Mandalit del Barco As an arts correspondent based at NPR West, Mandalit del Barco reports and produces stories about film, television, music, visual arts, dance and other topics.
Bricia Lopez, 25, teamed with her younger brother Fernando, 22, to open the Oaxacan fast-food restaurant Cemitas y Clayudas Pal Cabron in Huntington Park, Calif. She says she believes in the U.S. government and has seen her — and her parents' — American dreams come true. Mandalit del Barco/NPR hide caption
Supporters argue that traffic cameras increase safety as well as revenues, but angry drivers cry foul. iStockphoto.com hide caption
Inmates sit in crowded conditions at California State Prison in Los Angeles. Like many California prisons, L.A. County jails are releasing prisoners early — before serving their entire sentences — because of budget constraints. AP hide caption
Los Angeles police and FBI agents process detained suspected gang members outside the Sport Arena parking lot in Los Angeles in October 2009. The city's crime rate is at an all-time low, in part because the troublemakers have either been locked up — or have turned into interventionists to help put a dent in crime. Damian Dovarganes/AP hide caption
A bicyclist rides down the street during this year's Bike to Work Day in San Francisco. Events such as this promote biking as a viable form of commuting, but tensions between cyclists and drivers persist. Justin Sullivan/Getty Images hide caption