State news briefs

THOUSANDS OF POT PLANTS SEIZED IN TULARE COUNTY: TULARE (AP) - Authorities in the Central Valley have seized more than 8,500 pot plants that would have produced marijuana with a street value in excess of $25 million.

California's prison population now eclipsed by Texas; down to 136,000

Southern California home prices, sales rise during May

SAN DIEGO (AP) - Sales in expensive coastal regions pushed Southern California home prices to a 20-month high in May as low-priced foreclosed properties made up a smaller part of overall sales, a research firm said Wednesday. The median price for new and existing houses and condos reached $295,000 in May, up 5.4 percent from $280,000 the same period last year, DataQuick ...

Democrats plan budget vote as Brown demands cuts to cover $17.5B deficit

Bay Area briefs

Occupy the Farm protesters won't face charges ALBANY (AP) - The last two of nine protesters arrested last month during an occupation of UC Berkeley land will also not face charges. Alameda County prosecutors said on Tuesday they have decided not to file charges against the two women, who were arrested on suspicion of trespassing. Prosecutors have previously said ...

Disney California unveils $1B theme park redo

ANAHEIM (AP) - Disney is done with its do-over of Disney California Adventure. Wednesday marks the end of a five-year, $1 billion-plus overhaul to correct problems at the park. The venue, which was supposed to turn the Disneyland Resort into a multiple-day destination like Walt Disney World in Orlando, Fla., had become a source of embarrassment for the company almost from the moment it opened in 2001. Visitors grumbled that it had little connection to ...

‘Gone With the Wind’" actress Ann Rutherford dies

Genetically modified foods may get label in California if voters approve

1 in 4 on LA's Skid Row carry hepatitis C

Ex-Indian officer who shot, killed his family was living in US illegally

Democrats continue talks amid protests over $225M in cuts for disabled program

$2 million lottery winner arrested

LINDA (AP) - Yuba County sheriff's deputies say a 30-year-old Linda man who won a $2 million lottery jackpot in February has been arrested for investigation of receiving stolen property. Lt. Damon Gil tells the Marysville Appeal-Democrat (that John Ross Jr. was arrested for allegedly helping a Hayward woman hide and repair a stolen car. Ross posted bail ...

State news briefs

SALINAS THIEF ASSAULTS, ROBS AND SHOOTS DEPOSITOR: SALINAS (AP) - Salinas police say a man headed for a Northridge Mall bank to make a deposit had to be treated at a hospital after being robbed and shot in the leg.

Dispute over Thomas Kinkade's will heads to court

SAN JOSE (AP) - Thomas Kinkade's widow and girlfriend took their dispute over the late painter's estate to court on Tuesday as handwritten notes allegedly written by Kinkade that could be central to the clash were made public for the first time. Amy Pinto-Walsh was living with Kinkade and found his body when the 54-year-old accidentally overdosed on alcohol and Valium in ...

Guard says he was fired from bar over police call

SANTA ANA (AP) - A false police report by a bar manager triggered events leading to a deadly confrontation between officers and a homeless man in Orange County, a former bouncer alleged in a lawsuit. The bouncer, Michael Reeves, claimed he was wrongly fired from Fullerton's Slidebar Rock-n-Roll Kitchen after speaking out about the manager who called police July 5 and claimed ...

State taxes coming in $4B above forecast

SACRAMENTO (AP) - California is on track to collect $4 billion more in personal income taxes than Gov. Jerry Brown had expected, giving a potential boost to education funding, the legislative analyst's office said Tuesday.

Los Angeles settles with women fired on in manhunt

Davis man spends week in wilderness on pine nuts

Burger King delivers it your way in San Francisco & LA

Bay Area briefs

WOMAN UNINJURED AFTER BART TRAIN PASSES OVER HER: SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - A woman escaped uninjured after a commuter train passed over her but did not hit her on tracks at a San Francisco station, transit officials said.