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Criminal charges against PG&E could send message in Northern California wildfires -- Pacific Gas and Electric Co., already a convicted felon for safety violations in the deadly 2010 San Bruno gas pipeline explosion, could face another criminal prosecution for its role in the deaths and destruction caused by Northern California wildfires. Bob Egelko in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 6/10/19

At PG&E, a workforce on edge — and under attack — as fire season arrives -- Luke Bellefeuille was born and raised in this town that is now defined by disaster. He learned to fish in the Feather River and to dirt bike in the foothills. As an adult, he could have left behind the area’s isolation and poverty. He stayed. Lizzie Johnson and J.D. Morris in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 6/10/19

Helicopter crashes into CalPERS-owned skyscraper in Manhattan, authorities say -- The Manhattan building where a helicopter crashed during a landing attempt Monday is a 50-story office building partially owned by CalPERS, California’s state worker pension fund. Michael McGough in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 6/10/19

Justice Department agrees to hand over underlying evidence from Mueller report -- House Democrats reached an agreement Monday with the Justice Department to view underlying documents behind the redacted report by special counsel Robert S. Mueller III into Russian meddling in the 2016 election, partially defusing an impasse between Congress and the Trump administration. Sarah D. Wire in the Los Angeles Times$ Mary Clare Jalonick Associated Press Andrew Desiderio and Kyle Cheney Politico -- 6/10/19

Kaiser mental health workers call off strike -- Around 4,000 psychologists, therapists and social workers had planned to strike due to what they described as long wait times for patients seeking appointments for mental health care. The National Union of Healthcare Workers and Kaiser are negotiating a new contract after the previous agreement expired in September, and employees went on strike in December over similar wait-time concerns. Sophia Kunthara in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 6/10/19

High-speed rail route took land from farmers. The money they’re owed hasn’t arrived -- Many government highway and rail projects end up seizing private land for the greater good, leaving owners angry about the disruption to their lives and the loss of something they worked hard to build. In California, the slow payments are adding to the farmers’ frustration. Ralph Vartabedian in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 6/10/19

16,000 people in L.A. now live in cars, vans and RVs. But safe parking remains elusive -- Two years ago, Los Angeles began testing an alternative to homeless shelters called safe parking, giving people living in their cars a secure spot to sleep at night. Sonja Sharp in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 6/10/19

Should community colleges build housing? -- Matthew Polamalu was spending 1.5 hours each day commuting back and forth to community college along Southern California’s congested freeways when he decided he’d had enough. He sat down at his computer and Googled “community colleges with dorms.” Felicia Mello Calmatters -- 6/10/19

Does this vaccine bill go too far? Concerned families say they’ll leave California if it passes -- Sabino is among many California parents who have concerns about the bill, which passed the Senate last month and is awaiting votes in the Assembly. Newsom said he had his own doubts at the California Democratic Party Convention, when he told reporters, “I’m a parent. I don’t want someone that the governor of California appointed to make a decision for my family.” Hannah Wiley in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 6/10/19

Trump EPA releases blueprint for stemming Tijuana River pollution that routinely fouls San Diego beaches -- Shorelines in South Bay San Diego will never be fully immune from the sewage and chemical pollution that flows north from Mexico over the border through canyons and the Tijuana River. Joshua Emerson Smith in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 6/10/19

Police know the mentally ill need more than handcuffs. Their response is shifting -- The first time that Bob Hung had to handcuff his sister, in 2010, he was afraid. He was just two years into his career as a patrol officer for the Monterey Park Police Department when his father called and told him that his older sister, diagnosed with schizophrenia, had run away from home. He called his supervisor and quickly shed his uniform. Frank Shyong in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 6/10/19

McStay murder trial: Man found guilty of killing family of 4, burying bodies in Mojave Desert -- Charles “Chase” Merritt, 62, of Rancho Cucamonga, was convicted of four counts of first degree murder in the deaths of Joseph and Summer McStay and their two boys. After a five-month trial in San Bernardino, jurors deliberated for about a week before reaching their verdict. Alene Tchekmedyian in the Los Angeles Times$ Richard K. De Atley and Brian Rokos in the Orange County Register -- 6/10/19

Update: Sand Fire growth stalls overnight. Yolo County blaze now 30% contained -- The fire stands at 2,220 acres and is now 30% contained, Cal Fire said in an update just before 7:30 a.m. The fire had been 20% contained as of Sunday evening’s update. Michael McGough in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 6/10/19

Protest At Sacramento’s Pride Festival Sparks Discussion Of How To Impact Change Within LGBTQ Community -- A contentious decision to allow uniformed law-enforcement officers to march in this year’s Sacramento Pride parade sparked a protest on Sunday that blocked attendees from entering the annual festival — and generated debate over how to impact change within the LGBTQ community. Nick Miller Capital Public Radio -- 6/10/19

Up in smoke: Why thousands of marijuana convictions were reduced and others were not -- Since the passage of Prop. 64, about 1,600 marijuana cases have been re-evaluated in San Diego County, with almost 99 percent resolved in the petitioner’s favor. The process is simple, by judicial standards, and swift, by anyone’s reckoning. Peter Rowe in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 6/10/19

No Secret Immigration Deal Exists With U.S., Mexico’s Foreign Minister Says -- The Mexican foreign minister said Monday that no secret immigration deal existed between his country and the United States, directly contradicting President Trump’s claim on Twitter that a “fully signed and documented” agreement would be revealed soon. Michael D. Shear and Maggie Haberman in the New York Times$ -- 6/10/19

 

California Policy & Politics This Morning  

PG&E restoring power after intentional shut-offs affect 20,500 customers -- Pacific Gas and Electric Co. field crews began restoring power Sunday to approximately 20,500 customers in Butte and Yuba counties after the utility shut off electricity because of gusty winds and dry weather conditions. More than half of the affected customers had electricity again as of 1:47 p.m. Sunday, according to PG&E, and by 4 p.m. all of Yuba County power had been restored. Gwendolyn Wu and Matthias Gafni in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 6/10/19

Gov. Gavin Newsom abandons water tax, rejects some new spending in California budget deal -- Gov. Gavin Newsom and Democratic legislative leaders announced Sunday the broad outlines of a new state budget, one that provides a boost for California’s low-income adults and children but excludes a controversial tax to pay for clean water in distressed communities. John Myers in the Los Angeles Times$ Ben Adler Capital Public Radio Alexei Koseff in the San Francisco Chronicle$ Sophia Bollag and Adam Ashton in the Sacramento Bee $Adam Beam Associated Press -- 6/10/19

Santa Anita rejects state board’s request to end current meet; two more horses died this weekend -- Santa Anita officials have rejected the California Horse Racing Board’s request to cancel the final six days of its spring-summer meet, a statement from the board said Sunday. Two more horses died at the track this weekend, bringing the total number of fatalities to 29 during the meet. Art Wilson in the Riverside Press Enterprise$ John Cherwa in the Los Angeles Times$-- 6/10/19

Kamala Harris, Seeking a Campaign Jolt, Defends Record as Prosecutor -- Senator Kamala Harris of California has, for months, faced criticism from activist Democrats who have said her record as California attorney general was at odds with her progressive reputation. Astead W. Herndon in the New York Times$ Christopher Cadelago Politico -- 6/10/19

Skelton: Here’s how California can become a tuition-free college state -- Many people must suffer from math and English deficiencies. They confuse “tuition-free” with “free college.” Stuck in their minds is the false notion that if students don’t pay tuition at public universities, they’re getting a free ride. George Skelton in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 6/10/19

Walters: Los Angeles school tax flunks out -- The political leaders of Los Angeles, led by Mayor Eric Garcetti, were convinced that they could persuade local voters to approve a very hefty tax increase for the city’s schools, especially since the burden would fall largely on large property owners. Dan Walters Calmatters -- 6/10/19

Rep. Katie Porter ribs Bill Maher during abortion discussion -- Rep. Katie Porter (D-Calif.) drew laughs from the audience while defending a woman's right to choose Saturday night, after Real Time host Bill Maher joked about being "squishy" on his "pro-choice" views. "They told my mother after my sister, very difficult birth, she shouldn't have another one. So knowing I could've been on the cutting room floor...why is that so terrible?" Maher said. Porter quipped back at the comedian: "Your mom made her choice, and we're all here with the consequences of that choice." Rebecca Klar The Hill -- 6/10/19

‘Clean’ freight traffic is elusive as California rolls toward zero emissions -- Work used to be much simpler for the California Department of Transportation: widen highways, fill potholes, build new freeways. Alas, those quaint days are gone. To get an idea of what planners must prepare for, state officials recently hosted a demonstration of a drone air taxi that will require devising a “highway above the ground,” said Reza Navai, a Caltrans transportation planner. “If you think transportation on the ground is complex.…” Julie Cart Calmatters -- 6/10/19

LAUSD’s Measure EE battle was a small fry compared to what’s coming in 2020 -- At a Boyle Heights gathering to conclude the campaign for Measure EE, community organizers said that making phone calls and knocking on doors in the name of education funding was “good practice” for an emerging, much bigger campaign that could bring in an estimated $10 billion in revenue a year to K-12 school districts like LAUSD across California. But it won’t come without a battle, one that might make the fight over the recent parcel tax look like a walk in the park. Ariella Plachta in the Los Angeles Daily News$ -- 6/10/19

Economy, Employers, Jobs, Unions, Pensions  

Schnur: The gig economy is here. How do current regulations measure up? -- Who is the typical Uber or Lyft driver? Is it the urban hipster who wants to make a few extra dollars on the weekend while finishing her screenplay before she starts graduate school in the fall? Or the single mother driving 50-60 hours a week for multiple ride-hailing companies along with a night-shift custodial job, doing all she can to make rent and keep a roof over her children’s heads? Dan Schnur in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 6/10/19

4,000 Kaiser mental health clinicians call off open-ended strike planned for Tuesday -- The union representing 4,000 mental health clinicians at Kaiser Permanente announced Sunday that its membership voted to call off the open-ended strike they planned to start Tuesday, saying they had made progress at the bargaining table. Cathie Anderson in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 6/10/19

Homeless  

Researchers find environment perpetuates stigma of homelessness -- San Diego State University researchers took photos of places where homeless people congregate and said they found the environment perpetuates the stigma of homelessness. Gary Warth in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 6/10/19

Housing  

Low-income students question whether Berkeley co-ops are living up to mission -- A culture clash is unfolding inside Berkeley’s venerable co-op student residences, between people who need affordable housing to attend a university and those who simply want a fun, alternative place to live. Zoe Schiffer in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 6/10/19

38% of renters in Los Angeles, Orange County looking at out-of-town apartments -- Are local renters getting antsy to leave town? According to a study by Apartment List, 38% of Los Angeles and Orange Counties searches involved locals looking at units out of the two-county region. Only seven of the 25 metro areas studied had a higher level of out-of-town searches. Jonathan Lansner in the Orange County Register -- 6/10/19

Education 

Union City-Hayward teachers strike ends as union approves deal -- After three weeks out of the classroom, more than 500 teachers, counselors, nurses, psychologists and speech therapists from the New Haven Unified School District will return to their posts Monday after voting Sunday to end the district’s first strike. Matthias Gafni in the San Francisco Chronicle$ Joseph Geha in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 6/10/19

Immigration / Border 

Trial revives debate: When does border humanitarian aid become a crime? -- Volunteer groups that rescue lost migrants or provide water in the California desert are watching Arizona case closely. Kristina Davis in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 6/10/19

Environment 

Hatchery-Born Coho Salmon Are Helping Save the Species From Extinction in the Russian River -- Right now, thousands of 1-year-old coho salmon, or smolts, are making their way to the Pacific Ocean from the Russian River in Sonoma County. But most of these endangered fish weren’t actually born in the river's tributaries. Instead, they were bred and raised at the Warm Springs Fish Hatchery in Geyserville. Tiffany Camhi KQED -- 6/10/19

Lifeguard tower built from plastic waste offers glimpse of future -- The lifeguard tower being built Saturday on Bruce’s Beach in Manhattan Beach is not just another oceanfront lookout. The tower, erected as part of that beach’s World Oceans Day activities, could part of the solution to the scourge of plastic pollution, a large portion of which ends up in the ocean. Martin Wisckol in the Riverside Press Enterprise$ -- 6/10/19

Southern California’s extreme heat raises concerns over wildfire season -- The sweltering heat that roasted most of Southern California over the weekend will peak well past 100 degrees in some places by Tuesday, June 11, raising concerns about the risk of wildfires in the coming months. Eric Licas in the Orange County Register -- 6/10/19

Also . . . 

Thousands turn out for L.A. Pride: ‘Forget the president. Let’s do our own thing’ -- As he waited to walk in his first Los Angeles Pride parade in West Hollywood on Sunday, Jay Gendron reflected on what it means to support LGBTQ rights that many feel are under attack by the White House. Ben Poston in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 6/10/19

POTUS 45  

Trump's Twitter defense of Mexico agreement is short on specifics -- President Donald Trump spent much of this weekend tweeting that Mexico will take "strong measures" against northward migration as a result of Friday's trade deal, and bewailing the "Corrupt Media" for underplaying those measures' significance. But Trump didn't specify any Mexican concessions on immigration, referring vaguely to unnamed "things we had, or didn’t have." Ted Hesson and Doug Palmer Politico -- 6/10/19

Trump defends deal with Mexico that critics say will do little to curb migrant crisis -- President Trump and his allies on Sunday declared victory in the tariffs standoff with Mexico after the administration appeared to have secured significant commitments from the Mexican government to stem the flow of Central American migrants at the U.S. border. Felicia Sonmez, Mike DeBonis and Nick Miroff in the Washington Post$ -- 6/10/19

 

-- Sunday Updates 

Yolo County fire grows to 1,800 acres; PG&E shuts off power in parts of Northern California as a precaution -- Winds out of the northeast and temperatures in the 90s drove the Sand fire, which is burning dry grass and shrubs near the community of Guinda in the Capay Valley. By Sunday morning., the fire had grown to 1,800 acres and was zero percent contained. Bettina Boxall in the Los Angeles Times$ Casey Tolan, Nico Savidge, Jason Green and Mark Gomez in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 6/9/19

In Trump’s trade war with China, L.A. ports are ground zero -- When President Trump unveiled plans to launch a trade war with China early last year, Marisa Bedrosian Kosters, an executive at an Anaheim-based ceramic tile and stone retailer, sprang into action. Margot Roosevelt and Samantha Masunaga in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 6/9/19

Gun owners stockpile ammo before new California background check law begins -- California ammo buyers are making a run on gun shops ahead of a new state law, which on July 1 will require buyers of bullets to show identification and undergo a background check to screen out felons and people with illegal firearms. Patrick McGreevy in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 6/9/19

After lengthy strike, East Bay teachers to vote on tentative contract -- After three weeks out of classrooms, more than 500 teachers, counselors, nurses, psychologists and speech therapists from the New Haven Unified School District will vote Sunday afternoon whether to approve a tentative labor agreement and end the district’s first strike. Matthias Gafni in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 6/9/19

With one minor opponent, election’s pretty much over for San Francisco Mayor London Breed -- For all intents and purposes, San Francisco’s 2019 mayoral election ends Tuesday at 5 p.m., with Mayor London Breed the winner by a landslide. Phil Matier in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 6/9/19

In Bay Area, small retail struggles while tech booms -- While Silicon Valley’s tech sector is thriving, cranking out IPOs and flooding the region with high-paying jobs, its retail industry is struggling to keep its boutiques and tiny mom and pop shops open. Marisa Kendall and Leonardo Castañeda in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 6/9/19

Showdown between mayors and Alameda County over funds for homelessness -- Frustrations over the growing homelessness problem are coming to a head between a dozen East Bay mayors and Alameda County officials. The source of contention is an untouched county reserve of nearly $30 million that some mayors say could help their cities provide needed mental health services to unsheltered residents. Sarah Ravani in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 6/9/19

California releases air quality guidelines for schools dealing with wildfire smoke -- The guidelines are expected to help schools across the state determine what is the right response when wildfire smoke is prevalent. Woodland, for example, along with other schools far out of the fire zones were blanketed by smokey air, which forced students — along with everyone else — to take precautions such as wearing masks. Woodland Joint Unified School District canceled classes for one day last year when the smoke became too heavy. Ruth Schneider in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 6/9/19

Myers: For Californians, the golden dream depends on where you live and how much you earn -- There was a swagger in Gov. Gavin Newsom’s message at last month’s California Democratic Party convention — an insistence that no state offers more promise than the one he leads. “There’s no Alabama dream, no Kentucky dream,” Newsom told the party faithful. “There’s only the California dream, attainable and aspirational.” John Myers in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 6/9/19

Fact-Checking Kamala Harris on the Campaign Trail -- Senator Kamala Harris is aiming to reset her presidential campaign after a strong start and subsequent slump by highlighting her career as a glass-ceiling-shattering prosecutor and making the case against President Trump. Linda Qiu in the New York Times$ -- 6/9/19

Trump backlash sparks avalanche of 2020 policy proposals -- In the last week alone, Joe Biden and Elizabeth Warren released trillion dollar-plus climate change plans, while Jay Inslee added to his voluminous set of tracts on the issue. David Siders Politico -- 6/9/19

McManus: We fled the country to escape news about Trump. We failed -- I launched an experiment last week: I tried to unplug from the tumult of President Trump’s Washington and the Democratic presidential race. For seven days, I resolved to stay away from Twitter and Facebook, watch no television, and see if the world felt any calmer. Doyle McManus in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 6/9/19

For many black voters, 2020 isn’t about pride or making history. It’s about beating Trump -- Catrena Norris Carter is a bundle of conflicting impulses. As a black woman, she’s delighted with Kamala Harris’ presidential bid. As a liberal activist, she’s thrilled with Elizabeth Warren’s groaning board of progressive policy proposals. Mark Z. Barabak in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 6/9/19