LOS ANGELES (AP) – Law enforcement officials in California are searching for a man who they say kidnapped his former girlfriend and has been holding her against her will for several days. The Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department says Monday that 52-year-old Joseph Hetzel kidnapped his ex-girlfriend on Friday. Sheriff’s officials say 55-year-old Virginia Paris…… MORE
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) – California’s Department of Public Health has confirmed three deaths from the West Nile virus, the first this year. This is the peak transmission period for the mosquito-borne disease, which doesn’t pose a grave risk for most people but can afflict about 1 percent who contract it with serious neurologic illnesses. The…… MORE
(CNN) – Search-and-rescue teams in California retrieved the bodies of two people missing for weeks after a car swerved off a road in the Sierra Nevada and plunged into a raging river, the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office said. The two are presumed to be Pakapol Chairatnathrongporn, 28, and Thiwadee Saengsuriyarit, 24 — both exchange students…… MORE
FRESNO, CA (KMJ) – Hurricane Harvey animals are being airlifted out of Texas — and California will see some of them. The disaster is leaving pets all throughout Houston, helpless as shelters are overcrowded or flooded. People are rescuing dogs and cats in coolers, airlifting them to safety out of the area, even out of the…… MORE
FRESNO (KMJ) — A proposed state senate bill, which aims to simplify the rules telecom providers have to abide by in California, has vocal opposition from a number of Central Valley cities. SB649 aims to help the roll out of the next generation of cellular technology, but it would involve limiting the opportunity for local…… MORE
FRESNO, CA (KMJ) -Commercial and retail shops hoping to sell recreational marijuana will not be allowed in Fresno. After City Council’s 4-3 vote Thursday, the amendment will be back in council for a second reading and final approval mid September. Council President Clint Olivier and Council Members Esmeralda Soria and Oliver Baines were the “no”…… MORE
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) – One law-enforcement officer was killed and two others wounded when a gunman carrying a high-powered rifle shot through the door of his hotel room, then leapt out over a balcony and led police on a brief chase. He was captured minutes later when he crashed and was wounded by responding officers…… MORE
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) – California Assembly members spent $3.2 million sending mail to their constituents last year, taking advantage of a legislative perk that allows them to use taxpayer money to cover the costs. Lawmakers can’t use state funds for campaign mail. But an Associated Press analysis found members typically spend more in election years…… MORE
BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (AP) – Authorities say two California police officers are in stable condition after they were wounded during a shootout with a suspect who was killed. Officials in Bakersfield say police were dispatched to a home late Wednesday following a call about a man with a gun. Police say the suspect exchanged gunfire with…… MORE
FRESNO, CA (KMJ) – A Bakersfield man already charged with making online threats and sexual exploitation is linked to another case in Maine. 26 year-old Buster Hernandez is facing federal charges of making bombs threats and sexual exploitation. The Justice Department says he would contact young girls through social media and blackmail them–threatening to publish…… MORE
