Love this local LA reporting on the man Trump hired to "go after fraud" from the U.S. attorney's office in Los Angeles, but is now suffering a string of losses in federal prosecutions. (Of course, he has a mug with Trump's mug shot on it on his office desk.) lamaterial.com/p/bill-essay...
The fraud case that L.A.’s top federal prosecutor rarely talks about.
Trump’s man in L.A., Bill Essayli, once represented relatives accused of running a massive scheme to defraud Target to buy millions of dollars in goods.
Read the full story in today’s newsletter: lamaterial.com/p/when-trump...
Bill Essayli, Trump's man in L.A., talks a lot about fraud.
Something he doesn't talk about: his family's federal fraud case, and how he defended it against the office he now runs.
Our reporter Matt Hamilton uncovered the case and went deep on a major Trump player. lamaterial.com/p/bill-essay...
Budget fight season is here. Later today, Mayor Karen Bass unveils her proposed city budget for the next fiscal year.
Here’s what to watch for as the city’s often-contentious budget season kicks off.
lamaterial.com/p/la-city-bu...
I was served an Instagram ad for this immersive art exhibition in a hospital and got so invested I ended up getting kicked off the property three days later. lamaterial.com/p/it-was-a-c...
St. Vincent Medical Center, the oldest hospital in Los Angeles, has sat vacant in MacArthur Park for the past six years.
Now the abandoned hospital is becoming a homeless shelter. And an immersive art show. And more.
lamaterial.com/p/it-was-a-c...
Were the haters right about LACMA? As the museum’s new David Geffen Galleries opened their doors to the press, we break down why it’s made so many people so mad for so long.
lamaterial.com/p/were-the-h...
How Does Talésai Make Money? The family-run Thai restaurant in Studio City opened its books for today’s The Receipts.
lamaterial.com/p/talesai-th...
This is the inside story of how Mayor Karen Bass helped avert an LAUSD strike at the 11th hour.
lamaterial.com/p/how-lausd-...
Meet the content creator who helped bring down Swalwell. How Mrs. Frazzled helped reshape the governor’s race.
lamaterial.com/p/meet-the-c...
A Shohei impersonator charms Japanese fans at this Echo Park clubhouse. Inside this dugout-sized shop, among the caps and memorabilia, this store also offers an unusual portal to the Dodgers experience — specifically catered to visitors from Japan.
lamaterial.com/p/a-dodgers-...
The chicken finger chain that wants to be a Hollywood star. Why is one fast food restaurant suddenly all over L.A.?
lamaterial.com/p/raising-ca...
What is a giant statue doing in the middle of Runyon Canyon? Pictures of the sculpture - and questions about its origin - spread quickly after it mysteriously appeared Monday.
lamaterial.com/p/what-is-a-...
Why Is There a Mosaic of Jim Jones Outside a Silver Lake Elementary School? The cult leader’s portrait has been up for almost two years. We found the guy who made it.
lamaterial.com/p/mosaic-of-...
Did the ‘Baywatch’ reboot really get kicked off Venice Beach? We ran down the rumors … while there have been some issues, the production was not booted off Venice Beach, according to both the County and Fox.
lamaterial.com/p/was-baywat...
Podcasts have become Hollywood’s safest press stop. How stars decide who to talk to, how edits work, and the celeb podcast pecking order revealed.
lamaterial.com/p/the-unwrit...
Despite widespread frustration, incumbent Mayor Karen Bass looked to be on a glide path to reelection days before the filing deadline.
This is the inside story of how L.A. insiders scrambled to marshal an alternative — and ended up with a challenger no one saw coming. lamaterial.com/p/five-days-...
