A former Capitol peace officer who was fired after revelations surrounding a deadly altercation at his home years ago, lost in court yesterday, as the two men he accused of robbing is home were found not guilty.
Laurel Rosenhall reports for The Sacramento Bee: “The jury of seven women and five men acquitted Frank Trevizo and Francisco Merjil on all counts stemming from a December 2012 night of partying that turned deadly when a gunfight erupted outside the home of Gerardo Lopez, who was a sergeant-at-arms for the state Senate at the time and the son of a powerful Senate administrator.”
“Lopez’s version of what happened that night was not credible, said several jurors interviewed after the verdicts were announced. They said they believed Lopez lied to them on the witness stand – about his drug use, about where he stood when he fired his gun, about whether a kidnapping even happened that night – and that critical testimony from his Senate colleagues cemented their view that he was not credible.”
An air tanker pilot fatally crashed while battling a wildfire on the west side of Yosemite National Park.
Marisa Lagos and Kale Williams report in The San Francisco Chronicle: “The pilot, whose name has not been released, was based out of the Hollister Air Attack Base and was flying Tanker 81, a Grumman S2 Tracker operated by the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, according to the agency. The plane, which is designed to drop flame retardant from its belly, crashed at about 4:30 p.m. near Arch Rock, said Ashley Mayer, a Yosemite spokeswoman.”
““This crash underscores just how inherently dangerous wildland firefighting is and the job is further compounded this year by extreme fire conditions,” said Cal Fire director Chief Ken Pimlott in a written statement.”
Big financial backers are throwing their money behind a criminal sentencing reclassification ballot measure.
Paige St. John reports for The Los Angeles Times: “Netflix CEO Reed Hastings and finance scion Molly Munger have thrown in with progressive activist Steven Phillips and Christian ministries proponent B. Wayne Hughes to help raise more than $4 million for Proposition 47.”
“The proposition would reclassify seven common crimes as misdemeanors instead of leaving prosecutors the option of seeking felony convictions. The list includes drug possession and crimes involving forgery, check fraud and theft of less than $950 — including handguns.”
Gov. Brown had no hesitation in bill signings and vetoes that would anger some of his Democratic allies.
Melody Gutierrez reports for The San Francisco Chronicle: “And that, political experts say, is notable because any other Democratic governor seeking re-election would have been constrained in his approach, careful not to burn bridges or offend a supporter.”
“Among the bills Brown vetoed were two truancy bills pushed by Attorney General Kamala Harris, several political ethics bills sought by legislative leaders, and a proposal by Assembly Speaker Toni Atkins, D-San Diego, to add $100 million in funding for the state’s public university systems.”
“Brown even vetoed bills that any other political leader might have boasted about in a campaign. Among those were political ethics bills introduced in the wake of criminal cases against three Democratic senators.”
Exiting Senate Leader Darrell Steinberg announced his post-office plans include forming a foundation to work on mental-health policy issues.
Laurel Rosenhall reports for The Sacramento Bee: “The announcement came in the form of a tweet and was confirmed by Steinberg spokesman Rhys Williams. Steinberg was not immediately available to comment, but during a Twitter chat about the large number of mentally ill people who fill California prisons….”
“It was the most definitive Steinberg has been yet about his plans after leaving office, though he has been active in mental health policy-making for many years. A decade ago, Steinberg pushed Proposition 63 to levy a tax on millionaires to fund programs for the mentally ill. More recently, as Senate President Pro Tem, he’s fought for legislation to ensure that autism treatment for children is covered by health plans and provide funding to treat mentally ill criminals to keep them from re-offending after they’re released from jail. Just last week, Steinberg spoke at the opening of a new mental health research center at UC Davis, aimed at improving treatment options for people in the Central Valley.”
Creepy clowns are stalking the streets of Kern County, and becoming a viral hit.
Kern Gold Empire reports: “A clown or a group of clowns are making quite the stir in Wasco. The reason behind the so called Wasco clown isn't clear but one thing is certain, the community is taking notice.”
“Anthony Garza lives in Wasco and saw the clown roaming the streets. He said, "I just seen him about three times already, but yeah he's creepy."”
“Wasco residents say they've seen the clown roaming the streets every night since October 1st. Locals look for him at night with the help of social media.”