Category: Los Angeles

Fears about mysterious drones in U.S. Online speculation fuels fears about mysterious drones in the U.S. 03:27 As unexplained drone sightings along the East Coast trigger investigations and demands from officials for more information, a wave of online speculation has filled the void as amateur sleuths seek to solve the mystery themselves. One Facebook group called “New Jersey Mystery Drones – let’s solve it” has surged to over 73,000 members in recent days, becoming a hub for users to share their drone sightings and speculate on the source of the mysterious activity. George Gary, a New Jersey resident who joined the Facebook group, told CBS News that he was sitting in his car in Moorestown when he saw what he said were “multiple drones” in the sky. “I’m honestly not sure what’s behind them,” he said, speculating that it could be connected to government activity. “I’m really curious to find out.” New Jersey resident Vanessa Grierson, who also said she has seen drones, told CBS News she joined the Facebook group to find out what others were seeing. “It’s alarming that there are still no answers,”

A suspected DUI driver led authorities on a high-speed chase through Los Angeles’ San Fernando Valley Monday afternoon before stopping when the vehicle’s airbags deployed. The chase began at about 3 p.m. in the La Cañada Flintridge area near the 210 Freeway, where L.A. County deputies attempted to stop the driver in a black sedan. He sped away and led deputies south through the valley on city streets, most notably Sunland Boulevard and Vineland Avenue. After veering into oncoming traffic and clipping vehicles at the intersection of Vineland and Lankershim Avenue, the suspect fishtailed into a curb, at which point the vehicle’s side airbags deployed. LASD deputies surround the vehicle of a DUI suspect who led authorities on a chase through the San Fernando Valley. Dec. 16, 2024. (KTLA) The vehicle came to a stop at the intersection of Vineland and Hortense Stree,t where deputies surrounded the vehicle with their guns drawn. The standoff was ongoing as of 4 p.m. Sky5 is overhead.

“Do you think people can change?” asks the teenaged son of a murdered sicario in “Sujo,” the blistering, yet cautiously hopeful social drama that’s currently Mexico’s Oscar entry for best international feature film. The boy’s earnestly vulnerable query, posed to a university professor who’s taken a genuine interest in him, encapsulates the complicated sentiments of people in a country ravaged by drug violence who are collectively wondering if they can ever move forward. The two meet when the young man, Sujo, migrates from a small village in the state of Michoacán to Mexico City. Can Mexico become something different, away from the vicious claws of its present woes? Life partners and the co-directors of “Sujo,” Astrid Rondero and Fernanda Valadez want to believe that there’s a different path. In their latest work, they explore what that might look like. “We can talk about the horrors, we can look into the abyss, but we also need to look beyond the abyss, because we all have to get up every day and continue with our lives, so what do we do with this reality?” says Valadez in

The Rams are in first place in the NFC West and readying for a playoff push. Will coach Sean McVay seek reinforcements? The window closed after Week 12 for future Hall of Fame defensive lineman Aaron Donald to come out of retirement this season for a shot at another Super Bowl. But star receiver Odell Beckham Jr., who also was a member of the Rams’ Super Bowl LVI championship team, is a free agent after clearing waivers Monday. Cooper Kupp, Puka Nacua and Demarcus Robinson are the Rams starting receivers. Tutu Atwell and rookie Jordan Whittington also have contributed to a team that has won three games in a row to improve to 8-6. Beckham was released by the Miami Dolphins on Friday. About an hour before he cleared waivers, McVay was asked if the Rams would pursue Beckham. “That’s not something we’ve talked about yet,” McVay said. McVay apparently did not discuss a potential return with Donald. Under NFL rules, that decision would have had to have been made before the start of Week 13. “I would almost feel disrespectful reaching out to him

A revolution is underway in California’s insurance market that could provide relief to homeowners in high-fire-risk neighborhoods who have found it difficult to find insurers to cover their homes, typically a household’s most valuable asset. Under the new rules, state insurers for the first time will be allowed to use so-called catastrophe models to help determine the cost of home insurance. The models, developed by firms such as Verisk Analytics and Moody’s, are complex computer programs that aim to better determine the risk a structure faces from wildfires amid a changing climate. Here are five things to know about the models: How do these models work? The programs, first developed in the 1980s because of hurricane losses and increasingly applied to wildfires, typically run thousands of possible scenarios that allow insurers to determine their potential financial exposure in a disaster. The models are proprietary but take into account many factors, including meteorological conditions, an area’s topography, the amount of brush and other nearby fuel, and a community’s building density. When setting individual home premiums, California is requiring insurers to consider a building owner’s fire mitigation

Top Snapchat creators will soon have more ways to make money on the social media app. The Santa Monica company introduced an expanded monetization program Monday, saying it would soon begin placing ads within longer Spotlight videos. Under Snapchat’s current revenue-sharing arrangement, the company pays influencers some of the money it earns from ads it places within Snapchat Stories. Beginning Feb. 1, eligible creators will be able to make money from Spotlight videos that are longer than one minute. Spotlight is a tab that showcases the most entertaining Snaps on the platform; the feature becomes more tailored to each user over time based on their preferences and favorites. “With Spotlight viewership up 25% year-over-year, there is a unique and growing opportunity for creators to monetize this format in the same way they do with Stories,” Snap said in a statement. “We remain committed to evolving and expanding the total rewards available to creators.” Snap, Instagram, TikTok and YouTube have all been vying for content from popular influencers as the number of people who turn to social media apps for entertainment has soared. With TikTok facing

Three schools shut down by the Franklin Fire in Malibu reopened Monday while a fourth remained closed for repairs, but while containment of the 4,037-acre brush fire grew to 54%, crews were bracing for a return of more Santa Ana winds. Students returned Monday to Malibu Elementary School, Malibu Middle School and Malibu High School. Webster Elementary School remained closed, but those students will return to instruction Tuesday, but their classes will be held at Malibu Elementary while the campus is repaired. All Malibu schools within the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District were closed last week due to traffic restrictions and power outages in the area caused by the fire. The Santa Monica College Malibu Campus was also closed through Friday. “Fire activity remained minimal with smoldering and creeping in isolated areas within the fire perimeter,” Cal Fire said in a statement shortly before 6 a.m. Monday. “Fire crews will continue to build and strengthen containment lines around the fire,” the Cal Fire statement said. “The fire continues to smolder in steep and very dangerous terrain. Aerial suppression efforts in those areas have been successful

The ex-wife of a doctor who was fatally shot outside his medical practice in Woodland Hills was charged Monday with murder, with the district attorney alleging that she hired a hit man to kill the victim for unspecified financial gain. The murder charge against Ahang Mirshojae, 53, includes special circumstance allegations of lying in wait and murder for financial gain, according to the District Attorney’s Office. She is also facing an assault charge stemming from her alleged involvement in a May 3 baseball attack on Dr. Hamid Mirshojae, 61. Prosecutors declined to immediately file any charges against another man who was arrested last week in the case, Shawn Randolph, 46, of Valley Village, pending further investigation by police. Ahang Mirshojae was expected to appear in a downtown Los Angeles courtroom sometime Monday for arraignment, along with co-defendant Sarallah Jawed, 26, who is also charged with murder. A total of four defendants are charged in connection with the Aug. 23 slaying of Dr. Hamid Mirshojae, who authorities said was ambushed as he walked to his vehicle in the parking lot outside his clinic in the 5900

By Fin Gómez, Caitlin Yilek December 16, 2024 / 6:05 PM EST / CBS News Trump says he has “a warm spot for TikTok” Trump says he has “a warm spot” for TikTok when asked about ban 00:57 Washington — President-elect Trump is meeting with TikTok CEO Shou Chew on Monday at his Mar-a-Lago estate, according to sources familiar with the meeting. The news was first reported by CNN.  A spokesperson for TikTok did not immediately respond to a request for comment. At a news conference earlier Monday, Trump had warm words about TikTok and its near-term future.  “We’ll take a look at TikTok. You know, I have a warm spot in my heart for TikTok, because I won youth by 34 points. And there are those that say that TikTok has something to do with that,” Trump said when asked about how he would stop a ban. Harris won 54% of voters under 30, but Trump made inroads. During his first term in the White House, Trump tried to ban the app.  President Biden earlier this year signed into law a bill passed by

Retirement planning for Americans in their 40s Why Americans in their 40s need to focus on retirement planning 03:44 Most Americans may consider the standard retirement age to be 65, but the so-called “full retirement age” for Social Security is already older than that — and it’s about to hit an even higher age in 2025.  Social Security’s full retirement age (FRA) refers to when workers can start claiming their full benefits, which is based on the number of years they’ve worked as well as their income during their working years. The longer someone works and the higher their income, the more they can receive from Social Security when they finally claim their benefits. While the FRA used to be 65 years old, Congress overhauled the program in 1983 to raise the retirement age threshold in order to account for longer life expectancies.  As part of that revamp, the FRA has been inching higher by two months at a time, based on a person’s birth year. For instance, people who were born in 1957 reached their FRA when they turned 66 years and 6 months

Trump takes questions on drones, RFK Jr., more Trump takes questions on TikTok, Hegseth, drones, vaccines, RFK Jr. and more 52:31 The announcement Saturday that ABC has agreed to commit $15 million toward President-elect Donald Trump’s presidential foundation to settle a defamation lawsuit was a rare victory for Trump in years of lawsuits against news organizations. In the settlement’s aftermath, Trump said Monday at a news conference in Florida that he planned to sue the Des Moines Register over a poll and vowed to continue filing suits against news outlets whom he’s long accused of bias.  He complained that the pollster, J. Ann Selzer, “said I was going to lose by three or four points,” after previous Iowa surveys showed he’d win the state easily, “by 20 points.” Trump won the state by 13 points. “In my opinion, it was fraud and it was election interference,” he said, adding, “we’ll probably be filing a major lawsuit against them today or tomorrow.” Lark-Marie Anton, a spokesperson for the Des Moines Register, said in a statement to CBS News, “We have acknowledged that the Selzer/Des Moines Register

More than 1 million people across the country earn paychecks of $500,000 or higher, according to a report that analyzed payroll records on millions of salaries paid over the course of a year. The study titled “High-paying jobs? They’re a dime a dozen,” which was done by ADP, a leading management company that provides payroll and other services, concluded that “a substantial number of professionals found in every major metro” earn more than half a million dollars annually. Government data, including the Census Bureau’s American Community Survey, typically obscure the prevalence of hefty paychecks by capping the level of wages reported. One California metropolis stood out from the rest, the ADP report found. The San Francisco Bay Area has the highest concentration of jobs that pay more than $500,000, “vastly outranking” other major cities. One in 48 jobs in the Bay Area pays $500,000 or more, nearly double the share in Austin, Texas, which has the second highest concentration. The Los Angeles and Long Beach region has the 12th highest concentration of jobs that pay that amount. Slightly less than 1% of employees in Los

It’s only mid-December and already California’s weather is putting the state on high alert for winter — and it’s likely far from over. Just this past week, a major wildfire raced into Malibu, fueled by dangerous Santa Ana winds, and a powerful storm dumped feet of snow in the mountains, caused flooding in the Bay Area and in Santa Cruz County, formed a tornado. And now, forecasters warn that similar conditions are likely to return this week, with high winds in Southern California prompting further fire concerns, and a series of atmospheric rivers bound for Northern California that could bring more flooding and headaches for travelers. These diverging winter weather patterns are providing the latest reminder about how much California can differ climatologically, especially when it comes to early-winter precipitation. “It’s fairly common to have other parts of the West get targeted and we kind of get left out,” Robbie Munroe, a National Weather Service meteorologist in Oxnard, said of Southern California’s relative dryness to up north. He said the sharp contrast often eases by January or February, when the jet stream — which tends

Former Abundant Life Christian School principal reacts to Wisconsin school shooting – CBS News Watch CBS News Officials say several people were killed at a school shooting in Madison, Wisconsin. David Wagner, who spent 16 years as principal at Abundant Life Christian School, joins CBS News with his reaction to the rampage. Be the first to know Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting. Not Now Turn On

RFK Jr. on Capitol Hill seeking support for confirmation – CBS News Watch CBS News Robert F. Kennedy Jr., President-elect Donald Trump’s pick to lead the Department of Health and Human Services, is on Capitol Hill to garner support from senators ahead of his confirmation process. CBS News’ Scott MacFarlane reports. Be the first to know Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting. Not Now Turn On

Heads up, drivers. A handful of new laws take effect in California on Jan. 1, 2025, that impact the rules of the road. From insurance claims to car break-ins to parking tickets, here’s what’s changing for California drivers in the new year. You can’t park there Assembly Bill 413, more commonly known as a “Daylighting Law,” takes effect across California in 2025. It bans drivers from parking within 20 feet of a crosswalk to make intersections safer for pedestrians. The law applies whether the crosswalk is marked or unmarked and regardless of if the curb is painted red. California cities have been working to put up signage and paint curbs to make it easier for drivers to navigate the new normal, but they acknowledge not all curbs will be painted red in time. Don’t get angry at other drivers when they do this If you’re parking facing a crosswalk, look for the red curb first. If it’s there, respect that distance. If there’s no red paint, leave a space of 20 feet (or a bit longer than a large SUV) between your parked car and

SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI) — One person is dead after a helicopter crashed outside a small community near the U.S.-Mexico border in San Diego County Monday, Cal Fire confirmed. The crash was reported around 11:20 a.m. in a private field owned by the CBD farm, Sol Valley Ranch, near Round Potrero Road in the census-designated area of Potrero. The helicopter appears to have been an Airbus that departed Brown Field just after 9 a.m., according to the Federal Aviation Administration and the flight tracking website, FlightAware. At least one person sustained significant injuries in the crash and was pronounced dead at the scene, Cal Fire added. Their identity is not yet known. No further details about the helicopter crash, including whether it belonged to a federal agency overseeing border security, are available at this time. FAA and National Transportation Safety Board officials have been contacted to initiate an investigation, Cal Fire added. This is the second time a helicopter has gone down in San Diego County this year. The first, which was back in February, killed five U.S. Marines and prompted a massive foot search

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — A teenage student opened fire with a handgun Monday at a private Christian school in Wisconsin, killing a teacher and another teenager during the final week before Christmas break. The shooter also died, police said. The shooter also wounded six others at Abundant Life Christian School, including two students who were in critical condition, Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes said. A teacher and three students had been taken to a hospital with less serious injuries, and two of them had been released by Monday evening. “I’m feeling a little dismayed now, so close to Christmas,” Barnes said. “Every child, every person in that building is a victim and will be a victim forever. … We need to figure out and try to piece together what exactly happened.” The shooter was a 17-year-old female student, a law enforcement official told The Associated Press. The official was not authorized to discuss the ongoing investigation and spoke to the AP on the condition of anonymity. Police said the shooter was dead by apparent suicide when officers arrived. Barnes declined to give details about the

A lawsuit filed by the state of California claiming Huntington Beach’s voter-approved voting ID measure “unlawfully conflicts with and is preempted by state law” has been dismissed, according to the city. In March, voters in the beachside city approved a measure requiring residents to show valid identification when casting a ballot. The measure, which impacts city elections, is expected to go into effect in 2026. California Attorney General Rob Bonta and California Secretary of State Shirley N. Weber filed a lawsuit against the city in April regarding the measure. Huntington Beach sues California over gender identity notification law “Today, the Superior Court formally dismissed the State’s entire lawsuit attacking the City’s new local Voter ID law. While we anticipate that this fight is not over, for now, the Court has completely dismissed the State’s case. This is a big loss for the State of California and a major success for the City of Huntington Beach,” Pat Burns, the city’s mayor, said in a posted to X. In October, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a new law that prevents the governing body overseeing elections in California from

La Leagues Cup anunció el lunes que la próxima edición del torneo entre la Liga MX y la Major League Soccer (MLS) se llevará a cabo del 29 de julio al 31 de agosto de 2025 en Estados Unidos y Canadá. Según el comité organizador, se implementará un nuevo formato, centrado en ofrecer más partidos interligas. Aunque los detalles específicos del formato y el calendario se anunciarán a principios del próximo año, se anticipan cambios que podrían incluir la participación de un número reducido de equipos de la MLS, en lugar de los 30 actuales. A diferencia de ediciones anteriores, la Liga MX no detendrá su campeonato local para dar espacio a la Leagues Cup 2025. Mikel Arriola, quien es el presidente del campeonato mexicano, el torneo se jugará entre semana para permitir que los equipos mexicanos disputen sus encuentros de liga los fines de semanas como lo hacen regularmente. Este cambio busca reducir la carga de viajes y evitar permanecer un mes completo en Estados Unidos. A pesar de las preocupaciones sobre posibles conflictos de programación con otros torneos internacionales, como el Mundial de

For years, Amazon has faced accusations that the pressure the company puts on its warehouse workers to work more quickly has led to higher rates of injuries. Now, an investigation by a U.S. Senate committee led by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) has found that Amazon itself made the link between productivity quotas and injuries and that Amazon executives refused to make changes over concerns they would harm business. In a report on its findings released this week, the Senate’s Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions concluded that in 2023 Amazon warehouses recorded more than 30% more injuries than the industry average and that the company portrays its warehouses inaccurately to the public by “cherry-picking” injury data. Amazon also discourages injured workers from receiving outside medical care, and its internal practices force workers who need care to return to work too soon, the report said. As part of the probe, which was launched by Sanders in June last year, Senate committee staff examined seven years of Amazon workplace injury data and hundreds of internal documents provided by the company, as well as conducted interviews with