Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter Passes Away at 100
The Carter Center STAFF: "Jimmy Carter, 39th president of the United States and winner of the 2002 Nobel Peace Prize, died peacefully Sunday, Dec. 29, at his home in Plains, Georgia, surrounded by his family. He was 100, the longest-lived president in U.S. history.
President Carter is survived by his children — Jack, Chip, Jeff, and Amy; 11 grandchildren; and 14 great-grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his beloved wife, Rosalynn, and one grandchild."
Jimmy Carter, the 39th US president, has died at 100
AP's BILL BARROW, ALEX SANZ: "Jimmy Carter, the peanut farmer who won the presidency in the wake of the Watergate scandal and Vietnam War, endured humbling defeat after one tumultuous term and then redefined life after the White House as a global humanitarian, has died. He was 100 years old.
The longest-lived American president died on Sunday, roughly 22 months after entering hospice care, at his home in the small town of Plains, Georgia, where he and his wife, Rosalynn, who died at 96 in November 2023, spent most of their lives, The Carter Center said."
‘A man of rare character’: California leaders pay tribute to Jimmy Carter
LAT's ANABEL SOSA: "California lawmakers expressed their condolences Sunday after former President Jimmy Carter’s death at 100. He was remembered for the role he played in a post-Watergate world and for leaving one of the most impactful post-presidency legacies in history.
“Today, our nation and our world has lost a leader who embodied dignity and decency, grace and goodness,” House Speaker Emeritus Nancy Pelosi said. “Paul and I join in mourning the loss of President Jimmy Carter and in giving thanks for his life, which was saintly in its devotion to public service and peace.”"
The Micheli Minute, December 30, 2024
Capitol Weekly's STAFF: "Lobbyist and author Chris Micheli offers a quick look at what’s coming up under the capitol dome this week."
How an S.F. man’s 1898 Supreme Court victory established birthright citizenship
The Chronicle's KO LYN CHEANG: "In 1975, Norman Wong drove with his wife to Vancouver, British Columbia, in search of a grandfather he had never met.
Wong is of Japanese and Chinese descent. But whenever he asked his father about their Chinese ancestry, his dad wouldn’t or couldn’t say much. “It brought tears to his eyes,” recalled Wong, now 74. “That was a history he didn’t readily share.”"
LAT's ANDREA CASTILLO: "Gov. Gavin Newsom’s administration has drafted a conceptual plan to help undocumented immigrants under threat of deportation after President-elect Donald Trump takes office.
But some advocates worry the proposal doesn’t do enough to protect those who are detained amid immigration proceedings."
Emergency room workers are facing more attacks. A new California law increases penalties
CALMatters's RYAN SABALOW: "Those who physically attack doctors, nurses and other emergency department workers in California face harsher penalties in 2025 thanks to a new law.
In September, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill 977, which increased penalties from six months to a year in jail for those convicted of assaulting California’s hospital emergency room workers."
EdSource’s Best of 2024: Our most read stories
EdSource STAFF: "In the past year, EdSource has continued to carry out its mission to highlight critical issues in public education across California. As we close out 2024, we look back at the most-read stories of the year as selected by you, our readers."
Cold snap and clear skies: Bay Area’s week ahead brings sunny days, chilly nights
The Chronicle's GREG PORTER: "The parade of storm systems that have brought upward of 1 to 3 inches of rain to the Bay Area since Dec. 21 has officially come to an end.
The region has been immersed in an impressive wet period over the past two months. Since Nov. 1, more than 10 inches of rain has fallen in San Francisco and Oakland. But the rainfall amounts have varied quite a bit in the region. In that same timeframe, more than 2 feet of rain has fallen in Santa Rosa, and just 100 miles to the south, San Jose has picked up only about 4 inches of rain."
Elon Musk speculates on OpenAI whistleblower's cause of death as mother demands FBI probe
The Chronicle's NORA MISHANEC: "Elon Musk weighed in Sunday on questions about the circumstances of the death of Suchir Balaji, an OpenAI whistleblower found dead at his San Francisco apartment last month.
In a thread tagging Musk on X, a person who identified herself as Balaji’s mother, Poornima Ramarao, said her family had hired a private investigator and conducted an independent autopsy “to throw light on” Balaji’s death on Nov. 26, one month after he told the New York Times he believed his former employer’s AI programs violated copyright law."
These homeowners’ PG&E bills reveal California’s dramatic shift on solar
The Chronicle's CHASE DIFELICIANTONIO: "Amid the push for green energy in California, some consumers have gotten a better deal than others. Consider the case of Kris Moe and Adrian Macneil.
Moe, an energy finance consultant, spent $70,000 before tax credits to install solar panels on his Larkspur home in 2023, during a period of generous incentives and subsidies meant to spur adoption of clean power. He’s able to generate all the electricity he needs most days of the year and can sell the excess to Pacific Gas and Electric for 30 cents per kilowatt-hour. With his current plan, he figures to pay off his investment in a few years."
California and Los Angeles County are getting tougher on crime. Here are the maps that show it
LAT's KOKO NAKAJIMA, PHI DO: "California and Los Angeles County are getting tougher on crime.
The stiffer penalties on some drug and theft crimes that voters recently approved with Proposition 36 took effect this month. Weeks earlier, in L.A. County, former federal prosecutor Nathan Hochman was sworn in as the new district attorney and kicked off his administration by reversing several policies his progressive predecessor George Gascón put in place."
More people died in S.F. from traffic crashes than homicides in 2024
The Chronicle's NORA MISHANEC, DANIELLE ECHEVERRIA: "For the first time in recent history, San Francisco recorded more traffic fatalities than homicides in 2024, a stunning sign that the city has failed to make its streets safer despite years of efforts.
Forty-one people were killed in San Francisco traffic this year, the worst on record since 2007. Among the victims were a family of four — a Portuguese mother, a Brazilian father and their two young children — whose deaths at a West Portal bus stop in March transfixed the city and briefly galvanized efforts to improve pedestrian safety."
Here’s what happens if you pass out in a Waymo robotaxi on New Year’s Eve
The Chronicle's MALIYA ELLIS: "It’s New Year’s Eve in San Francisco, you’ve had one too many drinks while celebrating, and you’ve got no designated driver. These days, that familiar problem has a new solution: a sleek white chariot with no driver to judge your drunkenness. A Waymo.
But say you’ve had two — or perhaps 10 — too many. What happens if you pass out in a Waymo?"