Subject: Todd Spitzer

• SpongeTodd: Mr. Spitzer masters the freebie

  Proving once again that the driest of bureaucratic documents often contain the most interesting things, Judy Lin of the Sacramento Bee digs through the disclosure forms that state lawmakers are required to file and discovers: ... from January 2005 to June 30, 2006, groups with business at the Capitol gave lawmakers and their staff at least $218,000 in free passes to 85 assorted sporting events, concerts and shows at an assortment of venues. Often, the free passes were accompanied by access to l

  August 8, 2006

• Spitzer's Penal Problems

  There are rumblings of reform coming from Sacramento. Reforms aimed at starting to straighten out the state's dysfunctional prison system. The Los Angeles Times reports, "the Senate's top Democrats on Thursday moved toward reforming California's byzantine criminal sentencing system." Unveiling legislation to create a sentencing review commission, Senate leader Don Perata of Oakland and Sen. Gloria Romero of Los Angeles said California should join 16 other states now revisiting the question of

  January 19, 2007

• Parsing Sentences (Penal edition)

  In a nice bit of timing, on Friday the Times featured Todd Spitzer's rejection of an attempt to rationalize California's criminal sentencing process and take politics out of it, and today the U.S. Supreme Court declared the state's Determinate Sentencing Law unconstitutional. The Associated Press reports: The Supreme Court struck down California's sentencing law Monday, reaffirming limits on judges' discretion and presaging shorter sentences for thousands of state prisoners. The 6-3 ruling in

  January 22, 2007

• Over Spitzer's Objection, Gov Delays New Death Chamber

  You've got to wonder how state assemblyman Todd Spitzer--a former Orange County supervisor, prosecutor and LAPD reserve officer--tolerates continual Sacramento BS even within his own Republican Party. McClatchy news reported today that GOP Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger--who oddly still enjoys The Terminator image--"personally asked" officials at San Quentin Prison to delay construction of a new death chamber that was set to premiere this May. Schwarzenegger's excuse? Spitzer--rightly frustrated

  April 20, 2007

• CA soon to spend more on prisons than education!

  According to an article today by James Sterngold in the San Francisco Chronicle, California will soon have the dubious honor of being the first state to spend more on prisons than higher education. Sterngold says that beginning in fiscal 2012-2013 the state will spend $15.4 billion annually on incarcerating prisoners—$100 million more a year than on colleges and universities. The story quotes Orange County Republican Assemblyman Todd Spitzer—a former reserve cop, prosecutor and cou

  May 21, 2007

• Tuesday's Headlines & Surprises: Poor Mike Carona

  OC's Embarrassing Buford T. Justice: Law-enforcement helicopters and ground crews normally — blatantly — tail me. You should have seen them after I revealed that local cops had planted a handgun on a DUI suspect, after I wrote about a cop who ejaculated on a female motorist in Laguna Beach, and when I published photos of Sheriff Mike Carona warmly embracing a female Russian, uh, “interpreter” in his Moscow hotel room. Anyway, the cop harassment has increased recently, and I'd wondered w

  July 17, 2007

• Sunday's Headlines & Surprises: Pipe Bomb Rocks Long Beach

  Bud Light No More, You Pick Again: My-Thuan Tran reports this morning that the “Starbucks generation” of Vietnamese Americans “couldn’t stand dingy” Little Saigon restaurants and is building “stylish and spotless . . . swank” restaurants in response. Bao Tran, 34, quit a job in insurance several years ago and opened two places I recommend to non-Vietnamese: Quan Hy and Quan Hop. Ton told the Times reporter, “We wanted a place that was clean and nice, not a place where they throw

  October 21, 2007

• Fire Officials Seek Information on OC Arsonist

  The folks over at the Register are doing a fine job reporting on the massive Orange County arson fire that’s threatening to keep firefighters at work for another two days as winds approaching hurricane force continue to pound the region. Residents in Foothill Ranch are the latest to see their neighborhood in the path of a fire that’s consumed 8,800 acres in less than 18 hours. Reg reporters say that Orange County Fire Authority officials found three ignition points at Santiago Canyon Road ne

  October 22, 2007

• Sheriff Carona Takes Two-Month Vacation

  Halfway through today's intensely dull OC Board of Supervisors meeting, during which the supes hemmed and hawed about whether to allow county voters to demand elected officials under indictment take a paid leave of absence, board chairman Chris Norby paused to read a letter from Sheriff Mike Carona, who, in case you didn't know, was indicted last week by a federal grand jury for a slew of corruption charges. In his letter, Carona announced he was—you guessed it—taking a two-month paid leave

  November 6, 2007

• Wednesday's Headlines & Surprises: OCSD's Bubbling Cesspool

  L Word? The board of supervisors is exploring whether indicted Sheriff Michael S. Carona can legally name his temporary replacement while he takes the next two months off (with full pay!) to fight “baseless” charges by the FBI. Jo Ann Galisky, 47, played Al Haig yesterday. She told told reporters that she’s the boss now and (as part of the cesspool that Carona surrounded himself with at the Orange County Sheriff’s Department) she said she will continue to serve his “program” pleasur

  November 7, 2007

• Todd Spitzer: Hero or Zero?

  August 25, 2008

• Letters

  June 17, 1999

• More on the Moron

  June 24, 1999

• The Year in Girl

  January 2, 2003

• Northern Exposure

  March 3, 2005

• Spitzer Cops Out

  February 24, 2005

• Spitzer Out?

  February 17, 2005

• Todd the Wet Sprocket

  February 10, 2005

• OC Law Enforcement 'Poisoned'

  Assemblyman Todd Spitzer questions the District Attorneys judgment, fairness

  October 7, 2004

• Pussies Galore!

  July 29, 2004

• Queer Eye for the GOP Guy

  October 2, 2003

• Diary of a Mad County

  May 1, 2003

• You Paid for Tony Rackauckas Mexican Vacation

  April 3, 2003

• Diary of a Mad County

  March 27, 2003

• Earth Mover

  Supervisor candidate Jim Potts wants to shake up county, dig tunnel under mountain

  January 30, 2003

• OC Weekly Marks the Passing of . . .

  January 2, 2003

• Toxic Politics

  December 26, 2002

• Bada Bing!

  November 28, 2002

• Point and Laugh!

  November 21, 2002

• Scam Adams

  October 31, 2002

• Diary of a Mad County

  August 22, 2002

• Measure This

  March 7, 2002

• Its the Airport, Stupid

  February 21, 2002

• Waiting for Spitzer

  February 21, 2002

• Diary of a Mad County

  January 31, 2002

• Not Just a Moron

  October 4, 2001

• Behind the Smoke

  November 9, 2000

• Mitterfired?

  April 13, 2000

• Wallys World

  March 23, 2000

• Its Official!

  March 2, 2000

• Happy Anniversary!

  December 23, 1999

• Muzzle Puzzle

  June 24, 1999

• Bargain Base Mint

  June 10, 1999

• Lights! Camera! Reaction!

  May 13, 1999

• OC's Sexiest People

  February 18, 1999

• January-March

  January 7, 1999

• If He Only Had a Brain

  October 29, 1998

• County To Voters: "Thanks for Sharing"

  April 9, 1998

• Silent Coup

  December 25, 1997

• They Call Him Flipper

  October 31, 1996