News

Juneteenth could become a California state holiday under a new proposal from Assemblyman Reggie Jones-Sawyer, D-Los Angeles.

Jones-Sawyer on Friday introduced the proposal, which would give state workers a 12th paid holiday. California has recognized Juneteenth as a holiday since 2003, but hasn’t given state workers the day off.

The holiday would fall on June 19, the day in 1865 when slaves in Texas learned they had been freed.

Asm. Reggie Jones-Sawyer sponsored legislation to extend sunset date of the crime of organized retail theft

Governor Gavin Newson called up Assembly member Reginald Jones-Sawyer (D-Los Angeles) as Newsom signed into law AB 331 to help the state apply resources to reduce crime and stop organized retail theft.

El jueves por la mañana docenas de personas esperaban en línea para hacerse la prueba del covid-19 o para recibir su vacuna en una clínica del sur de Los Ángeles.

Entre ellos estaba la señora Antonia Bernardo quien llegó con sus dos hijos, Eric y Stephanie Genaro para que se hicieran la prueba.

SAN FRANCISCO — A flurry of shoplifters in masks and hooded jackets sprinted from a downtown Neiman Marcus last week and into getaway cars with armfuls of designer handbags — a scene captured on video and raising fears that rings of thieves were hitting retail businesses.

The incident, which remains under investigation, was only the latest to give an impression of lawlessness running rampant in San Francisco's stores, where people have been caught on recordings openly swiping products seemingly without repercussion.

Anti-Asian hate crimes more than doubled in California in 2020, according to a report from the state attorney general, underscoring fears among Asian Americans about being targeted during the coronavirus pandemic.

Overall, hate crimes reported to law enforcement rose 31% in the state last year, with attacks against Asians up by 107%, according to the report released Wednesday.

Reacting to a CalMatters investigation, state lawmakers said they’re concerned about defendants’ long waits behind bars before trials and substantial backlogs in California’s courts. And they’re touting their bills as steps toward fixing the problem.

On this week's In Focus: SoCal, host Tanya McRae takes a closer look at how mass incarceration and the criminal justice system are affecting Black Americans, who make up 40% of the country's incarcerated population despite representing 13% of the general population.