A Riverside County man was arrested and accused of having sex with a 16-year-old girl since she was 9, authorities said today.

Albert Villanueva, 49, was arrested after deputies responded to a reported child molestation call in the 13400 block of Cajalco Road in Perris, the Riverside County Sheriff's Department said.

He was booked on suspicion of lewd acts with a child, the department said. His relationship to the victim was not disclosed.

Anyone with information is asked to call investigators at (951) 210-1000.

-- Robert J. Lopez

A Van Nuys man heading to work was shot and killed, police said today.

Carlos Bonilla, 37, was next to his car in the 14700 block of Archwood Street on Sunday when he was confronted by a gunman who pulled up in a vehicle and opened fire, the Los Angeles Police Department said.

Bonilla was hit once in the head. He was pronounced dead at the scene by paramedics, the LAPD said.

The attacker was seen driving west on Archwood  in an SUV, possibly a mid-1990’s Dodge Durango, according to police.

Anyone with information is asked to call homicide detectives at (818) 374-0040. Calls during non-business hours or on weekends should be made to (877) LAPD-24-7.

-- Robert J. Lopez

Los Angeles County Fire Chief P. Michael Freeman, who announced last month that he was planning to retire in March, has decided to stay for an additional year, officials said today.

Freeman decided to continue as leader of the department to help steer it through the county's fiscal crisis, according to officials.

"This is very good news,” said County Supervisor Mike Antonovich. “It’s important that we have seasoned leadership at the helm.”

Freeman, 64, was allowed to keep his job past the mandatory retirement age of 60 as a result of a law signed in 2005 by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.  The mandatory retirement age for county firefighters had been 60, but the law allowed supervisors to let Freeman stay longer.

-- Robert J. Lopez

Critical minutes were lost in two recent emergency medical calls because nearby Los Angeles Fire Department engines had been taken out of service due to budget cuts, according to fire officials. In both cases, units from farther away responded to the calls.

On Sunday, a woman reportedly stopped breathing in the Harvard Park area of South Los Angeles. Normally, the closest paramedic-staffed engine would have been about a half-mile away. However, that engine had been shut down due to budget cuts and another engine a little under two miles away responded instead, according to fire officials.

On Friday, a woman suffered an apparent stroke at the Chatsworth Metrolink station. One of the fire trucks usually on duty at the nearest station had been shuttered, while the two other units at that firehouse were on another call, officials said.

Los Angeles County Supervisor Michael Antonovich has called for a congressional inquiry into the U.S. Forest Service’s response to the Station fire in the wake of a Times report that a heavy attack with water-dropping aircraft was canceled on the critical second day of the blaze.

The Forest Service’s own records contradict the agency’s position that helicopters and tanker planes were withheld because the fire was burning in an Angeles National Forest canyon too steep for ground crews to take advantage of water dumps.

What’s needed is a congressional investigation into the false reports by the Forest Service and its failure to stop the fire before it spread,” Antonovich said in a statement. He asked for the investigation in a letter to Sen. Dianne Feinstein.

Two officers responsible for directing the Day 2 firefight on the ground and from the sky made separate requests for aircraft during a six-and-a-half-hour period, according to records and interviews. An order for three airtankers that morning was canceled and a helitanker reached the scene an hour or so after its scheduled arrival, the records and interviews show.

The blaze killed two county firefighters, destroyed about 90 dwellings and blackened 250 square miles of the forest. It was the largest fire in county history. 

The Los Angeles County Coroner's office will make a final determination of what caused the death of actress Brittany Murphy after toxicology results are completed in the next two months, officials said today.

The medical examiner has completed Murphy's autopsy, but an official cause of death will be deferred until tests determine what substances, if any, were in her system that might have contributed to her death, said Ed Winter, a spokesman for the coroner's office.

Murphy, 32, died Sunday of a sudden cardiac arrest. A law enforcement source, who declined to be named because of the ongoing investigation, said Murphy suffered internal bleeding before her death.

It was unclear if an underlying medical condition might have caused or contributed to her death, officials said. Murphy, who appeared in "Clueless" and "8 Mile," was taking prescription drugs for medical ailments, authorities said.

LAPD officials said today that they have finished their initial investigation into Murphy's death and concluded there were no signs that a crime occurred.

-- Andrew Blankstein

More breaking news in L.A. Now:

No charges filed in vandalization of UC Berkeley chancellor's campus home

Angeles Crest Highway reopened after rain-related closure

2 bodies found in a Riverside County vineyard

High winds, falling snow levels expected in Southern California

LAPD: Brittany Murphy's death not a criminal matter 

Appeals court denies Roman Polanski's bid to throw out sex case

'Everything back to normal' at LAX

Federal investigators to look into cause of fatal San Diego Coast Guard crash

Police seek shooter who killed 1, injured 2 in Mid-City

Request for Station fire choppers not heeded, Times investigation shows

Eight people arrested after protesters vandalized the campus home of the UC Berkeley chancellor have not been charged with any crime and may never be, according to the Alameda County district attorney’s office.

There is insufficient evidence to file charges related to the Dec. 11 event, although University of California police will continue to investigate who was responsible for the estimated $18,000 in damage to windows, light fixtures and large planter urns in front of the house.

It was unclear who the vandals were in the crowd of up to 70 people who peacefully protested recent UC fee hikes, said Teresa Drenick, a spokeswoman for the district attorney's office. If UC police turn up new evidence, some or all of the original eight people arrested and others could be charged, Drenick said.

“And it is possible nobody will get charged,” she added.

The eight included two UC Berkeley students and two UC Davis students. The students could still face potential UC discipline pending the outcome of a campus judicial review, UC officials said.

-- Larry Gordon

More breaking news in L.A. Now:

Angeles Crest Highway reopened after rain-related closure

2 bodies found in a Riverside County vineyard

High winds, falling snow levels expected in Southern California

LAPD: Brittany Murphy's death not a criminal matter 

Appeals court denies Roman Polanski's bid to throw out sex case

'Everything back to normal' at LAX

Federal investigators to look into cause of fatal San Diego Coast Guard crash

Police seek shooter who killed 1, injured 2 in Mid-City

Request for Station fire choppers not heeded, Times investigation shows

Authorities have reopened a roughly 40-mile stretch of Angeles Crest Highway that was closed for more than a week because weather conditions had made it unsafe.

The stretch from California 39 to La Cañada Flintridge was closed earlier this month as crews worked to clean debris from the roadway after heavy rains, said Patrick Chandler, a spokesman for the California Department of Transportation.

The highway was reopened shortly before midnight Sunday, Chandler said.

-- Ari B. Bloomekatz

More breaking news in L.A. Now:

2 bodies found in a Riverside County vineyard

High winds, falling snow levels expected in Southern California

LAPD: Brittany Murphy's death not a criminal matter 

Appeals court denies Roman Polanski's bid to throw out sex case

'Everything back to normal' at LAX

Federal investigators to look into cause of fatal San Diego Coast Guard crash

Police seek shooter who killed 1, injured 2 in Mid-City

Request for Station fire choppers not heeded, Times investigation shows

An autopsy was underway today on two bodies discovered at a Riverside County vineyard, authorities said.

The bodies were found about 10 a.m. Sunday on a dirt trail inside the vineyard in the town of Thermal, southeast of Indio, said Riverside County sheriff’s officials. Authorities were treating the deaths as a homicide.

The victims’ identities were not released, and no other details were immediately available.

Anyone with information is asked to call Senior Investigator Robert Masson with the sheriff's central homicide unit at (951) 955-2777, or the Indio station at (760) 863-8990.

-- Victoria Kim

More breaking news in L.A. Now:

High winds, falling snow levels expected in Southern California

Appeals court denies Roman Polanski's bid to throw out sex case

LAPD: Brittany Murphy's death not a criminal matter

'Everything back to normal' at LAX

Federal investigators to look into cause of fatal San Diego Coast Guard crash

Police seek shooter who killed 1, injured 2 in Mid-City

Request for Station fire choppers not heeded, Times investigation shows

Snowstorms they are not, but high winds and falling snow levels may complicate holiday travel plans this week in Southern California, a weather official said.

A slight chance of showers is expected after midnight tonight into Tuesday morning as a dry cold front moves into the region, said weather specialist Stuart Seto with the National Weather Service.

Strong northerly winds are expected to begin Tuesday, with gusts reaching “damaging levels” of 60 mph in some mountain areas. High-wind watches are expected to go into effect Tuesday afternoon.

The strong winds and drop in snow levels down to 3,000 feet could create dangerous conditions in mountainous passages, such as the Grapevine section of Interstate 5, even though little snowfall is expected, Seto said.

The Los Angeles Police Department has finished its initial probe of actress Brittany Murphy's death, concluding there were no signs that a crime occurred.

The case is now in the hands of the L.A. County coroner's office, which today is performing an autopsy on the actress, who was 32. Investigators said there was no evidence of foul play.

Brittany Murphy, who appeared in "Clueless" and "8 Mile," died Sunday morning of sudden cardiac arrest, authorities said.

The coroner's office said it was not immediately clear whether an underlying medical condition might have caused or contributed to her death. Authorities said Murphy was taking prescription drugs for medical ailments but would not be more specific.

A state appellate court has denied Roman Polanski's attempt to have his three-decade-old child sex case thrown out on the grounds of prosecutorial and judicial misconduct.

In a unanimous decision, a three-judge panel of the Court of Appeal 2nd District said a lower court judge did not err a year ago when he ruled that the acclaimed director, then a fugitive in France, had to surrender to U.S. authorities before pursuing the misconduct claims.

Lawyers for Polanski, now under house arrest in Switzerland pending possible extradition to Los Angeles, had argued earlier this month that the "fugitive disentitlement doctrine" cited by Superior Court Judge Peter Espinoza did not apply to the filmmaker because of the egregiousness of the misconduct alleged. But in a decision today, the justices disagreed. 

After a hectic weekend for travelers at Los Angeles International Airport, the work week has started with “no flight delays or cancellations,” airport officials said.

More than three dozen flights were canceled at LAX on Saturday because of tumultuous weather on the East Coast. Those cancellations led to some backups and delays on Sunday, airport officials said.

LAX spokesman Marshall Lowe said that as of 8:30 a.m. today, “everything is back to normal.”

-- Ari B. Bloomekatz

More breaking news in L.A. Now:

Federal investigators to look into cause of fatal San Diego Coast Guard crash

Police seek shooter who killed 1, injured 2 in Mid-City

Request for Station fire choppers not heeded, Times investigation shows

A team of four investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board are en route to San Diego today to investigate what caused a fatal crash between a U.S. Coast Guard patrol boat and a recreational boat during a weekend holiday celebration.

A 33-foot Coast Guard boat responding to a report of a grounded vessel crashed about 6 p.m. Sunday into a 24-foot boat carrying 13 passengers in the San Diego Bay, authorities said.

The passengers were among tens of thousands of spectators watching the annual Parade of Lights. The recreational boat was apparently anchored when it was hit, said San Diego Fire-Rescue Department spokesman Maurice Luque.

Six people aboard the recreational boat were taken to two hospitals for medical care.

[Updated at 10:13 a.m.: Of the six injured, three were children, authorities said. Two children suffered minor injures and the third died. The three others who were injured, all adults, were taken to the hospital with reports of major trauma, authorities said.]

Good morning from the City Desk, where we got to work in no time because so many of you are on vacation and off the freeways. Some California stories from today's paper to keep your Monday zooming along:

Station Fire questions: Newly released records contradict the U.S. Forest Service's contention that steep terrain prevented the agency from attacking the Station fire's early flames with aircraft.

Rising fees: Fee increases at the state's institutions of higher learning are putting severe financial stress on many families.

Speaker elect: Sacramento columnist George Skelton sits down with John Perez, L.A. Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa's cousin and the next Assembly speaker.

Mojave monuments: Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) is pushing to create two national monuments on 1 million acres of Mojave Desert outback.

California comeback: A statue of Thomas Starr King, a 19th-century Unitarian minister, returns to California after being ousted by a likeness of Ronald Reagan from the U.S. Capitol's National Statuary Hall.

PCH favorite: Patrick's Roadhouse, an institution on Pacific Coast Highway, has been given 30 days to vacate.

We'll bring you other news as we get it. Got news for us? A story idea? Drop me a line at nita.lelyveld@latimes.com

-- Nita Lelyveld

Leave us your comments here or follow @latimescitydesk on Twitter.

Police today are looking for the suspects who killed one man and injured two others in a Mid-City shooting.

The three men were shot around 6:25 p.m. Sunday in the 8500 block of Beverlywood St., just south of the 10 Freeway, said Officer Rosario Herrera of the Los Angeles Police Department.

The victims were taken to the hospital, where one of them died from a gunshot wound in his torso, Herrera said.

The condition of the surviving victims was unknown. Police did not have information on the suspects.

-- Victoria Kim

More breaking news in L.A. Now:

'Everything back to normal' at LAX

Federal investigators to look into cause of fatal San Diego Coast Guard crash

Request for Station fire choppers not heeded, Times investigation shows

Newly released records contradict a finding by the U.S. Forest Service that steep terrain prevented the agency from using aircraft to attack -- and potentially contain -- the Station fire just before it began raging out of control.

Experts on Forest Service tactics also dispute the agency's conclusion that helicopters and tanker planes would have been ineffective because the canyon in the Angeles National Forest was too treacherous for ground crews to take advantage of aerial water dumps.

Two officers who helped direct the fight on the ground and from the sky made separate requests for choppers and tankers during a critical period on the deadly fire's second day, according to records and interviews.

At 12:49 a.m. on Aug. 27, Forest Service dispatch logs show, a division chief made this call for aircraft:

"Fire has spotted below the road, about five acres. Order one helitanker, three airtankers, any type. . . . Have them over the fire by 0700 hours."

L.A. coroner's officials plan to perform an autopsy on the body of Brittany Murphy on Tuesday. The hope is to shed some light on the sudden death of the 32-year-old actress Sunday at her Hollywood Hills home.

Murphy, who starred in "Clueless," "8 Mile" and other films, collapsed Sunday morning and was pronounced dead a short time later at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. Both the L.A. coroner's office and the Los Angeles Police Department spent Sunday looking into her medical history and other factors that could be related to her death.

Police said there is no evidence to suggest foul play -- but it's unclear whether an underlying medical condition might have caused or contributed to her death.

Authorities said Murphy was taking prescription drugs for medical ailments but would not be more specific.

Murphy appeared upbeat at a Dec. 3 fashion event, in what may have been her final public appearance. She told Access Hollywood at the event: "As far as having a New Year's resolution, I'd love to have a child next year."

An 8-year-old boy was killed and five adults are in serious condition tonight after the recreational boat they were aboard collided with a Coast Guard patrol boat in San Diego Bay, authorities said.

A 33-foot Coast Guard vessel responding to a report of a grounded vessel crashed against the boat carrying 13 passengers just before 6 p.m., U.S. Coast Guard spokeswoman Jetta Disco said. The Coast Guard vessel was carrying five people, none of whom were injured.

The recreational boat was in the water during the annual San Diego Bay parade of lights, a celebration where dozens of boats decked in holiday lights take part in a procession around the bay. A member of the parade planning committee said he did not believe the boat was a registered participant.

All six victims were taken to UC San Diego Medical Center, where the boy later died, San Diego Fire-Rescue spokesman Maurice Luque said.

Another Coast Guard boat in the area responded to the crash and helped take the passengers to shore. Both boats involved in the accident were taken to shore, where the damage was being assessed, Disco said.

The size and type of the recreational boat were unknown. Weather conditions at the time of the accident were reported to be clear with light winds. The cause of the accident is under investigation.

-- Corina Knoll

Photo: Police stand near a recreational boat that was hit by a 33-foot Coast Guard vessel Sunday evening. An 8-year-old boy was killed and five adults were injured in the crash. Credit: John R. McCutchen / San  Diego Union-Tribune

A 71-year-old woman was killed today in Compton after her car flipped when it was hit by a driver fleeing a hit-and-run, authorities said.

Teresa Andrade, a resident of Mexico, was ejected from her car after being hit by the driver of a sport utility vehicle about 2 p.m. on Wilmington Avenue near Raymond Street, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department and Coroner's office.

The SUV was traveling north on Wilmington when it clipped a woman on a motorcycle riding in the same direction, Sheriff's Sgt. Douglas Iketani said. The driver slowed down as if he were about to pull over, but instead made a U-turn and crashed into the vehicle carrying Andrade.

The driver fled, but the license plate of his SUV was left at the scene. Sheriff’s deputies traced the license plate to a Compton residence where they found and detained three males, two of whom are juveniles, Iketani said. About 8:30 p.m., the driver was brought into the Compton station by his family members. It was unclear if there were passengers in the SUV at the time of the crash. All four males are related, Iketani said.

The driver's name has not been released.

Andrade was pronounced dead at the scene. No other injuries were reported.

-- Corina Knoll

Six people aboard a recreational boat were injured today after colliding with a Coast Guard patrol boat in San Diego Bay, authorities said.  

A 33-foot Coast Guard vessel crashed against the boat with 13 passengers just before 6 p.m., U.S. Coast Guard spokeswoman Jetta Disco said. Another Coast Guard boat in the area responded to the incident and helped take the passengers to shore. 

A spokesman for the San Diego Fire-Rescue Department said that all six of the victims, one of whom was under the age of 18, were taken to UC San Diego Medical Center. The extent of their injuries was unknown.

[Updated, 9 p.m.: The victim who was under the age of 18 was pronounced dead at UC San Diego Medical Center, authorities said. The name and gender were not given. According to a spokesman for the San Diego Fire-Rescue Department, the recreational boat the victim was riding in was in the water during the annual San Diego Bay Parade of Lights, an annual celebration where dozens of boats decked in Christmas lights take part in a procession around the bay. A member of the parade planning committee said he did not believe the boat was a registered participant in the event.]

Both boats involved in the accident were taken to shore, where the damage was being assessed, Disco said. The size and type of the recreational boat were unknown. The cause of the accident is under investigation.

 -- Corina Knoll

A 21-year-old man was killed in a fatal traffic accident early this morning in Pomona, officials said.

Edward Delgado of Pomona was a passenger in a vehicle traveling west on 9th Street when it was struck by another vehicle at California 71 about 4 a.m., Pomona Police Lt. Paul Hitt said.

Delgado was pronounced dead at the scene. No citations or arrests were made, and the cause of the collision is under investigation, Hitt said.

No other information was available.

Corina Knoll

A woman was killed on the San Bernardino Freeway today after her car was rear-ended by a suspected drunk driver believed to have been traveling at more than 120 miles per hour, authorities said.

The incident occurred around 2:42 a.m. on the eastbound 10 Freeway, just east of Santa Anita Avenue and west of Peck Road in El Monte, said California Highway Patrol Officer Krystal Carter.

The suspect, Thomas Vanauken, 43, of Anaheim, was driving a 2009 Acura MDX, Carter said.

"Witnesses indicated that he was driving more than 120 miles per hour," Carter said.

Vanauken’s car allegedly struck a 1994 Mitsubishi driven by a 42-year-old Ontario woman, who has not been identified. Police said she was observing the speed limit.

When traffic slowed, Vanauken‘s Acura slammed into the rear of the Mitsubishi, Carter said. The Acura continued east into the carpool lane, hit the center divider and landed on its roof, she said.

The female motorist sustained severe injuries and was transported to a local hospital, where she was pronounced dead, Carter said. Her two female passengers, ages 32 and 35, sustained minor to moderate injuries.

Vanauken, who was alone, had minor injuries and was taken to a hospital, Carter said. According to authorities, his blood alcohol level was over the legal limit. He faces charges including gross vehicular manslaughter,  driving while intoxicated and causing the death of another, Carter said.

-- Ann M. Simmons

Airlines flying out of Los Angeles International Airport resumed flights today after canceling more than three dozen Saturday because of a massive storm on the East Coast.

But the cancellations caused significant delays as airlines played catch-up.

"The backup is for people who were originally scheduled for yesterday, who are now leaving today," said Marshall Lowe, a spokesman for LAX. He could not say how many flights were delayed.

Lowe also was unable to indicate the average length of the delays but said he did not expect the holdup to last into the evening. He said passengers should call their airlines for further information.

According to airport authorities, at least 38 flights that were headed from LAX to the East Coast were canceled Saturday due to the winter storm that dumped several inches of snow on New York; Washington, D.C.; Baltimore; Philadelphia; Newark, N.J. and elsewhere. The cancellations affected more than 6,000 passengers, airport authorities said.

-- Ann M. Simmons