Sunday, March 8, 2026

Plaque Honoring Rodney King To Be Unveiled Today at Site of His Former Altadena Home

Three community groups to mark 35 years since the beating that sparked the 1992 Los Angeles riots

Organizers plan to permanently install a plaque honoring Rodney King today at the site of his former Altadena home, a property that burned in the January 2025 Eaton Fire, as three community organizations gather to mark 35 years since the beating that led to widespread protests and civil unrest.

The Rodney King Foundation, My Tribe Rise and Altadena Rising are hosting the commemoration, scheduled for 2 to 5 p.m. at 2530 Lincoln Ave.

The gathering is expected to include reflections from King’s daughter Lora, who now leads the foundation, as well as community members who knew King and My Tribe Rise co-founder Victor Hodgson, who worked with King after the 1992 riots.

King was born in Sacramento, grew up in Altadena and attended John Muir High School in Pasadena. He was 25 when LAPD officers beat him after a traffic stop on the 210 freeway on March 3,

Sunday, March 8, 2026

1,000 Students Head to Shrine Expo Hall for 76th LA County Science Fair

Pasadena-area schools among those sending competitors to the two-day event, which features new categories in robotics and biomedical engineering

Approximately 1,000 middle and high school students from across Los Angeles County will present research projects at the 76th Annual Los Angeles County Science and Engineering Fair on March 8-9 at the Shrine Expo Hall, competing for medals, scholarships, and a shot at international competition.

The fair, organized by the all-volunteer nonprofit LACSEF and headquartered in South Pasadena, drew students from more than 140 schools countywide last year, according to the organization. Pasadena-area schools have been well represented in recent years — Blair High School, Pasadena High School, and Polytechnic School have all sent competitors to the annual event. Winners in the top two places in each category advance to the California State Science and Engineering Fair and may qualify for the Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair.

This year, LACSEF has revised and expanded its competition categories to include Applied Computational Science,

Sunday, March 8, 2026

Saint Mark’s School Plans Gala Fundraiser 14 Months After Eaton Fire Destroyed Altadena Campus

The independent Episcopal school, now operating from temporary sites in Pasadena and San Gabriel, will hold its annual auction at the University Club on March 14

Saint Mark’s School, the Altadena independent school that lost nine buildings to the Eaton Fire in January 2025, will hold its annual fundraising gala March 14 at the University Club in Pasadena, aiming to raise money for educational programs and the eventual rebuilding of its permanent campus.

The event, titled “Rooted and Rising,” arrives 14 months after the fire destroyed the school’s five-and-a-half-acre campus at 1050 E. Altadena Drive, along with the adjacent Saint Mark’s Episcopal Church, whose congregation dates to 1906. The school was founded in 1960 by parents seeking quality education in a racially integrated setting and has served preschool through sixth-grade students since then. The gala — a spring auction and party beginning at 5:30 p.m. — will raise funds for tuition assistance for displaced families, replacement of classroom materials and technology, trauma-informed mental health services,

Saturday, March 7, 2026

Resentencing Bid in 2007 Altadena Killing Set for March 10 Hearing in Los Angeles Court

A status conference was reported scheduled for Tuesday, March 10, in the case of Mesha Arshaz Dean, who was convicted of second-degree murder in the 2007 fatal shooting of Monroe “Monty” Miles Jr. outside a home on Canyon Dell Drive in Altadena and is now seeking resentencing under California’s reformed murder liability laws.

A hearing is set for 8:30 a.m. in Department 110 of the Clara Shortridge Foltz Criminal Justice Center in Los Angeles. The proceeding is a procedural step in a multi?stage legal process that could result in Dean’s murder conviction being vacated or her 49?year?and?four?month?to?life sentence being reduced.

Prosecutors have the opportunity to contest the petition by proving Dean remains guilty under current legal standards. Judge Lisa B. Lench is presiding.

Dean, serving 49 years and four months to life for killing Miles on Canyon Dell Drive, is petitioning under California Penal Code Section 1172.6, which stems from Senate Bill 1437, signed by Governor Jerry Brown in 2018, according to the California Legislature’s records.

Friday, March 6, 2026

Pretrial Hearing Set Friday in 2021 Altadena Double Stabbing Partially Witnessed on Zoom

Robert Cotton faces two murder counts in the deaths of his mother, a Pasadena City College educator, and his uncle

A pretrial hearing is scheduled Friday for the man charged with fatally stabbing his mother and uncle at their Altadena home nearly five years ago, in a case that drew national attention when part of the attack was witnessed by a colleague during a Zoom call.

Robert Anderson Cotton is set to appear at 8:30 a.m. in Dept. B of the Pasadena Courthouse, 300 E. Walnut St. He faces two counts of murder with an allegation of using a knife as a deadly and dangerous weapon in the deaths of Dr. Carol Anne Brown, 67, and Kenneth Wayne Preston, 69, according to a press release from the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office. The case number is GA109673.

The stabbings occurred March 22, 2021, at the victims’ shared residence in the 3100 block of North Marengo Avenue, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.

Friday, March 6, 2026

Pasadena’s Chu Votes to Halt Iran War, but House Rejects Resolution 212-219

The congresswoman also backed a bipartisan measure designating Iran the world’s largest state sponsor of terrorism

Rep. Judy Chu voted Thursday to stop U.S. military operations in Iran, backing a War Powers Resolution that would have required the withdrawal of American forces from the conflict. The House rejected the measure 212-219.

Chu, a Democrat whose 28th Congressional District includes Pasadena, cast two votes on the Iran conflict in quick succession. She supported the War Powers Resolution, H.Con.Res. 38, and also voted for a separate resolution reaffirming that Iran remains the largest state sponsor of terrorism. That second measure passed 372-53, according to the Clerk of the House.

The votes came as U.S. military operations in Iran entered their second week. Six American service members have been killed and 18 others seriously wounded since the U.S. and Israel launched coordinated strikes on Iran on February 28, according to U.S. Central Command. The national average gas price jumped 11 cents overnight to $3.11 per gallon in the days after the strikes began,

Friday, March 6, 2026

All Saints Church to host free Youth Self-Care Day on Saturday

All Saints Church will hold a free Youth Self-Care Day on Saturday, March 7, offering haircuts, beauty services, therapy dogs, books, quilts and snacks for youth ages 10 to 18, according to information provided by the church. The event is scheduled from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. in Regas House at 132 N. Euclid Ave., across from Pasadena City Hall.

The program is organized by the church’s Children, Youth & Families Ministry under Director Amanda Baughman and is part of All Saints’ 2026 Lenten Offerings. Church materials describe the gathering as a relaxed, drop-in event intended to give young people “a gentle space to pause, breathe, and find a little joy.”

• Haircuts, styling, manicures and makeup provided by Paul Mitchell The School – Pasadena
• Beauty, art and paint activities from Jazzy Jam for Empowerment, a Pasadena-based nonprofit
• A quiet room with therapy dogs
• Cookies from Diddy Riese
• Handmade quilts and pillowcases,

Friday, March 6, 2026

Democratic Angst and Gerrymandering Threaten California’s Political Reforms

By Dan Walters, CALMATTERS

Turmoil within the California Democratic Party over this year’s election for governor and  fallout from the party’s naked grab of congressional seats could have long-term effects, undoing two important political reforms — the top-two primary system and redistricting by an independent commission.

The turmoil is over having nine Democratic candidates for governor, creating the possibility that two Republicans could finish one-two in the June 2 primary, thus resulting in a GOP governor being elected in November.

A recent Public Policy Institute of California poll of voters found that Republicans Steve Hilton (14%) and Chad Bianco (12%) are 1st and 3rd in support, with Katie Porter (13%) the leading Democrat, followed by Eric Swalwell (11%) and Tom Steyer (10%). The other six Democrats are all 5% or less.

Filing for the primary ballot closes this week, and Rusty Hicks, the Democratic state chairman, is publicly pleading for lower tier Democrats to drop out and thus reduce chances of a 1-2 GOP finish.

Friday, March 6, 2026

Boys & Girls Club of Pasadena Adopts New Mission, Three-Year Plan Shaped by Eaton Fire

The 89-year-old youth organization replaces decades-old mission language and sets four strategic priorities through 2028

The Boys & Girls Club of Pasadena has adopted a new three-year strategic plan and rewritten its mission statement for the first time in decades, changes the organization says were shaped by the January 2025 Eaton Fire that disrupted its planning process and reshaped its direction.

The plan, titled “Future Ready: Boys & Girls Club of Pasadena 2025-2028 Strategic Plan,” replaces the organization’s longtime mission focus on “kids who need us most” with broader language committing to all youth. The new mission statement reads: “BGCP provides youth and teens with the environment, relationships, and opportunities that equip them to build essential skills to learn, lead, and succeed.” The Club’s Board of Directors adopted the plan in late 2025, according to a statement from the organization.

The 18-month planning process began in 2024 and was interrupted when the Eaton Fire struck in January 2025, according to the press release.

Friday, March 6, 2026

Largest Gift in LA Conservancy History Funds Altadena Heritage Project

The Los Angeles Conservancy announced Thursday it has received a $1.5 million grant from the Mellon Foundation, the largest single gift in the nonprofit’s history, to expand a community-driven effort documenting Altadena’s cultural heritage following the devastating Eaton Fire.

The funding, awarded through the Mellon Foundation’s Humanities in Place program, will support expansion of the Conservancy’s Altadena Cultural Asset Mapping project, which aims to identify and document the community’s cultural landmarks, traditions and stories as part of long-term recovery efforts, according to officials.

“Altadena’s recovery is about more than rebuilding structures — it’s about honoring the lives, memories, people and cultural heritage that make this community what it is,” Adrian Scott Fine, president and CEO of the Los Angeles Conservancy, said in a statement.

The three-year grant will fund expansion of the mapping effort, a full- time project manager and a community regranting program aimed at supporting local storytelling and cultural preservation projects, officials said.

A total of $550,000 will be redistributed to Altadena-based organizations to support oral histories,