California
Six-year-old abducted from California park in 1951 found alive after seven decades
A man who was abducted as a six-year-old while playing in a California park in 1951 has been found more than seven decades later thanks to the help of an online ancestry test, old photos and newspaper clippings.
The Bay Area News Group reported on Friday that Luis Armando Albino’s niece in Oakland – with assistance from police, the FBI and the justice department – located her uncle living on the US east coast.
Albino, a father and grandfather, is a retired firefighter and Marine Corps veteran who served in Vietnam, according to his niece, 63-year-old Alida Alequin. She found Albino and reunited him with his California family in June.
On 21 February 1951 a woman lured the six-year-old Albino from the park in West Oakland, where he had been playing with his older brother, and promised him in Spanish that she would buy him candy.
Instead, the woman kidnapped the Puerto Rico-born boy, flying him to the east coast, where he ended up with a couple who raised him as if he were their own son, the news group reported. Officials and family members didn’t say where on the east coast he lives.
For more than 70 years, Albino remained missing but he was always in the hearts of his family and his photo hung at relatives’ houses, his niece said. His mother died in 2005 but never gave up hope that her son was alive.
Oakland police acknowledged that Alequin’s efforts “played an integral role in finding her uncle” and that “the outcome of this story is what we strive for”.
In an interview with the news group, she said her uncle “hugged me and said ‘Thank you for finding me’ and gave me a kiss on the cheek”.
Oakland Tribune articles from the time reported that police, soldiers from a local army base, the Coast Guard and other city employees joined a huge search for the missing boy. San Francisco Bay and other waterways were also searched, according to the articles. His brother, Roger Albino, was interrogated several times by investigators but stood by his story about a woman with a bandana around her head taking his brother.
The first notion that her uncle might be still alive came in 2020 when, “just for fun”, Alequin said, she took an online DNA test. It showed a 22% match with a man who eventually turned out to be her uncle. A further search at the time yielded no answers or any response from him, she said.
Early this year, she and her daughters began searching again. On a visit to the Oakland public library she looked at microfilm of Tribune articles – including one that had a picture of Luis and Roger – which convinced her that she was on the right track. She went to Oakland police the same day.
Investigators eventually agreed the new lead was substantial, and a new missing persons case was opened. Oakland police said last week that the missing persons case was closed, but they and the FBI considered the kidnapping investigation to still be open.
Luis was located on the east coast and provided a DNA sample, as did his sister, Alequin’s mother.
On 20 June, investigators went to her mother’s home, Alequin said, and told them both that her uncle had been found.
“We didn’t start crying until after the investigators left,” Alequin said. “I grabbed my mom’s hands and said, ‘We found him.’ I was ecstatic.”
On 24 June, with the assistance of the FBI, Luis came to Oakland with members of his family and met with Alequin, her mother and other relatives. The next day Alequin drove her mother and her newfound uncle to Roger’s home in Stanislaus County, California.
“They grabbed each other and had a really tight, long hug. They sat down and just talked,” she said, discussing the day of the kidnapping, their military service and more.
Luis returned to the east coast but came back again in July for a three-week visit. It was the last time he saw Roger, who died in August.
Alequin said her uncle did not want to talk to the media.
“I was always determined to find him, and who knows, with my story out there, it could help other families going through the same thing,” Alequin said. “I would say: don’t give up.”
SAN DIEGO (KGTV) — Starting Jan. 1, 2025, a new California law will double the response time for tenants facing eviction, offering them more opportunity to seek legal advice and adequately prepare their cases. The law extends the response period from five business days to 10 business days.
Genea Nicole Wall, a tenant from City Heights, experienced the turmoil of eviction earlier this year after failing to pay her rent on time.
“You’re trying to pack up and trying to respond. You’re just all over the place. You’re emotionally all over the place,” Wall says.
Unlike most other court summons that allow for a 30-day response period, eviction notices in California have traditionally given tenants only five business days to act. Wall described her struggle to navigate the court system under these constraints.
“Going to court trying to get assistance… It was just a grueling task. Daunting trying to get stuff done,” she says.
The new state law is designed to provide tenants with more time to stabilize their situation and seek proper legal support.
“What do those extra five days mean for someone who was just served an eviction notice? It’s giving people more time to get your bearings, figure out what you’re going to do before it’s too late and you lose automatically and get fast-tracked to being homeless and kicked out of your home,” says Gilberto Vera, an attorney with the nonprofit Legal Aid Society.
According to Vera, 40% of tenants facing eviction in San Diego last year did not respond to their court summons, effectively forfeiting their cases.
“If they don’t respond and tell the court that the eviction was wrongful and invalid – they’ll lose automatically,” Vera says.
Vera hopes this law will help tenants better understand their rights and prevent wrongful evictions by providing the necessary time to form a defense.
“I would be able to think — you could plan to take the time off to do what you need to do to get the assistance,” Wall says.
Wall, now living in Brea after being evicted from her City Heights apartment, believes she could have won her court case had this law been in effect.
California
Federal homelessness data says California homeless population grew to 187,084 – Washington Examiner
(The Center Square) – Newly released federal data says California’s homeless population grew to 187,084 at the start of 2024, up from 181,399 in 2023, raising questions about the efficacy of the state’s tens of billions of dollars in recent homeless spending.
Most of the state’s increase in homelessness can be attributed to growth in the state’s unsheltered homeless population, which is nearly half of the nation’s total. However, the state’s homeless population did grow much less than the national average, suggesting some of the state’s programs — albeit costly — may finally be making an impact.
In September, California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office brushed off a CalMatters estimate that the state’s homeless population grew to nearly 186,000, telling The Center Square the organization’s reporting was based on incomplete data that analyzed only 32 of the state’s 58 counties.
“California and other officials use official confirmed data published by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, and not CalMatters’ estimates, which are unverified,” said a Newsom spokesperson to The Center Square in September, when CalMatters released its report.
Now, the verified count from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development recommended by Newsom’s office shows that homelessness is even higher than CalMatters estimated. This 5,685 individual increase in the state’s homeless population could suggest the state’s homelessness efforts — and tens of billions of dollars in recent state funding — have been unable to stop the growth of the state’s homeless population.
Earlier this year a state auditor looked into $24 billion of state homelessness spending, finding “the State lacks current information on the ongoing costs and outcomes of its homelessness programs” because it has “not consistently tracked and evaluated the State’s efforts to prevent and end homelessness.”
Newsom vetoed two widely-supported bipartisan bills to better track and evaluate homelessness spending and outcomes, saying his own directives to increase accountability make the measures redundant.
The state is now home to 123,974 unsheltered homeless individuals — up from 117,424 the year prior — or nearly half of the nation’s total. In 2019 — before the COVID-19 era — California had 151,278 homeless individuals, 108,432 of whom were unsheltered.
Good morning, and welcome to the Essential California newsletter. Here’s what you need to know to start your weekend:
The best movies that capture the essence of California
The Essential California team this year expanded opportunities for readers to directly engage with the newsletter. Each week we ask readers to answer a question — from the best local restaurants to favorite books.
One question in particular got a lot of attention and sparked some debate: What is your favorite movie that captures the essence of California?
Below are the most mentioned movies and comments from readers about what makes these films special to California. We hope this list will help find something to watch this weekend. Enjoy!
“Chinatown”
Adelaide writes: “It doesn’t get more iconic than a film noir that tackles tremendous geopolitical issues that still affect us to this day.”
And Jim writes: “How can you talk about movies that capture the essence of California and not mention one of the greatest movies of all time, ‘Chinatown’? Today, despite the state’s beauty and glorious climate (most of the time), it is still as corrupt and morally bankrupt as it was back in the days of stealing water from the Owens Valley.”
Paul Giamatti, left, and Thomas Haden Church in the 2004 movie “Sideways,” directed by Alexander Payne.
(Searchlight Pictures)
“Sideways”
Raymond Ballesteros writes: “One of my all time favorite movies to see that truly captures the essence of California, hands down, is ‘Sideways.’
“Alexander Payne seizes the beauty and majesty of California’s Santa Barbara wine country, including a handful of wineries that encapsulates the hearts of fellow wine lovers across California and the country. Of course, not to be watched with a glass of Merlot!”
Keanu Reeves, left, and Patrick Swayze in the 1991 film “Point Break.”
(20th Century Fox)
“Point Break”
Fritzi Lareau write: “I am a tour guide and when touring the Golden State I show my guests ‘Point Break’ (the original with Keanu Reeves and Patrick Swayze) or ‘Hollywood Homicide’ starring Harrison Ford.”
Edward James Olmos stars as Garfield High School math teacher Jaime Escalante in 1988’s “Stand and Deliver.”
(Warner Bros. Pictures)
“Stand and Deliver”
Robert Reul writes: “One great film that is 100% California is ‘Stand and Deliver,’ with Edward James Olmos and an amazing cast of young actors. I have found few, if any, films that capture the absolute magic that can happen in the community of first-generation Americans, descended from hard-working Mexican immigrants.”
Jeff Bridges as the title character in the Coen Brothers’ “The Big Lebowski.”
(Merrick Morton / Gramercy Pictures)
Honorable mentions
“Top Gun”
“The Birds”
“The Parent Trap”
“The Big Lebowski”
“Fast Times at Ridgemont High”
“La La Land”
Want to wade into the debate over which movie captures the essence of California? Feel free to email us at essentialcalifornia@latimes.com.
The week’s biggest stories
President-elect Donald Trump, shown at his Mar-a-Lago estate in 2023, is stocking his cabinet with Floridians.
(Evan Vucci / Associated Press)
Florida is winning the political battle with California as Trump takes office
- Trump is stocking his cabinet with Floridians. And his plans to reverse California’s policies on the environment, crime, homelessness and education are facing far less pushback than they did during his first term.
- Gov. Gavin Newsom has vowed to continue the fight against Trump’s policies but without what he called “a resistance brand” that defined his earlier clashes.
- Meanwhile, healthcare is Newsom’s biggest unfinished project. Trump complicates the governor’s task.
Destructive waves keep thrashing Santa Cruz, causing millions of dollars in damage in recent years
Scientists say we are fighting H5N1 bird flu with one hand tied behind our backs
- Scientists and health officials fear we’re on the precipice of another global pandemic as the H5N1 bird flu virus steamrolls its way across the globe. But when that could come to pass is hard to predict.
- Just one mutation can make the bird flu a threat to humans, California researchers found.
- L.A. County health officials are warning pet owners to avoid raw cat food after a feline died of bird flu.
California is growing again
- The Golden State’s population grew by almost a quarter of a million residents in 2024, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, a rebound that brings California almost back to its pre-pandemic numbers.
- While California’s population gain of 232,570 people from July 1, 2023, to July 1, 2024, represents the largest numeric population increase in the nation’s West, it lagged behind Texas, which expanded its population by 562,941, and Florida, which grew by 467,347 people.
More big stories
Get unlimited access to the Los Angeles Times. Subscribe here.
This week’s must reads
(Emiliano Ponzi / For The Times)
A California inmate recruited “wives” to spread fentanyl across Alaska, federal authorities say.
The prisoner, Heraclio Sanchez Rodriguez, oversaw a sprawling drug ring that spread death and addiction to the most remote corners of Alaska, prosecutors say.
More great reads
How can we make this newsletter more useful? Send comments to essentialcalifornia@latimes.com.
For your weekend
Refresh yourself on “Squid Game” before starting Season 2 on Netflix.
(No Ju-han / Netflix)
Going out
Staying in
How well did you follow the news this week? Take our quiz.
(Times staff and wire photos)
Which creature gets top billing in the title of the Barry Jenkins–directed “Lion King” prequel that hit theaters last week? Plus nine other questions from our weekly news quiz.
Have a great weekend, from the Essential California team
Hunter Clauss, multiplatform editor
Check our top stories, topics and the latest articles on latimes.com.
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