latimes--2020-01-28--All bodies recovered from Kobe Bryant copter crash site as investigation continues

The bodies of Kobe Bryant , his 13-year-old daughter and seven others who died in a helicopter crash have been recovered from a Calabasas hillside , coroner ’ s officials said Tuesday .
Authorities on Sunday removed the bodies of at least three victims from the wreckage .
Remains of the six remaining victims were located Monday , and their bodies have been taken to the Los Angeles County coroner ’ s forensic science center , where officials will work to identify them .
Authorities investigating Sunday ’ s accident said the impact of the crash was intense , shattering @ @ @ @ @ @ @ wide area .
“ This was a pretty devastating accident , ” National Transportation Safety Board investigator Jennifer Homendy said .
“ There is an impact area on one of the hills , and a piece of the tail is down the hill on the left side of the hill .
The fuselage is on the other side of that hill .
Then the main rotor is about hundred yards beyond that .
The debris field is about 500 to 600 feet.
” The Calabasas hillside has become a pilgrimage point for thousands @ @ @ @ @ @ @ legend , prompting Los Angeles County sheriff ’ s officials to urge the public to stay away .
Sheriff Alex Villanueva warned onlookers that it is a misdemeanor to enter the crash site and that those found in the area would face arrest .
Deputies are patrolling the site on horseback and ATVs , he said .
Several individuals tried to get into the area Sunday after the deadly crash and were turned back by law enforcement .
“ We had people trying to access the site on foot , ” Villanueva said @ @ @ @ @ @ @ had an inordinate amount of interest in accessing the crash site by unauthorized personnel.
” The investigation into the cause of the crash is still in its early stages .
But Homendy provided new details Monday about the final moments of the flight , which was taking Bryant and his group from Orange County to his basketball camp in Thousand Oaks , where the retired NBA player was scheduled to coach a game in which Gianna was scheduled to play .
Accompanying the Bryants were John Altobelli , 56 , longtime baseball coach @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , Keri , 46 ; their daughter , Alyssa , 13 ; Christina Mauser , 38 , an assistant basketball coach at the Mamba Academy ; Sarah Chester , 45 ; Chester ’ s daughter , Payton , 13 ; and the pilot , 50-year-old Ara Zobayan .
Just before crashing into the hillside , the pilot rapidly ascended to avoid a cloud layer , according to the NTSB .
The helicopter — a Sikorsky S-76 chopper built in 1991 — departed John Wayne Airport in Orange County at 9:06 a.m. Sunday , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The aircraft passed over Boyle Heights , near Dodger Stadium , and circled over Glendale during the flight .
The NTSB database shows no prior incidents or accidents for the midsize helicopter .
Homendy said Zobayan requested special visual flight rules ( VFR ) , which allow pilots to fly under 1,000 feet , during the trip to Ventura County because weather conditions had deteriorated to less than the minimum visibility for regular visual flying , according to recordings of radio communications between the air tower and the aircraft .
At some point @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ flight following , ” a process in which controllers are in regular contact with an aircraft and can help them navigate .
Before the conversation ends , the tower is heard telling the pilot the helicopter is too low for flight following .
Radar data indicate Zobayan , who had been a licensed commercial helicopter pilot for 19 years , guided the copter to 2,300 feet and then began a left turn .
The helicopter then began rapidly descending .
A visual-flight-rules flight “ is based on the principle of see and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ under visual flight rules isn ’ t safe , often because of inclement weather , a pilot can opt to fly under instrument rules ( IFR ) .
During this type of flight , the pilot navigates only by reference to the instruments in the cockpit , according to the Federal Aviation Administration .
Pilots “ fly VFR when and if weather conditions allow , although they can choose to fly on an IFR flight plan at any time , ” said Ian Gregor , a spokesman for the FAA .
“ Also @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the pilot to make the decision whether to fly VFR and to ensure the safety of the flight and adherence to federal aviation regulations.
” Homendy said it remained unclear what caused the helicopter to slam into the hillside .
A team of federal investigators will continue to look at the history of the pilot , maintenance records for the aircraft , records of the owner and operator , and weather conditions during the flight .
As authorities worked to recover victims ’ remains , a stream of visitors , Bryant fans and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to see the site for themselves .
Some had cameras .
A few had binoculars .
Basketballs , candles , balloons , photos and various tributes lined a fence near the entrance to Juan Bautista de Anza Park in Calabasas .
The NBA star ’ s death struck Westlake Village resident Chad Martinson as doubly cruel .
The 35-year-old father of two brought his 5-year-old daughter , Tatum , to the memorial , which he acknowledged was emotional .
“ His death as a father hits me harder than him as a player @ @ @ @ @ @ @ second I heard it was Kobe in the helicopter , I knew where he was going , and the first thing that popped into my head was , I was hoping the girls wouldn ’ t be in the helicopter .
“ It was devastating to hear that his daughter was with him.
” As Tatum struggled to pull her father away from the tributes and closer to the playground , Martinson lifted his daughter and gave her a hug .
“ I grew up watching Kobe and saw him in Venice Beach @ @ @ @ @ @ @ broke his wrist in a pickup game , ” Martinson said of Bryant , who had been traded to the Lakers as a teen .
“ I ’ ll always have that memory of his toughness , and now I ’ ll have to pass that to my daughter.
” Ventura mother and son Carol Zamarripa and Joel Ipatzi bonded over their shared admiration of Bryant in front of the memorial .
“ Kobe definitely is someone who I grew up watching since I was young , ” Zamarripa said .
“ He @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lot of young players .
It was hard to describe someone like him .
”

Richard Winton, Hannah Fry, Andrew J. Campa

People gather on Las Virgenes Road in Calabasas near the scene of Sunday’s helicopter crash.
The helicopter that crashed Sunday in Calabasas, killing nine people including Kobe Bryant, was not equipped with a terrain alarm system that could have warned the pilot he was approaching a hillside, National Transportation Safety Board officials said Tuesday.
The findings came as investigators were trying to determine why the helicopter crashed into a hillside amid foggy conditions.
NTSB investigator Jennifer Homendy said at Tuesday’s news conference that the helicopter was at 2,300 feet when it lost communication with air traffic controllers. The helicopter was descending at more than 2,000 feet per minute at the time of impact.
“So we know that this was a high-energy impact crash, and the helicopter was in a descending left bank,” Homendy said.
The chopper hit the hillside at an elevation of 1,085 feet, about 20 to 30 feet below an outcropping of the hill. But even if the pilot had been able to fly above the hilltop, he would have faced new hazards ahead.
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“There are actually other higher hills surrounding it,” said Bill English, a lead investigator.
A reconstruction of the flight by The Times tracks the helicopter’s path starting at a crucial moment near the end when the pilot left the San Fernando Valley above the 101 Freeway.
Homendy said her agency had recommended that the Federal Aviation Administration 16 years ago require that all choppers carrying six or more passengers be equipped with a terrain awareness and warning system, adding that the FAA has “failed to act” on the proposal. Because the FAA didn’t follow the recommendation, the chopper that crashed Sunday was not legally required to have the system.
Shortly after her Tuesday news conference, an FAA spokesman disputed that assessment, noting that the FAA requires the terrain alarm systems for helicopter air ambulance operations.
It remained unclear what the pilot knew about the terrain surrounding him or if he had become disoriented.
Bryant regularly used the helicopter, owned by the charter service Island Express.
Kurt Deetz, a former pilot for Island Express who said he flew Bryant from 2014 to 2016, previously told The Times that he thought the aircraft was outfitted with a terrain warning system, but when reached Tuesday, he acknowledged that he might have been mistaken.
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“The NTSB knows way more than I do,” Deetz said.
Deetz said it was unlikely such a system could have averted the crash, had the helicopter been equipped with it.
× NTSB Board Member Jennifer Homendy briefs media on the Jan. 26 helicopter crash in Calabasas, Calif.
Authorities investigating Sunday’s accident said the impact of the crash was intense, shattering the chopper and sending debris over a wide area.
The new revelations came as the bodies of Bryant, his 13-year-old daughter, Gianna, and seven others were recovered.
The investigation into the cause of the crash is still in its early stages, but officials have revealed some details about the final moments of the flight, which was taking Bryant and his group from Orange County to his basketball camp in Thousand Oaks. The retired NBA player was scheduled to coach a game in which Gianna was scheduled to play.
Accompanying the Bryants were John Altobelli, 56, longtime baseball coach at Orange Coast College; his wife, Keri, 46; their daughter Alyssa, 13; Christina Mauser, 38, an assistant basketball coach at the Mamba Sports Academy; Sarah Chester, 45; Chester’s daughter Payton, 13; and the pilot, 50-year-old Ara Zobayan.
Just before crashing into the hillside, the pilot rapidly ascended to avoid a cloud layer, according to the NTSB.
The helicopter — a Sikorsky S-76 chopper built in 1991 — departed John Wayne Airport in Orange County at 9:06 a.m. Sunday, according to publicly available flight records. The aircraft passed over Boyle Heights, near Dodger Stadium, and circled over Glendale during the flight. The NTSB database shows no prior incidents or accidents for the midsize helicopter.
Homendy said Zobayan requested special visual flight rules (VFR), which allow pilots to fly visually in controlled airspace when ceilings are less than 1,000 feet or when visibility is less than 3 miles, during the trip to Ventura County because weather conditions had deteriorated.
At some point during the flight, the pilot requested “flight following,” a process in which controllers are in regular contact with an aircraft and can help them navigate, according to recordings of radio communications between the air tower and the aircraft.
Before the conversation ends, the tower is heard telling the pilot the helicopter is too low for flight following. Radar data indicate Zobayan, who had been a licensed commercial helicopter pilot for 19 years, guided the copter to 2,300 feet and then began a left turn. The helicopter then began rapidly descending.
A visual-flight-rules flight “is based on the principle of see and avoid.” When operation of an aircraft under visual flight rules isn’t safe, often because of inclement weather, a pilot can opt to fly under instrument rules (IFR). During this type of flight, the pilot navigates only by reference to the instruments in the cockpit, according to the Federal Aviation Administration.
Pilots “fly VFR when and if weather conditions allow, although they can choose to fly on an IFR flight plan at any time,” said Ian Gregor, an FAA spokesman. “Also, it’s always up to the pilot to make the decision whether to fly VFR and to ensure the safety of the flight and adherence to federal aviation regulations.”
Remains are covered at the site of the helicopter crash that killed former Lakers superstar Kobe Bryant, his daughter Gianna and seven others in Calabasas. (Christina House / Los Angeles Times)
As authorities worked to recover victims’ remains early in the week, a stream of visitors, Bryant fans and tourists came to the area, wanting to see the site for themselves. Some had cameras. A few had binoculars. Basketballs, candles, balloons, photos and various tributes lined a fence near the entrance to Juan Bautista de Anza Park in Calabasas.
The NBA star’s death struck Westlake Village resident Chad Martinson as doubly cruel. The 35-year-old father of two brought his 5-year-old daughter, Tatum, to the memorial, which he acknowledged was emotional.
“His death as a father hits me harder than him as a player,” Martinson said. “The second I heard it was Kobe in the helicopter, I knew where he was going, and the first thing that popped into my head was, I was hoping the girls wouldn’t be in the helicopter.
“It was devastating to hear that his daughter was with him.”
As Tatum struggled to pull her father away from the tributes and closer to the playground, Martinson lifted his daughter and gave her a hug.
“I grew up watching Kobe and saw him in Venice Beach [in 1996] the day he broke his wrist in a pickup game,” Martinson said of Bryant, who had been traded to the Lakers as a teen. “I’ll always have that memory of his toughness, and now I’ll have to pass that to my daughter.”


latimes--2020-01-28--Bernie Sanders grabs lead in California presidential primary poll

Sen. Bernie Sanders , consolidating support from voters on the left , has taken a clear lead in the race for California ’ s huge trove of Democratic convention delegates as the presidential campaign moves toward a critical month of primary contests .
Sanders has been propelled to the top in California by growing support from voters who label themselves “ very liberal ” — a shift that has come largely at the expense of Sen. Elizabeth Warren .
That very liberal group makes up about one in three Democratic primary voters in the state .
Along with strong backing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on the left is enough to give the Vermont senator support from 26 % of voters likely to take part in the state ’ s March 3 Democratic primary , according to the latest UC Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies poll , conducted for the Los Angeles Times .
His gains in the state come as several polls in Iowa and New Hampshire — the states with the first contests of the primary season — also show Sanders gaining ground .
When the poll last surveyed California voters , in late November , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Since then , however , he has gained and she has continued to lose ground .
The Massachusetts senator now has the support of 20 % of likely voters , down from 22 % in November and 29 % in September .
By contrast to the consolidation on the left , the rest of the state ’ s likely primary voters remain divided among several candidates .
That has hampered former Vice President Joe Biden .
He remains the front-runner nationally , but in third place in California , with 15 % @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s primary electorate is relatively liberal , ” said Berkeley political science professor Eric Schickler , co-director of the institute .
“ The state is more conducive to one of the candidates on the left.
” Biden narrowly trails Sanders among voters who call themselves somewhat liberal , moderate or conservative , but runs 33 points behind him among the very liberal .
Sanders , Warren and Biden are the only candidates with enough support currently to win any of the state ’ s delegates to the Democratic nominating convention this summer .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ , delegates go to candidates who get at least 15 % of the vote statewide or in a congressional district .
The rest of the Democratic field remains far below that threshold , in single digits .
That includes former New York Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg , who already has spent more than $ 30 million advertising on the state ’ s airwaves , according to data compiled by Advertising Analytics , an ad tracking firm .
That ’ s almost twice as much as the combined total that Sanders , Warren and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ His enormous barrage has helped Bloomberg get to 6 % in the poll , up from 2 % in November .
He shares the second tier of candidates with former mayor Pete Buttigieg of South Bend , Ind.
, at 7 % , Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota at 5 % and Andrew Yang , the technology entrepreneur , at 4 % .
Another billionaire candidate , Californian Tom Steyer , lags behind at 2 % .
He has concentrated his spending on states that vote in February .
Despite his third-place position @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in the poll : He remains the candidate the state ’ s voters are most likely to say would beat President Trump .
About a third of likely primary voters say so .
Sanders comes in second on that score with about a quarter of voters — mostly his own supporters — calling him the one with the best chance of beating Trump in November .
That question of electability has dominated the debate in Iowa , which votes in caucuses on Monday , and in New Hampshire , which holds its primary @ @ @ @ @ @ @ issue of how much of a priority to put on picking an electoral winner sharply divides voters .
Overall , 53 % of likely voters give priority to picking the candidate most likely to win ; 47 % go with the candidate who agrees with them on the issues .
Registered Democrats call picking a candidate who will win in November their top priority .
Voters who don ’ t register with a party but plan to vote in the primary lean toward a candidate who agrees with them on issues by 57 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ able to take part in California ’ s Democratic primary , although not in the Republican primary .
Voters younger than 30 , who heavily back Sanders , overwhelmingly favor a candidate who agrees with them on issues , 80 % -20 % , while voters 65 and older , who tend to back Biden , say by 72 % -28 % that picking the most likely November winner takes priority .
About two-thirds of Sanders ’ supporters put priority on a candidate who agrees with them on issues .
Biden supporters go @ @ @ @ @ @ @ giving priority to choosing a nominee with the best chance of winning .
Warren ’ s supporters divide evenly .
Backers of Biden , Sanders and Bloomberg each say their man is the most electable , but supporters of some of the other candidates aren ’ t so sure .
Warren and Klobuchar voters divide on whether their favored candidate or Biden is the more electable .
Buttigieg ’ s followers give the edge to Biden .
The emphasis that Sanders ’ backers put on issues gives him a strong position .
A @ @ @ @ @ @ @ happens between now and the primary that might dampen turnout .
Sanders ’ lead relies heavily on groups who don ’ t always show up to cast ballots , including voters younger than 30 — 54 % of whom favor Sanders — and Latinos , among whom he leads Biden 38 % -18 % .
Biden leads among some groups that tend to routinely vote , such as voters 65 and older .
He has support from 22 % of them , compared with 16 % for Warren and 14 % for Sanders @ @ @ @ @ @ @ strength continues to be the most-educated voters , who also tend to have high turnout .
She gets support from 26 % of those with a post-graduate education , who make up about a quarter of the primary electorate in the state — compared with 17 % for Sanders and 14 % for Biden .
“ The generational clash in voting preferences between Sanders and Biden is perhaps even more striking than the party ’ s tug-of-war between its liberals and conservatives , ” said Mark DiCamillo , the veteran pollster who oversees @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ support among younger voters has been steadily growing over time .
Because of this , turnout will be extraordinarily influential in determining the outcome.
” After a year-long campaign , voters have a fairly clear sense of the ideologies of the candidates .
Asked to rate their own political beliefs and those of the candidates on a scale from 1 to 10 , with 1 being the most conservative , likely primary voters place themselves left of center , with an average of 7.2 .
Voters rank Sanders and Warren fairly close @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Sanders at 8.8 and Warren 8.0 .
Voters on average view the other candidates as clustering somewhat to their right , with Yang at 6.9 , Buttigieg 6.1 , Klobuchar 5.7 , Biden 5.4 and Bloomberg considered the most conservative , at 5.2 .
The poll asked that same question in September , and the rankings of most candidates have changed very little .
The main exception is that voter perceptions of Buttigieg have shifted somewhat to the right as he has positioned himself as a moderate alternative to Sanders and Warren .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ two candidates on the left and the group of four to the right is fairly large , said Schickler .
“ The concrete policy differences are not that vast , certainly not in terms of what a Democratic president would be able to accomplish , ” he said .
“ The fact that people perceive such a big gulf could be a problem for the party ” in trying to unite after the nomination fight ends .
Potentially , Biden could gain ground over the next five weeks by picking up backers of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ easy , however .
Only about 1 in 5 supporters of Klobuchar and Buttigieg , for example , listed Biden as their second choice .
And support for Bloomberg shows signs of continuing to rise : His standing appeared to improve slightly over the course of the week that the poll was in the field .
California ’ s March 3 primary will allocate 416 of the state ’ s 495 convention delegates , by far the largest group from any state .
The rest are elected officials and others who attend as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ California , 13 other states will hold contests on March 3 .
In all , about 40 % of the delegates to the nominating convention will be allocated that day .
The state ’ s rules — distributing delegates partly on a statewide basis and partly by individual congressional districts — give an advantage to a candidate like Sanders whose support statewide is well above 15 % because he is likely to hit the threshold in all 53 congressional districts .
A candidate like Biden , who is just at the threshold statewide @ @ @ @ @ @ @ winning delegates in some districts , but not others .
The large number of voters surveyed by the Berkeley IGS poll allows some analysis of that .
None of the major candidates do strikingly better in some parts of the state than others , the poll found .
Sanders currently appears likely to cross the 15 % threshold in nearly all the state ’ s congressional districts , while Biden would do so in only about half of them .
Warren would get delegates in more congressional districts than Biden , but fewer @ @ @ @ @ @ @ poll was conducted online in English and Spanish , Jan. 15-21 , among 6,845 registered voters statewide , including 2,895 considered likely to take part in the state ’ s Democratic presidential primary .
The estimated margin of error for the Democratic sample is roughly 2.5 percentage points in either direction .
Full text of the questions asked and details on the methodology are available on the Berkeley IGS website .

Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont holds a campaign event Sunday in Perry, Iowa, where the first balloting of the 2020 primary season is a week away.
Sen. Bernie Sanders, consolidating support from voters on the left, has taken a clear lead in the race for California’s huge trove of Democratic convention delegates as the presidential campaign moves toward a critical month of primary contests.
Sanders has been propelled to the top in California by growing support from voters who label themselves “very liberal” — a shift that has come largely at the expense of Sen. Elizabeth Warren. That very liberal group makes up about one in three Democratic primary voters in the state.
Along with strong backing among Latinos and young voters, backing on the left is enough to give the Vermont senator support from 26% of voters likely to take part in the state’s March 3 Democratic primary, according to the latest UC Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies poll, conducted for the Los Angeles Times. His gains in the state come as several polls in Iowa and New Hampshire — the states with the first contests of the primary season — also show Sanders gaining ground.
When the poll last surveyed California voters, in late November, Sanders and Warren were bunched tightly together. Since then, however, he has gained and she has continued to lose ground. The Massachusetts senator now has the support of 20% of likely voters, down from 22% in November and 29% in September.
(Chris Keller / Los Angeles Times)
By contrast to the consolidation on the left, the rest of the state’s likely primary voters remain divided among several candidates.
That has hampered former Vice President Joe Biden. He remains the front-runner nationally, but in third place in California, with 15% in the poll.
“California’s primary electorate is relatively liberal,” said Berkeley political science professor Eric Schickler, co-director of the institute. “The state is more conducive to one of the candidates on the left.”
Biden narrowly trails Sanders among voters who call themselves somewhat liberal, moderate or conservative, but runs 33 points behind him among the very liberal.
Sanders, Warren and Biden are the only candidates with enough support currently to win any of the state’s delegates to the Democratic nominating convention this summer.
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Under state Democratic Party’s rules, delegates go to candidates who get at least 15% of the vote statewide or in a congressional district. The rest of the Democratic field remains far below that threshold, in single digits.
That includes former New York Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, who already has spent more than $30 million advertising on the state’s airwaves, according to data compiled by Advertising Analytics, an ad tracking firm. That’s almost twice as much as the combined total that Sanders, Warren and Biden have spent nationwide on ads.
His enormous barrage has helped Bloomberg get to 6% in the poll, up from 2% in November. He shares the second tier of candidates with former mayor Pete Buttigieg of South Bend, Ind., at 7%, Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota at 5% and Andrew Yang, the technology entrepreneur, at 4%.
Another billionaire candidate, Californian Tom Steyer, lags behind at 2%. He has concentrated his spending on states that vote in February.
Despite his third-place position, Biden has a point of strength in the poll: He remains the candidate the state’s voters are most likely to say would beat President Trump. About a third of likely primary voters say so. Sanders comes in second on that score with about a quarter of voters — mostly his own supporters — calling him the one with the best chance of beating Trump in November.
(Chris Keller / Los Angeles Times)
That question of electability has dominated the debate in Iowa, which votes in caucuses on Monday, and in New Hampshire, which holds its primary Feb. 11. In California, the issue of how much of a priority to put on picking an electoral winner sharply divides voters.
Overall, 53% of likely voters give priority to picking the candidate most likely to win; 47% go with the candidate who agrees with them on the issues.
Registered Democrats call picking a candidate who will win in November their top priority. Voters who don’t register with a party but plan to vote in the primary lean toward a candidate who agrees with them on issues by 57%-43%. Non-party voters are able to take part in California’s Democratic primary, although not in the Republican primary.
Voters younger than 30, who heavily back Sanders, overwhelmingly favor a candidate who agrees with them on issues, 80%-20%, while voters 65 and older, who tend to back Biden, say by 72%-28% that picking the most likely November winner takes priority.
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About two-thirds of Sanders’ supporters put priority on a candidate who agrees with them on issues. Biden supporters go the other way, with 82% giving priority to choosing a nominee with the best chance of winning. Warren’s supporters divide evenly.
Backers of Biden, Sanders and Bloomberg each say their man is the most electable, but supporters of some of the other candidates aren’t so sure. Warren and Klobuchar voters divide on whether their favored candidate or Biden is the more electable. Buttigieg’s followers give the edge to Biden.
The emphasis that Sanders’ backers put on issues gives him a strong position. A question mark for him is whether anything happens between now and the primary that might dampen turnout. Sanders’ lead relies heavily on groups who don’t always show up to cast ballots, including voters younger than 30 — 54% of whom favor Sanders — and Latinos, among whom he leads Biden 38%-18%.
Biden leads among some groups that tend to routinely vote, such as voters 65 and older. He has support from 22% of them, compared with 16% for Warren and 14% for Sanders.
Warren’s biggest source of strength continues to be the most-educated voters, who also tend to have high turnout. She gets support from 26% of those with a post-graduate education, who make up about a quarter of the primary electorate in the state — compared with 17% for Sanders and 14% for Biden.
“The generational clash in voting preferences between Sanders and Biden is perhaps even more striking than the party’s tug-of-war between its liberals and conservatives,” said Mark DiCamillo, the veteran pollster who oversees the Berkeley IGS survey.
“Sanders’ support among younger voters has been steadily growing over time. Because of this, turnout will be extraordinarily influential in determining the outcome.”
After a year-long campaign, voters have a fairly clear sense of the ideologies of the candidates. Asked to rate their own political beliefs and those of the candidates on a scale from 1 to 10, with 1 being the most conservative, likely primary voters place themselves left of center, with an average of 7.2.
Voters rank Sanders and Warren fairly close together and to their left, with Sanders at 8.8 and Warren 8.0. Voters on average view the other candidates as clustering somewhat to their right, with Yang at 6.9, Buttigieg 6.1, Klobuchar 5.7, Biden 5.4 and Bloomberg considered the most conservative, at 5.2.
(Chris Keller / Los Angeles Times)
The poll asked that same question in September, and the rankings of most candidates have changed very little. The main exception is that voter perceptions of Buttigieg have shifted somewhat to the right as he has positioned himself as a moderate alternative to Sanders and Warren.
The gap between how voters perceive the two candidates on the left and the group of four to the right is fairly large, said Schickler.
“The concrete policy differences are not that vast, certainly not in terms of what a Democratic president would be able to accomplish,” he said. “The fact that people perceive such a big gulf could be a problem for the party” in trying to unite after the nomination fight ends.
Potentially, Biden could gain ground over the next five weeks by picking up backers of other moderates. That may not be easy, however.
Only about 1 in 5 supporters of Klobuchar and Buttigieg, for example, listed Biden as their second choice. And support for Bloomberg shows signs of continuing to rise: His standing appeared to improve slightly over the course of the week that the poll was in the field.
California’s March 3 primary will allocate 416 of the state’s 495 convention delegates, by far the largest group from any state. The rest are elected officials and others who attend as unpledged so-called super-delegates.
In addition to California, 13 other states will hold contests on March 3. In all, about 40% of the delegates to the nominating convention will be allocated that day.
Politics 2020: Democratic primaries and key presidential election dates Here are key dates and events on the the 2020 presidential election calendar, including dates of debates, caucuses, primaries and conventions.
The state’s rules — distributing delegates partly on a statewide basis and partly by individual congressional districts — give an advantage to a candidate like Sanders whose support statewide is well above 15% because he is likely to hit the threshold in all 53 congressional districts.
A candidate like Biden, who is just at the threshold statewide, likely will cross the bar for winning delegates in some districts, but not others.
The large number of voters surveyed by the Berkeley IGS poll allows some analysis of that. None of the major candidates do strikingly better in some parts of the state than others, the poll found. Sanders currently appears likely to cross the 15% threshold in nearly all the state’s congressional districts, while Biden would do so in only about half of them. Warren would get delegates in more congressional districts than Biden, but fewer than Sanders.
Politics How the Berkeley IGS poll is done The UC Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies poll that The Times is publishing uses a method that differs from traditional phone-based surveys.
The UC Berkeley IGS poll was conducted online in English and Spanish, Jan. 15-21, among 6,845 registered voters statewide, including 2,895 considered likely to take part in the state’s Democratic presidential primary. The estimated margin of error for the Democratic sample is roughly 2.5 percentage points in either direction. Full text of the questions asked and details on the methodology are available on the Berkeley IGS website.


latimes--2020-01-27--Skelton: Kevin Faulconer is the GOP's best and only hope to regain ground in California

The only Republican politician with a credible chance of winning major office in California is moving into position to possibly challenge Gov .
Gavin Newsom in 2022 .
He ’ s San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer , 53 , a rare Republican moderate who has been elected twice to lead a heavily Democratic city .
Faulconer isn ’ t saying he ’ ll run against Newsom when the Democrat is up for reelection .
The termed-out mayor probably hasn ’ t decided .
But he is talking to people about it — consultants , potential donors , disheartened GOP pols @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s doing is starting to plan a homelessness initiative to place on the November 2022 ballot .
That raises eyebrows .
Why would an out-of-office politician sponsor a ballot initiative at a time he ’ d ordinarily be focusing on his next career ?
Answer : He must see his next career as governor .
But here ’ s a little dampener to that theory : He has been a homelessness crusader for years , since he first became mayor in 2014 .
“ He ’ s not jumping onto the issue because @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , ” says Jim Brulte , former California Republican Party chairman and , before that , GOP leader in both legislative houses .
“ Homelessness is something he ’ s talked about most of his career.
” Still , it ’ s not uncommon for gubernatorial aspirants to use initiatives to bolster their statewide image .
Newsom did it with initiatives that tightened gun controls and legalized non-medicinal marijuana .
Arnold Schwarzenegger sponsored a successful ballot measure that enhanced after-school programs .
Then he ran for governor .
Unlike those two , Faulconer @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the same time he was running for governor .
The last gubernatorial candidate to try that was Democratic Atty .
Gen. John K. Van de Kamp in 1990 .
He was promoting three initiatives and it got awkward — he lost in the Democratic primary to former San Francisco Mayor Dianne Feinstein .
When I asked Faulconer whether he was eyeing the next governor ’ s race , he answered as expected : “ My sole focus is on finishing strong in my last year as mayor .
I love the job.
” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Republican runs for major office in California ?
The GOP hasn ’ t won a statewide office since 2006 .
Democratic voters outnumber Republicans by nearly 2 to 1 .
Independents even outnumber Republicans .
But Faulconer has defied the odds by being elected in a city where the registration now is 42 % Democratic , 21 % Republican and 31 % independent .
He won a landslide reelection in 2016 .
So he ’ s attracting moderate Democrats and independents .
Here ’ s why : Faulconer can be labeled a fiscal @ @ @ @ @ @ @ social moderate — like lots of California voters .
He supports abortion rights , same-sex marriage and a path to citizenship for immigrants living in the U.S. illegally .
He opposes President Trump ’ s proposed border wall .
And he has never endorsed Trump .
On guns , he ’ s OK with California ’ s strong controls .
Unlike Newsom , however , he supports capital punishment — as do California voters .
Faulconer grew up in Oxnard , where he learned to speak fluent Spanish in elementary school .
Then-U.S. @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ) tried to talk Faulconer into running for governor in 2018 .
He was trying to strengthen the GOP ticket and give the party faithful a reason to vote .
The mayor thought about it and wisely turned down the invite .
Republicans got crushed .
“ Faulconer ’ s the only potentially viable Republican from the ranks of elected officials who could plausibly make a credible run ” in 2022 , says GOP consultant Rob Stutzman , a former Schwarzenegger advisor .
“ He ’ s kicking the tires and is open @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the state Chamber of Commerce , says : “ You don ’ t have to be a political genius to know that he is the only Republican who has any chance ” of being elected governor .
“ There really isn ’ t anybody else who has the ability to raise money and run on a track record.
” That track record is especially impressive when you consider that the San Diego City Council is controlled by Democrats .
Fortunately , local governments are officially nonpartisan , so politicians aren ’ t @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and Washington .
Faulconer ’ s record has a heavy emphasis on the voters ’ current top concern , homelessness , and also affordable housing .
San Diego ’ s homeless population has declined by 9 % since Faulconer became mayor .
The city has built shelters that offer services for those struggling with mental illness and substance abuse , and provided parking lots for people to sleep in their cars and storage centers to stash belongings .
Faulconer ’ s initiative will have carrots and sticks , he says — not just @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that homeless people use them .
“ There has to be incentives and consequences , ” the mayor says .
“ If you think someone who is addicted to drugs and sleeping in a canyon is going to turn their life around without an intervention , you ’ re not being honest… .
Some say it ’ s not compassionate to take people off the street .
But I say it ’ s not compassionate to let people die there.
” One key question is whether the largely conservative California GOP would accept @ @ @ @ @ @ @ : Yes , if they really wanted to win .
If not , they could just keep on grousing about one-party rule .
“ If he wants to run , I don ’ t think he can be coy about it , ” says former Republican strategist Ken Khachigian , who has managed several races in California .
“ A big question is does he have [ former Gov . ]
Pete Wilson ’ s drive to devote 2½ years to barnstorming the state , collecting chits , building a fundraising base and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ ll find out .
If he does , there ’ s still faint hope for the California GOP .

San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer makes his final State of the City speech at the Balboa Theatre on Jan. 15.
The only Republican politician with a credible chance of winning major office in California is moving into position to possibly challenge Gov. Gavin Newsom in 2022.
He’s San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer, 53, a rare Republican moderate who has been elected twice to lead a heavily Democratic city.
Faulconer isn’t saying he’ll run against Newsom when the Democrat is up for reelection. The termed-out mayor probably hasn’t decided. But he is talking to people about it — consultants, potential donors, disheartened GOP pols.
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The most significant thing he’s doing is starting to plan a homelessness initiative to place on the November 2022 ballot. That raises eyebrows.
Why would an out-of-office politician sponsor a ballot initiative at a time he’d ordinarily be focusing on his next career? Answer: He must see his next career as governor.
But here’s a little dampener to that theory: He has been a homelessness crusader for years, since he first became mayor in 2014.
“He’s not jumping onto the issue because he perceives it to be politically beneficial,” says Jim Brulte, former California Republican Party chairman and, before that, GOP leader in both legislative houses. “Homelessness is something he’s talked about most of his career.”
Still, it’s not uncommon for gubernatorial aspirants to use initiatives to bolster their statewide image. Newsom did it with initiatives that tightened gun controls and legalized non-medicinal marijuana. Arnold Schwarzenegger sponsored a successful ballot measure that enhanced after-school programs. Then he ran for governor.
Unlike those two, Faulconer would be pushing a ballot initiative at the same time he was running for governor. The last gubernatorial candidate to try that was Democratic Atty. Gen. John K. Van de Kamp in 1990. He was promoting three initiatives and it got awkward — he lost in the Democratic primary to former San Francisco Mayor Dianne Feinstein.
When I asked Faulconer whether he was eyeing the next governor’s race, he answered as expected: “My sole focus is on finishing strong in my last year as mayor. I love the job.”
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But what does it matter if any Republican runs for major office in California? The GOP hasn’t won a statewide office since 2006. Democratic voters outnumber Republicans by nearly 2 to 1. Independents even outnumber Republicans.
But Faulconer has defied the odds by being elected in a city where the registration now is 42% Democratic, 21% Republican and 31% independent. He won a landslide reelection in 2016. So he’s attracting moderate Democrats and independents.
Here’s why: Faulconer can be labeled a fiscal conservative, but he’s a social moderate — like lots of California voters.
He supports abortion rights, same-sex marriage and a path to citizenship for immigrants living in the U.S. illegally. He opposes President Trump’s proposed border wall. And he has never endorsed Trump. On guns, he’s OK with California’s strong controls. Unlike Newsom, however, he supports capital punishment — as do California voters.
Faulconer grew up in Oxnard, where he learned to speak fluent Spanish in elementary school.
Then-U.S. House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Bakersfield) tried to talk Faulconer into running for governor in 2018. He was trying to strengthen the GOP ticket and give the party faithful a reason to vote. The mayor thought about it and wisely turned down the invite. Republicans got crushed.
“Faulconer’s the only potentially viable Republican from the ranks of elected officials who could plausibly make a credible run” in 2022, says GOP consultant Rob Stutzman, a former Schwarzenegger advisor.
“He’s kicking the tires and is open to it.”
Allan Zaremberg, president of the state Chamber of Commerce, says: “You don’t have to be a political genius to know that he is the only Republican who has any chance” of being elected governor. “There really isn’t anybody else who has the ability to raise money and run on a track record.”
That track record is especially impressive when you consider that the San Diego City Council is controlled by Democrats. Fortunately, local governments are officially nonpartisan, so politicians aren’t as polarized as they are in Sacramento and Washington.
Faulconer’s record has a heavy emphasis on the voters’ current top concern, homelessness, and also affordable housing.
San Diego’s homeless population has declined by 9% since Faulconer became mayor. The city has built shelters that offer services for those struggling with mental illness and substance abuse, and provided parking lots for people to sleep in their cars and storage centers to stash belongings.
Faulconer’s initiative will have carrots and sticks, he says — not just shelters, but services, and requirements that homeless people use them.
“There has to be incentives and consequences,” the mayor says.
“If you think someone who is addicted to drugs and sleeping in a canyon is going to turn their life around without an intervention, you’re not being honest…. Some say it’s not compassionate to take people off the street. But I say it’s not compassionate to let people die there.”
One key question is whether the largely conservative California GOP would accept a moderate candidate for governor. Answer: Yes, if they really wanted to win. If not, they could just keep on grousing about one-party rule.
“If he wants to run, I don’t think he can be coy about it,” says former Republican strategist Ken Khachigian, who has managed several races in California. “A big question is does he have [former Gov.] Pete Wilson’s drive to devote 2½ years to barnstorming the state, collecting chits, building a fundraising base and shaping a winnable message?”
We’ll find out. If he does, there’s still faint hope for the California GOP.


latimes--2020-01-29--Kobe Bryant is gone. But muralists want to make sure his presence is still felt across L.A.

After Art Gozukuchikyan heard that Kobe Bryant had died in the hills above Los Angeles , he transformed into Artoon .
The 37-year-old artist gathered dozens of spray cans and headed to Studio City .
On the side of an exotic car rental company along Ventura Boulevard , he began to paint the five-time NBA champion , biting his jersey , and his smiling 13-year-old daughter , Gianna .
Both looked skyward .
In short order , Gozukuchikyan had turned a little stretch of sidewalk into the latest shrine for the vanquished Lakers superstar .
It will , irrefutably , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Bryant ’ s death Sunday along with his daughter and seven other people in a fiery helicopter crash , murals have popped up around the world — in New York , Massachusetts and Texas , and in the Philippines .
Beneath them , fans have placed candles , flowers and personalized notes .
As news of the accident spread Sunday , traffic on Melrose Avenue snarled as people got out of their cars to leave Post-it notes by the hundreds on an existing mural of the basketball legend .
“ For years this @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that people enjoyed visiting .
But with each note , each thank you , each moment of remembrance that is taped to the wall now , its meaning becomes more and more important in trying to help everyone heal , ” said artist JC Ro , who has painted three murals of Bryant .
L.A. is a city of murals , its walls decorated with colorful portraits of La Virgen de Guadalupe , Martin Luther King Jr. , Frida Kahlo and Nipsey Hussle .
In the 1960s and 1970s , such artwork emerged @ @ @ @ @ @ @ such as Venice and South L.A. From the mid-'80s to early 2000s , the City of Angels became the mural capital of the world .
Although a lawsuit led to a citywide ban , it was lifted in 2013 — paving the way for a rebirth of public artwork .
“ Murals tell the story of their communities , the issues that affect us — whether it is social justice , equality and human rights — and of the people we love , ” said Isabel Rojas-Williams , an art historian and mural @ @ @ @ @ @ @ fatal helicopter crash , businesses called on muralists to paint portraits of Bryant .
In some cases , muralists sought out the walls themselves .
Tristan Eaton , a prominent street artist and designer , took to his Instagram account .
“ Los Angeles !
” he wrote over a photo of Bryant.
`` If you have a ginormous wall , let ’ s do a memorial mural for the legend ASAP .
Paint is on me.
” Eaton said he wants to take the athlete ’ s life story and immortalize it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ way of patching that or allowing us to heal , ” he said .
At Figueroa Street and Pico Boulevard in downtown L.A. , across from the Convention Center , fans this week have made their way into a narrow alley where a mural of Bryant has stood untouched for five years .
The piece shows him grabbing his jersey and yelling , with the words “ Los Angeles Culture ” next to him .
It was created by Jonas Never , a sports muralist , who painted it shortly after the former @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the NBA in 2015 .
It was the mural that Isaac Patino , 27 , kept thinking about after he heard his idol had been killed .
Holding his 1-year-old girl , Alyssa , Patino and his wife , Rocio Leon , 27 , stood by the mural to take a photo .
Leon wore a Lakers shirt and yellow Crocs she had decorated with yellow and purple flowers as well as Bryant ’ s jersey number : 24 .
Their daughter wore Lakers pajamas .
“ It ’ s perfect because ‘ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ about , ” said Patino , who wore Bryant ’ s jersey .
A few feet away , a mural of Hussle had been painted on another building — one of many that had popped up in alleys and on buildings after the 33-year-old rapper ’ s killing last year .
“ For me , they ’ re heroes , ” Jerry Herrera , 25 , of Compton said of Hussle and Bryant .
“ Heroes that will forever be embedded into the city , into people ’ s hearts and into the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 's Mid City , fans were descending on a new mural that had been painted on the side of Pickford Market .
Created by Jules Muck , who goes by Muckrock , it shows a smiling Bryant and Gigi — short for Gianna .
A vertical ribbon with the words “ Kobe and Gigi , forever daddy ’ s girl ” coiled next to the father and daughter .
Gazing at the mural , Ivan Staley , 34 , was in tears .
“ It ’ s beautiful , ” he said .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ it she really took her time and made sure she captured the true beauty of them together.
” A father of two girls , Staley said the loss of Bryant and his daughter was devastating as a fan and as a parent .
Inside the Pickford Market , manager Mandeep Singh , 37 , said of the mural : “ We ’ re part of the community , and it should reflect that on the outside .
“ It ’ s great … and people have a place they can pay tribute.
” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ mural of the father and daughter on the exterior of a marijuana dispensary on Pico Boulevard .
People walked in to thank employees for the artwork .
It was a reminder , one Angeleno said , of “ what could have been and what was.
” In Studio City , as Gozukuchikyan worked on his own mural , spectators dropped off candles and flowers .
Visitors included retired basketball player Matt Barnes .
Gozukuchikyan has done three other murals of Bryant .
He did one when Bryant retired in 2016 and another featuring @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , which he did when James decided to come to L.A. “ Life goes on .
It ’ s on us to remember them , ” Gozukuchikyan said .
“ It ’ s not just art , it ’ s a documentation .
We ’ re documenting what ’ s happening in modern times .
”

After Art Gozukuchikyan heard that Kobe Bryant had died in the hills above Los Angeles, he transformed into Artoon.
The 37-year-old artist gathered dozens of spray cans and headed to Studio City. On the side of an exotic car rental company along Ventura Boulevard, he began to paint the five-time NBA champion, biting his jersey, and his smiling 13-year-old daughter, Gianna. Both looked skyward.
In short order, Gozukuchikyan had turned a little stretch of sidewalk into the latest shrine for the vanquished Lakers superstar. It will, irrefutably, be far from the last.
Since Bryant’s death Sunday along with his daughter and seven other people in a fiery helicopter crash, murals have popped up around the world — in New York, Massachusetts and Texas, and in the Philippines. Beneath them, fans have placed candles, flowers and personalized notes.
Art Gozukuchikyan, whose artist name is Artoon, beside a mural he painted of Kobe Bryant in Studio City. (Irfan Khan/Los Angeles Times)
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As news of the accident spread Sunday, traffic on Melrose Avenue snarled as people got out of their cars to leave Post-it notes by the hundreds on an existing mural of the basketball legend.
“For years this wall was just a local L.A. landmark that people enjoyed visiting. But with each note, each thank you, each moment of remembrance that is taped to the wall now, its meaning becomes more and more important in trying to help everyone heal,” said artist JC Ro, who has painted three murals of Bryant.
Where to see Kobe Bryant murals Pickford Market in Mid City: 4566 Pickford St., Los Angeles, CA 90019
Near the Los Angeles Convention Center: 1336 Lebanon St., Los Angeles, CA 90015
Studio City: 11459 Ventura Blvd., Studio City, CA 91604
L.A. is a city of murals, its walls decorated with colorful portraits of La Virgen de Guadalupe, Martin Luther King Jr., Frida Kahlo and Nipsey Hussle.
In the 1960s and 1970s, such artwork emerged as political or personal statements in neighborhoods such as Venice and South L.A. From the mid-’80s to early 2000s, the City of Angels became the mural capital of the world. Although a lawsuit led to a citywide ban, it was lifted in 2013 — paving the way for a rebirth of public artwork.
“Murals tell the story of their communities, the issues that affect us — whether it is social justice, equality and human rights — and of the people we love,” said Isabel Rojas-Williams, an art historian and mural expert.
Within 24 hours of the fatal helicopter crash, businesses called on muralists to paint portraits of Bryant. In some cases, muralists sought out the walls themselves.
People are quiet as their wait their turn taking to take photos in front of a mural of Kobe Bryant and his daughter, Gianna, on the side of Pickford Market in Los Angeles. (Francine Orr/Los Angeles Times)
Edwin Lopez and Rose Fliegel take a moment at the site of the mural of Kobe Bryant and his daughter, Gianna, in Los Angeles. (Francine Orr/Los Angeles Times)
Tristan Eaton, a prominent street artist and designer, took to his Instagram account.
“Los Angeles!” he wrote over a photo of Bryant. “ If you have a ginormous wall, let’s do a memorial mural for the legend ASAP. Paint is on me.”
Eaton said he wants to take the athlete’s life story and immortalize it.
“A painting is a small way of patching that or allowing us to heal,” he said.
At Figueroa Street and Pico Boulevard in downtown L.A., across from the Convention Center, fans this week have made their way into a narrow alley where a mural of Bryant has stood untouched for five years.
The piece shows him grabbing his jersey and yelling, with the words “Los Angeles Culture” next to him. It was created by Jonas Never, a sports muralist, who painted it shortly after the former Lakers player announced he would retire from the NBA in 2015.
Martin Yan stands in front of a mural of Kobe Bryant near Staples. (Francine Orr/Los Angeles Times)
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It was the mural that Isaac Patino, 27, kept thinking about after he heard his idol had been killed. Holding his 1-year-old girl, Alyssa, Patino and his wife, Rocio Leon, 27, stood by the mural to take a photo. Leon wore a Lakers shirt and yellow Crocs she had decorated with yellow and purple flowers as well as Bryant’s jersey number: 24. Their daughter wore Lakers pajamas.
“It’s perfect because ‘culture’ is what Los Angeles is about,” said Patino, who wore Bryant’s jersey.
A few feet away, a mural of Hussle had been painted on another building — one of many that had popped up in alleys and on buildings after the 33-year-old rapper’s killing last year.
“For me, they’re heroes,” Jerry Herrera, 25, of Compton said of Hussle and Bryant. “Heroes that will forever be embedded into the city, into people’s hearts and into the city’s soul.”
In L.A.’s Mid City, fans were descending on a new mural that had been painted on the side of Pickford Market. Created by Jules Muck, who goes by Muckrock, it shows a smiling Bryant and Gigi — short for Gianna. A vertical ribbon with the words “Kobe and Gigi, forever daddy’s girl” coiled next to the father and daughter.
Justine Mendiola stricks a pose as others quietly await their turn to take photos in front of a mural of Kobe Bryant and his daughter, Gianna, n the side of Pickford Market in Los Angeles. (Francine Orr/Los Angeles Times)
Gazing at the mural, Ivan Staley, 34, was in tears.
“It’s beautiful,” he said. “You can tell by looking at it she really took her time and made sure she captured the true beauty of them together.”
A father of two girls, Staley said the loss of Bryant and his daughter was devastating as a fan and as a parent.
Inside the Pickford Market, manager Mandeep Singh, 37, said of the mural: “We’re part of the community, and it should reflect that on the outside.
“It’s great … and people have a place they can pay tribute.”
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On Monday, Muck painted a second mural of the father and daughter on the exterior of a marijuana dispensary on Pico Boulevard. People walked in to thank employees for the artwork. It was a reminder, one Angeleno said, of “what could have been and what was.”
In Studio City, as Gozukuchikyan worked on his own mural, spectators dropped off candles and flowers. Visitors included retired basketball player Matt Barnes.
Gozukuchikyan has done three other murals of Bryant. He did one when Bryant retired in 2016 and another featuring Bryant passing the ball to LeBron James, which he did when James decided to come to L.A.
“Life goes on. It’s on us to remember them,” Gozukuchikyan said. “It’s not just art, it’s a documentation. We’re documenting what’s happening in modern times.”


latimes--2020-01-29--Mass murder divided them. The pursuit of justice brought them together

Paul Wilson stood at the lectern of the downtown Los Angeles hotel , pulled a speech out of his jeans , and prepared to honor the man who helped spare the life of his wife ’ s murderer .
The moment , eight years in the making , began on an October day in 2011 when Scott Dekraai walked into a Seal Beach salon .
Once inside , he unleashed the worst mass shooting in Orange County history .
Eight dead , including Christy Wilson , slumped in a hairdresser chair with two bullet wounds .
The man tasked with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ loathed him .
He ripped Sanders in the press , questioning his very morality .
The physical differences between the grieving husband and the public defender only magnified his contempt .
Muscular , tattooed and sporting an impressive pompadour , Wilson seemed pulled from the mosh pit of a Social Distortion concert .
Sanders wore wire-framed glasses , had tousled hair and a splotchy , graying beard .
Wilson oozed Southern California ; after a quarter-century here , Sanders still clung to a Chicago accent .
“ I thought Scott was a scumbag @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Wilson said .
“ You look at this guy , and I don ’ t know anyone in my shoes that wouldn ’ t have hated him as well.
” And yet , there was Wilson last year at the downtown hotel , heaping hosannas upon Sanders to a riveted audience .
“ I stand here saying what I once never could have predicted , ” Wilson told the Society of Professional Journalists Los Angeles chapter .
“ Scott Sanders isn ’ t just someone I ’ ve come to call my friend @ @ @ @ @ @ @ his honesty and his tireless commitment to making the criminal justice system work fairly.
” How that happened is a tale of a notorious crime , the pursuit of justice — for the dead and the accused — and the ways , mostly invisible to the public , that the gears of criminal justice can work .
Or not .
Sanders and Wilson have filmed segments for an Innocence Project campaign against jailhouse informants .
They talk or text daily , and hang out with each other ’ s families .
How that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the “ snitch scandal.
” While representing Dekraai , Sanders uncovered a jailhouse informant network that he said Orange County sheriff ’ s deputies ran to mine admissions of guilt out of inmates before they had legal representation .
The Orange County district attorney ’ s office used them to win convictions for decades .
In the beginning , Sanders just wanted to save Dekraai from the death penalty — he had no doubt of his guilt .
But then Sanders learned that the inmate his client had talked to also figured in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The public defender asked his assistants to pull other cases he had litigated , and noticed that the same inmates kept procuring confessions like some prison prelate .
Sanders requested that Orange County prosecutors be kicked off Dekraai ’ s case .
Then-Dist .
Atty .
Tony Rackauckas dismissed Sanders ’ argument on “ 60 Minutes ” as a “ conspiracy ” and “ false narrative.
” Wilson accused Sanders in court of having “ blood on [ his ] hands ” with his tactics , which delayed the trial and , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ slain wife .
In early 2014 , Sanders filed a 500-pages-plus motion supported by 15,000 pages of exhibits that argued Dekraai couldn ’ t receive a fair trial because of the longtime use of illegal jailhouse informants by Orange County prosecutors and the Sheriff ’ s Department .
That was the same year Dekraai pleaded guilty to the Seal Beach massacre .
Then a slam-dunk case stalled as Orange County Superior Court Judge Thomas Goethals held hearings to let Sanders make his case .
Early on , Sanders knew that Wilson would be @ @ @ @ @ @ @ going to be a voice from the start , ” Sanders said .
“ He ’ s furious , and rightfully so .
And his stare was all daggers , all the time.
” Wilson gladly attacked the public defender in the press , once telling the Orange County Register that Sanders ’ motions were “ killing us in more ways than one.
” In court , Wilson accused Sanders of “ destroying us even more than we ’ ve already been destroyed.
” No moment was too small for Wilson to needle @ @ @ @ @ @ @ waited outside a Santa Ana courtroom , Sanders looked more harried than usual .
“ I told him , ‘ Hey , you might want to tuck in your shirt to look more presentable , ’ ” Wilson said .
“ And he gave me this look like , ‘ You got ta stop beating me up.
’ ” But as weeks of delays turned into months , then years , Wilson got suspicious .
He noticed that Goethals , whom he praised as a “ compassionate , brilliant man , ” kept @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
He listened closely as Sanders questioned sheriff ’ s deputies and prosecutors ; the answers sounded to Wilson more like nervous equivocation and blame-shifting than the confident statements of the past .
He wondered : Had Sanders been right ?
Eventually , Wilson pivoted to criticizing Rackauckas and the Sheriff ’ s Department .
His relationship with prosecutors , once warm , turned chilly .
In 2015 , Wilson appeared on Al Jazeera America and declared that Sanders was “ doing his job above and beyond.
” Goethals removed Rackauckas ’ entire @ @ @ @ @ @ @ it to the California attorney general ’ s office .
Wilson increased his public praise of Sanders , but the two still wouldn ’ t acknowledge each other in court beyond a silent nod from time to time .
“ The people who said to hang on to our hate [ of Sanders ] turned out to be as heartbreakingly inept as you can imagine the criminal justice system to be .
Paul eventually saw that , ” said Bethany Webb , who sued the Orange County sheriff and district attorney ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Her sister , Laura Webb Elody , died in the Seal Beach massacre ; their mother , Hattie Stretz , survived .
It wasn ’ t until 2017 that Dekraai was sentenced for the killings .
Goethals gave him eight consecutive life terms .
A few days later , Wilson idled in rush-hour traffic .
In the years since the shooting , he had met with parents of Sandy Hook Elementary School victims and visited Washington and Sacramento to lobby for gun control .
Now , Wilson called the general line for the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , expecting to leave a voicemail .
The line rang once before he heard a familiar voice .
“ Hey , Paul , how are you ?
” Sanders told him .
“ I kinda had a feeling this talk would happen.
” Longtime Sheriff Sandra Hutchens retired instead of facing reelection .
Rackauckas , a seemingly indomitable political figure in the county , lost his attempt for a sixth term as district attorney in 2018 .
Todd Spitzer , Orange County ’ s current top prosecutor , said the controversy was “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ bottom of the ocean.
” Job applications to the office declined , and the U.S. Justice Department began interviewing prosecutors as part of an investigation .
Spitzer launched his own internal probe in April .
A state inquiry started by then-Atty .
Gen. Kamala Harris and inherited by the current one , Xavier Becerra , went nowhere .
Wilson , meanwhile , had become Dr. Watson to Sanders ’ Sherlock Holmes .
During the day , the 54-year-old apparel executive sits in on court cases multiple times a week to take notes that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s notes help Sanders , 51 , argue in court motions that wrongdoing continues in Orange County law enforcement .
At night , the two make joint appearances before college classes , community groups and legal conferences from Irvine to Utah and beyond .
“ There is a spate of reform all over the country in which legislators are taking a closer look at jailhouse informants , inspired by the O.C .
debacle , ” said Alexandra Natapoff , author of the 2009 book “ Snitching : Criminal Informants and the Erosion of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Irvine ’ s Center in Law , Society and Culture .
“ They are integral to this.
” Charlotte Samuels , a Fullerton College political science professor , asked Sanders and Wilson to address a packed lecture hall last spring .
“ I wanted my students to be aware that you can still be in public service and be noble , ” Samuels said .
“ They remind me of ‘ Mr .
Smith Goes to Washington.
’ I know it ’ s idealistic , but it ’ s there.
” Goethals , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Appeals judge , said the relationship between the two men is unusual .
“ I have never before seen a circumstance where a surviving spouse in a murder case reached the kind of relationship that Mr. Wilson did with Mr. Sanders , ” Goethals said .
“ It really is unique.
” That ’ s not to say they always agree .
Wilson campaigned for Spitzer against Rackauckas despite Sanders ’ misgivings .
After taking office , Spitzer promoted the lead prosecutor in the Dekraai case , who later resigned in the aftermath @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , along with others , caused Wilson and Sanders to criticize Spitzer .
The prosecutor pushed back against Sanders ’ critique , saying he was “ overreaching ” in some of his motions .
But Spitzer resisted criticizing Wilson , saying : “ As much as I want to be upset and angry with him , I won ’ t allow myself to be.
” Spitzer called Wilson a “ reasonable , honest man who got really screwed by the system.
” Over taco salads at a restaurant in downtown Santa Ana during @ @ @ @ @ @ @ recounted their saga like old pals chuckling over a camping trip .
Their latest dig uncovered a previously unreleased internal audit by the Orange County ’ s Sheriff Department that found deputies regularly failed to book evidence on time .
Spitzer ’ s office is looking into the matter .
“ Paul isn ’ t a law clerk , but he ’ s better in some ways , ” Sanders said .
“ He ’ s a regular citizen who ’ s listening on another level , because of what he ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ understand , ” Wilson interrupted .
“ I ’ d never been in court before what happened to Christy .
So for the first time to be in it , to see the justice system break down the way it did , it ’ s appalling .
That ’ s why I ’ m now here .
”

Scott Sanders, left, Orange County assistant public defender, and Paul Wilson, whose wife, Christy, was among the eight people killed in the 2011 Seal Beach salon shooting.
Paul Wilson stood at the lectern of the downtown Los Angeles hotel, pulled a speech out of his jeans, and prepared to honor the man who helped spare the life of his wife’s murderer.
The moment, eight years in the making, began on an October day in 2011 when Scott Dekraai walked into a Seal Beach salon. Once inside, he unleashed the worst mass shooting in Orange County history.
Eight dead, including Christy Wilson, slumped in a hairdresser chair with two bullet wounds.
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The man tasked with representing Dekraai was Scott Sanders.
Wilson loathed him. He ripped Sanders in the press, questioning his very morality. The physical differences between the grieving husband and the public defender only magnified his contempt.
“I thought Scott was a scumbag, a weaselly little guy,” Paul Wilson said of his original impression of defense attorney Sanders. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
Muscular, tattooed and sporting an impressive pompadour, Wilson seemed pulled from the mosh pit of a Social Distortion concert. Sanders wore wire-framed glasses, had tousled hair and a splotchy, graying beard. Wilson oozed Southern California; after a quarter-century here, Sanders still clung to a Chicago accent.
“I thought Scott was a scumbag, a weaselly little guy,” Wilson said. “You look at this guy, and I don’t know anyone in my shoes that wouldn’t have hated him as well.”
And yet, there was Wilson last year at the downtown hotel, heaping hosannas upon Sanders to a riveted audience.
“I stand here saying what I once never could have predicted,” Wilson told the Society of Professional Journalists Los Angeles chapter. “Scott Sanders isn’t just someone I’ve come to call my friend. I respect his work ethic, his honesty and his tireless commitment to making the criminal justice system work fairly.”
How that happened is a tale of a notorious crime, the pursuit of justice — for the dead and the accused — and the ways, mostly invisible to the public, that the gears of criminal justice can work. Or not.
Eight people were killed in the 2011 shooting at a Seal Beach salon. Among the dead was Christy Wilson, Paul Wilson’s wife. (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)
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Sanders and Wilson have filmed segments for an Innocence Project campaign against jailhouse informants. They talk or text daily, and hang out with each other’s families.
How that happened involves a years-long imbroglio known as the “snitch scandal.”
While representing Dekraai, Sanders uncovered a jailhouse informant network that he said Orange County sheriff’s deputies ran to mine admissions of guilt out of inmates before they had legal representation. The Orange County district attorney’s office used them to win convictions for decades.
In the beginning, Sanders just wanted to save Dekraai from the death penalty — he had no doubt of his guilt. But then Sanders learned that the inmate his client had talked to also figured in another high-profile murder case he was working. The public defender asked his assistants to pull other cases he had litigated, and noticed that the same inmates kept procuring confessions like some prison prelate.
Sanders requested that Orange County prosecutors be kicked off Dekraai’s case. Then-Dist. Atty. Tony Rackauckas dismissed Sanders’ argument on “60 Minutes” as a “conspiracy” and “false narrative.”
Former Orange County Dist. Atty. Tony Rackauckas. (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)
Wilson accused Sanders in court of having “blood on [his] hands” with his tactics, which delayed the trial and, in his eyes, justice for his slain wife.
In early 2014, Sanders filed a 500-pages-plus motion supported by 15,000 pages of exhibits that argued Dekraai couldn’t receive a fair trial because of the longtime use of illegal jailhouse informants by Orange County prosecutors and the Sheriff’s Department. That was the same year Dekraai pleaded guilty to the Seal Beach massacre. Then a slam-dunk case stalled as Orange County Superior Court Judge Thomas Goethals held hearings to let Sanders make his case.
Early on, Sanders knew that Wilson would be outspoken.
“I realized Paul was going to be a voice from the start,” Sanders said. “He’s furious, and rightfully so. And his stare was all daggers, all the time.”
Column One A showcase for compelling storytelling from the Los Angeles Times. Read more stories
Wilson gladly attacked the public defender in the press, once telling the Orange County Register that Sanders’ motions were “killing us in more ways than one.” In court, Wilson accused Sanders of “destroying us even more than we’ve already been destroyed.”
No moment was too small for Wilson to needle the lawyer. Once, as they waited outside a Santa Ana courtroom, Sanders looked more harried than usual.
“I told him, ‘Hey, you might want to tuck in your shirt to look more presentable,’” Wilson said. “And he gave me this look like, ‘You gotta stop beating me up.’”
But as weeks of delays turned into months, then years, Wilson got suspicious.
He noticed that Goethals, whom he praised as a “compassionate, brilliant man,” kept asking harder and harsher questions of prosecutors. He listened closely as Sanders questioned sheriff’s deputies and prosecutors; the answers sounded to Wilson more like nervous equivocation and blame-shifting than the confident statements of the past. He wondered: Had Sanders been right?
Orange County Superior Court Judge Thomas Goethals. (Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times)
Eventually, Wilson pivoted to criticizing Rackauckas and the Sheriff’s Department. His relationship with prosecutors, once warm, turned chilly. In 2015, Wilson appeared on Al Jazeera America and declared that Sanders was “doing his job above and beyond.”
“I nearly fell over,” Sanders said.
Goethals removed Rackauckas’ entire office from the Dekraai case and sent it to the California attorney general’s office. Wilson increased his public praise of Sanders, but the two still wouldn’t acknowledge each other in court beyond a silent nod from time to time.
“The people who said to hang on to our hate [of Sanders] turned out to be as heartbreakingly inept as you can imagine the criminal justice system to be. Paul eventually saw that,” said Bethany Webb, who sued the Orange County sheriff and district attorney’s office in 2018 over the scandal. Her sister, Laura Webb Elody, died in the Seal Beach massacre; their mother, Hattie Stretz, survived.
It wasn’t until 2017 that Dekraai was sentenced for the killings. Goethals gave him eight consecutive life terms.
Scott Dekraai was sentenced to eight consecutive life terms for the Seal Beach murders. (Don Bartletti / Los Angeles Times)
A few days later, Wilson idled in rush-hour traffic. In the years since the shooting, he had met with parents of Sandy Hook Elementary School victims and visited Washington and Sacramento to lobby for gun control.
Now, Wilson called the general line for the Orange County public defender’s office, expecting to leave a voicemail. The line rang once before he heard a familiar voice.
“Hey, Paul, how are you?” Sanders told him. “I kinda had a feeling this talk would happen.”
The snitch scandal upended Orange County politics.
Longtime Sheriff Sandra Hutchens retired instead of facing reelection. Rackauckas, a seemingly indomitable political figure in the county, lost his attempt for a sixth term as district attorney in 2018.
Longtime Orange County Sheriff Sandra Hutchens retired instead of facing reelection. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
Todd Spitzer, Orange County’s current top prosecutor, said the controversy was “like an anchor pulling us to the bottom of the ocean.” Job applications to the office declined, and the U.S. Justice Department began interviewing prosecutors as part of an investigation.
Spitzer launched his own internal probe in April. A state inquiry started by then-Atty. Gen. Kamala Harris and inherited by the current one, Xavier Becerra, went nowhere.
Wilson, meanwhile, had become Dr. Watson to Sanders’ Sherlock Holmes.
During the day, the 54-year-old apparel executive sits in on court cases multiple times a week to take notes that he shares with Sanders. Wilson’s notes help Sanders, 51, argue in court motions that wrongdoing continues in Orange County law enforcement.
At night, the two make joint appearances before college classes, community groups and legal conferences from Irvine to Utah and beyond.
“There is a spate of reform all over the country in which legislators are taking a closer look at jailhouse informants, inspired by the O.C. debacle,” said Alexandra Natapoff, author of the 2009 book “Snitching: Criminal Informants and the Erosion of American Justice” and co-director of UC Irvine’s Center in Law, Society and Culture. “They are integral to this.”
‘I have never before seen a circumstance where a surviving spouse in a murder case reached the kind of relationship that Mr. Wilson did with Mr. Sanders. It really is unique.’ — — Judge Thomas Goethals
Charlotte Samuels, a Fullerton College political science professor, asked Sanders and Wilson to address a packed lecture hall last spring.
“I wanted my students to be aware that you can still be in public service and be noble,” Samuels said. “They remind me of ‘Mr. Smith Goes to Washington.’ I know it’s idealistic, but it’s there.”
Goethals, who is now a California Court of Appeals judge, said the relationship between the two men is unusual.
“I have never before seen a circumstance where a surviving spouse in a murder case reached the kind of relationship that Mr. Wilson did with Mr. Sanders,” Goethals said. “It really is unique.”
That’s not to say they always agree. Wilson campaigned for Spitzer against Rackauckas despite Sanders’ misgivings.
After taking office, Spitzer promoted the lead prosecutor in the Dekraai case, who later resigned in the aftermath of the federal investigation. The move, along with others, caused Wilson and Sanders to criticize Spitzer. The prosecutor pushed back against Sanders’ critique, saying he was “overreaching” in some of his motions.
But Spitzer resisted criticizing Wilson, saying: “As much as I want to be upset and angry with him, I won’t allow myself to be.” Spitzer called Wilson a “reasonable, honest man who got really screwed by the system.”
Over taco salads at a restaurant in downtown Santa Ana during a courtroom recess, Sanders and Wilson recounted their saga like old pals chuckling over a camping trip.
Their latest dig uncovered a previously unreleased internal audit by the Orange County’s Sheriff Department that found deputies regularly failed to book evidence on time. Spitzer’s office is looking into the matter.
“Paul isn’t a law clerk, but he’s better in some ways,” Sanders said. “He’s a regular citizen who’s listening on another level, because of what he’s been through.”
“You have to understand,” Wilson interrupted. “I’d never been in court before what happened to Christy. So for the first time to be in it, to see the justice system break down the way it did, it’s appalling. That’s why I’m now here.”


latimes--2020-01-29--Trump's approval in California hasn't shifted: It's still low

The stability of President Trump ’ s standing with voters is one of the hallmarks of his presidency : No matter the headlines , his approval ratings change very little .
That may be especially true in California — a mostly liberal state with a significant conservative minority — where Trump ’ s deep unpopularity shows no sign of abating .
California voters disapprove of Trump by roughly 2-1 , according to the latest UC Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies poll , conducted for the Los Angeles Times .
Although some national polls have seen Trump ’ s standing with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , his numbers in California have not changed significantly since the last Berkeley poll done in late November or , in fact , since previous Berkeley polls over the last two years .
That ’ s despite a raft of major headlines in recent weeks , including Trump ’ s impeachment by the House , the missile strike that killed Iranian Gen. Qassem Suleimani , subsequent Iranian retaliation , and approval of a trade agreement with Mexico and Canada that Trump hailed as a major victory .
The stability of presidential approval ratings @ @ @ @ @ @ @ During President Obama ’ s tenure , polls found that his standing with voters fluctuated far less than that of his immediate predecessors , Presidents George W. Bush , a Republican , and Bill Clinton , a Democrat .
Trump ’ s standing has moved even less , starting out far lower than most presidents and then remaining stuck near 40 % approval nationwide .
Political scientists say the lack of change reflects the nation ’ s deepening partisanship , which has shrunk the number of swing voters and hardened the views of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
In California , nearly all registered Democrats , 95 % , disapprove of Trump ’ s job performance , with 86 % saying they disapprove strongly , the Berkeley poll found .
Among the state ’ s outnumbered registered Republicans , opinion is only somewhat less uniform : 90 % approve of Trump ’ s work , with 66 % approving strongly .
Just under one in five of the state ’ s voters describe themselves as very liberal , and 98 % of them say they disapprove of Trump .
About @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , and 86 % approve of Trump .
Self-described moderates — about a third of the state ’ s voters — disapprove of Trump 70 % -30 % , accounting for the state ’ s overall disapproval of him .
As is true nationally , Trump ’ s ratings on the economy surpass his approval on other issues .
Statewide , 39 % of Californians approve of Trump ’ s handling of the economy and 60 % disapprove , while 33 % approve of his job performance overall and 67 % disapprove .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ closely resembles his overall standing , 32 % approve and 67 % disapprove .
The confrontation with Iran does not appear to have changed voter attitudes : The numbers are virtually identical to those in the late November poll .
Given Trump ’ s low approval ratings in the state , there ’ s little doubt about how Californians will vote in November , barring some huge shift .
The poll shows two-thirds of California voters say they are not inclined to vote to reelect Trump , with almost all of them saying @ @ @ @ @ @ @ do so .
The remaining one-third say they are inclined to reelect Trump , and almost no one says they ’ re uncertain .
The UC Berkeley IGS poll , supervised by pollster Mark DiCamillo , was conducted online in English and Spanish , Jan. 15-21 .
It questioned 6,845 registered voters statewide , including 5,170 considered likely voters in the November 2020 general election .
The estimated margin of error for the likely voter sample is roughly 2 percentage points in either direction .
Full text of the questions asked and details @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Berkeley IGS website .

President Trump speaks to reporters at a meeting in the Oval Office on Monday with visiting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The stability of President Trump’s standing with voters is one of the hallmarks of his presidency: No matter the headlines, his approval ratings change very little.
That may be especially true in California — a mostly liberal state with a significant conservative minority — where Trump’s deep unpopularity shows no sign of abating.
California voters disapprove of Trump by roughly 2-1, according to the latest UC Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies poll, conducted for the Los Angeles Times.
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Although some national polls have seen Trump’s standing with voters tick up slightly in recent months, his numbers in California have not changed significantly since the last Berkeley poll done in late November or, in fact, since previous Berkeley polls over the last two years.
That’s despite a raft of major headlines in recent weeks, including Trump’s impeachment by the House, the missile strike that killed Iranian Gen. Qassem Suleimani, subsequent Iranian retaliation, and approval of a trade agreement with Mexico and Canada that Trump hailed as a major victory.
The stability of presidential approval ratings became a notable phenomenon before Trump.
During President Obama’s tenure, polls found that his standing with voters fluctuated far less than that of his immediate predecessors, Presidents George W. Bush, a Republican, and Bill Clinton, a Democrat.
Trump’s standing has moved even less, starting out far lower than most presidents and then remaining stuck near 40% approval nationwide.
Political scientists say the lack of change reflects the nation’s deepening partisanship, which has shrunk the number of swing voters and hardened the views of people on both sides of the aisle.
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In California, nearly all registered Democrats, 95%, disapprove of Trump’s job performance, with 86% saying they disapprove strongly, the Berkeley poll found. Among the state’s outnumbered registered Republicans, opinion is only somewhat less uniform: 90% approve of Trump’s work, with 66% approving strongly.
Just under one in five of the state’s voters describe themselves as very liberal, and 98% of them say they disapprove of Trump. About one in 10 call themselves very conservative, and 86% approve of Trump.
Self-described moderates — about a third of the state’s voters — disapprove of Trump 70%-30%, accounting for the state’s overall disapproval of him.
As is true nationally, Trump’s ratings on the economy surpass his approval on other issues. Statewide, 39% of Californians approve of Trump’s handling of the economy and 60% disapprove, while 33% approve of his job performance overall and 67% disapprove.
Trump’s standing on foreign policy closely resembles his overall standing, 32% approve and 67% disapprove. The confrontation with Iran does not appear to have changed voter attitudes: The numbers are virtually identical to those in the late November poll.
Given Trump’s low approval ratings in the state, there’s little doubt about how Californians will vote in November, barring some huge shift.
The poll shows two-thirds of California voters say they are not inclined to vote to reelect Trump, with almost all of them saying they are “strongly” disinclined to do so. The remaining one-third say they are inclined to reelect Trump, and almost no one says they’re uncertain.
The UC Berkeley IGS poll, supervised by pollster Mark DiCamillo, was conducted online in English and Spanish, Jan. 15-21. It questioned 6,845 registered voters statewide, including 5,170 considered likely voters in the November 2020 general election.
The estimated margin of error for the likely voter sample is roughly 2 percentage points in either direction. Full text of the questions asked and details on the methodology are available on the Berkeley IGS website.


latimes--2020-01-29--Southern California to see gusty northerly winds through Friday

High winds are forecast this week for several mountainous areas across Southern California , prompting meteorologists to warn the public about the possibility of power outages , blowing sand and strong cross winds for motorists .
The National Weather Service in Oxnard issued a high wind warning Tuesday that will remain in effect until Thursday afternoon for the Santa Monica Mountains .
Damaging winds could blow down large objects , including trees and power lines .
Travel could be difficult , especially for high-profile vehicles such as semi trucks .
In the Inland Empire , north winds of 20 to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ mph are expected early Wednesday into Thursday afternoon in the San Gorgonio Pass near Banning , the Santa Ana Mountains and foothills , and other areas with high elevation .
The communities of Lockwood Valley , Mount Pinos , Acton , Mount Wilson and Sandberg in Ventura and Los Angeles counties will see similar wind speeds , along with mountain areas in Santa Barbara County , including the San Marcos Pass and the San Rafael and Dick Smith wilderness areas , according to the weather service .
Residents are encouraged to avoid being @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and branches .

High winds are forecast this week for several mountainous areas across Southern California, prompting meteorologists to warn the public about the possibility of power outages, blowing sand and strong cross winds for motorists.
The National Weather Service in Oxnard issued a high wind warning Tuesday that will remain in effect until Thursday afternoon for the Santa Monica Mountains. Damaging winds could blow down large objects, including trees and power lines. Travel could be difficult, especially for high-profile vehicles such as semi trucks.
In the Inland Empire, north winds of 20 to 30 mph with gusts up to 60 mph are expected early Wednesday into Thursday afternoon in the San Gorgonio Pass near Banning, the Santa Ana Mountains and foothills, and other areas with high elevation.
The communities of Lockwood Valley, Mount Pinos, Acton, Mount Wilson and Sandberg in Ventura and Los Angeles counties will see similar wind speeds, along with mountain areas in Santa Barbara County, including the San Marcos Pass and the San Rafael and Dick Smith wilderness areas, according to the weather service.
Residents are encouraged to avoid being outside in forested areas and around trees and branches.


latimes--2020-01-29--Flight evacuating U.S. nationals from China amid coronavirus outbreak diverted to March Air Reserve

Flight evacuating U.S. nationals from China amid coronavirus outbreak diverted to March Air Reserve Base

A flight carrying government employees evacuated from the U.S. Consulate in the Chinese city of Wuhan amid a coronavirus outbreak will land at March Air Reserve Base in Riverside County instead of Ontario International Airport , officials announced Tuesday night .
Curt Hagman , chairman of the San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors , said in a video news release that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention told local officials that the flight will be diverted to the base “ for the logistics that they have.
” Reached by phone Tuesday evening , Hagman said local officials weren ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ decision .
Before reaching its destination in Southern California , the plane is expected to stop in Anchorage , Alaska to refuel , according to the CDC .
“ It ’ s been very fluid , in terms of the last 36 to 48 hours of information , ” Hagman said .
Ontario International Airport is one of two repatriation airports on the West Coast , Hagman said , with the other in Oakland .
Because of that federal distinction , the airport has the responsibility — along with the infrastructure and planning @ @ @ @ @ @ @ crisis , which can include handling large troop movements , or in this case , housing about 210 people between three days and two weeks , he said .
“ We were prepared for the worst , ” Hagman said .
Hagman said he heard from several people in his district who were concerned about the flight landing in Ontario .
Due to a lack of information and misinformation shared online there was a misunderstanding by some that the flight was a plane “ full of sick people ” rather than diplomats and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of harm ’ s way , he said .
“ People are concerned — they wanted to make sure the government is protecting them , ” Hagman said .
The outbreak , caused by a new coronavirus called 2019-nCoV , was first detected in Wuhan City in the Hubei Province in China , where there have been more than 4,500 confirmed cases of the virus and 106 deaths associated with the illness it causes , according to the World Health Organization .
The virus is not currently spreading in any community in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ thus far in the U.S. , including one person in Los Angeles County and another in Orange County , involved people who contracted the virus outside the country , primarily in Wuhan , according to the CDC .
Ontario International Airport officials said in a statement that the facility stood ready to “ provide a safe and welcoming landing for American diplomats and U.S. citizens returning from China.
” “ As the focus shifts to March Air Reserve Base , we offer our sincerest well wishes and gratitude to the Americans returning home @ @ @ @ @ @ @ officials said in a statement that federal agencies were working together to ensure the safe return of Americans while protecting the public ’ s health .
“ These individuals will be screened before they take off ; monitored during the duration of the flight by medical personnel on board ; screened again on landing to refuel in Anchorage , Alaska ; monitored on the last leg of the flight by medical personnel on board ; evaluated upon arrival at March Air Reserve Base in Riverside County , California ; and then monitored for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in a statement Tuesday night .

Staff move bio-waste containers past the entrance of the Wuhan Medical Treatment Center last week in Wuhan, China.
A flight carrying government employees evacuated from the U.S. Consulate in the Chinese city of Wuhan amid a coronavirus outbreak will land at March Air Reserve Base in Riverside County instead of Ontario International Airport, officials announced Tuesday night.
Curt Hagman, chairman of the San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors, said in a video news release that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention told local officials that the flight will be diverted to the base “for the logistics that they have.”
Reached by phone Tuesday evening, Hagman said local officials weren’t given any additional details about the decision. Before reaching its destination in Southern California, the plane is expected to stop in Anchorage, Alaska to refuel, according to the CDC.
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“It’s been very fluid, in terms of the last 36 to 48 hours of information,” Hagman said.
Ontario International Airport is one of two repatriation airports on the West Coast, Hagman said, with the other in Oakland.
Because of that federal distinction, the airport has the responsibility — along with the infrastructure and planning capabilities — to respond in times of crisis, which can include handling large troop movements, or in this case, housing about 210 people between three days and two weeks, he said.
“We were prepared for the worst,” Hagman said.
Hagman said he heard from several people in his district who were concerned about the flight landing in Ontario.
Due to a lack of information and misinformation shared online there was a misunderstanding by some that the flight was a plane “full of sick people” rather than diplomats and their families who wanted to get out of harm’s way, he said.
“People are concerned — they wanted to make sure the government is protecting them,” Hagman said.
The outbreak, caused by a new coronavirus called 2019-nCoV, was first detected in Wuhan City in the Hubei Province in China, where there have been more than 4,500 confirmed cases of the virus and 106 deaths associated with the illness it causes, according to the World Health Organization.
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The virus is not currently spreading in any community in the United States. The only confirmed cases thus far in the U.S., including one person in Los Angeles County and another in Orange County, involved people who contracted the virus outside the country, primarily in Wuhan, according to the CDC.
A flight evacuating U.S. nationals from the Chinese city of Wuhan was diverted to March Air Reserve Base in Riverside County on Tuesday night. (Jaclyn Cosgrove/L.A. Times)
Ontario International Airport officials said in a statement that the facility stood ready to “provide a safe and welcoming landing for American diplomats and U.S. citizens returning from China.”
“As the focus shifts to March Air Reserve Base, we offer our sincerest well wishes and gratitude to the Americans returning home,” the statement read.
CDC officials said in a statement that federal agencies were working together to ensure the safe return of Americans while protecting the public’s health.
“These individuals will be screened before they take off; monitored during the duration of the flight by medical personnel on board; screened again on landing to refuel in Anchorage, Alaska; monitored on the last leg of the flight by medical personnel on board; evaluated upon arrival at March Air Reserve Base in Riverside County, California; and then monitored for symptoms post-arrival,” the agency said in a statement Tuesday night.