New park unveiled in downtown LA in bid to create vibrant heart for the city

Federal court taking second look at state law requiring DNA for all felony arrests

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - A federal appeals court decided to take another look at a California law that requires DNA samples to be taken from anyone arrested for a felony, not just after a conviction. A panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the law in February on a 2-1 vote. But the court said Wednesday a majority of ...

Bay Area briefs

12-year-old boy's pelvis crushed by falling tree

2 men found dead after Hughson standoff

HUGHSON (AP) - Authorities say they found the bodies of two men in a Central Valley home after a standoff between an armed man and sheriff's deputies.

Bieber paparazzo faces criminal charges

LOS ANGELES (AP) - A paparazzo photographer faces criminal charges in connection with a high-speed chase of Justin Bieber earlier this month, marking the first use of a new state law designed to clamp down on photographers' reckless pursuit of celebrities. The City Attorney's office on Wednesday filed four misdemeanor charges against Paul Raef, 30, including reckless driving with the intent to ...

Sally Ride sparks posthumous debate over revealing of sexual orientation

California counties report fewer fugitive felons skipping out on probation after shift

Brown breaks silence on state parks fund debacle

SACRAMENTO (AP) - Gov. Jerry Brown broke his silence Wednesday on the discovery of hidden money at California's cash-strapped state parks department. The Democratic governor downplayed the scandal, saying it was the first time he's seen government get in trouble for saving money. "When somebody comes and says, 'Hey, guess what, we have some money over here,' that's ...

Bay Area briefs

SAN JOSE THEATER EVACUATED DURING BATMAN SCREENING: SAN JOSE (AP) - San Jose police say a movie theater was evacuated when someone threw a suspicious package into a screening of the new Batman film.

State news briefs

CAMP STAFFERS RESIGN IN SUPPORT OF GAY EAGLE SCOUT: SACRAMENTO (AP) - Ten staff members at a Boy Scouts camp in Northern California have resigned to protest the firing of a 22-year-old Eagle Scout who says he was let go because he is gay.

More than 5,000 pot plants seized in SoCal

SAN MARCOS . (AP) - Authorities say they've seized more than 5,000 marijuana plants in two Southern California raids. About 1,500 immature plants were taken from private land Tuesday in Temecula in Riverside County. A task force of federal and local agents spotted the plants by helicopter a few days earlier. About 3,800 immature plants were taken Monday ...

Ships told to slow for whales while navigating aorund San Francisco Bay

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - Federal officials are asking large ships to slow down near San Francisco Bay to avoid killing the droves of whales feeding near the Northern California coast. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration issued the advisory Tuesday. It wants large vessels to reduce their speed to 10 knots, or about 11.5 mph, in the Gulf of the Farallones and ...

Judge appoints temp guardian for Jackson kids

Couple hospitalized after bee attack

INDIO (AP) - Killer bees have swarmed a gardener and homeowner in the Southern California desert, stinging them dozens of times. The man and woman are hospitalized. The gardener was stung 80 times, and the woman has more than 100 bee stings. The Desert Sun of Palm Springs reports the gardener was trimming a ...

California farms export $22.1B in food

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

Bill would prohibit ticket-buying software

SACRAMENTO (AP) - Music and sports fans would have one less obstacle in buying tickets to popular events under a bill advancing through the California Legislature. Legislation by Democratic Assemblyman Richard Pan of Sacramento would prohibit the use of robotic ticket-buying software. Supporters of AB329 say scalpers use the software to bombard online box offices and then resell tickets at higher prices. Lawmakers previously deleted a provision that would have allowed transfers of paperless event ...

Professor assigns students to make ad for his campaign

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - A San Francisco State University professor considering a run for Oakland mayor is drawing scrutiny for a class assignment that asked students to create a political campaign ad and gave them the option of developing it for him. Joe Tuman said he would use the ad if it were good, the San Francisco Chronicle reported on Thursday. But ethics experts said any such use of the students' work could run afoul ...

Bay Area briefs

SWALLOWS LAWSUIT MAY DELAY PETALUMA BRIDGE WORK : PETALUMA (AP) - A lawsuit accuses state and federal regulators of causing the death of dozens of migratory cliff swallows by placing nets on a Sonoma County bridge during a highway widening project.

State releases health reform plans, pricing