Offices

A former  Los Angeles Unified School District  teacher was arrested Wednesday on suspicion of committing lewd acts and sexually abusing 20 children and an adult, law enforcement authorities said. Robert Pimentel, 57, of Newport Beach, who taught at George de la Torre Jr. Elementary School in Wilmington, was taken into custody by Los Angeles Police Department  detectives, who had launched an investigation in March after several fourth-grade girls said they had been inappropriately touched.

Four new officers joined the Costa Mesa Police Department Monday morning in a ceremony that included the naming of the force's newest captain. Officers Curtis Hazell, Arnold Alegado, Ryan Novikoff and Jonathan Tripp were sworn in as beaming parents and spouses watched. "We will have high expectations of all of them," police Chief Tom Gazsi said. "We know they are up to the challenge. " The four are the first hires since 2008, and community members can expect to see them patrolling the streets in about two weeks.

Dozens of Costa Mesa police officers and firefighters gathered in front of the police station Tuesday to welcome home one of their own who returned to the city after a one-year tour of duty in Afghanistan. Officer Jon Smith stood with Police Chief Tom Gazsi and Community Service Specialist Jeanette Chervony in front of a ficus as he snipped away the yellow ribbon that hugged the tree. The department placed the ribbon there in May for Armed Forces Day as a reminder that it had an Army reservist serving in the Middle East.

The state Office of Traffic Safety awarded the Orange County District Attorney's Office a $480,000 for the prosecution of driving under the influence cases, according to a news release issued Thursday. The grant was funded by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. It is the third grant the OCDA has received for DUI detection and prosecution. The first was a 2005 grant of $691,631 to fund a deputy district attorney and staff to exclusively focus on DUI prosecution.

When Newport-Mesa school officials reacted to the deadly shooting in a Connecticut elementary school Friday with a message, they reaffirmed their commitment to safety but acknowledged that the district has no real response for a tragedy on the scale of the 26 victims at Sandy Hook. "While no level of planning can truly prepare us for this kind of an incident, know that we are forever dedicated towards the safety of our children and staff," Supt. Fred Navarro told parents. A former police officer who patrolled the halls of Newport-Mesa schools for 17 years echoed that message of unpreparedness this week.

Costa Mesa Police Chief Tom Gazsi announced Tuesday that the department has hired a new officer for the first time in four years and plans to hire three more by next month. It's the first time since 2008 that the budget-strapped Costa Mesa Police Department has added to its ranks. The move could portend more hiring. About 20 officers are expected to leave in the next year and a half, Gazsi said, and he hopes to replace them. "We're down about 10 officers presently," he said during a meeting at the Newport-Mesa Unified School District headquarters.

Newport-Mesa's school board has laid all the options on the table for tightening school security after a shooting at Fashion Island Saturday and a deadly shooting in Connecticut Friday. After the Sandy Hook tragedy in which 20 children and six adults were killed at a school and an incident in which a man allegedly let of 50 rounds from a handgun in Newport Beach, Newport-Mesa Unified School District trustees asked staff and law enforcement officials to brief them on safety plans.

"I may not be the best, but I'm the first," Newport Beach Mayor Nancy Gardner joked Monday morning as she accepted a certificate recognizing her for a ground- (or surf-) breaking achievement. Gardner is the first mayor in the country to stand-up paddle board in office - at least, as far as Bruce Gabrielson of the National Surf Schools and Instructors Assn. knows. "I've been all over the world," he said, standing beside Gardner tucked into a back corner at ABC Surf shop on Balboa Boulevard.

The Costa Mesa Police Department honored police officers and dispatchers Thursday for their quick thinking, teamwork and compassion during a July 8 fatal shooting in the 2900 block of Redwood Avenue. Sgt. Matthew Grimmond, Sgt. Bryan Wadkins, Officer Frank Christian, Officer Kha Bao and Officer John Doezie received the Medal of Merit from Police Chief Tom Gazsi and Capts. Les Gogerty and Allen Huggins during a ceremony in City Council Chambers. "It is the highest calling of our profession," Gazsi said, "and they performed extremely well.

Orville "Orv" Amburgey, a respected community fixture who served as one of Costa Mesa's first police officers and as a city councilman, has died. He was 78. Amburgey died of natural causes at his Costa Mesa home Sunday, relatives said. Amburgey, who tangled with the feds over his stances on illegal immigration and made headlines with what the Daily Pilot called in 2000 a "feisty" political persona, moved to Costa Mesa from Minnesota in 1948 — five years before the city was incorporated.