David DePape found guilty in hammer attack on Nancy Pelosi’s husband

Rightwing conspiracy theorist convicted of attempted kidnapping and assault in 2022 attack on Paul Pelosi

David DePape, the rightwing conspiracy theorist who attacked Nancy Pelosi’s husband in their San Francisco home, has been convicted of attempted kidnapping and assault.

The federal jury’s decision on Thursday comes after a dramatic trial in which Paul Pelosi testified about the “traumatic” hammer attack he suffered on 28 October 2022, days before the midterm elections. DePape also took the stand in his defense, saying he had planned to interrogate the former House speaker and post footage of her online.

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‘Disgusted and horrified’: protesters in LA stage sit-in urging for Gaza ceasefire

More than 1,000 people gather in the rain, shutting down a stretch of Hollywood Boulevard

Hundreds of demonstrators in Los Angeles shut down a stretch of Hollywood Boulevard on Wednesday afternoon in a protest demanding Joe Biden and US lawmakers call for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza.

In the heart of Hollywood, along the palm tree-lined streets near Ripley’s Believe It or Not! and the Walk of Fame, protesters waved Palestinian flags and held signs – “not in our name” and “let Gaza live”. More than 1,000 people gathered in the rain, including a group that staged a sit-in at the intersection with flowers in hand and shirts reading “Jews say ceasefire now” as tourists watched.

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‘Planet Earth is big enough for two’: Biden and Xi meet for first time in a year

US and Chinese presidents meet in San Francisco to discuss the economy, climate, military relations and Taiwan

Joe Biden and Xi Jinping met in California on Wednesday, exchanging handshakes and smiles as they embarked on face-to-face dialogues that both sides hope will stabilise US-China relations.

The US president opened his remarks by saying that tensions between the two countries should “not veer into conflict”.

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Pelosi attacker planned to wear unicorn costume and post interrogation online

David DePape, accused of attacking Nancy Pelosi’s husband in a home invasion last year, testified for an hour on Tuesday

David DePape, the man accused of attacking the husband of Nancy Pelosi with a hammer last year, told a federal jury how his fringe political beliefs brought him to the Pelosis’ home to interrogate the former house speaker.

In emotional testimony that lasted for more than an hour, DePape offered detailed insight into his motivations that evening in October, which he described as part of a bigger plan to end corruption in the United States.

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Shiny sidewalks, scrubbed walls: San Francisco aims to sparkle at Apec meet

City’s mayor promoting beleaguered downtown as the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation is expected to draw nearly 20,000 people

With the world watching San Francisco this week as it hosts the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) summit, the California city has been making use of an opportunity to rehabilitate its reputation as a struggling metropolis in decline.

Apec – San Francisco’s largest international gathering since 1945 when dignitaries gathered to sign the charter creating the United Nations – is expected to draw 20,000 people to the city. The summit will bring together leaders from 21 member countries to promote trade and economic development in the Pacific region.

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Newsom 2024: could the California governor be a rival to Joe Biden?

Amid concern over the president’s poll ratings, Gavin Newsom appears to be running something of a shadow campaign

One of the strongest candidates for US president in 2024 may be one who’s not yet in the race. There’s growing evidence that Gavin Newsom, the charismatic and energetic Democratic governor of California, is running something of a shadow campaign to Joe Biden and ready to step up if, or when, the incumbent is out of the running.

Several developments in recent days suggest Newsom, who romped to re-election a year ago without really campaigning, is ready to bring forward what was already expected to be a strong run for the presidency in 2028.

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Controversial police-led recall vote wins key ruling in California

Attempts to oust progressive lawmakers across state continue, as police union targets council member who voted against pay raises

A California state judge dismissed efforts this past week to halt a recall vote led by a local police union who are attempting to oust a progressive city council member.

The union, which is upset that the politician voted against officers’ pay raises, has so far spent more than $660,000 on the vote to recall Santa Ana council member Jessie Lopez, with voting happening 14 November.

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Son of top Hollywood agent in custody after woman’s torso found in dumpster

Sam Haskell, whose father represented Dolly Parton and George Clooney, suspected of murder of wife and her parents in LA

The 35-year-old son of a Hollywood talent agent whose clients included Dolly Parton, George Clooney and a British prince, has been taken into custody in Los Angeles after a bloody torso authorities say probably belongs to his wife was discovered in a strip-mall dumpster.

Sam Haskell, who was booked on suspicion of murder on Wednesday, is also suspected of killing his wife’s parents who are missing, detectives have said.

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Fire destroys second world war-era blimp hangar in California

Allowing structure in Tustin, California, to collapse is only way to fight the fire, officials say

Fire raged Tuesday in a giant second world war-era wooden hangar that was built to house military blimps based in southern California.

The Orange county fire authority said in a social media post that allowing the structure to collapse was the only way to fight the fire.

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Muslim Stanford student hospitalized in suspected hate crime hit-and-run

University says incident being investigated as possible hate crime after Abdulwahab Omira suffered non-life-threatening injuries

An Arab Muslim student at Stanford University was hospitalized after being struck in a hit-and-run that authorities are investigating as a hate crime, amid rising threats against Arab and Muslim people across the US.

The student, Abdulwahab Omira, was treated for non-life-threatening injuries after being struck by an SUV. “The driver is reported to have made eye contact with the victim, accelerated and struck the victim and then driven away while shouting ‘fuck you and your people’ out the lowered window of the vehicle,” according to the university’s department of public safety.

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US schools grapple with shortage of a lunchtime staple: milk cartons

Agricultural department says multiple states will be affected, forcing a brainstorm of backup plans

The tiny, half-pint cartons of milk served with millions of school lunches nationwide may soon be scarce in some cafeterias, with districts across the country scrambling to find alternatives.

The problem is not a shortage of milk itself, but the cardboard cartons used to package and serve it, according to dairy industry suppliers and state officials.

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Matthew Perry buried in service attended by family and Friends costars

Mourners were gathered at the Forest Lawn cemetery in Los Angeles to pay tribute to the actor

Actor Matthew Perry, who died on Saturday at age 54, was buried on Friday at a Los Angeles cemetery in a service attended by relatives and castmates from the hit 1990s television sitcom Friends, show business media reported, citing photographs.

Mourners gathered at the Forest Lawn cemetery in the Hollywood Hills neighborhood of Los Angeles, less than a mile from the Warner Bros studio where the show was filmed. It is also the final resting place of numerous Hollywood A-listers including Michael Jackson, Lucille Ball and Elizabeth Taylor.

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View on Israel-Gaza emerges as rare divide for California’s Senate hopefuls

Democratic rivals Adam Schiff, Barbara Lee and Katie Porter have near identical platforms and Israel-Gaza could be a deciding factor

As three leading California Democrats vie for a rare opening in the Senate, the Israeli offensive in Gaza has exposed rare fault lines in the candidates’ otherwise aligned platforms.

Following Hamas’s attack on Israel last month, all three leading candidates in the race to fill Dianne Feinstein’s seat – representatives Barbara Lee, Adam Schiff and Katie Porter – condemned the group’s actions. But as Israel ramped up its attacks on Gaza in retaliation, their divergent approaches to foreign policy became clear.

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UC Berkeley’s Taylor Swift class will examine her ‘enduring value’

Business school will offer a course studying the pop icon, following the success of her Eras tour and Taylor’s Version project

California’s UC Berkeley college will next year offer its students an unusual option for their studies in the form of a course about the pop icon Taylor Swift, whose current Eras tour has made her a billionaire.

Given the Eras project’s huge success, the course is being offered by Berkeley’s Haas School of Business. It will be called Artistry and Entrepreneurship: Taylor’s Version and start next spring, according to NBC News.

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US woman charged with hosting parties with alcohol for teens and encouraging sexual assault

Seventeen alleged victims testified at grand jury hearing, where Shannon Marie O’Connor was indicted on 63 charges

A woman accused of hosting parties for her teenage son and his friends in northern California where she encouraged them to drink and sexually assault intoxicated girls was charged on Monday with more than five dozen felony and misdemeanor counts.

Shannon Marie O’Connor, 49, was indicted by a grand jury in Santa Clara county on 63 charges including child endangerment for furnishing alcohol to minors and aiding and abetting sexual assault, the Mercury News reported.

Information and support for anyone affected by rape or sexual abuse issues is available from the following organisations. In the US, Rainn offers support on 800-656-4673. In the UK, Rape Crisis offers support on 0808 500 2222. In Australia, support is available at 1800Respect (1800 737 732). Other international helplines can be found at ibiblio.org/rcip/internl.html.

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A prison guard confessed to sexual misconduct. He got a year of paid time off and no charges

Records obtained by the Guardian show women in California prisons routinely report abuse, but few officers face consequences, even when there is substantial evidence

Women incarcerated in California state prisons have filed hundreds of complaints of sexual abuse by staff since 2014. But in that time frame, only four officers have been terminated for sexual misconduct, according to data obtained by the Guardian. And only four guards have been confirmed to have faced criminal charges for their behavior.

One of the guards who was prosecuted, Gregory Rodriguez, has been accused of assaulting and harassing at least 22 women at the Central California Women’s Facility (CCWF). He retired while under investigation and is awaiting trial on nearly 100 charges. He has pleaded not guilty.

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One prison guard, 96 abuse charges: women say ‘serial rapist’ targeted them over a decade

Exclusive: Records and interviews suggest the California prison system let Gregory Rodriguez get away with rampant sexual abuse, while his victims were punished

On 15 May 2022, Gregory Rodriguez, a guard at the Central California Women’s Facility, ordered a 30-year-old woman in his custody to come to a hearing room at the prison.

He told her there were no cameras in the room, prison investigators allege, and gave her a choice: she could have sex with him or get a write-up for a rules violation, risking a lengthened prison term, revoked privileges and solitary confinement.

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Meta sued by 33 states over claims youth mental health endangered by Instagram

Complaint filed in California accuses company of knowingly inducing children and teenagers into addictive social media use

The attorneys general of dozens of US states are suing Instagram and its parent company Meta over their impact on young users, accusing them of contributing to a youth mental health crisis through the addictive nature of their social media platforms.

Filed in federal court in Oakland, California, on Tuesday, the lawsuit claims Meta, which also operates Facebook, has repeatedly misled the public about the substantial dangers of its platforms and knowingly induced young children and teenagers into addictive and compulsive social media use.

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Ex-MLB player arrested in connection to 2021 Lake Tahoe shooting death

Danny Serafini was one of two people arrested after investigation into fatal shooting of Robert Spohr and wounding of his wife

A former professional baseball player was one of two people arrested on Friday in connection to an infamous Lake Tahoe shooting that killed a man and badly wounded his wife in 2021.

After a two-year investigation, Danny Serafini, 49, and Samantha Scott, 33, were arrested separately in Nevada, hundreds of miles apart in Las Vegas and north-west of Reno.

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Former Hells Angels boss accused of disposing bodies in ‘the pizza oven’

US prosecutors allege Merl Hefferman, 54, illegally cremated up to four members killed by the group at a California funeral home

Federal prosecutors say that a former Hells Angels boss disposed of the bodies of up to four of the group’s members at a central California funeral home, known to the gang as “the pizza oven”.

US prosecutors set out in gruesome detail last week how they believe members of the gang used the Yost and Webb funeral home in Fresno, California, to cremate four men.

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