CAPITOL NOTEBOOK: L.A. SENATOR'S MEDIA EXPOSURE NO. 1 SUBJECT.

Byline: Terri Hardy and Dorothy Korber

MEMBERS of the Capitol press corps who regularly scan competing newspapers and Web sites to stay current found the hot story of the week in New Times Los Angeles, where columnist Jill Stewart, a former Long Beach Press-Telegram and Los Angeles Times reporter, exposed state Sen. Kevin Murray, D-Los Angeles.

Shouts and laughter could be heard up and down the hallways as they absorbed Stewart's scathing, graphic and revelatory account of how Murray got caught with his pants down, literally. Police found him in the parking lot of the John Anson Ford Theater, in broad daylight, on Dec. 27, standing next to his state-owned Corvette, facing a prostitute sitting in the front seat.

Neither Murray nor the woman was arrested, even though the senator's companion was on probation. Instead, the pair were released by Los Angeles County deputies who patrol the area and a complaint was forwarded to the LAPD's Hollywood Vice Division and then on to the City Attorney's Office.

The Los Angeles City Attorney's Office told us Friday it would not be pressing charges due to insufficient evidence. Murray, through his chief of staff, said he was sorry and remorseful about the incident but that he had no role in the decision not to prosecute.

The senator, meanwhile, has traded in the state Corvette for a roomier, but still state-owned, Ford Expedition.

Run, rabbit, run

Assembly Speaker Antonio Villaraigosa, D-Los Angeles, and Senate President Pro Tem John Burton, D-San Francisco, welcomed in the Chinese New Year by setting off 10,000 firecrackers to chase away evil spirits. The celebration was at Frank Fat's, the bright pink restaurant that's an institution for capital politicos. A news release from the restaurant said children born this year - the Year of the Rabbit - will be be even-tempered and obedient, not rowdy or offensive.

``Suffice it to say that neither Burton, Villaraigosa nor Gov. Gray Davis are rabbits,'' the release said. According to the Chinese horoscope, Davis is a horse, cheerful and popular, while sometimes rash and headstrong. Villaraigosa is a dragon, egotistical and demanding, but never without a band of admirers. Burton is a monkey, a motivator and potential charlatan capable of drawing every one to him with his inimitable guile and charm.

Bite out of crime

Last week, an attack by a pit bull sent a Long Beach 9-year-old to the emergency room for 200 stitches. What are the repercussions for the owner of such a dog?

Under existing California law, owners of vicious dogs face felony charges only if the bite victim dies. Otherwise, regardless of the injury inflicted or the dog owner's role in the attack, the criminal charge is limited to a misdemeanor.

A new bill, AB 72, introduced by Assemblyman Robert Hertzberg, D-Van Nuys, would increase the penalty to a felony - punishable by a multiyear jail term and a fine up to $10,000 - in certain situations:

The dog must bite a human being on two separate occasions or on one occasion that causes substantial injuries. The dog owner must be aware of the dog's dangerous nature and fail to exercise ordinary care. And the victim must have taken reasonable precautions.

Bills to watch

Assemblyman Scott Wildman, D-Glendale, introduced AB 483, which would allow cities to remove unsightly billboards and reimburse the billboard companies an amount determined by an independent appraiser. The city of Glendale has complained that the companies sometimes hike the value of the dismantled billboards unreasonably.

Assemblyman Jack Scott, D-Pasadena, introduced AB 457, which would require the Commission on Teacher Credentialing to revoke or deny the credential of any person involved in the sale, possession or transporting of pornographic material.