friday

Friday’s live TV and streaming broadcasts for the Milan-Cortina Olympics unless noted (subject to change). All events stream live on Peacock or NBCOlympics.com with a streaming or cable login. All times Pacific. 🏅 — medal event for live broadcasts.

MULTIPLE SPORTS
8 p.m. — “Primetime in Milan” (delay): Bobsled, speedskating, curling, hockey and more. | NBC

BIATHLON
5:15 a.m. — 🏅Men’s 15-kilometer mass start | USA
9:15 a.m. — 🏅Men’s 15-kilometer mass start (re-air) | NBC

BOBSLED
9 a.m. — Two-woman bobsled, Run 1 | NBC, Peacock
10:50 a.m. — Two-woman bobsled, Run 2 | Peacock
1:15 p.m. — Two-woman bobsled, runs 1-2 | USA

CURLING
Women semifinals
5:05 a.m. — Teams TBD | Peacock
5:05 a.m. — Teams TBD | Peacock
6 a.m. — Teams TBD (in progress) | USA
🏅Men’s bronze medal match
10:05 a.m. — Teams TBD | Peacock

FREESTYLE SKIING
1 a.m. — Women’s skicross, qualifying | USA
3 a.m. — 🏅Women’s skicross, finals | USA
10 a.m. — Women’s skicross, finals (re-air) | USA
10:30 a.m. — 🏅Men’s freeski halfpipe, finals | NBC

HOCKEY
Men’s semifinals
7:40 a.m. — Canada vs. Finland | Peacock
8:50 a.m. — Canada vs. Finland (in progress) | USA
12:10 p.m. — U.S. vs. Slovakia | NBC

SHORT TRACK SPEEDSKATING
11:15 a.m. — 🏅Women’s 1,500 meters; men’s 5,000-meter relay finals | USA

SPEEDSKATING
7:30 a.m. — 🏅Women’s 1,500 meters | USA

Jaden Bailes, JSerra’s leading scorer, was being patient. He had just eight points going into the fourth quarter Tuesday night in a Southern Section Division 1 quarterfinal playoff game against Rolling Hills Prep at North Torrance. The Lions were clinging to a seven-point lead.

That’s when Bailes decided to go into Stephen Curry mode. He made three consecutive threes to ignite a 15-0 surge that left Rolling Hills Prep helpless. The Lions pulled away for a 66-49 victory that only took 71 minutes to complete. The Lions (22-12) are a 12-loss team that’s looking pretty good with no fellow Trinity League teams left in Division 1. They do have to figure out a way to contain high-scoring Jason Crowe Jr. of Inglewood in Friday’s semifinals at JSerra.

Bailes certainly can make shots with Crowe if given the opportunity.

“They were doubling him on everything and I told him to be a playmaker,” JSerra coach Keith Wilkinson said.

Said Bailes: “I was confident the ball was going to come back to me. It’s a collective team effort. Lanes started opening up and I took advantage.”

Bailes finished with 19 points, Earl Bryson had 18 points and Godschoice Eboigbodin had 11 points and 12 rebounds. Kawika Suter scored 16 points for Rolling Hills Prep, which trailed by five points at halftime and 41-34 after three quarters.

Harvard-Westlake 83, Santa Margarita 62: After losing three of their last four games, the Wolverines have come back big time in the Open Division playoffs, winning their pool with an impressive road win. Joe Sterling and Pierce Thompson each scored 22 points and Amir Jones 21.

Redondo Union 69, Corona Centennial 57: Chris Sanders scored 22 points to help Redondo Union win its pool and move on to a quarterfinal home game Friday against La Mirada.

Sherman Oaks Notre Dame 69, St. John Bosco 60: The Knights won their Open Division pool and will host Corona Centennial on Friday. NaVorro Bowman Jr. scored 20 points and Zach White had 14 points.

Sierra Canyon 95, Corona del Mar 65: Maxi Adams had 25 points and Brandon McCoy 23 for the 24-1 Trailblazers, who won their pool and will play host to Santa Margarita on Friday.

Inglewood 82, Fairmont Prep 69: Jason Crowe Jr. finished with 45 points to help Inglewood reach the Division 1 semifinals and assure Crowe will be in the state playoffs.

Mater Dei 82, El Dorado 72: Luke Barnett led the way with five threes and 26 points and Zain Majeed added 25 points to advance the Monarchs into the Division 2 semifinals.

Crean Lutheran 83, Village Christian 58: The top-seeded Saints routed Village Christian to move into the Division 1 semifinals, where it will face Rancho Christian, a 71-62 winner over Long Beach Millikan.

Admittedly, I am a guy who generally dreads the thought of plodding through a shopping mall on any day of the year, but to me the encroachment of Black Friday into Thanksgiving evening seems not only insane but also disturbingly unpatriotic.

It was bad enough when it became the norm for people to show up in the middle of the night in order to be near the front of the line when store doors swung open early on the morn after Thanksgiving. Every time I heard about the herd of shoppers being culled as someone got trampled or sent to the hospital after a fight over a Tickle Me Elmo, I felt justified in my smugness and disdain of this retail frenzy. If that is how the rabble wanted to spend their time and money, so be it. The manic rush to save a hundred bucks on a 50-inch flat-screen TV or finish Christmas shopping by 9 a.m. on Black Friday could go on without me.

Over the years, though, retailers have pushed the starting time for this mad dash earlier and earlier until now it is bumping up against the slicing of the pumpkin pie at the Thanksgiving dinner table. This does not seem right.

PHOTOS: Top of the Ticket cartoons

I pity the poor retail workers who have to leave home and hearth and turkey dinner on the most venerable national holiday of the year. Instead of giving thanks for the opportunity to be confronted by a greedy horde of bargain hunters, I suspect most of those workers are cursing the store owners who decided to ruin the day with their own lust for a dollar. I think it is safe to assume the guys who own Target or Best Buy or the other big retailers will not be manning the cash registers. No, they will be sharing a leisurely Thanksgiving repast with their heirs in the peace and safety of their gated communities.

In 2013, it will be exactly 150 years since Abraham Lincoln set aside the fourth Thursday in November as a national day of “Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the Heavens.” Obviously, traditions shift over time, but let us hope that by next year those who put making money and spending money above all other values will not have totally desecrated what was once an all-American day like no other.

For anyone who feels as disgusted as I am with the plundering of Thanksgiving, go to Change.org and sign the petition urging Target to stop being the Grinch who stole Thanksgiving from employees. Maybe if one retailer is shamed into doing business more thoughtfully, others can be, as well.

MILAN — When she skated, Tara Lipinski was always nervous. But it was different before the free skate of the 1998 Olympics. The teenager cried that morning. She called her parents after the six-minute warmup and said she couldn’t do it. Her legs were physically shaking in her beginning pose. She didn’t know what to do.

“When you go to the Olympics, there’s no training for that,” said Lipinski, now an analyst for NBC. “You don’t know what it’s going to feel like ‘til you’re actually feeling it.”

The awe-inspiring dream that often starts as a child can quickly turn into a nightmare for athletes who get blinded by the bright Olympic spotlight. While Lipinski realized her dream, becoming Olympic champion in Nagano, she knows the suffocating feeling of competing under the Olympic rings.

She knows the stress that devoured Ilia Malinin on Friday in Milan.

Malinin’s meltdown from favorite to eighth place underscored the unpredictability of the Olympic stage. The 21-year-old dubbed “the Quad God” was supposed to unleash the first quadruple axel in Olympic history. The four-and-a-half twisting jump he successfully executed when he was 17 has been the talk of the Olympic cycle.

Battling nerves and the conditioning needed for a long Olympic competition, he didn’t use it during the team competition or his individual short program. The free skate would be the last opportunity. It felt like the perfect coronation for the soon-to-be Olympic champion.

Then he bailed midair.

“I think that, for me, I would be like, ‘Oh, man, I just missed what everyone was waiting for,’” Lipinski said. “You go through that minute of being rattled and you have to come back to [the program]. … The next jump [he] wasn’t able to completely reset and shake it off. And then once that next mistake happened — and for Ilia, who doesn’t make mistakes — I think that was probably very difficult for him.”

The standing-room-only crowd gasped when Malinin gave up on the quad axel. Fans grew more uneasy when he fell two jumps later. They tried to urge him on as the mistakes piled up. Instead of joyful encouragement, the clapping felt like desperation in the arena.

Ilia Malinin falls during his free skate at the Milan-Cortina Games on Friday.

(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

Eight years ago, when Nathan Chen bent under the Olympic pressure in Pyeongchang, the crowd’s gasps each time he stumbled through his short program only made one of the hardest moments of his career even more difficult.

“That just hurts you to your gut,” Chen said in a video for Yahoo Sports. “You get up and mentally you have to refresh … but also the energy just changes in the arena. You can tell there’s tension now.”

Chen, then 18 years old in his Olympic debut, bounced back in a fearless free skate that moved him into fifth overall. He became almost unbeatable for the next Olympic cycle. At the Beijing Games, he set the world record for the short program, exorcised the demons from 2018 and became the United States’ first Olympic gold medalist in men’s singles in 12 years.

Malinin was a contender to be at those Games four years ago. He finished second in the 2022 U.S. championships, but was left off the Olympic team in a controversial decision. Then just 17, he was only in his first full season of senior competition.

But Malinin was already poised to be the future of the sport. Simply going to the Games as an understudy to Chen’s leading role would have been valuable experience.

Instead, U.S. Figure Skating selected third-place finisher Vincent Zhou and fourth-place Jason Brown.

Sitting with his coaches while waiting for his score Friday, a frustrated Malinin said if he had been sent to Beijing, he “wouldn’t have skated like that.”

“It’s not easy,” he said as cameras zoomed into his face.

He shrugged. He reset.

“It’s done,” he said.

“I think if I went to ’22 then I would have had more experience and know how to handle this Olympic environment,” a composed Malinin said in the mixed zone interview area. “But also, I don’t know what the next stages of my life would look like if I went there. So now all I can do is just regroup from this and really just take in the information that happened and just figure out how to manage in the future.”

Malinin has said he wants to skate for three Olympic cycles. The first attempt ended in shattering disappointment. That could only make the comeback sweeter.

“He will dominate the sport for years to come,” Lipinski said. “This was a huge, obviously, heartbreak for him, but we will see him rise again.”

It’s one thing most everyone agrees on: federal funding cuts have left the Los Angeles County health system teetering toward financial collapse.

But the supervisors’ chosen antidote — a half-cent sales tax to replenish county coffers — is being condemned by a slew of cities as its own form of financial catastrophe.

“I heard from every city in my district,” said Kathryn Barger, the only supervisor who voted against putting the sales tax on the June ballot.

The resounding reaction? “Absolutely not,” she says.

“People are fatigued,” Barger said. “I’m not convinced that it’s going to pass.”

Observers wouldn’t have sensed that fatigue from the rowdy crowd of supporters that filled the board meeting Tuesday, along with seldom-used overflow rooms. The supervisors voted 4-1 at the meeting to put the tax on the ballot.

“There really are no other viable and timely options,” said Supervisor Holly Mitchell, who introduced the measure along with Supervisor Hilda Solis. “Trust me, I looked high and low.”

The goal, supervisors say, is to generate $1 billion per year to backfill the dwindling budgets of local hospitals and clinics battered by federal funding cuts.

The county’s already bracing for impact. The Department of Public Health announced Friday it would shutter seven clinics. Officials say it’s just the beginning, with the county poised to lose more than $2 billion in funding for health services over the next three years. Hospitals could be down the road, they warn.

But many cities, some of which could have local sales tax hit more than 11%, are revolting on the plan.

“I have been getting calls and texts and letters like honestly I have not gotten in a long time,” Supervisor Janice Hahn told the audience as a message from Jeff Wood — the vice mayor of Lakewood — pinged on her phone. “They are really diving in on this one.”

In a series of opposition letters, the cities unleashed a torrent of criticism. Norwalk called the tax “rushed.” Palmdale said it had “significant flaws.” Glendale found it “deeply troubling and fundamentally unfair.”

Some bristled at the cost to consumers. Palmdale and Lancaster — some of the poorest cities in the county — could wind up with some of the highest sales tax rates in the state if the measure passes.

Some cities say the bigger issue is they don’t trust the county. They point to its checkered history of pushing ballot measures that don’t live up to their promises.

Measure B, a special parcel tax, was passed in 2002 to fund the county’s trauma center network. An audit more than a decade later found the county couldn’t prove it used the money for emergency medical services.

Measure H, the homelessness services tax measure, was passed in 2017 as a temporary tax. Voters agreed in 2024 to make the tax permanent and to double the rate — though some cities insist they’ve never gotten their fair share of the funds.

“It’s a historical issue,” said Glendora mayor David Fredendall, whose city opposes the sales tax. “We don’t trust it.”

The county decided to put the sales tax on the ballot as a general tax, meaning the money goes into the general fund. Legally, supervisors could use the money for whatever services they desire.

“They say ‘No, this is our plan’, but we’re going to expand from five to nine supervisors over the next few years before this tax expires,” said Marcel Rodarte, the head of the California Contract Cities Assn., a coalition of cities inside the county. “They may say we need to use these funds for something else.”

A general tax also is easier to pass, since it needs only a majority vote. Special taxes — levies earmarked for a specific purpose — need two-thirds of the vote.

The measure also asks voters to approve the creation of an oversight group that would monitor where the money goes. The supervisors also voted on a spending plan for the tax money, which would dedicate the largest portion of funds for uninsured residents over the next five years.

Some opponents predict the tax will stick around longer than advertised.

“A temporary tax is like Bigfoot,” said Jon Coupal, president of the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Assn., a group that advocates for lower taxes. “It exists in fantasy.”

State of play

— FRIENDLY FIRE: Three hours before the filing deadline, L.A. City Councilmember Nithya Raman jumped into the race for mayor, challenging her former ally Karen Bass. Her candidacy will be Bass’ most serious threat.

— DEFUND DETOUR: Shortly after, Raman staked out her position on cops, saying she doesn’t want the LAPD to lose more police. Raman called for department downsizing when she first ran for city council in 2020.

— LOYAL LABOR: The head of the AFL-CIO, the county’s powerful labor federation, blasted Raman as an “opportunist.” Federation president Yvonne Wheeler said her organization will “use every tool” at its disposal to get Bass reelected.

— PETITION PUSH: Scores of candidates for L.A. city offices picked up their petitions Feb. 7, launching their effort to collect the signatures they need to qualify for the ballot. The first to turn in a petition was Councilmember Traci Park, who is facing two challengers while running for reelection in a coastal district.

— EYES ON ICE: Los Angeles police officers must turn on their body cameras if they’re at the scene of federal immigration enforcement operations, according to a new executive directive issued by Bass. LAPD officers also must document the name and badge number of the agents’ on-scene supervisor.

— CONTESTING CLEANUPS: A federal judge ruled this week that the city of L.A. violated the constitutional rights of homeless people by seizing and destroying their personal property during encampment cleanups. Lawyers for the plaintiffs want U.S. District Judge Dale S. Fischer to issue an injunction requiring the city to give homeless people the opportunity to contest the seizure of their property.

— HOTEL HIKE: Voters in the June 2 election will be asked to hike the city’s tax on nightly hotel stays — increasing it to 16% from 14% — for the next three years. The tax would then drop to 15% in 2029.

— PAYDAY POLITICS: The county is considering a proposal that would remove supervisors’ final decision-making power in contract disputes involving sheriff’s deputies and firefighters. Supporters say it’ll take politics out of labor negotiations while opponents warn of bloated labor costs.

QUICK HITS

• Where is Inside Safe? The mayor’s signature homelessness program went to Los Angeles City Council District 13, bringing 50 unhoused Angelenos indoors from an encampment.
• On the docket next week: The county’s back to its marathon budget briefings. Tune in Tuesday for presentations from the sheriff, district attorney and probation department.

Stay in touch

That’s it for this week! Send your questions, comments and gossip to LAontheRecord@latimes.com. Did a friend forward you this email? Sign up here to get it in your inbox every Saturday morning.

FRIDAY’S RESULTS

BOYS

CITY SECTION
QUARTERFINALS
DIVISION I

#1 Granada Hills 82, #9 LA Marshall 50

#5 LA Jordan at #4 Crenshaw, 1 p.m. Saturday

#3 Venice 58, #6 Sun Valley Poly 40

at #2 Chatsworth 67, #10 Rancho Dominguez 64

DIVISION II

#1 Bravo d. #8 MSCP, forfeit

#4 King/Drew 52, #12 Downtown Magnets 50

#6 Carson at #3 Sylmar

#10 Marquez 57, #2 Eagle Rock 50

DIVISION III

#1 RFK Community 49, #9 Orthopaedic 46

#5 Huntington Park 45, #4 Hollywood 36

#3 SOCES 84, #6 Foshay 64

#10 Verdugo Hills 59, #2 Los Angeles 58

Note: Semifinals Feb. 21-22; Finals Feb. 27-28.

SECOND ROUND

DIVISION IV

#1 East Valley 73, #16 Jefferson 47

#8 Hawkins 73, #9 Mendez 18

#5 San Fernando 71, #12 Animo Robinson 65

#4 Gardena 65, #20 USC-MAE 60

#3 Bell 53, #14 West Adams 41

#6 Angelou 56, #11 Alliance Marine-Innovation 27

#7 Contreras 64, #10 Animo Watts 50

#2 Franklin 74, #15 New West Charter 37

DIVISION V

#17 Central City Value at #1 Van Nuys

#8 Legacy 58, #9 Sotomayor 43

#21 Camino Nuevo 56, #5 Stella 29

#13 Magnolia Science Academy 55, #4 Sun Valley Magnet 47

#19 Santee 78, #3 Vaughn 56

#11 Torres 69, #6 Animo Venice 39

#7 Monroe 61, #10 East College Prep 39

#2 Canoga Park 57, #18 Chavez 45

Note: Quarterfinals Feb. 18; Semifinals Feb. 20; Finals Feb. 27-28.

SOUTHERN SECTION

SECOND ROUND

OPEN DIVISION

Pool A

#9 Crespi 82, #8 Corona del Mar 70

Pool B

#7 Harvard-Westlake 67, #10 Damien 62

Pool C

#6 Corona Centennial 74, #11 Etiwanda 48

Pool D

#12 La Mirada 56, #5 St. John Bosco 53

Note: Third round pool play games Tuesday at higher seeds; Quarterfinals Feb. 20; Semifinals Feb. 24; Finals Feb. 28 at Toyota Arena.

DIVISION 1

#1 Crean Lutheran 87, Corona Santiago 80

#9 Village Christian 67, #8 Mira Costa 66

#12 Millikan 79, Windward 75

Rancho Christian 94, Cypress 82

#3 Inglewood 103, St. Bernard 92

Fairmont Prep 60, #6 Brentwood 57

#7 Rolling Hills Prep 63, Orange Lutheran 52

#2 JSerra 75, Loyola 46

DIVISION 2

#1 Bishop Amat 81, Chino Hills 74

#8 Anaheim Canyon 70, Oxnard 67

#12 Servite at #5 Eastvale Roosevelt, Saturday

Edison 58, Valencia 56

#3 Mater Dei 85, #14 Westlake 59

#11 El Dorado 66, Leuzinger 61

#7 Rancho Verde 84, #10 San Marcos 69

#2 Hesperia 77, #15 Elsinore 62

DIVISION 3

#16 Ontario Christian 54, San Marino 52

#8 Murrieta Mesa 88, #9 Temecula Valley 67

Warren 64, Long Beach Wilson 61

Golden Valley 61, Los Altos 54

#3 Alta Loma 65, Ayala 56

Aliso Niguel 87, #11 Glendora 73

#10 Gahr 56, #7 Aquinas 42

#15 Woodbridge 44, Eastside 39

DIVISION 4

#16 Blair 79, #1 Bonita 71

#9 Trabuco Hills 60, #8 Saugus 54

#12 Norte Vista 71, #5 Moorpark 69

Cathedral 56, #4 Summit 51

#3 Shalhevet 42, #14 Palm Springs 41

Long Beach Jordan 71, #6 Torrance 66

#7 Colony 57, #10 South Torrance 48

#2 Walnut 71, #15 Corona 70

DIVISION 5

#1 Gardena Serra 55, #16 Northwood 47

Rancho Mirage 87, #9 California 73

Oakwood 77, Beaumont 52

Vasquez 45, Adelanto 41

Pilibos 53, #14 Quartz Hill 47

Temple City 56, #6 Brea Olinda 50

#10 Verbum Dei 42, Rio Mesa 35

#15 San Juan Hills 75, Irvine 63

DIVISION 6

Placentia Valencia 65, #1 Hemet 63

#9 St. Bonaventure 54, Highland 43

#12 Ramona 52, #5 Pasadena Poly 35

#4 Montclair 64, #13 Fontana 63

Laguna Hills 88, #14 Carter 50

#11 Orange Vista 67, Valley View 63

#10 Buckley 72, Eisenhower 57

#15 Moreno Valley 49, #2 Troy 42

DIVISION 7

#16 Vista del Lago 50, #1 Tahquitz 45

#8 Canyon Country Canyon 60, Anaheim 52

#5 Salesian 58, Westminster La Quinta 51

Webb 74, #13 YULA 71

Riverside Notre Dame 59, Faith Baptist 48

#6 Rowland 45, #11 Norwalk 44

Rosemead 65, Santa Rosa Academy 47

#2 Rialto 67, #15 Segerstrom 53

DIVISION 8

#1 Excelsior Charter at Redlands Adventist, 6:30 p.m. Saturday

Twentynine Palms 51, #9 Bolsa Grande 45

#5 Victor Valley 88, #12 Trinity Classical Academy 54

#14 South El Monte 45, #3 Desert Christian Academy 41

#4 Barstow 58, Loara 55

#6 Coastal Christian 69, #11 Silver Valley 63

#10 Edgewood 63, #7 Big Bear 48

Dunn 64, #2 San Gabriel 56

DIVISION 9

Sherman Indian 48, #1 Bassett 36

#8 Colton 63, #9 Newbury Park Adventist 29

#5 Santa Maria Valley Christian 76, #12 Long Beach First Baptist 56

#13 Loma Linda Academy 65, #4 San Jacinto Valley 63

Samueli Academy 84, Grove School 49

#6 Santa Barbara Providence 49, #11 Santa Ana Valley 48

Pacific 58, #7 California Lutheran 50

#15 Mesrobian 80, #2 ACE 62

(Quarterfinals Feb. 17; Semifinals Feb. 20; Finals Feb. 27 or 28)

SATURDAY’S SCHEDULE

(All games at 7 p.m. unless noted)

GIRLS

CITY SECTION
QUARTERFINALS
DIVISION I

#9 Garfield at #1 El Camino Real, 2 p.m.

#5 Arleta at #4 Eagle Rock

#6 Grant at #3 San Pedro

#7 Verdugo Hills at #2 Granada Hills Kennedy

DIVISION II

#8 Larchmont Charter at #1 Harbor Teacher

#5 West Adams at #4 Triumph Charter

#11 South East at #3 Santee, 1 p.m.

#7 New West Charter at #2 North Hollywood

DIVISION III

#8 Diego Rivera at #1 Washington Prep

#5 Sun Valley Poly at #4 LA Marshall

#11 Animo Robinson at #3 San Fernando

#7 Crenshaw at #2 Gardena

Note: Semifinals Feb. 21; Finals Feb. 27-28.

SECOND ROUND

DIVISION IV

#16 Huntington Park at #1 Maywood CES

#9 Smidt Tech at #8 Magnolia Science Academy

#12 Wilmington Banning at #5 Foshay

#13 Lincoln at #4 LA Wilson

#19 Franklin at #3 WISH Academy

#11 Bravo at #6 Marquez

#10 Panorama at #7 Contreras

#18 South Gate vs. #2 Sun Valley Magnet at East Valley

DIVISION V

#17 Horace Mann UCLA at #1 LA Roosevelt

#9 Los Angeles at #8 Camino Nuevo

#12 Discovery at #5 Torres

#20 Sotomayor at #4 Chavez

#14 Animo Bunche at #3 Vaughn

#11 Monroe at #6 Lake Balboa College Prep

#23 Alliance Bloomfield / #10 Port of LA at #7 Aspire Ollin

#18 East College Prep at #2 Legacy

Note: Quarterfinals Feb. 19; Semifinals Feb. 21; Finals Feb. 27-28.

SOUTHERN SECTION

SECOND ROUND

OPEN DIVISION

Pool A

#9 Rancho Christian at #8 JSerra

Pool B

#10 Fairmont Prep at #7 Lakewood St. Joseph

Pool C

#11 Oak Park at #6 Corona Centennial

Pool D

#12 Redondo Union at #4 Mater Dei

Note: Third round pool play games Wednesday at higher seeds; Quarterfinals Feb. 21; Semifinals Feb. 24; Finals Feb. 28 at Toyota Arena.

DIVISION 1

#1 Ventura at Bishop Montgomery

#8 Flintridge Prep at Windward

#5 Valencia at Mira Costa

#4 Brentwood at Troy

#3 Moreno Valley at St. Bonaventure

#6 Orange Lutheran at Marlborough

#7 Villa Park at Santa Margarita

#2 La Salle at St. Anthony

DIVISION 2

#1 Glendora at Portola

#9 Saugus at Heritage

312 Summit at #5 Yucaipa

Camarillo at #13 South Torrance

#4 Rancho Cucamonga at Camarillo

#3 Crescenta Valley at #14 Chino Hills

Rolling Hills Prep vs. #11 San Clemente

#7 San Juan Hills at Dos Pueblos

#2 Rosary Academy at Riverside King

DIVISION 3

#1 Lynwood at Murrieta Valley

#8 St. Monica at Arcadia

#12 Trabuco Hills at #5 Segerstrom

#4 Oxnard at #13 Aliso Niguel

#14 Mark Keppel at El Modena

#6 Leuzinger at #11 Shadow Hills

#10 Riverside Poly at #7 St. Margaret’s

#2 Wiseburn-Da Vinci at Canyon Country Canyon

DIVISION 4

#1 Long Beach Jordan at Lancaster

#9 La Canada at #8 Yorba Linda

#5 Eastside at Gabrielino

Knight at Anaheim Canyon

#14 Ontario at #3 El Dorado

#6 Long Beach Wilson at Westlake

#7 Pasadena Poly at Shalhevet

#2 Marina at #15 Holy Martyrs

DIVISION 5

#1 Tesoro at #16 Sunny Hills

#9 Bishop Diego at Fullerton

#5 Fountain Valley at Torrance

#13 Godinez at Heritage Christian

#3 Santa Ana Foothill at Whitney

Oakwood at YULA

#10 Culver City at #7 Burbank Burroughs

#2 Western Christian at Carter

DIVISION 6

#16 San Jacinto at #1 Carpinteria

#9 Costa Mesa at Immaculate Heart

#5 Redlands at Savanna

#4 Palm Desert at #13 Santa Monica

#14 Notre Dame Academy at Hillcrest

#11 Liberty at Rowland

#7 Hart at #10 Sante Fe

Warren at Silver Valley

DIVISION 7

#16 Foothill Tech at #1 Fillmore

Capistrano Valley Christian vs. Laguna Hills

Desert Christian Academy at #5 Dominguez

#12 Rosemead at Desert Christian

Villanova Prep at Patriot

#14 Nogales at #3 Canoga Park AGBU

#6 Barstow at Ridgecrest Burroughs

La Palma Kennedy at Long Beach Poly

Garden Grove at Cajon

DIVISION 8

#1 Cobalt at Yucca Valley

University Prep vs. #8 Norwalk

#12 Coachella Valley at Orange

#4 Santa Ana Valley at #13 Riverside Notre Dame

Mesa Grande vs. #14 Schurr

#6 CAMS at #11 South El Monte

#7 Victor Valley vs. #10 Chadwick

#2 Riverside North at #15 Santa Monica Pacifica Christian

DIVISION 9

#1 NOVA Academy Early College at #16 Vista del Lago

#8 Santa Clarita Christian at #9 Victor Valley Christian

#12 Jurupa Hills at #5 Channel Islands

Desert Hot Springs vs. #4 Temple City

La Sierra at Faith Baptist

#6 Redlands Adventist at #11 Newport Christian

#10 Sierra Vista at #7 San Gabriel

Western at Santa Maria Valley Christian

(Quarterfinals Feb. 18; Semifinals Feb. 21; Finals Feb. 27 or 28)

MILAN — Kings left wing Kevin Fiala sustained a leg injury and was taken off the ice on a stretcher late in Switzerland’s game against Canada at the Milan-Cortina Olympics on Friday.

Fiala went down when he collided with Tom Wilson with just less than three minutes left in Canada’s 5-1 victory.

Fiala backed into a hit on Wilson near the boards, their legs got tangled and both players fell to the ice. Fiala couldn’t get up and after a stoppage in play medical personnel attended to him.

Fiala was placed face down on a stretcher and his left leg appeared to be in an air cast as he was wheeled out.

“I haven’t seen him yet. I think he went to the hospital. Obviously it doesn’t look very good,” Swiss coach Patrick Fischer said. “Tough moment for Kevin and the whole team, obviously.”

No penalty was assessed on the play.

“It was an accident,” Fischer said.

The 29-year-old Fiala is in his 12th NHL season and fourth with the Kings. He has 40 points in 56 games this season.

CORTINA D’AMPEZZO, Italy — Ukrainian skeleton athlete Vladyslav Heraskevych took his case to sport’s highest court Friday, detailing the reasons why he wanted to race at the Milan-Cortina Olympics in a helmet that paid tribute to his country’s war dead.

The arbitrator was moved by his story but ruled against him anyway, denying him his last chance for a win of any kind at this year’s Winter Olympics.

The Court of Arbitration for Sport denied Heraskevych’s appeal of his disqualification from the men’s skeleton race, agreeing with the International Olympic Committee and the sliding sport’s federation that his plan to wear a helmet showing the faces of more than 20 Ukrainian coaches and athletes killed since Russia invaded their country four years ago would violate Olympic rules.

“The court sided with the IOC and upheld the decision that an athlete could be disqualified from the Olympic Games without actual misconduct, without a technical or safety threat, and before the start,” wrote Yevhen Pronin, Heraskevych’s attorney.

The Court of Arbitration for Sport said the sole arbitrator who heard the case sided with IOC policy about what athletes at an Olympics can say on a field of play — and that the “memory helmet” Heraskevych brought to the Milan-Cortina Games would not align with the rules.

The arbitrator, the court said, “found these limitations reasonable and proportionate,” especially since Heraskevych could show his helmet away from the racing surface, such as in interview areas and on social media. Heraskevych also wore the helmet in training runs.

The court added that the arbitrator “is fully sympathetic to Mr. Heraskevych’s commemoration and to his attempt to raise awareness for the grief and devastation suffered by the Ukrainian people, and Ukrainian athletes because of the war.”

The appeal, which Heraskevych believed he would win, was largely moot anyway. He was disqualified from the competition 45 minutes before its start on Thursday, and whatever the Court of Arbitration for Sport said Friday wouldn’t have changed that.

“Looks like this train has left,” Heraskevych said after Friday’s hearing, knowing there was no way he could race. He left Cortina d’Ampezzo’s Olympic village on Thursday night with no plans to return.

He was blocked from racing by the IOC and the International Bobsled and Skeleton Federation on Thursday after the slider and his father emerged from a last-minute, last-ditch meeting with IOC President Kirsty Coventry — who was unable to get Heraskevych to change his mind.

Coventry reiterated Friday that she believed the disqualification was justified. The IOC made its decision based on the guidelines for athlete expression at the Olympics, he said.

They say, in part, “the focus on the field of play during competitions and official ceremonies must be on celebrating athletes’ performances.” Heraskevych never made it to the field of play — not in competition, anyway.

“I think that he in some ways understood that but was very committed to his beliefs, which I can respect,” Coventry said. “But sadly, it doesn’t change the rules.”

The IOC contends that the rule is in place for multiple reasons, including protecting the athletes from pressure from their own countries or others about using Olympic platforms to make statements.

“I never expected it to be such a big scandal,” Heraskevych said.

He also said he found it puzzling that his accreditation for the Games was taken away, then returned in short order Thursday in what seemed like a goodwill gesture.

“A mockery,” he said.

The Court of Arbitration for Sport did agree that Heraskevych should keep his accreditation.

Heraskevych said he felt his disqualification fed into Russian propaganda, noting that he and other Ukrainian athletes have seen Russian flags at events at these Games — even though they are not allowed by Olympic rule. He has previously spoken out against the IOC’s decision to allow Russians and Belarusians to compete at Milan-Cortina as “neutral” athletes and said the IOC empowered Russia by awarding it the 2014 Sochi Games.

He also wondered why other tributes from these Olympics, such as U.S. figure skater Maxim Naumov displaying a photo of his late parents — killed in a plane crash last year — have been permitted without penalty.

Italian snowboard competitor Roland Fischnaller had a small Russian flag image on the back of his helmet during these Games, and Israeli skeleton athlete Jared Firestone wore a kippah with the names of the 11 athletes and coaches who were killed representing that country during the 1972 Munich Olympics.

Pronin wrote that IOC representatives at Friday’s hearing said that “they were not punished because they did not declare this in advance, but did it after the fact, so there was no point in disqualifying them.”

The IOC said those cases were not in violation of any rules. Naumov showed his photo in the kiss-and-cry area and not while he was actually on the ice; Fischnaller’s helmet was a tribute to all the past Olympic sites he competed at, with Sochi included; and Firestone’s kippah “was covered by a beanie,” IOC spokesman Mark Adams said.

The IOC offered Heraskevych the chance to compete with a different helmet and bring the tribute helmet through the interview area after his runs. He also could have worn a black armband, which the IOC typically bans. It just didn’t want him making a statement by competing in the helmet.

“I think it’s the wrong side of history for the IOC,” Heraskevych said.

Reynolds writes for the Associated Press. AP journalists Annie Risemberg and Stefanie Dazio in Milan and Vasilisa Stepanenko in Warsaw contributed to this report.

Chris Evans has made a major comeback with the relaunch of TFI Friday and brought the iconic programme to his radio station almost 30 years after it first aired

Chris Evans has relaunched his hit 90s series TFI Friday. The presenter, 59, fronted the hit series during its initial run on Channel 4 from 1996 until 2000 and it became staple viewing at the start of the weekend.

The format featured a mix of live performances and celebrity interviews. Chris left the programme after the fifth series, and big names like the Spice Girls, Davina McCall and Elton John stepped in to take the reins for the last run of episodes in the build up to Christmas 2000. Now best known for fronting his radio show on Virgin, the TV star, who also presented the short-lived revival in 2015, has brought the programme back once more.

The revamped version of the iconic series is currently being released on Virgin Radio’s YouTube channel, and welcoming the audience to the first episode, Chris said: “Hello friends. Thank you for tuning in! Welcome to TFI Unplugged.

READ MORE: BBC presenter Chris Evans breaks down as he pays emotional tribute to Eddie JordanREAD MORE: This Morning guest sparks chaos by failing to show up to ITV show

“On the way today, Delroy Lindo, currently nominated for Academy Award, Hollywood Sim Car of course. Also on the way, the hilarious Ross Noble going to be here!”

Some of the more regular segments during the original run of the show included Freak or Unique, which encouraged participants to show off a strange talent. Other items included Fishbowl Challenge, Show Us Your Face Then and Sink Or Swim.

The show also ran a segment called Someone’s Going to Be a Millionaire!, based on Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?, and on Christmas Eve 1999, TFI Friday became the first British programme to issue a £1 million prize, almost a year before one player won the jackpot on the ITV game show.

Chris became a major television star in the early 1990s, as the Channel 4 show The Big Breakfast which he presented alongside Gaby Roslin, before other showbiz favourites like Denise Van Outen, Zoe Ball and Kelly Brook took on the hosting role.

He wrote and presented TFI Friday whilst working on the BBC Radio 1 Breakfast Show, which he eventually resigned from whilst he was live on air in 1997 after Radio 1 refused to allow him to work a four-day week.

He also presented The One Show on Fridays between 2010 and 2015, and later became the lead host of Top Gear in 2015 after the sacking of Jeremy Clarkson.

In 2022, Chris explained on his radio show that a reboot of TFI Friday didn’t need to be on television anymore thanks to the advent of streaming. He said: “Can I tell you a bit more about it?

“Oh, sure. The thing is, you don’t need a TV channel now. You don’t don’t need one. It’s amazing what you can do. TFI Friday doesn’t have to be an hour long, it could be longer, we could livestream it!”

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WASHINGTON — Ever since a racist video was posted on President Trump’s social media account, the White House has offered shifting responses.

First it dismissed “fake outrage” by those denouncing it as racist, then it deleted the post and blamed a staff member.

Trump later told reporters Friday that “I didn’t make a mistake.” The Republican president claimed that before the video was posted, he did not see the part that depicted former President Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama as apes.

The chair of the Congressional Black Caucus was unsparing in her criticism when she spoke to the Associated Press.

“It’s very clear that there was an intent to harm people, to hurt people, with this video,” Rep. Yvette Clarke (D-N.Y.) said.

The AP interviewed Clarke, who leads the group of more than 60 Black House and Senate members, hours after the video was deleted Friday.

Here is an interview transcript, edited for length and clarity.

What was your reaction when you saw that the post?

We’re dealing with a bigoted and racist regime. … Every week we are, as the American people, put in a position where we have to respond to something very cruel or something extremely off-putting that this administration does. It’s a part of their MO at this point.

Do you buy the White House explanation that this was an aide’s mistake?

They don’t tell the truth. If there wasn’t a climate, a toxic and racist climate within the White House, we wouldn’t see this type of behavior regardless of who it’s coming from…. Here we are, in the year 2026, celebrating the 250th anniversary of the United States of America, the 100th anniversary of the commemoration of Black history, and this is what comes out of the White House on a Friday morning. It’s beneath all of us.

Has there been any contact between the White House and the Congressional Black Caucus on this? Could there be any good-faith exchange?

There has been no outreach from the White House. We certainly didn’t expect there to be. The outreach has to happen prior to these type of juvenile antics.

Republican criticism built more quickly Friday than it has during previous Trump controversies. What do you make of that?

It’s not lost on them, our communities that we represent, that elections are coming up. So it’s not lost on my colleagues, either. If they want to align themselves with this type of really profane imagery, this type of bigoted and racist attack on a former sitting president and his wife, they are throwing their lot in with an individual who has shown himself to be a disgrace.

It’s not common for President Trump to retract anything. What does that indicate to you that he did?

I think it’s more of a political expediency than it is any moral compass. … As my mother would say, “Too late. Mercy’s gone.”

What more do you hope to see from the White House about this?

My hope is that we can contain the harm that they’re doing. There are Black children who are listening to their president … seeing what he’s posting on Truth Social, [and] it will have an impact on how they view leadership of their own country. … I think that this administration has an opportunity to change course. They always do. We leave room for that. But, unfortunately, Donald Trump is hardwired this way.

Is there anything else you’d like to add?

As a democracy, we have to stand up together against this type of racism, this type of bigotry, this kind of hatred that is coming from the president of the United States and those who surround him. … It’s very clear that there was an intent to harm people, to hurt people, with this video. Otherwise, it wouldn’t have stayed up for 12 hours.

Barrow and Zhang write for the Associated Press and reported from Atlanta and Washington, respectively.

Good morning, and welcome to L.A. on the Record — our City Hall newsletter. It’s Noah Goldberg, giving you the latest on city and county government.

For six days this week, anybody could dream at the L.A. city clerk’s office.

Angelenos seeking elected office had to file their declarations of intent between Monday and Saturday to be eligible for the June 2 primary.

All week, the third floor courtyard of the C. Erwin Piper Technical Center was abuzz with candidates milling about, filling out paperwork, signing ethics forms and writing down their job histories.

Some will win elected office, which, naturally, means others will lose.

And some may not get on the ballot — each candidate must gather 500 legitimate voter signatures by March 4, which is relatively easy in citywide races but harder in council districts.

A candidate arrives to file to run for office in the the 2026 Municipal elections at the city clerk’s office in downtown Los Angeles on Wednesday.

(Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times)

“I know I won’t win,” said Joseph Garcia, a gardener, former screenwriter and member of the Venice Neighborhood Council who filed Tuesday to run for mayor.

During an interview, Garcia removed his shoe to show an injury to his foot. City clerk staffers politely asked him to put his shoe back on.

One candidate showed up on colorful roller skates wearing a wreath of flowers on her head. Another came in scrubs.

Other aspiring politicians were ready to get down to brass tacks.

Tim Gaspar, a business owner who is running to represent Council District 3, purchased a strawberry Pop-Tart from a vending machine and spoke about his fundraising numbers.

In the race to replace Councilmember Bob Blumenfield, who is terming out, Gaspar has raised more than $300,000, which is $100,000 more than the two other candidates who have raised any cash at all.

Gaspar, who was wearing a blue suit, said the money came from more than 900 donors.

“It’s been a grassroots campaign,” he said.

Minutes earlier, former reality television star Spencer Pratt stepped out of his Ford F150 and changed from flip-flops into sneakers before walking into the building to file his declaration to run for mayor.

Pratt wore shorts, a hat that said “Heidiwood” — for his wife, Heidi Pratt — and a shirt for Heidi’s “Superficial” album tour. He was flanked by two private security guards and two aides.

As Pratt was walking in, Jose Ugarte, a top aide to Councilmember Curren Price who is running to replace his boss in Council District 9, was walking out.

“F— that guy,” Ugarte said about Pratt, a registered Republican who has received endorsements from many in the MAGA world. Ugarte has been explicit in his anti-Trump sentiment, specifically over the summer’s immigration raids.

Henry Mantel files to run for City Council District 5 at the city clerk’s office on Wednesday.

(Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times)

In the elevator, Pratt edited a social media video in which he railed against Los Angeles Fire Department Chief Jaime Moore for not looking into who watered down the after-action report into the Palisades fire.

About 30 minutes later, after he finished filing, Pratt took questions from a gaggle of reporters huddled beyond a barrier that said “No media beyond this point.”

“It’s me or Karen Bass. We have no other choice,” said Pratt, one of more than 30 candidates who have filed to run against Bass, who is seeking a second term as mayor.

Watching from under a white tent as she filled out her declaration was Dylan Kendall, who is trying to oust Councilmember Hugo Soto-Martínez in District 13.

“I think Spencer Pratt kind of sucked the air out of the room,” Kendall said.

The former bartender said it took her about an hour to fill out her forms. She feels that Soto-Martínez has “neglected and ignored” residents in her district, which spans Echo Park and Hollywood, all the way to Atwater Village.

In the parking lot, Keeldar Hamilton, who sported a long ponytail, had just finished filing.

Asked what he was running for as he got into his Tesla Cybertruck, Hamilton said, “Governor … I mean mayor.”

State of play

— MAY-OR MAY NOT: The filing deadline to run for mayor is Saturday at 12 p.m., and some candidates have really taken it down to the wire. L.A. County Supervisor Lindsey Horvath is still weighing a run. Former schools Supt. Austin Beutner dropped out on Thursday, following the death of his 22-year-old daughter. Billionaire developer Rick Caruso, meanwhile, decided not to run — for the second time in less than a month.

— FIRE WATER: Two sources told The Times that two people close to Bass informed them that Bass wanted key findings in the LAFD after-action report on the Palisades fire softened. Bass denied The Times’ report, calling it “dangerous and irresponsible” for the newspaper to rely on third-hand information.

— SOTC PART 1: Bass delivered the first of two States of the City Monday, urging Angelenos to come together ahead of the 2028 Olympics while announcing a push to clean up Los Angeles’ busiest streets in the run-up to the Games. The second speech will take place in April.

— WASSERMANIA: LA28 Olympics committee Chair Casey Wasserman faced calls from L.A. officials to resign following revelations about racy emails he exchanged with convicted sex offender Ghislaine Maxwell, Jeffrey Epstein’s former romantic partner. Bass did not take a stance, saying it was up to the LA28 board.

— FREE OF FEE: Palisades fire victims rebuilding homes, duplexes, condominium units, apartment complexes and commercial buildings will not have to pay permit fees, the City Council decided Tuesday. Forfeiting those fees is expected to cost as much as $90 million over three years, according to Matt Szabo, the city’s top budget analyst.

— PRICE FAINT: Councilmember Curren Price, 75, was taken to the hospital Wednesday after fainting during a Black History Month event at City Hall. Price was “in stable condition, is in recovery and doing well,” said Council President Marqueece Harris-Dawson.

— HALL PASS: Former State Assemblymember Isadore Hall dropped out of the race for L.A. city controller, saying in a statement to The Times that a death in his family had prompted his decision.

— SHERIFF SUITS: L.A. County spent $229 million on legal payouts and lawyer bills last fiscal year. Nearly half of that — $112 million — went to defend the Sheriff’s Department against lawsuits, a 12% uptick in the department’s payouts from the year before.

— COUNTY CUTS: The county approved nearly $200 million in cuts to homeless services, despite 2024 voter support for a sales tax to combat the crisis.

QUICK HITS

• Where is Inside Safe? The mayor’s signature homelessness program went to Lincoln Heights, bringing 17 unhoused Angelenos indoors from an encampment.
• On the docket next week: A plan to build 1,000 units of housing at the Row DTLA goes before the Planning Commission on Thursday.

Stay in touch

That’s it for this week! Send your questions, comments and gossip to LAontheRecord@latimes.com. Did a friend forward you this email? Sign up here to get it in your inbox every Saturday morning.

Sean McVay and the Rams schemed against Kliff Kingsbury when he coached the Arizona Cardinals.

Now, after parting ways with the Washington Commanders, Kingsbury will join McVay’s staff, a person with knowledge of the situation said Friday. The person requested anonymity because Kingsbury’s role has not been announced.

Kingsbury, 46, coached the Cardinals from 2019 to 2022 and was the Commanders’ offensive coordinator for the last three seasons. The Commanders advanced to the NFC championship game in 2024 but finished 5-12 last season.

With Mike LaFleur now the Cardinals’ head coach, the offensive coordinator position on McVay’s staff is open. Pass-game coordinator Nate Scheelhaase interviewed with several teams for head coaching positions and is regarded as the favorite to become the offensive coordinator. Quarterbacks coach Dave Ragone has experience as offensive coordinator for the Atlanta Falcons.

“We’ve got some really good coaches in-house that we’re going to continue to develop,” McVay told reporters on Monday. “I think it is thorough and it’s the right and the reasonable approach to be able to really have a wide-ranging search while full-well knowing that I’ve got more than capable guys that could step up and do a phenomenal job.”

Luka Doncic was diagnosed with a strained left hamstring and listed as out for the Lakers’ game against the Golden State Warriors on Saturday at Crypto.com Arena.

The Lakers have not indicated a timetable for Doncic’s return.

Doncic was injured late in the second quarter of the Lakers’ win over the Philadelphia 76ers on Thursday night. He threw a pass to Maxi Kleber that was a turnover, turned to run back on defense and immediately grabbed his left hamstring.

Doncic went up and down the court a couple of times but was unable to play any longer. The Lakers called a timeout, and Doncic headed to the locker room and did not return.

After the game, Doncic was limping down the hallway. Coach JJ Redick said Doncic would undergo an MRI exam Friday.

Doncic leads the NBA in scoring (33.4) and is second in assists (8.7). He’s missed eight of the Lakers’ 42 games because of injuries and the birth of his daughter, and they’re 4-4 without him.

“We need him,” guard Austin Reaves said after the game. “He’s our best player and the engine of a lot of the stuff that we do. Yeah, so, hopefully we get good news.”

The body of Lil Jon’s son Nathan Smith, who performed as DJ Young Slade and went missing Tuesday night, was recovered Friday from a pond near his home in Milton, Ga., according to local police. The rapper’s son was 27.

“I am extremely heartbroken for the tragic loss of our son, Nathan Smith. His mother [Nicole Smith] and I are devastated,” Lil Jon and his ex-wife wrote Friday on social media.

“Nathan was the kindest human being you would ever meet. He was immensely caring, thoughtful, polite, passionate, and warmhearted — he loved his family and the friends in his life to the fullest.”

They said their son was “amazingly talented” as a music producer, artist and engineer. Nathan Smith was a graduate of New York University, his parents said.

Nathan Smith, a.k.a. DJ Young Slade, performs with his father, Lil Jon, at the Hollywood Palladium in March 2014.

(Kevin Winter / Getty Images )

“We loved Nathan with all of our hearts and are incredibly proud of him. He was loved and appreciated, and in our last times together we’re comforted in knowing that we expressed that very sentiment to him,” the parents concluded before thanking the many local authorities and rescuers who helped search for their son.

The Milton Police Department said Tuesday on social media that Nathan Smith hadn’t been seen since he “ran out of his house” at 6 a.m. that day.

“Subject left on foot and does not possess a phone. He may be disoriented and in need of assistance,” the statement said. “Family and friends are concerned for his safety.”

On Friday, Milton police said in a statement that teams had expanded the search to include the pond in a nearby park after failing to find Smith elsewhere. Divers with the Cherokee County Fire Department recovered a body from the water shortly before noon local time Friday, the statement said.

“The individual is believed to be Nathan Smith, pending official confirmation by the Fulton County Medical Examiner’s Office,” police wrote, adding there was no indication of foul play. However, the official cause and manner of death were still to be determined.

“We extend our deepest condolences to the Smith family during this difficult time. The department respectfully asks the community and members of the media to honor the family’s request for privacy as they grieve and navigate this tragedy,” the statement concluded.

Lil Jon and Nicole Smith expressed gratitude in their post confirming their son’s death. The two married in 2004 after welcoming Nathan in 1998 but split up amicably in 2022.

“Thank you for all of the prayers and support in trying to locate him over the last several days,” they wrote Friday.

Friday’s live TV and streaming broadcasts unless noted (subject to change). All events stream live on Peacock or NBCOlympics.com with a streaming or cable login. All times Pacific.

OPENING CEREMONY: 11 a.m.| NBC, Peacock
(replay at 8 p.m. on NBC)

MULTIPLE SPORTS
7 p.m. — “Primetime in Milan” (delay): Figure skating, curling, hockey, skiing and more.| NBC

ALPINE SKIING
2:30 a.m. — Men’s downhill, training | Peacock
2:30 a.m. — Women’s downhill, training | Peacock

CURLING
Mixed doubles (round robin)
1:05 a.m. — U.S. vs. Canada | Peacock
1:05 a.m. — Italy vs. Switzerland | Peacock
1:05 a.m. — Sweden vs. Britain | Peacock
5:35 a.m. — Czechia vs. U.S. | Peacock
5:35 a.m. — Estonia vs. Italy | Peacock
5:35 a.m. — South Korea vs. Britain | Peacock
5:35 a.m. — Sweden vs. Norway | Peacock
5:55 a.m. — Czechia vs. U.S. (in progress) | USA

FIGURE SKATING
Team competition
1 a.m. — Rhythm dance | USA
2:35 a.m. — Pairs, short program | USA
4:35 a.m. — Women, short program | USA

HOCKEY
Women (group play)
3:10 a.m. — France vs. Japan | Peacock
5:40 a.m. — Czechia vs. Switzerland | Peacock

MINNEAPOLIS — U.S. Atty. Gen. Pam Bondi on Monday announced two more arrests following a protest at a Minnesota church against the immigration crackdown, bringing the number of people arrested to nine.

The nine were named in a grand jury indictment unsealed Friday. Independent journalists Don Lemon and Georgia Fort were among four people arrested Friday. Three others were arrested earlier in the week, including prominent local activist Nekima Levy Armstrong.

A grand jury in Minnesota indicted all nine on federal civil rights charges of conspiracy and interfering with the 1st Amendment rights of worshippers during the Jan. 18 protest at the Cities Church in St. Paul. A pastor at the church is also a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement official. The protest generated strong objections from the Trump administration.

In a social media post Monday, Bondi named the latest two arrestees as Ian Davis Austin and Jerome Deangelo Richardson. She gave no details of their arrests.

Lemon, who was fired from CNN in 2023 following a bumpy run as a morning host, has said he had no affiliation to the group that disrupted Sunday service by entering the church. He has described himself as an independent journalist chronicling protesters.

The indictment alleges that Richardson traveled to the church with Lemon while he was streaming and that Richardson told Lemon they needed to catch up to the others. It also alleges that Austin stood in the aisles of the church and loudly berated a pastor with questions about Christian nationalism.

Online jail records show Austin was arrested Friday. It wasn’t immediately clear when Richardson was taken into custody.

Austin’s attorney, Sarah Gad, did not immediately return a call seeking comment. Court records don’t list an attorney for Richardson who could comment on his behalf.

The Justice Department began its investigation after the group interrupted services by chanting, “ICE out” and “Justice for Renee Good,” referring to the 37-year-old mother of three who was fatally shot by an ICE officer in Minneapolis.

Cities Church belongs to the Southern Baptist Convention and lists one of its pastors as David Easterwood, who leads ICE’s St. Paul field office.

Karnowski writes for the Associated Press.

Macaulay Culkin paid tribute to his “Home Alone” co-star Catherine O’Hara following her death at age 71.

O’Hara died Friday at her home in Los Angeles after a brief illness, her agency CAA confirmed. Following the news, Culkin mourned his movie mom on social media.

“Mama. I thought we had time,” the actor wrote. “I wanted more. I wanted to sit in a chair next to you.”

“I heard you. But I had so much more to say,” he continued. “I love you. I’ll see you later.”

O’Hara played the frazzled yet fierce Kate McCallister, mother to quick-witted troublemaker Kevin McCallister, in the iconic “Home Alone” (1990) and its sequel “Home Alone 2: Lost in New York” (1992). The films launched Culkin to fame and have become bona fide Christmas classics, whose emotional core lies in the palpable chemistry between Culkin and O’Hara.

The pair reunited in 2023, when O’Hara honored Culkin at the latter’s Hollywood Walk of Fame induction ceremony, praising the “sweet, yet twisted, yet totally relatable sense of humor” that helped him survive his early launch into the spotlight.

“The reason families all over the world can’t let a year go by without watching and loving ‘Home Alone’ together is because of Macaulay Culkin,” O’Hara said in her speech.

“Thank you for including me — your fake mom who left you home alone not once, but twice — to share in this happy occasion,” she said. “I’m so proud of you.”

News of O’Hara’s death brought tributes from the actor’s film and TV industry peers, including her collaborators from over the years.

Dan Levy, who co-created and co-starred in “Schitt’s Creek” with his father, Eugene Levy, said his TV mom was “extended family before she ever played my family.”

“What a gift to have gotten to dance in the warm glow of Catherine O’Hara’s brilliance for all those years. Having spent over fifty years collaborating with my Dad, Catherine was extended family before she ever played my family,” he wrote on Instagram. “It’s hard to imagine a world without her in it. I will cherish every funny memory I was fortunate enough to make with her.”

Eugene Levy reflected on his five-decade-long relationship with O’Hara.

“Words seem inadequate to express the loss I feel today. I had the honor of knowing and working with the great Catherine O’Hara for over fifty years,” Levy said in a statement. “From our beginnings on the Second City stage, to ‘SCTV,’ to the movies we did with Chris Guest, to our six glorious years on ‘Schitt’s Creek,’ I cherished our working relationship, but most of all our friendship. And I will miss her. My heart goes out to Bo, Matthew, Luke, and the entire O’Hara family.”

Seth Rogen, who recently teamed up with O’Hara on the Emmy-winning comedy “The Studio,” said in an Instagram post that she was among his earliest inspirations.

“I told O’Hara when I first met her I thought she was the funniest person I’d ever had the pleasure of watching on screen,” Rogen said, citing “Home Alone” as “the movie that made me want to make movies.”

“Getting to work with her was a true honour,” the actor, who co-created, directed and stars in the series, continued. “She was hysterical, kind, intuitive, generous… she made me want to make our show good enough to be worthy of her presence in it.”

Other members of “The Studio” crew also honored their late co-star.

Ike Barinholtz, who plays chaotic executive Sal Saperstein in “The Studio,” captioned an Instagram photo of him and O’Hara: “I never in a million years thought I would get to work with Catherine O’Hara let alone become friends with her.”

“So profoundly sad she’s somewhere else now,” Barinholtz added. “So incredibly grateful I got to spend the time I did with her.”

Ron Howard, who made a guest appearance as himself in the show, called O’Hara “a wonderful person, artist and collaborator.”

“I was lucky enough to direct, produce and act in projects with her and she was simply growing more brilliant with each year,” the filmmaker wrote Friday on X. O’Hara appeared in Howard’s 1992 dramedy “The Paper.”

O’Hara’s “Beetlejuice” co-star Michael Keaton also mourned the late actor, tracing their relationship back to well before the beloved Tim Burton movie.

“She’s been my pretend wife, my pretend nemesis and my real life, true friend,” Keaton wrote on Instagram. “This one hurts. Man am I gonna miss her.”

Justin Theroux, who joined O’Hara in 2024’s “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice,” also wrote on Instagram, “Oh Catherine. You will be so missed.”

Burton himself memorialized O’Hara with a cast photo from the “Beetlejuice” sequel.

“Catherine, I love you. This picture shows how much light you gave to all of us. You were a special part of my life and after life,” the venerated director captioned the shot on Instagram.

Martin Scorsese, who directed O’Hara in “After Hours,” said in a statement to IndieWire that her loss feels “impossible.”

“Catherine was a true comic genius, a true artist and a wonderful human being. I was blessed to be able to work with her on ‘After Hours,’ and I’m going to miss her presence and her artistry. We all are,” he said.

“Home Alone” director Chris Columbus said in a statement to the Hollywood Reporter that he was “heartbroken, along with the rest of the world,” upon learning O’Hara had died.

“I was an obsessive fan of Catherine’s brilliant comedic work on ‘SCTV’ and was thrilled when she agreed to play Kevin’s mom in ‘Home Alone,’ ” Columbus said.

“What most people don’t realize is that Catherine carries the weight of 50% of that film. The movie simply would not work without her extraordinary performance. Catherine grounds the picture with a profound emotional depth,” he added. “I will miss her greatly. Yet there is a small sense of comfort, realizing that two of the finest human beings I’ve ever known, Catherine and John Candy, are together again, brilliantly improvising, making each other laugh.”

Meryl Streep, who acted with O’Hara in the romantic comedy “Heartburn,” said in a statement to the Associated Press that O’Hara “brought love and light to our world, through whipsmart compassion for the collection of eccentrics she portrayed.”

Andrea Martin told the outlet that her fellow “SCTV” cast member “is and will always be the greatest. It is an honor to have called her my friend.”

Pedro Pascal, who worked with O’Hara on the sophomore season of “The Last of Us,” said on Instagram that he was thankful the two crossed paths.

“Oh, genius to be near you. Eternally grateful,” Pascal said. “There is less light in my world, this lucky world that had you, will keep you, always.”

Melanie Lynskey, who featured in the first season of “The Last of Us,” called O’Hara “the pinnacle of greatness” in her own social media salute.

“So grateful I got to tell her what she meant to me- how she inspired me, shaped my sense of humour and understanding of the work we do,” Lynskey wrote.

“I’m sure every actor she met told her similar things. She did not behave as though she’d heard it a million times, she listened and accepted it with grace and wit and tremendous kindness,” the Emmy nominee added.

Lynskey recalled interacting with O’Hara at a 2013 Live Read of “Glengarry Glen Ross” and while filming Sam Mendes’ 2009 romantic comedy “Away We Go.”

During both stints, Lynskey said, “I saw [O’Hara] be nothing short of wonderful to every single person she encountered, from the director to the PAs.”

“When people say someone ‘lit up a room,’ this is what they mean,” she said.

“The Last of Us” showrunner Craig Mazin said on Instagram, “I think [O’Hara] would prefer that we keep laughing somehow, or at the very least not cry. Not possible at the moment.”

Others in the industry hailed O’Hara as a generational actor who shined in everything she touched.

“Catherine O’Hara changed how so many of us understand comedy and humanity. From the chaos and heart of ‘Home Alone’ to the unforgettable precision of Moira Rose in ‘Schitt’s Creek,’ she created characters we’ll rewatch again and again,” Kevin Nealon, who, alongside O’Hara, led the claymation sitcom “Glenn Martin, DDS,” wrote on X.

Josh Gad, who worked with O’Hara on the animated comedy series “Central Park,” expressed his disbelief at her death on Instagram.

“Why is the world such a heart breaking place right now? I truly cannot process how to say goodbye to someone so full of life who seemed to just be hitting her prime,” Gad said.

“Goodbye legend. Thank you for making us laugh until we hurt… which is why right now we are all hurting so damned much knowing we will never again get those laughs,” the “Frozen” voice actor added.

“Only one Catherine O’Hara, and now none. Heartbreaking,” echoed actor-comedian Michael McKean, who worked with the late actor on the mockumentaries “Best in Show,” “For Your Consideration,” “Waiting for Guffman” and “A Mighty Wind.”

O’Hara’s fellow “Bartok the Magnificent” voice actor Hank Azaria called her death “a profound loss.”

“Comedy will never be the same without Catherine O’Hara. An inspiration to us all, especially little Bartok,” Azaria captioned a social media clip featuring O’Hara’s character, Ludmilla, in the animated film.

Rita Wilson in an Instagram tribute called her “a woman who was authentic and truthful in all she did.”

“You saw it in her work, if you knew her you saw it in her life, and you saw it in her family,” the actor and singer said, offering condolences to O’Hara’s husband, Bo Welch, and their two children.

As Ellen DeGeneres put it on Instagram, “Sending love to all who adored her, which might just be everyone.”

Actor and professional wrestler Paul Walter Hauser called O’Hara “my Meryl Streep.”

“I could watch her in anything. Didn’t matter how good or bad the film or show was. I wanted to see what she would do,” Hauser wrote on Instagram, citing the actor’s work in “After Hours,” “Waiting for Guffman” and “Best in Show,” among other projects.

“A freaking angel just went home to Heaven. And she’s not home alone,” he wrote.

Lindsey Vonn sat out a World Cup super-G race Saturday after crashing and injuring her left knee a day earlier but remains on track for the Milan Cortina Olympics, her coach told the Associated Press.

“No she is not racing today but preparing for Cortina as usual,” Chris Knight, Vonn’s personal head coach, said in a text message to the AP.

Vonn then posted on Instagram, “Unfortunately, I won’t be able to race today,” adding, “Thank you for all of the love and support I have received. Means the world to me.

“Doing my best right now….,” Vonn concluded with praying hands and fingers-crossed emojis.

Vonn crashed in a downhill in Crans-Montana, Switzerland, on Friday and ended up in the safety nets. After skiing down to the bottom of the course, she was airlifted away for medical attention.

It still wasn’t clear what her injury was.

“I crashed today in the downhill race in Switzerland and injured my left knee. I am discussing the situation with my doctors and team and will continue to undergo further exams,” Vonn wrote on Instagram on Friday.

Vonn, a 41-year-old American, is expected to be one of the biggest stars of the Winter Games, which open next Friday. Her first race comes two days later in the women’s downhill.

Saturday’s super-G was slated to be her final race before the Games.

Good morning, and welcome to L.A. on the Record — our City Hall newsletter. It’s David Zahniser, giving you the latest on city and county government.

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass did something this week that would have been unthinkable three years ago — she took an unprompted swipe at her counterparts in L.A. County.

Bass, while weighing in on L.A.’s so-called “mansion tax,” dinged the county for creating what she called a “bureaucratic” homelessness agency, saying it threatened to undermine the city’s progress on the crisis.

County Supervisor Lindsey Horvath hit back hard, telling Bass on X that the county created the new agency because the existing one — which is partly overseen by Bass appointees — was incapable of tracking its spending.

“The County is fixing the problems you’ve ignored,” Horvath said.

Things have been bad between Bass and Horvath for more than a year, with the two Democrats taking veiled, and sometimes not-so-veiled, swipes at each other. But could they become adversaries in the truest sense of the word — as head-to-head rivals in this year’s mayoral election?

Horvath, who has spent months lining up endorsements for her own reelection campaign, has until Saturday to decide whether to enter the mayor’s race, challenging Bass’ bid for a second term. She told The Times she is seriously weighing a run — and “spending the weekend in deep reflection” with friends and family.

“From a young age, my faith has guided me through the most important moments of my life,” said Horvath, who is Catholic. “This is one of those moments.”

Bass, who is running in the June 2 primary for a second term, is already facing challenges from reality television star Spencer Pratt, former school superintendent Austin Beutner and community organizer Rae Huang, who has focused heavily on housing issues. Still, a Horvath bid would reshape the contest dramatically.

Beutner has not campaigned publicly since Jan. 5, one day before his 22-year-old daughter died of undetermined causes. Real estate developer Rick Caruso opted on Jan. 16 to stay out of the race, after sharply criticizing Bass for more than a year.

On paper, a Horvath mayoral bid looks somewhat risky. If she takes the plunge, she would no longer be permitted to seek reelection to her supervisorial seat, representing about 2 million people on the Westside and in the San Fernando Valley. Bass has been raising money for more than a year and has locked up key endorsements, including the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor.

If she runs, Horvath would face questions about the county’s difficulties, including a $4-billion legal payout over sexual abuse that has been marred by fraud allegations and a screwup surrounding Measure G, the 2024 ballot measure that will expand the number of county supervisors but also is on track to inadvertently repeal a criminal justice reform measure.

On top of that, there’s the secret $2-million payout to the county’s top executive.

Horvath said she’s seen recent polling that makes clear that “there’s an appetite for change” among Angelenos. Community leaders, residents of her supervisorial district and “those longing for a better Los Angeles” have been asking her to run, she said.

“I am listening carefully and seriously both to those who are urging me to enter this race, and to those who are eager to continue the work we have begun together at the County,” she said in a statement.

A spokesperson for the Bass campaign said he does not comment on prospective candidates. Pratt, for his part, said he’s rooting for Horvath to jump in so that “voters can see two career politicians calling each other out for the failed policies they both promoted.”

“Lindsey Horvath and Karen Bass are both responsible for the decline of our city, and the more they talk about each other, the more the public will see why we need a complete reset,” he said in a statement.

Even if Horvath doesn’t run, it looks like her relationship with the mayor will be rocky for the foreseeable future. The first-term supervisor has emerged as one of Bass’ most outspoken critics, highlighting an array of issues at City Hall.

Earlier this month, Horvath told The Times that she hears regularly from Angelenos who complain that they’re not getting basic services. She said that support within City Hall for Inside Safe, the mayor’s program to combat homelessness, is eroding.

Horvath has also taken aim at the city’s response to the Palisades fire, pointing out in a letter to Gov. Gavin Newsom that the Fire Department’s after-action report was watered down and then disavowed by its author. A day later, she told CBS2 that Bass was not being truthful about the county’s new homelessness agency.

Bass also has her own bully pulpit. On Friday, she stood outside federal court and railed against the indictment of independent journalist Don Lemon, calling it an “assault on our democracy.” Prosecutors have accused Lemon of violating federal law while reporting on a protest inside a Minnesota church.

The strained relations between Bass and Horvath are noteworthy given the mayor’s heavy focus on collaboration early on in her administration, when she triumphantly declared she was “locking arms” with a wide array of elected officials — including county supervisors — in the fight against homelessness.

Bass has attempted to stay above the fray, mostly avoiding direct conflict with other politicians — at least in public. But the Palisades fire, which destroyed thousands of homes and left 12 people dead, showed things weren’t always amiable behind the scenes.

Two weeks after the fires, Horvath and Bass were at odds over their joint public appearances, with Horvath complaining via text message that the mayor’s approach didn’t feel “very ‘locked arms.’”

Months later, Horvath and her colleagues on the Board of Supervisors voted to pull hundreds of millions of dollars from the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority, moving the money to the new county homelessness agency.

Horvath said the change was urgently needed in the wake of highly damaging reports about LAHSA’s financial oversight. Bass, in turn, warned the move would create a “monumental disruption” for the city’s effort to bring unhoused residents indoors.

Last month, Bass published an opinion piece in the Daily News criticizing the county, pointing out that its new homelessness agency was already proposing cuts to programs that have served the city’s unhoused population.

Bass echoed that criticism in a recent interview, saying the cuts were proposed a year after voters approved a half-cent sales tax to fund homeless services.

Those reductions, if enacted, would scale back the operations of A Pathway Home, the county’s counterpart to Inside Safe.

“We are going to do the best we can without a full partner in the county,” Bass said.

Horvath, for her part, said she wants to scale back A Pathway Home because it is too costly — and is not achieving the success that county officials want.

State of play

— BACK TO THE DRAWING BOARD: City Councilmember Nithya Raman fell short in her attempt to send voters a ballot proposal rewriting Measure ULA, the tax on property sales of $5.3 million and up. Councilmembers said they did not even want to discuss the idea until it had been vetted by her committee.

— PIT BULL PAYOUT: The city paid more than $3 million last year to a woman who adopted a dog from the South L.A. animal shelter, only to have it attack her two days later. She later found out the dog had bitten a grandmother’s face. The case is raising questions about the way some shelter dogs are promoted on Instagram and other platforms.

— HEADING TO TRIAL: After a weeklong hearing, a judge ruled on Wednesday that the criminal case against Councilmember Curren Price can proceed to trial. Price, who has been charged with embezzlement, perjury and violations of conflict-of-interest laws, is slated to leave office in December. His lawyer said he did not act with “wrongful intent.”

— CLEARING CASES: Los Angeles police solved more than two thirds of homicides citywide in 2025, in a year that ended with the fewest number of slayings in six decades, according to figures released Thursday.

— GIVING TO GIBSON DUNN: The council signed off on a $1.8-million increase to its legal contract with Gibson Dunn, which is representing the city in the seemingly endless L.A. Alliance case. The increase, which passed on a 9-4 vote, brings the contract to nearly $7.5 million.

— PAYOUT PAUSE: Los Angeles County will halt some payments from its $4-billion sex-abuse settlement, as prosecutors ramp up their probe into allegations of fraud.

— LAPD VS. PROTESTER: A tense exchange between an LAPD captain and one of the Police Department’s most outspoken critics has gone viral.

— BATTLING TRUMP, PART 1: President Trump signed an executive order to allow victims of the Los Angeles wildfires to rebuild without obtaining “unnecessary, duplicative, or obstructive” permits. The order, which is likely to be challenged by the city and state, was immediately derided by Gov. Gavin Newsom, who said Trump should provide FEMA relief.

— BATTLING TRUMP, PART 2: Trump also vowed to fight the construction of new low-income housing in the Pacific Palisades burn area. L.A. officials say no projects are planned.

Quick hits

• Where is Inside Safe? The mayor’s signature program to fight homelessness went to the area around Gage Avenue at St. Andrews Place, located in the South L.A. district represented by Councilmember Marqueece Harris-Dawson.
• On the docket next week: Bass delivers the first of her two State of the City speeches, which has been billed as a “unifying celebration of Los Angeles.”

Stay in touch

That’s it for this week! Send your questions, comments and gossip to LAontheRecord@latimes.com. Did a friend forward you this email? Sign up here to get it in your inbox every Saturday morning.

The latest cache of investigative files on Jeffrey Epstein released Friday include personal emails exchanged more than 20 years ago between Casey Wasserman, chairman of the LA28 Olympics organizing committee, and convicted sex offender Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein’s former romantic partner.

In emails sent in March and April 2003, Wasserman — who was married at the time — writes about wanting to see Maxwell in a tight leather outfit, she offers to give him a massage that can “drive a man wild,” and the pair discuss how much they miss each other, according to files released and posted online by the U.S. Department of Justice.

Representatives for Wasserman did not immediately respond to The Times’ request for comment Friday.

In an email sent on March 14, 2003, Maxwell describes a “tight leather flying outfit” she wore recently and said she was thinking of Wasserman in inappropriate moments. He wrote back, “I think of you all the time … So what do I have to do to see you in a tight leather outfit?”

She then promises him, “Casey — I will be coming back to NY tom late afternoon. I shall be wearing a tight leather flying suit …”

Newly released Epstein files show emails exchanged between Casey Wasserman and Ghislaine Maxwell in March and April 2003.

(U.S. Department of Justice)

The exchange, part of a trove of documents about Epstein released on Friday, reveal that Wasserman was at one time friendly with Maxwell, who was convicted in 2021 on five counts related to sex trafficking and the abuse of minors in partnership with Epstein.

Other documents show that Wasserman and his then wife flew on Epstein’s private jet in September 2002 alongside Maxwell, Epstein, former President Clinton, actor Kevin Spacey and several others as part of a 10-day trip to explore the problems of HIV in Africa. (That trip had been documented in a 2003 Vanity Fair story).

During her trial, federal prosecutors established that Maxwell and Epstein — who died by suicide while in federal custody in 2019 — were engaged in a sex-trafficking scheme involving minors from the late 1990s through the early 2000s.

In an April 2, 2003, email to Wasserman, Maxwell offers to “continue the massage concept into your bed … and then again in the morning … not sure if or when we would stop.”

Newly released Epstein files show emails exchanged between Casey Wasserman and Ghislaine Maxwell in March and April 2003.

(U.S. Department of Justice)

Later that day she writes, “Umm — all that rubbing — are you sure you can take it? The thought frankly is leaving me a little breathless. There are a few spots that apparently drive a man wild — I suppose I could practice them on you and you could let me know if they work or not?”

A few days later, Maxwell tells Wasserman that “JE” says she should pick a week to go to Los Angeles and look at properties they can rent in Malibu that summer and offers to bring Wasserman something from Paris.

Wasserman wrote back, “I think you picking a week to be in LA is a really good idea … The only thing i want from paris is you”

The pair continue their exchange on April 6, with Maxwell then offering to bring him food from London such as KitKats, cheddar and baked beans to which he says, “Among all my desires, that combination is pretty low on the list … xoxo”

She asks him what combination would do it for him and he says “You, me, and not else much …”

Wasserman then explains the concept of June gloom, California’s famous seasonal fog, and Maxwell inquires whether it would be foggy enough “so that you can float naked down the beach and no one can see you unless they are close up?”

He responds, “or something like that …”

Newly released Epstein files show emails exchanged between Casey Wasserman and Ghislaine Maxwell in March and April 2003.

(U.S. Department of Justice)

Wasserman, a UCLA alumnus, is the grandson of Hollywood mogul Lew Wasserman. He built his own fortune through his sports marketing and talent agency Wasserman, which represents more than 30 No. 1 overall picks in major sports leagues including the MLB, NFL, NBA and WNBA. In 2023, the agency acquired Brillstein Entertainment Partners, a management production company that represents stars such as Adam Sandler and Brad Pitt and launched hit shows that included “The Sopranos.”

Wasserman was recruited by former Mayor Eric Garcetti in 2017 to help Los Angeles win its Olympic host bid. While Garcetti completed his mayoral term and faded from the Olympic spotlight, Wasserman remains the face of the city’s push to host a successful Games in 2028. He has led every major Olympic update presented to the IOC and met multiple times with President Trump to secure his support.

Wasserman is expected to join an LA28 delegation in Italy for the upcoming Milan Cortina Winter Olympics, the final Games before L.A.

Epstein, 66, was once a well-connected financial consultant who rubbed shoulders with many prominent politicians and celebrities, including Trump and Clinton. He was arrested and taken into federal custody in July 2019 and charged with sex trafficking of minors and conspiracy to commit sex trafficking of minors.

The indictment alleged that, between 2002 and 2005, Epstein sexually exploited and abused dozens of underage girls at his homes in Manhattan, N.Y., and Palm Beach, Fla., and other locations, by enticing them to engage in sex acts with him for cash. It also alleged Epstein paid several of his victims to recruit other underage girls to engage in similar sex acts.

The latest documents were disclosed under the Epstein Files Transparency Act, which was enacted after months of public and political pressure and requires the government to open its files on the late financier and Maxwell. Deputy Atty. Gen. Todd Blanche said the Justice Department was releasing more than 3 million pages of documents in the latest disclosure, as well as more than 2,000 videos and 180,000 images.

Times staff writer Jenny Jarvie and the Associated Press contributed to this report.

SACRAMENTO — California lawmakers will consider bolstering funding for Planned Parenthood and other providers of reproductive health with a one-time infusion of $90 million, leaders of the state Legislature announced Friday.

Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas (D-Hollister) and Senate President Monique Limón (D-Goleta) said the money would give grants to providers that were affected by recent federal cuts passed by President Trump and the Republican-led Congress that targeted abortion providers. The funding is included in a proposed bill being considered by state lawmakers.

“Trump and his Republican enablers have waged an all-out assault on women — attacking abortion access, family-planning and reproductive health,” Rivas said in a Friday statement. “Outrage alone won’t stop it. When Trump strips funding, California will continue to act.”

The Republican-backed “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” signed last year by Trump, prohibited federal Medicaid funding from going to Planned Parenthood. California and a coalition of other Democrat-led states filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration last year over the provision.

More than 80% of the nearly 1.3 million annual patient visits to Planned Parenthood in California were previously reimbursed by Medi-Cal, the state’s version of Medicaid, which provides healthcare coverage to low-income Americans.

In his recent budget proposal, Gov. Gavin Newsom allotted $60 million for reproductive healthcare. His proposal serves as a starting point for state budget negotiations.

Planned Parenthood offers a range of services, including abortions, birth control, cancer screenings and testings for sexually transmitted diseases.

WASHINGTON — The Justice Department has opened a federal civil rights investigation into the shooting of Alex Pretti, the Minneapolis resident killed Saturday by Border Patrol officers, federal officials said Friday.

“We’re looking at everything that would shed light on what happened that day and in the days and weeks leading up to what happened,” Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said during a news conference. “That’s like any investigation that the Department of Justice and the FBI does every day. It means we’re looking at video, talking to witnesses, trying to understand what happened.”

There are thousands of instances every year when someone is shot by law enforcement, Blanche said, but not all are investigated by federal authorities.

“There has to be circumstances or facts or maybe unknown facts, but certainly circumstances, that warrant an investigation,” he added.

The Department of Homeland Security also said Friday that the Federal Bureau of Investigation will lead the federal probe.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem first disclosed the shift in which agency was leading the probe during a Fox News interview Thursday evening. Her department said earlier this week that Homeland Security Investigations, a unit within the department, would be heading the investigation.

“We will continue to follow the investigation that the FBI is leading and giving them all the information that they need to bring that to conclusion, and make sure that the American people know the truth of the situation and how we can go forward and continue to protect the American people,” Noem said, speaking to Fox host Sean Hannity.

Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin confirmed Friday that the FBI will lead the Pretti probe and that HSI will support them. Separately, Customs and Border Protection, which is part of DHS, is doing its own internal investigation into the shooting, during which two officers opened fire on Pretti.

DHS did not immediately respond to questions about when the change was made or why. The FBI did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

It was also not immediately clear whether the FBI would now share information and evidence with Minnesota state investigators, who have thus far been frozen out of the federal probe.

In the same interview, Noem appeared to distance herself from statements she made shortly after the shooting, claiming Pretti had brandished a handgun and aggressively approached officers.

Multiple videos that emerged of the shooting contradicted that claim, showing the intensive care nurse had only his mobile phone in his hand as officers tackled him to the ground, with one removing a handgun from the back of Pretti’s pants as another officer began firing shots into his back.

Pretti had a state permit to legally carry a concealed firearm. At no point did he appear to reach for it, the videos showed.

“I know you realize that situation was very chaotic, and that we were being relayed information from on the ground from CBP agents and officers that were there,” Noem said during the interview with Hannity on Thursday. “We were using the best information we had at the time, seeking to be transparent with the American people and get them what we knew to be true on the ground.”

The change comes after two other videos emerged Wednesday of an earlier altercation between Pretti and federal immigration officers 11 days before his death.

The Jan. 13 videos show Pretti in a winter coat, yelling at federal vehicles and at one point appearing to spit before kicking out the taillight of one vehicle. A struggle ensues between Pretti and several officers, during which he is forced to the ground. Pretti’s winter coat comes off, and he either breaks free or the officers let him go and he scurries away.

When he turns his back to the camera, what appears to be a handgun is visible in his waistband. At no point do the videos show Pretti reaching for the gun, and it is not clear whether federal agents saw it.

Steve Schleicher, a Minneapolis-based attorney representing Pretti’s parents, said Wednesday the earlier altercation in no way justified officers fatally shooting Pretti more than a week later.

In a post on his Truth Social platform early Friday morning, President Trump suggested that the videos of the earlier incident undercut the narrative that Pretti was a peaceful protester when he was shot.

“Agitator and, perhaps, insurrectionist, Alex Pretti’s stock has gone way down with the just released video of him screaming and spitting in the face of a very calm and under control ICE Officer, and then crazily kicking in a new and very expensive government vehicle, so hard and violent, in fact, that the taillight broke off in pieces,” Trump’s post said. “It was quite a display of abuse and anger, for all to see, crazed and out of control. The ICE Officer was calm and cool, not an easy thing to be under those circumstances!”

Biesecker and Santana write for the Associated Press. AP reporters Alanna Durkin Richer and Eric Tucker contributed to this report from Washington.