Editor’s note: Today we are starting a new video series, “Hear Me Out,” that will spotlight recent letters to the editor and let the writers tell their stories in greater depth. Click here for an introduction to the series ; visit latimes.com/letters for more videos. To the editor: Recently, a homeless man kicked a Westwood Presbyterian minister in the head in an unprovoked attack in front of his church. He also engaged in a racist rant toward our African American minister. Instead of summoning the city’s mental health response team, the police took him to the police station, then released him. As a psychiatrist, I have observed numerous suicides and even a homicide resulting from mentally unstable people who are either dangerous to themselves or others not being admitted to a psychiatric hospital. Advertisement Perhaps the police should have considered calling the city’s mental health team to evaluate this person before releasing him. So, we have to wait now …
HURRICANE ANDREW; Official Storm Death Count Does Not Tell Whole Story
See the article in its original context from August 28, 1992 Section Page Buy Reprints View on timesmachine TimesMachine is an exclusive benefit for home delivery and digital subscribers. About the Archive This is a digitized version of an article from The Times’s print archive, before the start of online publication in 1996. To preserve these articles as they originally appeared, The Times does not alter, edit or update them. Occasionally the digitization process introduces transcription errors or other problems; we are continuing to work to improve these archived versions. Although the official death count for Hurricane Andrew in Florida now stands at 13, the deaths of at least 30 other people may be attributable to the storm, medical examiners performing autopsies in its aftermath said today. Some of the 30 deaths occurred because high winds kept emergency workers from reaching victims, the medical examiner said, and others were due to anxiety and …
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Opinion: Introducing ‘Hear Me Out,’ a video series featuring Times letter writers
Today we are starting a new video series, “Hear Me Out,” that will spotlight recent letters to the editor and let the writers tell their stories in greater depth. Over the years, I’ve read letters from teachers, cops, doctors, nurses, pilots, Forest Service workers, lifeguards, diplomats, people living on the street, Holocaust survivors and people who long ago escaped authoritarian regimes. Readers from every walk of life have been eager to share their common experiences as well as their very different perspectives on the issues and events of the day. I’ve found that their stories often add another dimension to our journalism. In “Hear Me Out,” letter writers talk about their views and the personal experiences that shape their opinions. Today’s video features Jura Adams, a psychiatrist, who wrote to us hoping to get help for a homeless man who assaulted her minister. It provides another window on the seemingly intractable homelessness crisis in Los Angeles. Click here to read …
Spreading HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, is against the law in 37 states – with penalties ranging up to life in prison
Despite the fact that HIV is now a treatable medical condition, the majority of U.S. states still have laws on the books that criminalize exposing other people to HIV. Whether or not the virus is transmitted does not matter. Neither does a person’s intention to cause harm. A person simply must be aware of being HIV-positive to be found guilty. These laws are enforced mainly on marginalized people living in poverty who cannot afford lawyers. The penalties – felony convictions and being placed on sex offender registries – are severe and life altering. It is difficult to know exactly how many people are affected by HIV criminal laws, since a central database of such arrests does not exist . The HIV Justice Network has collected a partial list of 2,923 HIV criminal cases since 2008 based on media reports. I am a professor of social work who studies the impact of HIV criminal laws from the perspective of people who have been arrested . My research shows such statutes are …
‘Heartless’ United Airlines Vaccine Mandate Halted in Federal Court
United Airlines reluctantly agreed to postpone its company-wide Chinese coronavirus vaccine mandate Friday until a federal judge is able to hold further hearings in a case brought by six of the airline’s employees. Evidently fearing it could lose Friday’s court battle and be slapped with a temporary restraining order (TRO), the airline pivoted 180 degrees and agreed to postpone its mandate until October 15. United Airlines originally told its 67,000 U.S. employees they must be vaccinated against Chinese coronavirus (or secure an exemption) by September 27 or face termination. Instead, unvaccinated employees will now be able to continue working normally while the plaintiffs and the company gather what they need to proceed in court. United Airlines employees wear masks as they walk through Terminal 1 at O’Hare International Airport in Chicago, Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2020 (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh) . Mark Paoletta, a partner at Schaerr Jaffe representing the plaintiff said in …
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