Good morning. It's Thursday, Nov. 14.
Today's edition: 12 items, < 3 minutes

Police investigate narcotics in USC deaths.

Tom Hanks as the gold standard of niceness.

And Joshua Tree's hallucinatory boulders.

California regulators voted unanimously to open a formal investigation into the handling of preemptive power outages that plunged millions of Californians into darkness in October. The shutoffs "cannot be the new normal for California," said Marybel Batjer, the top utilities regulator. A.P. | S.F. Chronicle

California's economy is on track to underperform the U.S. for the first time since 2010, thanks to the economic blows of wildfires and blackouts. Bloomberg

Pacific Legal Foundation, a libertarian group, sued California over its law requiring that publicly held companies put women on their boards of directors. "The law mandates exactly what the equal protection clause forbids — taking into account things like sex or race," a foundation lawyer said. A.P. | Sacramento Bee

Also suing California: Truckers. In a federal complaint, the California Trucking Association said the state's gig-work law would threaten the livelihoods of more than 70,000 independent truckers. S.F. Chronicle | Reuters

California, as always shaping the country's future, played a central role in the extraordinary public impeachment hearing on Wednesday.

Rep. Adam Schiff, a Democrat from Burbank, opened by summarizing the facts that have been laid out about President Trump's conduct thus far and asked, "If this is not impeachable conduct, what is?" Devin Nunes, a Republican from Tulare, then portrayed the proceedings as a farce. "The main performance, the Russia hoax, has ended," he said, addressing two witnesses, "and you've been cast in the low-rent Ukrainian sequel."

Here's a short video contrasting the California lawmakers' drastically different remarks. CNN (~4:30 minutes)

The Southern Sierra Miwuk Nation, a tribe with historic ties to Yosemite National Park, has been waiting 37 years for the U.S. government to decide on its petition for federal recognition. They submitted thousands of documents. They won the support of historians. Yosemite National Park itself recognized the tribe. Then the government issued its proposed ruling: Denied. "We are still being destroyed as a people," the Miwuk chairman said. Fresno Bee | Newsweek

Standing in the surf at Trinidad State Beach, two beachgoers were swept off their feet by a rip current and dragged out to sea. Unable to swim back to shore, they struggled to keep their mouths above water. That's when four 16-year-old surfers mounted a rescue, ferrying the swimmers back to shore on their surfboards. There, it was hugs all around. "They definitely saved those kids' lives," a witness said. North Coast Journal | Eureka-Times Standard

A massive mural of Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg now stares down on the streets of San Francisco. Unveiled this week, the 60-foot tall artwork on the side of building near Union Square was spearheaded by an environmental nonprofit. Some folks aren't happy about it. Reuters | Hyperallergic

The N.Y. Times did a nice profile of America's favorite nice guy and Bay Area native son, Tom Hanks. His advice on parenting: "Somewhere along the line, I figured out, the only thing really, I think, eventually a parent can do is say I love you, there's nothing you can do wrong, you cannot hurt my feelings, I hope you will forgive me on occasion, and what do you need me to do? You offer up that to them. I will do anything I can possibly do in order to keep you safe. That's it. Offer that up and then just love them." N.Y. Times

"It's been an honor and a privilege. And everybody stay safe." 

Video captured a touching moment as a Madera CHP officer, choking up, signed off for the last time. He's headed into retirement after 27 years on the force. ABC30 Fresno/Twitter

A judge handed down the harshest sentence yet in the college admissions scandal. Toby MacFarlane, a title insurance executive from San Diego County, was given six months in prison for paying $450,000 to get his son and daughter into USC as phony athletic recruits. The judge told MacFarlane the punishment was fit for "a common thief — because that's what you are. A thief of the values of decency and fair play." S.D. Union-Tribune | USA Today

Investigators are looking into whether drug overdoses played a part in some of the nine student deaths this semester at USC. The university's president said the school is "doubling down" on educating students about the dangers of substance abuse. "In particular," she said, "we've been also talking about the real risks of mixing opioids and prescription drugs and alcohol because we are concerned about that." L.A. Times | A.P.

A drone pilot captured a great video of a young gray whale swimming under a group of unsuspecting surfers at Doheny State Beach in Orange County. Gray whales cruise along the California coast during their fall migration to Baja. O.C. Register | YouTube

Joshua Tree National Park is strewn with hallucinatory boulders — in shapes of arches, a heart, a penguin — that could fit easily into a Salvador Dali painting. It's heaven for explorers. California travel junkie Josh McNair listed his 15 favorite spots. California Through My Lens

Fodor's named Jumbo Rocks as one of the 25 best campgrounds in the country. Many of the sites are tucked amid the massive volcanic boulders. Fodor's

Today's California Sun: Police investigate narcotics in USC deaths, Tom Hanks as the gold standard of niceness, and Joshua Tree's hallucinatory boulders.

Drugs probed in USC deaths // Joshua Tree's hallucinatory boulders

Good morning. It's Wednesday, Nov. 13.
Today's edition: 13 items, < 3 minutes

Cartel cannabis growers spread poisons in the forest.

USC is shaken by a string of nine student deaths.

And fabulous Southern California homes for the taking.

The Supreme Court's conservative majority suggested on Tuesday that the Trump administration was entitled to end a program protecting about 700,000 immigrants known as Dreamers who were brought into the country illegally as children. California, among the parties challenging the action, is home to roughly 200,000 Dreamers, more than any other state. N.Y. Times | Washington Post

Doctors, pharmacists, business owners, students. Here are a few of the Californians whose futures now hang in the balance. L.A. Times

The insecticide carbofuran can kill a fully grown black bear. While it's illegal in the U.S., cartel pot growers have been spreading it copiously around California's public forests. "We have detected it in the soil, in cannabis plants, in native vegetation, the water, the infrastructure. You name it, we have detected it," an ecologist said. "It's horrible." NPR

California may not require solar panels on newly built homes after all. Regulators are scheduled to vote soon on a utility's proposal to let homeowners get power from solar farms instead of installing their own panels. It would be a big win for homebuilders who've warned that housing costs are high enough without adding solar panels. Bloomberg | L.A. Times

A poll found that 70 percent of Americans would support a version of California's rooftop solar policy being mandated nationwide. Fast Company

More than 1,000 California law enforcement officers used a background check database for personal use over the past decade, a review of records found. Among the cases, officers dug up information on a romantic rival, a girlfriend's tenants, and an opponent in a lawsuit. Just 54 were prosecuted. Mercury News

Elite big tree hunters are making new discoveries in the teeming redwood forests of Northern California. One explorer described happening upon a colossus later dubbed Grogan's Fault: "We got down to measuring, and we're going, 'Oh, man, this isn't only as big as the largest coast redwoods. This is larger than anything found. Its dimensions just get so extreme it's just hard to soak it in." California Sun

Three staffers at a school in El Dorado County were charged with involuntary manslaughter in the death of an autistic student last year. Max Benson stopped breathing after being restrained face down for hours. Benson's mother said the last year has been worst of her life. "I haven't done much except just cry." Sacramento Bee | CBS Sacramento

The Wall Street Journal's bombshell report on a Google project to collect detailed health records on 50 million Americans now has the attention of federal regulators. An investigation into the project dubbed "Project Nightingale" was opened to ensure no privacy rights were being violated, an official said. Wall Street Journal | CNN 

Art Shapiro, a professor of evolution and ecology at UC Davis, has been painstakingly counting California's butterflies for 47 years. He's told friends he feels like a physician watching a long-term patient die — and he has no idea why. "One does not rejoice when one's system is going away," he said. L.A. Times

Reminder: San Francisco International Airport has a therapy pig. Lilou, a pink-nosed 5-year-old, is part of the airport's "Wag Brigade," a program that uses animals to ease passengers' travel anxieties. She's believed to be the world's only airport therapy pig. Reuters

USC's campus has been left shaken by nine deaths since August. Three were suicides. One student died in a traffic accident. The causes of others haven't been disclosed, but no foul play is suspected. "Students are pleading for answers," a student journalist said. L.A. Times | A.P.

The Conception dive boat fire that killed 34 people off the Channel Islands was one of the worst maritime disasters in California history. Now a review has shown that the National Transportation Safety Board repeatedly called for stronger regulations aimed at improving boat safety, only to see the Coast Guard fail to implement them. L.A. Times

As a photography student in the early 1980s, John Brian King would ride his motorcycle to LAX and capture the humanity as travelers came and went through the terminals. "I consciously went for an assaultive form of photography," he wrote, "flash, wide-angle lens, hit and run, no permission asked." The images capture the timeless, bleak boredom of the airport — with some fantastic 1980s fashion. AnOther magazine | KCET

On the market now, three statement-making homes across Southern California:

This landmarked home in Pasadena was built by the Craftsman masters Charles and Henry Greene. It's got elaborate woodwork, art glass windows, and a two-story central courtyard. Asking $4.7 million. Curbed Los Angeles

A 1930s Spanish Colonial in Glendale looks typical from the outside. But the inside is a feast of elaborately designed rooms. The guest suite is "opium den-inspired." Asking: $1.2 million. Curbed Los Angeles

This petite refuge in Joshua Tree comes with a wood stove, a giant snake painting, and expansive desert views. Also: a hot tub. Yours for $285,000. Curbed

Today's California Sun: Cartel cannabis growers spread poisons in the forest, USC is shaken by a string of nine student deaths, and fabulous Southern California homes for the taking.

Cartel growers spread poisons // Fabulous Southern California homes

Good morning. It's Tuesday, Nov. 12.
Today's edition: 12 items, < 4 minutes

The convicted criminals in California police forces.

Gavin Newsom's lucrative relationship with PG&E.

And a backlash to the California invasion of Boise.

After U.C. Berkeley journalists obtained a list of criminal convictions of California law enforcement officers, the state's attorney general warned them to destroy it or face legal action. Instead, they collaborated with newsrooms across the state to investigate the document. Among the findings:

More than 80 officers working today are convicted criminals. Yet thanks to lax policies for punishing misconduct, they were allowed to keep carrying a gun and patrolling the streets. IRP/Bay Area News Group

Brutalizing your loved ones doesn't necessarily cost you your job — or your gun — if you work in law enforcement in California. A crucial variable in whether a cop loses his job? If the case was covered in the press. IRP/Bay Area News Group

They hired an officer who pulled a gun on his stepdaughter's friends. Another recruit was investigated for child porn, and a third got mixed up in a burglary ring. McFarland, a small farming town north of Bakersfield, has many cops with dubious backgrounds. "Second chance PD," they call it. Department leaders said that with starting pay of $20 an hour they haven't have the luxury of making squeaky clean hires. Sacramento Bee 

Gov. Gavin Newsom has excoriated PG&E for mismanaging funds that he says should have gone to infrastructure upgrades. But over the past two decades, Newsom and his wife accepted more than $700,000 from PG&E, its foundation, and its employees as the utility supported his political campaigns, his ballot initiatives, his inauguration festivities, and his wife's foundation, according to a review of records. Washington Post

Some elected officials and experts say decades of chumminess between regulators and PG&E has played a part in the wildfire crisis California finds itself in. Sacramento Bee

A candidate in Boise's recent mayoral election ran on a simple platform: Stop the California invasion. A stream of Californians drawn to Idaho's leafy and more affordable capital has locals bristling. "If you come here and love it, everything's fine," a local homeless advocate said. "If you come here and fly that California flag in your driveway and have stickers on your car that say, 'Santa Cruz,' there's going to be some hard feelings." L.A. Times

Google is collecting and analyzing health records from tens of millions of Americans across 21 states through a deal with the country's second-largest health care system. The data includes names, dates of birth, lab results, diagnoses, and other information — without patients being informed. A U.S. senator called it "beyond shameful." Wall Street Journal | Reuters

Dara Khosrowshahi, Uber's CEO, offered a charitable take of the Saudis' role in murdering journalist Jamal Khashoggi: "I think that people make mistakes, it doesn't mean that they can never be forgiven." Saudi Arabia is Uber's fifth largest shareholder. Khosrowshahi later apologized for the comments, but they had already pumped fresh life into a boycott campaign. Vanity Fair | TechCrunch

Chesa Boudin, a public defender who never prosecuted a case, is San Francisco's new district attorney-elect after stunning Suzy Loftus, the choice of the Democratic establishment. He vowed to crack down on police misconduct, reduce jail populations, and end cash bail. He learned he won the job while visiting his father in prison. L.A. Times | S.F. Chronicle

"I've got my lunch here, it's very threatening as you can see."

Protesters held a lunchtime "eat-in" in the BART system after a police officer was captured on video detaining a man who ate a sandwich on a train platform. The man, who is black, argued and ended up in handcuffs for "resisting." Public outrage prompted an apology from the BART's general manager. SFGate.com | SFist

A BART police union demanded an apology from a BART official who participated in the eat-in protest, accusing her of "advocating lawlessness." S.F. Examiner

Donald Trump Jr. came to UCLA to promote his book expecting to be taunted by liberal protesters. "Name a time when conservatives have disrupted even the furthest leftist on a college campus," he said to the crowd. "It doesn't happen that way. We're willing to listen." Then a group of far-right conservatives, angered that he wasn't taking questions, heckled him off the stage. The Guardian | Washington Post

A freshman at San Diego State University died after an event at a fraternity. All 14 of the campus's fraternities have been suspended. Few details were released, but the university president said police "uncovered information which alleges that a fraternity was involved in possible misconduct." S.D. Union-Tribune | Daily Aztec

For more than two decades, Christopher Dennis portrayed Superman on Hollywood Boulevard. Known as unfailingly polite, he lived a few blocks away in a small apartment filled with Superman paraphernalia. Last week, TMZ reported that Dennis had been found dead at the age of 52, apparently homeless and lying in a metal bin. Columnist Nita Lelyveld went to the boulevard, where she learned about the reality of life on the Walk of Fame. "Nobody cares about nobody out here," a Freddy Krueger said. L.A. Times

Here's Victoria Beach, one of Southern California's great beaches for explorers. Easily missed, it's nestled off Pacific Coast Highway in Laguna Beach behind a neighborhood of mansions. Those who make the trek down a long staircase are rewarded with caves, tide pools, a circular stone pool, pictured above, and a 60-foot tower that looks like it belongs in a fairy tale. California Through My Lens | California Beaches

Today's California Sun: The convicted criminals in California police forces, Gavin Newsom's lucrative relationship with PG&E, and a backlash to the California invasion of Boise.

Criminal cops on patrol // Boise's beef with California

Good morning. It's Friday, Nov. 8.
Today's edition: 14 items, < 5 minutes

A new version of Paradise rises from the ashes.

Dopamine fasting wins converts in Silicon Valley.

Scheduling note: The newsletter will be off on Veteran's Day. Back in your inbox Tuesday.

The virulent pathogen known as sudden oak death has killed millions of oak trees along California's coast over the past quarter century. This year, the infection rate almost doubled. In some places, it increased tenfold. A new study said the die-off threatens to devastate not only the forests but dozens of animals who rely on the trees for food and shelter. S.F. Chronicle

A top aide to Democratic presidential candidate Tom Steyer offered campaign contributions to local politicians in Iowa in exchange for endorsing his White House bid, multiple sources told the A.P. The overtures weren't illegal, but they've revived criticism that the San Francisco billionaire is trying to buy his way into office. Steyer dropped an astounding $47 million on his campaign over the summer. A.P.

New voter registration figures for California: Democrats rose to 44 percent of the electorate; Republicans fell to 24 percent. S.F. Chronicle | A.P.

On this week's California Sun Podcast, host Jeff Schechtman talks with tech entrepreneur and presidential candidate Andrew Yang about the looming upheaval of automation. "We're in the third or fourth inning of the greatest technological and economic transition in human history," he said, "and by the time we get to inning six or seven it's going to be chaos." California Sun Podcast

The arrival of robots at L.A. ports is dividing two blue-collar workforces: highly paid unionized dockworkers, and largely immigrant truckers. L.A. Times

It's November, which means California's fall colors are parading out of the mountains and into the foothills and urban forests. Reports at Californiafallcolor.com showed leaves aglow in Los Angeles, Placerville, and Chico. Which California city rules autumn? According to fall foliage connoisseur John Poimiroo, the honor arguably goes to Sacramento, where early settlers lined the boulevards with elms, oaks, and sycamores to guard against the Central Valley's baking hot summers. California Fall Color

Sacramento's forest canopy is denser than those of Seattle, Boston, Amsterdam, or Paris. California Sun

About 14,000 homes were destroyed in the Camp Fire, which broke out on this day last year. Now a new version of the town of Paradise is emerging — slowly. Just 14 homes have been rebuilt. Fewer than a fifth of the town's 27,000 residents have trickled back, most living in trailers. "We have a beautiful, thriving community," said the town manager. "Smaller than it once was, but very big in spirit." S.F. Chronicle | The Guardian

In the last 20 years, more acres have burned in wine country than in the entire previous half-century. Here are some eye-opening maps. L.A. Times

A paradox of firefighting in California: The state's foothill communities are more likely to face fire danger, but also more likely to vote down measures to bolster their fire departments. That's because many conservative-minded voters are skeptical that higher taxes would help. "More firefighters would not have stopped the Camp Fire," a small town mayor said.  Sacramento Bee

Two men charged with killing a sheriff's deputy in the foothills east of Sacramento were Mexican nationals in the country illegally. At a news conference Thursday, law enforcement officials sharply criticized California's sanctuary laws. "If you get the sense I'm angry today, I am angry," said U.S. Attorney McGregor Scott. "I am angry because we have illegal aliens in an illegal marijuana grow who killed a cop. That is bad." Sacramento Bee | KTXL

The latest fad in Silicon Valley is dopamine fasting. People are setting aside blocks of time do nothing. No music, no exercise, no eating, no screens, no sex. "We're addicted to dopamine," explained an enthusiast. "And because we're getting so much of it all the time, we end up just wanting more and more, so activities that used to be pleasurable now aren't. Frequent stimulation of dopamine gets the brain's baseline higher." N.Y. Times | Inverse

Running shoes? Check. Running goggles? Check.

A woman ran through a swarm of flies on a trail in Monterey County, then found wriggly parasitic worms in her eye. It was only the second known case of eye infestation in humans by Thelazia gulosa in the U.S. It's more common in cattle, whose eyes get infested with larvae transported by flies. Live Science

In a crucial vote, Southern California's regional planning association adopted a housing plan that encourages coastal communities to accommodate more than 1 million new houses over the next decade — more than triple the amount of both Riverside and San Bernardino counties. The decision was a victory for those who say homes should be added near transit and jobs centers, reducing the need for long commutes. L.A. Times | City News Service

This week is the one-year anniversary of the mass shooting at the Borderline Bar & Grill in Thousand Oaks. In May, Kathy and Ken Dunham hired a tattoo artist to ink on their skin the last words their son Jake wrote to them. For Kathy, it was a message from a Mother's Day card, inscribed on her forearm. Ken's tattoo in the same spot quotes the last birthday card Jake gave him.

"He had just turned 21, so we were able to go out together," he recalled. "I got off of work early, so he picked me up. We went and had some beers at some of the brewhouses and just had a good afternoon. That's what this card represents, is that day." L.A. Daily News

One firefighter in Los Angeles earned $360,010 in overtime alone last fiscal year, an audit found. In all, 18 firefighters earned more than $200,000 in overtime. Another finding: A traffic officer put in 3,702 hours of overtime. That means more than 10 hours a day for 365 days. "There is clearly a need for better oversight and regulation to improve staffing," wrote City Controller Ron Galperin. L.A. Times | USA Today

Nike painted the running track at Los Angeles City College in rainbow colors. The track, which is one of the largest permanent rainbow flags in the world, was unveiled on National Coming Out Day last month. Dezeen

Five items that got big views over the past week:

As a student at CalArts in Santa Clarita in the 1970s, photographer Michael Jang carried his camera around campus at all times. His images show young people fully indulging in the freedom of college life. Daily Mail | Vice (Warning: nudity, vomit)

Columnist Steve Lopez, a California treasure, skewered the latest round of pronouncements that the Golden State had become unlivable. L.A. Times

It's not just an urban myth. In-N-Out offers a bunch of secret items that are not shown on the menu. A food writer helpfully ate through the entire secret menu and ranked each item. Thrillist

A writer and photographer took an adventure along the Lost Coast and came back with some dreamy film photos and sound advice. One tip: Don't wear shorts. Field Magazine

A French Gothic revival cathedral, one of the world's largest domes, and the penthouse at the Fairmont San Francisco. Here are San Francisco's 25 most beautiful interiors. Curbed San Francisco

Today's California Sun: A new version of Paradise rises from the ashes, dopamine fasting wins converts in Silicon Valley, and a chat with presidential candidate Andrew Yang.

New version of Paradise // Rise of dopamine fasting 

Good morning. It's Thursday, Nov. 7.
Today's edition: 13 items, < 4 minutes

Supervisor leads vulgar anti-police union chant. 

Chico essentially absorbs a city after Camp Fire.

And floating through the must-see Getty Villa.

Here's a reality check on those pledges from tech giants to help solve California's housing shortage. It costs about $450,000 to build a single unit of subsidized affordable housing in California. That means the $4.5 billion earmarked by Google, Apple, and Facebook would create about 10,000 housing units. California needs 350 times that number — or 3.5 million housing units — by 2025. N.Y. Times

This overview of the housing crisis has fantastic graphics. One tidbit: California ranked No. 7 in housing permits in 1986. By 2018, it was No. 37. Bloomberg

California is on track to miss its climate targets by a century. What went wrong? Despite highly touted declines in emissions from the power sector, transportation emissions have risen steadily since 2013. So have greenhouse gases from landfills, refrigeration, and air conditioning. MIT Technology Review

NASA flew gas detectors over California and found that just a handful of sites are responsible for the bulk of the state's methane emissions. Bloomberg

California's attorney general revealed an 18-month investigation into Facebook's privacy practices and said he was suing the social media giant for failing to cooperate. In his lawsuit, Xavier Becerra said Facebook ignored dozens of questions and requests for documents, including email correspondence between Mark Zuckerberg and Sheryl Sandberg. "The responses we have received to date," he said, "are patently inadequate." N.Y. Times | A.P.

California's teen birth rate has hit a record low and is now the 16th lowest among U.S. states. The drop doesn't appear to be linked to liberal abortion policies. California's rate of abortions is falling too. Instead, experts cited comprehensive sex education and guarantees of confidential access to birth control. The states with the highest teen birth rates: Arkansas, Mississippi, and Oklahoma. CALmatters

In summer, Death Valley is so hot it makes your eyes hurt, as if a hair dryer were blowing in your face. That's why some say winter is the only sane time to enjoy the vast park's extraordinary geology. A drive through the alien landscape along Highway 190, pictured above, takes you below sea level as you descend into the belly of the park. It was included among six must-do road trips to discover California. S.F. Chronicle

One gem not on the list: Route 395, which this site called California's most underrated road trip. Outbound Collective

A San Francisco supervisor led an election night gathering for district attorney candidate Chesa Boudin in chants of "F— the POA! F— the POA! F— the POA!" Supervisor Sandra Lee Fewer, who raised her middle fingers as she chanted, was referring to the city's largest police union, Police Officers Association. "If Chesa wins," an analyst said, "law enforcement and the district attorney's office are going to be at war. It's going to be a very, very bad scene here for a long time." S.F. Chronicle | S.F. Examiner

The race remained undecided, with Suzy Loftus holding a narrow lead over Boudin. S.F. Examiner | KQED

After Paradise was destroyed by a wildfire last year, nearby Chico basically absorbed another city as displaced people filled hotels, slept on friends' couches, and bought up every available home or spare room. They're still there, and officials say the city is strained in myriad ways, from increased traffic to overburdened hospitals. "Our community is completely different than it once was," a local official said, "and it will always be completely different." A.P.

The Kincade Fire is now fully contained. It lasted two weeks, scorched 121 square miles, and destroyed 374 structures. Press Democrat | KGO

The Sacramento County Sheriff's Office released gut-wrenching surveillance video from an officer-involved shooting last month. It starts with a man fighting with his girlfriend. "You got the police called on me," he says at one point. Then he shoots the woman and meets a hail of deputies' gunfire. Both were pronounced dead at the scene. Sacramento Bee | KCRA

San Francisco's Chinatown, the oldest in North America, would be unrecognizable to the immigrants who arrived there in the mid-1800s. After the neighborhood burned to the ground in 1906, it was resurrected as a tourist destination with Edwardian architecture, Pagoda-style flourishes, and narrow alleys. The S.F. Chronicle dug up some fascinating images that captured what life looked like in the first Chinatown. S.F. Chronicle

An 1885 map of Chinatown was color-coded to indicate the vice on offer: gambling dens in pink, opium dens in yellow, and brothels either blue or green depending on the ethnicity of the prostitutes. The map was part of a racist ploy by city officials to push the immigrants out of town. WIRED

Days after its visitors services associates announced a union drive, a Los Angeles art museum fired every one of them. The Marciano Art Foundation — founded by the co-owners of Guess Jeans — delivered the news in a tersely worded email that cited low museum attendance. “This is illegal," a fired employee said. The National Labor Relations Board is investigating. Hollywood Reporter | L.A. Magazine

One morning last July, 800 Marines stood in formation at Camp Pendleton. Fifteen of the men were ordered to stand in a line in front of the battalion "to be recognized." Then someone said, "NCIS, arrest these Marines." The group was handcuffed, paraded one-by-one in front of their peers, and later charged with human smuggling. Now lawyers for the defendants say the theatrical arrests amounted to unlawful command influence, tainting their rights to a fair trial. "This was completely unnecessary and all for show," an attorney said. S.D. Union-Tribune | KGTV

An anti-poverty nonprofit in Los Angeles accused its former head of swindling the organization out of $1.7 million to pay for private tutoring for his children, "lavish" dining and entertainment, partisan political donations, and other unauthorized expenses. The allegations came two weeks after the group closed its doors, eliminating hundreds of jobs and upending services for the poor. L.A. Times | L.A. Daily News

Here's the Getty Villa, a Los Angeles must-see. In the 1970s, when the faux-Roman museum was built by an oil magnate on a bluff overlooking the Pacific, it was derided by some aesthetes as vulgar. But the public liked it. Admitted free of charge, visitors float between indoor galleries and outdoor courtyards. "It may be the only museum in the world where you need sunglasses," the Washington Post once wrote. Timeout

Now on view: Palace art of ancient Iraq. 

Today's California Sun: Supervisor leads vulgar anti-police union chant, Chico essentially absorbs a city after Camp Fire, and floating through the must-see Getty Villa.

Chico forever changed // A Los Angeles must-see

Good morning. It's Wednesday, Nov. 6.
Today's edition: 12 items, < 4 minutes

A nail-biter in the San Francisco district attorney race.

Stanford's real estate takeover of Silicon Valley.

And photos of wild parties at CalArts in the 1970s.

More than two dozen California mayors and county leaders — including the mayors of Sacramento, Oakland, and San Jose — called for PG&E to be replaced by a customer-owned power company. In a letter to state regulators, the coalition said the investor-owned utility was concerned only with short-term financial gain. They also acknowledged that it would cost billions of dollars to improve the electric system. "We're not delusional about the challenges here," said San Jose's mayor. N.Y. Times | KQED

A late start to the rainy season is looking increasingly likely. A report from the National Interagency Fire Center predicted a higher-than-normal chance of major fires in Southern California, and a weather pattern in the north that "favors offshore winds occurring over fuel beds that are primed for burning." L.A. Times | Washington Post

A wildfire in a remote area southwest of Red Bluff has quadrupled in size since Monday, spreading nearly 6 square miles. Record Searchlight | Red Bluff Daily News

This powerful animation shows how California's fire season has gotten hotter and drier over the last century.

PSA: You'll soon be able to cook up that elk you slammed with your car for dinner. A new measure reverses a law that made salvaging roadkill a misdemeanor. Eating roadkill has been quietly going mainstream in the name of sustainability. Each year, about 20,000 deer are killed on California's roads. That's a lot of perfectly good meat. OneZero | The Guardian

Grab a side dish from the forest floor. Northern California is a mushroom lover's paradise and November is peak foraging time. California Sun

It's not just an urban myth. In-N-Out offers a bunch of secret items that are not shown on the menu. There's the lettuce-wrapped burger, root beer float, and paper hats for the kids — or the adults, no shame. A food writer helpfully ate through the entire secret menu and ranked each item. No. 1: Added peppers. Thrillist

San Francisco's closely watched district attorney race was too close to call early Wednesday. Suzy Loftus, a former police commissioner and acolyte of Kamala Harris, had a razor-thin lead over Chesa Boudin, a public defender and son of imprisoned radicals. S.F. Chronicle | S.F. Examiner

In other results: Two affordable housing measures appeared headed toward victory, an e-cigarette ban withstood a challenge, and Mayor London Breed coasted into her first full term. 

The largest property owner in Silicon Valley is not a tech corporation — it's a university. A multi-newsroom investigative project found that Stanford has a staggering $20 billion real estate empire across Santa Clara County. That's more than the holdings of Google, Apple, and Intel combined. "You can drive for miles and still be on Stanford land," a local historian said. Mercury News | KQED

For one Oakland mother, the deadly Halloween night shooting in Orinda added grief upon grief. Cynthia Taylor learned that her son, Raymon Hill Jr., had been fatally shot at the house party. He was the third of her sons to die from gun violence since 2012. "Oh, God," she said between sobs, "I just try and stay strong and do the best I can." S.F. Chronicle

Here's Alpine Lake in Marin County, a lovely sight and also medicine for the soul. Much like green spaces, blue spaces are good for you. A 2013 study that asked 20,000 smartphone users to record their sense of well-being at random intervals found seas, lakes, and rivers to be the happiest places, by a substantial margin. "We find people who visit the coast, for example, at least twice weekly tend to experience better general and mental health," a researcher said. The Guardian

Here are nine Bay Area hikes that end with waterfalls. Curbed San Francisco

At the Kern County jail, suicidal inmates have spent weeks in solitary confinement with no mental health treatment and only yoga mats to sleep on. The suicide rate is nearly double the statewide average. "It’s completely unethical, and counter to clinical evidence for what people need," an expert said. "For any human, that represents punishment and humiliation." ProPublica/Sacramento Bee

In 2012, Jazmyne Eng was a patient at a mental health clinic east of Los Angeles. She had schizophrenia and weighed less than 100 pounds. One day she arrived at the center with a small hammer. Law enforcement was called, and she was shot dead. The family has been seeking answers about what happened for seven years, only to be met by silence. Now they've joined the ACLU in a lawsuit demanding the release of records under a new police transparency law. The Appeal

Passengers have complained about longer wait times after LAX eliminated curbside pickups by Uber, Lyft, and taxis. But columnist Steve Lopez said it's their own fault: "We consider ourselves too good for shuttles or, God forbid, the FlyAway bus," he wrote. "So now we have a billion cars a day inching their way in and out of LAX, and we're ticked off about a problem we helped create." L.A. Times

LAX had an opportunity to promote shared transportation options. It failed. Curbed Los Angeles

"They used to let kids use the school's main lobby to do whatever they wanted."

As student at CalArts in Santa Clarita in the 1970s, photographer Michael Jang carried his camera around campus at all times. His images show young people fully indulging in the freedom of college life. The hair was wild, the parties were hedonistic, and the clothing was optional. Among the students: David Hasselhoff and Michael Richards, above. Daily Mail | Vice (Warning: nudity, vomit)

Michael Jang's early work is currently on view in San Francisco.

Here's how they partied at Fresno State. Flashbak

Today's California Sun: A nail-biter in the San Francisco district attorney race, Stanford's real estate takeover of Silicon Valley, and photos of wild parties at CalArts in the 1970s.

Nail-biter in San Francisco // Debauchery at CalArts

Good morning. It's Tuesday, Nov. 5.
Today's edition: 13 items, < 4 minutes

Fed up conservatives escape to redder states.

Video of heart-stopping rescue on BART tracks.

And the mesmerizing lobbies of Salesforce towers.

In a spectacular case of unintended consequences, California's reproductive rights advocates have helped bankroll anti-abortion activists. In 2015, a new state law required that anti-abortion crisis pregnancy centers tell pregnant women about their abortion rights. Then the Supreme Court overturned it on free speech grounds. That resulted in a $2 million payout to conservative groups fighting to restrict abortion. CALmatters

A poll found that conservative Californians are nearly three times as likely as their liberal counterparts to have seriously considered leaving the state. Citing high taxes and lax immigration policy, Judy Stark and her husband sold their home in Modesto and moved to McKinney, Texas. "We're moving to redder pastures," she said. But even as many Californians go to Texas, a study found that California is a top destination for Texans. L.A. Times

California authorities announced that law enforcement had seized more than $1.5 billion worth of illegally grown marijuana in the state this year. That's roughly equal to the state's entire legal market. Consumers continue to spend more than twice as much on illicit cannabis as they they spend in the legal market. A.P. | Sacramento Bee

The Kern County Sheriff's Office said it destroyed 10 million marijuana plants that were cultivated under the guise of being legal hemp. L.A. Times | Bakersfield Californian

As PG&E’s bankruptcy unfolded earlier this year, the embattled utility increased its spending on lobbying policymakers in California’s Capitol, records showed. Among its pursuits: Approval for new rate hikes. PG&E faces billions of dollars in claims from wildfires linked to its equipment, and has been fined repeatedly for failing to trim trees or invest in brush management. The Intercept | Sacramento Bee

S.D. Union-Tribune editorial: San Diego Gas & Electric "responded to the horrific local blazes of 2007 with a comprehensive fire-safety plan. PG&E responded to disasters by continuing to cut corners on basic safety practices."

It's voting day in numerous California counties. Voters Edge California has a handy look-up tool for the races in your county. And here are quick-and-dirty guides to the contests in Los Angeles and San Francisco counties. LAist | SFist

Surveillance video was released showing the heart-stopping moment a BART supervisor rescued a passenger who stumbled into the path of an oncoming train. "I don't want to see this kid die today," John O'Connor recalled thinking. "God put me there for a reason, right?" East Bay Times | KQED

A manhunt was underway after two inmates awaiting trial for gang killings escaped from a jail in Monterey County. Officials said Santos Fonseca, 21, and Jonathan Salazar, 20, made their getaway after breaking through a bathroom ceiling and shimmying into a crawl space. "Do not approach them, as they are considered dangerous," the sheriff's office said. A.P. | Monterey Herald

Apple outdid Google and Facebook with a monster pledge toward affordable housing in California: $2.5 billion. Most of the money will go toward an affordable housing investment fund and help for first-time home buyers. Apple made more than $55 billion in net profit for its latest fiscal year. N.Y. Times | S.F. Chronicle

Today I learned: There are giant LED screens in the lobbies of the Salesforce East and West towers in downtown San Francisco that create mesmerizing super-high resolution displays. They'll do tributes for occasions like Black History Month or SF Pride, but also swirling patterns, falling water, or teeming forests. Here's a video. Salesforce

A French Gothic revival cathedral, a Macy's bathroom, and the penthouse at the Fairmont San Francisco. Here are San Francisco's 25 most beautiful interiors. Curbed San Francisco

While out trick-or-treating in Long Beach on Halloween, a toddler and his parents were struck by a suspected drunk driver, police said. The father, Joseph Awaida, and 3-year-old Omar died within two days. Then late Sunday, the mother, Raihan Awaida, was taken off life support. A suspect has been arrested. Press-Telegram | L.A. Times

A GoFundMe page is raising money for the family. 

A Southern California woman was hit with an unexpected medical bill for $898,984 after giving birth to a premature baby. Dignity Health said she failed to meet the deadline to add her newborn to its health plan, so she was responsible for the bills. It rejected her appeals — until a journalist started asking questions. ProPublica

Reports said that President Trump planned to restore Navy SEAL Edward Gallagher's rank as chief petty officer, overriding a decision by the Navy's top admiral. Gallagher was charged but acquitted of war crimes in the death of a captured Islamic State fighter in Iraq. He was convicted of posing with a corpse. Navy Times | S.D. Union-Tribune

On this day in 1913, water began pouring through the Los Angeles Aqueduct, making the city of Los Angles as we know it possible. As social critic David Ulin recounted, photographs from the dedication ceremony in Sylmar captured "the apotheosis of the city's creation myth." One shot shows the water gushing into the waiting San Fernando Reservoir, a system that would pump life into a city with fewer people at the time than San Francisco. 

There were men and women in suits and hats and long skirts, clutching American flags. Then there was William Mulholland himself, the legendary engineer who against overwhelming odds spearheaded the 233-mile aqueduct across the blistering Mojave Desert to the Owens River. "This rude platform," he declared, "is an altar, and on it we are here consecrating this water supply and dedicating this aqueduct to you and your children and your children's children — for all time." Then he shouted to the crowd: "There it is. Take it." Boom California | L.A. Times

A sensational swindle drained the Owens Valley to slake the thirst of L.A. But the introduction of vegetation and shallow flooding has brought an unexpected transformation. California Sun (2018)

Today's California Sun: Fed up conservatives escape to redder states, video of heart-stopping rescue on BART tracks, and the mesmerizing lobbies of Salesforce towers.

Conservative flight // Heart-stopping BART rescue

Good morning. It's Monday, Nov. 4.
Today's edition: 15 items, < 5 minutes

Trump threatens to cut aid as fires burn California.

Smuggling gangs easily cut through border wall.

And an emotional tribute to firefighters in Windsor.

In his first significant mention of California's autumn bout of wildfires, President Trump made a vague threat to cut federal aid, saying Gov. Gavin Newsom had "done a terrible job of forest management." The governor responded to Trump in a tweet: "You don't believe in climate change. You are excused from this conversation." Washington Post | S.F. Chronicle

The federal government, which manages 18 national forests in California, is by far the biggest forest landlord in the state. CALmatters

Momentum is building for a public takeover of PG&E.

Newsom: If the utility can't pull itself out of bankruptcy, "then the state will prepare itself as backup for a scenario where we do that job for them.” A.P. | Bloomberg

Rep. Ro Khanna of Fremont: "The public utility is a much better option because you're not having to worry about maximizing shareholder returns and you will make the safety investments that are necessary." HuffPost

Newsom named an "energy czar" to figure out what "a 21st-century utility looks like." NPR

On Nov. 8, 1994, Californians overwhelmingly backed Proposition 187, a ballot initiative that sought to deny certain services to immigrants in the country illegally. It split the psyche of the state. Now  California is a sanctuary state. "What 187 did is spawn a new generation of politicians," said Kevin de León, the former president pro tem of the California Senate. "There's no question about it." L.A. Times

A generation of Latino activists is driving change in California and beyond. Christian Science Monitor

California condors hit a milestone. There are now more than 100 of the vultures, with their apricot-colored heads and 10-foot wingspans, patrolling the skies of Central California. Just 28 years ago, the birds were extinct in the wild, shrunk from a population of thousands across the Pacific Coast. A captive breeding program has kept them from vanishing altogether. Hakai Magazine

More than 4,500 residents gathered in a downtown park in Windsor on Sunday to thank the firefighters who fought the Kincade Fire as it crept right to the edge of town. Not a single home burned in Windsor. "I can't even talk," said one firefighter, choking back tears. "This is overwhelming." Press Democrat

Dungeness crab season kicked off over the weekend. The pink crustacean is so beloved along the Pacific coast that many families substitute it for Thanksgiving turkey. A warning, however: Don't eat their guts. Health officials said the crabs' organs showed high levels of domoic acid, a neurotoxin produced by algae blooms that some researchers have linked to fertilizer runoff and warming waters.  S.F. Chronicle

"Toxic algae is no longer a minor inconvenience, disrupting diners' seafood menus for a few months. It's a neon threat on shores across the country." New Republic

Many Silicon Valley billionaires say they are genuinely trying to give their money away. Yet all but one of the world's 20 wealthiest tech figures saw their net worth grow by billions of dollars in 2019. "It is actually pretty hard to give your fortune away, in a responsible way, without devoting tons of time, tons of study, and tons of staff," explained recode. "As you do this, your assets keep piling up." recode

Airbnb said it would ban "party houses" after a shooting that left five people dead and several others injured during a Bay Area Halloween gathering at one of its short-term rentals. It was billed on social media as a "mansion party." No arrests have been made in the killings, whose victims were between the ages of 19 and 29. Mercury News | A.P.

On the outskirts of Hanford in the San Joaquin Valley, officials said an off-duty law enforcement officer, Ramiro Trevino Jr., fatally shot a police officer and critically wounded his father after they intervened in a fight between Trevino Jr. and his girlfriend. Then he killed himself. YourCentralValley.com | KFSN

A wealthy radio executive owns a prime piece of real estate in the Santa Monica Mountains. It also happens to be perfectly situated to allow helicopters to refill their water tanks as they fight wildfires. So he let the fire department transform the property into a full-fledged water base. The man is reluctant to accept any praise. "Make sure they get the credit," he said of the region's firefighters. L.A. Times

Helicopters working to contain recent fires had to be grounded to avoid drones whose pilots were apparently trying to snap pictures. L.A. Times 

Today's California Sun: Trump threatens to cut aid as fires burn California, smuggling gangs easily cut through border wall, and an emotional tribute to firefighters in Windsor.

Newsletter Archive