California

Bill promotes violence-awareness in Calif. schools

By: Associated Press 05/16/13 6:27 PM

The state Senate approved a bill on Thursday that would require education officials to create lesson plans about violence in American culture — the Legislature's latest reaction to mass shootings last year elsewhere in the nation. Under SB552, individual schools could decide whether to include the lessons in curriculum. Read More

Mom: Accused boy, 12, 'could never' hurt sister

By: The Associated Press 05/12/13 9:38 AM

VALLEY SPRINGS — A day before a 12-year-old boy was arrested for the stabbing death of his 8-year-old sister, his mother described him as "protective" of his younger sibling. Leila Fowler's killing last month shook the quiet community of Valley Springs, southeast of Sacramento, and set off an intense manhunt. Her brother was in the home at the time and told police he saw a man run from the scene. Read More

Calif. objects to moving inmates because of fungus

By: Associated Press 05/06/13 9:03 PM

It is premature to move more than 3,000 inmates out of two state prisons until more is known about an airborne fungus that is being blamed for nearly three-dozen inmate deaths and hundreds of hospitalizations, Gov. Jerry Brown's administration said in a court filing Monday night. Read More

New three-strikes law varies by county

By: Associated Press 05/02/13 10:09 PM

Majorities in every California county voted last fall to scale back the state’s three-strikes law so thousands of inmates serving life sentences for relatively minor third offenses would have the chance to be set free. Five months later, there is no such unanimity among counties when it comes to carrying out the voters’ wishes. Read More

Bad news: Calif. snowpack 17 percent of normal

By: Associated Press 05/02/13 8:36 PM

The man in charge of surveying California's snowpack to measure the amount of water that will flow into storage reservoirs over the next few months had bad news Thursday. "I'm finding nothing. Seriously, there is no snow on the course at all," said Frank Gehrke, chief surveyor for the Department of Water Resources. Read More

Governor signs bill to speed up gun seizures

By: Associated Press 05/01/13 10:46 PM

SACRAMENTO Gov. Read More

Police check possible link to Calif. girl's death

By: Associated Press 04/30/13 11:33 PM

PLACERVILLE, Calif. (AP) — Police were trying to determine if there's a link between a man accused of breaking into an apartment in Placerville and trying to kidnap a toddler, and the killing of an 8-year-old girl about 45 miles away in Calaveras County, a newspaper reported Tuesday. Read More

Bills would expand Yosemite National Park slightly

By: The Associated Press 04/23/13 6:34 PM

SACRAMENTO — More than a century ago John Muir argued that Congress should include a wildlife corridor with stunning vistas of the Merced River in the boundaries of Yosemite National Park. He lost to timber interests. Read More

Settlement reached in high-speed rail lawsuit

By: The Associated Press 04/18/13 7:44 PM

SACRAMENTO — The California agency overseeing the state's effort to build the nation's first high-speed rail line received a boost Thursday when a judge approved a settlement in a major lawsuit that sought to block the project. However, the rail authority also faced a setback that could delay work and add to the project's soaring costs. Read More

Building California’s economy by deepening understanding of China

By: Florence Fang and Chris Cooper 04/16/13 9:13 PM

During his visit to China, Gov. Jerry Brown promoted investment opportunities in industries such as clean energy, infrastructure and alternative-fuel vehicles that have the potential to remake California’s economy for decades. Yet another initiative he highlighted might prove to be more far-reaching — an investment in the capacity of Californians to understand and directly connect with the people now building China’s economy. Read More