Domestic Violence

Nearly 60 volunteers marched the streets of Glendale and Burbank on Monday to raise awareness and gain support for a new domestic violence help center that they hope will make inroads with Armenian families. Volunteers met in front of St. Peter Armenian Apostolic Church in Glendale and walked to St. Leon Armenian Apostolic Church in Burbank, marching under the slogan “Violence Hurts, Love Conquers.” Fr. Vazken Movsesian of St. Peter Armenian Apostolic Church in Glendale formed the domestic violence task force under the auspices of His Eminence Archbishop Hovnan Derderian, primate of the Western Diocese of the Armenian Church of North America.

The Armenian Relief Society of Western USA held a fundraising event at its regional headquarters in Glendale on Aug. 14 in which the organization raised more than $15,000 for domestic violence outreach objectives. It was the first such fundraising event the Armenian Relief Society has ever held to address domestic violence. The Armenian Relief Society Shelter coordinated with local organizations' shelters such as Door of Hope and the YWCA. The Armenian Relief Society Shelter Committee Chair Aida Babayan presented a report on the society's outreach program addressing domestic violence and discussed the establishment of a telephone hotline service.

Rapper Anthony Smith, better known as Tone Loc, was arrested Saturday on suspicion of domestic violence at his Burbank home, police said. Burbank police responded about 2:43 p.m. after receiving reports from a woman that Smith assaulted her, officals said. Police said the incident is under investigation. They declined to release details on the case. Smith was arrested about an hour later and booked into the Glendale jail in lieu of $50,000 bail. He posted bail later that day and was released, police said.

GLENDALE — After suffering years of emotional and physical abuse, domestic violence survivor Sandy Correa made a move to break the cycle of hurt when her son was a child. Correa, who was raised by a single mother, grew up in a tough neighborhood and never once thought a man would hit her. She went to college, where she got her bachelor's and master's degrees. "I beat the statistics of my neighborhood. I was doing great," Correa told dozens of people, who attended the Domestic Violence Candlelight Vigil on Thursday night at the YWCA of Glendale.

GLENDALE — A series of events aimed at raising awareness of sexual assault against women have been planned in the coming weeks as city officials report an increase in domestic violence. In the first two months of this year, the number of domestic violence incidents jumped to 59, up from 49 for the same period last year, according to the Glendale Police Department. “If it was just one more than the last year, it’s just one too many,” Sgt. Tom Lorenz said. While domestic violence incidents increased, the number of rapes dropped from four to three.

Rapper Tone Loc -- famous for his song "Wild Thing" -- was sentenced Monday to three years of probation and one year of anger management counseling after he pleaded no contest to possession of an assault weapon and domestic violence charges. Loc, whose legal name is Anthony Smith, was also sentenced to one day in jail and ordered to complete 30 days of community service, according to Los Angeles County district attorney's office. Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Patrick Hegarty sentenced Smith, 45, in Burbank after the rapper pleaded no contest to one count each of possessing an unregistered assault weapon -- a Colt AR-15 Sporter -- and corporal injury to a spouse.

Alecia Foster NORTHRIDGE -- After enduring 12 years of abuse, Gabriella Lopez decided she couldn't take it anymore. While her abusive husband was at work, Lopez hocked the family television. She got $75 for it. "Just enough to escape," she said. The Tijuana native fled to Los Angeles with her five children, determined to start a new life. Her courage and determination earned the Glendale resident Mimi's Cafe's Second Chance Award.

Gretchen Hoffman The Glendale YWCA is taking part in a pilot program designed to educate children and teens about domestic violence and break the cycle of violence. A 6-foot-4-inch statue of an angel will serve as the symbol of the program's goal of domestic and community peace. Officials announced the new educational program, which will be held in conjunction with the EduCare Foundation, at an event to unveil the statue Wednesday night at Universal CityWalk.

Alecia Foster GLENDALE -- The words and images on the T-shirts are powerful and filled with emotions. "They're all hand painted by victims of domestic violence and, in some cases, by the family of those who did not survive," said Edwina Dunlap, director of development for the YWCA Glendale. The display is part of local activities planned for the National YWCA's Week Without Violence campaign. The event is sponsored by the YWCA of Glendale. The shirts are part of the Clothesline Project, a program designed to empower survivors of domestic violence as well as educate the public.

I believe the headlines and articles referring to the “love triangle” shooting in Glendale (“Man is shot four times,” Jan. 9) should be changed to “domestic violence.” Assaulting or killing the new partner of your ex-wife is a form of domestic violence. Calling it a “love triangle” demeans the seriousness of the crime as well as obscuring the true origins of it. Sarojini Lall Glendale

The driver whose flight from a traffic stop led to a crash in Pasadena on Christmas Day that killed a Glendale woman is a parolee with ties to gangs and a warrant out for his arrest, police officials said. Darrell Williams, 22, of Pasadena, was arrested on suspicion of murder after two people died from the impact of a collision that occurred just after 8 p.m. at the corner of Marengo Avenue and Maple Street. Williams led Pasadena police officers on a brief chase after failing to pull over for a suspected traffic violation.

Two alleged gang members were charged with murder Friday for their roles in a police chase that ended in a Christmas Day crash that killed a Glendale woman, prosecutors said. Darrell Williams, 22, of Pasadena, and Brittany Washington, 21, of Los Angeles, were each charged with two counts of murder, three counts of assault with a deadly weapon and one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm, the L.A. Times reported . The complaint also includes gang allegations for both suspects, the Los Angeles County district attorney's office said in a statement.

A Glendale police officer who was arrested on suspicion of domestic violence has been placed on leave, although city officials declined to say when or for what reason, citing employee privacy laws. The 26-year-old officer, Daniel Schmit, was taken into custody Dec. 10 in the 900 block of Ashford Street in Simi Valley after he allegedly assaulted his live-in girlfriend, according to Lt. Stephanie Shannon of the Simi Valley Police Department. The girlfriend was taken to Simi Valley Hospital-Adventist Health to be treated for unspecified injuries and then was released, she added.

The National Charity League Ticktocker Class of 2016 raised $1,500 from a dance-a-thon held on Sunday afternoon in the YWCA's gymnasium. Charity League is a mother-daughter charitable organization. The dance-a-thon brought together 22 ninth-graders and 12 mothers for the two-hour event, said Ticktocker Gillian Chuck, 14, vice president of philanthropy for the Glendale chapter. The Ticktockers chose 20 songs to dance to and asked friends and family to sponsor them for each dance completed, said Gillian's mother Gabriel Chuck.

A two-week event that aims to raise awareness about gender violence began this week and will continue until early December in an effort to engage local, national and international communities and strengthen work about a global problem that knows no color or class. Given the fact that, according to the World Health Organization, up to 70% of women experience physical and sometimes sexual violence by a partner at some point in their lives, organizers have put together the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence, which began on Nov. 25, the International Day Against Violence Against Women, and International Human Rights Day, “in order to symbolically link violence against women and human rights and to emphasize that such violence is a violation of human rights,” according to the Center for Women's Global Leadership.

Joanne Meraz was a successful businesswoman who had everything, except a loving relationship. But when she finally found a partner, her dream was turned upside down. He initially made her feel special, but soon he became violent. Meraz was trapped “between four walls” in an abusive relationship that left her penniless and friendless, and stopped her from communicating with her son. “I lived like that for about a year and started to lose my mind, my soul and myself,” she said.

The executive director of a nonprofit set up to serve uninsured children in Glendale is stepping down to take the helm of a domestic violence shelter in Arizona. Camille Levee - who as the exuberant executive director of Glendale Healthy Kids has become a fixture in the local nonprofit community for the past 5 1/2 years - announced her resignation to the board of directors Thursday morning. She plans to move in May after shepherding through a round of key fundraisers for the nonprofit that has become synonymous with her name.

The executive director of a nonprofit set up to serve uninsured children in Glendale is stepping down to take the helm of a domestic violence shelter in Arizona. Camille Levee - who as the exuberant executive director of Glendale Healthy Kids has become a fixture in the local nonprofit community for the past 5 1/2 years - announced her resignation to the board of directors Thursday morning. She plans to move in May after shepherding through a round of key fundraisers for the nonprofit that has become synonymous with her name.

Glendale resident Bill Lefkovits, 57, was outnumbered Thursday evening as he walked in a pair of women's shoes to raise awareness of sexual assault and rape. Across the country, the Walk a Mile in Her Shoes campaign draws thousands of men to walk a mile in high heels. Among more than 100 men and women participating in Glendale on Thursday, Lefkovits appeared to be the only man to don women's footwear, wearing his wife Kathy's low-heel brown sandal wedges. “Good causes like this - I'm into it,” he said.