Good morning. It’s Monday, Jan. 23.
- Ten killed at dance hall popular with Chinese patrons.
- Rural Madera County loses its only general hospital.
- And photos of Berkeley’s Telegraph Avenue in the 1970s.
Monterey Park shooting
1.
Not long after the majority Chinese community of Monterey Park held a street festival for the Lunar New Year on Saturday, patrons were dancing into the night at the Star Ballroom Dance Studio when gunfire rang out. Bodies dropped to the ground, a witness told the New York Times. She saw a gunman near the entrance who appeared to run out of bullets and leave, only to return and resume the massacre. All told, it lasted about five minutes. Ten people died, five men and five women, police said.
The killer, identified as Huu Can Tran, 72, fatally shot himself after police pulled over his van in Torrance Sunday morning, officials said. No motive was disclosed, but sources told the L.A. Times that Tran had recently showed up at a police station saying his family was trying to poison him. L.A. Times | N.Y. Times
2.
Other developments:
- After leaving the Star Ballroom Dance Studio, the gunman tried to enter a second dance facility but was disarmed by two bystanders. “They saved lives,” said Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna. “This could have been much worse.” L.A. Times | USA Today
- “I want to move back to China.” The bloodshed sent shockwaves through the quiet enclave of Monterey Park, a suburb of Los Angeles, where some residents said they no longer felt safe. Reuters | A.P.
- Once again, a mass shooting renewed calls for gun reform. Luna noted that California has some of country’s strictest gun laws. But he added, “I can tell you this: The status quo is not working.” KCAL | Washington Post
Statewide
3.
The sudden abundance of water in California has reignited a contentious debate over restrictions on pumping from the California Delta. Growers have complained that only a fraction of the recent stormwater made it into storage, while nearly 95% of the precipitation that entered the delta was allowed to wash out to sea. “When Mother Nature blesses us with rain, we need to save the water, instead of dumping it into the ocean,” said Assemblymember Vince Fong. L.A. Times
California collected enough water to supply all of its urban needs for a year, said hydroclimatologist Peter H. Gleick. “Those claims that ‘all the water is being wasted flowing to the ocean” are nonsense.'” @PeterGleick
4.
Flood damage to California crops is just the latest misery for the state’s farmworkers, who have endured extreme heat, wildfire smoke, and drought. Now many are suddenly finding themselves unemployed and ineligible for unemployment benefits because of their immigration status. Sandra De León, 39, is a single mother of three. “If we’re considered essential workers … why don’t they figure out how they can help us when disasters like this happen?” she said. L.A. Times
5.
California featured prominently in a page one New York Times story on schools that allow students to socially transition — change their name, pronouns, or gender expression — without telling their parents. Jessica Bradshaw, of Torrance, found out her 15-year-old had been identifying as transgender at school after she saw a homework assignment with an unfamiliar name at the top. “There was never any word from anyone to let us know that on paper, and in the classroom, our daughter was our son.” she said. N.Y. Times
6.
Nancy Pelosi and her family talked to Maureen Dowd about Pelosi’s transition to speaker emerita.
“My mother is at peak happiness,” said her daughter, Alexandra. “I’ve never seen her like this. It’s like she’s floating through the air. It’s fascinating for my kids because they don’t know this person. I think you want to enjoy being old. I don’t think you want to spend your final days fighting with Kevin McCarthy about how many seats you get on Appropriations.” N.Y. Times
7.
Route 395, traversing the eastern edge of the Sierra Nevada, is one of California’s most breathtaking drives. Blanketed in snow, it’s a whole other experience. Temporarily closed during the bombardment of atmospheric rivers, it is now wide open with blue skies in the forecast through the end of the month. Above, a sunset near Bridgeport last week.
Here are 10 can’t-miss stops along Highway 395. 👉 Roadtrippers
Northern California
8.
The only general hospital in rural Madera County closed its doors this month, citing years of financial struggles. The loss of Madera Community Hospital, founded in 1971, means there is not a single hospital emergency room across a 55-mile stretch of the San Joaquin Valley. If you have a car accident, labor problems, or a stroke you’ve got to drive to Merced or Fresno, said Jonathan Mayer, a local OB-GYN. “Patients are going to die.” Fresnoland | CalMatters
9.
The San Francisco Inquirer aims to look like a legitimate news site, but it’s really an advocacy effort for a Bay Area tribe. When reporter Shira Stein asked questions, the Inquirer began publishing stories attacking her. Stein, one article said, was preparing to “smear the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe.” It added, “She has an agenda — relentless in her hostile tone and childish accusations.” S.F. Chronicle
10.
In the early 1970s, Richard Misrach used to walk along Berkeley’s Telegraph Avenue on the way to his job in a photography studio at UC Berkeley. The street was a counterculture hub, bustling with hippies, hustlers, and vagabonds. Then it occurred to Misrach: “This is what’s going on. Why am I not photographing it?” His 1974 collection “Telegraph 3 A.M.” became a celebrated document of a bygone era. MoMa Magazine
See 64 works from “Telegraph 3 A.M.” 👉 Moma.org
Southern California
11.
In 2021, Gov. Gavin Newsom ordered an independent investigation into the case of death row inmate Kevin Cooper, who was accused of killing four people in San Bernardino County in 1983. For years, supporters of Cooper — including judges, law school deans, and senators — have raised doubts about his guilt. This month, the law firm appointed by Newsom issued its findings, declaring that “the evidence of Cooper’s guilt is extensive and conclusive.” But that doesn’t mean it’s over. S.F. Chronicle
12.
Tala Madani, an Iranian-born artist based in Los Angeles, has made more than 40 paintings of “Shit Mom,” a tragicomical figure composed of what looks like dark-brown, dripping excrement. They’re featured in Madani’s first major museum show now on view at the Museum of Contemporary Art Los Angeles. “Why this is not revolting, or even disagreeable, is beyond me,” the critic Calvin Tomkins wrote. “The beauty of the brushwork and the virtuoso modulation of color and surface must have something to do with it.” New Yorker
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