OPINION: For more than 40 years, California pursued a fire safety policy for furniture that recognized the risk presented by smoldering sources (cigarettes) and open flame sources (candles, matches and lighters). Now there has been a radical change in state policy that could result in increased fire deaths, injuries and property damage.
OPINION: New reports come out every day indicating a strong correlation between fracking and increased toxins in air and water as well as seismic activity. It is becoming clear that extreme well stimulation techniques pose threats to public health that go far beyond those associated with traditional oil and gas drilling.
Sen. Marty Block, D-San DiegoA coalition led by Democrats and advocates for the aged proposed a series of bills aimed at reforming the deadly conditions reported in some California’s elderly care facilities. Photo: Samantha Gallegos/Capitol Weekly.
Gov. Brown has signed into a law a measure allowing prison inmates who were minors at the time they committed their crimes to apply for resentencing and early release at least 15 years into their sentence.
Under the law, minors are treated differently than adults.
Trayvon Martin is a number. His family and others rightfully make the case that he was a real person, and that his death has left a serious mark on a real family and community. That’s true, but it’s time we recognize that he is also, sadly, a statistic. A statistic we too often ignore, which
Last week, the California judiciary went on a rollercoaster ride.
The final budget – it’s been approved by the Legislature and awaits Gov. Brown’s signature — included some relief for a court system that has taken continuous cuts over the last five years. But there were indications that the money is too little, too
When someone is in danger, or has been the victim of a crime, they call the police. Law enforcement’s ability to respond to these calls is a function of capacity—the number of police officers available to respond when those calls to 911 are made.
Much ado has been made about rising crime rates and
As local governments scrambled to meet a Jan. 1 reform deadline for giving lower pensions to some new hires, a top target was a big increase bargained by police and firefighters during the last decade.
A CalPERS-sponsored bill, SB 400 in 1999, gave the California Highway Patrol a 50 percent pension increase. Then in
Counselors, not guns, and emergency training for the staff offer the best chance for curbing school violence, according to a survey of California voters.
In the survey of 1,200 people conducted in English and Spanish, better than a 2-to-1 margin, or 67 percent to 26 percent, said hiring a counselor rather than a police