Lightning storms this weekend raise Sierra Nevada fire danger

SONORA, Calif. (AP) - A series of dry lightning storms could spark wildfires throughout the Sierra Nevada mountains this weekend, officials warned Friday. The National Weather Service has issued a fire weather watch starting Saturday for the parched mountains between the Sonora Pass and the Oregon border. The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection said the agency ...

Illegals to pay $465 for temporary work permits

USDA: Number of farmers markets up due to demand

Bay Area briefs

AUTHORITIES FIND GOLDEN GATE BRIDGE CLIMBER: SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - The search for a man who apparently spent the night atop San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge is over.

Report: Mad cow in Hanford is documented as isolated case

Special funds: No more deceptions

Nurses union gives Brown tax initiative campaign on November ballot $1 million

Pepper spray incident officer fired

DAVIS (AP) - The police chief at the University of California, Davis, overruled an internal affairs panel's recommendation and fired a lieutenant who soaked demonstrators with pepper spray - an incident that sparked protests after it was recorded and posted online, according to documents obtained by a newspaper. The Sacramento Bee reports that investigators concluded Lt. John Pike acted reasonably during the ...

Fire in Plumas National Forest more than doubles

BELDEN (AP) - Dry conditions and rocky terrain are hampering efforts to contain a fire in the Plumas National Forest in Northern California that is threatening dozens of structures, including trailer homes. Fire officials said Thursday the Chips fire near Belden about 120 miles north of Sacramento has consumed almost 4 square miles since it began ...

Court reverses ruling favoring debt collectors

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - A federal appeals court has reversed a California ruling that favored debt collectors who send letters to a person's workplace. The 9th U.S. Court of Appeals also took the case away from Sacramento federal Judge John Mendez because of his disparaging remarks. Mendez ruled two years ago that a Southern California debt collector's custom ...

Only 4 challengers for 34th America's Cup

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - Only four foreign challengers met the deadline to enter the Louis Vuitton Cup next summer to determine the opponent for Oracle Racing in the 34th America's Cup. They are Sweden's Artemis Racing, Emirates Team New Zealand, Italy's Luna Rossa Challenge and Team Korea. The Louis Vuitton Cup will run from July 4 through Sept. ...

USC plans Schwarzenegger policy think tank

. LOS ANGELES (AP) - Former California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and the University of Southern California announced Thursday they are partnering to create a policy think tank. The USC Schwarzenegger Institute for State and Global Policy will be funded with a Schwarzenegger commitment of $20 million, which will include a personal donation as well as money from fundraising. ...

State news briefs

TEEN SURRENDERS AFTER DAD SPOTS HIM IN PHOTO: LOS ANGELES (AP) - A teenager wanted for stealing nine cash registers from Southern California businesses has surrendered after his father recognized him in a newspaper photograph of the suspect.

Federal government opposes bid by illegal immigrant to gain status as California lawyer

Gas pipe ruptures near site of deadly blast

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.