By JONATHAN DREW The Associated Press WILMINGTON, N.C.  — Hurricane Florence made landfall in North Carolina early Friday, pushing a life-threatening storm surge of floodwater miles inland and ripping apart buildings with screaming wind and pelting rain. More than 60 people had to be pulled from a collapsing motel at the height of the storm,…

Los Angeles County Sheriff Jim McDonnell, who is facing a historic runoff challenge, has been endorsed by a union representing about 6,000 of his employees. The Professional Peace Officers Assn., composed of sergeants and lieutenants as well as civilian custody assistants and crime analysts, said…

Ever since five current and former California coastal commissioners were found guilty this spring of breaking rules designed to ensure fairness and transparency, one question has remained unanswered. Who’s going to pay for their sins? We now have the answer. Any guesses? Walk over to a mirror,…

The Holy fire, which burned 18 cabins or homes and 23,136 acres in Riverside and Orange counties, causing thousands to evacuate, is completely contained, the Cleveland National Forest said Thursday, Sept. 13. Full containment is reached when the blaze can no longer jump the perimeter of the fire line. A locked containment line is 100…

Police in Santa Ana questioned several people after serving a search warrant at a 24-hour computer gaming lounge in Santa Ana on Thursday, Sept. 13. SWAT teams searched the Happy Times Cyber Internet  Cafe at 1117 17th Street at about 3:30 p.m. while police questioned dozens of people in an adjacent parking lot after receiving…

By Jocelyn Wiener, California Healthline Tania Alvarado’s 13-year-old daughter doesn’t smile much anymore. She doesn’t want anyone to see her front teeth, which are so crowded they’re nearly growing atop one another. The crowding makes it painful to eat; it also embarrasses her. “Am I going to get those braces this year?” the Los Angeles eighth-grader…

By Phil Galewitz, California Healthline The percentage of people without health insurance continued to decline in California last year, according to a closely watched report from the Census Bureau, released this week. The state’s uninsured rate edged down even as Republicans in Washington, D.C. sought to roll back the Affordable Care Act. The rate of uninsurance dropped in just two other two states: New…

By Ben Christopher, CALmatters State Democratic registration has flatlined, Republicans are sinking, and the share of California voters registering no party affiliation is at an all-time high. Pundits and politicians speak of the “swamp,” use “politics” as a term of abuse and inveigh against the hacks and the insiders who make up the political establishment….

Local prosecutors say that GOP Assembly hopeful Tyler Diep acted legally when his campaign staffer helped a little-known candidate enter into Diep’s primary race – a move that rivals allege was employed to split the vote. Diep’s campaign said Thursday that the findings by the Orange County District Attorney’s Office absolve him of the “frivolous…