CaliNews

GOP pushes discredited Ukraine meddling theories

By CaliNews 48 mins ago

By Hope Yen and Calvin Woodward | Associated Press WASHINGTON — Congressional Republicans pressed the discredited theory that Ukraine meddled in the 2016 U.S. election in defending President Donald Trump in Wednesday’s impeachment hearings. A look at some of the remarks in the House Intelligence Committee proceeding: REP. DEVIN NUNES, top Republican on the committee: “The Democrats cooperated in Ukrainian election meddling. … Officials showed a surprising lack of interest in the indications of Ukrainian election meddling that deeply concerned the president at whose pleasure they serve.” THE FACTS: The theory that Ukrainians interfered in the U.S. election and that Democrats cooperated in that effort is unsubstantiated. If U.S. officials showed a lack of interest in pursuing the matter, it’s because they considered it “fiction,” as one put it. Trump himself was told by his officials that the theory was “completely debunked” long before the president pressed Ukraine to investigate it anyway, according to Tom Bossert, Trump’s first homeland security adviser. In testimony at the closed-door hearings that preceded Wednesday’s public session, Fiona Hill, a former special assistant to Trump on the National Security Council,…

Kurtenbach: Gabe Kapler lost his press conference, but I like the hire

By CaliNews 48 mins ago

New Giants manager Gabe Kapler talked and talked and talked some more. For more than an hour — including a near-20-minute introductory statement — he filled the air with platitudes, empty rhetoric, excuses, and self-help mumbo-jumbo, living up to his reputation as a wannabe baseball Tony Robbins. Ultimately, despite all that talking, we learned almost nothing from Kapler’s introductory press conference — save for the fact that he did himself few, if any, favors with an fan base. While the die-hards who were against this hire Tuesday were never likely to change their minds on Kapler based on a press conference, they’re certainly not going to give him the benefit of the doubt now. No, he did not “win” the presser. So Kapler will have to spend his first season — perhaps his whole tenure — trying to win those fans over. I’d venture that a vapid metric like the Giants’ win-loss record will be the key component in that relationship. But Wednesday was rough. The low-point being a pandering, tone-deaf diatribe about how he’s all about equality and social justice and progressive values — just like…

Dr. Bruce Hensel Charged With Soliciting ‘Sexually Suggestive Pictures’ From Acquaintance’s 9-Year-Old Daughter

By CaliNews 49 mins ago

PACIFIC PALISADES (CBSLA) — Former television medical correspondent Dr. Bruce Hensel was charged Wednesday with asking a 9-year-old girl to send him sexually suggestive pictures, the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office announced. According to the LAPD, investigators from their Northeast Division began a child sexual exploitation investigation involving a nine-year-old child where inappropriate messages and photographs were shared between a child and a person believed to be Bruce Hensel. The 71-year-old was arrested at 10:15 a.m. in the 9600 block of Santa Monica Blvd in connection with the investigation. Hensel was later charged with requesting images from the daughter of an acquaintance through a messaging app on or about Aug. 4, the prosecutor said. According to Deputy District Attorney Angela Brunson of the Cyber Crime Division, Hensel faces one felony count of contact with minor for sexual purposes. A residential search warrant was previously served at Hensel’s residence located in the 17500 block of Tramonto Drive in Pacific Palisades on Wednesday, October 16, 2019. Hensel is well known in the Los Angeles area as the former Chief Medical Correspondent for KNBC. He won 11 Emmy’s and…

Man Pleads Not Guilty To Murder In Alleged DUI Crash That Killed Long Beach Family On Halloween

By CaliNews 49 mins ago

LONG BEACH (CBSLA) – A man who allegedly drove drunk on Halloween night and ran down a Long Beach couple and their 3-year-old son was charged Tuesday with three counts each of murder and gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated. Carlo Adrian Navarro, 20, plead not guilty to the charges Wednesday in Long Beach. Navarro is accused of drunkenly mowing down the family of three on their first trick-or-treat outing together on Halloween night. The crash killed 30-year-old Joseph Awaida and critically injured his son, 3-year-old Omar, who succumbed to his injuries Saturday. Raihan Dakhil, Awaida’s wife and Omar’s mother, was taken off life support Sunday. They were struck around 9:55 p.m. Oct. 31 in the area of Country Club Drive and Los Cerritos Park Place. According to Long Beach police, Navarro was driving a 2002 Toyota Sequoia southbound on Country Club Drive and failed to make a turn. Instead, he drove onto the sidewalk and hit the family as they were walking home after a night of trick-or-treating, authorities said. Navarro was arrested on suspicion of gross vehicular manslaughter and driving under the influence but…

USC to Receive $260M Gift, One of Largest Single Donations in Higher Education

By CaliNews 2 hours ago

USC announced Wednesday that it would receive a $260-million gift for teaching and research, among the largest single donations in American higher education that underscores the university’s standing as a fundraising juggernaut. The gift from the Lord Foundation of California will be used to bolster academic disciplines that study artificial intelligence, big data and analytics, and to support various faculty research that advances the public good, according to USC Provost Charles F. Zukoski. “This tremendous distribution of funds provides us with one of the greatest opportunities in our history to think boldly and to invest in cutting-edge and strategic initiatives that accelerate our research and teaching to address major societal issues for decades to come,” President Carol L. Folt said in a statement. The gift would rank 34th among major gifts to higher education institutions since 1967, according to a tally maintained by the Chronicle of Higher Education. Read the full story on LATimes.com.

Silicon Valley Company Will Pay Applicants $10K to Leave Bay Area

By CaliNews 2 hours ago

Tired of the absurdly high rent you have to pay to live in the Bay Area? Well, you might be in luck. A Silicon Valley startup is offering qualified applicants a temporary incentive of $10,000 to leave. The San Jose-based company, MainStreet, was started by three former Google employees with the goal of creating jobs and opportunities in suburban and rural communities in America. “The ‘$10,000 to leave the Bay Area’ came about by asking ourselves the question: What is a fun, interesting way to draw attention to a serious and sober mission?” MainStreet CEO Doug Ludlow wrote in an email to CNN. “Our mission is to create jobs in suburban and rural communities, and our goal is to create 1,000,000 new jobs over the next decade.” There is a catch, though: Qualified applicants who accept the offer must remain in their position for a full year before they receive the payout, and Ludlow said the company is only offering the $10,000 payouts through the end of November. So, if you want in, you only have a little more than two weeks to act. The…

College Admissions Scam: Del Mar Executive Gets 6 Months in Prison for Paying $450K to Get Kids Into USC

By CaliNews 2 hours ago

A former Del Mar insurance executive has been sentenced to six months in prison for paying $450,000 to get his son and daughter admitted to the University of Southern California as fake athletic recruits. Toby MacFarlane was sentenced in Boston’s federal court Wednesday after pleading guilty to a single count of fraud and conspiracy in June. His prison sentence is the longest in the case so far. Authorities say MacFarlane paid $200,000 to get his daughter into USC as a fake soccer star in 2014, and then paid $250,000 to get his son admitted as a fake basketball recruit in 2017. Prosecutors requested a year in prison. The 56-year-old from Del Mar, California, has apologized and said he wrongly agreed to participate in the scheme as his marriage was falling apart.

Video: Meet Narwhal, the ‘Unicorn’ Puppy With an Extra Tail on His Head

By CaliNews 2 hours ago

A rescued puppy is attracting a lot of attention because of his cute resemblance to a unicorn. The nearly 10-week-old puppy, named Narwhal, has a tail-like appendage growing from his forehead. Narwhal was rescued over the weekend and sent to Mac’s Mission in Jackson, Missouri, which specializes in fostering animals with special needs. Mac’s Mission founder Rochelle Steffen says Narwhal doesn’t notice the extra tail and is otherwise a happy, healthy puppy. Although it looks like a tail, Narwhal cannot wag it. Steffen says the rescue group has been flooded with requests from people wanting to adopt Narwhal since his picture hit social media. But he’ll remain at Mac’s Mission so his caretakers can be sure the tail doesn’t grow out of proportion to his face and cause him problems.

‘You Wanted Zlatan, I Gave You Zlatan’: LA Galaxy, Ibrahimovic Part Ways

By CaliNews 2 hours ago

CARSON (CBSLA/AP) — Zlatan Ibrahimovic and the LA Galaxy are officially parting ways after two seasons. The 38-year-old Ibrahimovic and the Galaxy both announced the long-anticipated decision Wednesday. The Swedish superstar scored 56 goals in 52 MLS games after joining the Galaxy in March 2018. After debuting with a dramatic two-goal performance as a substitute in a win over Los Angeles FC, Ibrahimovic was an elite, steady scorer for the five-time league champion club. But the Galaxy won just one playoff game in his tenure, and he lost the MLS MVP award this year to LAFC’s Carlos Vela, who scored an MLS-record 34 goals to Zlatan’s 30. He said farewell to Galaxy fans on Twitter with his trademark aplomb. I came, I saw, I conquered. Thank you @lagalaxy for making me feel alive again. To the Galaxy fans – you wanted Zlatan, I gave you Zlatan. You are welcome. The story continues…Now go back to watch baseball pic.twitter.com/kkL6B6dJBr — Zlatan Ibrahimović (@Ibra_official) November 13, 2019 Ibrahimovic has never stayed at a club for more than four seasons in his peripatetic career.

Former TV Correspondent Dr. Bruce Hensel Taken Into Custody By LAPD Juvenile Division Investigators

By CaliNews 2 hours ago

PACIFIC PALISADES (CBSLA) — Former television medical correspondent Dr. Bruce Hensel was arrested Wednesday from his home in Pacific Palisades on suspicion of contacting a minor with intent to commit sexual acts, authorities said. The 71-year-old was arrested at 10:15 a.m. by the Los Angeles Police Department. He was being held on $5,000 bail. Additional information on the case was not immediately disclosed. Hensel is well known in the Los Angeles area as the former Chief Medical Correspondent for KNBC. He won 11 Emmy’s and two Golden Mike awards for his work in Los Angeles media. This is a developing story. Check back for details.

Dustin Maria sworn in as sheriff’s sergeant

By CaliNews 3 hours ago

Dustin Maria was sworn in Tuesday by Tehama County Sheriff Dave Hencratt as a new sheriff’s sergeant, filling a recent vacancy. Maria began working for the Tehama County Sheriff’s Office as a reserve deputy sheriff in April 2012. He promoted to deputy sheriff in August 2013. Prior to being hired Maria served 7 years in the Sheriff’s Explorer program. After being hired in 2012, he served as the department’s Explorer advisor for 7 years. Maria is an Emergency Medical Technician who has assisted teaching in the Shasta College Emergency Medical Technician program. He is one of the department’s first aid and CPR instructors. Maria is a rated airplane and commercial helicopter pilot. He is an avid aviator, who spends much of his free time flying.

Giants play defense on day one of Gabe Kapler’s tenure: ‘I feel like I’m in a little bit of a hole’

By CaliNews 3 hours ago

SAN FRANCISCO — The best Giants teams of the 2010s were built on pitching and defense. That worked on the field, but it’s not the strategy they hoped to use when introducing a new manager at a press conference. When Gabe Kapler was chosen to succeed Bruce Bochy, the organization had no choice. Kapler’s arrival at Oracle Park on Wednesday allowed the Giants to do some pitching, but they spent most of the day playing defense. “Yes, I feel like I’m in a little bit of a hole and yes, that means something to me,” Kapler said. Kapler, who was fired in October after two seasons as the manager of the Philadelphia Phillies, admitted it’s frustrating his hire has been met with widespread opposition from Giants fans. Social media is an echo chamber and many of the Giants’ most valued season-ticket holders choose not to voice their opinions online, but fans who do participate –both paying customers and casual supporters– are practically united in their opposition to Kapler. The reasons are varied. Some wonder why the Giants selected a candidate who failed to produce a…

Red Bluff Garden Club: W is for wisteria

By CaliNews 3 hours ago

If you are a regular reader of our garden club articles, you may recall that I am working on an alphabet book of gardening topics when my author turn comes around. So now I am all the way to “W.” The end is in sight, coming in 2020. The first place I lived in California was in Dairyville. A lovely wisteria plant twined around in a flower bed near the kitchen window. When we moved in to Red Bluff, we planted a wisteria along a fence line as we had enjoyed the fragrant and graceful vine, but knew nothing else about it. Wisteria is part of the legume family, Fabaceae. They are strong, aggressive plants, growing 25-30 feet or more, with some varieties up to 50 feet in length. It is important that you choose a good, sturdy spot to plant wisteria. They will like a fence, trellis, pergola, or similar structure to grow on. Do not plant too near your house or garage as the vines can easily twine into small spaces. Wisteria grows in Zones 5-9. It likes full sun, fertile, moist, and…

49ers’ Marquise Goodwin weighs in on Colin Kaepernick’s NFL workout

By CaliNews 3 hours ago

SANTA CLARA — Marquise Goodwin is “praying for the best” now that former 49ers teammate Colin Kaepernick can work out in front of an NFL-arranged audience Saturday in Atlanta. “That’s dope, man. That’s cool,” Goodwin said Wednesday at his locker. “I know for sure he wants to play ball.” Kaepernick’s last play in the NFL came way back in the 2016 49ers’ season finale, and his final snap resulted in a 9-yard touchdown pass to Garrett Celek, with 5:42 remaining in a 25-23 home loss to the Seattle Seahawks. Marquise Goodwin #11 of the San Francisco 49ers stands on the sidelines during their preseason game against the Los Angeles Chargers at Levi’s Stadium on August 30, 2018 in Santa Clara, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images) Kaepernick turned 32 on Nov. 3, and he settled a lawsuit in February after claiming NFL teams colluded to keep him out of the league based on his social-equality activism. He went 28-30 as the 49ers’ starting quarterback from November 2012 through the 2016 season, plus a 4-2 playoff record that included a Super Bowl XLVII defeat to Baltimore…

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