One year later

Oct 2, 2018

One year later: Las Vegas dims the neon and pauses to reflect on its darkest hour

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LA Times's DAVID MONTERO: "Mynda Smith’s sleep was restless. Normally, she would have had a protein shake for breakfast, but on Monday all she could do was sip water."

 

"A year ago her sister was killed. Neysa Tonks, 46, was one of 58 people gunned down at the Route 91 Harvest country music festival on the Las Vegas Strip — the deadliest mass shooting in modern American history. The tragedy was big and public, but within Tonks’ family, the loss was also private and constant."

 

"It was still dark when Smith drove to the Clark County Government Center Amphitheater from her Las Vegas home early Monday. A large crowd would be there for a sunrise remembrance for the victims."

 

California's voter registration errors draw close look

 

Capitol Weekly's LISA RENNER: "Errors in the new California Motor Voter registration system may undermine the credibility of elections, some worry."

 

"The state’s Department of Motor Vehicles announced early in September that it sent 23,000 voter registrations with errors to the secretary of state. This included mistakes in political party selections, vote-by-mail options and 3,000 registrations from people who had opted not to be registered."

 

"Mark Meuser, the Republican candidate for secretary of state, who oversees elections, said the errors make ordinary Californians mistrustful."

 

Billionaire wanted a California beach to himself. Supreme Court won't hear his case.

 

The Tribune's ANDREW SHEELER: "A California beach will remain open to the public, after the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday declined to take the case of a Silicon Valley billionaire seeking to close off its road access."

 

"While the 40-year-old California Coastal Act protects the public’s right to walk on any beach in the state, at stake in the case of Surfrider Foundation v. Martins Beach was whether Vinod Khosla could erect a gate across a road used to get to a beach just south of Half Moon Bay, in San Mateo County."

 

"The Surfrider Foundation took Khosla to court when he did just that, and in September 2014, the court ruled in the foundation’s favor, according to a statement from the coastal advocacy group; that ruling later was upheld by the state appeals court and the California Supreme Court."

 

Where DiFi and de Leon stand on the issues 

 

LA Times's SARAH D WIRE: "Early voting begins this week, and Californians will again choose between two Democrats to represent them in the U.S. Senate."

 

"Sen. Dianne Feinstein is seeking a fifth full term in the Senate. State Sen. Kevin de León is challenging her from the left."

 

Why PETA opposes Prop. 12 + Poll workers wanted

 

Sacramento Bee's BRYAN ANDERSON: "A ballot measure advocating for more humane animal treatment is receiving opposition from an unlikely source."

 

"People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, commonly known as PETA, says Proposition 12 doesn’t go far enough in addressing problems with living conditions for animals."

 

"“We cannot and will not support this initiative because it doesn’t change the fact that hens will suffer far into the future,” said Ben Williamson, senior international media director with PETA."

 

How California Republicans handle Trump's hard line on immigration could define their futures

 

LA Times's JOE MOZINGO/JAZMINE ULLOA: "At a recent backyard meet-and-greet, Rep. Dana Rohrabacher pivoted from a campaign pledge that was eliciting silence — “new-generation nuclear energy” — to one sure to rile the Huntington Beach crowd."

 

"“We went surfing down at Brookhurst, and Newport the day before,” the Republican congressman said, pointing out his teenage son and daughter. “What a wonderful place to live. We should all be grateful to God that we have this quality of life."

 

West Sacramento mayoral candidate lands in small claims court over 'garbage, filth' left at home he sold

 

Sacramento Bee's ALEXANDRA YOON-HENDRICKS: "The leading challenger in one of the most competitive West Sacramento mayoral races in recent memory will soon be headed to small claims court over allegations that after the sale of his house, he left the property with garbage and animal feces in the backyard, unpaid utility bills and two minor home maintenance projects unfinished."

 

"The candidate, Joe DeAnda, denies the allegations and is seeking to have the claims dismissed."

 

"DeAnda, a communications manager at CalPERS, sold his Bayberry Street home to Adam Gardizi, a contract nurse anesthetist, for $537,000 in April. Per their sales agreement, DeAnda’s family was allowed to continue to live on the property for two additional months as they closed on their new home, a common practice. The contract also outlined that DeAnda would pay for utilities during that period, and would maintain the property’s landscaping and grounds, and all personal property included in the sale."

 

Migrant minor is held in adult detention facility for nearly a year after dental exam found he was likely 18

 

LA Times's BRITTNY MEJIA:  "Soon after a young Guatemalan immigrant climbed over a border fence into California last year, he was detained, processed as an unaccompanied minor and placed in a youth shelter."

 

"That changed when a dental exam showed an 85.8% probability that the young man was 18. At that point, the Office of Refugee Resettlement turned him over to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which held him in Orange County jails with adult immigrant detainees."

 

"After nearly a year, a birth certificate proved what lawyers had said for months: Jose is 17. Although he is back in the refugee office’s custody, his case has renewed concerns over the use of dental forensics to determine age — and the mistaken placement of juveniles in adult detention."

 

UC nurses approve five-year contract with 15 percent wage increases

 

Sacramento Bee's CATHIE ANDERSON: "The California Nurses Association reported Monday that registered nurses at the University of California have voted overwhelmingly to ratify a five-year contract that includes pay increases totaling 15 percent over the life of the deal."

 

"The new contract becomes effective immediately, union officials said, and besides wages, includes clauses that ensured nurses would not be assigned to areas requiring specialty expertise without proper training, granted greater protections for nurses working on a daily contractual basis and required UC facilities to have a comprehensive plan to manage workplace violence. Data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics show that hospital workers face a far greater risk of violent incidents than other workers in private industry."

 

"“Nurses stood together in solidarity and fought back over 60 takeaways that would have directly affected our ability to care for our patients,” said Megan Norman, a registered nurse at UC Davis Health. “We won new language addressing infectious disease and hazardous substances as well as stronger protections around workplace violence and sexual harassment.”"

 

GOP calls for investigation of Feinstein over Ford letter. But there's a problem.

 

Sacramento Bee's KATE IRBY: "Republicans are eagerly calling for an investigation who leaked Christine Blasey Ford’s letter that accused Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh of sexual assault, focusing particularly on Sen. Dianne Feinstein."

 

"But there’s a big problem — regardless of who leaked the letter, it isn’t a crime, or even a violation of Senate rules."

 

"That makes it unclear who could investigate it — if any agency or for that matter any authority even has an interest in doing so."


 
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