Bay Area briefs

Occupy SF celebrates first year with march, rally SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - Members of the Occupy Wall Street movement in San Francisco say they plan to celebrate their first year with demonstrations. Organizers say local Occupy groups on Monday are scheduled to occupy 10 banks across the city and then hold ...

Young illegals may get driver’s licenses

FRESNO (AP) - When 17-year-old Alondra Esquivel needs to get from her rural central California home to classes at Fresno State University 20 miles away, she must rely on rides from her relatives or her boyfriend.

Gov. Brown says he is ready for austerity of voters don’t approve new taxes Nov. 6

SACRAMENTO (AP) - California Gov. Jerry Brown said he is prepared to live frugally if voters don't pass his tax increase proposal in November, and as evidence said he recently ate a two-day-old tuna sandwich for lunch.

Charter schools balk at California’s new pre-kindergarten requirement

LOS ANGELES (AP) - A California law requires public schools to add a grade level this fall designed to give the very youngest students a boost when they enroll in kindergarten, but charter schools say the law does not apply to them, pitting them against the state Department of Education.

Anti-tax group says Cal State letter is illegal

LOS ANGELES (AP) - A letter being sent to California State University applicants that details the effect on university finances if an upcoming ballot measure fails is illegal, an anti-tax group said.

Scouts failed to report sex abuse suspects

LOS ANGELES (AP) - The Boy Scouts of America failed to report hundreds of suspected child sex abusers to authorities and often helped cover up the accusations over two decades, the Los Angeles Times reported Sunday.

Caltrain operator tested positive for drugs

SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - Caltrain is overhauling some of its safety procedures and has placed two engineers on leave after a recent incident that forced passengers legally crossing the tracks to leap out of the way of a speeding commuter train.

State news briefs

• CALIF. HIGH SCHOOLER CHOSEN FOR ELECTORAL COLLEGE: SIMI VALLEY (AP) - A 18-year-old Los Angeles County high school senior has been selected as a member of the nation's Electoral College.

California anti-union initiative gets $4M boost

SACRAMENTO (AP) - Proponents of an initiative that would severely restrict unions from collecting dues on paychecks for political activity are reporting a contribution of more than $4 million from a conservative action group.

State news briefs

Teacher accused of watching porn in school TWIN RIVERS (AP) - A substitute teacher in Northern California is under investigation following accusations that he was watching pornography at an elementary school. A junior high school-age student at Orchard Elementary School in Rio Linda reported seeing a nude person on the male substitute teacher's computer screen earlier this week. His ...

California home prices match nearly 4-year high; median now at $281,000

Bay Area briefs

Neighbor rescues boy in burning house BOULDER CREEK (AP) - A neighbor has run into a burning Northern California house and rescued a boy who accidentally started the blaze with a lighter. Boulder Creek fire Chief Kevin McClish says flames had engulfed the two-story house by the time firefighters arrived Thursday night. The mountain hamlet is about 15 miles north of Santa Cruz. ...

Neighbor rescues boy in burning house

BOULDER CREEK (AP) - A neighbor has run into a burning Northern California house and rescued a boy who accidentally started the blaze with a lighter. Boulder Creek fire Chief Kevin McClish says flames had engulfed the two-story house by the time firefighters arrived Thursday night. The mountain hamlet is about 15 miles north of Santa Cruz. There ...

Victims in Libya attacks former SEALs

SAN DIEGO (AP) - Two Americans killed this week in an attack on a U.S. consulate in Libya were former Navy SEALs from San Diego County who always asked to be on the front lines, according to family, friends and government officials. Tyrone S. Woods and Glen A. Doherty, who both provided security at the consulate in Benghazi, were killed in the ...

LA 911 dispatch rules waste valuable time

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Required questioning by 911 operators delays the dispatching of paramedics and the start of life-saving CPR in Los Angeles, a newspaper reported Friday, citing a new study. The internal audit of the Los Angeles Fire Department revealed that dispatchers waste valuable time getting callers to start CPR on cardiac-arrest victims, often after the point when brain death begins, ...

Plastic ocean debris bill dies in committee

Bill would treat e-cigarettes like other tobacco

State Senate election might be headed to runoff in 16th district

LA sanitation ends plans for dump near Joshua Tree