Making Sense of a Senseless Murder
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The murder of 17-year-old Lily Burk has received saturation coverage. Does a brutal crime contain any lessons about the failure of treatment programs or the risk of early parole? Could commercial sponsors save state parks from the Governor's line-item veto? On our rebroadcast of today's To the Point, the Obama Administration wants the states to "Race to the Top" by competing for $4.3 billion for education reform. Is that enough to get teachers unions to change their minds on charter schools, merit pay or standardized tests to evaluate teacher performance?
Main Topic
Federal Money, Teachers' Unions and Education Reform ()
Former President Bush produced “No Child Left Behind.” Now President Obama has an education reform plan of his own. He calls it “Race to the Top."
Guests:
- Michele McNeil: Assistant Editor, Education Week
- Elizabeth Purvis: Executive Director, Chicago International Charter School
- Marilyn Stewart: President, Chicago Teachers' Union
- Arthur Rothkopf: Senior Vice-President, US Chamber of Commerce
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Main Topic
Making Sense of a Senseless Murder ()
"If there is anything that people can take away from this horrible tragedy, it's that life is fragile and they should live every minute of it fully." That's from Greg Burk and Deborah Drooz, the parents of Lily Burk, the 17-year old high school senior brutally murdered last Friday. Others are drawing conclusions of a different kind. The suspect, 50-year old Charles Samuel, was arrested for drinking in public and possessing a crack pipe. He was on parole and under a court order to complete a drug program. He's now charged with robbery, kidnap and murder and he could face a death sentence.
Guests:
- Paul Weber: President, Los Angeles Police Protective League
- Celeste Fremon: blogger, WitnessLA.com, @witnessla
- Laurie Levenson: Professor of Criminal Law, Loyola Marymount University
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Reporter's Notebook
Budget Cuts Could Shutter Some State Parks ()
Between the legislature and Governor Schwarzenegger's line-item veto, 100 of California's 279 parks are at risk of closing. No list has been released yet, but park officials say to assume that every park is vulnerable. Elizabeth Goldstein is President of the California State Parks Foundation.
Guests:
- Elizabeth Goldstein: President of the California State Parks Foundation, @calparks
Underwriters
Which Way L.A.? is made possible in part by the Ralph M. Parsons Foundation, the Nathan Cummings Foundation, and the John Randolph Haynes and Dora Haynes Foundation, which supports study and research into policy issues of the Los Angeles region.
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