15-year-old Richard Ung was arrested at his parents' home in Arcadia, where sheriffs recovered nine guns, including an AK-47 assault rifle and an assault pistol. Ung is being investigated for alleged involvement in the stabbing death of Boo K. Lee.
A $30 million plan to provide standardized breathing equipment for every fire department in Los Angeles County has been suspended after a lawsuit alleged the contract process was mishandled and firefighters complained about the quality of the equipment. Arcadia-based Allstar Fire Equipment is suing the city and county of Los Angeles, contending the contract process was improperly handled in a manner that ignored firefighter input and unfairly favored the winning bidder, L.N. Curtis and sons.
An 8-foot tall bronze tribute to Arcadia's official bird, the peacock, will be unveiled August 5, as part of the city's centennial celebration. The statue will be located in the fountain at Peacock Corner, in the front of Arcadia County Park, at the southwest corner of Huntington Drive and Santa Anita Avenue. The sculptor of the peacock is Dave Chapple and the sculpture cost $30,000.
Arcadia City Council appointed the following: Bob Hoherd to the Arcadia Beautiful Commission, Richard Cordano and Carmine Falabrino were reappointed. James Hanrahan was reappointed to the Human Resources Commission and John Fung to the library board. David Olsen will serve on the Planning Commission and on the relocations appeal board. Michael Cook and Randy Fowler were named to the Recreation Commission. Jim Lewis and Arlene Okamoto were reappointed to the Senior Citizen Commission, as were Carol Curtis, Harlene Hamann and Dick Milefchik.
The Arcadia City Council has adopted an ordinance with rules for using Bonita Park's Skateboard Park. The city will follow state requirements that skateboarders must wear a helmet, elbow pads, and knee pads. Hours are 8 A.M. to 10 P.M. Alcohol, drugs, and smoking are forbidden, as are graffiti and reckless skating.
Arcadia High School to celebrate its 50th anniversary. See related stories Arcadia Weekly, p. 25 on September 27, 2001 and Arcadia Weekly, p. 8 on September 20, 2001.
Arcadia police shot a mountain lion, or cougar, at 8 PM in the backyard of a home in the 2200 block of Canyon Road. The mountain lion had just mauled a dog to death and was charging at police when police shot the cat with an assault weapon.
Arcadia stockbroker Richard Robert Russo was found guilty of first-degree murder for killing his wife Carmen one year ago. He faces 50 years to life in prison with the possibility of parole.
Arcadia Weekly columnists:Jake Armstrong writes general news, p. 1; Patrick Basham provide commentary, p. 3; Charles Cooper reports on Arcadia news, p. 1, 18; John LaRocca reports on real estate, p. 20; Bill Lee reports on real estate, p. 20; Eph Konigsberg reports on fruits, p. 24; Julia MacKenzie-Miller and Terry Miller write restaurant reviews, p. 8; and Luis Romero writes general news, p. 1.
Billy Cottrell, a Cal Tech graduate student who took part in a fire bombing spree that caused millions of dollars in damage to SUV dealerships in the San Gabriel Valley, was sentenced to more than 8 years in prison. See inset for chronology of ecoterror events.