Notable Quotables

“It’s always a disappointment. I kind of take it personal.”

— Glendale Police Sgt. Dennis Smith of the Traffic Unit on the continuing trend of pedestrian-vehicle accidents in Glendale.

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“The evidence clearly showed that Dwight Shelton and Joseph Little are nothing more than cold, calculating, serial fraudsters.”

— Glendale Police Det. Robert Zaun on two men convicted and sentenced for scamming seven people and four financial institutions in a mortgage fraud scheme.

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“For most of the families, it’s not the compensation. They want to see the cemetery normalized.”

— Paul Ayers, an attorney representing families in a class action lawsuit against Grand View Memorial Park, on the $3.8-million settlement, which includes $500,000 for the cemetery’s restoration.

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“She walked in with her attorney .?.?. and said, ‘Hey, I came to surrender for what I did.’”

— Burbank Police Sgt. Robert Quesada on Amy Beck, a 33-year-old Burbank Unified middle school teacher who surrendered to police Monday for allegedly having sex with a then-14-year-old.

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“People who are good classroom teachers tend to be sensitive people, [and] this disrupts their ability to do the job.”

— Glendale Unified Supt. Michael Escalante on informing teachers of layoffs, even though they may not ultimately be without a job.

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“The smell is the worst. It smells like a dead body, with cinnamon.”

— Connor McGarrah, a sixth-grader at Balboa Elementary School, describing the odor of his class’ mummified chicken, which is part of a lesson on ancient Egypt.

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“It’s basically a black hole.”

— Jack Kyser, chief economist of the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corporation, referring to the 90,000-square foot vacancy left behind by Mervyn’s at the Glendale Galleria. The space will remain empty after a bookstore backed out of a one-year lease there.