Hosam Elattar

The Orange City Council meeting on May 14, 2024. Credit: ERIKA TAYLOR, Voice of OC Orange officials are extending their moratorium on allowing new massage parlors to set up shop in the city for nearly two years amid allegations that the businesses are hot beds for prostitution and illicit sexual activity. Beyond the alleged sexual activity, code enforcement officers say they’ve found parlors where people are living there illegally.

While police officers made headlines last summer for firing tear gas and rubber bullets at protestors in Orange County, there’s another piece of military equipment they use much more that receives less attention – drones. At least three of the county’s largest law enforcement offices are ratcheting up their spending and use of drones with little public discussion, according to annual disclosures released highlighting how they used military equipment over the past year.

Santa Ana voters will decide in November if they want to keep a 1.5% sales tax increase indefinitely after city officials had to make millions of dollars in cuts to balance their budget this summer. Elected leaders publicly said Tuesday it will be up to voters to decide if they want to continue to enjoy services and programs like graffiti removal, fixing parks and keeping emergency response times at the same level by weighing in on the ballot measure.