California

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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,...

Calif. School Shooter Was After Absent Administrator

He had a grudge against school, police say

(Newser) - One L. Goh arrived at the Oikos University yesterday hoping to kill a specific female administrator, only to discover that she wasn't there, police said today. "We've learned that the suspect was upset with the administration," Oakland's police chief told Good Morning America . "He...

Calif. Gunman: 'Get in Line, I'm Going to Kill You All'

One L. Goh, 43, identified as suspected shooter at Oikos University

(Newser) - The suspected shooter accused of killing seven people on a Christian college campus in Oakland, one of the worst mass killings in California's history, has been identified as 43-year-old One L. Goh, a naturalized citizen from Korea, the Los Angeles Times reports. Goh was upset after having been dismissed...

California Court Upholds Affirmative Action Ban, Again

Challenge to voter-approved ban rejected

(Newser) - California's 16-year-old ban on affirmative action in the state university system has been reaffirmed by an appeals court. Proposition 209, which was passed by the state's voters in 1996 and upheld after a court challenge in 1997, bans public school from basing admissions on race or sex. Its...

Feds Raid California Medical Pot University

...armed with sledge hammer, power saws

(Newser) - A small army of feds yesterday raided California's only "medical marijuana university" in Oakland. Two of a mob of protesters who descended on the school—many of them smoking dope—were busted by cops as federal agents swarmed Oaksterdam , a college dedicated to training people how to grow...

5 Hurt in Shooting at Calif. Christian School
 7 Dead in Calif. 
 School Shooting 
UPDATED
Apr 2, 2012 5:18 PM CDT

7 Dead in Calif. School Shooting

Three injured; suspect has been detained

(Newser) - A gunman opened fire at a Christian university in California today, killing at least seven people and wounding three more, before being captured in a nearby city, authorities said. The gunfire erupted around midmorning at Oikos University in Oakland, police said. Television footage showed heavily armed officers swarming the building...

Sailors Rescued in Round-the-World Yacht Race

Boat limping to SF after Pacific wave injures crew members

(Newser) - Two injured sailors have been rescued after a "monstrous foaming swell" washed over an Australian boat participating in a 10-team round-the-world yacht race. Two others in the 18-person crew also seriously hurt were still on board yesterday off the coast of California. The Geraldton Western Australia is expected to...

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