BRIEFLY; VAN NUYS BOY, 14, DIES MYSTERIOUSLY.

VAN NUYS - A 14-year-old boy was pronounced dead at a hospital after his parents found him unconscious in his bed at home on Wednesday morning, police said.

The boy, whose name was not released, had gone to bed in his home in the 16000 block of Gault Street early Tuesday evening after complaining of stomach pain, said LAPD Detective Roberta Moore of the Van Nuys Division.

The boy will be examined by the Los Angeles County Coroner's Office.

``He was a good student and a good son. The parents are just overwhelmed. When you don't have answers, it makes it very difficult,'' Moore said.

- Daily News

L.A. COUNCIL OKS FARE HIKE FOR TAXIS

Without a fare hike for 14 years, the Los Angeles City Council on Wednesday approved an increase in fares charged by taxi drivers.

In an 11-0 vote, the council agreed to allow operators to charge $1.90 for the first one-ninth mile with charges of 20 cents for each additional one-ninth mile. Also, cabs will be able to have a $2.50 surcharge for trips originating from Los Angeles International Airport.

City officials also are considering a plan to add a fuel charge because of the recent high gasoline costs.

- Daily News

CSUN HELPS PUSH FINANCIAL LITERACY

NORTHRIDGE - California State University, Northridge's Consumer Resource Center, as a partner in the Jump$tart Coalition for Personal Financial Literacy, is joining more than 90 government agencies, educational institutions, trade associations and corporations in launching Financial Literacy for Youth Month this April.

- Daily News

HONOR VOTED FOR SLAIN MAILMAN

CHINO HILLS - The U.S. Senate approved a bill to name the city's new post office after a mailman killed during an alleged shooting rampage by a white supremacist.

Philippine-born Joseph Ileto, a former Chino Hills resident, was shot last August while on his route in the Chatsworth area.

Associated Press Almost a year after a Los Angeles police officer fatally shot a mentally ill homeless woman, the Police Commission Wednesday announced the formation of a Mentally Disabled Task Force.

City News Service The City Council Wednesday approved a $1.2 million settlement for an 86-year-old blind man who was seriously injured when he fell into a 17-foot-deep trench while crossing a street near USC last year.

- City News Service

SCHOOLS INITIATIVE MAY BE REVIVED

SACRAMENTO - For the second time in a year, an initiative that would make it easier to pass school construction bonds may be put before California's voters, but this time Gov. Gray Davis has agreed to play an active and substantial role in the campaign.

Silicon Valley business leaders who spent millions trying to pass Proposition 26 in March have been negotiating with the governor to put a modified version of the initiative on the ballot, one that would lower the voter requirement in school bond elections from two-thirds to 55 percent.

- Scripps-McClatchy Western Service