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A historic Martina McBride preservation plan for Hancock Park

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A historic shares Martina McBride preservation plan martina mcbridge informs for Hancock Park was unanimously approved Tuesday by the City Council. The new law will require residents to get city approval for changes to the facades of homes in the area bounded by Highland, Melrose and Rossmore avenues and Wilshire Boulevard. . The executive director of a Santa Ana charter school that left students scrambling when it closed last year funneled more than $12 million in state funds to several businesses owned by him, his supposed wife and their friends, according to an audit unveiled Tuesday night. Financial irregularities were among several questionable acts at the Albor Charter School, which primarily served Latino immigrants and received $25 million in state funds from 2002 until 2006. The audit findings have been turned over to the Orange County district attorney's office and the California Department of Education for further review, said Wendy Benkert, assistant superintendent of business services at the county Department of Education. "These things have all been turned over to the district attorney, who has subpoena power, and they will investigate this further," she said after presenting the audit to the Santa Ana Unified School District Board of Trustees. Charter schools are independently run public schools freed from some rules and constraints that apply to traditional public schools Santa Ana Unified trustees approved Albor's charter in 2002. The school offered a flexible schedule that included evening classes and child care. The audit found that the school district's oversight of the charter was diligent. In 2005, allegations of questionable spending, fiscal mismanagement and conflicts of interest led the district to revoke Albor's charter. A legal battle allowed the school to stay open the next school year.

But founder and executive director Emilio Vazquez abruptly closed Albor in March 2006 -- without giving notice to students or staff -- after its state funding was severely reduced by a change in state law that no longer provided funding for students older than 22. When charter schools close, they are supposed to perform financial accounting that lists their liabilities and assets martina mcbride album . Because Albor failed to do so, and because of concern about potential fraud and misappropriations of funds, the county Department of Education called in a state team to perform an "extraordinary audit. "The 118-page report found that Vazquez had delegated administrative operations of Albor and funneled more than $12 million in state funds to MI-Vocational School, a business he also controlled martina macbride . Some of this money was then given to Vagabond Entertainment, EMPE Inc. , A&E Financing Inc martina . and other companies controlled by Vazquez, his supposed wife, Astrid Reibe, and their associates Pedro Sole, Martin Ramirez and Edgar Villagomez. Benkert said it was unclear what these companies did or how the money was spent martinamcbride . "They didn't seem to be related in any way, shape or form to educating students at Albor Charter School," she told the board. The audit also found that although Albor was purportedly a high school, it appeared in reality to be a vocational school for adults. Brochures mentioned certified nursing assistant, medical assistant and computer technology programs, with little, if any, description of high school classes. "Although it is acceptable to offer elective classes in high school settings, in this case it appears that the high school course offerings were more than likely used to derive state apportionment to pay for a vocational school for adults and other business enterprises controlled by Mr. Vazquez and his close associates," the report says. Additionally, students may have been charged fees to attend, which is illegal at a public school, the report says. When Albor closed, no transcripts were available to ease student transfers to another high school because no one was around to provide them.

Additionally, full credit was not given for some courses taken, since the school was never accredited and the curriculum could not be verified. "Many students who thought they were at the junior or senior grade level were placed back in ninth grade and given no credit for the classes that were taken at Albor or that were in progress at the midterm closure of the school," the audit says. The audit makes several legislative recommendations that the county Department of Education plans to push in Sacramento, including strengthening conflict-of-interest laws related to charter schools, prohibiting charter schools from contracting with companies or corporations owned by the schools' operators and requiring public disclosure of financial transactions. Board member Audrey Yamagata-Noji expressed frustration that, even though the district grew suspicious of Albor's operations, it was largely hamstrung by existing state law from pursuing its concerns. "It shows the handicap public school districts are in [when dealing] with charter schools," she said. "Some may work and be great, and others can just be a rip-off of the public. "--seema. mehta martina mcbride songs . Three males were arrested Tuesday in connection with an alleged hate-crime attack on six gay men that left one in critical condition with a battered skull. James Allen Carroll, 24, and 16- and 17-year-olds whose names were not released because they are minors were arrested on attempted murder and hate-crime charges my valentine martina . The victims were attacked Saturday night with a baseball bat and a knife after the city's annual gay pride parade. Mayor Jerry Sanders called the attackers "animals [who] wanted to push these men back into the closet. " martina anyway . SACRAMENTO -- They profited together from the rise of tribal gambling in California, but on Tuesday the rift between the Rumsey Band of Wintun Indians and the lawyer who led them out of poverty was laid bare in a lawsuit. The tribe accuses Howard Dickstein, whom it fired last year after more than two decades, along with former investment consultant Arlen Opper and real estate developer Mark Friedman, of siphoning off tens of millions of dollars of its money from a variety of deals involving gambling, real estate and securities. The suit contends that Dickstein, one of the state's most influential Indian law attorneys, also used the tribe's plane for personal trips to the south of France, Big Sur and Grand Prix events in Monte Carlo and Montreal for which he owes the tribe $1. 2 million. "This lawsuit is about greed and betrayal," says the document, filed in Yolo County Superior Court. In its 57 pages, the suit lays out more than a simple tale of a partnership gone bad i love you martina . It details how the once-poor tribe, which counts just 22 members on federally designated land outside Sacramento, flourished after opening the Cache Creek Indian Bingo and Casino in 1985. Dickstein negotiated gambling compacts with the state for the Rumsey under three governors. Over the next 20 years, the tribe, growing ever richer, spent millions of dollars on deal after deal, including new gambling ventures, a hedge fund investment, the lease of an airplane and property it bought -- and in some cases developed -- from California to Illinois. In May 2000, the tribe bought the former Internal Revenue Service building in Sacramento. The suit says, however, that the tribe and its former chairwoman, Paula Lorenzo, were so naive that Dickstein, Opper, Friedman and others took advantage of their tremendous wealth to line their pockets. Dickstein, of Sacramento, said in defending himself Tuesday that when he began working for the tribe, it was running a bingo game out of a flimsy structure and had less than $100,000 in the bank. "When they terminated our services, the tribe had a net worth in excess of a billion dollars and a casino that's making over $300 million a year," Dickstein said. "Their return was just phenomenal. "Dickstein and his firm did well, too, according to the suit, earning $18 million in fees from the tribe between 1993 and 2006, including $3. 4 million in 2005. SACRAMENTO -- They profited together from the rise of tribal gambling in California, but on Tuesday the rift between the Rumsey Band of Wintun Indians and the lawyer who led them out of poverty was laid bare in a lawsuit. The tribe accuses Howard Dickstein, whom it fired last year after more than two decades, along with former investment consultant Arlen Opper and real estate developer Mark Friedman, of siphoning off tens of millions of dollars of its money from a variety of deals involving gambling, real estate and securities Martina McBride - martinamcbride . The suit contends that Dickstein, one of the state's most influential Indian law attorneys, also used the tribe's plane for personal trips to the south of France, Big Sur and Grand Prix events in Monte Carlo and Montreal for which he owes the tribe $1. 2 million. "This lawsuit is about greed and betrayal," says the document, filed in Yolo County Superior Court. In its 57 pages, the suit lays out more than a simple tale of a partnership gone bad.

It details how the once-poor tribe, which counts just 22 members on federally designated land outside Sacramento, flourished after opening the Cache Creek Indian Bingo and Casino in 1985. Dickstein negotiated gambling compacts with the state for the Rumsey under three governors. Over the next 20 years, the tribe, growing ever richer, spent millions of dollars on deal after deal, including new gambling ventures, a hedge fund investment, the lease of an airplane and property it bought -- and in some cases developed -- from California to Illinois lyrics martina mcbride . In May 2000, the tribe bought the former Internal Revenue Service building in Sacramento. The suit says, however, that the tribe and its former chairwoman, Paula Lorenzo, were so naive that Dickstein, Opper, Friedman and others took advantage of their tremendous wealth to line their pockets. Dickstein, of Sacramento, said in defending himself Tuesday that when he began working for the tribe, it was running a bingo game out of a flimsy structure and had less than $100,000 in the bank. "When they terminated our services, the tribe had a net worth in excess of a billion dollars and a casino that's making over $300 million a year," Dickstein said martina blessed Martina McBride - wikipedia . Martina McBride tickets "Their return was just phenomenal. "Dickstein and his firm did well, too, according to the suit, earning $18 million in fees from the tribe between 1993 and 2006, including $3 . 4 million in 2005. The suit says Dickstein permitted the tribe to enter into deals on unfavorable terms, in which he sometimes represented other tribes at the same time -- a conflict of interest -- and generally failed to protect the Rumsey. It also accuses him of paying other clients' bills from the tribe's $9-million trust account. The suit accuses Opper of improperly taking a stake in various tribal investments without putting any money in, of collecting fees for managing investments which he had nothing to do with, and other misappropriations. Opper declined to comment. Friedman, who was the tribe's partner in some of the deals, participated with Opper and Dickstein in schemes that cost the tribe money, including changing the terms after deals had been agreed to with approval from Lorenzo but not other council members, the suit says Martina McBride . Friedman said he had agreements signed by the tribe for every deal "Every one of them was extremely profitable," he said martina broken wing . "Every one of them was absolutely fair on its face and will stand up to scrutiny. "With the boom in Indian casinos over the last decade, tribes became one of the wealthiest interest groups in California martina independence day . Dickstein emerged as a powerful force on behalf of the state's tribes. His office has been the scene of numerous political fundraisers. In August, he and others in his circle hosted a fundraiser for presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill. ). Dickstein, who still represents three other tribes, said the Rumsey were not duped, as they contend.