In California: Cruise ship arrives in Oakland and Google self-quarantines
Passengers finally get off that cruise ship, a major tennis tournament is canceled and Google self-quarantines. And why jailhouse informants are a good way for the wrong person to get convicted. Plus, Elon Musk has worries, but not because of the coronavirus.
It's Arlene with news on a busy stocks-dropping-faster-than-I-can-write Monday.
In California brings you news, features and interviews from across Paste BN Network newsrooms and beyond. Click here to get this straight to your inbox.
Jailhouse informants: Nothing to lose
By testifying that Harold Hall had confessed to killing a woman in Los Angeles in 1985, a jailhouse informant said he received $25 and a pack of cigarettes; another informant was promised his murder charge would be reduced to manslaughter. Hall spent 19 years behind bars before being exonerated in 2004.
Bruce Lisker spent nearly 25 years in prison, convicted of killing his mother in Sherman Oaks. A jailhouse informant received a reduced sentence and was released from jail early. Lisker was exonerated in 2009, decades of his freedom forever gone.
The two are among 10 men profiled in a ProPublica piece about the role of jailhouse informant testimony, one of the leading causes of wrongful convictions. Why is the testimony often so unreliable? Because the informant can receive all kinds of benefits by providing testimony the state wants to hear.
Elon worries; See's a Buffett win; a free Ancestry search
Elon Musk has worries, but not of the coronavirus sort. He frets SpaceX may not make it to Mars while he's alive.
See's Candies: A pride of Californians and Warren Buffett's "dream" investment.
Know your feminist roots: Ancestry.com is offering a free search so users can discover their family's connections to important people in women's suffrage history.
Grand Princess cruise ship docks in Oakland
The Grand Princess cruise ship, which had been floating off the California coast since Thursday, arrived at the Port of Oakland around noon Monday. Some passengers aboard clapped and hollered, thankful to be on dry land.
So far, 21 aboard have tested positive for coronavirus. The ship is carrying 2,421 passengers and 1,113 crew members, all of whom need to be screened. Officials had been pondering where the ship should dock since it became apparent passengers couldn't get off at their initial destination of San Francisco.
Aerial footage showed a tent set up at the end of the forward gangway, along with three more set back about 15 yards from the ship, and biohazard-suited medical workers walking between them. One passenger was immediately loaded onto an ambulance.
The 962 California residents aboard will be transported to Travis Air Force Base in Fairfield, California, and Miramar Naval Air Station in San Diego for a 14-day quarantine period.
Tennis canceled; eyes turn toward Coachella
Nearly a half-million people attended the BNP Paribas Open tennis tournament last year, the event generating hundreds of millions in economic activity for the Coachella Valley region.
Its cancellation amid the global coronavirus outbreak could deal a significant blow to Coachella Valley hotels, restaurants and local governments. Now, all eyes are turned toward April's Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival and the Stagecoach Country Music Festival — the desert’s preeminent music events of the year. Will they still take place?
One in four jobs in the Coachella Valley is supported by tourism, and the outbreak is happening during the highest-generating revenue months of the year: Beyond the tennis tournament and Coachella, March and April are jam-packed with marquee events including the LPGA ANA Inspiration golf tournament at the Mission Hills Country Club.
- Coronavirus and your well being: What are California's paid sick leave laws?
- U.S. Rep. Julia Brownley, who represents most of Ventura County, has closed her D.C. office after learning she met with someone there who has tested positive for coronavirus. Four other lawmakers are self-quarantining after being exposed to an attendee at a political conference they attended in late February.
- Asian Americans are reporting a spike in racism as coronavirus spreads. And as these hate incidents continue, experts and community leaders fear that the physical and mental health outcomes on members of the community will be adversely affected.
- Delta Air Lines won't charge a change fee on flights booked through April and it'll give out vouchers if you want to cancel.
- State Department: Hold off on taking that cruise.
- For low-wage workers, Sophie's Choice: Show up for work and put food on the table and risk getting sick or lose desperately needed income.
- As of now, the California-Mexico border will remain open.
- Google is self-quarantining, banning visitors at its Silicon Valley, San Francisco and New York offices.
What else we're tracking
Eliminate tax breaks on second (or more) homes and use the money for homelessness, says Assemblymember David Chiu along with nine California mayors.
Ventura County's farmworkers help sustain a $2 billion industry. But where can its workers actually afford to live? A proposed study aims to find that out.
Leaders at the Long Beach and Los Angeles ports approve a new entrance fee of $10 per 20-foot equivalent unit for trucks that exceed emission standards. Critics say that's too low to force companies into change.
UCSD accidentally said its MBA graduates were doing better than they are.
What it took to get that S.F. corner office
Mohammed Nuru worked for the San Francisco public works department for two decades. And he worked hard ... to secure a 16th floor corner-office suite several floors above other department employees he oversaw.
Only he'll never get a chance to occupy the space. In January, he was arrested on federal charges of public corruption.
A fascinating story of how Nuru pushed his way into a top corner office. Nuru has since resigned and applied for his pension.
In California is a roundup of news from across Paste BN Network newsrooms. Also contributing: Mission Local, SF Curbed, San Francisco Chronicle, The Hustle, California Health Report, ProPublica, Voice of San Diego, Los Angeles Times, San Diego Union Tribune.