This criminal case is the Rorschach test of L.A. politics

Good morning, it’s Tuesday, August 11, and you can expect very warm temperatures reaching the mid-80s (L.A. Basin) and low 90s (Valley).

Since a grand jury indicted veteran L.A. politician Mark Ridley-Thomas in 2021, his case has been something of a Rorschach test in Los Angeles civic life.

Was the stalwart civil rights leader and lion of L.A. politics the victim of an overzealous prosecution? Or was he a symbol of L.A.’s endemic corruption?

That question resurfaced last week, when a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit unanimously affirmed Ridley-Thomas’ guilt.

The decision was a shock to Ridley-Thomas’ supporters. But MRT — as he is known — is not yet done with his appeal, nor has he yet begun his prison sentence. And given his propensity to lean into a fight, it seems ever more likely that he will press his case all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court. 

Here’s a look at the case, and what may come next.

RIVER GAP: The bike path along the L.A. River snakes through the valley to Elysian Park, then stops — for eight miles — before resuming in Maywood to continue down to Long Beach. Completing this eight-mile gap is now estimated to cost $1 billion, or $24,000 per foot, according to a new L.A. Times report that examines why the cost of a simple bike path has surged. 

DWINDLING WATER: Lake Mead, the nation’s largest reservoir, located just outside Las Vegas, plunged to its lowest-ever point — 1,040.3 feet — on Sunday. Continued drops could drastically diminish hydroelectric power in the Southwest, and eventually prove “disastrous” for cities like L.A. and Phoenix, the New York Times reports.