State news briefs

REMAINS OF MISSING WWII SOLDIER RETURN TO CALIF.: SAN BRUNO (AP) - A California soldier who died during World War II will be buried near his boyhood home this week after the former Marine's remains were discovered on a remote island in the South Pacific.

Judge clears governor's tax for top billing

Trial under way in deadly 2003 wildfire that killed 5, burned hundreds of homes

Bay Area briefs

Metal thieves take SF park bleachers SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - Metal thieves have hauled away aluminum bleachers and irrigation pipes at a popular Sa Francisco Park. The San Francisco Chronicle says the brazen thieves also tried to steal the metal frames of soccer goals at Crocker-Amazon Park. The city Recreation and Parks Department estimates hundreds of thousands of dollars ...

Yosemite historic bridges under siege

YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK (AP) - Perhaps no river crossing in Yosemite Valley has been more photographed than the historic Stoneman Bridge: a single, arching span faced with rough-hewn granite that provides a dramatic foreground to Half Dome, the park's most iconic natural marvel.

Owner drops price for SF Bay island

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - An island offering a secluded beach, promises of great fishing and stunning views of the San Francisco skyline is up for sale - and at a discounted price.

Lawmakers depart to prepare for fall election

SACRAMENTO (AP) - California state lawmakers have adjourned for their summer recess after spending months unabashedly positioning themselves to their best competitive advantage going into the fall election campaign.

Illegal weapons seized in search of Bay Point home

BAY POINT (AP) - Dozens of illegal weapons have been seized during a search of a home in an unincorporated area of Contra Costa County, authorities said.

Abandoned horses growing problem

SAN BERNARDINO (AP) - A growing number of horses are being abandoned by owners in San Bernardino County, an apparent lingering effect of the 2007 housing market collapse.

LA schools superintendent shakes up district

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Faced with a shocking case of a teacher accused of playing classroom sex games with children for years, Los Angeles schools Superintendent John Deasy delivered another jolt: He removed the school's entire staff - from custodians to the principal - to smash what he called a "culture of silence."

Dueling restraining orders for council members

SAN FERNANDO (AP) - Two council members of this Los Angeles suburb who admitted to having an affair have taken out restraining orders against each other after an alleged violent spat.

State news briefs

• MAGNITUDE-3.9 QUAKE SHAKES LAKE COUNTY: SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - Two small earthquakes have jolted a remote area of Northern California, startling residents in Lake County.

State news briefs

DA: EVIDENCE SHOWS SUSPECTED PIMP SHOT IN REVENGE: SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - District Attorney George Gascon says new evidence shows the parents and two men charged for killing a girl's suspected pimp acted more out of revenge than protection.

Pair of ospreys spotted at San Francisco pier

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - Bird watchers in San Francisco are celebrating what they say is the first confirmed sighting of an osprey in the city. A pair of the raptors was recently spotted nesting atop a container crane at Pier 80 in the city's Bayview-Hunters Point neighborhood, the San Francisco Chronicle reported. Bird experts say their presence is a sign that the ...

Former Raiders DE Anthony Smith faces three new murder charges in Los Angeles

State news briefs

15 OF 23 CAL STATE CAMPUSES CHARGE GRADUATION FEES: SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - Graduating students at more than a dozen California public universities will have to hand over money before they are handed their diplomas, a newspaper reported.

End near for evangelical radio network?

Girl , 7, escapes kidnapper's car trunk in Sacramento

Ginsburg: Roe gave abortion opponents a target

CHICAGO (AP) - U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg says she supports a woman's right to choose to have an abortion, but feels her predecessors' landmark Roe v. Wade ruling 40 years ago was too sweeping and gave abortion opponents a symbol to target.

Person of interest named in jogger killed by pit bull pack

PALMDALE . (AP) - Sheriff's authorities said a man who was arrested this week on suspicion of growing marijuana is now a "person of interest" in the death of a 63-year-old jogger who was mauled to death by a pack of pit bulls in the Mojave Desert.

Los Angeles, Paris project aims to track big city carbon footprints

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Every time Los Angeles exhales, odd-looking gadgets anchored in the mountains above the city trace the invisible puffs of carbon dioxide, methane and other greenhouse gases that waft skyward.

Relentless thief still taking Tahoe crawfish traps - 160 stolen so far

INCLINE VILLAGE, Nev. (AP) - It's not that easy to catch crawfish in Lake Tahoe. Turns out, it may be harder to keep them.

Black student targeted with racist note

IRVINE (AP) - University of California, Irvine officials pledged to work on race relations on campus this week after a black student found a hand-scrawled note in her backpack calling her a slave, making it the second racist incident that has offended black students in recent weeks.

Mom: Accused boy, 12, ‘could never’ hurt sister

VALLEY SPRINGS (AP) - A day before a 12-year-old boy was arrested for the stabbing death of his 8-year-old sister, his mother described him as "protective" of his younger sibling.

State lawmakers debate how to spend $900M in new revenue from loophole

SACRAMENTO (AP) - California schools are expecting a boost from the $900 million to be raised over the next year through the closure of a corporate tax loophole, but Gov. Jerry Brown is locked in a disagreement with state lawmakers over how to hand out that money.

Chris Brown’s scary curbside art irks LA neighbors; city cites him for ‘signage’

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Grammy-winning musician Chris Brown's neighbors are unhappy with what some are calling frightening art he's chosen to have painted along the curb of his Hollywood Hills home.

Bay Bridge base rods can’t be easily inspected

OAKLAND (AP) - More than 400 seismic safety rods that may be vulnerable to cracking or breaking are embedded in the base of the new San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge and may be difficult to inspect, remove or replace, according to a newspaper report.

One by one, homes in subdivision sinking

LAKEPORT (AP) - Scott and Robin Spivey had a sinking feeling that something was wrong with their home when cracks began snaking across their walls in March.

Judge denies bid to block Dorner reward payout plan

Immigrant raid rumor fuels fear in SJ Valley