation will have a Justice who will never forget her humble beginnings, will always apply the rule of law, and will be a protector of the Constitution that made her American dream and the dreams of millions of others possible. As she said so clearly yesterday, Judge Sotomayor’s decisions on the bench ‘have been made not to serve the interests of any one litigant, but always to serve the larger interest of impartial justice.’ ”

If confirmed, Sotomayor would become the U.S. Supreme Court’s first Hispanic and only its third female justice. 

Moviegoers were up for outrageous comedy this weekend, and the new film, “Bruno,” delivered.  “Bruno” laughed its way to an estimated $30.4 million opening to capture the title of the number one movie in the nation. ”Bruno” is an R-rated comedy about a gay Austrian fashion journalist, played by Sacha Baron Cohen, who comes to America determined to become a superstar. 

Once again, “Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs” held onto second place, this time raking in around $28.5 million. Last week’s number one flick, “Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen” took a fall to third with $24.2 million.

The drama, “Public Enemies” came in fourth with $14.1 million, and rounding out the top five, the romantic comedy “The Proposal” with $10.5 million.

Photo: FLLewis/A Writer’s Groove

UPDATE: Daily minimum staffing for Burbank firefighters will be reduced from a high of 38 last year to 36 on Monday, July 13. This will not result in any layoffs.

Times are tough. The city of Burbank is tightening its financial belt. I understand all of that, still it doesn’t seem smart to cutback the fire department in the heat of a dry summer. Yet, that is just what’s happening in Burbank.

As part of a city council mandated reduction of 5 percent for every department, two firefighters will be let go on Monday, according to a story on The Burbank Leader website today. The cutback reportedly reduces the fire crew ranks down to 36. It’s a balancing act. I heard some loud grumbling about an earlier decision to take Engine 14 out of service as a way to save money. Bumping two firefighters will now allow Engine 14 to roll back into action.

The fire department is reportedly trying to whack $1.27 million from its budget. Oh, the cutbacks probably look great on paper, but the Burbank Fire Department is already a trim operation.  Now it will be down two firefighters and that makes me wonder if public safety is taking a back seat to balancing the budget.   

Photo: Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times

Today fire crews have the upper hand on a smoky brush blaze, which broke out near the Getty Center in West Los Angeles yesterday afternoon. The flames swept through the hillsides and canyons in the Sepulveda Pass.

More than a thousand people were evacuated from the museum and nearby Mount St. Mary’s College. This morning, the brush fire is 90 percent contained at less than 100 acres. Today, the Getty Center is closed along with some streets and roads in the area.  Meanwhile, fire teams are working to put out hot spots.

The fire was apparently started by a maintenance crew clearing away brush.

Photo: Andrew Gombert/Pool

This is the cover of the program for the public Michael Jackson memorial service held at Staples Center in Los Angeles yesterday. A ton of photos of the event and the fans are on the Los Angeles Times website . Thousands of lucky ticket holders joined MJ’s friends, celebrities, and family members for the emotional and musically charged memorial inside Staples, while millions of other folks watched or listened to a live broadcast.

Performances by Stevie Wonder, Mariah Carey, Brooke Shields, Jennifer Hudson, and Usher made it an event to remember. However, Michael Jackson’s tearful 11-year-old daughter, Paris, probably paid the icon the best tribute when she said: “Ever since I was born, daddy has been the best father you could ever imagine. And I just want to say that I love him so much.” 

“Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen” won the neck-and-neck battle against newcomer “Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs” for the top spot at the domestic Box Office this past weekend. In the final numbers, “Transformers 2″ grossed a huge $42.3 million to hold onto the title of the number one movie in the nation for the second straight week.

“Transformers 2″ is making truckloads of money here and abroad. The sci-fi action flick is expected to cross the $300 million mark domestically by mid-week. The sequel has already leaped that barrier internationally.

Although it landed in second place, “Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs” is doing a heck of a lot of business in movie theaters as well. The third installment of this animated pre-historic series debuted with $41.6 million. Worldwide, this family adventure has raked in more than $200 million so far.

Another new film, “Public Enemies” blasted into third by earning $25.2 million. The adult drama about the adventures of infamous bank robber John Dillinger and his gang, stars Johnny Depp and Christian Bale.  The romantic comedy, “The Proposal” came in fourth with $12.8 million, and rounding out the top five the comedy, “The Hangover” with $11.2 million.

Photo: Pete Souza/The White House —President Obama and First Lady Michelle greet White House guests

Today the White House blog posted photos of the bang-up Fourth of July celebration at the White House. President Barack Obama and wife Michelle shared their festivities with military personnel and their families. In the above photo, the Obamas greet some of the enthusiastic party guests.

Photo: Pete Souza/The White House —First couple watch the fireworks show over the National Mall.

The White House Fourth blow-out was in honor of those who have defended our country. The event wrapped up with entertainment from Jimmy Fallon as well as Michelle Branch and the Foo Fighters. Oh, and of course, a fireworks show lit up the sky as part of the finale.

Photo: FLLewis/A Writer’s Groove — Burbank

                             ”The Star Spangled Banner” Fourth and Final Verse

O thus be it ever when freemen shall stand
Between their loved homes and the war’s desolation!
Blest with vict’ry and peace, may the Heaven-rescued land
Praise the Power that hath made and preserved us a nation.
Then conquer we must when our cause it is just
And this be our motto: “In God is our Trust.”
And the Star-Spangled Banner in triumph shall wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

Words written by Francis Scott Key and music by John Stafford Smith  1814

Photo: from city of Burbank website

I don’t know if Burbank Mayor Gary Bric plays any street basketball, but it’s pretty clear he can trash talk. Earlier in the week, I popped over to Jim Carlile’s Burbank blog and discovered a post from last Tuesday, June 30 about some caustic e-mails he got from the mayor. The town is abuzz with chatter about these e-mail zingers.

Mayor Bric apparently got steamed under the collar after reading one of Carlile’s letters in the Mailbag section of The Burbank Leader newspaper. Here’s a sampling of the mayor’s e-mails to Carlile.

“Jim or may I call you Jimmy like your mommy probably did. Never heard back from you and even left you a phone message, you do return calls don’t you. I’ll forward this to Chris at the Burbank Leader so next time you submit a letter to the “MAILBAG” they can get additional info on you and we can find out more about you. Look forward to hearing and meeting with you, I won’t need much of your time, trust me.. Have a nice day.”  Your friend Mayor Gary Bric 6/24/09.

“Hope mommy didn’t take your computer away, still haven’t heard back from you. Your quite the letter writer with WORD PRESS.COM. Are you still having problems sleeping at night, please let me help you with your problem (s), I’m their for you pal.” Your friend Gary.

“…  Don’t forget let’s hook up for coffee one morning, I’ll make you some hot chocolate. Don’t know if I told you but I’m learning more and more about you every day, can’t wait till the reader’s at the Leader learn about you, any skeleton’s in your closet old pal, old buddy. Health and happiness always.” Your friend Gary.

You know, it sounds like the Burbank mayor is threatening to “out” this Burbank Blogger. Gee, what happened to free speech? Also, is this really the kind of conduct you expect from a top city official?  The two men have never met face to face. From the vinegar in these e-mails, I guess one can understand why Carlile hasn’t accept the mayor’s invite for a coffee date.

Meanwhile, Carlile tells me he’s taking this e-mail barrage from Bric very seriously:”In all my years of city-watching, this is the first time I have ever heard of a Burbank resident being threatened by the mayor because of protected activities like ‘letters to the editor.’ And threaten me Bric did– he clearly stated that he was going to get the Leader to smear me because of my criticisms, and twice he also physically threatened me. First he claimed that if I was having a hard time sleeping at night, he would help me get to sleep– which sounds like a line in a Humphrey Bogart movie, right before they throw him in the trunk of a car.”

Carlile had a letter to the editor published in The Burbank Leader on June 20, 2009 and that appears to be the one that made Bric flip-out. In his letter, Carlile takes the Burbank City Council to task for its decision to remove newly-appointed police commissioner John Brady, allegedly because Brady is on probation for a DUI. Carlile’s letter dishes out some specific criticisms of Council Members Gary Bric and Anja Reinke for their involvement in Brady’s ouster.

If Bric thought his e-mails would silence Carlile’s well he was wrong. Carlile posted another story about the mayor on Wednesday, July first and it’s a doozy. Carlile points out that Bric’s restaurant doesn’t really have a Burbank address. It’s actually in Sun Valley. The website for Gary Bric’s Ramp claims the restaurant is Burbank’s #1 steakhouse. The site lists the address as 7730 North Hollywood Way, Burbank 91505.

Carlile is not the only one who has noticed this discrepancy. Apparently some city business owners have been complaining for a while, because Bric’s restaurant has been allowed to enter The Burbank Leader’s “Best of Burbank” contest. The Ramp restaurant is not the only business pretending to be in Burbank, but it’s probably the most high profile offender because, you guessed it, the owner is the mayor of Burbank!  

Photo courtesy Jose Sandoval — some of the players and coaching staff

Burbank Volunteer Coach Jose Sandoval probably would have preferred to spend this morning out at a sunny park, teaching some local kids how to swing a bat or throw a baseball. Instead, Coach Sandoval was in Burbank Superior Court at 8:30 a.m. today, to face a charge of misdemeanor battery arising from an altercation during a game at McCambridge Park on May 18, 2009.

After a heated exchange over a disputed call, Sandoval says he headed for the dugout followed close on his heels by an umpire. When Sandoval turned around to face the ump, apparently the two men brushed up against each other. In most places, and with most folks, that would have been ignored. Not in this case. Sandoval got thrown out of the game and suspended from coaching for a year. Also, the Burbank City Attorney’s Office hit Sandoval with a criminal case.

I dropped by the Burbank Superior Court this morning and was surprised to find more than 50 other citizens along with Coach Sandoval, his wife Nancy and their two girls. Also, George Garcia and his two kids were there to show support for Sandoval. Folks with traffic violations got their cases heard first. As the clock ticked away, more and more defendants arrived in the courtroom to present their cases before Commissioner Dennis L. Shanklin. I was not able to stay for Coach Sandoval’s case, but he updated me this afternoon.

With a public defender representing him, Sandoval pleaded not guilty to the misdemeanor battery charge and was ordered back to court on August 18, 2009 for a preliminary hearing. Sandoval is now collecting evidence and the names of witnesses to build his case and prepare for that hearing.

To say that Sandoval loves baseball is an understatement. For the past 16 years, he has been a volunteer coach for the Burbank Parks & Recreation Department. He speaks with affection about the five teams and 80 kids he coaches, or was coaching, until that controversial incident on a park field this spring. While he probably would rather be thinking about or playing baseball this evening, Sandoval is gearing up to defend himself in a criminal case.

Photo: Cover of the funeral service program

Family and close friends of Farrah Fawcett gathered yesterday at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels in Downtown Los Angeles to say farewell to the actress. Among the celebrities at the private funeral, former “Charlie’s Angels” co-star Kate Jackson and ex-supermodel Cheryl Tiegs.

Photo:  Kirk McKoy/Los Angeles Times

 Fawcett’s long time companion, Ryan O’Neal, was one of the pallbearers. Fawcett’s father was there as well.  A Los Angeles judge gave Fawcett and O’Neal’s son, Redmond, permission to attend the funeral. The 24-year-old has been in jail on a drug charge since last April.

Fawcett died last Thursday, June 25, after a brave battle with cancer. She was 62.