Missing mentally ill teen located after his arrest in Santa Ana

Matthew Hoff. (Family photo)

A mentally ill Orange County teen who had been missing since his release from jail  this month has been found, after he was arrested by Santa Ana police, his family said.

Matthew Hoff’s family posted on the Facebook page “Matthew We Miss You Please Come Home” that the missing teen had been arrested Tuesday by Santa Ana police.

“Matthew is OK!” the post said.

“It is great news and we will be able to sleep tonight knowing our son is safe. BUT … it’s just the beginning again with this CYCLE that does not quit.”

– Rick Rojas, Los Angeles Times

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Albert Pujols: Don’t call me ‘El Hombre’

Pujols, however, asked the St. Louis media and fans two years ago to refrain from calling him “El Hombre” because he felt it was disrespectful to Cardinals Hall of Famer Stan “The Man” Musial. And those feelings have not changed now that he’s in Anaheim.

“I feel the same way,” Pujols said before Wednesday morning’s workout in Tempe Diablo Stadium. “I had nothing to do with [the Angels billboards]. They haven’t talked to me about it.”

– Mike DiGiovanna, Los Angeles Times

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Scioscia says he doesn’t believe Bobby Abreu will be a distraction

Angels outfielder Bobby Abreu swings in the on-deck circle during a game against the Texas Rangers at Angel Stadium in 2011. (Gina Ferazzi, Los Angeles Times)

Reporting from Tempe, Ariz. —Angels Manager Mike Scioscia says he does not believe that Bobby Abreu will be a distraction in training camp after the veteran outfielder told an ESPNdeportes.com reporter that he would prefer to be traded if he doesn’t have an everyday role.

“You don’t get too many guys any more professional than Bobby, so I don’t anticipate that being an issue,” Scioscia said before Wednesday’s workout, a day after Abreu made his comment. “I think if there are some issues, I’m sure that his agent will work through them with Jerry [Dipoto, Angels general manager]. Bobby’s here, and he’s going to help us win games, and that’s what we’re looking forward to.”

The Angels can’t guarantee Abreu a starting job, and they would prefer to keep him as insurance for the designated hitter spot in case Kendrys Morales doesn’t return from a broken left ankle and Mark Trumbo has a setback in his return from a stress fracture in his right foot.

– Mike DiGiovanna, Los Angeles Times

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Ducks lose to Lightning, 3-2

TAMPA, Fla.— Steven Stamkos had a big game right after saying goodbye to a popular teammate, the Associated Press reports.

The All-Star forward scored his league-leading 41st and 42nd goals of the season and added an assist as the Tampa Bay Lightning beat the Ducks, 3-2, on Tuesday night.

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Fullerton police didn’t intend to deceive public in Kelly Thomas’ death, report finds

Ron Thomas, whose son, Kelly, died after being beaten by Fullerton police officers, tells reporters that he questions the conclusions of a police watchdog attorney's report that found no intent by police to deceive or falsify information. "I don't believe that for a second,” he said. “All of it was intended to make Kelly look bad.” (Allen J. Schaben, Los Angeles Times / February 21, 2012)

There is no evidence that Fullerton police deliberately released false or negative information and an unflattering photograph of a mentally ill homeless man who died last year after being beaten by police officers, a police watchdog attorney hired by the city said Tuesday.

The report comes after community leaders and activists accused the beleaguered Police Department of going out of its way to portray Kelly Thomas as a violent street person with a history of run-ins with police before the deadly July 5 confrontation.

Although police released a 2-year-old booking photo showing a disheveled Thomas and incorrectly told the media that he had been so violent that two officers suffered broken bones in the struggle, attorney Michael Gennaco said the negative portrayal of the homeless man was unintentional.

– Richard Winton and Abby Sewell, Los Angeles Times

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O.C. serial killer suspect changed after Iraq, woman says

Former Marine Itzcoatl Ocampo, 23, during his arraignment in Orange County Superior Court. (Mark Boster, Los Angeles Times)

A former Marine accused of fatally stabbing six people pleaded not guilty Tuesday as an acquaintance said Itzcoatl Ocampo’s service in Iraq changed him.

Lydia Peralta of Placentia attended the court hearing, telling a reporter later: “We are also mourning a loss, too, with our friend Izzy, knowing that his life is over. Any way you look at it, it’s tragic.”

Peralta said she considered Ocampo almost family. One of her daughters was a high school friend of the young man, and she remembers a “happy-go-lucky” teenager who would go to barbecues, often with something like a liter of soda in hand.

But when he came back from serving in Iraq in 2009, she said, he was different.

“He seemed troubled, like something on his mind,” she said.

A full-bearded Ocampo, 23, wearing mustard-colored jail scrubs, appeared distraught and sometimes mumbled to himself. He is charged with six felony counts of murder with special circumstances for lying in wait and multiple murders. Prosecutors have not disclosed whether they will seek the death penalty.

– Nicole Santa Cruz, Los Angeles Times

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‘Snowboarder bandit’ possibly strikes again in Orange County

A suspect fitting the description of the "snowboarder bandit" places cash Tuesday into a plastic bag at a Chase bank in Laguna Niguel. (Orange County Sheriff's Department)

The “snowboarder bandit” may have struck again, after a man fitting the serial bank robber’s description robbed a Chase bank in Orange County.

Wearing a black-and-gray snow hat and a gray V-neck sweater, the young man walked into the Laguna Niguel bank in the 30200 block of Crown Valley Parkway about 1:30 p.m. Tuesday, handed a teller a note and walked away with cash, said Orange County Sheriff’s Lt. Gary Strachan.

Surveillance footage showed the man, wearing sunglasses, putting a stack of bills into a plastic bag.

The suspected robber is said to be about 25 years old, 6-foot-6 and 165 pounds. He was unshaven with reddish blond hair, Strachan said.

– Rong-Gong Lin II, Los Angeles Times

Bobby Abreu to Angels: Play me or trade me

Angels outfielder Bobby Abreu swings in the on-deck circle during a game against the Texas Rangers at Angel Stadium in 2011. (Gina Ferazzi, Los Angeles Times)

Tempe, Ariz.– Bobby Abreu hasn’t arrived at Angels camp, but the veteran outfielder has already caused a stir, telling a reporter from ESPNdeportesLosAngeles.com on Tuesday that he would prefer to be traded if he isn’t playing every day.

“I’m an everyday player, I can still be in the lineup for a major league team,” Abreu, who will be 38 in March, said by phone from Venezuela. “I will not be on the bench knowing that I can play. If the Angels don’t have a position for me, then the best thing is to trade me.”

The problem is the Angels can’t guarantee Abreu a starting job this early in camp, and they would prefer to hold onto Abreu as insurance in case Kendrys Morales doesn’t return from a broken left ankle and Mark Trumbo is slow to return from a stress fracture in his right foot.

– Mike DiGiovanna, Los Angeles Times

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Ducks cut prices for some season tickets

The Ducks announced Tuesday that they will not increase season-ticket prices for next season and that 40% of their season-ticket holders will get price reductions. The combined average reduction on season-ticket prices for 2012-13 will be 4.8%, with decreases ranging from 2% to 35%.

The Ducks’ average ticket this season cost $45.68, below the NHL average of $57.39. The Kings recently announced season-ticket price increases they said will average 9% for those who renew before the March 24 deadline and 11% for those who renew after the deadline or are new buyers.

The Ducks will cut prices for Terrace Main East seats from $34 to $22, Terrace Main West from $34 to $24 and Terrace Lower East from $40 to $35. The club will also institute a benefit program for fans who purchase season tickets.

– Helene Elliott, Los Angeles Times

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LaTroy Hawkins’ traveling show pulls into Anaheim

Reporting from Tempe, Ariz. — If reliever LaTroy Hawkins picked an entry song that truly reflected his baseball career, it would be Johnny Cash‘s tune, “I’ve Been Everywhere.”

The 39-year-old right-hander is now in camp with the Angels, his ninth team in 10 years.

After eight seasons in Minnesota, Hawkins moved to Chicago (Cubs), San Francisco, Baltimore, Colorado, New York (Yankees), Houston, Milwaukee and now Anaheim, where he is expected to be an important bullpen piece after signing a one-year, $3-million deal in December.

Forget Rawlings. He should have an endorsement deal with U-Haul.

– Mike DiGiovanna, Los Angeles Times

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