Top 5 Westside Stories: Pepper-Spraying Robbers, Bloom Declares Victory

Close out your weekend with a recap of the newsiest and most popular Patch articles from last week. Here are the five stories that topped the headlines on Westside Patch sites:

• Two robbers pepper-sprayed six people while looting a jewelry store on Montana Avenue in Santa Monica. The robbery occurred around 1 p.m. Friday. The robbers, identified as thin, black males in their 20s wearing dark hooded sweatshirts, fled the scene.

• Join the conversation: Richard Bloom has declared victory over Betsy Butler in the race for the 50th Assembly District. With 70,000 votes left to be counted, Bloom, the mayor of Santa Monica, is ahead by 1,246 votes but there are few left to be counted from the 50th District. The results will be certified on Tuesday.

• Venice celebrated the beginning of December with the lighting of the Venice sign. L.A. City Councilman Bill Rosendahl and actor Robert Downey Jr. attended the event. Click here to see video from the event.

• In the weird news department, a Pacific Palisades man was detained when a resident spotted him covered in blood and carrying a knife. The man turned out to be skinning a deer that was struck and killed by a car. The man was not charged.

• Affordable bus service Megabus is returning to Los Angeles, with service to Northern California and Nevada. Megabus previously served L.A. in 2007 but ended due to a lack of demand. Fares for bus trips start as low as $1.
  
  

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