Controversies
Drone Fly-by Interferes with LAPD Helicopter During Hunt for Suspect
State lawmakers are developing targeted drone laws on the fly, often as highly-publicized incidents make ignoring the problem difficult. A year ago, LAPD got pretty ticked off about Torrance resident Daniel Saulmon flying his drones over DUI checkpoints, traffic stops, police stations and other places where he suspects misconduct by the authorities. This year, pending Senate Bill 170 would make it a misdemeanor for knowingly flying a drone over a prison or jail. read more
Uber and Its Suspect Drivers Are Headed for LAX
L.A. and S.F. district attorneys filed a 62-page amended complaint last week in a civil lawsuit that claims Uber is a “continuing threat to consumers and the public.” The DAs detailed the criminal histories of 25 drivers, including a convicted murderer and other felons. The lawsuit claims the company misleads the public by calling its background checks rigorous. read more
State Removes Old Student Test Scores from Database to Avoid “Confusion”
The department said it was following a state law passed in 2013 that says school districts and the department, “shall not use a comparison resulting from the scores and results” of the new tests “and the assessment scores and results from assessments that measured previously adopted content standards.” That is a directive for agencies not to use old data in their official actions. The law does not comment on parents and nongovernmental organizations having access to the information. read more
Ninth Circuit Tells San Diego Federal Court to Stop Shackling Its Pretrial Detainees
The U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals acknowledged that the financially-strapped U.S. Marshals Office would save money on staffing and logistics by shackling everyone. But the three-judge panel ruled that wasn’t an excuse for the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California to deny people their Constitutional rights. It also looked bad. read more
Auditor: “Many State Entities” Have Serious Data Security Problems
The auditor laid blame at the feet of the California Department of Technology. Not only is the department not addressing these deficiencies, “until our audit, it was not aware that many reporting entities had not complied with its requirements.” Forty-one of the entities surveyed by the auditor had told the technology department they were 100% compliant with security standards. Only four were. read more
Public Utilities Commission Stonewalls Attorney General on San Onofre
The CPUC said it was unable to turn over any documents—that’s zero documents—because the agency is too busy fulfilling other requests for documents being made under the California Public Records Act and federal subpoenas. The story didn’t change in Diaz’s August 7 update. “No extension has been requested and no indication has been given as to when the records will be produced,” he wrote. read more
California Cotton Crop Takes Another Hit, Imperils Wary Apparel Industry
California’s cotton crop, fourth largest in the nation, is expected to decline 24% this year from last. California farmers grew cotton on 1.65 million acres in 1979 and 667,000 acres in 2005, but only expect to harvest 160,000 acres this year. It is the lowest acreage farmed for cotton since the Depression. read more
San Diego Police Facial Recognition Program Flies Under the Radar
The New York Times topped their story last week about widespread use of the facial recognition system Tactical Identification System (TACIDS) nationally with tales from California’s second-largest city. The 10-month pilot program from back in 2013, funded by the Department of Homeland Security, turned into a permanent gig. But the San Diego Police Department didn’t get around to issuing “a written policy on the technology’s use until June 19 and recently began officer training.” read more
North Coast Water Board Tries to Regulate Elusive Pot Farms
Last week, the board voted 5-1 to adopt the state’s first environmental regulations for growing marijuana. The region is said to be decimated by large-scale growing operations on public and private land that waste limited water resources, pollute indiscriminately with pesticides and fertilizer, and otherwise abuse the environment. read more
Critics Decry “Librarygate” as Berkeley Tosses Thousands of Books
At the beginning of August, library Director Jeff Scott said the real number was around 2,200 out of the library's 450,000 books. Upon review, it has been determined that the library has weeded out more than 39,000 books. “I had the wrong information,” Scott said. “There was an internal process different to what I realized.” read more
Belated Indoor Air Testing Near 2 Superfund Sites Prompts More Testing
The EPA resisted doing the air testing until breathing TCE was recently linked to higher incidents of birth defects and cancer. The first EPA readings are in on 107 homes and they are spooky enough that the agency ordered more tests. Another 40 homes are going to be tested later this year. Vapor intrusion—the migration of chemicals in soil or groundwater to the air inside buildings above the contamination—is an “emerging concept” of the EPA. read more
Suicides Spike in California Women’s Prison
Don Thompson of Associated Press reported that four women inmates killed themselves at San Bernardino County’s California Institution for Women (CIW) during the past 18 months. There was only one suicide at the prison between 1999 and 2012, one each in 2001, 2006 and 2012. The spike brought the prison suicide rate to eight times the national average and five times that of California’s horrendous state prison system for men and women, according to AP. read more
San Jose Follows San Diego Lead in Suing Monsanto over PCB Contamination
Instead of the time-honored Superfund route used in many of the lawsuits that preceded them, the cities are suing the company as a public nuisance. Noah Sachs, professor of law at the University of Richmond, told ThinkProgress back in March that a “blockbuster verdict” could cost Monsanto “tens of billions of dollars.” But, first, a court has to declare them a public nuisance. read more
California Extends Bobcat Trapping Ban to the Entire State
People have been trapping bobcats for more than a century without much of a fuss being made. But a combination of heightened awareness (ht Cecil the Lion) and overeager trappers with new technology have made it an issue. The state recorded 1,639 takes in 2013-14, more than three times the total in 2010-11. read more
Pipeline Company Says Its Estimate of Santa Barbara Oil Spill Was Way Low
Plains All American Pipeline (PAAP) revised upward its estimate that 101,000 gallons poured out of a corroded pipeline that burst to 142,800 gallons. Its earliest estimate was a far more rosier 21,000 gallons.The Texas company said it came up with the new number from an analysis of the badly corroded 10.6 miles of pipeline it removed. read more
Reprieve for Senior Water Rights Holders Lasts Three Weeks
The new letters now make it clear that the state would very much like senior rights holders to stop using water because of the drought, but they can keep doing it—at the risk of paying a penalty. Water districts complained that the board was still using “coercive” and offensive language in its new letters left over from the original letter. read more