Category: Bay Area

SAN FRANCISCO — Jonathan Kuminga sat at his locker, alternating his gaze between his cell phone and the pile of shoes in front of him, as a Warriors staffer carried over a set of NBA-sized crutches Sunday afternoon and placed them at his side. While his teammates prepared for the second game of their back-to-back against the Sacramento Kings, Kuminga processed his reaction to the news that he wouldn’t be suiting up alongside them for the better part of the next month. He twisted his right ankle in the second quarter of Golden State’s 121-113 win over Memphis on Saturday, and the results of an MRI on Sunday confirmed the worst. The sprain he suffered was “significant” and he won’t be re-evaluated for another three weeks, ruling him out of a minimum of 11 games. “Brutal,” head coach Steve Kerr said before tipoff. “JK’s been playing so well. Obviously such a big part of what we’re doing. He’s our most athletic scorer (and) finisher. He’s been playing so well. It’s a tough one. We do feel good about our depth and our ability to withstand

Much of California’s coast opened for commercial Dungeness crab fishing Sunday, finally allowing traps to be cast after months of delays. Dungeness crab season, which is normally expected to begin in November, opened at 12:01 a.m. Sunday morning in all but two zones along the coast. Zones 1 and 2, encompassing the area from just south of Point Arena to the Oregon border, will open on Jan. 15. Fishing Vessel Rosella sold out their haul of around 2,000 pounds of crab in just over four hours after returning to dock at Half Moon Bay’s Pillar Point Harbor. “This just saved us for the whole year,” said fisherman Allen Stevenson from the Fishing Vessel Rosella. When asked about whether he’s been looking forward to the opening of crab season, first time Pillar Point customer Daniel Coxum of San Jose said “Absolutely.” He bought four crabs at $12 a pound. “Thought it was going to happen in November, but it didn’t happen in November. It’s a good thing to get out here,” Coxum said. As in recent years, opening day was delayed due to the presence of

By Bay City News Three people are dead in the wake of a collision that occurred during a pursuit of a suspect in Stockton early Sunday morning, the San Joaquin County Sheriff’s Office said. Sheriff’s deputies attempted to stop an allegedly stolen vehicle near Wilson Way and Harding Way around 1:40 a.m. Sunday, the sheriff’s office said on social media. The driver didn’t yield and fled southbound at what the sheriff’s office described as a high rate of speed. During the pursuit, the sheriff’s office said the suspect vehicle collided with an uninvolved vehicle at the intersection of Airport Way and Hazleton Avenue. According to the sheriff’s office, the collision resulted in the deaths of the suspect and two occupants of the uninvolved vehicle. A multi-agency protocol investigation is underway involving the Stockton Police Department and the sheriff’s office to determine the circumstances surrounding the incident, the sheriff’s office said. The sheriff’s office will not be releasing the identities of the people who died until their families have been reached. “We extend our deepest condolences to the families and loved ones of the victims during

Jaron Keawe Sagapolutele will spend his Saturdays in Berkeley after all. After flipping from Cal to Oregon on National Signing Day, Sagapolutele reversed course once again and signed with the Golden Bears after entering the transfer portal this weekend. Sagapolutele, the top-ranked player in Cal’s 2025 recruiting class, initially committed to play under head coach Justin Wilcox in July. On National Signing Day on Dec. 4, Sagapolutele elected to play for Oregon and enrolled early in the university. Roughly a month later, Sagapolutele entered the transfer portal and landed at his original choice: Cal. Per 247Sports, Sagapolutele is the eighth-ranked quarterback in his class and the 106th-best prospect nationally. As a senior at James Campbell High School, Sagapolutele threw for 3,404 yards with 46 touchdowns to three interceptions and was named the 2024 MaxPreps Hawaii High School Football Player of the Year. In the midst of Sagapolutele’s saga, quarterback Fernando Mendoza entered the transfer portal from Cal and took his talents to Indiana in late December. Mendoza’s final act as a Golden Bear was leading Cal on a 98-yard, game-winning touchdown drive to shock Stanford

Livermore: 17-year-old boy dead in solo vehicle crash By Bay City News A 17-year-old boy is dead in the wake of a solo vehicle crash that happened Saturday in Livermore, a California Highway Patrol officer said. Officers responded to a crash involving a BMW 535i that hit a tree on Del Valle Road south of Mendenhall Road around 5:32 p.m., according to CHP Officer Tyler Hahn. It’s unknown why the vehicle left the roadway, “but speed sounds likely,” Hahn said. Anyone with information is asked to contact the CHP at (925) 828-0466 or THahn@chp.ca.gov.

By Kareem Chehayeb | Associated Press BEIRUT — Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah was killed in an Israeli airstrike last year while inside the militant group’s war operations room, according to new details Sunday disclosed by a senior Hezbollah official. A series of Israeli airstrikes flattened several buildings in Beirut’s southern suburbs on Sept. 27, 2024, killing Nasrallah. The Lebanese Health Ministry said six people died. According to news reports, Nasrallah and other senior officials were meeting underground. The assassination of Nasrallah, who had led Hezbollah for 32 years, turned months of low-level strikes between Israel and the militants into all-out war that battered much of southern and eastern Lebanon for two months until a U.S.-brokered ceasefire took effect Nov. 27. “His Eminence (Hassan Nasrallah) used to lead the battle and war from this location,” top Hezbollah security official Wafiq Safa told a news conference Sunday near near the site where Nasrallah was killed. He said Nasrallah died in the war operations room. He did not offer other details. Lebanese media had reported that Safa was a target of Israeli airstrikes in central Beirut before the

Ten years ago, a decade after it was first considered, the Genesis G90, a luxury sedan, debuted in South Korea. It remains the manufacturer’s flagship vehicle and has been available in the United States since 2016. The carmaker’s vehicles have collected many honors from respected automotive publications. But there’s still an identity issue and for a few reasons. “What’s a Genesis?” “Who makes them?” and “Where are they sold?” remain often asked questions. The officially named Genesis Motor, LLC, is the luxury vehicle lineup of Hyundai Motor Company and is located in Ulsan, South Korea. With its debut in the U.S., Genesis unveiled two vehicles, the previously mentioned G90 and the G80, the former Hyundai Genesis. The G70 followed in 2018. Where consumers could purchase the vehicles further complicated the Genesis trio’s arrival. Genesis didn’t have a dealership network. Instead, the luxury sedans were sold in designated areas of Hyundai dealerships. Much has happened since the carmaker’s humble start. An original plan for stand-alone Genesis dealership network didn’t originally work as planned. But it’s now succeeding, albeit slowly, with 218 locations in 39 states. Florida

On December 17th, the Environmental Protection Agency granted a waiver to the California Air Resources Board (CARB) authorizing the enforcement of its Advanced Clean Cars II (ACC II) regulations. The controversial regulatory framework aims to phase out the sale of conventional internal combustion vehicles by 2035, and eleven other states have adopted California’s aggressive approach. The ACC II regulations build upon the original Advanced Clean Cars program, which was adopted in 2012 and is scheduled to sunset at the end of the 2025 model year. Accelerating the proliferation of electric vehicles has been a major environmental goal of the Biden administration, and the EPA’s decision to grant the waiver was widely expected. The Clean Air Act prohibits individual states from enacting their own emission standards, vesting that authority with the EPA, but section 209 provides a special exception for California. The unusual waiver provision was created to help California cope with its extraordinary air quality challenges, and a separate provision allows other states to follow suit. As long as California’s rules meet the conditions laid out in section 209, they cannot be preempted by the

What is a XC60? The XC60 T8 AWD Polestar Engineered wagon is a high performance midsize luxury SUV, with a plug in hybrid powertrain, built in the Torslanda, Sweden assembly plant and sold worldwide by Volvo. With the Polestar Engineered trim this SUV has a sportier feel than other XC60s, with upgrades like Öhlins shocks, gold painted Brembo disc brake calipers, and 21″ wheels. It produces 455 HP and 523 lb-ft of torque, has a battery electric driving range of 35 miles, and a total electric and gas driving range of 560 miles. That’s one of the highest total driving range numbers in the business. The 2025 Polestar Engineered trim also includes Polestar badging and gold seat belts. Special features include adaptive LED headlights, a panoramic sunroof, heated front seats, a Google based infotainment system and a digital instrument cluster with a 9″ display. Safety items include child door locks, driver and passenger smart airbags, stability control, traction control, blind spot alert with automatic braking, a collision warning system, lane departure warning system and a pedestrian detection system. The 2025 Volvo XC60 compact luxury SUV is

By Sam Mednick and Wafaa Shurafa | Associated Press JERUSALEM — Israel has helped a former soldier leave Brazil after legal action was initiated against him by a group accusing Israelis of war crimes in the Gaza Strip based in part on soldiers’ social media posts. Israel’s Foreign Ministry on Sunday said it had helped the former soldier safely leave Brazil on a commercial flight after what it described as “anti-Israel elements” sought an investigation last week. It warned Israelis against posting on social media about their military service. The Hind Rajab Foundation, named for a 5-year-old Palestinian girl killed in Gaza, said Brazilian authorities had launched an investigation into the soldier after it filed a complaint based on video footage, geolocation data and photographs showing him taking part in the demolition of civilian homes. The foundation described the move as a “pivotal step toward accountability for crimes committed in Gaza” during nearly 15 months of war. There was no immediate comment from Brazilian authorities. Brazilian media reported Saturday that the investigation was ordered by an on-call federal judge in Brazil’s Federal District. The decision

De La Salle’s perfect start to the season has come to an end. In a matchup against two-time defending Open Division state champion Harvard-Westlake of Studio City, the Spartans were overwhelmed much of the way and went on to lose 58-44 on Saturday night. The result in Gilbert, Arizona, gave Harvard-Westlake the Hoophall West championship and handed De La Salle its first loss of the season after 14 consecutive victories. The Spartans reached the final with wins over Duncanville, Texas, and Chaminade-St. Louis. On Saturday, Harvard-Westlake scored the first five points and led 16-10 after one quarter and 35-17 at halftime. Nikolas Khamenia, bound for Duke, and Amir Jones each scored 14 points to lead Harvard-Westlake, which improved to 18-1. Oklahoma-bound Alec Blair finished with 15 points for De La Salle. The Spartans next play on Friday at Monte Vista in an East Bay Athletic League opener.

By The Associated Press Thirty-two dolphins have died since fuel oil spilled out of two storm-stricken tankers three weeks ago in the Kerch Strait, which separates the Russia-occupied Crimean Peninsula from Russia’s southern Krasnodar region, an animal rescue group said Sunday. Russia’s Delfa Dolphin Rescue and Research Center said the deaths are “most likely related to the fuel oil spill.” The center said on the messaging app Telegram that a total of 61 dead cetaceans — an order of aquatic mammals that includes whales and dolphins — had been recorded since the emergency, but the condition of the bodies suggested that the 29 others had died before the spill. “Judging by the condition of the bodies, most likely the majority of these cetaceans died in the first 10 days after the disaster. And now the sea continues to wash them up,” the center wrote, noting that most of the dead dolphins were from the endangered Azov species. Russia’s Emergencies Ministry said Sunday that over 96,000 tons of contaminated sand and soil had been removed by officials and volunteers along the shoreline of the Krasnodar region’s

Tres Reyes celebration Children’s Discovery Museum of San Jose will host its 27th annual El Día de los Tres Reyes Magos cultural event on Jan. 11. The celebration will feature art activities, tortilla making, Rosca de Reyes tasting, photo opportunities with the three kings and folklórico dance performances and instruction from local dance groups Los Lupeños Juvenil, Brenda Lopez Folklorico Group, and El Grito de La Cultura. Attendees will also be encouraged to perform their talents at our open mic event. San Jose native Athenna Crosby, aka Miss World America 2024, will host a bilingual story time about the Tres Reyes. El Día de los Tres Reyes Magos celebration is set for 11 a.m.-3 p.m. at Children’s Discovery Museum of San Jose, 180 Woz Way. Admission is $18 for children and adults, $16 for seniors and free for museum members. For tickets visit https://www.cdm.org/event/el-dia-de-los-tres-reyes-magos. Rotary grants The Rotary Club of San Jose Foundation recently awarded $200,000 in grants to 22 nonprofit organizations serving the San Jose community. To be eligible for funding, at least 50% of the organizations’ beneficiaries must be San Jose residents. The

Silicon Valley Reads kicks off on Jan. 30 with a free in-person and live-streamed event at De Anza College in Cupertino. Sal Pizarro of the Mercury News will moderate a discussion with the authors of the three featured books. The countywide community engagement program features books on the theme “Empowering Humanity: Technology for a Better World.” The books selected for Silicon Valley Reads explore the ramifications of artificial intelligence, from a nonfiction work about AI’s potential impact on society to fictional stories about how it can be used for both exploitation and connection Recently dubbed “The Godmother of AI” by Wired Magazine, Dr. Fei-Fei Li shares her personal journey and insights into the development and potential of the technology in “The Worlds I See: Curiosity, Exploration, and Discovery at the Dawn of AI.” “The Mountain in the Sea,” a sci-fi novel by former Santa Clara University professor Ray Nayler, follows a marine biologist who is studying a highly intelligent octopus species, sparking a global race to understand and potentially exploit the species. “Loneliness and Company” by Charlee Dyroff is set in a near-future New York

Water managers The statewide Sierra Nevada snowpack is at 108% of normal. Reservoirs are at above-average capacity. Barring a total shut-down of precipitation until April, the summer water situation is looking pretty good. Shoplifters Under Proposition 36, which took effect Jan. 1, retail thieves now face three years in jail after a third conviction, and prosecutors in some counties are already charging under the new law. Lyft After turning its first profitable quarter last year, prominent rideshare company renews its San Francisco headquarters lease — but for 170,000 square feet, down from 419,000 due to remote work.

They said it: Not cowering to terrorist threats FILE – The FBI investigates the area on Orleans Street and Bourbon Street by St. Louis Cathedral in the French Quarter where a suspicious package was detonated after a person drove a truck into a crowd earlier on Bourbon Street on Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Matthew Hinton, File) “You can’t live in fear and not have events.” — Shari Godinez, executive director of Koreatown Northgate Community Benefit District, which regularly hosts a popular monthly block party on Telegraph Avenue along the edge of downtown Oakland, on heightened local security following last week’s deadly truck ramming attack on New Year’s revelers in New Orleans.

Last year, about a quarter of all health insurance claims were denied in California — a reality mirrored nationwide that has stoked public anger toward health care companies, and led to accusations that such decisions lack human empathy. But this month, a new state law is taking on the latest twist in the debate, ensuring that a human’s perspective cannot literally be removed from such decisions by prohibiting coverage denials be made on the sole basis of artificial intelligence algorithms. Signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom last September, Senate Bill 1120 — known as the “Physicians Make Decisions Act” — comes as frustration with the health insurance system has intensified. Last month’s high-profile killing of UnitedHealthcare executive Brian Thompson in New York City ignited a wave of reactions that often reflected the public’s anger. According to 2024 data from the California Nurses Association, approximately 26% of insurance claims are denied, one of many factors that inspired the law’s primary author, state Sen. Josh Becker, a Menlo Park Democrat. “In 2021 alone, (nationwide) data showed that health insurance companies denied more than 49 million claims,” said Becker, citing data

TODAY’S WORD — RIPOSTE RIPOSTE: rih-POST: A retaliatory verbal sally; a retort. Average mark 55 words Time limit 60 minutes Can you find 69 or more words in RIPOSTE? TODAY’S WORD — RIPOSTE: repo repost repot rest riot ripe ripest rise rite rope rose rote roti pert peso pest pesto pier piste poet poise pore port pose poser posit post poster presto pries priest prose prosit osier sept sire site sore sort sortie spire spit spite spore sport spot sprit sprite step stir stop store strep strip stripe strop tier tire tope toper topi tore tries trio trip tripe trope epos esprit RULES OF THE GAME: 1. Words must be of four or more letters. 2. Words that acquire four letters by the addition of “s,” such as “bats” or “dies,” are not allowed. 3. Additional words made by adding a “d” or an “s” may not be used. For example, if “bake” is used, “baked” or “bakes” are not allowed, but “bake” and “baking” are admissible. 4. Proper nouns, slang words, or vulgar or sexually explicit words are not allowed. Contact Word Game creator

Dear Eric: Friends of ours, who live on the other side of the country, have a daughter who is a senior in college in the town we live in. It’s not uncommon for the daughter to spend holidays or the occasional weekend with us. Occasionally, she brings her boyfriend, whose company we also enjoy. Recently, her mom texted us and told us that we were not to allow her daughter to bring the boyfriend to our house for weekends. The wording was, in fact, “Do not allow [name of daughter] to bring her boyfriend to stay with you; we are against that.” Um … this daughter is a legal adult, and my husband and I have absolutely no intention of caving to her mom’s demands. We just need a way to tell mom to butt out because, honestly, who we entertain at our house is none of her business. She is sure to ask again. – Open House Dear House: Oh, wow, you’re going to want to stay as far away from that as possible. The most expedient way is to tell your friend, “That’s

DEAR ABBY: My husband and I have been together for 16 years and have what I consider to be a happy marriage. My question concerns ongoing conversations we have been having about my hair color. The first couple of years we were together, my hair was gray, and then I dyed it red. While I know he loved it, I did it for one reason: I wanted to avoid aging myself unnecessarily in the workplace. My husband knew this. Two years ago, now retired, I decided to stop coloring my hair. Since then, he continually mentions that he wants me to return to red hair. I have told him repeatedly that I’m unwilling to do that. He says he loved me so much when I was a redhead (does that mean he loves me less now?) and that my “going gray” has made him feel old. I am dismayed and annoyed by his continuing campaign to have me color my hair again, and I have said so. He even brings it up in front of our friends, which feels to me as though he’s trying

Today is Sunday, Jan. 5, the fifth day of 2025. There are 360 days left in the year. Today in history: On Jan. 5, 1933, construction began on the Golden Gate Bridge; the bridge was completed in May 1937. Also on this date: In 1896, an Austrian newspaper reported the discovery by German physicist Wilhelm Röntgen (RENT’-gun) of a new type of radiation that came to be called “X-rays.” In 1925, Democrat Nellie Tayloe Ross of Wyoming took office as America’s first female governor. In 1953, Samuel Beckett’s two-act tragicomedy “Waiting for Godot,” considered a classic of the Theater of the Absurd, premiered in Paris. In 1957, President Dwight D. Eisenhower proposed assistance to countries to help them resist Communist aggression in what became known as the Eisenhower Doctrine. In 1980, “Rapper’s Delight,” by The Sugarhill Gang, became the first hip-hop song to reach the Billboard Top 40. In 2022, Australia denied entry to tennis star Novak Djokovic, who was seeking to play for a 10th Australian Open title later in the month; authorities canceled his visa upon his arrival in Melbourne because he failed