LOS ANGELES – A San Bernardino County woman pleaded guilty today to fraudulently obtaining more than $500,000 in COVID-19 pandemic-related unemployment insurance (UI) benefits by using the names of inmates locked up the California state prison system. Cynthia Ann Hernandez, 33, a.k.a. “Cynthia Roberts,” of Victorville, pleaded guilty to one count of mail fraud and one count of access device fraud in excess of $1,000. According to her plea agreement, from June 2020 to August 2020, Hernandez filed with the California Employment Development Department (EDD) fraudulent applications for UI benefits in the names of persons incarcerated in the California state prison…
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PITTSBURGH, PA – The August Wilson Society (AWS), in collaboration with the August Wilson African American Cultural Center (AWAACC) and the University of Pittsburgh Library System (ULS), is pleased to announce its Biennial Colloquium: Excavating New Critical Landscapes for August Wilson Studies, March 2-4, 2023, to mark the grand opening of the August Wilson Archive at the University of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The August Wilson Archive arrived at the ULS in 450 boxes containing materials documenting a wide array of Wilson’s career and interests from the 1960s to 2010. There are scripts, production materials of his American Century Cycle plays, his personal library…
SANTA ANA, Calif. – An Orange County man pleaded guilty today to fraudulently applying for more than $1.2 million in COVID-19 pandemic unemployment insurance (UI) benefits – and receiving more than $400,000 of the same – by using the stolen identities of two dozen victims. Nhan Hoang Pham, 36, of Santa Ana, pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud in relation to benefits connected to a presidentially declared emergency. According to his plea agreement, from July 2020 to April 2021, Pham acquired without authorization or permission the personal identifying information (PII) – including names, dates of birth and Social Security…
Historical Drama About the Legacy and Life of Celebrated French Black Violinist-Composer Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint-Georges LOS ANGELES — The PAN AFRICAN FILM & ARTS FESTIVAL (PAFF) announced that CHEVALIER will open its 31st film festival in Los Angeles on Feb. 9, 2023, at the Directors Guild of America. The star-studded red carpet gala will be hosted by NFL-Pro turned actor Thomas Q. Jones (“P-Valley”), the Festival’s 2023 Celebrity Host. Inspired by the incredible story of composer Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint-Georges. The son of an enslaved African woman and a French plantation owner, Bologne (Kelvin Harrison Jr. in a tour de force performance) rises to improbable heights in French society…
Spike Lee to Receive the WGA East’s Ian McLellan Hunter Award for Career Achievement NEW YORK, NY – One of the greatest writer/directors in film history, Spike Lee will be honored with the Writers Guild of America, East’s Ian McLellan Hunter Award for Career Achievement at the 75th Annual Writers Guild Awards at New York’s Edison Ballroom on Sunday, March 5, 2023. The Hunter Award was established in 1992 and named in memory of longtime WGAE member Ian McLellan Hunter. The award is presented to a WGAE member in honor of their body of work as a writer in motion pictures…
LOS ANGELES – Winning playwrights and producers of the LANPP 2022 grants came together to celebrate the four new plays to be produced in the coming year. Two of the four plays selected are authored by a single playwright, David Johann Kim. Kim’s Pang Spa, a site-specific production staged in Koreatown, will be premiered by Chalk Repertory Theatre, a company with a long history of site-specific work. En route to that opening, Pang Spa will be presented in a workshop reading at the Inkwell Theater on January 20-22. His play Two Stop will be produced by Ensemble Studio Theatre/LA. Both plays are set in the LA Korean community…
By Bill Rankin | The Atlanta Journal-Constitution A federal judge on Tuesday ordered former DeKalb County CEO Vernon Jones to pay $45,652 in damages and legal fees to a man he blocked on his Facebook page while serving in the state Legislature. Jones blocked his constituent, Tomas Miko, from his social media page after the two exchanged testy posts in March 2020 about proposed immigration legislation sponsored by Jones when he was a state representative. Also following their crossfire, Jones deleted Miko’s dissenting comments. Miko filed a federal lawsuit against Jones a few months later, alleging Jones deleted Miko’s comments to…
BUFFALO, NY – Erie County District Attorney John J. Flynn announces that 48-year-old Timothy C. Tucker of Inglewood, California, 23-year-old Chastity Y. Banks of Palmdale, California and 19-year-old Loany G. Gato Aronategui of Henderson, Nevada were arraigned yesterday morning before Buffalo City Court Judge Kevin J. Keane. The defendants have been charged with one count of Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance in the First Degree (Class “A-I” felony) and one count of Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance in the Third Degree (Class “B” felony). The defendants were the subject of an investigation into suspected cocaine trafficking. On Wednesday, January 18, 2023, at approximately 7:30…
LOS ANGELES – Former Los Angeles City Councilmember José Huizar pleaded guilty today to federal criminal charges for using his powerful position at City Hall to enrich himself and his associates, and for cheating on his taxes. Huizar, 54, of Boyle Heights, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to violate the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act and one count of tax evasion. The plea agreement was filed Thursday in United States District Court. Huizar represented Council District 14 (CD-14), which includes downtown Los Angeles and its surrounding communities, from 2005 until his resignation in 2020. In his plea…
By: Cynthia Macon COMPTON, Calif. — The City of Compton, if not in violation of the letter of the law, is definitely in violation of the spirit of the law in this season of celebrating civil rights and the MLK legacy. For how do you call a city a democratic government, representative of the people, when the people, the voters, are intentionally locked out of the process of selecting its own leaders by self-serving procedures and maneuvers conducted by what can only be described as a hi-jacked administration. Currently, four of eight persons seated on the dais are appointees who…
SANTA ANA, Calif. – The former executive director of the Democratic Party of Orange County has agreed to plead guilty to a felony charge for attempting to defraud one of her political consultancy firm’s clients. She further admitted in court documents that she agreed to bribe two members of the Irvine City Council – both on cannabis-related matters. Melahat Rafiei, 45, of Anaheim, agreed to plead guilty to one count of attempted wire fraud. She is expected to make her initial appearance in the United States District Court in Santa Ana on February 6. Rafiei is the principal and founder of…
Imagine rivers in the sky accumulating moisture and then dumping water all over us. Well, that’s exactly what is happening with the recent storms in California, which have caused flooding, mudslides, loss of life and damage to homes and belongings. Scientists are calling these storms “atmospheric rivers” and explain that they can carry up to 15 times the amount of water in the Mississippi River! The third atmospheric river began rolling over California on January 6th and its destruction will cost homeowners, business owners and car owners thousands of dollars if they don’t have the right insurance. As for the…
Intuit QuickBooks + Mailchimp Event Spotlights Black-Owned Businesses MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. — In honor of Black History Month, Intuit (Nasdaq: INTU) QuickBooks and Mailchimp are hosting a live, virtual fireside chat to highlight the experiences and remarkable courage it takes for Black-owned entrepreneurs and small businesses to overcome the hurdles they encounter on their paths to success. WHAT: In a conversation sponsored by Intuit QuickBooks + Mailchimp, the world’s leading small business technology platform, Issa Rae and Nate Burleson will host a live “Conversation about Courage” that will provide personal insights and practical advice for U.S. and Canadian Black-owned small businesses. Economic and social inequalities…
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. Department of Education (Department) proposed regulations to reduce the cost of federal student loan payments, especially for low and middle-income borrowers. The regulations fulfill the commitment President Biden laid out in August when he announced his Administration’s plan to provide student debt relief for approximately 40 million borrowers and make the student loan system more manageable for student borrowers. The proposed regulations would create the most affordable income-driven repayment (IDR) plan that has ever been made available to student loan borrowers, simplify the program, and eliminate common pitfalls that have historically delayed borrowers’ progress toward forgiveness.…
SANTA ANA, Calif. – A certified nursing assistant who worked at a Southern California group home for severely disabled patients has been sentenced to life in federal prison for committing multiple child exploitation crimes, including filming himself sexually abusing several severely disabled children at the group home facility, while he was working as their nighttime caretaker, the Justice Department announced today. Steve Jackson Rodriguez, 38, of Pomona, was sentenced late Friday afternoon by United States District Judge John W. Holcomb, who said at the hearing that Rodriguez’s crimes constituted “unspeakable acts.” Judge Holcomb scheduled a restitution hearing in this case for…