PG&E’s five years of felony probation ends next week. The supervising judge, William Alsup, on Wednesday offered some parting thoughts on a company that he said learned nothing, failed to voluntarily own up to its crimes, and remained a “continuing menace” to California: “While on probation, PG&E has set at least 31 wildfires, burned nearly one and one-half million acres, burned 23,956 structures, and killed 113 Californians.” Bloomberg | ABC10

Mercury News editorial: “It’s time to pull the plug on PG&E. Its repeated deadly destruction in Northern California is unacceptable.”

House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy has cast himself as a leader in the GOP movement to rein in Big Tech. But Silicon Valley isn’t quivering in fear. That’s because behind closed doors the Bakersfield Republican has acknowledged that his anti-Big Tech rhetoric is essentially for show, lobbyists say. “McCarthy is reflecting what his caucus does to fundraise and motivate base voters,” said Steve DelBianco, of the tech trade group NetChoice. Politico

Across California’s public school system, coronavirus policies vary from district to district. Some have already imposed vaccine mandates stricter than those planned by the state. Others are vehemently opposed to any mandate. Yvonne Maldonado, a professor of pediatrics, said it all makes little sense: “There is no way you can come up with an argument where a patchwork approach to anything is going to be helpful for public health.”

CalMatters contacted all 940 public school districts in California to create a database of Covid-19 vaccine requirements. Find your district.

“We didn’t work within the confines of walls or sit hunched behind desks; we just packed up our tiny shelters, placed them upon our backs, and hiked into the mountains to complete our simple and honest tasks. We would’ve been the envy of kings, if only they knew.”

Bailey Diemer, a college student and aspiring photographer, spent last summer as a forest ranger intern in the John Muir Wilderness. His photo essay, shot on 35mm film, makes a persuasive case for the simple life. Field Magazine

California’s attorney general on Wednesday announced a civil rights investigation into the office of Santa Clara County Sheriff Laurie Smith, who has been accused of allowing jail brutality to flourish and trading gun permits for political favors. “There are deeply concerning allegations around potentially pervasive misconduct within the sheriff’s office,” Attorney General Rob Bonta said. “It is time that truth comes to light.” Courthouse News Service | A.P.

San Francisco Mayor London Breed escalated her campaign against street crime on Tuesday, filing a ballot measure that would broaden police access to surveillance cameras throughout the city. The move was inspired by flash-mob-style robberies in San Francisco in November. “When there were multiple robberies hitting multiple stores they couldn’t even access those cameras,” Breed said. Privacy advocates said the mayor was laying the groundwork for a surveillance state. KRON | S.F. Chronicle

One of California’s most eccentric restaurants is no more after its lease was canceled. Russian House #1 opened six years ago in the coastal hamlet of Jenner, 20 miles west of Santa Rosa, with no menu, no prices, and a staff of unpaid volunteers. Some diners paid nothing; others left $100 for only borscht and tea. For many customers, it was more than a restaurant, but a place of inspiration and even lives transformed. The Washington Post published a tribute to a place “unlike any other restaurant in the country.”

Big-haired wives gathered for a Tupperware party. A dad clutching his evening cocktail. A kid on a Big Wheel, toy rifle at the ready.

In 1972, Bill Owens was a news photographer for The Livermore Independent in the Bay Area. In his off hours, he embarked on a sort of anthropological project: a visual record of the middle-class dream in the 1970s Bay Area. The result, “Suburbia,” still fascinates 50 years later. Huck magazine

See collections of Owens’ work at BillOwens.com and the Nelson Atkins Museum of Art.

On Dec. 29, 2019, a Tesla Model S on Autopilot ran a red light and crashed into a Honda Civic, killing two people. The driver now faces what is believed to be the first felony prosecution in the U.S. of a motorist accused of causing a death while using a driver-assist system. Alain Kornhauser, a self-driving car expert, said the case is a wake-up call: “Just like when I was driving a ’55 Chevy — I’m the one that’s responsible for making sure that it stays between the white lines.” L.A. Times | A.P.

In October, USC halted fraternity parties after multiple allegations of drugging and sexual assault at a chapter house. Four months later, campus authorities said the parties can now resume, but only if hired security guards are posted at stairs or hallways leading to bedrooms to prevent sexual assaults. L.A. Times

In an impressive feat of investigative journalism, Yvette Cabrera collected 1,600 soil samples over a span of seven years to tell the story of industrial pollution in one of Santa Ana’s poorest neighborhoods. She found pervasive lead contamination at levels known to harm children and babies. Sammy Roth, an environmental reporter at the L.A. Times, called Cabrera’s report one of the best pieces of journalism he’d ever read. Grist

A man died while free-soloing in Joshua Tree over the weekend, officials said. Michael Spitz, a 35-year-old Spanish teacher from San Diego, was climbing a popular rock formation without a rope when he apparently fell on Sunday, officials said. His body wasn’t found until the next morning. A friend, Brian Gillette, said Spitz had ascended the route comfortably many times before. “There was nothing that’s unusual about it other than that this time he slipped.” Desert Sun | Patch