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Los Angeles Times
20-05-2025
- Los Angeles Times
‘Just a normal family' neighbors react to allegations of child torture at Victorville home
The beige, two-story homes that line Helena Drive are the epitome of quiet, Southern California suburbia, but residents were shocked recently when they learned of horrific allegations against some longtime Victorville neighbors. Amid the block's plastic pools, basketball hoops and childrens bicycles, a couple and their daughter have been accused of torturing and abusing six children — some for many years. The San Bernardino County district attorney's office has charged Kenneth and Tina Key, both 60 years old, and Katlynn Key, 23, with six counts of torture and one count of child abuse under circumstances likely to cause great bodily injury or death, according to court documents. Prosecutors said the adults tortured the children, giving them daily beatings and strangulating them to the point of passing out along with depriving them of food. The alleged abuse against some of the children went on for over a decade, according to the charging documents. 'We don't know what goes on in someone's home. It just hurts to hear,' said a stunned nextdoor neighbor, Jose Martinez. 'They could have come to us for help if they needed it.' On a recent morning, a lone minivan sat in the driveway outside the Key's home. A knock on the door went unanswered. Martinez said the children who lived with the Keys were regular fixtures outside their home in this High Desert community. 'They played outside all the time. There was never anything that gave us worry,' Martinez said. 'They were just a normal family.' The children helped Martinez put up his Christmas decorations and occasionally took his trash cans to the curb. When he was working as a pizza delivery driver, he would sometimes give the children pizza. They seemed happy and well-mannered, sometimes talking with him about their homework and classes. The children at the home ranged in age from 5 to 16, San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department officials announced in a news release. Kenneth Key worked as a security guard and often talked about disciplining the children by giving them chores, but he never mentioned physically hurting them, Martinez said. 'He would ask me if my yard needed any weeds removed or anything like that,' Martinez said. Initially, authorities identified the children as being in the care of foster parents, but the San Bernardino County district attorney's office later clarified that they were legal guardians. The children were removed from the home on Feb. 13 after one of the teenage victims walked to a nearby Stater Bros. Supermarket and asked for someone to contact the police, San Bernardino District Attorney Jason Anderson told the news outlet the San Bernardino Sun. Some of the children wrote of the alleged abuse in journals, Anderson said. Neighbors said the children were not restricted from leaving the Keys' home and often interacted with their neighbors. After the children were removed from the home, Kenneth Key asked his neighbors to write letters of support that would speak about his character as a provider. Several neighbors did write those letters, according to residents on Helena Drive. 'He was the type of neighbor who would take the lead when there was illegal drug users in the street,' said one neighbor who declined to give their name. Kenneth Key would call the police when someone suspicious was walking through the neighborhood or he would confront them himself, the neighbor said. Now all three adult members of the Key home are being held in in a county jail. They pleaded not guilty to the charges on Thursday and are expected back in court on Tuesday. Prosecutors have revealed little about the alleged abuse and the circumstances surrounding the children's time at the home. Investigators with the Sheriff's Crimes Against Children unit launched their investigation in February and the Keys were arrested on May 12. There were no reports of abuse prior to the start of the investigation, Sheriff's spokesperson Gloria Orejel said. Anyone with information about the case can contact Det. Katie Merrill of the Specialized Investigations Division at (909) 890-4904. Anonymous tips can be made with the We-Tip Hotline at (800) 78-CRIME (27463) or at
Los Angeles Times
06-03-2025
- Business
- Los Angeles Times
Stater Bros. lays off dozens of clerks for the first time in 89 years
Stater Bros. Markets has laid off dozens of clerks in its Southern California stores for the first time in its 89-year history, blaming inflation and tariffs for its decision. 'I don't think it's any secret that in the last four years, we've seen significant inflation, more than I've ever seen in my career,' Chief Executive Pete Van Helden said in a video explaining the move to lay off 63 clerks among four Southern California stores, announced Feb. 17. 'With the recent announcements of new tariffs and probably more tariffs to come, it's quite likely that inflation is going to take off even above the 4.5% we're seeing now. I'm very worried about that,' he said, referring to recent moves by President Trump to place — and then roll back— tariffs on Canada and Mexico. Retail prices at the San Bernardino-based grocery chain went up by about 30% in the last four years, Van Helden said, leading customers to choose lower-cost grocery stores like Walmart, Aldi, Target, Sprouts and Dollar Tree. 'The other common thing is that they're all non-union, and frankly, that's how they sell their products at a lower price. They pay their teammates less. They pay less benefits and they take that savings and they plow it into pricing,' Van Helden said. Courtesy clerks at Stater Bros. across their 169 supermarkets bag groceries, help customers to their cars and clean checkout stands, according to the local United Food and Commercial Workers Union chapter that represents them. 'Many courtesy clerks have special needs and are long-term employees with limited employment alternatives,' a Wednesday release from the UFCW 324 chapter said. 'Laying off the lowest paid workers in the stores won't save Stater Bros. any money, but it's accomplished one thing — showing workers that their company no longer thinks of them like family,' Andrea Zinder, president of UFCW 324, said in the statement. About 20 years ago, Van Helden said, 90% of Southern California grocery stores were unionized. It's now fallen to 35%, and customers have changed their shopping habits to prefer large, non-union box stores over time. 'The enemy for Stater Bros., the enemy for you, I think, is the non-union competition. That's who we're really fighting against,' he said. Instead of continuing to raise prices to keep up, the company chose to lower the cost of operations through layoffs and other cost-saving measures in a bid to keep prices competitive. 'The intention is to take the cost reduction from those 63 jobs and hold the line on pricing, accept those cost of goods increases and not raise our prices if we can,' Van Helden said. He signaled that future layoffs were almost a guarantee: 'I'm pretty certain that in the future we're going to have to continue to reduce the number of jobs in this company. It's a fact.' About 150 workers and union leaders picketed Wednesday at an affected Costa Mesa Stater Bros. store to protest the layoffs, arguing that the move wasn't about saving money to protect the chain from going under but to chill ongoing labor contract talks. Bargaining for a new contract with Stater Bros. starts Thursday. 'This action only serves to intimidate union members currently undergoing contract negotiations with the company from demanding what they deserve,' Zinder said in the statement. A representative for Stater Bros. could not be reached for comment.
Yahoo
19-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Mega Millions ticket worth $1.5 million sold in California
LOS ANGELES - Someone in California is the state's newest millionaire after matching five numbers in the latest Mega Millions drawing. The winning ticket, purchased at a Stater Bros store in La Quinta, is worth nearly $1.5 million. What we know The winning numbers for Friday night's Mega Millions drawing were 11, 19, 31, 49, 56, and the Mega ball 16. The lucky ticket holder matched the first five numbers, earning a prize of $1,499,864. The Stater Bros store on Highway 111, where the ticket was sold, will receive a bonus of nearly $7,500. What we don't know While the identity of the winner remains unknown, the California Lottery has not yet announced whether the prize has been claimed. If you bought a ticket for Friday's drawing, make sure to check your ticket and come forward if you have the winning numbers! By the numbers Although no one matched all six numbers to win the jackpot, nearly 55,000 tickets in California won prizes across the other eight prize levels, according to the lottery. The jackpot now stands at an estimated $145 million for the next drawing on Tuesday evening. The backstory Mega Millions tickets cost $2 each, with approximately 80 cents from each ticket sold in California going towards public education. Since its inception 40 years ago, the California Lottery has raised over $46 million for public schools. What's next With the jackpot rolling over, anticipation builds for Tuesday's drawing, where the top prize is an estimated $145 million. Ticket sales end at 7:45 p.m. The Source Information for this story is from the California Lottery.
