Tag: material

What to know about the upcoming Epstein files release

A new federal law requires the Justice Department to release by Friday a massive trove of investigative documents related to Jeffrey Epstein.The release of the Epstein files, detailing the probes into the disgraced multimillionaire and sex offender who died in 2019, has attracted significant attention. The public has been captivated by Epstein’s lavish lifestyle, claims of underage sex trafficking, and his ties to President Donald Trump, former President Bill Clinton, celebrities and foreign dignitaries.Veto-proof majorities in Congress passed a law last month requiring the Justice Department to release all of the Epstein-related files in its custody. Trump fought hard to stop the law but signed it after being outmaneuvered by a bipartisan groundswell of support from lawmakers and the public.However, it’s unclear exactly which records will be made public and how much of the material will be new. Over the 20-year saga surrounding Epstein’s sex crimes, thousands of files have already been disclosed through civil litigation and public records requests.Here’s what you need to know about the files:Why is this happening now?The law, called the Epstein Files Transparency Act, is only three pages long and spells out in simple language what the Justice Department must release and what it can withhold.The federal government is required to release “searchable and downloadable” copies of “all unclassified records, documents, communications, and investigative materials” related to Epstein and Maxwell that are in the possession of the Justice Department or FBI.The law explicitly calls for the release of travel logs, materials about Epstein’s associates, any related immunity deals, relevant corporate records, all internal Justice Department communications about the investigations, and documents about Epstein’s 2019 death.What’s in DOJ’s Epstein files?CNN has reported that there’s more than 300 gigabytes of data that lives within the FBI’s primary electronic case management system, called Sentinel. This includes videos, photographs, audio recordings and written records.The FBI conducted two probes into Epstein. The first began in 2006 after sex abuse allegations emerged in Florida. That led to a non-prosecution deal in which Epstein avoided federal charges. Much of the same conduct was also scrutinized by the Palm Beach Police Department, leading to Epstein’s 2008 guilty plea on state charges. He would serve just 13 months in a Florida jail for state prostitution charges, though he was allowed to spend nearly half of that time on “work release” at his office.The second FBI investigation led to Epstein’s federal sex trafficking indictment in 2019. The bulk of the “Epstein files” comes from that New York-based second FBI probe, though there are also materials from the first investigation in Miami, CNN previously reported.What has DOJ said it may release?The Justice Department has described in court filings the types of documents in its possession that it believes must be publicly released under the new law. However, the department warned that the list is “not entirely comprehensive” of what may be released.The list says materials obtained from search warrants, and FBI affidavits supporting search warrants, will be released. The FBI notably raided Epstein’s homes in Florida, New York, and the private island that he owned in the US Virgin Islands, known as Little Saint James.The list also mentions memos from FBI interviews with witnesses. CNN has reported that there are at least hundreds of pages of these memos, known as “302s.”The list also includes financial records, bank records, travel logs from commercial and private flights, materials subpoenaed from Internet providers like Google, what’s referred to as “school records,” information from law firms representing victims, arrest reports, depositions from related civil lawsuits, immigration records, documents from the Palm Beach Police Department and forensic reports from seized dozens of Epstein’s electronic devices.Federal judges have also paved the way for the Justice Department to release grand jury materials from the Epstein indictment, the Maxwell trial and the related probe in Florida.But the grand jury files might not be all that illuminating. One of the judges wrote that nearly all of the grand jury material from the Maxwell case “was already a matter of public record” and that its disclosure “would not reveal new information of any consequence.”What might be redacted?The law says records can’t be “withheld, delayed, or redacted” due to concerns about “embarrassment, reputational harm, or political sensitivity.” And it explicitly says this applies to “any government official, public figure, or foreign dignitary.”However, under the law, Attorney General Pam Bondi can “withhold or redact” portions of records that fall under five categories, as long as she publicly explains every redaction.Those categories are: records that contain personally identifiable information about Epstein’s victims, materials depicting child sexual abuse, materials depicting physical abuse, any records that “would jeopardize an active federal investigation,” or any classified documents that must stay secret to protect “national defense or foreign policy.”CNN reported that the FBI recovered thousands of nude and seminude photographs of young women at Epstein’s property in Manhattan. Those images will not be made public.What won’t be in the release?There are limits for what we’ll see. The Justice Department’s in-house files about the Epstein case only represent a portion of what exists in the entire Epstein-related universe.For instance, the House Oversight Committee’s recent releases contained documents obtained from Epstein’s estate, including some materials that the FBI later said it had never seen before. Lawmakers are also pursuing bank records that might not be in the Justice Department’s existing cache of materials.Naturally, this means there could be more disclosures even after the Justice Department’s highly anticipated document drop.What are experts looking for?Miami Herald reporter Julie K. Brown, a top expert on the Epstein saga, said she is keeping an eye out for drafts of un-filed indictments, tips from the public that the FBI received about Epstein, and internal emails and texts from the investigators who worked on the cases.Others, including some Democratic lawmakers, have raised concerns about the possibility that the Trump administration will overzealously withhold or redact materials – particularly documents that make Trump look bad – due to the ongoing Trump-backed probe into Epstein’s associates.Last month, Trump directed the Justice Department to investigate Epstein’s ties to several well-known Democrats, including former President Clinton. That probe is ongoing, though the Justice Department said back in July that its exhaustive review of the Epstein and Maxwell case files did not uncover enough evidence to charge any of their associates.What have the victims said?Some of Epstein and Maxwell’s victims have been wary of the Justice Department releasing grand jury and other materials, for fear of being named publicly. But others have supported the unsealing, if proper redactions are made to conceal names and identifying information.One victim who testified during Maxwell’s trial supported the release provided such redactions are made. In a letter to the federal judge who presided over the case, the victim also voiced concern that the Justice Department might not release everything they have.Others have been far more critical of the releases. When Democrats on the House Oversight Committee released a large tranche of documents from Epstein’s estate in November, a group of victims quickly lamented that names and other personal information was not redacted.“Transparency cannot come at the expense of the privacy, safety, and protection of sexual abuse and sex trafficking victims,” lawyers for the victims wrote in a letter to the judge in the Maxwell case, adding that they “already suffered repeatedly, both at the hands of their abusers as well as by the actions of the media and inactions on the Government.”The judge who presided over Maxwell’s case, Paul Engelmayer, also criticized the Justice Department’s handling of victims during the months-long debate over whether to release more of the files. He said in one ruling that the Justice Department, “although paying lip service to Maxwell’s and Epstein’s victims, has not treated them with the solicitude they deserve.”The Justice Department has said in court filings that, in anticipation of the release, it has coordinated closely with known victims and was trying to reach lawyers for more victims. However, CNN reported Tuesday that some Epstein survivors haven’t received any outreach from the Justice Department ahead of the files’ release.What has already been released?A deluge of files, memos, transcripts and other documents surrounding the Epstein saga have already been released through Maxwell’s 2021 criminal trial, public records requests over the years, Justice Department reports, and numerous civil lawsuits.Such documents released by the Justice Department include their findings from an internal investigation into the 2008 non-prosecution agreement with Epstein, which the DOJ now says was wholly improper, as well as the department’s inspector general’s report on Epstein’s suicide at a federal prison in Manhattan.Earlier this year, Trump appointees at the Justice Department and FBI released a batch of declassified Epstein files investigators had gathered. The information from those files, however, was largely already public and the Trump administration has been heavily criticized by supporters and detractors for the bungled release ever since.The Justice Department released hundreds of pages from its controversial sit-down interview with Maxwell earlier this year, where she defended her actions and even criticized some of the victims.More recently, members of the House Oversight Committee released multiple tranches of files and photographs from Epstein’s estate.CNN’s Kara Scannell contributed to this report.

A new federal law requires the Justice Department to release by Friday a massive trove of investigative documents related to Jeffrey Epstein.

The release of the Epstein files, detailing the probes into the disgraced multimillionaire and sex offender who died in 2019, has attracted significant attention. The public has been captivated by Epstein’s lavish lifestyle, claims of underage sex trafficking, and his ties to President Donald Trump, former President Bill Clinton, celebrities and foreign dignitaries.

Veto-proof majorities in Congress passed a law last month requiring the Justice Department to release all of the Epstein-related files in its custody. Trump fought hard to stop the law but signed it after being outmaneuvered by a bipartisan groundswell of support from lawmakers and the public.

However, it’s unclear exactly which records will be made public and how much of the material will be new. Over the 20-year saga surrounding Epstein’s sex crimes, thousands of files have already been disclosed through civil litigation and public records requests.

Here’s what you need to know about the files:

Why is this happening now?

The law, called the Epstein Files Transparency Act, is only three pages long and spells out in simple language what the Justice Department must release and what it can withhold.

The federal government is required to release “searchable and downloadable” copies of “all unclassified records, documents, communications, and investigative materials” related to Epstein and Maxwell that are in the possession of the Justice Department or FBI.

The law explicitly calls for the release of travel logs, materials about Epstein’s associates, any related immunity deals, relevant corporate records, all internal Justice Department communications about the investigations, and documents about Epstein’s 2019 death.

What’s in DOJ’s Epstein files?

CNN has reported that there’s more than 300 gigabytes of data that lives within the FBI’s primary electronic case management system, called Sentinel. This includes videos, photographs, audio recordings and written records.

The FBI conducted two probes into Epstein. The first began in 2006 after sex abuse allegations emerged in Florida. That led to a non-prosecution deal in which Epstein avoided federal charges. Much of the same conduct was also scrutinized by the Palm Beach Police Department, leading to Epstein’s 2008 guilty plea on state charges. He would serve just 13 months in a Florida jail for state prostitution charges, though he was allowed to spend nearly half of that time on “work release” at his office.

The second FBI investigation led to Epstein’s federal sex trafficking indictment in 2019. The bulk of the “Epstein files” comes from that New York-based second FBI probe, though there are also materials from the first investigation in Miami, CNN previously reported.

What has DOJ said it may release?

The Justice Department has described in court filings the types of documents in its possession that it believes must be publicly released under the new law. However, the department warned that the list is “not entirely comprehensive” of what may be released.

The list says materials obtained from search warrants, and FBI affidavits supporting search warrants, will be released. The FBI notably raided Epstein’s homes in Florida, New York, and the private island that he owned in the US Virgin Islands, known as Little Saint James.

The list also mentions memos from FBI interviews with witnesses. CNN has reported that there are at least hundreds of pages of these memos, known as “302s.”

The list also includes financial records, bank records, travel logs from commercial and private flights, materials subpoenaed from Internet providers like Google, what’s referred to as “school records,” information from law firms representing victims, arrest reports, depositions from related civil lawsuits, immigration records, documents from the Palm Beach Police Department and forensic reports from seized dozens of Epstein’s electronic devices.

Federal judges have also paved the way for the Justice Department to release grand jury materials from the Epstein indictment, the Maxwell trial and the related probe in Florida.

But the grand jury files might not be all that illuminating. One of the judges wrote that nearly all of the grand jury material from the Maxwell case “was already a matter of public record” and that its disclosure “would not reveal new information of any consequence.”

What might be redacted?

The law says records can’t be “withheld, delayed, or redacted” due to concerns about “embarrassment, reputational harm, or political sensitivity.” And it explicitly says this applies to “any government official, public figure, or foreign dignitary.”

However, under the law, Attorney General Pam Bondi can “withhold or redact” portions of records that fall under five categories, as long as she publicly explains every redaction.

Those categories are: records that contain personally identifiable information about Epstein’s victims, materials depicting child sexual abuse, materials depicting physical abuse, any records that “would jeopardize an active federal investigation,” or any classified documents that must stay secret to protect “national defense or foreign policy.”

CNN reported that the FBI recovered thousands of nude and seminude photographs of young women at Epstein’s property in Manhattan. Those images will not be made public.

What won’t be in the release?

There are limits for what we’ll see. The Justice Department’s in-house files about the Epstein case only represent a portion of what exists in the entire Epstein-related universe.

For instance, the House Oversight Committee’s recent releases contained documents obtained from Epstein’s estate, including some materials that the FBI later said it had never seen before. Lawmakers are also pursuing bank records that might not be in the Justice Department’s existing cache of materials.

Naturally, this means there could be more disclosures even after the Justice Department’s highly anticipated document drop.

What are experts looking for?

Miami Herald reporter Julie K. Brown, a top expert on the Epstein saga, said she is keeping an eye out for drafts of un-filed indictments, tips from the public that the FBI received about Epstein, and internal emails and texts from the investigators who worked on the cases.

Others, including some Democratic lawmakers, have raised concerns about the possibility that the Trump administration will overzealously withhold or redact materials – particularly documents that make Trump look bad – due to the ongoing Trump-backed probe into Epstein’s associates.

Last month, Trump directed the Justice Department to investigate Epstein’s ties to several well-known Democrats, including former President Clinton. That probe is ongoing, though the Justice Department said back in July that its exhaustive review of the Epstein and Maxwell case files did not uncover enough evidence to charge any of their associates.

What have the victims said?

Some of Epstein and Maxwell’s victims have been wary of the Justice Department releasing grand jury and other materials, for fear of being named publicly. But others have supported the unsealing, if proper redactions are made to conceal names and identifying information.

One victim who testified during Maxwell’s trial supported the release provided such redactions are made. In a letter to the federal judge who presided over the case, the victim also voiced concern that the Justice Department might not release everything they have.

Others have been far more critical of the releases. When Democrats on the House Oversight Committee released a large tranche of documents from Epstein’s estate in November, a group of victims quickly lamented that names and other personal information was not redacted.

“Transparency cannot come at the expense of the privacy, safety, and protection of sexual abuse and sex trafficking victims,” lawyers for the victims wrote in a letter to the judge in the Maxwell case, adding that they “already suffered repeatedly, both at the hands of their abusers as well as by the actions of the media and inactions on the Government.”

The judge who presided over Maxwell’s case, Paul Engelmayer, also criticized the Justice Department’s handling of victims during the months-long debate over whether to release more of the files. He said in one ruling that the Justice Department, “although paying lip service to Maxwell’s and Epstein’s victims, has not treated them with the solicitude they deserve.”

The Justice Department has said in court filings that, in anticipation of the release, it has coordinated closely with known victims and was trying to reach lawyers for more victims. However, CNN reported Tuesday that some Epstein survivors haven’t received any outreach from the Justice Department ahead of the files’ release.

What has already been released?

A deluge of files, memos, transcripts and other documents surrounding the Epstein saga have already been released through Maxwell’s 2021 criminal trial, public records requests over the years, Justice Department reports, and numerous civil lawsuits.

Such documents released by the Justice Department include their findings from an internal investigation into the 2008 non-prosecution agreement with Epstein, which the DOJ now says was wholly improper, as well as the department’s inspector general’s report on Epstein’s suicide at a federal prison in Manhattan.

Earlier this year, Trump appointees at the Justice Department and FBI released a batch of declassified Epstein files investigators had gathered. The information from those files, however, was largely already public and the Trump administration has been heavily criticized by supporters and detractors for the bungled release ever since.

The Justice Department released hundreds of pages from its controversial sit-down interview with Maxwell earlier this year, where she defended her actions and even criticized some of the victims.

More recently, members of the House Oversight Committee released multiple tranches of files and photographs from Epstein’s estate.

CNN’s Kara Scannell contributed to this report.

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December 17, 2025
Evicted from her apartment at 68, an artist starts anew in a sunny L.A. fourplex

After living in her two-bedroom apartment in Los Feliz for more than a decade, Debra Weiss encountered a problem experienced by many renters in Los Angeles: She was evicted.

“I moved into the apartment in 2014, and four years later, my landlord sold it to a wealthy family who bought it at a loss,” said Weiss, 69, who works as a textile artist and was evicted last year. “They knew they couldn’t evict us due to rent control.”

In this series, we spotlight L.A. rentals with style. From perfect gallery walls to temporary decor hacks, these renters get creative, even in small spaces. And Angelenos need the inspiration: Most are renters.

When the landlords put the three-unit complex on the market in 2022, however, they offered Weiss $50,000 to move out — far more than the amount required by law — to make the building easier for them to sell. She declined, concerned it would affect her Social Security benefits, as there is a limit to how much one can earn and still receive full benefits.

Then, last February, the three tenants received eviction notices under the Ellis Act, which allows landlords to evict renters from rent-controlled apartments if the building is being torn down or removed from the rental market. It’s currently for sale for $3.2 million.

As a senior, Weiss was entitled to a full year’s notice because she had lived in her unit for more than a year. Still, she knew she would eventually have to move out of the comfortable 1,200-square-foot duplex, for which she paid $2,670 a month in rent.

Artist Debra Weiss stands in her dining room where she often works as a fiber artist.

When she began looking for another apartment in the area, Weiss quickly learned that she could no longer afford to live in Los Feliz. “The apartments were so much more expensive than what I was used to paying, and they had no parking or a washer and dryer,” she said. (Weiss was paid $24,650 in relocation assistance, which was taxed, due to her age and the length of time she lived in her Los Feliz apartment.)

She also visited some small studios and considered purchasing a TIC, or Tenancy in Common, where buyers purchase a share in a corporation that owns a building. However, to secure a loan, she’d need someone to co-sign. “Even though they are cute, they are tiny and not necessarily in the best neighborhoods,” she said. Another option, a Craftsman apartment near USC, wasn’t in a good walking neighborhood, something that was important to Weiss. It was also dark and hundreds of dollars more a month than her previous apartment. “I’m almost 70 years old and I need light to work,” she added.

Handknitted sculptures, embroidered weavings and a tufted rug adorn the guest room.

When her son-in-law spotted a charming two-bedroom apartment near the Los Angeles County Museum of Art for $2,950 a month on Zillow, Weiss decided to check it out.

“My initial reaction was, ‘I want this,’ ” Weiss said of the fourplex.

The rental had high ceilings, oak floors, ample sunlight, an appealing fireplace, a garage and a washer and dryer. A newly redone modern kitchen felt out of character for the 1930s building, but that didn’t bother Weiss. “The kitchen is a blank canvas,” she said of the all-white cabinets and countertops. “The white background makes all of my stuff stand out,” including ceramics by Mt. Washington Pottery and Altadena artist Linda Hsiao.

Weiss knits a sweater for her granddaughter with yarn she purchased in Japan.

Concerned that the landlord wouldn’t want to rent to her because of her age, she was pleasantly surprised when she got the apartment. “The light is amazing,” Weiss said. “I was initially worried about some of the modern touches like the overhead lighting, but it floods the room with bright light that allows me to work at night.”

Nearly a year after moving in, Weiss has filled the apartment with her stitched collages, quilts and the artworks of others, many of which she described as “trades.” “I like color and pattern and objects,” she said as she pointed out some Japanese ceramics on her buffet and a dress that she crocheted with scraps of fabric, yarn and metal.

In the guest room, a wall hanging composed of three separate weavings in a gingham check pattern is embroidered with a series of characters she based on her 5-year-old granddaughter’s drawings. “It’s about people coming together in chaos and supporting each other,” Weiss said. “I like the pattern; it reminds me of eating together on picnic tables.”

“I like objects,” Weiss said of the many treasures and collections of things that are featured throughout her rental.

On the opposite wall of the guest room above her sewing machine, a series of metal sculptures she knitted with copper and silver hangs alongside cloth dolls and purses. In the corner, a cowl made of macrame, textiles and yarn adorns a mannequin. There’s also a colorful latch hook rug that she made with acrylic yarn that looks more like artwork than a functional accessory.

In her bedroom, a coverlet that Weiss assembled from vintage quilts adorns the bed.

The long hallway ends at the laundry room and is lined with her colorful quilts, some of which are mounted on Homasote board, along with weavings and stitched works, which, like her cooking, are improvisational.

“I work without planning and respond to the materials and see what it becomes,” she said. “I start knitting and see where it goes. I get excited about the material, and then I go for it. “

The hallway in Weiss’s apartment is lined with her artworks.

Much of the wood furniture in her apartment was made by her father, who died 13 years ago.

“I’ve had this since my kids were little, and you can see all the markings,” she said of the hutch in the corner of her dining room. “My dad made it 40 years ago for the Van Nuys house I grew up in.”

It is here, at the dining room table that her father made, that she works, hosts workshops and teaches lessons in fiber art, collage and stitching. Later this year, she hopes to host a sale of her work at a holiday open house in her apartment.

Weiss is an expert in mixing texture, pattern and color in her Mid-Wilshire apartment.

The mixing of colorful Persian rugs, textiles, natural materials, chunky wood pieces and intricately knitted metal sculptures creates a warm balance throughout her apartment.

Bursting with color and pattern, the rooms offer a sense of calm that Weiss appreciates as a woman who raised three daughters alone and has had to pivot during major life changes. Over the years, she has run a clothing company, Rebe, which closed in 2019 due to economic uncertainty, declared bankruptcy and sold her Woodland Hills house. Most recently, she was forced to weather the eviction process.

“I’ve always been an entrepreneur,” said Weiss, who works six to eight hours a day at home and sells her artwork and sewing patterns on her Specks and Keepings website and at L.A. Homefarm in Glassell Park. “I’ll always figure out a way to make money by selling the things that I make.”

Even though the process of having to move was stressful, Weiss is happy with her new home and neighborhood. “I take the Metro bus everywhere and hardly ever drive,” she said. “I go to the Hollywood Farmer’s Market on Sundays. Kaiser is nearby and I can walk to LACMA. Everything worked out perfectly.”

Weiss pulls out a drawer of her flat files cabinet filled with her artwork.

Lisa Boone

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June 23, 2025
California secretary of state among officials in 16 states receiving suspicious packages

A suspicious package containing unbleached flour was received at the California secretary of state’s headquarters in Sacramento, in what appears to be the latest in a series of suspicious packages sent to election officials across the country, officials reported Thursday afternoon.

In total, suspicious packages have been sent to election officials in at least 15 other states, officials said. The source of the Sacramento package is unknown.

“Field testing and presumptive chemical test by state law enforcement revealed that the material contained within the package was non-hazardous and tested positive for unbleached flour,” Secretary of State Shirley Weber said in a statement, adding that federal authorities will continue to investigate the incident.

Weber said local elections offices are being advised to take extra precautions before handling mail that arrives at their facilities.

On Tuesday, the FBI and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service launched an investigation into suspicious packages sent to election officials in more than a dozen states, including Alaska, Colorado, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Missouri, New York, Rhode Island, Mississippi and Connecticut.

So far, there have been no reports of injuries caused by the packages or harmful material contained in them. However, “an unknown substance” was found in some packages, FBI spokesperson Kristen Setera said in a statement.

A package delivered to an election office in Oklahoma was also found to contain flour, state officials reported.

This is the second time in recent months that election offices in multiple states have been targeted with suspicious mail.

In November, letters were sent to election offices in five states, several of which were found to include fentanyl, the FBI and U.S. Postal Inspection Service reported.

This latest wave of suspicious deliveries comes as early voting kicks off for the November election in several states. Former President Trump, the GOP nominee for president, has continued to insist, without proof, that he lost the last election due to voter fraud, putting extra scrutiny on the nation’s balloting process and on election officials.

On Tuesday, the National Assn. of Secretaries of State, or NASS, issued a statement condemning the the suspicious mailings as well as the recent assassination attempts against Trump.

“Our democracy has no place for political violence, threats or intimidation of any kind,” the NASS stated.

Weber said her office will continue to work with state and federal law enforcement to monitor any threats to California election workers.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Clara Harter

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September 19, 2024
Rancho Palos Verdes landslide is creating a new beach. ‘It’s unreal’

There’s an entirely new coastline in Rancho Palos Verdes.

The rapidly expanding and accelerating complex of landslides on the southeastern tip of the Palos Verdes peninsula continues to wreak havoc on the area’s homes, roads and utilities, even forcing the iconic Wayfarers Chapel to abandon its location, at least temporarily.

But it has also led to a new and unforeseen change at the water’s edge: The seafloor has been pushed upward, literally creating new beach.

“That beach is brand new,” said Denny Jaconi, pointing to the rocky shoreline that he said didn’t exist just a few months ago. “There’s three or four of us that have been surfing down here our whole lives, and we’re just blown away because it’s unreal.”

The waters where Jaconi caught waves in his childhood — and even just months ago — have given way to a large, rocky coast, transformed as the force of the landslides has pushed bentonite up from below the sand.

“That beach is brand new,” said Denny Jaconi, pointing to the rocky shoreline that he said didn’t exist just a few months ago.

(Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)

“It’s changing like every week,” he said, as new reefs appear regularly.

Jaconi, 45, is a lifelong resident of the Portuguese Bend Beach Club, a small gated community just off Palos Verdes Drive South that has the most direct access to the evolving beach. The neighborhood’s large, white-sand beach has also recently bulged into a hillside; visitors coming from Seawall Road can no longer see the water until they climb up the now-mounded sand.

But the changes from the accelerating land movement don’t end there, Jaconi said.

Almost every home in their neighborhood has seen significant damage, with wall cracks, jammed doors, collapsed decks and shifting foundations worsening every day. The main road has become gravel in many spots after one too many pavement fractures. The community’s beachside tennis court was recently removed, its rippled floor no longer allowing for games.

For most who live there, it’s their first time seeing damage from the landslide complex, which is made up of at least five separate slides, including the Portuguese Bend slide, the largest and most active. Land movement has plagued this region since a portion of the ancient landslides was reactivated in the 1950s, but officials say the recent movement — the outcome of back-to-back wet winters — is unlike anything on record.

“Things are moving, unfortunately, faster than they ever have historically,” Mike Phipps, the city’s geologist, said at Tuesday night’s City Council meeting. In his latest report, he noted that the landslide continues to affect new areas, moving in some spots as much as 13 inches a week. For decades, most areas saw movement closer to a few inches a year — if that.

That new and rapid movement has transformed the coastline.

“The Portuguese Beach Club area continues to experience major deformation along Seawall Road and bulging/uplift on the order of 4 to 5 feet across the beach,” Phipps wrote in his latest report. “This deformation appears to continue offshore … based on major emergence of land in the surf zone and nearshore zone at the southeasterly toe of the [Portuguese Bend landslide].”

The new shoreline is about 250 feet farther out to sea after parts of the seafloor moved an estimated 10 feet vertically, he said, a “manifestation of this bigger, deeper, longer movement of the Portuguese Bend landslide.”

Although this outcome is new for the area, geologist El Hachemi Bouali called the movement “actually quite normal for a landslide.”

“In general, a landslide complex will lose material at the top and it will gain material at the bottom,” said Bouali, an assistant professor of geosciences for Nevada State University who has long studied the Portuguese Bend landslide complex. “If enough material accumulates at the bottom and it is not removed through erosion, there may be bulging or uplift that occurs as materials accumulate and create upward deformation.”

Jaconi said it’s been unreal to watch these geological forces play out in real time, on an area that he thought he knew so well.

“To be showing our kids this whole new coastline … it’s a completely different place,” he said.

But the coastal changes have also been a bright spot for Jaconi amid the mounting disaster that has broken countless water and gas lines, red-tagged at least two homes in the area and forced his family to pursue dramatic repairs to try to save, and make safe, their home.

The ongoing landslide in the Portuguese Bend neighborhood in Palos Verdes has caused considerable damage to some homes.

(Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)

He said the new beach has made the water clearer, now that the waves hit rock instead of a dusty hillside, creating a better habitat for marine life and new swimming spots.

“This is like our solace through all this disaster,” Jaconi said. “It’s like, ‘Oh, we’ve got a private beach down there and a couple of new surf spots.’”

He doesn’t know whether officials will ever find a way to slow the devastating land movement. But he remains hopeful about a future for his family here, with dreams of raising his 5-month-old son on the same — well, different — coast where he grew up.

“We have new tide pools here for kids,” he said. “There’s new kelp beds out there, there was a huge pelican population that just left. … Now we’ve got like 50 feet of coastline — between ocean and landslide.”

Grace Toohey

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July 7, 2024
Material Is Having a Huge Sitewide Sale on the Kitchen Tools We Swear By — and We Got You Exclusive Early Access

It’s the perfect time to give your kitchen the upgrade it deserves.
READ MORE…

Sarah M. Vazquez

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March 8, 2024
The Brand Behind the Cutting Board, Nonstick Pan, and Spatula We Love Has an Exclusive Discount Just for The Kitchn Readers

We independently select these products—if you buy from one of our links, we may earn a commission. All prices were accurate at the time of publishing.

When it comes to cool kitchen gear, we’ve tested it all — which is why we’re so excited to bring you the news when one of our favorite brands goes on sale. With plenty of retailers having blowout Presidents’ Day deals this weekend (many of which you can shop right now), it can be tough to weed through them all — that’s why we’ve compiled a handy list for you to check out right here. One brand we’re particularly excited about is Material, purveyors of some of the most gorgeous and practical kitchen tools in the game. Plus, The Kitchn readers can use the code KT18 for 18% off sitewide from now until Feb. 29, so take a peek at some of our editors’ favorite Material picks below and get ready to add to cart!

Ian Burke

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February 16, 2024
Material Is Offering Kitchn Readers an Exclusive 20% Off — Here Are Our Top 5 Picks for Spending It

Sarah M. VazquezSEO Commerce Editor

Sarah writes about all things shopping for Apartment Therapy, The Kitchn, and Cubby helping you find the best deals and the best products for you and your home. A Brooklyn-born Jersey Girl, she loves a good playlist, a good bagel, and her family (but not necessarily in that order).

Sarah M. Vazquez

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December 13, 2023
Neighborhoods get little guidance about toxic risks after massive Tustin hangar fire

Johnny Schillereff and his wife, Kori, never worried about their home’s proximity to the historic Tustin hangars. If anything, the cavernous wooden structures made the Columbus Square neighborhood where they settled after moving from Newport Beach three years ago even more attractive.

They’d have family dinners on their front porch and watch the moon illuminate the north hangar, which is visible through the trees that line the neighborhood park across the street. In a slice of Orange County sometimes described as sanitized, the 80-year-old relic of military history lent an aura of nostalgia, evoking a past that predated the region’s orderly planned communities and convenient access to shopping.

But on Nov. 7, the couple and their 18-year-old son woke to a smoke-filled neighborhood. The towering flames consuming the north hangar were visible from their front door. Ash and debris — later found to contain asbestos — rained down. Some neighbors, worried the fire would reach their homes, used garden hoses to soak their roofs. Others packed up their cars and left.

Many assumed the fire’s impacts would be short-lived. But the 17-story hangar smoldered for more than a week, and residents have struggled to get information about the fallout on air quality and airborne contaminants, including when debris will be removed from their properties.

“Our son is completely freaked out over it, so I have to stay calm so that he isn’t afraid,” Kori Schillereff said. “But it’s so difficult finding any information about what we should do. I’m getting most of my information from Nextdoor.”

On Thursday afternoon, after burning for more than a week, the two massive concrete doors on either side of the north hangar and a sliver of one of the walls were all that remained. What’s left of the building will be demolished; officials have not set a timeline.

“It’s almost like if you bought a house on a lakefront. You buy the house because you like the vibe of the lake — and the lake just dries up,” Johnny Schillereff said. “This thing is just gone.”

Even as neighbors mourn the loss of the monumental structure, many are frustrated with how the fire was managed and a lack of clear communication about their exposure and risk level. While the property is owned by the Navy, a mix of government agencies have been involved in the firefight and aftermath, including the Orange County Fire Authority and the South Coast Air Quality Management District.

“Our biggest frustration overall is that there’s just nobody in charge,” said Jeff Lawrence, who lives in the nearby Columbus Grove neighborhood. “Everything’s just a mess because there’s not coordination and every agency is just independently doing their own thing with no real communication with the community.”

In the early hours of the fire, officials said there were no concerns about asbestos exposure. But the presence of asbestos and other metals in the World War II-era building has been documented in reports dating back years.

On the day of the fire, the South Coast Air Quality Management District deployed a mobile monitor to measure for hazardous substances in the air, including lead and arsenic. That day, “for short periods of time” the monitor recorded elevated levels of lead and arsenic inside the smoke plume, according to information posted on the city of Tustin’s website.

On the second day of the fire, the air quality district placed monitors at four locations near the hangars — Veterans Sports Park, the Orange County Sheriff’s Regional Training Academy, Legacy Magnet Academy and Amalfi Apartments — to test for asbestos. Samples collected Nov. 8-12 showed no asbestos, according to reports.

In the days that followed, the Navy, city of Tustin, Environmental Protection Agency and air quality district deployed 51 air monitors across a roughly 3.5-mile radius around the hangar. They found particulate matter to be “well below any level of concern,” according to the city.

But asbestos has been detected in samples of ash and debris collected at Veterans Sports Park and near the hangar. The air quality district wrote the materials “should be considered hazardous and avoided.” As the fire continued to burn, strong Santa Ana winds fueled concerns that contaminated materials could be carried across the county.

“More systematic sampling is really needed to determine what’s going on at the community level,” said Michael Kleinman, a UC Irvine professor in the Department of Environmental and Occupational Health. This, he added, should include sampling upwind and downwind of the fire and analyzing how the wind may have affected debris movement.

Asbestos is a mineral fiber that until the 1970s was widely used in building products and insulation materials because of its resistance to heat and corrosion. The material, which has been linked to mesothelioma and other lung cancers, is no longer widely used. However, it’s still found in older buildings, including the hangars, which were built in 1942.

Asbestos becomes a health hazard when the dust becomes airborne and is inhaled. The fibers can embed in human lungs and cause issues years later. While there’s no safe level of exposure, Kleinman said, “the risk goes up the more you’re exposed with higher doses and with a longer exposure time.”

On Friday, five members of Congress who represent Orange County sent a letter to the South Coast Air Quality Management District pushing for additional testing on air quality and debris.

When the fire broke out, parents sent their children to school with the understanding they would be kept indoors because of poor air quality. But amid early confusion, not all schools complied, and at least one parent said his child came home bearing plastic bags of debris from the fire that had blown onto the elementary school campus.

The Tustin Unified School District later closed all campuses and hired a contractor to clean schools before they reopened. As of Friday, about a dozen campuses remained closed. Still, some parents worry their kids were exposed to asbestos.

“My daughter has her friend group chats, and the kids talk about cancer now,” Lawrence said. “You don’t really think about that as a topic 10- or 11-year-olds should be discussing on a daily basis.”

Some residents have paid to get the interiors of their homes tested. One report provided to The Times by a Columbus Square homeowner said asbestos was detected on the kitchen and living room floors.

On Thursday afternoon, crews dressed in white hazmat suits with respirators walked streets near the hangar collecting debris in trash bags.

John Avalos, who lives roughly a mile from the hangars, was one of several people who stopped by the site to take photos of what remained. Rain from a day earlier seemed to have extinguished the last remnants of fire.

“I’ve been taking photos just to see how it’s been progressing, because there have been so many flare-ups,” Avalos said. “It’s really sad.”

Thursday was the first day since the fire erupted that the Schillereff family felt it was OK to take their long-haired dachshund, Mr. Rogers, out for a walk rather than ferrying him by car to the community dog park. Even so, strolling through the neighborhood park, they wondered just how safe it was.

“We’re still getting mixed information,” Johnny Schillereff said. “And it’s not very comforting when you go out to walk your dog and there’s still people walking around in hazmat suits picking up debris.”

Hannah Fry

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November 19, 2023