BRIEFLY : ROCK BAND CANCELS SHOWS, CITES DRUGS.

In an unusual statement Wednesday, the rock group Stone Temple Pilots announced it must cancel free concerts in Los Angeles, Chicago and New York due to lead singer Scott Weiland's drug problems.

Weiland ``has become unable to rehearse or appear for these shows due to his dependency on drugs. He is currently under a doctor's care in a medical facility,'' the statement from Atlantic Records read.

Stone Temple Pilots was due to perform for free at the Wiltern Theatre on May 3.

Weiland was arrested for possession of heroin and crack cocaine last year near Pasadena.

In the statement, the band said it was not sure how the latest events would affect plans for a summer tour.

SOURCE: - Daily News

Victims identified in canyon crash

MONTE NIDO - California Highway Patrol officials Wednesday identified the three people killed in a Tuesday-night traffic collision as Stephanie Cole, 23, of Morganton, North Carolina; Ricardo Aguilar, 27, of Reseda; and Richard Clark, 27, of Northridge.

All three were in a car driven by Clark heading north on Malibu Canyon Road near Piuma Road about 7:55 p.m. when the vehicle crossed into the southbound lanes and collided with a car driven by Guy Hahn, 31, of Costa Mesa.

Clark, Aguilar and Cole died instantly, said CHP Sgt. Jim Kennedy. Hahn was treated at Northridge Hospital Medical Center for minor injuries and released, he said.

SOURCE: - Daily News

Officer foils theft with pepper spray

TUJUNGA - An off-duty Glendale police officer foiled a carjacking attempt by using his pepper spray on one suspect and then throwing his car into reverse when confronted by a second armed man.

The officer was driving east on Foothill Boulevard at 1 a.m. Wednesday when one of the two suspects stepped in front of his car, just east of Pinewood Avenue, said Capt. Ron Bergmann of the Foothill Division, who would not identify the officer.

The man ran up, tried to grab the door, and at that time the officer doused him with pepper spray. An accomplice then threatened the officer with what turned out to be a replica handgun, Bergman said.

Later, patrol officers made two arrests.

SOURCE: - Daily News

Girl recovers from 2nd smile surgery

WOODLAND HILLS - Chelsey Thomas, the girl born unable to smile, will spend the next several days in a hospital and the next two to nine months waiting to see whether surgery to correct the condition was successful.

The 7-year-old was in good condition Wednesday at Kaiser Permanente Hospital in Woodland Hills, recovering from a second operation.

``Doctors have announced she is doing extremely well and they are very pleased with her recovery process,'' said Linda Quon, a hospital spokeswoman.

Surgeons removed muscle and nerve from Chelsey's leg and transplanted them to the right side of her face. After the surgery, doctors stretched the muscles in the corners of her mouth upward.

The corners of Chelsey's mouth had sagged because she was born without the nerve that transmits commands to facial muscles. The condition, called Moebius syndrome, afflicts about 1,000 Americans.

SOURCE: - Associated Press

City Council joins Coliseum campaign

The Los Angeles City Council on Wednesday kicked in $25,000 as part of a marketing program to convince the National Football League and team owners that the Memorial Coliseum should serve as the home for a new team.

The council, without comment, voted unanimously to make its contribution to develop an overall marketing program to convince the NFL that improvements planned for the aging facility would make it a state-of-the-art football stadium.

SOURCE: - Daily News

Pact near on MTA police merger

A merger of the MTA's police force moved a step closer to reality Wednesday when the transit agency's board ordered staff to work out details of a final agreement with the Los Angeles Police Department and Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department.

``This will save money and add 58 more bodies to the force,'' said Los Angeles Mayor Richard Riordan, a board member of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority and big merger supporter. ``Most importantly, buses will no longer be shortchanged (in law enforcement protection) as they are today.''

The merger would eliminate the Metropolitan Transportation Authority's internal transit police department, shifting the more than 500 officers on the force to the LAPD and Sheriff's Department in a 40-60 split. The two law enforcement agencies would then take over policing of the MTA's buses and trains.

SOURCE: - Daily News

Yamaki confirmed to fire panel

The Los Angeles City Council on Wednesday confirmed the appointment of a former police commissioner, attorney Michael Yamaki, to serve on the Los Angeles Fire Commission.

Yamaki, who served on the Police Commission during the tumultuous period following the Rodney King beating, will replace Commissioner Leslie Song Winner.

Winner resigned following controversy over her role in examining hiring, training and promotional practices in the department.

Mayor Richard Riordan had nominated Yamaki nearly a year ago when he called for Winner's resignation. Winner submitted her resignation in February. Yamaki's term will run through 1999.

SOURCE: - Daily News

Rally to support affirmative action

A May 1 unity rally of Los Angeles city workers opposed to the California Civil Rights Initiative, which would end government-operated affirmative action programs, was announced Wednesday.

Councilwoman Jackie Goldberg said the rally was important to show the diversity of the city work force and warn of the potential impact if the CCRI is approved by voters in November.

``We all look forward to the day that affirmative action programs aren't needed,'' Goldberg said. ``Unfortunately, that day is not now.''

SOURCE: - Daily News