Scientology tried to ‘derail’ star’s rape trial by harassing prosecutor, suit says; church calls claim ‘false’
LAT's JAMES QUEALLY: "Nearly six months after actor Danny Masterson was convicted of sexually assaulting two fellow members of the Church of Scientology, lawyers for his victims filed a document that contained a stunning new allegation against the faith.
Submitted in a downtown Los Angeles court as part of a years-old civil lawsuit against Scientology, the document referenced a purported effort by the church to “derail” the criminal proceedings against Masterson."
Biden and Trump’s main challenge? The apathetic voters who could decide the election
LAT's FAITH E. PINHO: "Although Haley Fox, 30, frequently chats politics with friends and family, she said, the moment the phrase “election 2024” comes up she feels her body fill with dread.
“There hasn’t been anything that has represented me for a really long time,” said Fox, a San Diego-based photographer. “So, like, 2024, just seeing what we have to choose from — it just feels so bleak.”"
Gavin Newsom says baseball saved him. But the legend of his career doesn’t always match the reality
CALMatters's ALEXEI KOSEFF: "For their 2004 home opener, the San Francisco Giants invited a special guest to throw the ceremonial first pitch: Gavin Newsom, then just a few months into his first term as mayor of San Francisco.
As Newsom took the pitcher’s mound, wearing dress shoes and a button-down shirt underneath his custom Giants jersey, the announcer informed the crowd that “he played first base for the University of Santa Clara and was drafted by the Texas Rangers.”"
How long before California’s campaign finance website is replaced?
CALMatters's SAMEEA KAMAL: "When will Cal-Access — the antiquated web portal to track California’s campaign money and lobbying — finally be replaced?
The short answer: Probably not before December 2026. That’s after the next statewide election, when reporters and the public most need the data."
‘I’ve never seen anything like this’: Low, Simitian tie to make November ballot in congressional race
BANG*Mercury News's GRACE HASE: "After a month of counting ballots, the results are in — 30,249 to 30,249, with Assemblymember Evan Low and Santa Clara County Supervisor Joe Simitian in an unprecedented tie in their race for second place in California’s congressional District 16.
It’s a stunning finale to a primary race that has captivated political onlookers with its twists, turns and almost daily lead changes. Simitian or Low was expected to face former San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo — who locked in his top spot early on — in the general election. But now, all three will be vying to replace U.S. Rep. Anna Eshoo on the November ballot, according to California election code and confirmed by the Secretary of State’s Office on Wednesday."
Tribal gaming all comes down to people (OP-ED)
Capitol Weekly's ROD WILSON, Ph.D.: "“The Different Worlds of California Card Rooms and Tribal Casinos” is a captivating title that immediately sets the stage for a deep dive into the distinct landscapes of California’s gaming industry. It highlights the inherent differences between these two sectors, reflecting a reality where public perception and legal frameworks put them worlds apart. The title aptly prepares the reader for an exploration of these differences, emphasizing the unique challenges and privileges each face.
Now, let’s delve into why this division is not only recognized but also sanctioned by the public’s understanding, the state constitution, legal mandates and federal law."
‘The earthquake is inevitable, but the disaster is not.’ Lessons for California from the Taiwan temblor
LAT's HANNAH FRY, SUMMER LIN and CORINNE PURTILL: "A powerful rush-hour earthquake that rocked Taiwan, one of the best-prepared locations in the world for temblors, on Wednesday morning could provide crucial lessons for Southern California.
The quake, measured at magnitude 7.4 by the U.S. Geological Survey, killed at least nine people and injured hundreds on the island, which is about 1½ times the size of Vermont."
Bay Area’s adoption of electric cars is reducing emissions, study says
The Chronicle's JULIE JOHNSON: "New research shows that the Bay Area’s embrace of electric cars is having a measurable impact on the region’s carbon footprint.
UC Berkeley scientists tracked a modest but steady decrease in carbon dioxide emissions between 2018 and 2022, a trend that held true even when factoring outside impacts like pandemic traffic reductions and seasonal differences."
‘Unseasonably cold’: April storm bringing winter temperatures, low snow levels to California
LAT's GRACE TOOHEY: "It might feel like spring Wednesday, with highs across Los Angeles reaching into the high 70s, but Thursday is going to be a “shock to the system,” weather experts say.
Temperatures on Thursday and Friday are expected to drop 15 to 20 degrees from Wednesday’s highs as a cold storm blows across California, bringing low-elevation snow, showers and the potential for severe thunderstorms."
Rape case dismissed against S.F. city commissioner as DA seeks new evidence
The Chronicle's JORDAN PARKER: "A Superior Court judge on Tuesday granted a San Francisco District Attorney’s Office motion to dismiss sexual assault charges against a city commissioner, citing a lack of evidence and unanswered questions surrounding the alleged victim’s credibility.
The motion was granted by Judge Alexandra Gordon, according to the district attorney’s office. William Monroe “Tariq” Palmer II was initially charged with assault with force, sexual battery by restraint, sodomy by use of force and false imprisonment. He pleaded not guilty to all of those charges last November. The charges followed an alleged incident last August when prosecutors initially said Palmer offered a ride to a woman who was walking to a BART station, took the woman back to his home, and assaulted her."
Mass incarceration devastated S.F. Japantown. For the first time, we know how much
The Chronicle: "This is San Francisco’s Japantown. In a city shaped by immigration, opportunity and oppression, few places have felt their effects as acutely as the neighborhood centered on cobblestoned Buchanan Street.
While today’s visitors know Japantown for its tourist-friendly shops, restaurants and hotels, the area was once a thriving residential hub, where entire blocks were inhabited by people of Japanese descent who'd arrived seeking community — and because they’d been excluded elsewhere."
The mystifying costs of college in California, explained
CALMatters's MIKHAIL ZINSHTEYN: "University tuition is free! No, wait, the full cost of college is tens of thousands of dollars annually. Hold up. There’s enough financial aid to bring down the price tag to just a few thousand dollars a year — tuition, food and housing included.
All of those statements are true, depending on where you attend and how much you or the parents who claim you on their taxes earn. For something as consequential — and at times more costly than a small condo — as affording a degree, understanding how much a family must shell out for a better shot at higher wages can be complicated."
California student-run news organizations ramp up Spanish-language coverage
EdSource's EMMELY RAMIREZ, OLIVIA KEELER: "Many student-run newspapers throughout the Cal State system now provide content in Spanish. But how they do it — and the reasons why — varies from campus to campus.
A campus newspaper’s ability to publish in Spanish hinges on having Spanish speakers on staff, and the turnover of student journalists from semester to semester can make or break a newspaper’s ability to publish in Spanish."
California, districts try to recruit and retain Black teachers; advocates say more should be done
EdSource's DIANA LAMBERT: "Recruiting and retaining Black teachers has taken on new urgency in recent years as California lawmakers try to ease the state’s teacher shortage. The state and individual school districts have launched initiatives to recruit teachers of color, but educators and advocates say more needs to be done.
Hiring a diverse group of teachers helps all students, but the impact is particularly significant for students of color, who then score higher on tests and are more likely to graduate from college, according to the Learning Policy Institute. A recently released report also found that Black boys are less likely to be identified for special education when they have a Black teacher."
Former Stanford lecturer accused of calling Jewish students ‘colonizers’ sues university
The Chronicle's NANETTE ASIMOV: "A Stanford lecturer who was suspended after delivering a controversial lesson on colonization three days after Hamas invaded Israel in October sued the university in federal court Wednesday, alleging wrongful termination. His contract expired in March and was not renewed.
Varying accounts of the lessons Ameer Hasan Loggins taught on Oct. 10 — which some Jewish students called deeply offensive and other students did not object to — were picked up around the world, including in the Chronicle. Stanford suspended Loggins, pending an investigation."
Feds say LA poultry company used child labor for risky jobs then hid its product
CALMatters's ALEJANDRA REYES-VELARDE: "Federal labor investigators are demanding an L.A.-area poultry company forfeit money they said it made by employing minors in dangerous jobs.
At least two minors had been working in “oppressive” conditions, deboning raw poultry with sharp knives at a poultry processing plant in Irwindale, the U.S. Department of Labor alleged in a lawsuit filed Saturday."
Studio owners revise plans for $1-billion update of historic Television City
LAT's ROGER VINCENT: "The owners of Television City have scaled back their plans to enlarge and modernize the landmark Los Angeles studio where CBS began making shows to broadcast nationwide at the dawn of the television age.
Formerly known as CBS Television City, the studio sits next to popular tourist attractions the Original Farmers Market and the Grove shopping center in the Fairfax district where it has been operating since 1952 as a factory for such hit shows as “All in the Family,” “Sonny and Cher” and “American Idol.”"
In one of L.A.’s largest cash heists, burglars steal as much as $30 million in elaborate operation
LAT's RICHARD WINTON: "In one of the largest cash heists in Los Angeles history, thieves made off with as much as $30 million in an Easter Sunday burglary at a San Fernando Valley money storage facility, an L.A. police official revealed Wednesday.
The burglary occurred Sunday night at an unnamed facility in Sylmar where cash from businesses across the region is handled and stored, according to L.A. Police Department Cmdr. Elaine Morales."
GOP raps Gov. Newsom as sister’s cafe seeks $16-an-hour busser while fast-food eateries must pay $20
BANG*Mercury News's JOHN WOOLFOLK: "California’s $20 minimum wage kicked in for fast-food franchise workers this week, but Republican skeptics are wondering: What about slow-food workers? Especially ones who work at a restaurant chain connected to Gov. Gavin Newsom.
Newsom’s political critics — not the dining kind — pointed out the irony of a help wanted ad for a $16-an-hour busser job at a Lake Tahoe area cafe the governor founded that’s part of a hospitality group now run by his sister."
L.A. synagogue’s invite to Muslims on Ramadan ends in tears and resignations. Can they heal?
LAT's JENNY JARVIE: "It started with good intentions.
When a Jewish temple in the San Fernando Valley opened its doors to Muslims for the holy month of Ramadan, its rabbis hoped to offer a model of interfaith outreach."
Why California’s homeless advocates fear that state’s unhoused crisis might get worse
Sacramento Bee's STAFF: "About 100 homeless advocates gathered at the California Capitol on Tuesday to plead that the governor and legislators preserve funding to fight the state’s homelessness crisis as they consider budget cuts.
In February the state Legislative Analyst’s Office released an updated budget deficit projection of $73 billion."
Prosecutors put men on death row. This California D.A. wants to take them off
LAT's ANITA CHABRIA: "Capital punishment in California exists in law, but in practicality ended in 2019 when Gov. Gavin Newsom ordered death row to be dismantled.
Still, 625 men and 20 women remain incarcerated with death sentences, facing the unlikely but possible prospect that under a different governor, they could be executed. About one-third of the condemned are Black."
Police tased a Marin man suffering a seizure. A lawsuit says officers fabricated charges to cover it up
The Chronicle's ANNIE VAINSHTEIN: "In the early hours of Aug. 29, 2022, San Anselmo resident Alice Frankel awoke to strange noises coming from the man who was then her fiance and is now her husband. When she turned on a light, she said, Bruce Frankel’s arms were stiffly extended, his legs were shaking, his eyes were rolled back and his mouth foamed.
She called 911, worried he was dying. A neurologist would later diagnose Bruce Frankel with epilepsy and say he had suffered a grand mal seizure."
Deputies kick down bathroom door, fatally shoot armed teen in midst of mental health crisis
LAT's NOAH GOLDBERG: "San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department deputies on Tuesday shot and killed a 17-year-old boy authorities say was experiencing a mental health crisis — the second teen killed by the law enforcement agency in less than a month.
The boy was inside the Victorville foster home of his sister when deputies responded around 1 p.m. to a call of an “unwanted subject” in the house in the 17100 block of Forest Hills Drive, according to the Sheriff’s Department."
