Lawmakers promise action on gun control

Bay Area briefs

MISSING 77-YEAR-OLD'S BODY FOUND IN RICHMOND: VALLEJO (AP) - The body of a missing 77-year-old man believed to have fallen into the waters off Mare Island has washed ashore.

209 News

THOUSANDS IN SIERRA FOOTHILLS WITHOUT POWER: IONE (AP) - Thousands of people in a handful of small communities in the Sierra Nevada foothills southeast of Sacramento are without electricity after a power outage hit the area.

LAPD chief wants officers to visit schools daily

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Los Angeles Police Chief Charlie Beck said he plans to step up patrols of elementary and middle schools in the nation's second-largest school district by assigning officers to visit them at least once a day.

Bay Area news briefs

OFFICIALS ID CHP OFFICER KILLED IN OFF-DUTY CRASH: FAIRFIELD (AP) - Officials have released the name of a veteran California Highway Patrol officer who was killed in an off-duty motorcycle crash, while his colleagues remembered him as a dedicated public servant.

Mission Hills man suspected of stabbing his grandmother to death with BBQ fork

LOS ANGELES (AP) - A Southern California man has been arrested on suspicion of stabbing his grandmother to death, possibly with a barbecue fork.

Napa do-over prompts grape plant shortage

NAPA (AP) - Napa Valley, one of the world's premier wine growing regions, has an uncommon problem these days: not enough new grapevine root stock is available to supply the massive replanting that's under way there.

Police trade $200,000 for 590 guns

OAKLAND (AP) - Hundreds of guns have been taken off the streets of Oakland and San Francisco in a gun buyback program that Oakland police Officer Johnna Watson described as a "huge success."

School yoga tries to avoid religious controversy as district faces lawsuit

ENCINITAS (AP) - Public school yoga instructor Katie Campbell proudly looks out at 23 first graders as they contain their squirming in a kid-friendly version of the lotus position.

PG&E: Workers fired for lying about inspections

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - Pacific Gas and Electric Co. said it has fired or suspended nearly 20 workers after discovering legally required inspections may not have been performed. The situation prompted PG&E to check more than 1,500 pieces of underground electrical equipment for possible safety hazards in the San Francisco Bay area. PG&E officials told state regulators the ...

Regulators approve free cellphones for the poor

SACRAMENTO (AP) - Impoverished Californians will soon get free cellphones. The state Public Utilities Commission has approved a federal cellphone giveaway program designed to help the homeless and other impoverished people connect with family, friends and potential employers. Assurance Wireless, an arm of Sprint, will organize cellphone distribution. The program should be in place next year. <p style="line-height: ...

Big surge in smokeless tobacco sales

SACRAMENTO (AP) - While cigarette sales have plunged, sales of smokeless tobacco products have surged in the past decade in California, with use among high school students especially leaving state public health officials concerned, according to a state report. The report released Thursday by the Department of Public Health says the amount spent on smokeless tobacco products has nearly tripled in 10 ...

State news briefs

JURY: LAPD MUST PAY $24M FOR SHOOTING OF BOY, 13: LOS ANGELES (AP) - A jury has ruled the Los Angeles Police Department must pay $24 million for a 13-year-old boy shot by an officer and paralyzed as he played with a replica gun.

Bay Area briefs

WOMAN'S SEX ROMP EXPOSES WORKERS' COMP FRAUD : SAN MATEO (AP) - A sex romp at a public park helped prosecutors convict a California woman of faking an ankle injury to collect workers' compensation payments, authorities said.

Modest growth sends population to 37.8M

State news briefs

LAWYER: TEEN USED 'MURDER KIT' ON GIRL'S PARENTS: LOS ANGELES (AP) - Prosecutors say a teenager accused of murdering his girlfriend's parents was equipped with a "murder kit" to kill the Compton couple.

Montana man dies in Yosemite climbing accident

Unclaimed veterans' remains laid to rest

Bay Area briefs

Bay Area briefs

SF OFFICIALS UPSET OVER ANTI-ISRAEL BUS ADS: SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - Several San Francisco supervisors want the city transit agency to donate revenue from an anti-Israel bus ad campaign to the city's Human Rights Commission after the agency did the same for an ad campaign that targeted Muslims.

Dolphin finds 130-year-old torpedo off San Diego

Man survives 220-foot jump off Golden Gate

Teacher arraigned on molestation charges

Two suspects mistakenly dial 911 during crime

Judge: Workers at UC hospitals can strike

3 charged in LA-area bank robbery

Hantavirus response followed policy

State news briefs

HOMEOWNER KILLS ROBBERY SUSPECT WITH SWORD: FIREBAUGH (AP) - Authorities say a central California homeowner killed a robbery suspect with a samurai sword during a home invasion.

Senate OKs regulations for medicinal pot

Senate OKs regulations for medicinal pot

Bay Area briefs

LONGSHOREMAN DIES AFTER TRUCK PLUNGES IN SF BAY: OAKLAND (AP) - Authorities have identified a 78-year-old Port of Oakland longshoreman who died after his truck plunged into the San Francisco Bay.