High court upholds death penalty in school rampage

San Bernardino files for Chapter 9 bankruptcy

SAN BERNARDINO (AP) - Officials in San Bernardino, Calif., which is facing an expected $45.8 million budget deficit this year, have formally filed for Chapter 9 bankruptcy protection, a move that city leaders approved last month. Interim City Manager Andrea Travis-Miller said Wednesday that there would be "no immediate service reductions or changes in service to the community as a result of ...

Crowds swarm Chick-fil-A stores in support of owner’s free speech rights

LOS ANGELES (AP) - The chicken sandwich became a political statement for a day as supporters of the Chick-fil-A president's stance against gay marriage caused traffic jams at the fast-food chain's restaurants nationwide.

Court rejects developer’s attempt to build new road into Yosemite National Park

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - A federal appeals court sided with environmentalists and ruled a California developer cannot build a new road into Yosemite National Park. The 9th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals in San Francisco ruled that Solvang developer Lewis Geyser does not have the rights to two stage-coach-era dirt roads connecting his property to Yosemite. Geyser wanted to build a resort ...

Deputy scales steep granite slope, saves hiker

PG&E engineer testifies utility knew that natural gas pipeline records were incomplete

REDWOOD CITY (AP) - A senior Pacific Gas & Electric Co. engineer testified that he repeatedly warned his supervisors before a fatal gas pipeline explosion in a San Francisco suburb that the utility's gas records were incomplete, but they did nothing about it. Todd Arnett said in a deposition taken as part of a lawsuit against PG&E after the 2010 blast in ...

State close to completing review of special funds

State news briefs

Tahoe water shuttle starts Friday on north shore

School official accused of embezzlement pleads

WOODSIDE (AP) - A former school superintendent in San Mateo County accused of billing one school district for work done on his home and misappropriating funds from another district has reached a plea deal. The Palo Alto Daily News reports that Timothy Hanretty pleaded no contest on Tuesday to multiple counts of misappropriating funds in exchange for a prison sentence of no ...

Professor’s email reveals shooting plot

Lawmakers request audit of 9/11 fund, other plates

SACRAMENTO (AP) - A bipartisan group of lawmakers has formally requested a detailed review of the California specialty license plate program, the first in the program's 20-year history. The request comes in response to an investigation by The Associated ...

LA workers asked to stop watching Olympics online

LOS ANGELES (AP) - The top technology officer for Los Angeles is pleading with city workers to stop watching the Olympics online at work, saying it could cause a municipal computer meltdown.

Climate change report: Hotter & drier days plus a lot more fires

FRESNO (AP) - As California grows warmer, nowhere will the increased temperatures be starker than its arid Central Valley, where farmers will have to consider whether the crops ...

Ailing San Onofre nuke plant cost: $165 million so far with $25 million in expenses on the way

Cal State reaches tentative agreement with faculty; no raises, same benefits

Bay Area briefs

NO BACKPACKS ALLOWED AT 2013 BAY TO BREAKERS IN SF: SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - No backpacks, large bags or containers will be allowed at this year's Bay to Breakers footrace in San Francisco as officials heighten security in the wake of the Boston Marathon bombings.

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.