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State news briefs
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PUPPIES TIED TO CA TREE UNDER BEES, 3 DIE, 2 HURT

FALLBROOK (AP) — Animal services officials are seeking a suspect who tied five puppies to a tree under an active beehive in San Diego County. Three of the dogs were found dead and two were critically injured.

County spokeswoman Tracy DeFore says firefighters discovered a gruesome scene when responding to a suspicious fire in a Fallbrook field Thursday at about noon.

Approximately 25 feet from the fire, the puppies were found under a tree, bound to its trunk.

Two 5-month-old Jack Russell Terriers died from strangulation, most likely a result of their desperate attempts to escape the swarm of bees.

A five-month-old Rottweiler died from unknown causes.

Two more puppies were stung dozens of times and have been receiving around-the-clock care.

MAN ARRESTED AFTER VIDEO SHOWS BELTING STEPSON: EL CENTRO  (AP) — A California water agency director has been arrested on suspicion of felony child abuse after a neighbor shot and posted online video of him whipping his stepson with a belt after he failed to catch a baseball.

Sheriff's Lt. Scott Sheppeard tells the Imperial Valley Press (http://bit.ly/Km8N4p) that 34-year-old Imperial Irrigation District Director Anthony Sanchez was arrested Friday. He's being held on $100,000 bail.

Neighbor Oscar Lopez secretly shot the video Wednesday from inside his house. It shows the boy dropping the baseball, then Sanchez hitting him with the belt before Lopez starts shouting to stop. Lopez says he posted the video on Facebook and YouTube then gave it to authorities.

Sanchez attorney Ryan Childers acknowledges the video is disturbing, but urged people to wait until details were revealed before reaching conclusions.

LA POLICE BEING FLOODED WITH PET-IN-CAR CALLS: LOS ANGELES (AP) — Summer is still around the corner, but the Los Angeles Police Department's Animal Cruelty Task Force says it's been flooded with calls about pets left in vehicles.

Detective Hector Sanchez says the task force has about seven felony cases pending prosecution.

It's against the law to leave a pet in a vehicle where dangerous temperatures can kill them. He says temperatures in a car can go up 34 degrees in 30 minutes, even on a mild day.

People should call 911 if they see an unattended animal and it appears to be panting rapidly, vomiting, dizzy, drooling, in shock or a coma.

If a pet is seized, it may be kept as evidence. And after the criminal prosecution is finished, the owner may be liable for vet and housing costs.

SACRAMENTO ASKED TO REIMBURSE HOMELESS FOR RAIDS: SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Nearly 900 homeless people are asking Sacramento to reimburse them for tents and other items that police seized in raids.

The claims are for property seized in raids on illegal campsites since 2005.

A federal lawsuit contends that police seized bicycles, tents and other items and threw them away without giving the owners a chance to get them back.

A jury ruled against the city last year, and the claims are part of a process to resolve the suit.

Those whose claims are approved will receive either $400 or $750 each, depending on the value of the property.

Senior Deputy City Attorney Chance Trimm says the city will fight any claims that appear to be bogus.