California lieutenant governor targeted in ‘swatting’ call after she pushed to remove Trump from ballot
The Chronicle, JORDAN PARKER: "Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis was the target of a “swatting” call over the weekend in which someone placed a 911 call to falsely report an emergency.
“I can confirm that the LG’s San Francisco (home) was swatted last weekend,” Aleksandra Reetz, a spokesperson for Kounalakis, told the Chronicle Thursday. “The Lt. Governor and her husband were not home at the time, but their two college-age sons were at the home when law enforcement responded.”"
The four questions that will decide who wins Biden vs. Trump — Part II
LA Times, DAVID LAUTER: "With a Biden vs. Trump rematch likely, polls forecast another close election.
That’s no surprise — four of the last six presidential elections have been tight — and except for a few brief stretches, Congress has also been closely divided for more than two decades."
Embattled Sacramento City Councilman Sean Loloee resigns following federal indictment
Sacramento Bee, THERESA CLIFT: "Embattled Sacramento City Councilman Sean Loloee has resigned. Loloee, 53, was federally indicted Dec. 15 on charges connected with allegations that he employed undocumented immigrants, including minors, underpaid them, and threatened to have them deported.
The DOJ also determined Loloee does not live in the district, but in Granite Bay, which The Sacramento Bee first reported in June 2022."
‘Trump’s border wall’ in Berkeley: Will shipping containers keep protests out of People’s Park?
The Chronicle, JILL TUCKER: "A fortress of rusty, dented and secondhand shipping containers popped up overnight around Berkeley’s People’s Park on Thursday, creating an imposing and arguably ugly barrier around the controversial site — a piece of land now slated for housing rather than homeless tents or historic preservation of the free speech movement’s mecca.
Following the overnight raid of the park to remove protesters of the development, as well as longtime unhoused residents, the block of open space was largely closed off by the 160 big metal boxes. Most were dirty yellow with a few orange and blue scattered in, with all wording and numbers haphazardly covered by blue or white paint."
READ MORE -- UC Berkeley says new law makes People’s Park lawsuit moot. Neighborhood opponents disagree --- The Chronicle, BOB EGELKO
Prioritizing equity in statewide water management (OP-ED)
Capitol Weekly, RICK CALLENDER: "Climate change exacerbates California’s extreme wet and dry conditions, disrupting water delivery systems designed for historical seasonal precipitation patterns. As state and local water managers grapple with these challenges, the needs of Black, Brown, and disadvantaged communities cannot be ignored as it relates to access to water.
Where we see the greatest threat to disadvantaged communities is in water rates. One of the most affordable sources of water in the state comes from the State Water Project, which serves more than 27 million people, including 8 million disadvantaged community members spanning from the Bay Area to the border with Mexico and communities"
California’s proposed water conservation rules too stringent and costly, analysts say
CALMatters, RACHEL BECKER: "California’s legislative advisors today lambasted the state’s ambitious proposal to regulate urban water conservation, calling the measures costly and difficult to achieve, “in many cases without compelling justifications.”
The proposed rules, unveiled in August, call for more than 400 cities and other water suppliers serving about 95% of Californians to meet conservation targets beginning in 2025."
Tahoe snow: Satellite images show drastic difference from last year
The Chronicle, KURTIS ALEXANDER: "Even with this week’s winter storms bringing welcomed powder to the Lake Tahoe area, the region’s snowpack is well short of what’s typical the first week of the new year — and dismal compared with last year.
Images from the European Space Agency’s Sentinel satellites show just how much snow blanketed the central Sierra, from mountaintops to the foothills, on Jan. 3, 2023, versus the paltry amount, limited to higher elevations, on the same day this year."
South Lake Tahoe’s famous ski gondola shuts down suddenly
The Chronicle, GREGORY THOMAS: "The famous mountain gondola at Heavenly Ski Resort in South Lake Tahoe has been shut down indefinitely due to a mechanical issue discovered Thursday morning, according to the resort.
The gondola, which operates year-round as a visitor highlight, picks up in Heavenly’s downtown village and whisks sightseers and skiers on a scenic 2.4-mile ride up the slopes overlooking the lake’s vast cobalt expanse. It’s an especially crucial and convenient point of access to the slopes during peak winter days when bursts of skiers and snowboarders funnel into the Tahoe basin to take advantage of fresh snowfall on Heavenly’s mountain."
Paxlovid doesn’t reduce risk of long COVID, UCSF study finds
The Chronicle, JESSICA FLORES: "The COVID-19 treatment Paxlovid does not reduce the risk of long COVID for vaccinated people who’ve tested positive for the virus for the first time, according to a new study by UCSF researchers.
The study, published Thursday in the Journal of Medical Virology, also found that a higher share than previously reported experienced rebound symptoms and tested positive for COVID after taking the antiviral medication."
What to know about public health guidelines as LAUSD students return from the holidays
EdSource, MALLIKA SESHADRI: "As students return to school after holiday travel and festivities, respiratory illnesses are at high levels in Los Angeles, with many suffering from a mix of Covid and the flu.
During the week leading up to Dec. 28 and with Covid-19 strain JN. 1 having become dominant, the LA County Department of Public Health reported an average of 621 cases each day, marking a 25% increase from the previous week."
Queen Mary, once a sinking white elephant, shows signs of remarkable revival
LA Times, SALVADOR HERNANDEZ: "The Queen Mary has for years been a landmark in the city of Long Beach, an iconic ocean liner serving as a majestic sentry at the port and a popular attraction for both tourists and locals.
But the aging ship has in recent years become more of a white elephant, in need of millions of dollars in repairs just to stay afloat."
EV maker Lucid illegally fired workers for union support, U.S. labor board alleges
LA Times, JOSH EIDELSON: "Electric-vehicle startup Lucid Group Inc. illegally fired two employees because they joined and supported the United Auto Workers, U.S. labor board prosecutors alleged in a complaint.
In a Tuesday filing, a regional director of the U.S. National Labor Relations Board accused the automaker of violating federal law by threatening, transferring and retaliating against employees, agency spokesperson Kayla Blado said in an email. The complaint also alleges that the company confiscated union literature and created the impression workers’ activities were under surveillance, she said."
San Jose racist cop scandal: After judge’s order, disclosure of new texts and other officers’ names ‘forthcoming’
BANG*Mercury News, ROBERT SALONGA: "The city of San Jose has been ordered to disclose more damning text messages and the previously unreleased names of two officers connected to a scandal in which a now-former cop prolifically used racist language to disparage a Black man he shot two years ago."
Defendants in killing of Oakland police officer ordered held without bail
The Chronicle, DAVID HERNANDEZ: "Two men charged with murder in the fatal shooting of an undercover Oakland police officer were ordered Thursday to remain held in custody without bail.
The alleged shooter, Mark Sanders, 27, and co-defendant Allen Brown, 28, did not enter pleas during a brief arraignment at Wiley Manuel Courthouse in Oakland. A hearing for them to enter pleas was set for Jan. 18."
Santa Clara: Legal attempt to change ‘biased’ ballot measure on police chief job fails
BANG*Mercury News, GRACE HASE: "A last ditch effort by a group of Santa Clara residents to change the language of a ballot measure that could get rid of California’s last elected police chief has failed.
On Dec. 18, Satish Chandra, Joyce Davis and Carolyn McAllister filed a lawsuit in Santa Clara County Superior Court over Measure B, which will ask voters on March 5 whether the city should change the police chief role from an elected position to an appointed one."
