Parents sue school over cheating policy

REDWOOD CITY (AP) - The parents of a Northern California high school sophomore are suing the school district for kicking the teenager out of an honors class because he cheated. When he started classes at Sequoia High School in Redwood City, the boy signed an Academy Honesty Pledge warning him that cheating is grounds for immediate removal from the advanced-level English class. ...

Callenbach, 'Ecotopia' author, dies at 83

Zynga reports 1Q net loss, higher revenue

Federal judge files for bankruptcy

LOS ANGELES (AP) - U.S. District Judge Otis Wright has been on the federal bench only five years and now is facing bankruptcy because he's unable to pay his existing debts. While Wright and other district judges are making roughly $174,000 annually, they are being outpaced by many other federal employees who are earning more than $200,000 each year, according to statistics ...

Sanctuary says killer elephant still welcome

Poll shows slim majority favor governor's tax hike ballot plan

Yacht accident survivor wants more focus on safety

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - A survivor of the fatal grounding of a racing yacht on rocky islands west of San Francisco is calling on the sailing community to make safety a higher priority. In a lengthy letter posted online Tuesday, Bryan Chong, 38, offered a detailed account of what happened the day the sailboat Low Speed Chase wrecked during an April 14 ...

Marines discharge sergeant for Facebook posts critical of President Obama policies

Ruling undermines measure blocking lawmakers' pay

State news briefs

PERSON DIES AFTER SUV DANGLES FROM FREEWAY: SAN DIEGO (AP) - Authorities say a woman has died after five people were rescued from a wrecked SUV as it dangled off the side of a San Diego freeway.

Jane Goodall named grand marshal of Rose Parade

PASADENA (AP) - Chimpanzee expert and conservationist Jane Goodall was named Wednesday as grand marshal of the 2013 Tournament of Roses. The honor was announced outside the tournament's stately mansion headquarters, where Goodall greeted well-wishers with the kind of chimpanzee call she said can be heard in Tanzania's Gombe National Park. Goodall, 78, said she was startled when ...

Fireball remnants likely in California.

Bay Area briefs

Santa Clara County takes aim at payday loans

SAN JOSE (AP) - San Jose and Santa Clara County are cracking down on payday lending operations. Critics say the storefront businesses prey on the poor. In exchange for a post-dated check, people get up to $255 in cash with a promise to repay the loan, plus a $45 fee, within two weeks. The San Jose Mercury News ...

Rodney King reflects on an up-down life since riot Los Angeles riot 20 years ago

Vulnerable inmates ordered out of 2 Central Valley prisons

Nesting swallows could delay Petaluma bridge work

State news briefs

SANTA CLARA THREATENS AMBULANCE TERMINATION: SAN JOSE. (AP) - Santa Clara County officials are threatening to terminate the contract of an ambulance company that they say has repeatedly responded too slowly to emergencies.

Killer on the loose: Valley Springs on lockdown

Lawmakers consider moratorium on oil fracking in San Joaquin Valley

3 divers killed over weekend abalone diving off California

SF Bay Bridge has bolts similar to banned bolts

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - The new eastern span of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge has more than 1,200 bolts made from galvanized steel that is virtually identical to a high-strength alloy that a nationwide group of transportation officials banned for use on bridges because the bolts can crack, the San Francisco Chronicle reported Sunday.

Fatal stabbing of girl, 8, prompts manhunt

VALLEY SPRINGS (AP) - Residents of a rural Northern California county were being told Sunday to keep their doors locked and report anyone considered suspicious as authorities continued the search for the killer of an 8-year-old girl.

Some are overlooked in overhaul

SAN DIEGO (AP) - Carlos Gonzalez has lived nearly all his 29 years in a country he considers home but now finds himself on the wrong side of the border - and the wrong side of a proposed overhaul of the U.S. immigration system that would grant legal status to millions of people.

California weighs first state ban on lead ammo

SACRAMENTO (AP) - In November, one of the oldest condors in Central California died from lead poisoning after being found with tiny bullet fragments and a .22-caliber slug in his gullet that he apparently swallowed with a mouthful of meat.

Rolling Stones rock small LA club

LOS ANGELES (AP) - For one night only, the Rolling Stones were an up-and-coming band again.

OC officials keep inmate alive they want to ultimately execute

SANTA ANA, Calif. (AP) - A man charged with raping and killing a woman 30 years ago is being kept alive in Orange County with dialysis treatments until officials can win permission to execute him.

Bills aim to protect privacy in drone age

SACRAMENTO (AP) - California lawmakers are attempting to stay ahead of science fiction-style technology as increasingly nimble unmanned aircraft are considered for use in tracking fleeing suspects and monitoring crowded public spaces.