CSU, UC boards postpone tuition fee hikes after plea made by Gov. Brown

California Chamber of Commerce sues to invalidate state’s cap-and-trade effort

State news briefs

TRANSGENDER WOMAN SUES OVER STUN GUN USE: SAN DIEGO (AP) - A transgender woman has filed a federal lawsuit accusing the U.S. Bureau of Land Management of excessive force after a Taser was fired at her groin.

Deaths of two renew mushroom warnings

NBC's 'Revolution' snares Led Zeppelin songs

California launches greenhouse gas system

Livermore lab's computer no longer world's fastest

No major pollution upgrades expected at refinery

RICHMOND (AP) - Chevron does not plan to increase production at its fire-damaged Richmond refinery after repairs are made, allowing it to forego requirements to install the newest clean-air technologies, the company said.

Bay Area briefs

Man discovered in garbage bin dies UNION CITY, Calif. (AP) - Police in Union City are looking into the grisly discovery of a man who died shortly after he was found unconscious in a garbage bin. Investigators say a woman found 21-year-old Joseph Perez of Union City while taking out her trash Sunday morning. Perez was taken to a local hospital where he ...

LA-area freeway back open after power line falls

COMMERCE (AP) - An electrical line fell onto a busy Southern California freeway Monday morning, closing all lanes for more than an hour and jamming traffic for miles while knocking out power to about 1,600 customers, authorities said. A trash truck with a metal rod on top snagged the power line at about 7:15 a.m. and brought it down on Interstate 710 ...

Hostess workers picket in Sacramento

SACRAMENTO (AP) - About a dozen workers began picketing at a Hostess Brands plant in Sacramento honoring a bakers' union strike at the bankrupt company's plants across the country.

LA charges into new territory with express lanes along Interstate 110

LOS ANGELES (AP) - It's familiar fare for much of the country and the world, but new territory for car-crazy Los Angeles County: Freeway lanes that aren't free.

Veterans resurrect cross ending epic legal battle at SoCal desert site

YUCCA VALLEY (AP) - A war memorial cross that once stood on a rocky hilltop in a national park before being deemed unconstitutional and ordered removed was resurrected on Veterans Day at the stunningly stark Mojave desert site, capping a landmark case for veterans fighting similar battles on public lands.

Young voters turned the tide for Prop 30

SACRAMENTO (AP) - Gov. Jerry Brown secured a convincing win for his tax initiative on last week's ballot, thanks partly to voters who might not seem like a natural constituency for the 74-year-old, lifelong politician - young voters.

Cal State targets ‘super seniors’ with hefty fees to get them moving & out of college

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - They're called super seniors, and they can be found on nearly every college campus in America.

UOP receives $125M donation

STOCKTON (AP) - The estate of a wealthy Sacramento couple has donated $125 million to University of the Pacific in Stockton, the largest donation in the school's 162-year history. The Sacramento Bee reports that the late Robert and Jeannette Powell, who developed Gold River, Campus Commons and Pavilions shopping center, left the money to the school payable upon their deaths. Robert Powell died in 2007 following the donation announcement, and Jeannette died last December. Neither ...

Federal jury finds LA County Sheriff liable for abuse

LOS ANGELES (AP) - A federal jury has found Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca personally liable for failing to stop inmate abuse in Men's Central Jail.

Californians 'drop, cover, hold'

Larry Flynt doesn't want convicted serial killer who shot him executed

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Porn publisher Larry Flynt says he doesn't want to see the serial killer whose gunshots left him paralyzed 35 years ago put to death for his crimes. In an essay published Thursday in The Hollywood Reporter, Flynt says that while he would love to take pliers and a pair of wire cutters to Joseph Paul Franklin, he does not believe in the death penalty. Franklin has been in prison since 1980 ...

News from around california

MAN ARRESTED IN MANHATTAN BEACH SEX STING SUES : MANHATTAN BEACH (AP) - A man arrested in a Manhattan Beach sex sting has sued the city claiming police unfairly targeted him and violated his privacy when they publicized his name and released his photo.

Covered California removes directory

LOS ANGELES (AP) - The state's insurance exchange, Covered California, has pulled its online directory of medical providers after acknowledging it is riddled with wrong information. The California Medical Association said it found mistakes such as obstetricians labeled as ophthalmologists and the wrong doctors described as fluent in Russian and Farsi, the Los Angeles Times reported. The search tool for doctors and hospitals has been offline since Oct. 9 while fixes are being made. An ...

Doctor gets 11-year sentence in illegal prescriptions case

SANTA ANA (AP) - A Southern California doctor has been sentenced to more than 11 years in prison for illegally prescribing drugs to his patients at nightly meetings in Starbucks stores. Federal prosecutors say 44-year-old Alvin Mingczech Yee of Mission Viejo was sentenced Thursday to 135 months in prison. He pleaded guilty in April to seven counts of illegal distribution of a controlled substance by a practitioner. Authorities say Yee saw up to a dozen ...

Lt. Gov. Newsom leads pot legalization panel

Yosemite reopens immediately after shutdown vote

YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK (AP) - Yosemite National Park is reopening to visitors Wednesday night with the end of the 16-day partial government shutdown The National Park Service announced that major highways and roads leading into and through the park are immediately open to vehicles. The park's main concessioner is reopening facilities and will welcome visitors right away. Its visitor centers and campgrounds will open Thursday, when guided tours will also be available. The park, one ...

Castle museum gets retired Air Force One jet

ATWATER (AP) - A San Joaquin Valley air museum has added a high-profile plane to its collection: Air Force One.

Court considers school's May 5 US flag ban

Mayors advance pension reform plan

SANTA ANA (AP) - Mayors of five California cities have filed papers with the state to place an initiative on next year's ballot that would amend the state's constitution to allow local governments to negotiate changes in pension benefits for current and future employees.

Cupertino endorses Apple plan

CUPERTINO (AP) - Apple's plans for a massive new campus in Silicon Valley that co-founder Steve Jobs likened to a spaceship have cleared a major hurdle. The San Jose Mercury News reports the City Council in Cupertino, where Apple's current headquarters is also based, unanimously approved the estimated $5 billion project on Tuesday. Plans call for nearly 3.5 million square feet of new office space, a 1,000-seat auditorium and a fitness center on the 176-acre ...

News from around the Bay Area

PLANE MAKES OAKLAND EMERGENCY LANDING; NO INJURIES: OAKLAND (AP) - Officials say an Alaska Airlines flight en route from San Jose to Honolulu was forced to make an emergency landing in Oakland shortly after takeoff after the crew reported a possible bird strike.

Body found in forest missing Turlock man

STANISLAUS NATIONAL FOREST (AP) - Authorities believe a body found by hunters in the Stanislaus National Forest is a missing Turlock man who disappeared in 2012. The Stanislaus County Sheriff's Department tells The Modesto Bee that an autopsy and evidence collected from the area where the body was found Aug. 19 indicate it is that of Korey Kauffman. They have classified the death as suspicious. Authorities say Kauffman disappeared after leaving a friend's house March ...