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THURSDAY, APRIL 30, 2026
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Malibu advocate takes reckless driving fight to Sacramento Justice for Four Angels’ Billy Melcher speaks at Capitol steps rally By JUDY ABEL Special to The Malibu Times
(From left) Otto Maly, representing the Kroenke family; Lani Hall and her husband Herb Alpert; Drs. Lauren Pike and Dan Katz of Malibu Urgent Care; and Dick Van Dyke and his wife Arlene, get ready to break ground on the new Malibu Urgent Care facility on April 26. Photo by Lesya Abbakumova
Malibu Urgent Care breaks ground on advanced medical facility New center will bring CT and MRI imaging, expanded treatment services, and faster emergency care to the community By BARBARA BURKE Special to The Malibu Times
“Standing here today, in what will soon be a fully built medical facility, it’s a little hard to picture what this space will become,” Dr. Dan Katz of Malibu Urgent Care told a large gathering of Malibuites at the groundbreaking ceremony for the future facility on April 26. “Right now, it’s just lines on the
Malibu Council advances business recovery, PCH safety efforts City extends fire relief permits through 2027; moves forward automated speed camera pilot program By HAYLEY MATTSON Publisher, Editor in Cheif
The Malibu City Council took two major steps aimed at strengthening Malibu’s recovery and resilience during its latest meeting — voting unanimously to extend temporary business relief measures created in response to the Palisades Fire and moving forward with a first-of-its-kind automated speed safety camera pilot program along the notoriously dangerous Pacific Coast Highway corridor. In the absence of Mayor Bruce Silverstein, Mayor Pro Tem Steve Uhring led the meeting, joined by councilmembers Haylynn Conrad, Marianne Riggins, and Doug Stewart. The first major action of the evening centered on Malibu businesses still struggling to regain CONTINUED ON PAGE A6
floor, open air, and possibility. But, if you pause for a moment and imagine it — you can almost hear it. The rhythm of a monitor. The quiet urgency of a care team in motion. The moment a patient finally exhales because help has arrived.” In a very short time, the new urgent care, which is being constructed adjacent to the current urgent care on Pacific Coast Highway, “will be a place where some of
the worst days in people’s lives are met with as head injuries, strokes, internal bleeding, skill, speed and compassion — and where, spinal emergencies, patients still have to go in some cases, lives are saved,” Katz added. elsewhere for care.” The new facility will offer CT and MRI New diagnostic equipment that changes imaging on-site, Katz explained, adding, what’s possible in critical moments “That changes what’s possible in a critical The current urgent care does not have moment. It means fewer families waiting advanced imaging such as CT or MRI, in traffic for answers, fewer patients leaving Katz noted, stating, “That means that for Malibu in urgent situations, and more some of the most serious conditions, such CONTINUED ON PAGE A7
As an eight-year member of the Volunteers on Patrol service group for the Los Angeles County Sheriff ’s Department, Billy Melcher has assisted the Sheriff ’s Department in hundreds of accidents. But nothing shocked him more than the quadruple fatality on Oct. 17, 2023, on Pacific Coast Highway that claimed the lives of Asha Weir, Deslyn Williams, Niamh Rolston, and Peyton Stewart, all seniors at Pepperdine University. Melcher was one of the first on the scene of the horrific crash, and the memory of that night has stayed with him. Although Melcher, now a second-year law student at Pepperdine, did not personally know the victims, he has become one of their chief advocates by co-founding the CONTINUED ON PAGE A5
INSIDE
this week
Australian TV magazine raises questions about Malibu fire death News program questions mother after son’s tragic death By JUDY ABEL Special to The Malibu Times
An Australian television news program has aired a broadcast questioning the circumstances in the death of one of the 12 Palisades Fire victims. Rory Sykes died early Jan. 8, 2025, at the Malibu Hills property he shared with his mother Shelley Sykes. The British-born Shelley Sykes is known in Australia as the self-proclaimed “Happiness Guru,” and has appeared on “Australia’s Got Talent,” authored a number of self-help books, and generally enjoyed the media spotlight, often alongside her son, Rory, who had cerebral
Shelley Sikes and her son Rory are shown in this undated photo. Rory’s death in the 2025 Palisades Fire was a focal point in a recent episode of the Australian TV magazine show “Spotlight.” Contributed photo
palsy. Rory, 32 at the time of his death, was sometimes referred to as a child actor, although he appeared in only two episodes of a local community television show. His mother says the media blew that description of Rory out of proportion. Shelley now claims that her son was actually a recluse who spent hours daily playing video games in a “cottage” she built for him on her 17-acre property above Malibu. The news program “Spotlight,” which airs on Australia’s Channel Seven, says the money used to buy the property came from a multimillion-dollar settlement Shelley received after a car accident and that she attributes her son’s cerebral palsy to that accident. Shortly after moving into the property in
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Artistry rises from ashes A Palisades Fire survivor loses her Steinway, music library, and home and finds healing in Schubert By JUDY ABEL Special to The Malibu Times
When the Palisades Fire ignited the morning of Jan. 7, 2025, classical pianist Yongmei Hu watched from her window as a thread of smoke rose across the hills. She took a photo. Then she evacuated. She beat the catastrophic gridlock
that trapped many of her Palisades neighbors. But she could not outrun the fire itself. The next day, the internationally acclaimed musician learned her home was reduced to ash. Gone with it: her beloved seven-foot Steinway concert grand, a full library of piano scores accumulated over decades, original manuscripts and conductor’s notes from the studios of master teachers, and nearly everything else she owned. “Music is my bible,” Hu shared. This photo was taken by pianist Yongmei Hu of the advancing Palisades Fire at her Malibu home right CONTINUED ON PAGE A5
before she evacuated. Her home was destroyed in the fire. Photo courtesy of Yongmei Hu
Wings Over Malibu lifts up students, safety and Emily Shane’s enduring legacy |B1
Opinion . . . . . . . . . . . .A2 • Malibu is shrinking
News Briefs . . . . . . . . . A3 • City of Malibu to host youth skateboarding session
Calendar . . . . . . . . . . . A4 • May 1: Malibu High Spring Musical, ‘Mamma Mia!’
Real Estate . . . . . . . . . .A8 Malibu Life . . . . . . . . . B1 • Malibu Sharks rule Citrus Coast League, charge into CIF playoffs
People . . . . . . . . . . . . .B2 • Malibu Seen: The Surfer’s Code
Legals . . . . . . . . . . . . .B3 Business & Directory . . . B6 Classifieds . . . . . . . . . . B6 Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . .B8 • Pepperdine women’s tennis clinches 12th straight WCC title