Students angry over pricey courses at community college pepper-sprayed

SANTA MONICA. (AP) - The dozens of student protesters who were pepper-sprayed by police at a California community college weren't just angry about not getting into a meeting of school trustees.

State news briefs

• Driver arrested for texting with baby in lap: TORRANCE (AP) - Police say they've arrested a Hawthorne woman who was driving on a freeway while texting and holding her baby daughter in her lap.

SoCal group approves foot-friendly transit plan

State news briefs

SHERIFF'S ASSOCIATION BACKS BROWN'S TAX PROPOSAL: SAN DIEGO (AP) - Gov. Jerry Brown is collecting an endorsement for his tax initiative proposal from the California State Sheriffs' Association.

SF Giants pursuing $1.6 B development planned for AT&T parking lot, nearby dock

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - The San Francisco Giants unveiled a $1.6 billion plan Wednesday to convert the parking lot at AT&T Park and an adjacent pier into homes, offices, shops and restaurants. The "Mission Rock" project calls for up to 1,000 rental units, 125,000 square feet of retail space and as much as 1.7 million square feet of office space on the ...

Bay Area briefs

new vinyl seats OAKLAND (AP) - The Bay Area Rapid Transit Agency has installed new, easy-to-clean vinyl seats on four train cars. The seats made their debut on Tuesday. The agency expects to have them in 100 cars by the end of the month. BART agreed last year to spend $1.9 million to change the seats on 100 cars ...

Yahoo sweeps out 2,000 employees in purge

Power shortages loom on south state with idled nuke plant at San Onofre

Nursing director thinks she was target of shooter at Oakland school

White residue on spoon in Houston's room

State news briefs

Animal fat-to-biofuel plant proposed

Lawsuit challenges suction dredges for gold mining destroys Indian cultural resources

Trump says transgender hopeful can enter pageant

Chevron facing more taxes on Richmond refinery after trying to get them lowered

RICHMOND (AP) - Chevron Corp. owes additional taxes on its refinery in Richmond because Contra Costa County undervalued the facility by hundreds of millions of dollars, a county assessment appeals board has ruled. The Assessment Appeals Board made the decision Monday while rejecting Chevron's contention that it actually owed less in tax bills from 2007 through 2009. Chevron claimed the county had ...

Cap-and-trade fees become key source for high speed rail plan

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.