Author: Emilie St. John

Emile St. John is a contributing writer for 2UrbanGirls.com and the Los Angeles Wave newspaper.

INGLEWOOD – A fire tore through a closed elementary school in Inglewood, damaging several classrooms, authorities said Tuesday. https://www.instagram.com/p/DAkh2ptJYLw/?igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA== The fire was reported at 10 p.m. Monday and firefighters responded to 11101 Yukon Ave. where they encountered flames leaping from multiple bungalows at Worthington Elementary School, according to ABC 7. Screenshot No injuries were reported. According to the California Department of Education’s website, Worthington Elementary was closed on Dec. 15, 2023. Inglewood is rapidly experiencing gentrification that has resulted in the Inglewood Unified School District closing multiple schools despite taxpayers pledging hundreds of millions of dollars in school bonds to…

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INGLEWOOD – A longtime Inglewood resident has filed a complaint alleging the mayor committed fraud when he admitted to assisting his girlfriend obtain a college degree, by completing her coursework, to justify inflating her taxpayer funded salary. Inglewood Mayor James T. Butts Jr. could face federal charges for agreeing to participate in a conspiracy to defraud taxpayers to assist his girlfriend with qualifying for a higher salary that was used to show Melanie McDade had the financial capacity to qualify for a $700,000 home loan during her employment with the City. When it became public knowledge that McDade went from…

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INGLEWOOD – A judge has issued a ruling in the ongoing legal battle between Inglewood Mayor James T. Butts Jr. and his former aide/girlfriend Melanie McDade. McDade is seeking $65 million in damages from the City, Mayor Butts, former City Manager Artie Fields and newly appointed Asst. City Manager Jose Cortes. McDade alleges she was wrongfully terminated after ending her consensual relationship with Butts and that the City failed to investigate sexual harassment allegations when he continued to leverage their relationship status against her employment, based on text messages between the two. The court was expected to rule on sanctions…

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‘Kill Move Paradise’ is the 2017 play written by Pulitzer Prize winning playwright James Ijames and enjoying its SoCal debut at the Odyssey Theater in West Los Angeles. (l-r) Ulato Sam, Cedric Joe, Ahkei Togun and Jonathan P. Sims (Photo by Cooper Bates) We are introduced to the young men as each one drops onto the set, a cosmic waiting room, as if they were an envelope being dropped into the neighborhood mailbox headed to its final destination. Ulato Sam (Photo by Cooper Bates) The waiting room is the conduit to their final destination – the after life – which…

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In 2023, Los Angeles was ranked the 2nd rattiest city in the United States. In 2022, California Governor Gavin Newsom described the resurgence of typhus, a flea-borne disease spread through infected rats and other small mammals, as a “medieval disease” after 171 cases were reported in Los Angeles County alone. Earlier this year, Family Dollar agreed to pay a hefty fine and forfeiture of nearly $42 million as part of a plea agreement to resolve criminal charges for keeping food and drugs in an unsanitary warehouse infested with rats. After a Food and Drug Administration inspection revealed the infestation, the…

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COMPTON – Former Compton councilwoman Michelle (Lomax) Chambers is running to become the next Senator for District 35 in the upcoming November election. Fresh off the heels of battling accusations of calling her former council colleague’s son a racial slur, documents reveal a darker side to the candidate that could cause concern to voters. Documents were received by 2UrbanGirls that indicate Chambers has a history of erratic behavior based on court records filed in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Screenshot Chambers is originally from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, as indicated in multiple postings on her social media accounts. In 2002, she pleaded guilty to disorderly…

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LOS ANGELES – A powerful coalition of labor leaders, elected officials, and formerly incarcerated individuals came together to urge Californians to vote Yes on Proposition 6 – a groundbreaking initiative that seeks to end forced labor in California’s carceral system, expand rehabilitation opportunities for incarcerated individuals, and save taxpayer money. “Prop 6 ensures they have the flexibility to attend GED classes, vocational training, and substance abuse counseling. The ultimate goal is to equip incarcerated individuals with the tools they need to succeed upon release, preventing homelessness and repeat offenses,” said Los Angeles County Federation of Labor President, Yvonne Wheeler. The…

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LOS ANGELES – The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner’s office is seeking the public’s help in identifying a woman killed after being hit by a driver on Sept. 15. The person is believed to be between the ages of 20-30. The examiner’s office describe her as “involved in an auto vs. pedestrian traffic collision on the northbound I-5 freeway near Whittier Boulevard in East Los Angeles and was pronounced dead at scene”. “She appears to be a white female under the age of 30 with short light brown or strawberry blonde hair and hazel eyes. She is less than 5’…

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CARSON – The City of Carson unveiled the opening of a new Tesla Supercharger Station on Sept. 10. The new charging station is located at the Carson Event Center and includes 20 V4 superchargers that will serve both Tesla and non-Tesla Electric Vehicles (EV). The cost to charge can fluctuate based on the time of day, but it will be commensurate with the cost of other supercharger stations throughout the region. “Carson’s supercharger station is emblematic of our City Council’s commitment to innovative technologies that address both environmental concerns while supporting our economy by attracting visitors and supporting our local…

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INGLEWOOD – The city of Inglewood adopted its rent control ordinance in 2021 which provided residents with some relief from excessive rent increases and evictions. After the City announced the approval of the NFL stadium, rents in some areas of Inglewood began to skyrocket and some residents were forced out of their apartments because the City had no tenant protections in place. The City created a temporary rent control ordinance that expired in December 2019 so a permanent ordinance was put in place five months later. Ordinance No. 21-09 was adopted on May 10, 2021, but does not appear on…

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LOS ANGELES – The Los Angeles County Department of Consumer and Business Affairs (DCBA) continues to spread awareness that the minimum wage in unincorporated LA County increased to $17.27 per hour on July 1. The new minimum wage of $17.27 applies to employees who work at least two hours per week within the unincorporated areas of Los Angeles County. The Department of Consumer and Business Affairs (DCBA) plays a crucial role in ensuring workers in unincorporated LA county receive the correct wages as mandated by law. “Because the minimum wage recently increased, it’s important that workers know what the new…

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INGLEWOOD – Inglewood Mayor James T. Butts Jr. is calling for an audit of access to police department facilities after an employee launched a verbal assault on the police department’s watch commander that resulted in her arrest. According to sources within Inglewood Police Department, a City employee was pulled over for a traffic stop that resulted in their getting a ticket. It is alleged that while the employee was signing the ticket, she assaulted the officer by jabbing the pen into their hand. “This employee was able to use her badge to swipe into the watch commander’s office, after hours,…

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California’s historic efforts to repair harms inflicted upon the descendants of formerly enslaved people moved forward with the signing of AB 1929 by Assemblymember Tina McKinnor (D – Inglewood) into law. AB 1929 aims to rectify racial disparities within career technical education (CTE) programs by requiring local educational agencies receiving CTE state grants and the California Community College Chancellor’s Office to disaggregate program and performance accountability outcome data by race and gender. “As a member of the California Legislative Black Caucus, I am proud of our first in the nation work to address and repair the historic and continued harm…

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INGLEWOOD – A judge has continued the hearing on whether to terminate $217,404 in sanctions in the ongoing wrongful termination lawsuit filed against the city of Inglewood, its mayor, and two high-ranking City administrators. Melanie McDade-Dickens filed the lawsuit against the City after her employment was terminated in late 2019. She alleges that because she ended a consensual relationship with Mayor James T. Butts Jr. he conspired with former City Manager Artie Fields and then HR Director Jose Cortes to terminate her employment. A law firm, whose co-founder and wife are political donors to the mayor’s re-election campaign, was tasked…

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SANTA CLARITA – A teen was attacked and held at gunpoint during soccer practice Thursday night. Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department deputies responded to reports of a teen being attacked in the 27100 block of Bouquet Canyon Road around 8:20 p.m. It was reported the teen was attacked by three people with one armed with a gun. https://www.instagram.com/p/C_TRuC7PgJN Upon arrival, the teen was located and transported to a local hospital in an unknown condition. There are no suspect descriptions at this time.

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