Author: Robert Lopez

A small plane landed Wednesday night on the northbound 57 Freeway near San Dimas, snarling traffic but causing no injuries or damage, authorities said.

The plane made an emergency landing about 7 p.m. near the junction of the 57 and 10 freeways, the California Highway Patrol said. Two of the lanes on northbound 57 have been closed, and it was not clear when they would reopen.

Investigators are at the scene. No other details were available.

[Updated 9:20 p.m.: The Champion Citabria plane was carrying only the pilot, who reported engine problems to air traffic controllers at Brackett Field in La Verne. The plane was headed to Cable Airport in Upland, according to preliminary information from the Federal Aviation Administration.]

— Robert J. Lopez

A Santa Ana mother was charged Wednesday with having sex with a 15-year-old boy who fathered her child.

Debra Ayala Tapia, 38, was charged with two felony counts of lewd acts upon a child, two felony counts of oral copulation of a minor under 16 and two felony counts of unlawful sexual intercourse, the Orange County district attorney’s office said.



Tapia lived near the boy and his family and allegedly invited him to her house and engaged in a sexual relationship that lasted from February to November 2009, the district attorney said.



The boy allegedly visited the home about twice a week. At the time, Tapia had three children, the district attorney said.



The boy’s mother became suspicious after finding suggestive notes between the two, according to the district attorney. The boy allegedly admitted having an affair with Tapia.



The mother of the alleged victim sought a paternity test, which determined that Tapia’s fourth child was fathered by the boy, the district attorney said.



The mother reported the case March 14 to the Santa Ana Police Department, which arrested Tapia on Tuesday.



If convicted on all counts, Tapia could serve up to seven years and eight months in state prison. She was released on $100,000 bail.

The district attorney said no arraignment date had been set.

— Robert J. Lopez

The venerable Fairfax Theater, which opened its doors in 1930, will close indefinitely after suffering major damage during the recent rainstorms.

Regency Theaters, which operates the theater, said Wednesday that it has asked the property owner to terminate its lease.



The rain damage was so extensive that it would not be economically feasible to reopen the landmark theater at Beverly Boulevard and Fairfax Avenue, Regency said in a statement.



In recent years, the theater has battled against competition from neighboring theaters and problems with area parking.

The property owner, Alex Gorby, has proposed a mixed-use retail and residential project for the site. The project would preserve the theater’s historic Art Deco facade, according to the statement.

–Robert J. Lopez

Photo: Gerard Molina / L.A. Times

Three people were arrested on suspicion of illegally selling pot at two Los Angeles medical marijuana dispensaries, police said Wednesday.



The arrests stemmed from an investigation launched in February after residents complained that a dispensary in East Hollywood was operating close to a school, the Los Angeles Police Department said.

Officers served search warrants at the Medco Organics dispensary at 326 N. Vermont Ave., police said. The search led officers to a second dispensary, the Relief Co., at 5669 W. Pico Blvd. in Mid-Wilshire, police said.

The names of the suspects were not released. They were being held in lieu of $25,000 bail each.

— Robert J. Lopez

A 10-year-old girl who said a man tried to kidnap her at a Rancho Palos Verdes elementary school has admitted that the incident never happened, authorities said Wednesday.

"The little girl came in and admitted that she lied," said Sheriff’s Lt. Vicky Stuckey of the Lomita station.



The girl told authorities that a man tried to grab her arm as she walked out of the restroom March 17 at Mira Catalina Elementary School, 30511 Lucania Drive.

Stuckey said no charges would be filed against the girl, who told investigators she was sorry. The reported kidnapping sparked concern among parents who wondered how the man had entered the campus.

— Robert J. Lopez

A sewage spill has forced officials to close beaches from the breakwater at Dana Point Harbor to Capistrano Bay Community Beach.



The closures also affect Doheny State Beach and Capistrano County Beach, the Orange County Health Care Agency said. The contamination was detected Tuesday.



The beaches will remain closed until further notice. For more information, visit the agency’s website.



— Robert J. Lopez

Four people were shot in an attack Tuesday night in Pacoima, police said.

Two of the victims were in critical condition at a  hospital, the Los Angeles Police Department said. The condition of the other two victims was not immediately known.

Police said the attack occurred about 10 p.m near Pinney Street and San Fernando Road. The area was cordoned off as officers searched for suspects.

No additional information was available.

— Robert J. Lopez

Map: Los Angeles Times Mapping L.A.

Los Angeles police were investigating three unrelated homicides that occurred within a span of two hours late Tuesday afternoon.

The first slaying was about 4:15 p.m. in a gang-related attack in the 2800 block of Pico Boulevard in the Pico-Union area, the Los Angeles Police Department said.

A suspect in a vehicle intentionally ran over two men as they walked along the street, killing one and injuring the other, police said.

Officers chased the suspect, who jumped several fences and climbed atop a roof before he was caught. The man, about 24, was injured during the chase and was listed in stable condition Tuesday night at a hospital, Officer Karen Rayner said.

The man who was killed was in his 30s. His name was not released.

The second homicide was reported about 4:30 p.m. when a woman in her mid-40s was found dead from multiple gunshot wounds in her home at 150 E. 56th St. in South Park, police said. Her name was not released, and investigators had not determined a motive for the killing, Rayner said.

The third slaying was a drive-by shooting shortly before 6 p.m. at Crenshaw Boulevard and 29th Street in Jefferson Park. Two attackers in a dark-colored vehicle opened fire on three men walking along the street.

Rayner said one of the victims was pronounced dead at a hospital, and the other two were not hit. Their names were not released.

— Robert J. Lopez

Southern California residents enjoyed warm and dry weather Tuesday that is expected to continue for at least another day, according to forecasters.

On Wednesday, the temperature downtown should be around 77 degrees with the valleys experiencing temperatures near 80 degrees, the National Weather Service said.

"It’s going to be pretty nice," said Stuart Seto, a weather specialist in Oxnard.

Temperatures will drop 7 to 9 degrees Thursday and Friday. But warmer weather is expected to return to Southern California during the weekend, the weather service said.

— Robert J. Lopez

Video: Beachgoers enjoy summer-like weather Tuesday in Venice. Credit: Robert J. Lopez / Los Angeles Times.

A female teacher at a juvenile correctional facility in Newport Beach was charged Tuesday with fondling and kissing a 15-year-old boy housed at the center, authorities said.

Dawn Marie Baloun, 43, of Lake Forest, faces one misdemeanor count of child annoyance after she allegedly met the youth in closets and classrooms at the Harbor Justice Center, the Orange County District Attorney’s Office said.

Between March and April of last year, Baloun is charged with kissing the victim, fondling him over his clothing and having him touch her breasts, the district attorney said.

After the youth was transferred to another facility, Baloun allegedly exchanged about 65 graphic, sexual letters with him. A counselor at the facility where the boy had been transferred alerted authorities after discovering the letters, according to the district attorney.

Baloun is scheduled to be arraigned April 12 at the courthouse in Newport Beach. She faces a maximum of a year in jail.

— Robert J. Lopez

A 26-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of killing a 2-year-old Long Beach boy, police said.

Hector Ernest Jr. of Hawthorne is accused of slaying Deandre Fitzgerald Green, who was pronounced dead Saturday at Long Beach Memorial Hospital, police said.

Hospital officials called police after the boy was taken to the facility by his mother and Ernest, her boyfriend. Hospital staff tried unsuccessfully to revive Deandre, whose body showed signs of physical abuse, the Long Beach Police Department said.

Detectives believe that neighbors in the 3100 block of Springfield Drive may have heard Deandre crying or being abused, according to the Police Department.

Anyone with information is asked to call Det. Mark McGuire or Det. Greg Krabbe at (562) 570-7244.

— Robert J. Lopez

Learn about the homicides of other young children on The Times’ interactive Homicide Report.

Photo: Hector Ernest Jr. Credit: Long Beach Police Department

Days after he tangled with a Republican congressman about his ties to an Islamic nonprofit group, Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca will be speaking to members of the Muslim American community.

Baca will be at a town hall Tuesday at 6 p.m. at the Omar ibn Al-Khattab Foundation at 1025 Exposition Boulevard near USC.

Baca will meet members of the Muslim American Homeland Security Congress, which the department established in 2005 to build bridges with the community.

"The sheriff will talk about how we have to stop generalizing about people because of their religion," said department spokesman Steve Whitmore.

Baca argued with Rep. Mark Souder (R-Indiana) on Wednesday while testifying in Washington before the House Committee on Homeland Security. Souder criticized Baca for attending fundraisers for the Council on American-Islamic Relations, saying the group espoused radical speech.

Baca fired back, telling the congressman that his remarks were "inappropriate" and "un-American."

— Robert J. Lopez

A parolee and documented gang member was sentenced Thursday to 93 years to life in state prison for the 2009 slaying of a 4-year-old boy in Echo Park.



Howard Astorga, 26, was convicted in February of the killing of Roberto Lopez Jr, who was hit by a stray bullet as he walked with his sister and cousins to a park in the 1200 block of Court Street, prosecutors said.



Astorga had intended to shoot a rival gang member, police said.



The crime sparked community outrage. More than 500 people attended Roberto’s funeral, where Cardinal Roger M. Mahony conducted a Mass in Spanish.



— Robert J. Lopez



Photo: A photo of Roberto Lopez Jr. that was part of a memorial erected at the site where he was killed. Credit: Lopez family

Three men have been booked on suspicion of stealing artifacts from a Native American burial ground in the Santa Monica Mountains in Ventura County, authorities said Thursday.



The case began March 1 about 9:45 p.m. when the Ventura County Sheriff’s Department received a call about lights flashing from the burial site. Deputies found three men with flashlights who were excavating artifacts, authorities said.



Additional artifacts were allegedly found when investigators searched the homes of the three men, according to the department.



The department said the case was turned over to prosecutors Thursday and identified the three men as Noah Erickson, 22, John Watson, 37, and Frederick Villela, 40.



The three face misdemeanor and felony charges for allegedly conducting excavations on Indian burial sites, the department said.



— Robert J. Lopez

Authorities were searching for a man who tried to kidnap a 10-year-old girl Tuesday as she left a bathroom at a Rancho Palos Verdes elementary school.



The suspect grabbed the girl’s arm about 12:15 at Mira Catalina Elementary School at 30511 Lucania Drive. The girl broke free and ran to her classroom, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department said.



Investigators were trying to determine how the man entered the school. He took off running and deputies searching the area were unable to find him, said Lt. Vicki Stuckey of the department’s Lomita station.



The man was described as a white male, 20 to 25, with a thin build and spiky brown hair. He was wearing beige shorts and a black T-shirt, Stuckey said.



Anyone with information is asked to call the station at (310) 539-1661.



— Robert J. Lopez

Los Angeles police arrested a man downtown after he allegedly tried to sell animals that were malnourished and held in cramped cages, authorities said.



David Plumamena, 46, was booked on suspicion of felony animal cruelty. He had 35 miniature rabbits, 79 turtles, six iguanas and a parrot, the Los Angeles Police Department said.



Patrol officers allegedly saw Plumamena putting the caged animals along the sidewalk Saturday in the 1200 block of Wall Street, where he intended to sell them, the LAPD said.



The sale of illegal animals is an ongoing problem in the area, especially around holidays such as Easter, said Lt. Paul Vernon, who commands detectives in the LAPD’s Central Division.



Most of the animals sold illegally are in poor health and often die shortly after they are sold, according to Vernon.



"Patronizing these animal traffickers only encourages them to sell more animals," he said.

— Robert J. Lopez

Photo: Rabbits seized by police. Credit: Los Angeles Police Department.

Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department detectives said Wednesday that they have solved the case of a woman who was killed nearly 34 years ago.



The suspect, who was identified using DNA evidence, died in 1997, the department said.



The slaying of Marcia Lynn Christian, who was 19, was  the department’s oldest unsolved murder case. The nursing student was found partially buried in the hills near Castaic on July 22, 1976.



Homicide detectives identified Mark David Jackson as the killer. Jackson had a lengthy history of sexual offenses, including rapes and child molestation, according to the department.



Jackson, who was 47, died of a drug overdose in Klamath Falls, Ore., while facing drug and child-cruelty charges, the department said.



— Robert J. Lopez

A man was wounded Wednesday evening in Panorama City in an officer-involved shooting, police said.



The shooting occurred about 7:30 p.m. in the 14200 block of Community Street, the Los Angeles Police Department said.



The man was taken to a hospital and was listed in stable condition, according to the LAPD. His name was not released.



No officers were hurt.



Investigators were at the scene. No additional details were available.



— Robert J. Lopez

Map: Shooting scene. Credit: Los Angeles Times Mapping L.A.

A Santa Ana man was arrested by federal officers after allegedly squeezing two illegal immigrants into compartments in his car and trying to cross the U.S. border from Mexico, authorities said Wednesday.



The man, a U.S. citizen, was taken into custody Saturday at the Otay-Mesa Port of Entry east of San Diego and booked on smuggling charges, the Department of Homeland Security said. His name was not released.



The two immigrants, from Mexico, were hidden in the compartments between the front wheel and front doors of the black Mercedes-Benz, the Homeland Security Department said.



One immigrant, a 26-year-old woman, was unconscious when she was pulled out of the space.  She was revived by rescuers at the scene and was treated for a 4-inch burn on her leg.



A 39-year-old man was stuck in a fetal position in the other space and unable to move when he was found by federal officers. He was sweating profusely and needed help standing, the department said.



The immigrants were found by a detector dog. They were being held as material witnesses in the case.



–Robert J. Lopez

Photo: Compartment where one of the immigrants was allegedly smuggled. Credit: Department of Homeland Security.