The FBI is pointing to a law from the 1700s to pressure Apple into developing an iPhone backdoor.
Maura Dolan and Victoria Kim in The L.A. Times report: "A court order requiring Apple to create a way to help law enforcement get access to a terrorist's smartphone amounts to an "unprecedented" stretch of an antiquated law — one that is likely to spark an epic fight pitting privacy against national security, legal scholars said Thursday."
"Typically, law enforcement has filed for warrants under seal, and courts have issued orders under seal, to protect the confidentiality of ongoing criminal investigations."
"But a federal judge in New York decided last fall to unseal portions of such a case. It revealed that Apple had turned over information to law enforcement about 70 times in recent years, according to the government, based on court orders citing an obscure 1789 law called the All Writs Act. The act, passed in the judiciary's infancy, allowed courts to issue orders if other judicial tools were unavailable."
"No glove, no love" pornography regulation rejected by state regulators; Condoms will not be required for adult actors when "working."
Victoria Colliver writes in S.F. Gate: "After nearly five hours of often emotional testimony from porn stars and others in the adult film industry, state regulators voted Thursday against a controversial set of workplace safety regulations that would have required performers to use condoms."
"The regulations, drafted by the state Division of Occupational Safety and Health, would have put adult performers in the same category as doctors, nurses and others who work in medical settings and are required to use “barriers” for protection."
"Thursday’s vote in Oakland was met with cheers and jubilation from a roomful of mostly porn film actors and behind-the-scenes workers who opposed the measures."
Despite yesterday's news about a potential bullet train to San Jose in the coming decade, opponents are calling the entire high-speed project a mere figment of fantasy.
Jessica Calefati and Tracy Seipel in San Jose Mercury News: "A day after Silicon Valley leaders praised the state's new plan to lay the first stretch of bullet train track between San Jose and the Central Valley by 2025, critics of the project smelled blood in the water."
"They said the California High-Speed Rail Authority's new construction scheme left them with new questions and even more doubts about the state's chances of ever completing the $64 billion project."
"The revised plan is already upsetting some South Bay and Peninsula residents and threatening to undermine the train's political support among Southern California politicians who expected construction to begin in their region. In addition, the authority concedes that several lawsuits seeking to kill the project are unresolved and that a myriad of environmental clearances are needed before construction is ramped up."
G.O.P. to Gov. Jerry Brown: We want the ability to direct $800 million in spending if you want our support for the healthcare-plans tax.
From Melanie Mason in the L.A. Times writes: "Assembly Republicans are bellying up to the bargaining table over Gov. Jerry Brown's proposed tax package for healthcare plans, signaling a new phase in the negotiations that have slogged on for more than a year."
"A document obtained by The Times lays out the political and policy wish list for the Assembly GOP caucus. Most significantly, they want to direct more than $800 million in spending made possible by the new tax."
"The Assembly GOP is calling for $290 million to fund services for the developmentally disabled and another $120 million to reimburse certain skilled nursing facilities, which suffered major cuts in 2011. The proposal would also put money toward paying off state debts: $240 million would go toward California's retiree healthcare liabilities for public employees and $175 million would repay transportation loans."
In the wake of a successful escape from an Orange County jail, authorities are now seeking to acquire more funding for jail security.
From the OC Register's Scott Schwebke: "Sheriff Sandra Hutchens said Thursday she’ll ask the Orange County Board of Supervisors for money to beef up security at the Central Men’s Jail while an ongoing internal investigation continues into last month’s escape of three maximum-security inmates."
“It has never been my intention to wait until the conclusion of the investigation before solutions are implemented,” Hutchens wrote in a letter to board Chairwoman Lisa Bartlett. “We will make requests for funding and implement solutions throughout the investigation and subsequent reviews.”
"The letter does not specify an amount. Initially, the money would pay for such improvements as security cameras and motion sensors."
And now, from our "Celebrities in Debt" file, we learn that the Philidaelphia Police department has officially offered Kanye West an entry level position in an effort to help the rap superstar recover from his monetary arrears.
"A local Philadelphia police department is looking to help Kanye West get out of his reported multimillion dollar debt by offering him an entry level job."
"Philadelphia police department photo-shopped West's face onto a photo of two officers and shared it to Facebook adding that by earning a base department salary he could be debt-free in about 1,000 years."
"With a starting salary of $47,920, Officer West could be completely debt-free by the year 3122!" they wrote. "And that's only if he were never to receive a single raise! With a few promotions and cost of living increases, Yeezy could probably break even in a quick 500 years."
A long time to walk a beat ...
