Daily Republic: Monday, April 10, 2023

Mini quiches can be a fun, flexible family meal B2

Jon Rahm of Spain rallies to win his first Masters title B1

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Suisun Fire Department hosts festive annual Easter egg hunt

SuSan Hiland

SHILAND@DAILYREPUBLIC.NET

SUISUN CITY — The kids had one goal for the Suisun City Fire Department’s annual Easter egg hunt and that was to have fun.

About 200 people came out for the fastest egg hunt around; all of about 60 seconds of mad dashing for as many eggs as possible.

Richard Anderson, reserve engineer, and Michelle Zunino organized the event this year. Anderson emphasized that Sunday’s event was put on by the Suisun Fire Department and not the Fire Fighters Association as in the years past.

“We had 5,000 eggs out there,” he said. “With four

different age groups.”

He has been doing the egg hunt for about 12 years.

“As far as we can figure this egg hunt has been going on since the ′1980s,” he said.

He says the goal is to bring kids out and let

them enjoy the weather.

“It is something for every kid,” he said. “We hope they leave happy.”

This year they didn’t have any prizes as they did in years past.

“We didn’t have anything left over from the Toys for Kids event this

year,” he said. “Hopefully next year.”

Deborah Caston of Suisun City was enjoying the day with her granddaughter Mayrah, 4, who came down from Sacramento.

“She is here for the weekend and will get to meet some of her cousins for the first time,” Caston said.

Her favorite part of the day is spending time with family.

Berna Kenery of Suisun City came with her daughter Kamryn, 5, for the first time.

“I am really glad they are doing this,” Kenery said. “It is nice for the kids.”

State touts gun seizures from prohibited persons, but will it slow rate of violence?

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SAN JOSE — California officials announced in a news release that they had seized guns from people who had become legally prohibited from owning weapons they had once purchased legally.

The seizures came from people convicted of crimes, those who may have been hospitalized because of mental illness or threatened suicide, or those who were the subject of restraining

orders. Officials identified 23,869 people on its list, they said, and seized 1,437 firearms.

In a state of nearly 40 million people, with approximately 3.35 million registered gun owners and 20 million legally owned guns, how significant is that number?

You could be forgiven for scoffing at it, violence prevention advocate Julia Weber said; she has a unique view. Currently the director of the National Center on

Gun Violence in Relationships, she served for nearly 18 years as the supervising attorney for the Judicial Council of California. That council helped created the Armed and Prohibited Persons System, the California program that tracks people who are ineligible to own guns and orchestrates seizures.

Weber said the number is meaningful, but the seizures are “lowhanging fruit.”

“A significant number of the folks among the

24,000 are prohibited because of felonies,” she said “Some are folks with criminal histories. We need to do more to make sure (the number of people on) that list gets lower.”

Among some of the law-enforcement personnel who regularly investigate gun crime –and who sometimes face guns in the hands of criminal suspects – the overall number of firearms on the street dwarfs the seizures.

See Guns, Page A8

Becerra

says ‘every option’

weighed after abortion ruling

BloomBerg newS

WASHINGTON — The Biden administration is weighing every option to strike down a “reckless” ruling by a federal judge in Texas that suspended U.S. approval of a key drug used in medication abortions, Xavier Becerra, the secretary of Health and Human Services, said on Sunday.

The administration has already filed an appeal, Becerra said on CNN’s “State of the Union.”

He said that ignoring the Trump-appointed judge’s ruling, as some Democratic lawmakers have suggested, is another possibility.

“Every option is on the table,” he said. “It’s incumbent upon us as a country to make sure women have safe and effective medication available.”

Becerra said the U.S. District Court judge’s decision to suspend the

decades-old federal approval of mifepristone, used often as part of a two-pill regimen to terminate a pregnancy within the first 10 weeks, was judicial overreach and endangers the entire drug approval process by the Food and Drug Administration.

“When you turn upside down the entire FDA approval process, you’re not talking about just mifepristone. You’re talking about every kind of drug. You’re talking about our vaccines. You’re talking about insulin. You’re talking about the new Alzheimer’s drugs that may come on,” he said.

The decision out of Texas from Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk will not go into effect for seven days from the time of the ruling, giving the Biden administration time to appeal to

See Abortion, Page A8

Feds say drones used to make prison deliveries

LOS ANGELES —

Walls and rules have never stopped prisoners from getting what they need. Drugs, phones and other contraband have been smuggled in by guards and visitors, flung over fences and even stashed inside hollowed-out pastries in care packages.

Now, two men are accused of using an increasingly common technology to bypass prison walls: drones.

Federal prosecutors in Fresno have charged Jose Enrique Oropeza and David Ramirez Jr. with using drones to drop loads of methamphetamine, heroin, cocaine, tobacco and cellphones into the yards of seven prisons across California.

Oropeza was arrested March 29; Ramirez was arrested on April 4.

Along with drug trafficking offenses, the men face airspace violations

of operating unregistered aircraft and flying without a certificate, a redacted indictment shows. Several others whose names are obscured have been charged in the case but have not been arrested.

Ramirez and Oropeza have pleaded not guilty. Ramirez’s attorney, Serita Rios, said she had just been appointed to represent him and could not comment. Oropeza’s attorney didn’t return a request for comment.

In the persistent ploys to get contraband into prisons, the skies are playing a growing role.

“There’s a large problem right now with drone activity,” Sgt. Craig Parkhill, a gang investigator at Centinela State Prison, testified at a recent trial in Los Angeles.

The issue isn’t confined to California. Two men have been charged in separate cases in Texas with dropping

See A8

Susan Hiland/Daily Republic photos

Close to 200 people participated in the Suisun City Fire Department Easter egg hunt, Sunday

Kids enjoyed the rush of gathering eggs at the annual Suisun City Fire Department Easter egg hunt.

Armijo grad David Meny creates Star Wars magic

What does a former mom-and-pop computer shop in Fairfield have to do with Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader?

Stay tuned.

David Meny (pronounced like “many”) is a digital artist supervisor at Industrial Light & Magic, the motion picture visual-effects company founded by filmmaker George Lucas, creator of the Star Wars franchise. While he calls San Rafael home now, Meny lived and went to school in Fairfield in his formative years.

After his first elementary school, K.I. Jones, was torn down to make room for Solano Mall, Meny attended David Weir Elementary and was enrolled in their Gifted & Talented Education (GATE) program. Later at Armijo High School, where he graduated with the Class of 1990, Meny was the valedictorian and was dubbed “Most Intellectual” in the Senior Superlatives section of the school yearbook.

While being nerdy/geeky is chic these days, it wasn’t so much so when Meny was growing up. He was passionate about comic books and Star Wars and had all the action figures. His experience going to see “The Empire Strikes Back” in 1980 at the old Fairfield Cinema I theater downtown left a lasting impression on him.

“My dad couldn’t get tickets to the 7 p.m. show so we were in the line going around the block for the one that started after 9 p.m.,” Meny said. “When that one let out, some guy who had just seen it walked by and said, ‘Darth Vader is Luke’s Father!’ Everybody thought it was a bad joke until we watched the movie.”

Like many people, Meny was captivated by the characters in the Star Wars universe, but he was also fascinated by the film’s visuals. He wondered how miniatures were built and how the film’s artisans created the fantastical worlds that came to life on the big screen.

Meny’s father, Charles

CORRECTION POLICY

“Chuck” Meny, retired from the Air Force and started a second career in real estate, but while it helped feed his family, it didn’t feed his soul. Personal computers were just starting their rather rapid journey from obscurity to ubiquity, and Charles and his wife Christina got in on the ground floor when they opened Realcomp Computers on West Texas Street in 1982.

“My parents’ store was one of the main suppliers for the city of Fairfield as they were starting to adopt PCs,” Meny said. “After school and on weekends, I formatted hard drives and installed operating systems.”

David Meny picked up programming from the teletype machines at Solano Community College and not only played but created video games. An old-school open source game he created in 1985 called Pirate Island can be accessed and played at https://bit.ly/ PirateIslandMeny.

After high school, Meny attended California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo and earned a degree in Computer Science. As a junior, he applied for an internship with Lucasfilm, which made the Star Wars movies, and didn’t hear back from them until after he’d already accepted a job at a smaller company in Los Angeles and booked an apartment there. Once he got the call offering him the internship at the only company he’d ever really wanted to work for … Meny turned them down.

“It was the best decision I’ve ever made because by turning them down I went to L.A. and got my first movie credit in 1993 on a film called “Blink” [starring Madeline Stowe and Aidan Quinn]. I got more handson experience than I would have gotten at Lucasfilm and reapplied the following summer and got the internship. I got my second movie credit working there [1994’s “Disclosure” starring Michael Douglas and

It is the Daily Republic’s policy to correct errors in reporting. If you notice an error, please call the Daily Republic at 425-4646 during business hours weekdays and ask to speak to the editor in charge of the section where the error occurred. Corrections will be printed here.

DAILY REPUBLIC

Demi Moore], which none of the other interns were allowed to work on.”

After the internship, Meny surveyed the field for career opportunities and it really came down to Pixar or Industrial Light & Magic. The choice was easy as he wanted to make Star Wars movies.

A partial list of the films that Meny has worked on over his nearly 30 years at Industrial Light & Magic include “Twister,” “Men in Black,” “Mars Attacks!,” “Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace,” “Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones,” “Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith,” “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull,” “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest,” “The Avengers,” “Captain Marvel,” “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story” and “Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker.”

Meny has worked on two Academy Award-winning movies: “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest,” which won for Best Visual Effects in 2006, and “Rango,” which snagged the Best Animated Feature award in 2011. He has also won two Visual Effects Society awards: One for Outstanding Created Environment in a Live Action Motion Picture for “Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End” in 2007 and the other for Outstanding Created Environment in a Live Action Feature Motion Picture for “The Avengers” in 2013.

While the recognition is appreciated, to Meny it’s really just icing on the cake because what matters most to him is enjoying the day-to-day creative process with colleagues he describes as “amazingly talented people.”

Meny recently finished effects for “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny,” which opens June 30, and is working on a Christmas film for Prime Video starring Eddie Murphy called “Candy Cane Lane.”

When he lived in Fairfield, Meny went to the old drive-in theater, the Chief Cinemas next

The WashingTon PosT Bohemian Grove has all the hallmarks of an eyebrow-raiser: The men’s-only retreat in Sonoma County has a massive owl statue, a reported history of public urination, mysterious ceremonies and a top-secret guest list that has included presidents, wealthy businessmen, international power players and other newsmakers.

That list also includes Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, who has reportedly attended the retreat with billionaire friend and Republican donor Harlan Crow. An investigation by ProPublica found that Thomas accepted luxury trips from

BRIGHT spot

to it and also rented movies from Blockbuster and other local video stores when that was still a thing. While his perspective has changed since he now helps create the behind-thescenes magic, he is still a huge movie buff.

“I have friends working on Marvel movies and I tell them not to tell me anything as I don’t want to know. I want to just enjoy the movie as a fan,” Meny said. “I think that goes back to having ‘The Empire Strikes Back’ spoiled for me when I was 8 years old.”

Meny’s long career at Industrial Light & Magic has spanned the years when it was a small family company to today when it is a small family company that is part of a media conglomerate (The Walt Disney Company). He is lightyears away from the quiet nerdy kid who a long time ago in a city far, far away from the movie industry would spend hours programming computers.

“I remember walking back to Armijo after lunch with a very close friend and he said, ‘What are you gonna do after high school? Work on COMPUTERS?’ And it was like this big joke. Now everybody works on computers,” Meny said. “I took my passion for Star Wars, visual effects, computer pro-

Bohemian Club. Founded by a group of artists, newsmen and others in 1872 “for the association of gentlemen connected professionally with Literature, Art, Music, Drama” and those who appreciate those subjects, the membership has evolved to include Henry Kissinger, Richard M. Nixon, Ronald Reagan, Charles Schwab and, yes, writers like Mark Twain and Jack London, according to the Encyclopaedia Britannica. Today, there are roughly 2,600 active members and a “sizeable waiting list for admission,” according to the club’s website. Two representatives declined to comment on membership, guests or the club itself, though they did

a two-week festival of concerts, lectures, performances, camp-like activities and other artistic ventures.

Three productions serve as the centerpieces, according to the club: a ritual called the “Cremation of Care” that celebrates “members’ brief but welcome midsummer escape from life’s cares,” an original musical comedy called the “Low Jinks” and an original musical, the “Grove Play.”

The cremation event in particular has drawn scrutiny, especially since Infowars founder Alex Jones snuck into the encampment and filmed the ceremony in 2000. Mainstream journalists are also fans of trying to pierce the veil:

A Washington Post reporter

gramming and computer graphics and kind of just lucked into the transformation that so many different industries went through where digital tools and software reinvented how they did the work.”

While Lady Luck may have played a part in Meny’s life journey, his long and fruitful creative career is also a testament to the value of putting in the necessary footwork to make dreams become reality.

“I’ve told my kids to just say yes to every opportunity that leads you in the direction you think you might want to go.”

You can see David Meny’s Internet Movie Database credits at https:// bit.ly/DMIMDB.

Fairfield freelance humor columnist and accidental local historian Tony Wade writes two weekly columns: “The Last Laugh” on Mondays and “Back in the Day” on Fridays. Wade is also the author of The History Press books “Growing Up In Fairfield, California,” “Lost Restaurants of Fairfield, California,” the upcoming book “Armijo High School: Fairfield, California” and hosts the Channel 26 government access TV show “Local Legends.”

of the old boys’ club,” Bohemian Grove has been a magnet for conspiracy theorists on the right and protesters on the left, though the demonstrations have shriveled in recent years.

Despite the club’s reticence to disclose much of anything about itself, the website does seek to dissuade outsiders from the notion that members get together to make deals or decisions away from the public eye. Put aside that some planning for the Manhattan Project happened there in the 1940s, as The Washington Post reported in 2011.

“One of the exaggerated notions about the Bohemian Club is that it is a gathering and decision-making place for national and international ‘power brokers,’” the site says. “In fact, the Club is a refuge from decision-making and other pressures. The Club’s motto, ‘Weaving spiders, come not here,’ conveys the Club’s character and purpose as ation. Conducting business is

Tony Wade Back in the day

Wet winter might offer ‘abundance of mosquitoes’

Danielle echeveRRia SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE

Besides flooding, fallen trees and full reservoirs, California’s wet winter – which isn’t quite over – might have another, less obvious impact: a problematic mosquito season.

“We’re definitely concerned about the record rainfall and snowpack,” said Joel Buettner, district manager for the Placer County Mosquito and Vector Control District, which includes South Lake Tahoe. “More water and high temperatures mean more mosquitoes, and that’s not good.”

Buettner explained that, while

it isn’t quite warm enough for mosquitos to be flying around, campers and hikers in the mountains and people living near agricultural areas should be on alert, as water from the storms, especially from the snowmelt, is likely to stick around all summer long, creating more wet, swampy areas.

“The worst case scenario is that it gets hot really fast, and there’s a lot of standing water,” she said. “That’s a recipe for a lot of mosquitoes.”

Some Bay Area and northern California mosquito control agencies said it’s too soon to know whether the rain has caused an

increase in the mosquito population, which is usually most active May through November. But large rain events mean more standing water, which is a breeding ground for the insects.

Nizza Sequeira, the public information officer for the Marin-Sonoma mosquito control district, said that vector control technicians are beginning to find areas with mosquito larvae, which she said “is expected this time of year, especially after large rain events.”

“The series of atmospheric rivers that drenched Marin and Sonoma counties this past winter, and most recently, has

led to large areas of stagnant water that has the potential to produce an abundance of mosquitoes,” she said. “As the temperatures begin to rise, there is a possibility for an increase in adult mosquito populations.”

Mosquitoes need as little as half an inch of water to complete their life cycle, according to the Marin-Sonoma mosquito control district, which means they could breed in less obvious areas like trash cans and potted plant saucers.

“It is important for residents to take steps such as clearing away standing water on their property, such as outdoor con-

tainers, and cleaning out clogged roof gutters. Large drains that hold water are also a possible source of mosquito activity. Placing screens under drain covers could prevent mosquitoes from breeding,” the San Francisco Department of Public Healthsaid in a statement.

Buettner said that some species of mosquitoes in the mountains develop in rotting holes in trees, all of which “are full of water” right now.

“When it comes to the incredible amount of rain we’ve received over the last four months, our concern is that with

See Mosquitoes, Page A7

Tax deadline extended for some week The ahead

FAIRFIELD — The Internal Revenue Service extended the income tax filing and business filing deadline to May 15 for areas with emergency designations by the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

Individuals and households that reside or have a business in Alameda, Colusa, Contra Costa, El Dorado, Fresno, Glenn, Humboldt, Kings, Lake, Los Angeles, Madera, Marin, Mariposa, Mendocino, Merced, Mono, Monterey, Napa, Orange, Placer, Riverside, Sacramento, San Benito, San Bernardino, San Diego, San Francisco, San Joaquin, San Luis Obispo, San Mateo, Santa Barbara, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, Solano, Sonoma, Stanislaus, Sutter, Tehama, Tulare, Ventura, Yolo and Yuba counties qualify for tax relief, the IRS said in a statement.

The tax relief postpones various tax filing and payment deadlines starting Jan. 8.

“As a result, affected individuals and businesses will have until May 15, 2023, to file returns and pay any taxes that were originally due during this period,” the IRS said.

“This includes 2022 individual income tax returns due on April 18, as well as various 2022 business returns normally due on March 15 and April 18. Among other things, this means that eligible taxpayers will have until May 15 to make 2022 contributions to their IRAs and health savings accounts.”

Farmers who choose to forgo making estimated tax payments and normally file their returns by March 1 will now have until May 15 to file their 2022 returns and pay any tax due.

“The May 15, 2023, deadline also applies to the quarterly estimated tax payments, normally due on Jan. 17 and April 18. This means that individual taxpayers can skip making the fourth quarter estimated tax payment, normally due Jan. 17, 2023, and instead include it with the 2022 return they file, on or before May 15,” the statement said. “The May 15 deadline also applies to the quarterly payroll and excise tax returns normally due on Jan. 31 and April 30, 2023. In addition, penalties on payroll and excise tax deposits due on or after Jan. 8 and before Jan. 23, will be abated as long as the tax deposits are made by Jan. 23.”

More information is online at www.irs.gov/ businesses/small-businesses-self-employed/ disaster-assistance-andemergency-relief-for-individuals-and-businesses.

“In addition, the IRS will work with any taxpayer who lives outside the disaster area but whose records necessary to meet a deadline occurring during the postponement period are located in the affected area. Taxpayers qualifying for relief who

outside the disaster

where he served 10 years, working between security police and radio, and TV broadcasting.

After getting discharged from the Air Force, Mirich found employment with the California Department of Corrections, retiring as a lieutenant after 30 years.

nity College. The agenda details of the event, scheduled from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., were released Tuesday by the Green Valley and Pleasants Valley fire safe councils.

area need to contact the IRS at 866-562-5227,” the statement said.

Career Fair comes to Solano College

FAIRFIELD — The NorCal Career Fair returns to Solano Community College on Thursday.

The event, put on by the Workforce Development Board of Solano County in partnership with the college, will feature 60 regional employers with hundreds of available job opportunities.

“Employers represent all major industries in Solano County in both the public and private sector,” organizers said in a statement.

It also will include “resource tables with information on various programs available in Solano County, including Clean Slate for those with a justice background, mental-health wellness, financial literacy, family and children’s services, apprenticeship information and fresh, free produce from the Contra Costa and Solano Food Bank.”

New this year is virtual registration for job seekers. Participants can upload a single résumé to a custom profile that can be shared with employers prior to the event.

“Our early registration process gives our job seekers an opportunity to shine,” April ZiomekPortillo, the business services manager for the Workforce Development Board, said in the statement. “You can create a profile and get in front of our employers before the event even begins.”

The Career Fair runs from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. in the Student Union, Building 1400, of the Fairfield campus, 4000 Suisun Valley Road.

For more information, go to solanoemployment. org/careerfair.

Paul Mirich to speak at Vacaville Museum

VACAVILLE — The Vacaville Museum, in conjunction with its current exhibit, “Solano Skies: A History of Aviation in Solano County,” announced the next speaker for the Aviation Forum will be Paul Mirich.

Mirich is the general manager of the Rowland Freedom Center, whose mission includes teaching about patriotism and American freedom.

The Aviation Forum has seen great success since its launch, the museum says, and is in keeping with its mission to work with other historical institutions in Solano County.

Mirich was born and raised in the Youngstown, Ohio, area. He left home at 18 to join the Air Force,

With an extreme interest in anything related to military aircraft, Mirich stumbled upon a local museum named The Jimmy Doolittle Center. Going inside, he recalls being immediately hooked and volunteered that same day. Since then, the museum has undergone numerous changes, including a name change to The Rowland Freedom Center and has branched out to not only aviation, but military history.

Mirich was hired in 2020 as the general manager where he works with volunteers and staff to change and improve the displays and oversee a guest speaker series called Faces of Freedom, and numerous other events.

Mirich will be discussing some of the artifacts they currently have on display, as well as a past aircraft that was on display, and a brief history of San Francisco’s Gonzales brothers, who did some of their flying in Woodland. Mirich will also bring some small artifacts from their institution for his talk.

The free event will begin at 3 p.m. Saturday at 213 Buck Ave. in Vacaville.

Call the Vacaville Museum at 707-447-4513 with any questions.

For information on future speakers, visit Instagram @TheVacavilleMuseum or vacavillemuseum. org/events.

Wednesday Club to host Fashion Show fundraiser

SUISUN CITY — The Wednesday Club once again will host its annual Fashion Show in April.

The event will begin at 11 a.m. Wednesday at 225 Sacramento St. in Suisun City.

The show raises money for Wednesday Club scholarships, given out each year to deserving students. They also donate to The Leaven, Court Appointed Special Advocates and the wreath project for the Sacramento Valley National Cemetery.

The club was established in 1911 with the idea of working on advancing women’s rights, exploring literacy and philosophical issues and helping the community.

It continues these traditions with meetings, musical programs and fashion shows.

Fire Progressive Hose Lay Demonstration set for Saturday

ROCKVILLE — Children will be able to handle hoses in a Wildland Fire Progressive Hose Lay Demonstration at the Saturday Wildfire Safety Expo at Solano Commu-

Among other activities will be fire-extinguisher demonstrations, handsonly CPR lessons, interactive programs with Red Cross, disaster-preparedness information, food trucks and music. There also will be an inflatable fire house for the kids, and Smokey Bear is set to make an appearance.

Vendor and sponsorship opportunities are still available. Contact Rochelle Sherlock at rochelle@ potentiatellc.com or 707718-5637 to learn more.

The college is located at 4000 Suisun Valley Road in rural Fairfield.

Chamber to host paper shredding event

FAIRFIELD — Protect your confidential information at the Fairfield-Suisun Chamber’s shred event in April.

The event will occur from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday at 1111 Webster St.

Shred City will be on site shredding documents free for chamber members. Those who are not chamber members will be charged $5 per file box (15x12x10).

More information may be found at https:// business.fairfieldsuisunchamber.com.

Several government meetings on calendar

FAIRFIELD — A variety of government meetings will be held this week. They are all open to the public.

The meetings will include:

n Solano County Board of Supervisors, 9 a.m. Tuesday, County Government Center, 675 Texas St. Info: www.solanocounty. com/depts/bos/meetings/ videos.asp.

n Vacaville City Council, 6 p.m. Tuesday, council chamber, 650 Merchant St. Info: ci. vacaville.ca.us.

n Rio Vista Planning Commission, 6 p.m.

Wednesday, council chamber, 1 Main St. Info: www.riovistacity.com/ citycouncil/page/meetingagenda-attachments-minutes-video.

n Solano County Board of Education, 6 p.m.

Wednesday, Solano County Office of Education, 5100 Business Center Drive, Fairfield. Info: www.solanocoe.net.

n Solano Transportation Authority Board, 6 p.m. Wednesday, STA board room chamber, 423 Main St., Suisun City. Info: www.sta.ca.gov.

n Solano County Airport Land Use Commission, 7 p.m. Thursday, 675 Texas St., Fairfield. Info: solanocounty.com/ depts/rm/boardscommissions/solano_county_ airport_land_use_commission/agendas.asp.

Sewage sludge threatening Tulare Lake floodwaters

bR ennon DixSon anD

SuSanne RuSt

LOS ANGELES TIMES

KETTLEMAN CITY —

Here at the western edge of the Tulare Lake Basin dwells a smelly industrial site the size of 150 football fields. Roughly eight times a day, its operations are replenished with a truckload of human waste from the residents of Los Angeles County.

Since 2016, the Tulare Lake Compost facility has been converting Southland sewage sludge into high-grade organic fertilizer, and sparing L.A. County the bother of burying its waste in local landfills.

But as epic Sierra Nevada snowpack threatens to overwhelm this phantom lake bed with spring runoff – inundating a region that has already suffered flooding from a series of powerful storms – some fear the facility could be transformed into an environmental disaster.

“When the southwest corner of Tulare Lake floods, thousands of tons of L.A. County sewage sludge, containing toxic heavy metals, will become part of the mix in the newly formed lake,” said Tom Frantz, a retired schoolteacher and environmental activist who once lived in the area but moved to San Luis Obispo three years ago.

“You can’t grow food for humans where this waste has been spread,”

Frantz said.

Area water managers and government officials acknowledge that if Tulare Lake Compost were flooded, the resulting contamination could trickle into groundwater and contaminate streams and rivers throughout the region. An even bigger risk comes from scores of waste lagoons at nearby chicken and dairy ranches that dot the valley floor.

It’s for this reason that officials are now keeping a wary eye on levees and other structures that are designed to keep floodwaters from entering waste ponds.

“We have seen it already driving around Tulare in the last few weeks,” said Angel Fernandez-Bou, a researcher with UC Merced’s Environmental Systems Graduate Group and a Western states senior climate scientist with the Union of Concerned Scientists. “Intensive cattle operations that are not careful about their waste had that waste spread beyond their properties, with nearby puddles of black water because of the waste,” he said.

“If floodwaters carrying cow waste arrive near vulnerable communities, it is very possible that domestic wells are contaminated with such pathogens as E. coli. That can make water immediately toxic unless their

See Sludge, Page A7

Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times/TNS

An earth mover forms a makeshift levee wall beside a swelling irrigation ditch in Tulare Lake.

CALMATTERS COMMENTARY

A sneaky way to make a big change in California law

California’s governors and legislators have, as often noted in this space, developed a bad habit of using the state budget to make sweeping changes in state law while minimizing or ignoring traditional legislative procedures.

Letters to the editor

Letters must be 325 words or less and are subject to editing for length and clarity. All letters must include the author’s name, address and phone number. Send letters to Letters to the Editor, the Daily Republic, P.O. Box 47, Fairfield, CA 94533, email to gfaison@ dailyrepublic.net or drop them off at our office, 1250 Texas St. in Fairfield.

ON THE LEFT

guilty, probably going to jail

Dan Walters

They do it with so-called “budget trailer bills” that are often passed in batches coincident with the budget each June after minimal hearings and debate. Like the budget, they take effect immediately and are shielded from being challenged via referendum. It can take weeks or even months for those outside the Capitol to figure out the reallife impacts and decipher the dense legalese of trailer bills, which often run hundreds of pages.

The Legislature is once again plowing through the latest budget, this one proposed by Gov. Gavin Newsom for the 2023-24 fiscal year, prior to the last frantic – and largely secret –negotiations on a final version.

Dozens of would-be trailer bills are kicking around, some of them legitimately attached to the budget, and some just using the process to minimize scrutiny.

One of the most complex, potentially important trailer bills, not yet formally introduced, would overhaul how electrical energy is procured. It would make the state Department of Water Resources the state’s central purchaser of power, citing the need to construct or acquire enough non-polluting generation to meet the state’s self-proclaimed goal of becoming carbon-neutral by 2045.

What could possibly go wrong?

California’s track record on managing the state power supply is, to say the least, spotty.

A quarter-century ago, California experimented with what was termed “deregulation,” but really wasn’t, of electricity, and it quickly became one of the worst human-caused disasters in state history. It allowed power suppliers to game the system, pushed costs through the ceiling, drove one utility, Pacific Gas & Electric, into bankruptcy, almost did the same to another, Southern California Edison, and was a major reason voters recalled a governor, Gray Davis.

The Department of Water Resources became, for a time, the state’s central power buyer because its water supply system was, and is, a major generator of electricity and a major purchaser.

After the experiment was repealed, California returned to its previous system, based on purchases by utilities such as PG&E and SCE and regulated by the California Public Utilities Commission. But a few years later, the state embarked on its quest for carbon neutrality, greatly complicating the situation.

Simultaneously, the state is trying to phase out power from generation by hydrocarbons, such as natural gas, while increasing the overall supply in expectation that demand will grow as other activities, such as transportation, make the same transition to electricity.

It hasn’t gone smoothly. The state has flirted with blackouts on hot days when air conditioning imposes huge demands and has been forced to keep the Diablo Canyon nuclear plant and several gas-fired generators, which had been scheduled for closure, online to avoid shortages.

So would making the state water agency the electric power czar again be the solution to meeting deadlines for decarbonization?

The Legislature’s independent budget analyst, Gabe Patek, is one skeptic. His office issued a report urging lawmakers to take enough time to analyze such a major change and questioning its necessity and its potential effect on California consumers, who are already paying some of the nation’s highest power rates.

Patek’s report also questions the need to use a fast-track budget trailer bill for such a momentous change, saying “Ultimately, ensuring it (the Legislature) has the time and opportunities for developing a greater understanding, sufficient input from stakeholders, and thoughtful deliberation will be vital to ensuring it can make an informed decision on these important proposals.”

Amen.

CalMatters is a public interest journalism venture committed to explaining how California’s state Capitol works and why it matters. For more stories by Dan Walters, go to Commentary.

‘Will he go to jail or won’t he?” I think he will. Remember, Donald Trump’s already been de facto found guilty to this charge (falsifying business records) when Michael Cohen, his former fixer, confessed. Trump was the “unindicted co-conspirator” to what Cohen had done; hence, he, too, is probably guilty.

Also remember, Trump’s threats of violence and other fulminations are only those of a silver-spoon, spoiled brat not getting his own way, which he’s done for 76 years. It will pass after a month or so in jail.

Legal experts are on the other side. At least one of the 12 will vote “innocent.” OK, but that’s jury nullification, another matter. The guy’s guilty.

Also, remember, a district attorney will not usually bring a case to trial if he ro she doesn’t think they’ll win it. And Alvin Bragg has a very experienced professional staff that has done prosecutions like this for decades. They know their business.

Less certain, however, is whither the GOP from here?

What a spectacle! Pence, DeSantis and others want Trump gone, but not only could they not work up the courage to directly challenge him recently, but now they’re lining up behind him. He will probably be the Republican 2024 presidential challenger.

They say that many elected Republicans want him gone, too, but their “base” won’t let them act. This, of course, is the foundation of all the GOP’s problems – their base.

RIGHT STUFF

And where did this base get its radicalism and undying support for insurgent Trump? Fox News and its many imitators, working tirelessly 24/7 for 15 years. This brings up the questions of, first, the problem of the protection of the misuse of free speech, and second, how really horribly this misuse has divided the country and driven 30 to 40% of the population into a soft form of fascism.

When this moment has finally gone, we will be left with the question, “How much room do we give the misuse of free speech, especially seditious and false speech?

But, like lemmings, the GOP leaders are heading for Trump’s cliff. Will the majority support a presidential candidate who has been indicted and maybe found guilty four times (three more serious suits are approaching)?

Will they be mesmerized by a presidential candidate who incites to violence (“death and destruction will come if I’m indicted”), who calls a district attorney an “animal” and “degenerate,” or who tells his followers, “I am your revenge” [against the rest of us 60%]?

I’m standing in fear that the same people who were previously OK with him as crotch-grabbing, prostitute silencing (twice), student-swindling, contract-breaking, bankruptcy-fraudstering will vote for him again.

Crazy leaders? Oh, yes. Examples: Three Republican-led House committees are asking for all the N.Y. Southern District attorney’s records for the Trump indictment and his

presence at hearings.

Shocking! The Feds interfering in a state court’s grand jury? What’s happened to states’ rights, the Tenth Amendment, limited government and all the other standards of the old GOP?

Likewise shocking, is commonsense AR-15 control that Republican leaders were downright defiant about after the last massacre of children. Please don’t complain about “politicians,” “congress” or “our government” doing nothing. Most Democrats are ready to legislate. The problem is the Republican Party.

You lost your right to choose? Also due to Republicans.

It’s the Republican Party that is playing Russian roulette over the debt limit, demanding a decrease in federal spending next year in exchange for not destroying the dollar and our nation’s 230-year goldstar credit rating this year.

The two are not related. Kevin McCarthy is saying, “We’ll stop paying for things we’ve already bought unless you cut next year’s budget.” President Biden is saying, “I gave you my dream budget on March 9. Where’s yours? Give it to me and we’ll start the negotiation.”

Hey, McCarthy. The conservative goal of “cut government spending” is a dream. Republicans have been lusting over that since Reagan, but it never happens, even when you have the presidency and congress. That’s because there’s a large constituency behind every major program. Give it up. Live with reality.

Jack Batson is a former member of the Fairfield City Council. Reach him by email at jsbatson@prodigy.net.

US’s sabotaged education system has deep roots

America’s Founders did not establish federal education in the Constitution for strong reasons. Consistent with their understanding of human nature, they believed that the national government must be limited to powers necessary for governing a large country and all other powers, particularly control over citizens, must be delegated to states and lower councils. To ensure that they enumerated 17 powers deemed necessary to national control, a proven weakness in the original Confederation, and delegated down all other powers. Their concern is evident in many recorded statements.

Thomas Jefferson believed only educated citizens could make the American experiment in self-government succeed. He proposed a system of broad, free, public education for men and women. Later, he founded the University of Virginia.

President Washington in his first annual address to his countrymen said, “I shall expect you will confine yourself to your studies and diligently attend to them; endeavoring to make yourself master of whatever is recommended to or required of you.” At another time he said, “A Bible and a newspaper in every house, a good school in every district – all studied and appreciated as they merit –are the principal support of virtue, morality, and civil liberty.”

Another Founder’s essay epitomized their concern: “Freedom can exist only in the society of knowledge. Without learning, men are incapable of knowing their rights, and where learning is confined to a

few people, liberty can be neither equal nor universal.”

The earliest schools began in all colonies in the 17th century and focused on teaching skills and religious values. Most of the early colleges were established by Christian denominations, including seven of eight Ivy League universities. My college education, in retrospect, was awesome compared to the present. Tuition at the university was $80 per semester and there was:

n Unrestricted free speech and debate without anger,

n Unrestricted political campaigning near campus in the 1952 election including Gen. Eisenhower, and

n Termination of the last vestige of racial discrimination when law students obtained a Writ of Mandamus to force the district attorney to require barbers to serve our Black students.

John Dewey was a prominent and influential American educator and librarian noted for his creation of the Dewey Decimal System for logging library books. Unknown to most people at that time was that 50 years earlier Dewey commenced sabotaging the entire American education system. His accomplishments were slow in coming but results are now apparent.

Dewey was influenced by Swiss philosopher Jacques Rousseau, who believed all people are naturally good so their education should be absent religious, moral and cultural teaching. American teaching considered that humanity is endowed with both benevolent and wicked potential so benevolence must be nurtured.

Dewey dismissed moral standards and believed people were free to behave as they desired and children should be weaned from tutelage of parents, religion and culture for that freedom.

Dewey joined 33 others in 1933 to endorse the “Humanist Manifesto,” a document based on atheism. The document’s objective of education was to mold students according to the educator’s wishes. The Soviets were so aligned with Dewey that they published a 63-page pamphlet based on Dewey’s writings, “Democracy and Education” (1916). Professor Dewey taught philosophy of education from 1905 to 1930 at Columbia University, giving him great exposure to a generation of primary and secondary teachers in America.

Parents are increasingly being kept out of the loop by teachers and administrators in terms of students’ education and sensitive gender issues. Furthermore, critical race theory is making its way into lesson plans of many K-12 curricula. In some instances, parents have been labeled by the Department of Justice as terrorists and arrested for protesting at school board meetings. We have wandered away from the precepts of our Founding Fathers regarding education. It is time to fight this sabotage of the American education system.

Earl Heal is a retired Air Force officer, Vacaville resident and member of The Right Stuff committee formerly of the Solano County Republican Central Committee. Reach him at healearlniki2@gmail.com.

He’s

Earl Heal

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Fox opens up about Parkinson’s in ‘Still’ trailer

Tribune ConTenT AgenCy

Michael J. Fox opens up about his decadeslong battle with Parkinson’s disease in a new trailer for the eagerly anticipated documentary “Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie.”

Directed by Academy Award-winner Davis Guggenheim, the film tells the life story of the beloved Canadian American actor, known for roles in “Family Ties,” “Back to the Future” and “Spin City.”

Archival backstage footage from his film and TV projects are juxtaposed with vintage photos, interviews and scripted recreations of key moments from Fox’s life – including the moment he discovered Parkinson’s symptoms at

the height of his fame.

“I woke up and I noticed my pinkie autoanimated. Parkinson’s disease,” the 61-year-old Emmy Award winner shares in the trailer, which was released Thursday. “I told [my wife] Tracy the news. ‘In sickness and in health,’ I remember her whispering. No one outside of my family knew.”

Fox was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 1991 but didn’t reveal it to the public until 1999. In 2000, he founded the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research, of which he sits on the board of directors. To date, the foundation has funded more than $1 billion in global research programs.

Pickles Brian Crane

Zits Jerry Scott and Jim Borgman

Pearls Before Swine Stephan Pastis

Candorville Darrin Bell

Baby Blues Rick Kirkman and Jerry Scott

Baldo Hector Cantú

Columns&Games

Put away your cellphones and soak in your child’s wonder

Editor’s note: The following column was previously published in 2020.

Dear Annie: I’ve seen lots of parents (or babysitters) gabbing on the phone as they push strollers or baby carriages. The tots are getting no attention. Once, I saw a large dog, unleashed and apparently unaccompanied, dash up to a youngster in a stroller. Happily, the dog meant no ill and simply gave the child a big, slobbery kiss. And the stroller’s pusher? She missed the entire incident.

She also missed – as they all do – the fun of watching the baby’s reactions to the sun and sky and trees and people. And dogs, too. But the cellphoneaddicted parents are oblivious. Why isn’t bonding with their kids more important than bonding with their phones? — Kids Are Better Than Phones

Dear Kids Are Better Than Phones: Being in the moment and drinking in all of life’s beautiful experiences is something that should be treasured for everyone. And for parents and guardians, their children’s safety is also at risk when not properly monitored.

Dear Annie: A common theme among your readers is the desire to spend more time

with family, especially grandchildren. From my experience as a granddaughter, mother and grandmother, I have some ideas to help your readers become more visible and accessible to their families by planning carefully. The first step is to be proactive.

Almost everyone today has a cellphone. Contact your family to set up a convenient time to have short visits using FaceTime or other video apps. You will feel like you are there, and no one has to leave the house!

When you do want to visit, call ahead to select a time that does not interrupt meals and daily family schedules. If bath time is 6:30 p.m., plan your arrival to create a natural time limit without the awkwardness of choosing when to depart.

Make “dinner night” a monthly event, keeping in mind working parents’ and kids’ activities. Let the kids help choose the menu or place. Meet at a favorite restaurant or bring a home-cooked meal (Mom’s or Grandma’s special recipes) to their house. If possible, invite them to your house for a meal.

Create excitement for your grandchildren (and their parents) by dropping off a surprise dessert. Many kids enjoy baking. Invite them over occa-

Horoscopes by Holiday Mathis

ARIES (March 21-April 19).

The day seems specially designed to shake up the assumption that power is located somewhere outside ourselves. While you can’t control everything about your experience, you still have way too many untried options to worry for even one moment about options you don’t have.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20).

Your exceptional taste will play into the day’s events. You recognize how it’s particular to you and don’t impose it on anyone else, which makes you not only stylish but classy.

GEMINI (May 21-June 21). While there are those who say a lot but don’t act, you will provide a contrast by acting without much to say about it. You’ll also inspire the action of others with very little explanation or fanfare.

CANCER (June 22-July 22).

What you imagine and what you can do won’t match up. It only means you’ve a strong mind and, when it all shakes out, a new goal. You’re up to this, and you’ll nail it. Don’t doubt that for a minute.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22).

Whether or not you have enough will depend solely on what metric you use. If the metric is material, there will always be someone with more or less than you have. The amounts in and of themselves aren’t necessarily better or worse. It’s how they fit the

Daily Cryptoquotes

Today’s birthday

Welcome to a year of incredible focus. Fortune favors you because you choose wisely what to take on. You’ll put hundreds of hours into a special project, but it won’t feel like work because the pursuit speaks directly to strengths. You’re solving problems, and the energy comes back to you tenfold. More highlights: deep conversations, a sweet pet and the key to an amazing getaway. Cancer and Leo adore you. Your lucky numbers are: 8, 10, 4, 14 and 34.

recipe that matters.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22). Some leaders ignore the junior’s ideas and concerns, hoping they’ll pass. They will. So will loyalty, contribution and engagement, though. You’ll keep all of this in mind as you lead today.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 23). Is it too restrictive to label some emotions as bad and others as good? Of course negative emotions hurt, but they also offer useful information about what to change.

SCORPIO (Oct. 24-Nov. 21).

You’ll be cleaning, beautifying and fixing things. Most of this is easy and inexpensive, except when it comes to relationships.

sionally to help you create those treats. Get out those old cookie cutters; many kids have never seen them. Even older children will get caught up in creating something special. Make grandchildren want to receive mail from you! Keep in touch by sending fun little notes or cards at times other than birthdays or holidays. Dollar stores have inexpensive stationery, cards and stickers. Use colorful markers to write and decorate your notes. The post office sells fun and interesting stamps. To encourage a response, supply stationery and stamps (some pre-addressed envelopes), and ask your grandkids to send you a handdrawn picture or note about something they are doing.

Ask for a copy of your grandchildren’s schedules and attend their activities when time permits. Most schools have websites that list daily sports schedules and other events. Check these frequently for changes.

Family time is precious. Make it happen. — Been There and Still Doing That Dear Still Doing That: These are really thoughtful suggestions. Thank you for sending your letter.

Send your questions for Annie Lane to dearannie@ creators.com.

Those are harder to fix and come at a high emotional cost, too, which is why you’re so careful not to break them in the first place.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22Dec. 21). Finally, procrastination will work in your favor, or at least give you different insights on the task at hand. Oscar Wilde confessed, “I never put off until tomorrow what I can possibly put off until the day after tomorrow.”

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22Jan. 19). When you find yourself in a defiant mood, there’s a reason for it. You may not be fully aware of it, but you’re subconsciously resisting authority. You want to know you have as much power over your life as you possibly can.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20Feb. 18). The relationship that feels stuck will finally move forward when you say what you mean. Conversations don’t need to be long and drawn out; they just need to be specific. Try not to guess what the other person is thinking. Ask.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20).

You’ve a unique collection, obsession or study, and there are a few people out there who share it. You’ll keep finding them. The more you add to your network the better your collection will be. The real prize is always relationships.

Write Holiday Mathis at HolidayMathis.com.

Sleuth

Bridge

by Phillip Alder

hand too strong for a simple one-heart overcall: some 17-19 high-card points. North, who had revealed no values but had an ace and three trumps, raised to three-and-a-half hearts!

West started the defense with his three top diamonds. At trick three, if South had optimistically called for dummy’s heart nine, East would have happily overruffed with the 10. Then, whichever way South turned, he couldn’t have avoided the loss of a spade trick to go down one.

Instead, South traded the diamond ruff, which had a high risk of an overruff, for a spade ruff, which was likely to win without incident. At trick three, South discarded one of dummy’s spades.

A FAIR EXCHANGE ROBS EAST-WEST

Edward Gibbon said that he wouldn’t exchange his love of reading for all the treasures of India. Fair enough, but in bridge, strange as it sounds, when declarer exchanges one trick for another, it usually costs the defenders a trick – as in today’s deal.

South’s sequence, a takeout double followed by a two-heart rebid, showed a

West, who had no winning defense, shifted to a club. Declarer won with dummy’s ace, drew two rounds of trumps, cashed the spade ace-king and ruffed his spade two with dummy’s heart nine. South returned to hand by ruffing a club and drew East’s last trump. Note that if West switches at trick two or three, South must make the loser-on-loser play in diamonds himself.

Don’t make a play you know is doomed to failure. Look for a more profitable alternative.

COPYRIGHT: 2023, UNITED FEATURE SYNDICATE

Sudoku by Wayne Gould

4/10/23

Fill

means that no number is repeated in any row, column or box. Solution, tips and computer program at www.sudoku.com

Difficulty level: BRONZE

Solution to 4/8/23:

Word

Annie Lane

Dear Annie

China holds second day of extensive military exercises around Taiwan

BloomBerg News

China held a second day of military drills around Taiwan, with multiple exercises involving aircraft and ships, after the island’s president, Tsai Ingwen, returned from a visit to the United States.

Taiwan’s Defense Ministry said in a statement that on Sunday it detected 70 aircraft from China’s People’s Liberation Army and 11 warships near Taiwan as of 4 p.m., with 35 of the warplanes crossing the median line of the Taiwan Strait and entering the southwestern part of the island’s air-defense identification zone.

Warships and warplanes passed over the median line in groups from the north, center and south of the strait, according to the statement. Taiwan’s military spotted J-15s, the Chinese navy’s carrier-based fighter jets, among the aircraft.

The PLA said Saturday it will hold drills and patrols in airspace and waters on the north, south and east sides of Taiwan from April 8 to 10.

Eastern Theater Command spokesman Senior Colonel Shi Yi said in a statement on Saturday that the drills are a “stern

warning against Taiwan separatist forces’ collusion with foreign elements.” He didn’t mention Tsai’s visits to New York and Los Angeles, which included meetings with House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and other U.S. lawmakers.

“China’s drills only let the world see it destroys peace,” Taiwan’s vice premier Cheng Wen-tsan told reporters Sunday. “We don’t show weakness. We don’t evade, and we are not afraid. Our policies ensure security of territorial

Expelled Tennessee lawmakers would accept jobs back

BloomBerg News

Local leaders in Tennessee will decide this week whether to reinstate two young Democratic lawmakers expelled from the Republican-controlled state legislature — and each said on Sunday he’d accept.

State Reps. Justin Jones and Justin J. Pearson said their expulsion by GOP lawmakers who control the Tennessee House of Representatives was an attack on democracy and the predominantly Black and brown communities they represent.

“The Tennessee House Republicans attempt to crucify democracy has instead resurrected a movement led by young people to restore our democracy. To build a multiracial coalition,” Jones said on NBC’s “Meet the Press.” “The message is that we will continue to resist. That this is not the end. That their decision to expel us is not the ultimate authority, but that the people will hold them accountable.”

The expulsion of the law-

Sludge

From Page A3

water system has a disinfection treatment,” he said.

During a recent visit to the sprawling L.A. County Sanitation facility in Kettleman City, the faint odor of ammonia hung in the air as site engineer Carl Glass described flood defenses.

“We designed this facility to withstand a 100-year, 24-hour storm,” Glass said. “In simple numbers, that flood was predicted to raise the water level, locally, by three and a half feet.”

The site, however, sits 5 feet above native elevation and possesses three bermed stormwater basins lined with concrete to collect runoff from the facility. Four additional unlined basins are available to provide protection as well, Glass noted.

“Any water that falls on the site is captured and stays on site,” he said. Floods of the 1960s and ‘70s “didn’t come anywhere near” the facility or the surrounding acres of farmland, he said. Still, the facility is developing a flood protection plan, ordering sandbags and identifying critical infrastructure, Glass said,

makers, both of whom are Black, was an extraordinary measure, and Republican lawmakers had other tools available, including censure for breaking House rules of decorum and speaking out of turn. A third lawmaker, Gloria Johnson, who is white, narrowly avoided being expelled by the Republican supermajority.

The three chanted “power to the people” on the House floor last week as protesters crowded at the state Capitol calling for stricter gun control measures following a shooting at a Nashville school that left six people dead.

A majority of members of the Nashville Metro Council said they would back reappointing Jones, who represents the district, The Tennessean reported last week. The Shelby County Commission will also weigh whether to reinstate Pearson to his Memphis district. The appointments would be on an interim basis to be followed by special elections — and Pearson and Jones both

“since nobody knows what the melting of the snowpack is going to entail.”

State and local officials are hopeful the region will be spared drastic flooding. If the spring stays cool, they say, and the snowpack in the mountains – which in some places is nearly 300% of its average depth – melts slowly, water managers are hoping they can get ahead of any major flooding.

“I think what we’re all hoping for at this point is that it melts gradually,” said Antoinette Serrato, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Hanford. “If it melts gradually, then most of the levees are designed to be able to hold that.”

However, “if it melts all at once or if it melts really quickly, that’s when we would maybe have” an issue, she said.

Once the largest body of freshwater west of the Mississippi, Tulare Lake was drained – its waters siphoned and diverted by farmers – at the end of the 19th century. Where once a wetland of reeds, birds, fish and amphibians thrived, there are now dairy farms, human waste sites and farm fields operating on the bottom of the desiccated lake.

But a series of winter storms has already started

sea. This is our bottom line.” In a statement late Saturday night, China’s Ministry of Defense said the PLA dispatched several conventional missile brigades, along with some army artillery brigades, under the command of the Eastern Theater. The units conducted simulated strikes on designated targets, according to the statement, with photos and video clips showing launching vehicles moving to positions and missiles being erected.

Beijing had pledged to respond to any meeting between Tsai and McCarthy, calling it a provocation that “damages China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.” The latest planned drills appear to be on a smaller scale than exercises held by China after then-U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Taiwan last year, and didn’t include any imposition of exclusive zones in its airspace and waters.

In August, China announced missile tests and military drills near Taiwan less than an hour after Pelosi landed in Taipei. The PLA also imposed six exclusive zones, banning ships and aircraft from entering.

Beijing’s latest announcement of the military exercises came after French President Emmanuel Macron and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen wrapped up a three-day visit to China on Friday. Taiwan’s former leader Ma Ying-jeou also concluded on Friday a historic 12-day tour of China. China earlier leveled largely symbolic sanctions on Taiwan’s envoy to the U.S., two think tanks, and the venue that hosted Tsai in California.

At least 9 killed by landmine

TriBuNe CoNTeNT AgeNCy

CAIRO — At least nine truffle workers were killed in war-torn Syria on Sunday after their vehicle hit a landmine, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

Three people were injured in the explosion in the eastern province of Deir al-Zour, the war monitor said.

Since the beginning of January, a total of 137 civilians have been killed in landmine blasts in Syria, including 30 children, according to the Britainbased watchdog.

Syria's truffle hunters are particularly vulnerable to landmines as well as attacks by Islamic State extremists, the Observatory said in a Saturday report.

Many people in Syria, roiled by economic hardships, try to earn a living by searching for the prized truffle delicacy in the desert.

But the remote areas are a hotbed for militants and often covered with landmines, making the search highly dangerous.

Aid organization Handicap International estimates that up to 300,000 mines and unexploded ordnance are scattered across Syria following more than a decade of civil war.

Mosquitoes

From Page A3

all of the rain we’ve had, there is rainwater in places where residents may not be aware, and those locations could be potential areas where mosquitoes could develop,” added Nola Woods, public affairs director for the Contra Costa Mosquito & Vector Control district.

Seth Herald/Getty Images/TNS Democratic state Rep. Justin Jones of Nashville gestures during a vote on his expulsion from the state legislature at the State Capitol Building in Nashville, Tennessee, Thursday. He was expelled after he and two other Democratic representatives led a protest at the Tennessee State Capital building in the wake of a mass shooting where three students and three adults were killed on March 27 at the Covenant School in Nashville.

said they would run again.

The expulsions focused national attention on Tennessee politics, with President Joe Biden condemning the move as “shocking, undemocratic, and without precedent.”

Pearson said on NBC the expulsions were part of a “systemic effort” by the majority power to silence opposing voices.

The Tennessee legislature “is an institution filled with people who are more

refilling the lake, which straddles Kings and Tulare counties, causing residents to evacuate and flooding croplands and ranches.

Officials in both counties say they are bracing for the worst.

“We’re actively preplanning our [California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection] crews along with our law enforcement,” said Carrie Montero, public information officer for Tulare County. She said the county is working with state and federal agencies “to shore up and do as much fixes of the levees and the channel systems” as it can before the melt.

Local irrigation and flood districts – the messy network of private landowners that oversees much of the levee system in the area – are also “actively cleaning out debris, rebuilding and repairing levees, and raising levees in preparation for the incoming” water, she said.

Doug Verboon, a Kings County supervisor, said he has been working closely with Tulare Lake Compost amid larger flood preparations.

“We’re gonna hope the snow doesn’t come till the end of May, first of June,” Verboon said. “We need to fix a lot of levees and

concerned about supporting the NRA and supporting the Second Amendment than it is protecting the First Amendment rights of children and teenagers to be able to come to the Capitol and advocate for gun violence prevention laws,” he said. “This was not just an attack on us, it was an attempt to silence our districts, predominantly Black and brown districts who no longer have representation,” Jones said.

prepare for that . . . we need to prepare for all the snowmelt because we got so much snow up the hills. We might not be able to handle it, but we’re doing our best.”

Bryan Langpap, spokesman for the compost site, said he is confident it won’t flood. “I think where we have concern down the road is later in the spring when it starts to really warm up and the snow starts to melt,” he said. “What happens then? I think at this point we don’t know. I think at this point it’s speculation to consider how quickly it runs off or what the flow levels are.”

He said, in any case, the compost is cooked at a high temperature to kill pathogens such as bacteria and viruses.

“The thing you may not realize is that the compost that we produce at our site is called exceptional quality compost,” he said. It is “compost that’s so clean it can be used to grow any crop. . . . So there’s not hazardous material there.”

Clay Rodgers, assistant executive officer at the Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board, agreed.

“If the material is composted, then we don’t have the bacteriological issues

Woods and Buettner both noted that certain species of mosquitoes can lay eggs that are viable for more than six months, and can develop as soon as water returns. Because of that, Woods suggested that people not only dump standing water, but scrub in the inside of the container to remove potential eggs.

While some mosquitoes do carry diseases like West Nile virus, experts said, activity is typically low in the Bay Area and near Tahoe. Buettner added that higher levels of West Nile are typically associated with drought years, as birds and mosquitoes converge in small areas with water, allowing the disease to spread between them more quickly.

In order to keep track of mosquitoes, Bay Area control districts say they keep databases of historic breeding sites that technicians frequently monitor. But also key is working with residents, who can reach out to their local mosquito control agency for assistance or help with areas of water that cannot be dumped or drained. In most areas, that assistance should be free.

because that’s what the composting does – it kills the bacteria,” he said. So “while they are a significant concern of ours, probably not quite as much as some of the dairies or even poultry facilities that we have in the valley.”

There are 340 dairies in Kings and Tulare counties, according to Michael Payne, a researcher and outreach coordinator at the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine’s Western Institute of Food Safety and Security, many of which collect and hold manure in lagoons and ponds that is then converted into compost for nearby fields.

Michael Claiborne, directing attorney for Leadership Counsel for Justice and Accountability, said if floodwaters wash away manure lagoons, there is concern that nitrates could seep into groundwater.

The historical lake bed is surrounded by multiple communities, he said, noting Allensworth, Stratford and Corcoran. “They’re all reliant on groundwater for their drinking water supplies.

So if you end up moving that dairy manure and the floodwaters toward those groundwater wells, you might have a really sig-

nificant problem as that nitrate seeps into the soil and into the groundwater.”

But state water managers say if the fields and farms of the lake bed do flood, there is so much water moving through the system that any toxic chemicals or contaminants will be diluted and unlikely to pose much harm.

“Dilution is the solution,” Rodgers said, adding that his agency is tracking the flooding via satellite – in many cases, they are unable to get in because of flooded roads.

“Probably the greatest threat we see is to surface water,” he said. While some surface water is used for drinking water, he said, most of that supply comes from groundwater in the area.

But the surface water is where people play.

“Granted this time of year, with the cool temperatures . . . we don’t have children out swimming in the creeks or families going down for a picnic and getting in the water,” he said.

“But that’s what our standards are designed to protect” – municipal supplies and recreational activities, as well as the fish “and other animals that depend upon that water.”

Yan Zhao/AFP/Getty Images/TNS

Military boats from Taiwan’s Amphibious Reconnaissance and Patrol Unit patrol the Matsu Islands, Sunday.

James Craig weighing GOP bid for US Senate seat in Michigan

Melissa NaNN Burke aNd

Beth leBlaNc THE DETROIT NEWS

DETROIT — Republican and former Detroit Police Chief James Craig is giving a “real critical look” at a potential run for U.S. Senate, he told The Detroit News.

Trump shows up at the UFC event in Miami

OM ar rOdríguez Ortiz MIAMI HERALD

MIAMI — Former President Donald Trump made an appearance at the UFC 287 mixed martial arts event in downtown Miami on Saturday, days after he became the first former U.S. president to face criminal charges stemming from hush money payments to an adult film star during the 2016 election.

Trump shook hands and waved to a cheering crowd at the Kaseya Center before he sat in the cageside between Dana White, UFC president, and singer Robert James Ritchie, known professionally as Kid Rock. Trump was also seen standing from his chair to greet his supporters who were among nearly 20,000 people in attendance.

“USA! USA!” some chanted.

Miami fighter Jorge Masvidal – who retired after losing to Gilbert Burns Saturday night, ending his 20-yearold mixed martial arts career – fired up supporters of Trump and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.

Masvidal, 38, referred

to Trump as the “greatest” president in the history of the world.”

“I love that guy!” he said. “We also got the greatest governor of all time here in Florida.”

The fighter also made a call to “replace” President Joe Biden, using an expletive when calling for Biden’s removal.

“Let’s take that youknow-who. . . . Let’s go Brandon (expletive) out of power and replace him,” he said.

Trump was arraigned Tuesday after he was charged in New York state with 34 counts of falsifying business records in the first degree because he concealed “damaging information and unlawful activity from American voters before and after the 2016 election,” according to the office of Manhattan District Attorney Alvin L. Bragg Jr.

The one-term president and others, the district attorney’s office says, employed a “catch and kill” scheme to “identify, purchase, and bury negative information about him and boost his electoral prospects.”

The former GOP gubernatorial candidate said he’s been encouraged to look at a Senate run by supporters and party members around Michigan.

“I’m giving some consideration to it. I’ve not made a decision, so I’m not going to say I’m going to do it,” Craig said.

Craig said he has no set timeline for making a decision on whether to run. He first wants to speak to more people around the state about what they’d like to see in a Republican candidate for U.S. Senate, suggesting that residents have concerns about improving the economy, crime rates and education – areas that he views as his strengths.

Similar to the gubernatorial race, Craig said he’d only get in if he believes it’s something he could “win and make a

Prison

From Page One

methamphetamine, tobacco, vape pens, phones and MP3 players into federal prisons, prompting the U.S. attorney in Dallas, Chad Meacham, to say, “Contraband drone deliveries are quickly becoming the bane of prison officials’ existence.”

An inmate sends a phone’s GPS location to the drone pilot, who uses the phone as a homing device, Parkhill said. The payload is often disguised as a rock or piece of trash in case a guard spots it in the prison before it can be retrieved.

A sheriff’s official testified at a recent trial that deputies shot down a drone that was flying over a Los Angeles County jail complex in Castaic.

difference.”

“I’m going to continue to do my due diligence,” Craig said. “I view myself as a people’s servant. I’m most passionate about serving people. And I think if you ascend to a role as a leader in politics, that shouldn’t change, and I just think that’s lacking today. Some politicians lose sight of who they represent.”

Craig, 66, of Detroit was viewed as a frontrunner for the GOP gubernatorial nomination last year but was among five candidates who didn’t make the primary ballot

because of fraudulent petition signatures.

He was one of Detroit’s longest-serving police chiefs when he announced his retirement in May 2021 to mount a bid for governor, hoping to challenge Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.

Craig was appointed chief in July 2013 by Emergency Manager Kevyn Orr, taking charge of a department that had been under a federal consent decree since 2003.

“I’m humbled by the fact that I was taken off the ballot, but I was the leading GOP candidate

consistently,” Craig said, highlighting the growing support he saw from independent voters in some polling.

“I look back on that and what that translates to, with people reaching out or stopping me saying you should consider running for Senate, that matters to me. That’s why I said I’m taking a real critical look at this opportunity.”

Other Republicans viewed as potential contenders for the U.S. Senate race include businessman Kevin Rinke of Bloomfield Township, U.S. Rep. Lisa McClain of Bruce Township; state Sen. Ruth Johnson of Holly; former U.S. Rep. Peter Meijer of Grand Rapids Township; and U.S. Rep. Bill Huizenga of Holland.

State Board of Education member Nikki Snyder of Dexter launched a campaign for the GOP nomination in February.

On the Democratic side, U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin of Lansing announced her bid in late February and last week said she’s raised $3 million toward her campaign.

25 cellphones for a condemned inmate who sold them to other prisoners.

Inmates began using drones around 2016, when the devices dropped in price and were being aggressively marketed, the source said. Pilots would either drop the loads in prison yards before dawn or release them in areas outside the walls where lowsecurity inmates work as groundskeepers. One payload, which might include up to 20 phones and half a pound of drugs, could go for $30,000, the source said.

for inmates to have them. Last year, authorities confiscated 6,766 phones, a significant decrease from the 10,494 seized three years earlier.

Robyn Beck/AFP via Getty Images/TNS

Mifepristone (Mifeprex) and misoprostol, the two drugs used in a medication abortion, are seen at the Women’s Reproductive Clinic, which provides legal medication abortion services, in Santa Teresa, New Mexico. Mifepristone is taken first to stop the pregnancy, followed by misoprostol to induce bleeding.

Abortion

From Page One

the New Orleans-based 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, considered one of the most conservative in the country.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a progressive Democrat from New York, said on CNN that the Biden administration should ignore the ruling, arguing there’s “an extraordinary amount of precedent” for doing so.

“The courts rely on the legitimacy of their rulings,” Ocasio-Cortez said. “When they make a mockery of our system, a mockery of our democracy and a mockery of our law, as what we just saw

happen in this mifepristone ruling, then I believe the executive branch, we know that the executive branch, has an enforcement discretion.”

Kacsmaryk’s Friday ruling was almost immediately contradicted by a Democratic-appointed judge in Washington state who affirmed the FDA’s approval of mifepristone and blocked the government from restricting access.

The competing orders just minutes apart signal the issue is almost certainly bound for the U.S. Supreme Court, potentially setting up another politically seismic ruling a year after the high court’s conservative majority overturned Roe v. Wade.

In the case of Ramirez and Oropeza, the two piloted the drones under cover of darkness, coordinating drops with inmates who used contraband phones, according to the indictment.

California’s prisons are flooded with cellphones, even though it is illegal

Guns

From Page One

“Fifteen hundred guns in a state of 20 million (gun owners), I’d like to know how much money was spent per gun,” said one law enforcement source who asked to remain anonymous. “Guns are everywhere. Just about everybody has a gun. It’s just the way it is.”

Still, the same source said the nearly 1,500 gun removals should not be dismissed as insignificant, either. Of those firearms seized, 712 were handguns, 360 were rifles, 194 were shotguns, 80 were assault weapons, and 54 were homemade “ghost guns,” according to a news release from Attorney General Rob Bonta.

The number of ghost guns seized – weapons that were assembled from privately-made parts without serial numbers, making them untraceable – marked a 38% increase from 2021 and a 575% increase from 2018, according to state officials.

Authorities also recovered 308 large-capacity magazines, 2,123 standard-capacity magazines;

A resident of Dixon, Ramirez is accused of using 10 drones to bring heroin, phones and SIM cards into High Desert State Prison in Lassen County and Salinas Valley State Prison in Monterey County. He would drop the contraband onto prison rooftops, “stuffed inside of a pigeon or hidden in a mop head,” the indictment says.

The ring also flew con-

281,299 rounds of ammunition; 43 receivers or frames; three short-barreled shotguns and one machine gun.

“Regardless of who you’ve removed from having that gun, there is still value for that moment in time when a situation arises and a person who otherwise may have been moved to use a gun does not have it to use,” Concord police Lt. Sean Donnelly said. “And that can come into play in the positive in any number of situations.”

Experts who spoke to Bay Area News Group noted that the number of people that wound up on the APPS list was meaningful: The nearly 24,000 people on the list who became ineligible to have their guns marked the highest in the program’s history, according to the state’s DOJ.

Weber said that number “is inexcusable” because those who end up on the list have done so through some sort of means that shows them not stable to have them. Those who are convicted of a felony are prohibited for life from owning a gun in California. A misdemeanor conviction can

traband into the North Kern, Corcoran, Pleasant Valley, New Folsom and Centinela state prisons, prosecutors charged.

Drones are just one way of obtaining contraband. It remains easier to smuggle phones and drugs through corrupt staff members or visitors, said an imprisoned associate of the Mexican Mafia who requested anonymity for fear of retaliation.

A guard who was assigned to San Quentin’s death row was sentenced in February to 20 months in prison after admitting he smuggled at least

bring a 10-year ban.

Those who have threatened suicide, been taken to a hospital on a mental health call, received a restraining order against them can lose their eligibility to own a gun for a designated period.

Yet, often when the court makes that order, the removal of the gun is often not immediate, according to Weber. That reality comes from any number of factors –from lack of manpower to remove them to simple oversights.

And if oversights occur regarding people on this list, forget about monitoring all the unlicensed guns that are used in more violent crimes by people who have shown themselves to be more violent.

“That’s a different issue,” Weber said. “Gun violence is quite diverse. You have gang shootings, unintentional shootings, domestic violence, suicide, accidental. Police-involved shootings. Youth-involved shootings where the guns aren’t locked. So you’re talking a huge market place.

“But this, what APPS does, is a very specific issue that the DOJ should be commended

The source said a young inmate from the Westside Locos gang in Simi Valley was a pioneer in using drones for smuggling. He set up other prisoners with a friend who was paying for college by piloting loads of drugs and phones into prisons across California, the source said.

The deliveries so endeared the young inmate to members of the Mexican Mafia that before he was released from prison and deported to Mexico, he was made a member himself, the source said.

on in that they invested heavily in these policies. When people fall through the cracks, we’re lucky to have a team that is able to notice who fell through the cracks. No other state has this ability.”

The gun-seizure announcement came after the state DOJ awarded approximately $4.9 million to sheriff’s offices in 10 counties, including those in Contra Costa, San Francisco, Santa Clara and Santa Cruz, to support enforcement related to getting firearms and ammunition away from people on the prohibited list.

Sheriff’s offices throughout the state contribute manpower to the program, and members of specific agencies within those counties help enact it. In one Bay Area sweep last year, APPS took away 30 guns and made eight arrests.

For low-hanging fruit, it was a pretty healthy yield. Weber said there needs to be more.

“Where I find hope is that majority of gun owners want to see common-sense gun laws to reduce gun violence,” she said. “And this, in its role, does that.”

Barbara Davidson/Los Angeles Times/TNS

Federal prosecutors in Fresno have charged two men with using drones to drop contraband into the yards of Corcoran and six other state prisons across California.

A photo outside one of the SHU prison blocks at the Corcoran State Prison in Corcoran.

Matias J. Ocner/Miami Herald/TNS

Former President Donald Trump and Kid Rock attend UFC 287 at the Kaseya Center in downtown Miami, Florida, Saturday night.

James David Dickson/The Detroit News/TNS file (2021)

Then-Detroit Police Chief James Craig holds a press conference March 1, 2021, after a police-involved shooting with a suspect at an East Jefferson motel.

Warriors, Kings set for NorCal playoff clash

Shayna ruBin

BAY AREA NEWS GROUP

The No. 6 seed Golden State Warriors and No. 3 seed Sacramento Kings will face off for the 2023 NBA playoffs’ first round starting on Saturday night.

Not only will it be the first time the two Northern California teams face each other in the playoffs since the Kings moved out west from Kansas City in 1985, but the first time the two local teams have

been in the playoffs in the same season. The series will open up at Golden

1 Center in Sacramento at 5:30 p.m. PT.

The Warriors closed out the regular season Sunday with a 157-101 win in Portland against the depleted Trail Blazers. The Kings lost in Denver 109-95 to the top-seed Nuggets having already clinched their spot.

“Everything that we’ve been through this season it’s nice to officially be in the playoffs with a week to prepare and get our

Giants get late spark to beat Royals, avoid sweep at home

SuSan SluSSer SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE

SAN FRANCISCO —

During the winter, the San Francisco Giants often discussed their need for speed and athleticism. Sunday, some quickness afoot got the Giants back into the game in the eighth inning, and power, their usual stock in trade, turned the tide, with Michael Conforto blasting a two-run shot deep to right to give San Francisco a 3-1 victory and prevent a three-game sweep by the Royals.

Bryce Johnson singled with one out in the eighth, and with two outs stole second, going on his own just as Wilmer Floreswhacked a ball down the left-field line that deflected off the side wall. Johnson swiftly popped up from his slide into second, raced around to the plate and slid in headfirst, slipping his hand in just ahead of the tag from MJ Melendez.

“I had a great view of it,” said Conforto, who was in the on-base circle.

“I saw him slide headfirst at second, then he’s got to get up and round the bases. It’s just an incredible play. Just such an athlete.”

“Thank God it was down the left-field line, so I had a good look at it,” Johnson said. “Once I saw it kick forward, I knew to kick it into another gear.”

Manager Gabe Kapler applauded third-base coach Mark Hallberg’s decision to send Johnson, because between Johnson’s slide into second and the ball hitting the side wall, there was a lot going on, and Royals left fielder Nate Eaton has a good arm. Johnson’s speed was the key factor.

“Really, really good read on Mark’s part,” Kapler said. “Really aggressive but necessary, given the circumstances of the game, how challenging the runscoring environment was for us. Really gutsy and well-timed.”

The slide-dash-slide got the stadium rocking, but few were more

See Giants, Page B8

A’s lose to Rays, outscored 31-5 in three games

Jerry McDonalD BAY AREA NEWS GROUP

The Athletics were face-to-face with the team they want to be when they grow up and learned that making up the difference could take longer than anyone imagined.

The Tampa Bay Rays completed a threegame devastation of the A’s Sunday at Tropicana Field, winning 11-0 for their ninth straight victory.

The A’s slink out of town en route to Baltimore having been outscored 31-5 over three games. The Athletics were not only dominated by a far superior team, but made it infinitely easier for the Rays to make history because of their poor defense and an endless supply of free baserunners.

Tampa Bay improved to 9-0, a season-opening

minds and body right for it,” Steph Curry said. “The narrative, historical context of it all is just a part of this time of year and it’s awesome to know that we’re back in the fray and have an opportunity and hopefully get off to a good start.”

The No. 6 seed is the lowest playoff seeding the Warriors have achieved since the 2013-14 season, where a then-breakout star Steph Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green lost to the Los Angeles

Clippers in the first round as the sixth seed. Golden State will aim to be the first team below the fourth seed to win a title since the 1995 Houston Rockets. And they have a little confidence they can do it as defending champions with that same core strengthened by a decade of playoff experience and success. Plus, they’ll meet a young Kings team in a spot they once were: full of young energy and short of experience.

“We can use last year’s

success as a template for how to win,” Curry said. “It’s just a matter of if we can do it. And I know we can.”

Here are some keys watch in the firstround series.

Travel

Draymond Green made clear on a recent podcast episode that he’d prefer to play the Kings in a series.

Not because the Kings are a “weak team,” but because the Warriors road

trip will require them to get on a bus for just over an hour ride up and down I-80.

“The reason why I said Sac is simply just because of the travel,” he said on the Draymond Green Show last month. “That’s a lot on your body. If we can bus ride an hour and 10 minutes up the way, I just think that’s much better for us. At the end of the day, I don’t really care who we play in the playoffs, I think we can win.”

Rahm revives the reign of Spain with first Masters green jacket

AUGUSTA — The voice of Spain’s first great Masters champion had whispered in Jon Rahm’s ear at the start of this Masters, when he needed it most.

Rahm’s victory here was so solid, so undeniable – where even great trees fell in the storm this week, he was unmoved, committing just one bogey in his final round – that it’s easy to forget the tremors at the beginning. One-two-three-four putts on the first green Thursday. A double-bogey 6. Instead of going straight to a low boil – and Rahm has been known to be an induction cooktop in

cleats – he thought back instead to the immortal words of the late Seve Ballesteros when asked to describe a four-putt of his own in 1990:

“I miss, I miss, I miss, I make.” Rahm had no choice but to smile inside and starve his anger of fuel.

There at the other end Sunday, while Rahm was overcoming a 4-stroke deficit at the beginning of the day to win going away by 4 with a final-round 69, the fellow who began the large and growing chapter of Iberian Masters champions was in his head again.

“The support was pretty incredible all throughout, and I kept hearing, ‘Seve! Seve! Seve! Do it for Seve!’” Rahm said afterward. “I heard that the entire back nine.

That might have been the hardest thing to control today, the emotion of knowing what it could be if I were to win. That might have been the hardest thing.”

Rahm, 2021 U.S. Open champion, became the fourth Spaniard to win the Masters, a direct golfing descendant of Ballesteros (winner in 1980 and ‘83), José María Olazábal (1994, ‘99) and Sergio Garcia (2017). With an expansive personality and a game capable of explosive swings of fortune, he also is the one who most closely resembles Ballesteros in terms of raw charisma. Rahm is destined to join the ranks of the Masters most

See Masters, Page B8

streak that is unprecedented in that the Rays have won every game by four or more runs and have a run differential of plus-57. The news got worse for the A’s when it was learned outfielder Seth Brown sustained an oblique injury and needs to be placed on the injured list, according to MLB.com.

The A’s fall to 2-7, having had to wear 11-0 defeats on backto-back days against a Rays team with a modest payroll and a stadium they’d like to leave, yet has been to the postseason for the last four years.

“Obviously this team is playing really well,” A’s manager Mark Kotsay told reporters.

“There’s a reason why they’re undefeated. But we came in here and I thought we played pretty

Ravens, Odell Beckham Jr. agree to 1-year deal for prized receiver

Brian Wacker BALTIMORE SUN

BALTIMORE —

The Ravens have their wide receiver.

Free agent Odell Beckham Jr. agreed to a one-year deal with Baltimore, the team announced on Sunday. The deal is valued at $15 million, with $13.835 million of that coming in the form of a signing bonus and $1.165 million in base salary, and he could make up to $3 million more in incentives, according to multiple reports.

Beckham, 30, missed all of last season and hasn’t played since suffering a torn ACL with the Los Angeles Rams in Super Bowl 56 in Febru-

ary 2022, but his addition is easily the biggest move of the Ravens’ offseason and gives them an immediate and much-needed jolt to a receiving corps that ranked last in the NFL

in receiving yards by a wide margin over the past three years combined.

While there are questions about Beckham’s health following what was the second torn ACL of his

career, when healthy he has proved to be one of the league’s better receivers. In his last healthy season in 2021, Beckham received a 76.5 grade from Pro Football Focus after catching 48 passes for 593 yards and seven touchdowns in 12 games. Across eight years in the league, which included stints with the New York Giants and Cleveland Browns, Beckham has 531 career catches for 7,367 yards and 56 touchdowns. The signing also came as something of a surprise with Beckham having been scheduled to visit with the New York Jets on Sunday night, accord-

Carmen Mandato/Getty Images/TNS

Odell Beckham Jr. attends UFC 287 at Kaseya Center in Miami, Saturday night.

Andrew Redington/Getty Images/TNS

Jon Rahm of Spain celebrates on the 18th green after winning the 2023 Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club in Augusta, Georgia, Sunday. He overcome a four-shot deficit to earn the victory.

See NorCal, Page B8

Make mini quiches for a fun, flexible family meal

k rystal

Becky

THE WASHINGTON POST

If you needed any further convincing that good things come in small packages, allow me to steer you to these Mini Quiches With Phyllo Crust.

They feature a tender, custardy egg filling surrounded by frilly edges of golden, crisp phyllo. When you pull them out of the oven, they smile back at you like a field of friendly flowers.

Quiche was already a popular dinner option in my house, so I started wondering whether there was a way to riff on them in a smaller package that would make it easy to customize to different tastes. I pulled out my muffin tin to make some mini quiches.

At first, I couldn’t resist the siren song of store-bought pie dough.

Punch out rounds of pastry, press into a muffin tin, fill and bake. Sadly, the crust proved more resistant to pressing into the tin than I anticipated. Then after several rounds of testing, I didn’t love the ratio of crust to egg – too much of the former, not enough of the latter. And even with par-baking the crusts, a step I started to resent, I still couldn’t achieve the pretty golden shell I was after.

What about phyllo?

This extremely thin pastry dough is another store-bought staple (find it in the freezer section) and, better yet, much easier to mold into muffin cups. You do need to stack and cut the sheets, of course, but I had six layers of phyllo assembled, sliced and pressed into the pan in no time. It was simpler and less stressful than the pie dough.

At that point, all I had to do was pour in the filling. For 12 mini quiches, I went with a half-dozen eggs, which despite the higher prices these days, seemed like a reasonable investment that stretched the recipe to 4 to 6 servings. Before adding a cup of milk or other dairy (or nondairy alternative), I whisked the liquid with a small amount of cornstarch, a tip I picked up from a Cook’s Country full-size quiche recipe I’ve been playing around with for a while. The cornstarch helps the eggs set and stay

tender as it buffers the proteins in the eggs from bonding too tightly and squeezing out moisture.

That’s especially helpful in such a small format where overcooking is a real risk. Success! Even when the filling reached a higher temperature than you’d ordinarily want for eggs – you do want those crisp phyllo edges, after all – the eggs were not the least bit rubbery.

Once the custard is in the shells, then comes the fun part of letting everyone customize their quiches. Just about anything you can think of will work: cheese, salsa, meat, vegetables, herbs. Keep in mind the relatively brief cook time as a guide on how much to prep these ingredients. Diced ham works great, but bacon will be best if it’s already crisped. Finely chopped crisp vegetables can work okay raw, although they

will release a bit more liquid. Firmer vegetables, such as winter squash, or more potent ones, such as onions, will benefit from precooking.

While these are elegant enough for a party hors d’oeuvre or nibble for a champagne brunch, I like the extra flair when there’s no special occasion other than sitting down to a family meal.

MINI QUICHES WITH PHYLLO CRUST

Active time: 30 minutes

Total time: 45 minutes

4 to 6 servings (makes

12 muffin-size quiches)

Want to skip the crust? Bake the quiches in paper muffin cups. The bake time may be a few minutes shorter.

Prefer a more traditional pastry crust? Cut approximately 4 ½-inch rounds of store-bought pie crust dough (use a large glass or mug as a template). Press into the wells, prick the dough all over with a fork and bake (without the

filling) for about 15 minutes, until the crust begins to dry out and turn light golden. Then add the filling and toppings before baking for an additional 15 minutes or so, until the crust is rich golden and the eggs puffed and set. To avoid dairy use a nondairy milk and vegan cheese. For smaller families this recipe halves easily. Use three sheets of phyllo instead of six. Follow the same steps to brush the sheets with olive oil, but then cut the pile in half and stack the halves on top of each other, forming six layers. Then cut the stack into six rectangles and proceed with shaping and filling. Making the phyllo cups is faster and easier than you may realize. You will probably end up with extra sheets of phyllo dough, which can be refrozen for future recipes. Storage: Refrigerate leftovers for up to 3 days. Reheat in the oven for the best texture. Unsalted butter, for greasing the pan

6 (14-by-17-inch) sheets phyllo dough, defrosted

¼ cup olive oil

1 cup milk (any fat; nondairy is fine), heavy cream or half-and-half

2 teaspoons cornstarch

6 large eggs

¾ teaspoon fine salt

¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Cooked diced meat or

vegetables, shredded or crumbled cheese, salsa, herbs and/or other add-ins of your choice (optional)

Minced fresh herbs, for serving (optional)

Position a rack in the lower third of the oven, place a pizza stone or a large, rimmed baking sheet on it, and preheat to 375 degrees. Lightly grease the wells of a standard muffin tin with butter.

Set the stack of phyllo dough on a clean work surface and cover with damp towels, keeping the stack covered as much as possible as you work. Transfer one sheet of the phyllo to a large cutting board and brush the top with the oil. Don’t feel the need to overdo it or cover every inch, as too much oil can weigh the layers down. Lay another sheet directly on top of the first and brush it with the oil. Repeat with the remaining sheets of phyllo; there’s no need to brush the top sheet.

Use a sharp knife to cut the phyllo stack into 12 even rectangles, roughly 4 ½ by 4 2 3 inches (the exact dimensions may vary because of the size of your phyllo, so don’t sweat it). Press one stack of the rectangles into each well of the muffin pan, folding or fluting the edges slightly to make an attractive cup. In a large liquid measuring

cup with a spout, whisk together the milk and cornstarch until thoroughly combined. Add the eggs, salt and pepper, and whisk again until uniform.

Carefully pour the milk mixture into each of the phyllo cups, dividing as evenly as you can – aim to have them two-thirds to three-quarters full. Drop your desired add-ins into any or all of the quiches. This is your family’s opportunity to customize!

Set the pan on the preheated stone or sheet and bake for 15 to 17 minutes, or until the edges of the phyllo are a rich golden brown and the centers of the egg are puffed and mostly set. Let cool in the pan for 5 minutes before removing. The puffed centers may deflate a bit; that’s okay.

Serve warm with additional toppings, such as more fresh herbs, if you’d like.

Nutritional information per serving (2 mini quiches), based on 6, using reducedfat milk | Calories: 211; Total Fat: 14 g; Saturated Fat: 3 g; Cholesterol: 189 mg; Sodium: 477 mg; Carbohydrates: 13 g; Dietary Fiber: 1 g; Sugar: 2 g; Protein: 9 g

This analysis is an estimate based on available ingredients and this preparation. It should not substitute for a dietitian’s or nutritionist’s advice.

Rethink muffins with this savory goat cheese, chive version

‘Where have you been all my life?’ is the first thing that went through my mind after biting into of one of these muffins. I have made savory versions of many traditionally sweet dishes, including French toast and granola, but never muffins. Now I am certain this recipe is just the start of my savory muffin adventures.

These are tender and lighter than they appear – you could even call them airy. Speckled with chives, they have a deep note of allium from onion powder, a perky kick of black pepper, and a burst of soft goat cheese in every bite. And, made with whole-grain flour, yogurt, and olive oil, they’re healthful, too.

MUFFINS WITH GOAT CHEESE AND CHIVES

Active time: 20 minutes

Total time: One hour

12 servings

The muffins hit the spot perfectly as a snack on their own, an easy grab-andgo breakfast with a hard-cooked egg, or as a sit-down meal with scrambled eggs or an omelet.

They also make a lovely addition to a special brunch spread, adding an element of surprise and elegance, something to consider with Easter, and then Mother’s Day, around the corner.

Storage note: Refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 4 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months.

Let cool completely before storing. Reheat in the microwave (20 to 30 seconds for one muffin), or wrap in foil and reheat in a 350-degree

oven for 15 to 20 minutes.

1 3 cup (80 milliliters) mild-tasting olive oil, plus more for brushing the pan

Generous 1 ½ cups (200 grams) wholewheat pastry flour (may substitute with white whole-wheat flour, or a generous ¾ cup/100 grams of each all-purpose flour and wholewheat flour)

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon onion powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

2

½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

¼ teaspoon fine salt

3 cup (180 milliliters) whole or reducedfat milk (may substitute with plant-based milk)

½ cup (113 grams) plain

Greek yogurt

1 large egg

1 teaspoon honey

4 ounces (115 grams) fresh goat cheese (chevre), crumbled

½ cup (22 grams) finely chopped fresh chives

Position a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 375 degrees.

Brush a nonstick muffin tin with olive oil.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, onion powder,

baking soda, pepper and salt until combined.

In a large bowl whisk together the milk, yogurt, oil, egg and honey. Add the flour mixture to the milk mixture and stir until just combined. Stir in the goat cheese and chives until just combined.

Using a ¼-cup (60-milliliter) measure, divide the batter among the muffin tin cups; each should be filled

about three-quarters of the way.

Bake for 18 to 20 minutes, or until the tops are golden brown and a toothpick or cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool for 5 to 10 minutes, then run a small offset spatula or butter knife around the perimeter of each muffin before removing them from the tin. Serve warm.

Nutritional information per serving (1 muffin) | Calories: 149; Total Fat: 9 g; Saturated Fat: 2 g; Cholesterol: 22 mg; Sodium: 203 mg; Carbohydrates: 14 g; Dietary Fiber: 2 g; Sugar: 1 g; Protein: 5 g

This analysis is an estimate based on available ingredients and this preparation. It should not substitute for a dietitian’s or nutritionist’s advice. From cookbook author and registered dietitian nutritionist Ellie Krieger.

Ellie Krieger Nourish

Tom McCorkle/The Washington Post

Muffins with goat cheese and chives put a savory spin on a familiar treat.

Rey Lopez/The Washington Post photos

Make mini quiches for a fun, flexible family meal. Once the custard is in the shells, then comes the fun part of letting everyone customize their quiches.

A little horror, sports, comedy comes to screens

SuSan Hiland

SHILAND@DAILYREPUBLIC.NET

FAIRFIELD —

Coming to local theaters this week is a little of everything.

Dracula’s much harried assistant, Renfield, finds his backbone and decides to set off on his own, but escape from the world’s worst boss is not that easy.

Also in local theaters, a housewife inherits her father’s Mafia empire and surprises everyone by being very good at her job.

A little horror comes to the big screen with a loosely based story from the records of the Pope’s exorcist, Father Gabriele Amorth, who takes on the devil in a young boy and finds that things are not as they seem in the Vatican.

Finally, a film based on the life of Nat (Sweetwater) Clifton tells the tale of his groundbreaking NBA career.

Opening nationwide are:

“Mafia Mama,” in which a suburban American woman inherits her grandfather’s Mafia empire and, guided by the Firm’s trusted consigliere, defies everyone’s expectations, including her own, as the new head of the family business. The film is rated R.

“Renfield,” in which a loyal servant, Renfield (Nicholas Hoult), is the tortured aide to history’s most narcissistic boss, Dracula (Nicolas Cage). Renfield is forced to procure his master’s prey and do his every bidding, no matter how debased. But now, after centuries of servitude, Renfield is ready to see if there’s a life outside the shadow of The Prince of Darkness. If only he can figure out how to end his codependency. The film is rated R.

“Sweetwater,” in which Hall of Famer Nat “Sweetwater” Clifton makes history as the first African American to sign an NBA contract, forever changing how the game of basketball is played. The film is rated PG-13.

“The Pope’s Exorcist,” a film based on the actual files of Father Gabriele Amorth (Russell Crowe), chief exorcist of the Vatican. Amorth investigates a young boy’s terrifying possession and

ends up uncovering a centuries-old conspiracy the Vatican has desperately tried to keep hidden. The film is rated R. Opening in limited release are:

“Sick of Me,” in which Signe and Thomas are in an unhealthy, competitive relationship that takes a vicious turn when Thomas suddenly breaks through as a contemporary artist. In response, Signe makes a desperate attempt to regain her status by creating a new persona hell-bent on attracting attention and sympathy. The film is not rated.

“The Lost Weekend: A Love Story,” which explores the 18-month relationship John Lennon spent with May Pang. Pang revisits her younger self through the eyes of a mature woman, telling the story of a their relationship, which was supported by Yoko Ono. The film is not rated.

“Back on the Strip,” in which Merlin loses his girl and moves to Las Vegas to pursue work as a magician, only to get hired as the front man in a revival of the notorious black male stripper crew, The Chocolate Chips. Led by Luther – now broke and broken – the old, domesticated, out-ofshape Chips put aside former conflicts and reunite to save the hotel they used to perform in while helping Merlin win back his girl. The film is not rated.

“Cherry,” in which a young woman finds herself pregnant and in need of making a decision within 24 hours. Fired from her menial job at a costume shop, she putters around town, looking for insight from her boyfriend, friends and family. She finds no solace in the arms of friends but is forced to face the reality of adulthood, hard decisions must be made and she can’t run anymore. The film is not rated.

“Rare Objects,” in which a young woman with a traumatic past seeks to rebuild her life when she begins working at a New York antique shop. The film is not rated.

Brian Crane

Zits Jerry Scott and Jim Borgman

Pearls Before Swine Stephan Pastis

Candorville Darrin Bell

Baby Blues Rick Kirkman and Jerry Scott

Baldo Hector Cantú and Carlos Castellanos

Gene Park

THE WASHINGTON POST

I

Taylor-Joy’s Princess Peach is such a competent, fearless leader and warrior, Mario feels like a supporting character. But throughout the 38-year history of the Mario franchise, the princess has often transcended the classic damsel-in-distress role, and the movie’s portrayal is just another example.

This may shock anyone who hasn’t paid attention to the dozens of Super Mario games over the years, particularly since Princess Peach has been the enduring damsel-in-distress archetype not just on screen but in most modern fiction. She mirrors Dulcinea del Toboso, the ill-defined princess who seemingly exists only within the mind of classic Spanish hero Don Quixote. But unlike Quixote’s misguided definition of chivalry needing a “lady,” Peach has long demonstrated she needs no man.

Already, right-wing commentators and outrage bait influencers such as Sneako are calling this portrayal “feminist propaganda,” but they ignore facts and history. Peach is the most visible woman in video games, having appeared in more titles than any fictional woman in the medium.

Throughout that prolific history, she’s often kidnapped by the villainous Bowser, king of the rival Koopa Kingdom to Peach’s Mushroom Kingdom, and needs rescuing from Mario, a working-class, bluecollar plumber reimagined as a knight in shining armor for the industrial age. In the first two decades of Mario, Peach would sometimes be written into roles relying on ancient gender norms, like baking cakes and being portrayed as overly emotional. But more often, she’s portrayed as a woman with power and agency. Mario creator Shigeru Miyamoto says Peach was always meant to be powerful, and the new film offers us the most confident and assertive version yet.

Her journey to independence began with “Super Mario Bros. 2” in 1988, where Peach became one of the few play-

ANALYSIS

n the just-released “Super Mario Bros. Movie,” Anyaable female characters in video games. She was imbued with the power to float over enemies and dangerous obstacles, much like she does in the new film.

The road was rocky at times, evidenced in the 1989 TV show “The Super Mario Bros. Super Show!” in which she reverts back to the distressed-damsel role, finding herself kidnapped alongside her royal guardian Toad in several episodes. She’s also cast as a Mother Teresa-like figure, tending to orphanages. While active in her charitable efforts, overall she’s a very passive character.

But just three years later, Nintendo’s magazine Nintendo Power published a series of Mario comics created in the manga style by Charlie Nozawa and Kentaro Takekuma. Its depiction of Peach was radical at the time, showing her not only successfully evading capture but also leading an assault on her enemies, even resorting to holding them hostage with bomb threats. She’s portrayed as capable in close-quarters combat, a levelheaded wartime mediator and a master of disguise. Taylor-Joy’s character echoes this version, since the movie begins with Peach traveling to Donkey Kong’s kingdom in an attempt to form a military coalition.

She’s not just a monarch, she’s also secretary of state and secretary of defense.

The new film’s Peach was intentional from inception, Taylor-Joy told GamesRadar in a podcast interview. Peach would be a role model for what female leadership can look like, something they planned “from the very first meeting,” she said.

“Peach is an empowered woman,” she added. “If you think about the storyline, it makes more sense that she’s strong and in control, because she is the ruler of the Mushroom Kingdom. ... So if she was constantly being plucked out of her castle, she wouldn’t be very good at ruling, would she?”

Princess Peach is also the most prolific female video game character in existence, having appeared in about 60 Mario games, playable in 40. She finally got to star in her

own in 2005 with “Super Princess Peach” for the handheld console Nintendo DS. However, this came with some problematic caveats: Her powers were entirely based on her emotions, a clear reflection of the stereotype that women’s behaviors are not driven by logic. In the game, she had an “emotion meter” to reflect her four emotional powers of calm, joy, gloom and rage. It felt like one step forward and two steps back.

The most recent attempt to correct that misstep occurred in the last big Mario game, 2017’s “Super Mario Odyssey” for the Nintendo Switch. Sure, she still functions as a damsel in distress, being forced into a wedding with that immutable Mario nemesis Bowser. But at the end of the game, Mario asks for her hand in marriage, Bowser makes a last-ditch attempt, and both of them seemingly threaten to drown Peach with flower offerings to her. She says enough is enough and rejects both suitors. The game ends with the two enemies comforting each other, while Peach flies off to go on a much-deserved vacation across the kingdoms.

Rehabilitating Princess Peach away from age-old gender norms of baking, being ruled by emotions and asking men for help has been a long process. Chris Suellentrop, the former New York Times video game critic (and now politics editor for opinions for The Washington Post), called out the stagnant gender prison Peach was in for Nintendo’s mobile game “Super Mario Run,” where she was once again relegated to baking and needing rescue.

“Representation in interactive media may be even more important than it is in linear entertainment,” he wrote. “In video games, players describe ourselves as the digital avatars we control on a screen. We say ‘I died,’ not ‘he died.’ ”

Maybe with the movie, the image of Princess Peach can finally transform in the public consciousness. No longer an imaginary stand-in requirement for chivalrous deeds, this princess can truly become master of her domain.

Crossword by Phillip

Alder

moment can be crucial to success.

Three no-trump would have been an easy contract, but it is understandable that South overcalled three spades rather than three no-trump.

The play lasted only four tricks. West led the heart seven: five, ace, two. East returned a heart, and West, after ruffing, cashed his two top diamonds: down one.

THE WRETCHEDNESS OF EXCESS POWER

Logan Pearsall Smith said, “It is the wretchedness of being rich that you have to live with rich people.” Talk about never being satisfied! In bridge, we like to be rich: to have many honor cards. Occasionally, though, we are overburdened with them. Getting rid of an unwanted honor at the right

South should have seen that coming. Surely East had seven hearts for his vulnerable opening bid. South should have dropped his heart king under East’s ace. Although this gambit has appeared in print many times, it would still have been difficult for East not to believe that the king was a singleton – unless South made a revealing hesitation. East, not willing to give South a discard on dummy’s heart jack, would probably have shifted to the diamond five at trick two. This allows the contract to make because South’s heart two disappears on a diamond winner in the dummy.

Are you thinking that West should lead a top diamond at trick one? That is feasible. Also, there is a clever idea that works well on this deal. Assuming you normally lead the ace from ace-kinglow, if instead you lead the king from ace-king and switch at trick two (or three), that switch might be to a singleton, but never to a doubleton.

COPYRIGHT: 2023, UNITED FEATURE SYNDICATE

Sudoku by Wayne Gould

Bridge

Difficulty level:

by

© 2023 Janric Enterprises Dist.

Nintendo; Illumination Entertainment & Universal Pictures

Princess Peach (Anya Taylor-Joy) in Nintendo and Illumination’s “The Super Mario Bros. Movie.”

WITH THEFTS STILL HIGH, California Prius drivers wait months for new catalytic converters

Tribune ConTenT AgenCy

When the catalytic converter was stolen from Vanessa Reimer’s Toyota Prius in Long Beach she thought the repair would be a simple one, taking a few weeks at most.

Then her local dealership delivered the bad news: The replacement part could take six months to arrive. Reimer, who is pregnant, may have a baby before her Prius has a new catalytic converter.

“At first, I thought there must be something I could do,” said Reimer, 32, a speech language pathologist at an elementary school, before she learned that there were 100 other drivers waiting on the same part. “But there are just too many people in the same situation.”

For several years, older Priuses have held the dubious distinction of being the No. 1 target of catalytic converter theft in California. Drivers whose converters have been swiped are now experiencing a second indignity: Thousands of Prius owners are ahead of them in line for the same part, and the delays could stretch on for months.

Thieves target hybrids because their catalytic converters have a higher concentration of precious metals compared to cars that run solely on gas. The Prius, which was the best-selling car in California a decade ago, is an easy and lucrative target, with tens of thousands still on the road.

The Times called the parts departments of a dozen Toyota dealerships in Southern California and asked the wait time for a catalytic converter for a 2011 Prius. Every service center said the part was back ordered and wasn’t immediately available. Most said the wait would be more than three months, and in some cases, as long as eight or nine.

“There’s just way too many of them getting stolen, and there are thousands on back order,” said one employee in an apologetic tone. Another said: “If you come in right now, you’re looking at the end of August.”

Corporate representatives for Toyota did not respond to questions from The Times.

Even getting a projected repair date is no guarantee, as Anwar Glasgow, 25, discovered when his catalytic converter was stolen in January. A Toyota service center in Van Nuys said the repair to his 2012 Prius would take six months, maybe

Thieves target hybrids because their catalytic converters have a higher concentration of precious metals compared to cars that run solely on gas. The Prius, which was the best-selling car in California a decade ago, is an easy and lucrative target, with tens of thousands still on the road.

less. Now they think his car won’t be ready until October.

Glasgow’s insurance will pay to have the new part installed, but won’t subsidize a rental car for longer than a month or total the inoperable Prius so he can buy something else.

“I’m screwed, to be honest with you,” said Glasgow, 25, an aspiring actor who is now walking and skateboarding 3 miles each way to his job as a waiter at a Mexican restaurant. The theft “feels like being kicked while you’re down . . . it is pretty demoralizing.”

The frequency of partial theft reports for older Priuses, a category that includes the theft of catalytic converters, surged in California by almost 850% over a two-year period, according to the Highway Loss Data Institute, a nonprofit funded by the insurance industry.

There has been a “stark increase” in the number of catalytic converter thefts in Los Angeles this year, according to Police Chief Michel Moore, with 406 more reported in the first five weeks of 2023 compared with the same time in 2022.

“I am very much taken aback,” Moore told the police commission last month. The thefts can take as little as a minute, he said, and are “easy pickings” for crews searching for favored makes and models of cars. Fed up with the thefts and the

long waits for replacement parts, some frustrated Prius owners are abandoning their hybrids altogether.

Ryan Eason, 28, discovered in January that his catalytic converter had been stolen from a secured garage when he and his fiancee got in the car to go look at wedding rings.

A mechanic in Pasadena got the job done in about seven weeks, much faster than the six- to eight-month estimate from Eason’s local Toyota dealership. As soon as the repair was finished, Eason drove to his parents’ house in Carlsbad and left the Prius there.

“I don’t think it’s a permanent solution,” said Eason, a lawyer. “But given that this car is a prime target, I’m just going to keep it in a safe place for now, so that I don’t have to think about it for a while.”

There are only a few catalytic converters that the California Air Resources Board has approved for use on older Priuses, including one sold by Toyota for about $1,800, and a model from Magnaflow listed at about $2,800. Both are sold out almost everywhere. Catalytic converters have one of the longer lead times in the industry, taking four to nine months to make, said Mark Wakefield of AlixPartners, a global consulting firm that works with automotive clients.

It’s complicated to manufacture the devices, which house porous ceramic bricks coated in precious metals, and it’s hard for automakers to produce more on short notice, particularly as the industry tries to recover from supply-chain problems, Wakefield said.

When new converters do arrive, automakers must decide between putting them in new cars or sending them out on the service market, Wakefield said.

Making replacement parts for older cars is “not really the main business of the supplier,” he said.

“The main business is new cars.”

Toyota doesn’t have the same wait times for all of its cars, as Mark McNeill, 46, and Nara Hernandez, 44, recently learned. The couple, who live in Silver Lake,

both drive Toyotas: his a Highlander SUV, hers a Prius.

In December, the Highlander’s catalytic converter was stolen on a rainy night. The repair took three days.

In January, it was the Prius’ turn. The couple’s mechanic estimated that the repair would take five months, but after two months of waiting, the timeline became seven months.

“I don’t think I’m going to see my car for a year,” said Hernandez, adding that their mechanic said 60 other Priuses were ahead of them in line.

Getting by without two cars would be virtually impossible with two commutes and pickups and dropoffs for their two children, the couple said.

“We were forced to make a quick decision instead of waiting for better options,” Hernandez said. They decided to buy a new car, a painful financial hit right after Christmas. Once the Prius is fixed, they plan to install a protective cage around the precious new part.

In September John Jackson, a 31-year-old city planner, had his catalytic converter swiped while the car was parked on a side street in Palms. The repair took about six weeks and cost him $700, he said, including

The frequency of partial theft reports for older Priuses, a category that includes the theft of catalytic converters, surged in California by almost 850% over a two-year period, according to the Highway Loss Data Institute, a nonprofit funded by the insurance industry.

his deductible, fees and gas for a rental car, and a shield he installed in an attempt to protect the new catalytic converter.

“Now it’s happened to a few other people I know,” Jackson said. “They came to me asking what to do, and I had to tell them: ‘Look, this is the timeline. You’re going to be without a car for months.’ ” Jackson said he’s leaning toward an electric car when he finally replaces his black 2011 Prius, in part because cars without gasoline motors don’t

have catalytic converters to steal.

In the interim, Jackson said, automakers should do more to try to prevent these thefts, including etching catalytic converters with vehicle identification numbers to discourage illegal resales.

One bill introduced last year in Sacramento would have required that car manufacturers do just that. The bill, sponsored by the L.A. County district attorney’s office, failed in the Assembly.

Two other laws that took effect Jan. 1 require recyclers and junk dealers to keep proof their catalytic converters were obtained legally, and bar people from purchasing the devices from anyone other than authorized sellers.

In Los Angeles, it could soon be illegal to possess a catalytic converter without proof of ownership, such as a bill of sale or a note from the previous owner.

The City Council voted 8 to 4 recently to tentatively approve an ordinance that would make the violation a misdemeanor, punishable by a fine of up to $1,000, up to six months in jail, or both. The ordinance is slated for a second vote in April.

Similar laws have been adopted in other Southern California cities, including Desert Hot Springs, Mission Viejo, Irvine and West Hollywood. San Fernando Valley

Councilman John Lee said LAPD officers have complained that it is “near impossible to hold catalytic converter thieves accountable for their crimes.”

Tracing such a device back to its owner, and proving someone holding the device was involved in the theft, can be tricky.

Reimer of Long Beach, who faced the prospect of being without a car during her entire pregnancy, had a mechanic install a catalytic converter that isn’t approved by the California Air Resources Board. The fix cost her $600, she said, and saved her hundreds of dollars in ride-share fees.

But the vehicle won’t pass its smog check this summer without a Toyota converter. So she’ll have to go back to the mechanic – assuming the part comes in on time.

Dania Maxwell/Los Angeles Times/TNS file

John Jackson, a Toyota Prius owner whose catalytic converter was stolen last fall, poses for a portrait with his car at his apartment complex in Los Angeles, March 14.

In rush to fight climate change, cities across the US are coordinating to battle heat with trees

A lex Brown STATELINE.ORG

From Seattle to Palm Beach, Florida, city leaders agree that urban areas need more trees to alleviate the effects of climate change. Amid the growing attention to tree canopy – and an infusion of federal funding – more than a dozen cities are convening to share ideas and plan the urban forests of the future.

Leaders in many communities now consider trees to be critical infrastructure, providing shade, absorbing stormwater runoff and filtering air pollution. The focus on urban forests has coincided with a growing recognition that low-income neighborhoods and communities of color often have far less tree cover — and suffer increased vulnerability to extreme heat as a result.

When Congress included $1.5 billion for urban forestry in the Inflation Reduction Act last year, the investment came after intensive lobbying from a group of six cities, known collectively as the Vanguard Cities Initiative, whose leaders made the case to federal policymakers that tree canopy could help mitigate climate change’s effects.

Now those six cities – Albuquerque, Boulder, Chicago, Cleveland, Philadelphia and Portland, Oregon – have helped to launch a series of learning and information-sharing programs to bring dozens more communities into the fold, to maximize the effectiveness of the soon-to-bedisbursed federal money.

“There are so many cities out there trying their best, but they just don’t have the capacity to understand what they should be implementing, who to partner with and how to make the most of this federal funding,” said Kirsten Maynard, director of national initiatives at the Center for Regenerative Solutions, the convening group that organized the initial Vanguard Cities Initiative.

Earlier this month, the group launched its first of three fivemonth programs, known as the

Urban Nature-based Climate Solutions Accelerator, which will consist of more than a dozen training and collaboration sessions. With a huge boost in federal money on the way, the Vanguard Cities hope the accelerator will become a force multiplier, allowing city officials across the country to learn from one another and from experts on urban canopies, all trying to answer a critical question.

“What will it take to create an urban natural infrastructure of sufficient scale that’s going to protect an area from the things that are coming?” asked Brett KenCairn, director of the Center for Regenerative Solutions and senior policy adviser for climate and resilience for the city of Boulder, Colorado.

“We’re setting the stage for

the scale we’re talking about and the policy we would need to make that happen,” KenCairn said.

The initial accelerator program will focus on urban heat and how urban forestry can mitigate the health risks of a warming climate.

“Heat kills more people than any other weather-related disaster, and it’s something that’s getting a lot worse,” said Evan Mallen, senior analyst for Georgia Tech’s Urban Climate Lab, who is serving as an instructor for the Accelerator program. “[This program] will help make sure this money is really spent in a way that is efficient, effective and equitable.”

Sixteen cities will join the first program as full participants, bringing in representatives from urban forestry and public health

departments, community groups and nonprofit partners to share strategies with one another.

Dozens more communities and federal officials have signed up as observers, to learn from the program’s instructional sessions. Subsequent programs will focus on issues such as storm and flooding risks and green infrastructure.

In Austin, Texas, one of many communities with racial and socioeconomic disparities in tree coverage, representatives from several city departments will join the accelerator program. They’ll be accompanied by leaders from Travis County, which includes Austin, and community nonprofit groups.

“We’re projecting more extreme heat, more extreme rainfall events and more pro-

longed periods of extreme drought [due to climate change],” said Rohan Lilauwala, Austin’s environmental program coordinator. “Those environmental hazards are disproportionately felt by low-income and communities of color, and one of the things we need to do is direct our tree planting, our land conservation and our ecosystem restoration efforts towards those

The city of Chicago has committed to planting 15,000 trees annually for the next five years, but many surrounding communities are still working to build their urban forestry capacity, said Lydia Scott, director of the Chicago Region Trees Initiative, a partnership of organizations and agencies across 284 commu-

“We want forestry to be at the table and this impact of green space to be at every level of cities’ decision-making process,” she said. “Hopefully, we’ll see some great opportunities for us to replicate what’s happening in other places and go at solutions collectively from a national perspective.”

Another of the group’s instructors is Julia Hillengas, cofounder and executive director of PowerCorpsPHL, a program in Philadelphia that provides job opportunities to young people in fields such as urban forestry and green infrastructure. She will be helping cities consider the challenges and opportunities of building the workforce needed to put the federal funding into action.

Tacoma, Washington, which has the sparsest tree canopy coverage of any city in the western part of the state, is among the cities scrambling to scale up quickly.

“My biggest question is, ‘How are we going to grow our capacity fast enough to even receive that influx of money?’” asked Lowell Wyse, executive director of the Tacoma Tree Foundation, a nonprofit that supports treeplanting and advocacy efforts.

Nathan Howard/Getty Images/TNS file (2021)

Swimmers cool off in the Clackamas River at High Rocks Park in Portland, Oregon.

CALENDAR

Monday’s TV sports

Baseball

MLB

• Oakland at Baltimore, NBCSCA, 3:35 p.m.

• L.A. Dodgers at San Francisco, NBCSBA, 6:45 p.m.

Hockey NHL

• Chicago at Minnesota, ESPN, 6 p.m.

Tuesday’s

Baseball

TV sports

• Oakland at Baltimore, NBCSCA, 3:35 p.m.

• San Diego at N.Y. Mets, TBS, 4:10 p.m.

• L.A. Dodgers at San Francisco, NBCSBA, 6:45 p.m.

Basketball

NBA Playoffs

• Atlanta at Miami, TNT, 4:30 p.m.

• Minnesota at L.A. Lakers, TNT, 7 p.m.

Hockey

NHL

• Tampa Bay at Toronto, ESPN, 4 p.m.

• Colorado at Edmonton, ESPN, 6:30 p.m.

Soccer

• UEFA Champions, Manchester City vs. Bayern Munich, 5, 13, Noon.

• CONCACAF, Violette vs. Club Leon, FS1, 5 p.m.

• CONCACAF, Vancouver vs. Los Angeles FC, FS1, 7:15 p.m.

Softball College

• Oklahoma vs. LSU, ESPN2, 4 p.m.

Masters

From Page B1

popular champions.

There was a kind of cosmic inevitability to Rahm’s victory, falling as it did on both on Ballesteros’ birthday and on the 40th anniversary of his second championship here.

Winning the Masters, the 28-year-old Rahm reasons, is but a rite of passage for everyone from his part of the world with big swings and bigger ambitions. “Pretty much every great-name Spanish player has won here,” he said. “There’s got to be something here about having a Spanish passport. I don’t know, there’s something about the grounds that transmits into all of us.”

The kid who teethed on the legend of Ballesteros captaining the 1997 Ryder Cupteam to victory in Spain has arrived.

Maybe it wasn’t quite as easy as it looked at the end. Not supposed to be. Sunday was a day of golf so long I swear you could watch Rahm’s beard grow.

When the field reported at 8:30 in the morning for the restart of the raindelayed third round, Rahm faced a walk of 29 holes, two trips through the gristmill of Amen Corner, more tension than in a whole day of binge watching

“Breaking Bad.”

He’d be paired all the way with the midway leader Brooks Koepka, the four-time major champion who was rediscovering his strut. It had all the makings of match play between titans. Picture two dudes in inflatable sumo suits bumping up against each other for almost 11 hours. A classic all-day battle.

But it was only Rahm who was up for a marathon of golf.

You didn’t really think the Masters would allow anyone, even someone of Koepka’s pedigree, to assume a big lead early and run away and hide?

Want some dramatic

Ravens

From Page B1 ing to multiple reports. But instead of teaming with potentially Aaron Rodgers, it appears the 5-foot11, 198-pound Beckham will instead have Lamar Jackson – or perhaps someone else – throwing him passes next season. The two have a good relationship and though Jackson has yet to sign his $32.4 million nonexclusive franchise tag with the Ravens, Beckham’s son was seen sporting a

NorCal

From Page B1

About 90 miles separate San Francisco and Sacramento. Last playoffs, the Warriors’ shortest flight was 2.5 hours to Denver – plus the added difficulty of playing in high altitude. Then they had longer flights for series against the Memphis Grizzlies and Dallas Mavericks topped off with a crosscountry Finals against the Boston Celtics.

Travel is taxing on the body, Green noted. And with the Warriors’ core all in their mid-30s, some playing through various aches and bruises, easier travel can lighten the load.

Plus, an easy road trip could be helpful to the team with the worst road record (11-30) of any Western Conference playoff team.

“Don’t have to get locked into the road routine,” Curry said. “It’s nice to be back in your bed pretty quickly. It’s helpful . . . It doesn’t matter at the end of the day, we’ve been through it enough we know how to adjust. But it is helpful.”

Jane Tyska/Bay Arena News Group/TNS file (2022)

Golden State Warriors’ Stephen Curry calls a timeout in the fourth quarter of their NBA game against the Sacramento Kings at the Chase Center in San Francisco, Nov. 7, 2022.

The head-to-head

This series could be an offensive spectacle. The Warriors and Kings are both high-powered, flowing offenses.

That’s because Kings head coach Mike Brown, formerly a longtime assistant with Golden State, has implemented something similar to what the Warriors use. Center Domantas Sabonis is has taken on a role similar to Draymond Green as a facilitator. He’s a dribble-handoff machine and opens to floor to create plenty of looks for De’Aaron Fox and Kevin

Huerter. Just like Green and Kevon Looney –and in the past, Andrew Bogut – has for Curry, Klay Thompson and other scorers that have come through Golden State over the years.

The Kings 119.7 offensive rating is the best in the league. Warriors’ 116.6 rating is ranked eighth, though undeniably killer.

The Warriors could gain an advantage on the defensive side of the ball.

The Kings’ 116.8 defensive rating is the worst among any playoff team in either conference. And while the Warriors aren’t

a whole lot better – boasting a 114.4 rating ranked 14th in the league – they have a history of locking in defensively in the postseason, and have some reinforcements that could give them a boost.

Gary Payton II may have lost some of his burst on offense, but he’s been impactful as a disruptor in the passing lanes and one-on-one since his return from injury two weeks ago. A force with Donte DiVincenzo on the perimeter with Green and Looney anchoring, the Warriors have jolted a bit defensively. And in those two weeks since Payton’s return, the Warriors’ 107.2 defensive rating is ranked first in the league over that span.

Payton could be crucial in helping to limit highoctane guard Fox.

Wiggins timeline for return is still unknown, though it’s a hope that he will be ready for the first round. The Warriors can get even stronger if he can play defense to the level he played at last postseason.

The Warriors have advantage levers to pull and experience to rely on to counter the Kings’ chemistry and youth.

tension on your Easter? A Masters Sunday almost always obliges. Koepka slept Saturday night on an 11-foot par-saving putt on No. 7 awaiting him when his third round resumed the next morning. While visions of a 9-foot birdie opportunity danced in Rahm’s head. Sure enough at the restart Sunday, the former missed, the latter made, and the four-stroke Koepka lead was halved as quickly as a butcher splits a rack of ribs. Let the intrigue commence.

It was as if Koepka, the majordomo of the majors with four of them in hand, had forgotten how to score this day. He’d record one birdie on his first full hole of Sunday –the eighth hole of his third round – and not get another for 23 holes. His lead took on a slow bleed.

The easy joke would be that after skipping to the LIV league where they only play 54 holes, he thought it was over here before having to come back in the afternoon to play a fourth round.

At least when he returns to work on LIV in two weeks, Koepka can find all the therapy he needs to deal with a Masters collapse. For who’s more expert in that field than LIV commissioner and CEO Greg Norman?

A fourth round is required here, and when it began, Rahm (9 under) was two back of Koepka. By the par-3 sixth, following a Koepka bogey, Rahm had the lead for good. By his reckoning, he nailed down the win by the 14th hole with a 136-yard, 8 iron second shot that landed 4 feet from a birdie. With that he had a 4 shot lead to massage to the end.

It was a comfortable conclusion for the champion. Rahm could snap off an ugly drive on No. 18 – hit a provisional that he wouldn’t require – and still rescue a par that left him 12 under for the tournament. Even that moment possessed a certain amount of bravado.

Jackson jersey in the wide receiver’s Instagram post announcing his decision to join Baltimore.

Beckham’s move to Baltimore also reunites him with Ravens offensive coordinator Todd Monken, who was also Beckham’s offensive coordinator in Cleveland in 2019.

“I really like Odell. Odell is super athletic, twitchy. [He] really likes football. I really did [like him],” Ravens offensive coordinator Todd Monken said of Beckham at his introductory news conference in February.

Giants

From Page B1

amped up than Conforto, who entered the game batting .242 with a teamhigh 14 strikeouts and had to face a tough lefty, Ryan Yarbrough. Conforto followed Flores’ double with his third homer of the season.

“I’ve been really working hard on keeping my shoulder in against lefties; I’ve been a little bit uncomfortable against them,” Conforto said. “That was just kind of a combination of some work, and also in this atmosphere with the home crowd, getting them fired up.”

The previous inning, the Giants had been irked about the way Yarbrough came into the game, thanks to a confusing sequence that home-plate umpire Dan Iassogna blamed on himself afterward. Kapler had Blake Sabol ready to hit against right-handed Carlos Her-

A’s

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good baseball against Cleveland, [but] we’ve got to put this series behind us.”

The Athletics were at least spared the indignity of a no-hitter, thanks to Ramon Laureano’s opposite-field double to right in the second inning. They wouldn’t get another one, with Drew Rasmussen (2-0) pitching seven innings of shutout ball and relievers Ryan Thompson and Jason Adam finishing up.

From the last out of the second inning to a

nandez, who needed some extra time because of an injury, and Kapler was waiting as long as possible to make the switch, just in case.

Sabol mentioned to Iassogna that he was going to pinch-hit against Hernandez, and Iassogna saw Kapler looking at him, but never saw Kapler point to indicate that Sabol was in but assumed that he was. Iassogna signaled to the press box to announce Sabol was in.

In the meantime, Hernandez was taking some warm-up pitches to see if he was OK, and Yarbrough took a few steps in from the bullpen, and then retreated before finally turning around and coming back in. Sabol had to remain in at that point, and while that probably was going to be the end result anyway – the Royals would have brought in Yarbrough whenever he was announced – the normal order of things was upended.

“I mistakenly pointed him into the game right

leadoff walk in the ninth by Conner Capel, Rasmussen and Co. retired 19 straight A’s hitters.

Tampa Bay tagged A’s starting pitcher James Kaprielian (0-2) for seven hits and seven earned runs in 4 2/3 innings, including home runs by Wander Franco in the first (his fourth), a grand slam by Brandon Lowe in the fourth (his second) and a two-run shot by Harold Ramirez in the fifth (his third).

A’s pitchers gave up 11 home runs in the series, contributing to Tampa Bay’s major league-leading total of 24 – the second most ever in a team’s first nine games.

Yet Kaprielian

away,” Iassogna said. “Then when (acting Royals manager Paul) Hoover came out to talk to his pitcher, I went over and said to Gabe, ‘You don’t want him in the game? Because you’re right, you did not point.’ He goes, ‘No, I don’t want him in the game.’ I said, ‘You’ve got it.’

“So I went out and told Hoover; I got there right when he changed pitchers, because it wasn’t for an injury, it was for a pitching change. I said, ‘If this changes it, I did not put him in the game yet. I mistakenly put him in the game, but he’s not in the game yet.’ “

Hoover then opted for Hernandez, so, Iassogna said, “I said to Gabe, ‘Tell me who you want in the game: Do you want (Austin) Wynns back?’ He goes, ‘No, I want Sabol.’ I put Sabol in the game.”

After all that, Yarbrough didn’t get off his first pitch in time, but even so struck out Sabol with a runner on to end the inning.

deserved much better than he got in the four-run fourth when Lowe’s grand slam was the only ball hit out of the infield.

“The fourth inning kind of dictated the game, really,” Kotsay said.

The inning started when Kaprielian hit Isaac Paredes with a pitch, followed by an infield single on a chopper to third by Ramirez. Kaprielian retired Josh Lowe and Manuel Margot on fly balls, and got Christian Bethancourt on a bouncer to second that should have ended the inning.

Ramirez, however, got a good jump toward second base. Shortstop Aledmys Diaz fielded the ball cleanly but his

“It didn’t work out in our favor,” Kapler said. “All things considered, I think it probably should have.”

“It’s a little thing,” Iassogna said. “If I had just waited for (Kapler) to point, it would have saved about two minutes. I guess I’ll call the league and say, ‘If we’re two minutes over, you’re going to have to blame me for that one.’ It was a simple thing I should have done and didn’t, but we righted the wrong.”

As it was, the game lasted 2 hours, 15 minutes, thanks to some terrific starting pitching. Anthony DeSclafani dazzled in his 6 1/3 innings. Kris Bubic (of Mitty High School and Stanford) was even more impressive, working six scoreless innings.

“It was probably the same thing for him – it just felt like I was sitting down and getting right back up again,” DeSclafani said.

The Giants didn’t get a hit until the fifth, when David Villar led off with a single to center.

lob toss to Tony Kemp at second was too late to get Ramirez. It went as a fielder’s choice, loading the bases.

Brandon Lowe followed by taking a high and outside pitch to the opposite field for the grand slam and a 5-0 lead.

“We didn’t do a great job on the defensive side right there,” Kemp told reporters. “We’ve got to get some outs when we can. The ball didn’t roll our way today and we’ve got to shore up some things. It’s good to get the bad things out of the way now. It was a tough series for us, we have stay positive, stay confident and keep moving forward.”