BREAKING: In a historic shift, the U.S. moves to reclassify marijuana as a less dangerous drug, AP sources say. apnews.com/article/mariju…

A federal judge in New York has sentenced a former DEA supervisor to four years in federal prison for leaking intelligence to defense lawyers in a $100K bribery scheme

'Costanzo acted purely out of greed,' prosecutors said.

W/ Jim Mustian @lneumeister
apnews.com/article/dea-co…

so... the feds are closing the prison bc the employees won't stop abusing the women but also... 'no employees will lose their jobs' apnews.com/article/federa…

Hundreds of thousands of court hearings in California are being held without any precise record of what occurred - undercutting litigants' legal rights in high-stakes cases including domestic violence restraining orders and child custody disputes.

latimes.com/california/sto…

Video shows L.A. probation officers letting group beat teen one at a time in Los Padrinos juvenile hall.

Some officers appear to laugh and smile during the assault

w/ James Queally

latimes.com/california/sto…

Stop what you’re doing and read this, this is ABSOLUTELY FUCKING WILD

Wild new James Queally Scientology story:

In a speech last fall, L.A. County Deputy Dist. Atty. Reinhold Mueller delivered remarks that contained allegations nearly identical to those from the lawsuit, according to a video reviewed by The Times.

latimes.com/california/sto…

'In one of the largest cash heists in Los Angeles history, thieves made off with as much as $30 million in an Easter Sunday burglary at a San Fernando Valley money storage facility…'

latimes.com/california/sto… via Richard Winton

NEW: Following a 3-year investigation by the state DOJ, sources say LASD seems headed toward a settlement agreement after findings recommending deputies curtail traffic stops, stop enforcing some drug laws and complete 100s more hours of training. latimes.com/california/sto…

During the Danny Masterson trial, a prosecutor says he was nearly 'run off the road' and reported an attempted break-in. Detectives say they were harassed. Did Scientology try to 'derail' the case, as one lawsuit claims? My latest investigation Los Angeles Times: latimes.com/california/sto…

Another week, another case of US weapons being trafficked to cartels in Mexico. This one involves:

-AR-15s and rocket-propelled grenade launchers
-40 AM-15 multi-caliber firearms
-Mac-10-type machine gun w/ a silencer

justice.gov/usao-mdfl/pr/g…

.Connor Sheets and I dug into Ippei Mizuhara, Shohai Ohtani's former interpreter who's been accused of stealing $4.5 million. It's a strange one -- big parts of his public biography are either difficult to confirm or outright false. latimes.com/california/sto…

The baseball star went into his first conversation w/ federal investigators assured he was “not a target.”

Now, he's staring down two federal charges.

My latest: Shohei Ohtani says he’s cooperating w/ investigators. Yasiel Puig offers a cautionary tale:

latimes.com/california/sto…

Another week, another example of 'military grade firearms' purchased at US stores and trafficked to a drug cartel in Mexico.

This case involved: FNH SCAR rifles, Barrett .50 caliber rifles, FNH M294S rifles, and M1919 rifles.

justice.gov/usao-wdtx/pr/f…

'Experts blame the rise of explosives in part on an influx into 🇲🇽 of mercenaries from Colombia, where explosives played a central role in long-running war between leftist guerrilla groups and far-right paramilitaries'

by Keegan Hamilton Kate Linthicum

latimes.com/world-nation/s…

In January, I read about Bruce Bell, 71 and arrested for bank robbery. He’d served 40+ years for prior robberies, during L.A.’s distinction as the “Bank Robbery Capital of the World.”

My story on Bell, his former accomplice and the world of bank robbing latimes.com/california/sto…

In the cartel arms race, criminal groups are building powerful arsenals stocked with grenade launchers, kamikaze drones and homemade tanks.

Keegan Hamilton and I reported on one of the scariest developments: The growing use of landmines.

latimes.com/world-nation/s…

New piece Los Angeles Times w/ Kate Linthicum on CJNG and Carteles Unidos in Michoacan using improvised landmines and Colombian mercenaries…

latimes.com/world-nation/s…