New details emerge in bomb threat hoax
Tomo Chien
September 09, 2025
Good morning, it’s Tuesday. Here are the five USC, Los Angeles, and California stories you need to know for today.
1.
USC officials said the bomb threat that prompted evacuations at Leavey and Doheny libraries Sunday came from an anonymous email address that contacted three USC department inboxes. The culprit, apparently, was too chicken to actually phone it in.
2.
More on campus safety: An online criminal group claimed responsibility for a wave of recent active shooter hoaxes on college campuses, saying it charged as little as $20 to make 911 calls with realistic gunfire in the background. It’s unclear who’s responsible for the USC threat, although it didn’t match the criminal group’s M.O.
3.
Some faculty are cautiously optimistic about interim President Beong-Soo Kim, even as layoffs continue across the university. “President Folt primarily created walls between the faculty and herself,” said cinema professor Michael Bodie, airing a common sentiment. “Already, interim President Kim seems to be wanting to try to break that down.”
4.
The Supreme Court lifted a judge’s order that restricted immigration agents from stopping and detaining people in LA on the basis of them speaking Spanish or having brown skin. Justice Brett Kavanaugh called it “common sense” that day laborers who speak with accents could be in the country illegally.
5.
Scientists discovered a new funky-looking fish 10,000 feet down off the California coast. The alien-looking bumpy snailfish has a gelatinous body, bioluminescent features, and transparent coloration for camouflage. “It’s pretty adorable,” said one marine biologist.