Los Angeles Times - 13.03.2020

LATIMES.COM FRIDAY, MARCH 13, 2020B

The warnings haven’t slowed Bill Johnson, 80, either. “I haven’t lost any sleep yet,” said Johnson in the busy parking lot of a Wal- mart about a mile from where an elderly woman died from the coronavirus Monday in Elk Grove. Johnson said he did not see a reason yet to change his daily schedule. “I’ve lived through a bunch of these things,” he said. “I haven’t had a cold in 30 years.” The CDC said that although many Americans may eventually be exposed to the coronavirus, individu- als over 80 face the highest risk of severe illness. People who help care for elderly family members should be- gin organizing backup plans in case they need to distance themselves for a time. Dr. Nancy Messonnier, director of the National Cen- ter for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases at the CDC, said she made the same recommendations to her own parents. “I’ve asked them to stick close to home so they can avoid the potential risk of congregate settings,” Mes- sonnier said. Michael Mina, another Harvard epidemiologist, said American attitudes about government control of daily life also present a chal- lenge. “The way we work as a so- ciety is not amenable to top- down approaches,” Mina said. For local health officials charged with making decisions that have significant social and economic im- pacts, he said, deciding how far to go and when to do it is intensely difficult, involving far more than health consid- erations. Political and economic concerns have also floated into debates, forcing scientists and public health experts to deal with compet- ing expectations — and often anger — along with their traditional concerns. “I do not envy the people who have to make these ex- traordinary decisions that are not black and white,” Mina said.

Europe. An NBA player
tested positive, and actor
Tom Hanks and wife Rita
Wilson announced they are
infected. In that span, Zel-
man — who is 57 with health
issues — went from describ-
ing COVID-19 as a politically
motivated fuss to acknowl-
edging it poses real risks.
At 1:04 p.m., Zelman was
saying: “We are adults, and
we should know how to take
care of ourselves by now. If I
have somewhere to go, I’m
going to go.”
By 7:46 p.m.: “This
changes the narrative. It’s
time to take precautions.”
Zelman’s transition is
one that public health ex-
perts say must happen on a
vast scale among older
Americans and those with
chronic illnesses. It is this
demographic that is at the
greatest risk for severe and
even deadly responses to
COVID-19. But, health offi-
cials say, it’s been difficult to
persuade older generations
to comply, as many of them
resist such drastic mea-
sures.
Thomas Frieden, head of
the federal Centers for Dis-
ease Control and Prevention
during the Obama adminis-
tration, said even his own
mother was skeptical about
the advice to isolate herself.
Though she is 90 and lives in
an area with an outbreak,
she is active in three book
clubs and two choirs,
Frieden said. When he asked
to talk to her about curtail-
ing those activities, he said,
she agreed to listen but
added, “I might not take
your advice.”
The World Health Or-
ganization referred to the
COVID-19 outbreak as a
pandemic for the first time
on Wednesday, adding some
linguistic heft to the virus’
rapid spread across the
globe.
In California, four people
have died of the novel co-
ronavirus, all of them 60 or
older.
Several California coun-
ties have called for large
gatherings to be canceled.
Officials in Santa Clara
County said all large events
should be rescheduled,
while recommending that

church services be livestreamed. But until Wednesday night, at least, the new and expanding warnings did not seem to be reaching their target audience: baby boomers. Marc Lipsitch, a Harvard epidemiologist, blamed mixed messaging: Trump, a baby boomer, has downplayed the virus’ potential effect by saying “it will go away ... be calm” and referring to heightened con- cern over COVID-19 as a hoax by Democrats. Public health officials say it is a threat so serious that it could cripple the American healthcare system. On Wednesday, the president maintained that the risk to Americans remained low but said “we are at a criti- cal time in the fight against the virus” before announc- ing the new travel restric- tions. Lipsitch said Trump’s vacillating messages have a trickle-down effect on state and local efforts to change behavior. “It’s very hard for states and counties and cities to act when the president of the United States is saying we have this under control and containment is pos- sible,” Lipsitch said. Lipsitch said Americans should understand the risk COVID-19 poses, particu- larly to a healthcare system that can become quickly overwhelmed by an influx of patients and an exodus of sick medical workers. “If you let the epidemic continue to spread and don’t do intensive social distanc- ing, then you get more people needing intensive care than [there are available] ICU beds,” he said. Health officials say there is a reason they urge older Californians to stay home, although the age that prompts such warnings dif- fers depending on the agency. Officials across the country have alternately said the greatest risk is for people over 50, 60, 65 and 70. Indeed, the risk of dying from COVID-19 increases with every decade, with those 60 and older account- ing for more than 80% of the

deaths in China, according to a major study in the Jour- nal of the American Medical Assn. Chronic conditions such as heart disease, lung disease and diabetes made people more vulnerable. “Based on the epidemiol- ogy of the disease so far, the greatest risks are in the elderly and those with chronic conditions,” said Dr. Jeffrey Klausner, an infectious disease expert at UCLA’s Fielding School of Public Health. Unlike the flu, this virus does not seem to cause serious illness in children. There have been no deaths re- ported in children under 10. “We don’t know why that is,” said Dawn Nolt, a pediat- ric infectious disease physi- cian at Oregon Health & Sci- ence University. “We think everyone has some level of symptoms, such as fever or cough, but as far as we can tell, the kids are very mildly affected.” With the U.S. outbreak in its early stages, there isn’t yet good data on the ages and other characteristics of infected patients here. “This is the first pandemic caused by a coronavirus,” World Health Organization chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said Wednesday. “We have rung the alarm bell loud and clear.” But that alarm bell was not causing Grace Magallon, 63, of East Los Angeles to break her normal routine. “I’m not really that con- cerned,” Magallon said. “I know you can never be too careful, but it seems a little overboard.” Magallon, who works for the on-demand delivery company Postmates, said she’s constantly entering restaurants to pick up or- ders she delivers to custom- ers. Recently, she was re- quired to have her tempera- ture taken in order to enter a restaurant in Alhambra. It was another reminder, Magallon said, to use cau- tion — wash her hands and use hand sanitizer — but she won’t change anything else about her daily life. “It doesn’t scare me,” Magallon said.

Getting boomers to heed warnings

[Skepticism,from B1]

People familiar with
Wang’s business dealings
said he sold products that
match the description Jenk-
ins gave of Businessperson
A’s companies in court
Thursday.
In a showroom on the
28th floor of an office tower
in downtown Los Angeles,
Wang displayed home elec-
tronics, cabinetry and other
home furnishings, according
to two people who visited the
space in recent years.
Wang was trying to sell
the products to developers
who were constructing
buildings downtown and in
other parts of the city, said
one of the people, who went
to the showroom on multiple
occasions.
Wang’s “smart home”
electronics allowed custom-
ers to use their phones to
perform such tasks as ad-
justing a room’s air condi-
tioning, lowering window
blinds and turning on light-
ing, said the person, who
asked to remain unnamed to
avoid being incorrectly
linked to a criminal case.
The showroom “was like
different rooms you would
see in a home. There was a
living room setup, a kitchen
setup. You could demo some
of the technology, see how it
would work,” said the sec-
ond person, who toured the
space in 2017.
The indictment against
Englander said that at one
point in 2018, the then-coun-
cilman agreed to tour a
showroom run by Business-
person A. The document did
not provide the location of
the showroom.
A Times reporter went to
the office tower Wednesday
and was told by a security
guard that NextData Auto-
mation, the company used
to market the home technol-
ogy products, is no longer in
the building.
Englander’s gift report
gives a Diamond Bar ad-
dress for Wang; it matches
that of a political donor who
appears in Englander con-
tribution records as Andy
Wang. In turn, Wang is listed
in state records as the chief
executive of several compa-
nies in Montclair, including
NextData Automation.
In court on Thursday,
prosecutors described how

Englander, one of his aides, a lobbyist, a staffer to another council member and a developer traveled to Las Vegas on a commercial flight with Businessperson A. Businessperson A pro- vided Englander with a hotel room, perks reserved for high rollers and an escort, according to the indictment. He also paid a $24,000 liquor tab the group ran up while at a nightclub, the indictment says. In a bathroom in the Las Vegas hotel, Businessperson A allegedly gave Englander an envelope with $10,000 in cash, according to the indictment. The pair met again later that month in a bathroom at a casino resort near Palm Springs, where Businessperson A allegedly gave the councilman another $5,000 in cash, the indictment states. A week later, Englander arranged for Businessper- son A to meet with a real estate developer over lunch, prosecutors said. After the lunch, Jenkins said, Businessperson A tried to sell the developer his products. Those discus- sions, however, fell apart after prosecutors began issu- ing subpoenas to the developer’s firm and other com-

panies entangled in the broader City Hall probe, Jenkins said. Jenkins said Thursday that Businessperson A, in his attempt to get to developers, tried to “groom and cultivate” other city officials besides Englander, including at least one other council member. He did not identify them. FBI agents interviewed Businessperson A several weeks after the Las Vegas trip, and he eventually agreed to cooperate with the investigation, according to the indictment. Much of the case against Englander relies on inter- cepted phone calls and recordings Businessperson A secretly made of conversa- tions with the councilman, Jenkins said Thursday. In all, there are about eight hours of recordings involving Englander, Jenkins said. The government also col- lected messages Englander and Businessperson A ex- changed using a phone app that encrypts and auto- matically deletes messages. To record the messages before they disappeared, Businessperson A took pho- tos of them using a phone given to him by FBI agents, Jenkins said.

Jenkins also told the judge he believes Englander chose to receive the cash payments in bathrooms, probably knowing the ca- sinos did not install cameras there. The other unnamed city officials who accompanied Englander on the Las Vegas trip are expected to testify against the former councilman if the case goes to trial, Jenkins said. He did not say whether the officials will also be charged. Englander, who now lives in Santa Monica, is the first City Hall figure to be publi- cly charged in connection with a sweeping corruption probe that has delved into the worlds of L.A. politics and real estate devel- opment. A federal search warrant filed more than a year ago in- dicated that agents have been seeking evidence of potential crimes including bribery, kickbacks, extor- tion and money laundering involving more than a dozen people, including city officials and business figures. That warrant also sought in- formation on Las Vegas trips. The judge set a trial date for May 5 but said that was likely to change.

Goal was to ‘groom’ officials

FORMER LOS ANGELESCity Councilman Mitchell Englander and his wife, Jayne, outside federal court in downtown Los Angeles on Thursday.

Al SeibLos Angeles Times

[Englander,from B1]

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Dan Fox passedaway February 12, 2020, in his own home, in his own bed, in his own way. He was born in the Bronx October 27, 1933 to Abraham Fox and Anastasia Carotenuto Fox. He had two sisters, Ruth the older (deceased) and the younger one Joan. He was the favorite. After school he joined the navy. Although he looked fabulous in that uniform, he left the navy to go into advertising. That led to a 15 year career with NBC, culminating as a Vice President. Nice title but he wanted more, so he started his own company Daniel Fox and Associates. Arthur Alisi, best friend ever, introduced him to his wife Cindy Ryan Fox and was godfather to his two children Ryan Daniel Fox and Danielle Alisi Fox Zimmerman.You can tell by the names that Dan was a little narcissistic. Ryan is married to the beautiful Soraya. Danielle to the patient and kind Ben, they gave Dan three grandchildren that he adored. Owen the perfect child, Thompson the adorable wild child and the sweet and wonderful Olive. Arthur and Dan joined forces and formed Danart Inc DBA Promotional Consideration. They loved their work, their partnership and their life. February 25th Thirteen days after Dan left us, Arthur joined him. Wonder what they’re promoting now? We love and miss them both so much.

FOX, Daniel

Dekat, Sister Merita, (92) died on March 4, 2020. A Sister of Social Service for 73 years, Sister Merita served in Portland, San Rafael, San Francisco, San Diego, Los Angeles and Michoacan MX. Her ministries included Parish Social Work, Campus Ministry and Religious Education. She also served her SSS community in a variety of settings, including eight years as its General Director. Vigil service: 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, March 12, and Liturgy on Friday, March 13 at 10:00 a.m. Both services held at the Sisters of Social Service, 4316 Lanai Road, Encino. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Sisters of Social Service.

Bastian & Perrott, Oswald Mortuary

DEKAT, Sister Merita

June 14, 1929 - March 5, 2020

ACKERMAN, Mona Bentley

Mona Bentley Ackerman, beloved wife, mother and grandmother, passed away peacefully in Los Angeles at age 90. Mona was born in Detroit Lakes, Minnesota to John and Julia Bentley. She is preceded in death by her parents, brother Elton (Bud), and two sisters, Sidona and Joan.

An independent and smart young woman, Mona put herself through Registered Nurses training at St. Luke’s School of Nursing in Fargo, North Dakota and then, while working full time at Massachusetts General Hospital, earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Nursing from Boston University in 1959. She practiced as a highly regarded nurse, nursing supervisor and researcher (women’s health) intermittently until 1996. Mona also volunteered for several causes, most often focusing on children.

Mona married Irving Paul Ackerman, MD (Irv) in February 1959, and raised three daughters, Diane, Laurie and Sandra. Mona cherished her family and was very close with her six grandchildren, Benjamin, Julia, Mariam, Sofia, William and Spencer and three sons-in-law, Douglas, Jama and Matthew.

Mona had a passion for learning and was an accomplished pianist and gardener. She took pride in her Norwegian heritage and enjoyed studying and sharing her genealogy. Along with Irv, Mona was an avid traveler into her 80s, visiting many cities around the world and always documenting their experiences in a scrapbook. She was a caring friend to many and a beautiful host of numerous exquisite parties and get togethers. Mona’s energy and compassion impressed all who knew her.

Mona is survived by her husband of 61 years, children and grandchildren as well as several nieces and nephews. She found the idea that there is a little part of her in each of us to be exciting, and we treasure this thought as well.

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Mount Sinai Memorial Parks Simi Valley 800-600- http://www.mountsinaiparks.org

YARO, Boris

Passed away peacefully at home in La Canada-Flintridge at age 100. Beloved mother of Lisa Siskel Cochran (Joe) and Suzanne Eloise Siskel (Peter Gajewski) and cherished grandmother of Kaitlin Ashley Cochran. In lieu of flowers, contributions in her memory to Westwood United Methodist Church, Town and Gown of USC, and P.E.O. are welcome.

SISKEL, Eloise Faye Hancock

Arlene, age 84, died 3/9/20 in Phoenix, AZ after a lengthy battle with Alzheimer’s. Born in Los Angeles she was a 1954 graduate of Beverly Hills High School followed by Briarcliff College in New York and various art schools in Southern California, after which she became a renowned artist whose paintings, ceramics and photographs are in collections around the globe. She is survived by her beloved husband of almost 58 years, Mort, children Jeffrey Scult of Los Angeles and Jessica Magnin and grandson Noa of Switzerland, as well as a brother, Budge Offer (Brenda) of Santa Monica with whom she had a very special relationship. Any contributions to The Alzheimer’s Research Foundation in her memory would be welcomed.

SCULT, Arlene Offer

February 4, 1945 - March 7, 2020

POMERANTZ, Earl Raymond

Earl was an Emmy award winning writer.Hewrotescripts for THE MARYTYLERMOORE SHOW,THE BOB NEWHART SHOW, RHODA, THE TONY RANDALL SHOW, PHYLLIS, TAXI, CHEERS, THE COSBY SHOW (which he also ran for a time), and created MAJOR DAD and BEST OF THE WEST. He was also a creative consultant on both Garry Shandling shows, LATELINE, and ACCORDING TO JIM. His credits alone tell you he was a terrific comedy writer. Earl’s humor came from celebrating humanity and pointing out the silly absurd things we all do and can relate to.

Earl was Canadian by birth and a naturalized U.S. citizen. Survivors include his brother Hart Pomerantz in Toronto, his wife Myra Pomerantz, as well as his daughters Anna Pomerantz and Rachel Braude, son-in-laws and three grandchildren.

Services will take place at Hillside Memorial Park, 6001 Centinela Ave. LA 90045, on Thurs. March 12 at 12:00pm.

Mount Sinai Memorial Parks Simi Valley 800-600- http://www.mountsinaiparks.org

MATHASON, Marcia Gurian

September 20, 1943 - March 6, 2020

KOUTSOUKOS, Michael John

Beloved, husband, father, grandfather, and brother. His was a life well lived. We love, and miss you. Until we meet again. Your loving wife Eleni, sons John, Dimitri, grand children Brooke and Michael, daughter in-law Sandra, brother Vasili, and sister Stella

90, of Hacienda Heights Died 2/21/2020 Obituary at http://www.whiteemerson.com

HOVELSRUD, Richard

July 28, 1926 - March 11, 2020

HARRIS, Arlene Simon

Arlen Simon Harris, age 93, wife of Dr. Leon Harris (2005). Loving mother of 3 sons, beloved grandmother of 7 and great-grandmother of 4. Auntie Ar to a large extended family. Spent her entire life in Beverly Hills and was very involved with the art museums and preservation of the arts in Los Angeles. She became an Archeologist and responsible for many important finds. She influenced many, loved many, loved by many and will be very sorely missed by many. She is survived by sons Alan, Richard (Sherry), and Jim Harris (Corinne). Services at Hillside Memorial Park Sunday March, 15 1pm.

Los Angeles Times - 13.03.2020

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