Bill lets Caltrans skip newspaper notices

Families say they weren't told of 9/11 scholarship fund from specialty plates

Governor Brown won't try to block bullet train environmental lawsuits

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Gov. Jerry Brown is dropping his attempt to shield California's high-speed rail project from possible environmental challenges - at least for now. State lawmakers and environmental groups have been told the governor won't pursue legislation his office had begun circulating earlier this month, several media outlets reported Thursday. That legislation would have blocked judges from issuing work-stopping injunctions ...

California's budget deal cuts welfare, health care

SoCal may see record scorchers in coming years

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Southern California could see a record number of scorching days by mid-century as climate change heats up its cities, deserts and coastline, according to a study released Thursday. Southern California probably will be warmer by about 3 to 5 degrees in the years 2041 to 2060, although the huge differences between inland and coastal areas, mountains and deserts ...

Man convicted in 1976 bus kidnap released

CHOWCHILLA (AP) - One of three men who kidnapped a busload of California school children has been released from prison after more than 35 years behind bars. State prison officials said Thursday that Richard Allen Schoenfeld was released on parole to an undisclosed location late Wednesday. He will be monitored 24 hours a day with a GPS device. <p style="line-height: 18pt; background: ...

Foreclosure attorney facing loss of law license in California

Highlights of budget deal between Brown, Democrats

Bay Area briefs

MAN HELPS ELDERLY WOMAN NAB ROBBERY SUSPECT: OAKLAND (AP) - An Oakland carpenter is being credited with helping a 90-year-old woman catch a robbery suspect who allegedly knocked her down outside a convenience store and stole her wallet.

Teen pleads not guilty in Lamborghini theft

SAN RAFAEL (AP) - A judge on Wednesday denied a defense request to try a Northern California teen charged with stealing celebrity chef Guy Fieri's Lamborghini separately for another crime in which he allegedly shot at a teenaged girl and her boyfriend. Marin County Superior Court Judge Paul Haakenson sided with prosecutors, who said the vehicle theft and attempted murder charges against ...

Senators: 9th District Court unapologetic for Maui conference costing almost $1M

California economy will pick up speed

Oakland OKs Army base redevelopment to add distribution center jobs in $1B deal

OAKLAND (AP) - Oakland officials have approved a $1 billion deal to transform a former U.S. Army base into a state-of-the-art distribution center that's expected to create thousands of jobs. With a 7-0 vote Tuesday, the city council approved a series of agreements with developers to transform 130 acres of the former base into a shipping, packaging and warehousing complex next to ...

Priest at center of attack trial says he never molested man

State news briefs

NOOSE FOUND ON DAVIS HIGH SCHOOL GOAL POST: DAVIS (AP) - City leaders in Davis are angrily denouncing the hanging of a noose at a local high school while police search for whoever was responsible.

Central Valley man struck by train debris

WINTON (AP) - A Central Valley man is dead after authorities say he was struck by flying debris when a train slammed into a vehicle. Thirty-two-year-old Aaron Schindler was among three people in a Dodge Caravan when it became stuck Saturday night on the tracks in Winton, a town about 10 miles northwest of Merced. He and the other occupants got out before the oncoming Amtrak train struck the minivan. But the California Highway Patrol ...

LAUSD issuing far fewer truancy tickets

LOS ANGELES (AP) - The number of truancy tickets issued to students in the Los Angeles school district has dropped by more than 93 percent during the past four years, as the district changes the way it deals with misbehavior, according to a report. The sharp reduction reflects a move by school police to lessen their presence in schools and instead use positive incentives and mediation, the Los Angeles Times reported Sunday. The report by ...

Obamacare going Hollywood for boost

$17.25M fine proposed for pipeline records

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - A California public utilities commissioner is proposing that Pacific Gas & Electric Co. be fined $17.25 million for falsely claiming two old pipelines were safe and filing misleading records to downplay the misstep. The California Public Utilities Commission on Monday said it received the proposal from commissioner Mark Ferron; an earlier proposal called for 6.75 million in fines for the violations. Two judges found previously that PG&E ran an aged pipeline ...

Indian casino set to open in wine country

ROHNERT PARK (AP) - One of California's largest Native American casinos is set to open Tuesday in wine country, and its owners are counting on its proximity to San Francisco to help bring people through the doors.

Parents of teen killed by deputy file suit

News from around california

100-YEAR-OLD MAN SKYDIVES ON BIRTHDAY: PERRIS (AP) - When Vernon Maynard's friends asked him what he wished he had done in his 100 years of life, the Southern California man said he had always wanted to jump from a plane with a parachute.

News from around california

BRIBERY CASE REVERBERATES ACROSS NAVY WITH ARRESTS: SAN DIEGO (AP) - It started with an invitation to the Broadway production of "The Lion King" in Tokyo for the Navy commander, his wife and their children.

"I guess the Lord hid my veins from them," Phillips said.

Ohio death row inmate: Doctor couldn't find veins

BART unions voting on contract that ended strike

OAKLAND (AP) - Bay Area Rapid Transit's two largest unions voted Friday on a tentative contract agreement after a bitter labor dispute prompted two strikes.

Gunman kills TSA officer at LAX, wounds 2 others

LOS ANGELES (AP) - A man carrying a note that said he wanted to "kill TSA" pulled a semi-automatic rifle from a bag and shot his way past a security checkpoint at Los Angeles International Airport on Friday, killing one Transportation Security Administration officer and wounding two others, authorities said.

News from around california

FIRE CLOSES EAST BAY TUNNEL AS DRIVERS FLEE SMOKE: OAKLAND (AP) - A car fire in the tunnel that links Oakland to other east San Francisco Bay area communities has sent motorists streaming out of their cars on foot and eight people to the hospital to be treated for minor smoke inhalation.

State moves to coordinate water work

SACRAMENTO (AP) - Leaders of the three state agencies that deal with California water availability, quality and consumption said Thursday they will begin looking at the issues comprehensively rather than dealing with each problem separately. The strategy was detailed In a draft plan released by the Department of Natural Resources, Cal EPA and the Department of Food and Agriculture. It's meant to be the backbone of an effort to identify and prioritize projects dealing with ...

Feds renew threat to withhold Calif. school funds over switching tests

SACRAMENTO (AP) - Federal education officials renewed a threat this week to withhold funds from California if it moves forward this spring with a plan to abandon the standardized tests the state's public school students have taken since 1999. The U.S. Department of Education informed state officials through a letter that more than $3.5 billion in federal aid for disadvantaged students is at stake in the dispute, the San Jose Mercury News (http://bit.ly/16OrzO0) reports. Assistant ...

Panel passes new rail worker safety rules

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - The California Public Utilities Commission on Thursday approved new safety regulations for transit agencies' rail workers that are believed to be the first of their kind in the nation. The new rules came less than two weeks after two Bay Area Rapid Transit workers were killed while working on tracks during the agency's second worker strike since July. The rules include mandatory three-way radio communication between wayside workers, train operators and ...