California

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Mad Cow Disease Shows Up in California

Authorities say food chain is safe

(Newser) - For the first time since 2006, US officials have confirmed a new case of mad cow disease, this time in California. The dairy cow's illness was detected during routine testing at a rendering plant by the USDA. None of the affected cow's meat got into human food, the...

California to Vote on Death Penalty

Repeal measure makes it onto November ballot

(Newser) - Voters in California, home to nearly a quarter of America's death row inmates, will decide on abolishing the death penalty this November. A ballot measure on repealing the death penalty has received the necessary 500,000 signatures, reports the Los Angeles Times . The measure would make life imprisonment without...

Astronomers: Meteor Caused Calif., Nevada Explosion

It rattled windows from Sacramento to Reno yesterday morning

(Newser) - No need to panic: That loud explosion heard early yesterday morning around large parts of California and Nevada? It was likely just a ... meteor, say astronomers. The mysterious explosion rattled windows and shook houses from Sacramento to Reno, causing residents throughout the region to phone police. Some people also reported...

UC Davis Head Cop Quits Over Pepper-Spray Mess

Annette Spicuzza steps down after report slams department

(Newser) - The UC Davis police chief whose officers pepper-sprayed seated protesters late last year has quit following a campus task force report criticizing her "dysfunctional" department's handling of the incident . "As the university does not want this incident to be its defining moment, nor do I wish for...

Prime Sign of California Waste: Kangaroo Report

And Gov. Jerry Brown wants it, 717 other reports, eliminated

(Newser) - If Gov. Jerry Brown has his way, California's lawmakers will soon find themselves much less informed about pertinent topics like Australia's annual kangaroo harvest and the DOT's use of waste tires. Brown ordered that state agencies and departments be audited at the end of last year, and...

Loyal Lab Sticks With Dog Pal Hit by Car

Shelter saves 'Grace,' seeking home

(Newser) - Doggone it, that's loyalty. A faithful black Labrador braved whizzing traffic to stick with a pal fatally hit by a car on a busy boulevard in Los Angeles County. A good Samaritan placed traffic cones to protect the dogs and took a cell-phone video of the arresting sight, and...

Much of US Choked by Drought

61% of lower 48 suffering drought-like conditions

(Newser) - Last year, dry conditions cost Southern farmers some $10 billion, and once again, things are looking bleak. Some 61% of the lower 48 states is experiencing drought or "abnormally dry" weather—the biggest proportion of the country since September 2007, USA Today reports. Just two states have completely escaped...

Lucasfilm Pulls Plug on 'Evil Empire' Studio Complex

The empire strikes back

(Newser) - A fed-up George Lucas has pulled the plug on a digital studio development plan that Northern California neighbors treated like a plot by an "evil empire." Now Lucasfilm hopes to sell the Grady Ranch site next to Skywalker Ranch in Marin County to a developer for low-income housing....

Bear Moves Into LA &#39;Burbs
 Bear Moves Into LA 'Burbs 
Apr 11, 2012 12:29 AM CDT

Bear Moves Into LA 'Burbs

Oblivious texter nearly walks into new neighbor

(Newser) - There goes the neighborhood. A black bear apparently sick of roughing it in the wilds of California decided to check out a suburb 10 miles north of Los Angeles in the Verdugo Mountains area. The bear was spotted lounging on a lawn before investigating several backyards, shooting him to the...

'Toxin-Free' Nail Salon Products Still Have Toxins

Findings pose threat to salon workers, says study

(Newser) - The labels say they're free of toxic chemicals—but certain products in nail salons could be dangerous for workers, a California report finds. Investigators are raising concern about the so-called "toxic trio" of formaldehyde, toluene, and dibutyl phthalate, which have been associated with cancer and birth defects, the...

Fukushima Radiation Found in California Kelp

'It's not a good thing,' says researcher

(Newser) - A major fallout from Japan's Fukushima nuclear plant disaster has hit the coast of California, according to scientists. Radioactive iodine was found in giant kelp beds off Laguna Beach to Santa Cruz within a month of the meltdown, reports the Los Angeles Times . The radiation "represents a significant...

Battling the Death Penalty: Two Men Who Fought for It
Battling the Death Penalty:
Two Who Fought for It
'a colossal failure'
Apr 7, 2012 3:31 PM CDT

Battling the Death Penalty: Two Who Fought for It

Ron Briggs and Donald Heller wish they could undo Proposition 7

(Newser) - Californians will soon consider an initiative to repeal the state's death penalty. Two of its biggest backers? The men who successfully championed the expansion of California's death penalty 34 years ago, the New York Times reports. Ron Briggs, now a farmer and Republican county official, ran the campaign...

'Painter of Light' Thomas Kinkade Dead at 54

His sentimental works are generally hated by critics, loved by the public

(Newser) - America's best-selling artist Thomas Kinkade died unexpectedly yesterday in his California home at age 54, reports the San Jose Mercury News . The family said the death appeared to be of natural causes, but authorities will not know officially for a few days. "Thom provided a wonderful life for...

Suspected Teen Rape Victim Jailed

'She's a victim, not a criminal,' says her lawyer

(Newser) - A 17-year-old suspected rape victim is being held in a California juvenile detention facility to ensure that she'll show up to testify against her attacker. She failed to turn up at a preliminary hearing for her suspected assailant, forcing prosecutors to refile the case. “The last thing we...

Judge Tosses Happy Meals Lawsuit

Mom, health activists want toys out of fatty kids meals

(Newser) - California kids still have the right to chow down on Happy Meals. A San Francisco judge has tossed out a class-action lawsuit that aimed to block Happy Meal sales in the state. The suit claimed McDonald's was violating consumer protection laws by using toys to lure children to eat...

Sheriff's Captain Took Inmate Golfing

Jeff Donahue just wanted help with his swing, OK?

(Newser) - Frank Carrillo is a total sports guy. He was a pro golfer. Then he started stealing cash and Rolexes from golf courses. Then he swiped a World Series championship ring at a golf event. So it makes complete sense that while in prison for these crimes he was whisked to...

Hate Crime Doubted in Iraqi Woman's Killing

Shaima Alawadi's family was in turmoil, Calif. records show

(Newser) - The brutal beating death of an Iraqi woman in California last month may not have been a hate crime at all, reports the San Diego Union-Tribune in a detailed look at search warrant records. Shaima Alawadi, 32, was planning to divorce husband Kassim Alhimidi and move to Texas, where her...

New Manson Pics Bared in Time for Parole Hearing

He's no model prisoner

(Newser) - Photos of a clearly elderly, cloudy-eyed Charles Manson have been released by California prison officials one week before the notorious killing mastermind's parole hearing. The photos, taken last summer and provided to CNN , show a startlingly more frail Manson, 77, with long gray hair and a beard, the Nazi...

George Lucas' Neighbors Strike Back at Vast Plans

Lucasfilm says production facility won't stick out, but residents worried

(Newser) - George Lucas has big dreams for his Lucas Valley estate—unfortunately, he's also facing big opposition from hundreds of his neighbors, who say his plans for a 263,701-square-foot production complex will ruin their quiet community, reports the San Francisco Examiner . "It will be bringing a lot of...

30 Students Pepper-Sprayed in Santa Monica

They chanted against cuts and fees outside trustees meeting

(Newser) - At least 30 Santa Monica College students were pepper-sprayed when they chanted outside a trustees meeting last night to protest budget cuts and fee hikes. "I got pepper-sprayed with no warning," said one student, 21, who had been standing in a hallway outside the meeting. A college spokesman,...

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