BRIEFLY.

Hit-run suspect pleads not guilty

A 22-year-old North Hollywood man pleaded not guilty Tuesday to three felony charges stemming from a fatal hit-and-run crash, officials said.

Jovan Oliva was arrested Sunday. Police said he ran a red light in a car that hit a BMW X5, and he fled the scene. Bridgett Ortega, 34, a passenger in the back seat of the BMW, was thrown out the car's rear window and died, Los Angeles Police Department Detective Grace Torres said. Amanda Wallace, the BMW's driver, suffered a broken pelvis, and Shawn Ward, another BMW passenger, suffered minor injuries.

Oliva was accused of gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated, causing injury while driving under the influence and leaving the scene of an accident, said Sandi Gibbons, spokeswoman for the District Attorney's office.

He is being held on $280,000 bail. The crash occurred at 3:55 a.m. Sunday at the corner of Magnolia Boulevard and Vineland Avenue in North Hollywood.

- Daily News

Mom of boy killed by cop sues city

The mother of a 13-year-old driver who was fatally shot by a police officer in a case that increased tensions between South Los Angeles residents and police filed a lawsuit Tuesday against the city.

Evelyn Davis states in the wrongful-death and civil-rights lawsuit that her son, Devin Brown, was unarmed and posed no threat to police.

Authorities said the boy, driving a stolen 1992 Toyota Camry, led officers on a brief pursuit and was backing the car into a police cruiser when Officer Steve Garcia fired 10 shots at the Camry shortly before 4 a.m. on Feb. 6.

- City News Service

Anti-Villaraigosa recall effort fails

Los Angeles Councilman Antonio Villaraigosa received some welcome news this week when backers of an effort to recall him from his council office failed to submit petitions to the county registrar of voters.

Organizers said they collected 8,000 signatures, far fewer than the 12,000 needed to put a recall proposal on the ballot, and they decided not even to submit those signatures to the registrar.

Villaraigosa had said he did not believe there would be support for a recall, but organizer Eliseo Villanueva said there could be another recall effort, depending on the results of the election for mayor on Tuesday. Villaraigosa is in the mayoral runoff election against incumbent James Hahn.

- Daily News

Iacocca's charity opens L.A. office

The Iacocca Foundation announced Tuesday it had opened a Los Angeles office to help coordinate an $11 million fundraising initiative to bring a potential cure for Type 1 diabetes to human clinical trials.

``Since the death of my wife in 1983 from the complications of diabetes, I have been driven to do everything I can to fund diabetes research,'' said Lee Iacocca, chairman of the foundation and former head of Chrysler Corp.

``Our new Los Angeles office will be the center of the Iacocca Foundation's West Coast initiatives,'' he said.

Iacocca, who lives in Los Angeles, established the foundation in 1984 in memory of his wife, Mary K., who died from complications of Type 1 diabetes.

- City News Service

Letter carriers to collect food

U.S. Postal Service letter carriers will participate in what's billed as the largest single-day food drive in the nation on Saturday.

Members of the public are being asked to leave nonperishable food next to their mailbox on Saturday for letter carriers to pick up for distribution to local charities.

- City News Service

DWP head seated on regional board

The general manager of the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power was seated Tuesday as a member of the Metropolitan Water District's board.

Ronald F. Deaton became one of four directors representing the city of Los Angeles on Metropolitan's 37-member board. The Long Beach resident replaces William G. Luddy, who had served on the MWD board since October 1992.

- City News Service