Photos of Kobe Bryant Crash Site Cost County $2.5 Million So Far; Sheriff Calls County Vaccine Mandate Threat to Public Safety; In -N-Out Closes Indoor Dining in Contra Costa and Other Stories: Monday Morning Memo

Courts & Rulings

California high court refuses to hear Brad Pitt's appeal in child custody battle

The California Supreme Court on Wednesday refused to consider Brad Pitt's appeal of a lower-court ruling that disqualified the judge in his custody battle with Angelina Jolie. The court denied a review of a June appeals court decision that said the private judge hearing the case should be disqualified for failing to sufficiently disclose his business relationships with Pitt's attorneys.

Los Angeles Times

Sentence of con man who preyed on elderly is affirmed

The Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has upheld the conviction of a Canadian telemarketer who conned more than 80 senior citizens out of funds totaling in excess of half a million dollars by impersonating their grandchildren over the telephone, claiming to be in distress in a foreign nation, and asking for funds to be wired to them.

Metropolitan News-Enterprise

U.S. Supreme Court to consider allowing Republican bid to defend Trump-era immigration rule

The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday agreed to hear a bid by a group of Republican state officials to take over the defense of a hardline immigration rule issued by former President Donald Trump's administration that had barred certain immigrants deemed likely to require government benefits from obtaining legal permanent residency. The justices took up an appeal by 13 Republican state attorneys general led by Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich of a lower court's ruling that rejected their bid to defend Trump's "public charge" rule.

Reuters

A federal appeals court has halted Oklahoma's first planned executions in six years

A federal appeals court has halted Oklahoma's planned executions of John Marion Grant and Julius Jones, ruling that a lower court had "abused its discretion" in removing the men from a federal lawsuit challenging the state's lethal injection protocol and ruling against their injunction request earlier this week. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit on Wednesday granted stays for Grant, 60, and Jones, 41.

The Frontier

US appeals court gives greenlight to NY's vaccine mandate

A federal appeals panel on Friday upheld New York state's vaccine mandate for health care workers, rejecting arguments by lawyers for doctors, nurses and other professionals that it did not adequately protect those with religious objections. The ruling by the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan reversed a decision by an upstate judge who had temporarily blocked vaccination requirements on the grounds that the mandate did not accommodate religious exemptions.

AP

Judge limits new California law protecting vaccination sites

A federal judge has thrown out California's new 30-foot buffer zone designed to restrict protests at coronavirus vaccination sites, though his ruling left in place other parts of a new state law despite arguments that it infringes on free speech. The law that took effect Oct. 8 makes it illegal to come within 30 feet (9.14 meters) of someone at a vaccination site "for the purpose of obstructing, injuring, harassing, intimidating, or interfering with that person."

AP

Venue in harassment case lies where defendant resides

Venue in an action for a civil harassment restraining order lies exclusively in the county of the defendant's residence unless there is a threat of physical injury in some other county, Div. One of the First District Court of Appeal Friday, rejecting the contention that deference must be accorded a Judicial Council form implying that venue alternatively lies in the county where harassment as occurred.

Metropolitan News-Enterprise

Supreme Court won't hear California case involving transgender rights

The Supreme Court is declining to wade into a case involving transgender rights and leaving in place a lower court decision against a Catholic hospital that wouldn't allow a transgender man to have a hysterectomy there. The high court turned away the case Monday without comment, as is typical. Three conservative justices - Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, and Neil Gorsuch - said they would have heard the case.

AP

Judge denies order to groups fighting LAUSD student vaccine mandate

A judge has denied a temporary restraining order sought by two nonprofit groups representing parents of nearly 1,500 Los Angeles Unified students who oppose the LAUSD's student COVID-19 vaccine mandate on grounds such decisions should be left to the state Department of Public Health.

City News Service

U.S. Supreme Court leans toward allowing challenge to Texas abortion law

Two months after letting a near-total ban on abortion in Texas take effect, conservative U.S. Supreme Court justices on Monday signaled they are reconsidering their positions and could let abortion providers pursue a bid to invalidate the law. The court on Sept. 1 declined to halt the law in a 5-4 decision with all but one of its six conservative justices in the majority. During three hours of oral arguments on Monday, at least two of the justices who had allowed the law to be enforced - Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett - appeared to lean toward permitting abortion providers to proceed with their legal challenge.

Reuters

What the Supreme Court's next big gun case means for gun laws across the U.S.

The Supreme Court is taking on its first major Second Amendment case in over a decade: "2008, DC vs. Heller. That was the case that established that Americans can carry a gun for self-defense," Jennifer Mascia says. "And the 2010 case McDonald v. Chicago applied that ruling not just to DC, but to the states. So, the one thing that has not been addressed is - can we carry a gun outside of the home?"

wbur

California judge rules for opioid makers in damages lawsuit

A California judge has ruled for top drug manufacturers as local governments seek billions of dollars to cover their costs from the nation's opioid epidemic. Orange County Superior Court Judge Peter Wilson issued a tentative ruling on Monday that said the governments hadn't proven the pharmaceutical companies used deceptive marketing to increase unnecessary opioid prescriptions and create a public nuisance.

ABC News

Judge Terrell asked to boot deputy PD from acting for prosecution in sentencing matter

A former president of the Association of Deputy District Attorneys is asking Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Michael Terrell to determine if it's ethically permissible for a deputy public defender who is on loan to the District Attorney's Office to be representing the People in a proceeding to determine if the 27-year sentence of a woman who pled no contest to voluntary manslaughter should be shortened.

Metropolitan News-Enterprise

Presiding Judge Eric C. Taylor issues new general order extending certain juvenile deadlines

Presiding Judge Eric C. Taylor today announced a new General Order to extend certain Juvenile deadlines through December 3, 2021. The General Order is issued under the authority granted by Chief Justice Tani G. Cantil-Sakauye. "The Court is seeking to normalize Criminal operations as pandemic trends continue to improve with increased rates of vaccination and public health measures intended to curb virus transmission," Presiding Judge Taylor said.

Superior Court of California, County of Los Angeles Press Release

Los Angeles District Attorney

Beckloff to hear 'Hot Potato' dispute over DA's practices

Coming before Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Mitchell L. Beckloff next week is the issue of whether District Attorney George Gascón acted unlawfully in bringing on board three deputy public defenders who supported his campaign effort, with the petitioner, the Association of Deputy District Attorneys, insisting that the jobs were not validly awarded given that the lawyers had not passed a Civil Service examination.

Metropolitan News Enterprise

District Attorney Gascón announces centralized charge evaluation system for equal justice countywide

Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón announced today the launch of a centralized charge evaluation system to ensure greater consistency and fairness in filing decisions being made by deputy district attorneys working across Los Angeles County. "We're centralizing the decision-making process to ensure that the same conduct leads to similar results regardless of where a crime occurs in Los Angeles County," District Attorney Gascón said. "Consistency in the initial case evaluation and filing is essential to achieving equal justice for all people in our county."

District Attorney's Office News Release

LA County prosecutor who described police as 'barbarians' picked as interim victims bureau chief

Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón has named a former public defender who once described police as "barbarians" as the interim director of the Bureau of Victim Services, drawing criticism from a law enforcement union and a former top prosecutor. Tiffiny Blacknell, hired in January as a special adviser to Gascón, began her new duties Tuesday and will serve while a nationwide search is conducted to select a permanent director.

Orange County Register

Prosecutors

San Jose police officer charged with assault after allegedly punching woman

A San Jose police officer was charged Wednesday with felony assault after allegedly punching a woman in the face while off duty in a road rage incident last summer. The Santa Clara County district attorney charged George Brown, 37, with felony assault under the color of authority and misdemeanor battery and child endangerment. Brown could face prison if convicted, but district attorney officials did not specify a possible sentence.

Los Angeles Times

Andrew Cuomo charged over alleged groping of former aide: source

Disgraced ex-Gov. Andrew Cuomo was charged Thursday with groping a former aide in Albany's Executive Mansion - a crime that could send him to jail for a year if he's convicted. A misdemeanor criminal complaint filed in Albany City Court alleges that Cuomo, 63, "did intentionally, and for no legitimate purpose, forcibly place his hand under the blouse shirt of the victim ... and onto her intimate body part."

New York Post

Los Angeles man charged with impersonating attorney, improperly charging clients

A Lake Balboa man with a prior conviction for unlawful practice of law is set to be arraigned Monday on nine felony counts for allegedly falsely claiming to be a licensed attorney and offering legal services in family law and personal injury cases, along with other legal matters. Efferin Deans, 55, is charged with three felony counts each of grand theft and practicing law without being a member of the State Bar after a prior conviction, two felony counts of preparing false documentary evidence and one felony count of perjury by declaration, according to the District Attorney's Office.

NBC 4 Los Angeles

New York grand jury indicts Robert Durst with second-degree murder in wife's 1982 disappearance

A grand jury in Westchester, New York, on Monday indicted Robert Durst on second-degree murder charges in the disappearance of his first wife, Kathleen, decades after she was last seen and after he was convicted in September of the 2000 murder of friend Susan Berman. Durst faces a charge of murder in the second degree, brought by Westchester County District Attorney Miriam E. Rocah. Rocah's office initially announced they had convened a grand jury to review the charge in late October.

CBS News

Irvine man, 20, charged in attack on flight attendant en route to John Wayne Airport

Federal authorities on Monday charged an Irvine man in an attack last week in which he is accused of punching a flight attendant in the nose aboard a flight from New York to Orange County, an alleged assault that forced the pilot to divert the plane to Denver. Brian Hsu, 20, was arrested at an Irvine home Monday morning, and later appeared in federal court in Santa Ana, where a judge ordered him to report to Colorado later this month to face two charges related to the incident, including one that accuses him of interfering with the crew of American Airlines Flight 976 on Wednesday, Oct. 27.

Press Telegram

San Francisco DA files homicide charges against officer in death of man shot in 2017

A San Francisco police officer has been charged with voluntary manslaughter for shooting a mentally ill and unarmed man in the city's Oceanview neighborhood in 2017, District Attorney Chesa Boudin announced Tuesday.

Officer Kenneth Cha faces the manslaughter count as well as an assault with a deadly weapon charge and enhancements for the shooting of Sean Moore on Jan. 6, 2017. Moore ended up dying in 2020 as a result of his injuries, prosecutors said.

ABC 7 San Francisco

Policy/Legal

Changes to California's youth prison system prove difficult to implement

California sought to reform the juvenile justice system by accommodating young people close to the community in a facility aimed at replacing youth prisons run by the Juvenile Justice Department. If the Los Angeles County experience is a sign, it's harder than expected to make that shift. These changes to the system are the result of Senate Bill 823, signed by Governor Gavin Newsom last year.

California News Times

Amazon drivers get $60M in withheld tips back: FTC

More than 140,000 drivers are getting $60 million in tips that were illegally withheld by Amazon between 2016 and 2019, the Federal Trade Commission said on Tuesday. Earlier this year, the agency sued the tech giant and its subsidiary, Amazon Logistics, alleging the company failed to fully pay tips that drivers in its Amazon Flex program had earned.

Business Insurance

Los Angeles County/City

Villanueva says COVID vaccine mandate for LASD employees is 'imminent threat to public safety'

Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva on Thursday again criticized the COVID-19 vaccine mandate for Sheriff's Department employees, describing the requirement as an "imminent threat to public safety." Villanueva made the remarks during a town hall event after releasing a 340-word statement on the matter. The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors' "vaccination mandate is causing a mass exodus within the Department, which is an absolutely absurd result," the sheriff's statement said. "I have repeatedly stated the dangers to public safety when 20%-30% of my workforce is no longer available to provide service, and those dangers are quickly becoming a reality.

ABC 7 Los Angeles

Eyewitness Newsmakers: How the Port of LA is addressing the backlog (Video)

The Port of Los Angeles continues to face a massive backup of container ships anchored offshore waiting to offload their goods. That has retailers and manufacturers warning about potential shortages at stores during the upcoming holiday season. The port has implemented some measures to try to reduce the backlog, and prioritize the items that are needed most.

ABC 7 Los Angeles

Who will represent you on the LA County Board of Supervisors? With new maps, answer getting closer

Los Angeles County is a step closer to a final map of its projected political boundaries after the county's redistricting commission on Thursday, Oct. 28, approved the final four proposed efforts, in draft form, to redraw supervisorial districts based on the latest Census data. At stake with a new county map are areas that the five current and future County supervisors represent for the next 10 years, voting power in those areas and resources that have traditionally gone to them.

Los Angeles Daily News

L.A. Times and LAPD ignore the realities of crime in the city

It would be comical if the results weren't so deadly and far-reaching.

A story in Sunday's Los Angeles Times ran under the headline, "Inside an LAPD crime briefing: Homicides, 'hood days' and the 'compounding' violence." Maybe, just maybe, I thought as I started reading, we'll finally get some honest talk about crime in the L.A. Times. Silly me.

PJ Media

Only 42% of Los Angeles Sheriff's Deputies vaccinated despite month-old mandate, while LAPD rate is 85%

Los Angeles Sheriff Alex Villanueva revealed today that only 42.8% of his department's sworn deputies have been vaccinated against the virus that causes Covid-19. Countywide, 72% of eligible residents aged 12 and over are fully vaccinated. The rest of the LASD's roughly 16,000 employees, made up of professional civilian staff, have a vaccination rate of 67.2%. And this is in the face of a policy mandated by the L.A. County Board of Supervisors - whose rules and ordinances the LASD is supposed to enforce.

Deadline

L.A. County approves settlement with 2 families in Calabasas helicopter crash that killed Kobe Bryant, 8 others

The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday approved a settlement totaling $2.5 million for two families involved in the January 2020 helicopter crash that killed Lakers legend Kobe Bryant, his daughter Gianna, and seven others in Calabasas. The proposal will pay $1.25 million each to the Altobelli and Mauser families. Christina Mauser, John Altobelli, his wife Keri and 14-year-old daughter Alyssa were all killed when the helicopter crashed in the hills west of Los Angeles amid foggy weather.

KTLA 5 Los Angeles

LA County OKs $2.15 million to man held pretrial for more than 12 years

The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday, Nov. 2, approved a $2.15 million settlement with a man held in a state mental hospital for more than 12 years while awaiting trial on the question of whether he should be committed as a sexually violent predator. In 2019, a trial judge dismissed a longstanding petition to have Rodrigo DeCasas committed under civil law, finding that DeCasas was deprived of his due process right to a speedy trial. The 2nd District Court of Appeal affirmed that decision in 2020.

City News Service

County Board authorizes $10 million in city funding for interim housing

The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors today approved $10 million in funding for cities and local Councils of Governments who need help paying for supportive services at interim housing sites. Supervisors Hilda Solis and Kathryn Barger co-authored the motion recommending the fund. ``Local jurisdictions have proven that they are active partners in finding a solution to homelessness," Solis said.

KFI AM

L.A. officials won't immediately cite or fine businesses that violate vaccine mandate rules

Los Angeles city officials are set to implement some of the nation's strictest COVID-19 vaccine verification rules next week, but they don't plan to immediately cite or fine those who run afoul of the new regulations. While crackdowns in the Bay Area against In-N-Out Burger generate national headlines, L.A. officials plan to start with educational and outreach efforts, rather than immediately penalize businesses when rules go into effect Monday.

KTLA 5 Los Angeles

Trial begins for L.A. County deputy accused of manslaughter in 2016 shooting

When Los Angeles County Sheriff's Deputy Luke Liu opened fire on a vehicle in Norwalk in February 2016, the shots didn't reverberate far beyond the parking lot where he drew his weapon. There were no protests in the wake of Francisco Garcia's death that evening. No public demands for prosecutors to intervene. No dramatic video to stoke debate about Liu's deadly decision.

Los Angeles Times

Crime/Public Safety

LAPD facing rise in violent suspects, hostage situations

"There are a lot of crazy people out there.'' An observation that is sad, but true. That observation came from barber Daniel Tanner in downtown Los Angeles. His business sits just around the corner from - where earlier this month - the LAPD forced entry into an apartment and a SWAT team member shot and killed a violent gunman who had taken a random woman hostage.

Fox 11 Los Angeles

San Jose retailers won't risk stopping shoplifters

While shopping at TJ Maxx, San Jose resident Ann Wang watched as a shoplifter walked brazenly out of the store. No one tried to stop him. "This guy walked up to a shelf with purses for sale and grabbed 4 or 5 and walked out of TJ Maxx and hopped into the car and he and his accomplice sped off," Wang wrote in a Nextdoor neighborhood post. "Only me and one other person witnessed this."

San Jose Spotlight

Rapper Fetty Wap arrested by FBI on federal drug charges

Rapper Fetty Wap was arrested Thursday night by the FBI on federal drug charges, a senior law enforcement official said. Fetty Wap, 30, whose legal name is Willie Junior Maxwell II, pleaded not guilty and was ordered held without bail at a virtual hearing on Friday, The Associated Press reported. An attorney listed for him, Elizabeth Macedonio, did not immediately return a request for comment Friday evening.

NBC News

USC admits to 'troubling delay' in warning about fraternity drugging, sex assault reports

USC acknowledged Friday a "troubling delay" in warning the campus community about allegations of drugging and sexual assault by a fraternity last month as a rare faculty protest added to mounting criticism about the university's handling of the crisis. In a message to the campus community Friday night, USC President Carol Folt said that a university confidential reporting program received five to seven disclosures of possible drugging and possible sexual assault at a fraternity in late September.

Los Angeles Times

1 killed, 3 injured in shooting at California city council member's home

One person was killed and three others were injured in a shooting at the home of a city official in California, where an outdoor party was taking place early Saturday, police said. A man was pronounced dead at the home of Gilroy City Council Member Rebeca Armendariz, and the three survivors were hospitalized, two with "life-threatening injuries," the Gilroy Police Department said in a statement.

NBC News

California/National

New York judge's gun permit denials trigger big Supreme Court case

Justice Richard McNally Jr., a New York state trial court judge, knows he has a reputation among gun enthusiasts in the upstate county of Rensselaer where he presides as a tough sell on granting permits for people to carry concealed handguns without restrictions. McNally insists that in each case he applies the standard as written in a 1913 New York law that limits concealed-carry licenses to people who can show a "proper cause" for having one.

Reuters

San Antonio claims immunity from suit over Chick-fil-A rejection

The Texas Supreme Court heard arguments Thursday in a case against the city of San Antonio over its decision to deny an application for a Chick-fil-A restaurant inside its international airport. Five area residents who filed the lawsuit claim the city violated a new state law enacted after it blocked the fast-food chain - whose founder is an outspoken opponent of same-sex marriage - from opening a new location at the airport. The city, meanwhile, argues sovereign immunity shields it from being sued.

Courthouse News Service

In-N-Out Burger closes all of its Contra Costa County indoor dining rooms over local vaccine mandates

In-N-Out Burger has closed all five of its dining rooms in Contra Costa County over the restaurant chain's refusal to comply with local health mandates requiring patrons to show proof of their vaccination status. The county's vaccine mandate requires employees to check customers' vaccination status before they can be seated at an indoor dining room. The burger chain says it will sidestep the issue and stop serving patrons indoors at five county restaurants and only serve food for takeout and at the drive-through window.

Los Angeles Times

Column: The sexually violent predator next door

Lawtis Donald Rhoden sexually assaulted a 13-year-old girl in Florida in 1969 and was sentenced to 12 years in prison. When he got out - but while still on parole - he came to California, where he sexually assaulted three more underage girls, separately, luring them each into his car by posing as a fashion photographer. Then, while he was being investigated for those crimes, he traveled to Nashville and attacked another 13-year-old girl. He was convicted of rape in both California and Tennessee and sent back to prison for two more decades.

Los Angeles Times

Safeway the latest San Francisco chain store to reduce hours over crime wave

A Safeway supermarket in the Castro District of San Francisco just announced that it would be going from a 24/7 operation to closing early at 9 PM in an effort to deter shoplifters, becoming the latest chain store to make drastic changes in the city's current retail crime wave. According to a Safeway spokeswoman, the store will also be removing self-checkout lines as well as other operational changes due to the thefts.

California Globe

Consumer

Consumer alert issued in California for illegal edibles packaged to look like popular snacks

California Attorney General Rob Bonta issued a consumer alert Thursday about illegal, potent cannabis edibles for sale that are being packaged to look like snack and candy brands that are popular with children and teens. The edibles are being sold online and at California unlicensed shops and often contain levels of THC, the main intoxicating chemical in cannabis, that are many times higher than the legal limit or contain highly toxic synthetic cannabinoids, Bonta said.

KTLA 5 Los Angeles

Google issues warning for 2 billion Chrome users

Chrome's 2.6 billion users again need to be on high alert (for the fourth

time this month). Google has confirmed multiple new High-level hacks of the browser, and they are an immediate threat. Following confirmation of five serious vulnerabilities last week, Google has published a new blog post

revealing a further seven 'High' rated vulnerabilities have now been found in Chrome. These include Chrome's 14th and 15th 'zero-day' hacks this year and Linux, macOS and Windows users are all affected.

Forbes

Amazon makes it easier for consumers to complain about faulty products from third-party vendors

The company updated its long-standing returns policy (also known as the A-to -Z guarantee) on Tuesday to address product defect claims. Amazon will connect consumers with sellers starting Sept. 1 if they have a claim for personal injury or property damages. Buyers are advised to contact the seller if they have any questions. Amazon is mostly left out of this process.

EINPresswire

Convictions/Sentences/Pleas

Security guard sentenced to 21 years for killing customer over fight about face mask

A man who worked as a security guard has been sentenced to 21 years in state prison for killing a customer who entered a Gardena market without a face mask. Umeir Corniche Hawkins, 39, of Gardena, pleaded no contest to voluntary manslaughter for the July 5, 2020, shooting death of Jerry Lewis, according to Greg Risling of the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office.

NBC 4 Los Angeles

Two Capitol rioters get probation, skirting prison recommendations

A repentant Capitol rioter earned kind words and a sentence of probation Friday from the chief federal judge for the District of Columbia. "I am ashamed. I am sorry," Leonard Gruppo, a decorated Army veteran from Texas, said in court this afternoon. "I shouldn't have been there. It was a huge mistake. I let down so many people. Everybody. Capitol police. My congressional leaders. Presidents. Both presidents. Family. Friends. Employers."

Courthouse News Service

Second state worker pleads guilty in California Office of AIDS fraud scandal

A second state worker has pleaded guilty in connection with a $2 million fraud case involving the California Office of AIDS and will cooperate with prosecutors, authorities said. Christine Iwamoto, 47, a former manager inside the California Department of Public Health, was charged in federal court in Sacramento earlier this month with wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering, and a plea agreement filed in court Thursday says she agreed to plead guilty and pay restitution of up to $600,000.

Sacramento Bee

Former OC deputy pleads guilty in false police report case

A former Orange County sheriff's deputy pleaded guilty Friday to filing a false police report as part of the evidence booking scandal. Edwin Morales Mora, 45, pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor count of filing a false police report in a plea deal offered by Orange County Superior Court Judge Scott Steiner, who place Mora on a year of informal probation.

mynewsLA.com

Pasadena man sentenced to more than 16 years in kidnapping of luxury car dealer

A Pasadena man was sentenced Friday to a lengthy federal prison term for his role in a 2018 kidnapping plot that turned fatal. Anthony Valladares, 29, will spend 16 years and 3 months in prison, said the U.S. attorney's office for the Central District of California. At the hearing, U.S. District Judge Fernando M. Olguin said Valladares and his co-conspirators committed a "horrendous crime" when they abducted the victim, eventually resulting in his death.

Los Angeles Times

Las Vegas man convicted of murder, DUI for initiating chain reaction crash that killed 25-year-old mother

A Las Vegas man was convicted today of second-degree murder for initiating a chain reaction crash while driving under the influence in 2018 that killed a 25-year-old woman, fractured her infant's skull, and seriously injured four others. Irving Abel Aguilar-Calixto, 25, of Las Vegas, was found guilty by a jury of one felony count of second-degree murder, one felony count of driving under the influence of alcohol causing injury, and five felony enhancements of inflicting great bodily injury.

Orange County District Attorney Press Release

Corrections & Parole

New California group forms to aid inmates' return to society

The most populous U.S. state not surprisingly has the most people being released from its prisons and jails. And now it has what organizers said Thursday is the nation's first statewide coordinated effort to help them reintegrate back into the community. The newly formed Re-Entry Providers Association of California includes some of the state's largest reentry service providers who plan to jointly lobby state and local government officials on behalf of former prisoners.

AP

Inmate who walked away from San Diego prison program found

State and federal officers Tuesday captured a convict who fled a Barrio Logan halfway house last week, authorities said. Investigators with the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and the U.S. Marshals Service arrested Antonio Antunez Jr., 28, without incident in Mission Valley shortly after 8:30 a.m., according to CDCR public affairs.

Fox 5 San Diego

US prisons face staff shortages as officers quit amid COVID

Staff shortages have long been a challenge for prison agencies, given the low pay and grueling nature of the work. But the coronavirus pandemic - and its impact on the labor market - has pushed many corrections systems into crisis. Officers are retiring and quitting in droves, while officials struggle to recruit new employees. And some prisons whose prisoner populations dropped during the pandemic have seen their numbers rise again, exacerbating the problem.

Sacramento Bee

Articles of Interest

Daylight saving time ends soon: Why California still observes the time change

In 2018, California voters tired of changing their clocks twice each year approved Proposition 7, a ballot measure that was seen as a first step toward keeping the state on permanent daylight saving time. Fast forward nearly three years and, yet again, Californians - like nearly everyone else in the country - are preparing for early nightfall when we fall back an hour on Sunday, Nov. 7. Under Prop 7, the California Legislature could move to keep the state daylight saving time, provided it reached a two-thirds vote.

KTLA 5 Los Angeles

White House press secretary Psaki says she has Covid-19

White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Sunday she has contracted COVID-19 and is experiencing mild symptoms. Psaki, 42, said she was last in contact with President Joe Biden on Tuesday, when she met him in the White House, where they were more than 6 feet apart and wearing masks. Biden, who is tested frequently, last tested negative on Saturday, according to the White House.

Courthouse News Service

Ontario International Airport celebrates five years of local ownership

Five years ago to this day, leaders of the City of Ontario and San Bernardino County thankfully accepted ownership of Ontario International Airport and proclaimed that ONT would become a vital economic engine for the region and a safe and secure aviation gateway for millions of air travelers. Those who believed ONT could be a viable alternative for commercial air service in the greater Los Angeles region were proven right. Airlines added new flights and destinations.

OIA Press Release

PG&E faces federal probe in Dixie Fire, estimates $1.15 billion in losses from the blaze

Federal prosecutors have demanded records from California's largest public utility related to its handling of the Dixie Fire, which became the second-largest wildfire in the state's history and is expected to cost the utility $1.15 billion, the company said in a filing Monday. The U.S. attorney's office in Sacramento served Pacific Gas & Electric a subpoena for the documents Oct. 7, the company said Monday in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission - days after the Dixie Fire, which consumed nearly 1 million acres for more than three months, was fully contained last week.

Washington Post

New image helps solve 'Jetpack Man' mystery (Video)

The LAPD released an image of the jetpack man seen over LAX. Eric Leonard reports for the NBC4 News on Monday, Nov. 1, 2021.

NBC 4 Los Angeles

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