POLITICS
Democrat Mike Gatto will face Republican Sunder Ramani in a special June runoff election for the 43rd Assembly District after the two beat their competition Tuesday for the first in a series of elections for the same seat.
With all precincts reporting, Gatto was the top vote-getter, with 10,584 votes. Ramani earned 10,403. Each of the men took close to 32% of the total vote.
Gatto’s main Democratic rival, Glendale school board member Nayiri Nahabedian, took 22% of the vote, with 7,298. The other Democrat in the race, Armenian television host Chahe Keuroghelian, was last with 4,444, or 14%.
PUBLIC SAFETY
More than 100 people, from parents and educators to government officials and community leaders, attended a substance-abuse forum Tuesday, which featured a panel of experts to discuss substance-abuse issues and options for dealing with them.
A short video depicted blurred faces and distorted voices of local 15- to 19-year-olds who talked about drug and alcohol use in the community. One said students often went to school high and drunk.
The Crescenta Valley Drug and Alcohol Prevention Coalition organized the meeting in an effort to educate the public on the problem, tapping the expertise of an addiction specialist, psychotherapist, educator, physician, Los Angeles County Superior Court judge and youth development coordinator.
Police say they plan to pursue several fraud-related charges for a 38-year-old parolee who was arrested Saturday after officers allegedly found check-making supplies and equipment in his car.
Officers approached Joseph Jarmen on Saturday after seeing him working on a laptop while parked outside the Target on Colorado Street, Glendale Police Sgt. Tom Lorenz said.
Jarmen was on parole for weapons violations and was believed to be armed and dangerous, Lorenz said.
CITY HALL
Councilman Dave Weaver was passed over for the third year in a row Tuesday as the City Council voted for two of the top leadership spots at City Hall.
The council voted 4 to 1 to elect Councilwoman Laura Friedman to head the Redevelopment Agency, and Councilman Frank Quintero was appointed as chairman of the Housing Authority.
The Redevelopment Agency, which oversees major land-use proposals in central and south Glendale, has in the past year focused on strategies to drive the local economy in the face of a protracted recession.
