This segment aired on the KTLA 5 Morning News on Jan. 18, 2023.

A statewide expansion of a free book program was announced Tuesday, providing millions of children in California with free literature thanks to Dolly Parton.

The bill, SB 1183, was signed into law by Gov. Gavin Newsom in Oct. 2022 to provide funding for Parton’s “Imagination Library”, providing free books to children from birth to 5 years old.

The nationwide program is active across 30 counties in California, with the expansion to fully cover the state's 58 counties and around 2.4 million eligible children by 2028. Free books will be mailed directly to the child’s home at no cost to their family and regardless of household income.

Details: https://ktla.com/news/local-news/millions-of-california-children-will-receive-free-books-thanks-to-dolly-parton/

Smoke from Canadian wildfires poured into the U.S. East Coast and Midwest on Wednesday, covering the capitals of both nations in an unhealthy haze, holding up flights at major airports and prompting people to fish out pandemic-era face masks.

While Canadian officials asked other countries for help fighting more than 400 blazes nationwide that already have displaced 20,000 people, air quality with what the U.S. rates as hazardous levels of pollution extended into central New York. Massive tongues of unhealthy air extended as far as Virginia and Indiana, affecting millions of people.

“I can taste the air,” Dr. Ken Strumpf said in a Facebook post from Syracuse, New York, which was enveloped in an amber pall. The smoke, he later said by phone, even made him a bit dizzy.

Details: https://ktla.com/news/nexstar-media-wire/i-can-taste-the-air-photos-show-smoke-from-canadian-wildfires-lingering-over-capitol-obscuring-nyc-skyscrapers/

Long ago Tupac Shakur asked the question: "How Long Will They Mourn Me?"

Almost 30 years after that song was released, fans are still paying homage to the West Coast rapper's legacy. Hundreds lined up along Hollywood Boulevard to witness Shakur posthumously receive a star on the Walk of Fame.

"He was an outstanding individual when it came to communicating a message to those that needed to hear it and he was always all about change and to make that change," said fan Janel Alexander-O'Connor, who traveled to Tinsel Town to attend the ceremony.

Shakur was gunned down on Sept. 13, 1996, but his influence lives on in his music and message. His memory has been honored in murals across the U.S. and even across the globe in parts of Africa and beyond.

Samantha Cortese reports on June 7, 2023.

Details: https://ktla.com/entertainment/tupac-shakur-posthumously-receives-star-on-hollywood-walk-of-fame/

Personnel with the Los Angeles Fire Department responded to the Pico-Robertson neighborhood of Los Angeles where a vehicle drove onto the sidewalk, struck several pedestrians, killing one of them before crashing into a building. John Fenoglio reports for KTLA 5 News at 11, June 7, 2023.

Details: https://ktla.com/news/local-news/3-people-hospitalized-after-car-jumps-curb-crashes-into-chase-bank-building/

Pope Francis was admitted to the hospital for surgery Wednesday to repair a hernia in his intestine, the latest malady to befall the 86-year-old pontiff who had part of his colon removed two years ago.

Francis was expected to be put under general anesthesia for the open abdominal surgery and remain at Rome's Gemelli hospital for several days, the Vatican said.

While hernia operations are rarely performed on an emergency basis, the procedure appeared somewhat urgent, scheduled just a day after Francis went to the hospital for tests. The pontiff's doctors no doubt also wanted to give him ample time for recovery ahead of a busy travel schedule later this summer.

Details: https://ktla.com/news/nexstar-media-wire/pope-francis-hospitalized-for-intestinal-surgery-under-general-anesthesia/

Mike Pence has filed to run for president in 2024, officially setting up a showdown between the Republican Party’s most recent president and vice president as he and former President Trump seek the GOP nomination.

Pence, who had telegraphed for months that he would likely enter the race, will have to overcome Trump’s strength with the Republican primary electorate and convince voters he is a better choice than the man he spent four years cheerleading before their relationship fractured after the 2020 election.

The former vice president is slated to launch his campaign Wednesday with an event in Iowa, which will be followed that evening by a CNN town hall in Des Moines.

Details: https://ktla.com/news/nexstar-media-wire/nationworld/mike-pence-files-to-run-for-president/

Police are investigating the fatal shooting of a man who was standing in the driveway of a home in the Hollywood Hills West neighborhood of Los Angeles Wednesday morning.

The shooting was reported just after 2 a.m. in the 7800 block of Fareholm Drive, according to a Los Angeles Police Department spokesperson. Officers arrived on the scene to find a man suffering from multiple gunshot wounds down in front of a residence.

The victim, later identified as 39-year-old Emil Lahaziel, was pronounced dead at the scene, the spokesperson confirmed.

KTLA's Chris Wolfe reports on June 7, 2023.

Details: https://ktla.com/news/local-news/man-killed-in-driveway-of-hollywood-hills-west-home/

A group of protestors showed up as an LGBTQ+ group called the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence attended Pride Night at the Los Angeles Angels game on Wednesday.

Anaheim Mayor Ashleigh Aitken invited the satirical ‘nun’ group to join her at the game as her guests following the group’s contention with the Los Angeles Dodgers back in May. “I invited them as my guests because I thought it was important," said Mayor Aitken. "When I thought they were being picked on, I want them to realize that they are welcome in Anaheim."

KTLA's Carlos Saucedo reports on June 7, 2023.

Details: https://ktla.com/news/local-news/lbgtq-nun-group-attends-pride-night-at-angel-stadium-in-anaheim/

Former University of Southern California defensive back Joshua Jackson Jr. was arrested Wednesday on charges of raping two university students, including a case that dates back to 2020, the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office announced.

Prosecutors say Jackson Jr., 21, raped a UCLA student “sometime between June 1 and September 1, 2020” at his apartment. He is also accused of raping a classmate at her USC apartment in March 2023.

He was booked into the Foltz Criminal Justice Center in Los Angeles on one count of forcible sexual penetration and three felony counts of forcible rape and was being held on a $1,400,000 bond.

Details: https://ktla.com/news/local-news/former-usc-football-player-accused-of-raping-2-women/

A man convicted last month in the shooting death of a father who was camping with his daughters at Malibu Creek State Park was sentenced on Wednesday to life in prison.

A jury found Anthony Rauda guilty of second-degree murder in the death of Tristan Beaudette and of the attempted murders of the two young girls.

Rauda fatally shot Beaudette in the head while the 35-year-old father camped in a tent with his daughters on June 18, 2018 in Malibu Creek State Park, roughly 30 miles (48 kilometers) west of downtown Los Angeles.

Details: https://ktla.com/news/local-news/man-convicted-killing-of-malibu-creek-state-park-camper-sentenced-to-life-in-prison/

New research has revealed a connection between high lake levels and an increase in large earthquakes along the Southern San Andreas Fault. Despite the potential to produce a major earthquake, the southern pert of the fault has been relatively quiet for 300 years. A study published in the journal "Nature," looked at 1,000 years of history between lake levels and earthquakes in the area and found an 'astonishing' link. A computer simulation was able to replicate the link, which described a connection between high water level and pressure on tectonic plates. Live, local news from L.A.'s Very Own, KTLA 5

Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascon has announced his office will stop posting on Twitter, citing 'hateful conent' as the reason. In a post on Twitter, the official account posted a statement saying, “As a prosecutor’s office, we uphold the principles of justice, fairness and equality for all...The rise of unchecked vitriol targeting marginalized communities, false information, lack of community guideline enforcement or mechanisms to otherwise address these issues, has left us with no other choice.” The DA has received backlash from victim advocate groups and members of his own office who say he is too soft on crime. Response to the announcement on Twitter was overwhemlingly negative, with some saying he was prioritizing safe spaces on the internet over safety of the community.

The Live, local news from L.A.'s Very Own, KTLA 5