This Week's Top News in Long Beach

Here is a look at some of the top stories this week in Long Beach and Belmont Shore as reported by Patch: 

Long Beach Reacts to High Court Finding on Gay Marriage: Long Beach supporters of same-sex marriage were rejoicing on Wednesday as the U.S. Supreme court delivered a historic ruling deeming the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act as discriminatory.

Pair Charged With Long Beach Lottery Ticket Robberies: Two men have been charged with robbery for allegedly holding up Long Beach stores at gunpoint and stealing cash and California Lottery scratcher tickets, police announced Thursday. The suspects have already been charged with the crimes and are being held at the Los Angeles County Jail with bail set at $50,000 each. 

Great White Shark Spotted by Long Beach's Christopher Boat: A rare sighting of a great white shark off the Southern California coast was made Wednesday about 5 p.m. from the Long Beach whale watching boat the Christopher.

Long Beach Killer Gets Death Penalty for the Second Time: For the second time, a man was sentenced to death today for the rape and murder of a woman whose nude body was found on a freeway embankment in Long Beach more than 14 years ago. The sentence handed down by Long Beach Superior Court Judge Tomson T. Ong came less than 10 years after Kevin Darnell Pearson, now 36, was initially sentenced to death for the Dec. 29, 1998, slaying of Penny Keprta.

Long Beach Man Charged With Sex Trafficking of Teen: A Long Beach man who allegedly forced a 17-year-old girl to work as a prostitute is named in a federal criminal complaint that charges him with child sex trafficking, prosecutors announced Monday. Ralph Allen "Mac Wimp" Jackson Jr., 40, was arrested by Long Beach Police Department vice detectives on state charges after they responded to a domestic disturbance call at his residence.