State news briefs

STOCKTON (AP) - The civil lawsuit accusing a Central Valley priest of child abuse is continuing despite the fact that the priest has fled to his native Ireland. The Diocese of Stockton learned this week that Michael Kelly left the country. A civil jury had found Kelly, a former priest in the diocese, liable for the molestation of an altar boy who ...

Analysis: Prison medical costs too high

Lottery pulls ad with slap-happy Lady Luck

LA police union sues over unlicensed driver policy

LOS ANGELES (AP) - The Los Angeles police officers' union has sued the city and police chief over a new policy that allows some unlicensed drivers to keep their cars instead of having them impounded for 30 days. The Police Protective League sued Wednesday in Superior Court. The suit asks the court to block Chief Charlie Beck's new order, which was endorsed ...

Bay Area briefs

TRANSIT WORKER GAVE NEEDY TEEN BART TICKETS: SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - A San Francisco transit worker is in trouble for giving a needy teenager free BART tickets to get to school.

Around the state

• More bee swarm encounters in Bay Area: VACAVILLE (AP) - A Vacaville elementary school was briefly invaded by tens of thousands of bees in what beekeepers say is a rising number of encounters between bee swarms and people in the San Francisco Bay area.

San Diego scientist uses physics to dodge $400 traffic ticket

SAN DIEGO (AP) - A University of California San Diego scientist was able to use his math and physics knowledge to argue his way out of a $400 traffic ticket.

UC Davis police chief resigning after pepper spray

DAVIS (AP) - The police chief who oversaw the University of California, Davis, police department during its notorious pepper-spraying of Occupy protesters said Wednesday that she is stepping down.

Bay Area news briefs

FUNERAL PLANS FOR DEPUTY KILLED IN EVICTION ATTACK: MODESTO (AP) - Funeral services for a Stanislaus County sheriff's deputy who was shot and killed while serving an eviction notice are planned for Friday.

Modesto teacher-student romance back on

MODESTO (AP) - A California teenager who broke off a romance with her 41-year-old high school teacher after he was arrested on suspicion of sexually abusing another girl said the couple is now back together. Jordan Powers, 18, told KOVR-TV on Tuesday the relationship was back on, and her mother said her daughter has cut off contact with the family. <p style="line-height: ...

No charges in death of girl, 10, after fight

Gavin Newsom gets Current TV gig

Menlo Park approves deal with Facebook

MENLO PARK (AP) - A Silicon Valley city where Facebook recently opened its new headquarters approved a deal that will allow the company to bring in thousands more employees. The Menlo Park City Council unanimously agreed Tuesday to let the social networking giant make annual payments totaling nearly $10 million ...

Santa Monica College 2-tier course pricing illegal

SANTA MONICA . (AP) - The state attorney general's office determined that a now-aborted, two-tier course pricing plan at Santa Monica College was illegal, a community college official said Wednesday. The fee proposal called for offering some high-demand, three-unit classes for $540, even though the standard per-unit cost for classes will be $46 this summer. California Community Colleges ...

Bay Area news briefs

SF Muni board OKs Sunday meters SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - San Francisco is moving forward with a plan to make drivers feed meters on Sunday. The Municipal Transportation Agency's Board of Directors approved the proposal on Tuesday. It would still require approval from the Board of Supervisors. It comes as Muni is facing multi-million-dollar budget deficits. <p style="line-height: 18pt; ...

State news briefs

DRIVER REACHING FOR DRINK HITS WOMAN, 3 CHILDREN: SAN DIEGO (AP) - Authorities say an unlicensed driver reaching for a spilled drink ran onto a sidewalk in San Diego and struck a mother and three children.

Deadly America's Cup boat mishap

Oil industry: BLM prevents job creation

Small quake shakes west side of LA

State news briefs

LATER, DAWG: RANDY JACKSON LEAVING 'AMERICAN IDOL' : LOS ANGELES (AP) - Randy Jackson out.

District rejects school drug sting claim

Assembly OKs transgender student accommodations

Bay Area briefs

HUMAN HEAD FOUND AMONG RECYCLING DEBRIS: OAKLAND (AP) - A human head has been found in a load of recycling debris at a facility in Oakland.

State news briefs

MAN CHARGED IN BEATING OF SIKH ELDER IN FRESNO: FRESNO (AP) - A Central California man is facing charges of attempted murder and elder abuse in connection with the beating of an 82-year-old Sikh man outside a Sikh temple in Fresno.

SF drops fight for radiation warning law

Bridge repair could cost $10M

209 News

290 POUNDS OF METH SEIZED IN CERES: CERES (AP) - Officials with a Central California drug task force say they've seized hundreds of pounds of methamphetamine in a raid of a San Joaquin Valley home.

Lives on edge part of Golden Gate beat

Move to change 'rainy day' measure

Bay Area briefs

OAKLAND POLICE CHIEF STEPPING DOWN: OAKLAND (AP) - The chief of Oakland's embattled police department said Wednesday that he is stepping down due to medical reasons.