Which Way, L.A.?

LAPD, State Court Push for Reduction in Car Chases

Crime is up in LA, and so are police pursuits of suspects, along with related deaths and injuries to innocent bystanders. The LAPD launches more car chases on city streets than most other urban departments. Last year, 781 such pursuits resulted in six deaths and 139 injuries, including an infant who lost his arm when fleeing suspects crashed into a mini-van. While there-s a consensus that it-s time for a change and Police Chief William Bratton wants to set limits on when his officers can give chase, others contend it-s time to change the state law that makes cops immune from accountability in civil courts. We hear more from commanding officer of LAPD-s risk management group and from a consumer attorney who has represented several police chase lawsuits. Newsmaker: Despite Holiday Sales, LA Economy Remains Slow The rising cost of gasoline, natural gas, healthcare and housing have helped push up the consumer price index this year in Southern California. Since the base period of 1982 - 1984, what once cost $100 now costs $184. So what are the prospects of a Merry Christmas for retailers? Jack Kyser is chief economist at the LA Economic Development Corporation. Reporter-s Notebook: Anti-Communist Tensions Linger in Little Saigon Though 27 years after the fall of Saigon, Communist Vietnam is now a tourist destination for many Americans, hostilities linger in the Orange County community of -Little Saigon.- John Gittelsohn, Pacific Rim reporter for the Orange County Register, says that the bitter taste of defeat still stings in the hearts of many residents of Westminster and Garden Grove.