San Diego apartment and commercial office builder H.G. Fenton has partnered with Kyocera Solar to build the first “zero net energy” apartment complex in the Scripps Ranch neighborhood, says Kyocera in a release. Photovoltaic solar modules provide 100 percent of …

Child: “I saw that he closed the door and locked it.”

Catherine McLennan interviews children who might be the victims of abuse. She said all her interviews are recorded, on audio and video, from behind a two-way mirror. In March and September of 2012, the forensic expert interviewed a 9-year-old girl …

“I’m not the person taking those videos.”

Daniel Roger Hood, 43, denied that he captured the incriminating video clips found in his cell phone. Hood also denied that was his body part shown in high definition on a monitor for the jury of 7 men and 5 …

Mayor Bob Filner and city council president pro tem Sherri Lightner appeared yesterday afternoon (May 30) at a roundtable to drum up support for Connect2Careers, the city’s teen summer jobs program formerly known as Hire-A-Youth. “We need you to help …

Tax revenue from Grantville area can be used in downtown San Diego

The 4th District Court of Appeals has ruled against Grantville Action Group in a long-running suit. The Grantville group argued that the City of San Diego could not use redevelopment tax money on downtown projects such as the C Street …

New court battle possible against Democratic mayor as litigious luxury inn magnates set to meet behind closed doors at 8 a.m. tomorrow to ponder legal moves

Late this afternoon, San Diego mayor Bob Filner issued a statement ripping the city's hotel magnates on the eve of a meeting that may spawn yet another legal war against the Democratic mayor by San Diego's old line GOP tourism …

A window into proposition construction expenses for Sweetwater Union High School and Southwestern College

The grand jury's investigation into corruption in the South Bay resulted in 15 indictments of school district administrators, trustees and contractors. Some attorneys argue that the grand jury inquiry is one-sided as clients are not allowed to have counsel present. …

Orange County businessman and former dispensary owner says he obtained rights to the name and wants the sites shut down.

As if accessing medicinal marijuana wasn't hard enough for some patients in San Diego County, now it appears that even advocates are having a hard time maintaining access to their name and website. Last week, an Anaheim-based businessman and former …

Today's GOP announcement launches scramble for millions of special interest money from deep pockets of San Diego's high-tech and military contracting political bases

It's too soon to find any information posted online by the Federal Election Commission regarding the cash behind today's just-launched congressional campaign of Carl DeMaio, the Republican ex-city councilman who last year lost his mayoral election bid to Democrat Bob …

A 300-acre marsh and wetlands restoration project has garnered a Coastal America Partnership Award, presented at a ceremony yesterday to a long list of participating groups including the Port of San Diego, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, California State Coastal …

Controlled substances, alcohol also allegedly involved

The Board of Registered Nursing has filed accusations against six San Diego area nurses. Dale Edward Robinson is charged with sexually assaulting elderly women, one of whom was suffering dementia. Susan Haidvogel and Jaime Lynn Murray were charged with alcohol-related …

Roberto Velasquez said people disabled when they were not

Clinical psychologist Roberto Velasquez was sentenced today (May 29) to 21 months in federal prison for certifying that dozens of people were disabled when they are not. According to the U.S. Attorney's office, he fabricated patient histories and test results.

As the wheel turns

Pictured: Bonifacio Garcia, Diane Russo and Lillian Leopold Transcripts of the grand jury's November-December investigation into alleged corruption between some South Bay trustees, administrators, and contractors were released May 28. There are 28 volumes of witness testimony; some of the …

Daniel Roger Hood pleads not guilty to eleven felony charges

A pretty 11-year-old girl gave testimony today accompanied by Barry, her fluffy teddy bear, which she has had “ever since I was two-and-a-half,” the jury learned today. The bear was a gift from her dad when he came back from …

U.S. authorities give contradicting statements, claiming AFO has been dismantled after conviction of Eduardo Arellano Félix

Eduardo Arellano Félix, the fourth Arellano Félix brother to be targeted by the DEA, has entered a guilty plea to one count of conspiring to launder hundreds of millions of dollars in drug proceeds. The plea, which was approved at …

San Diego-based utility giant lists Kentucky GOP senator's "Regulations from the Executive in Need of Scrutiny Act" as a top lobbying topic, employs ex-Feinstein aide as lobbyist for Mexico wind farm

Federal lobbying disclosure reports for the first quarter of this year posted online by the U.S. Congress reveal that lobbyists for San Diego's Sempra Energy have been busy as usual in Washington, D.C., tackling a host of controversial issues, many …

Council to hear ordinance on June 4, one day after election-cycle begins.

Political parties in San Diego might have to look for other ways to funnel cash to candidates. On June 4 city councilmembers will discuss whether to adopt an ordinance that would cap the amount that political parties can donate at …

While locals may be inclined to disagree, San Diego can no longer lay claim (officially, at least) to one of the nation’s best beaches, at least according to Stephen Leatherman, the self-styled “Dr. Beach" – America’s Foremost Beach Expert. The …

Daniel Hood is accused of videoing himself abusing a 9-year-old girl

A 13-year-old boy who saw disturbing pictures on a man’s cell phone secretly took the phone and brought it to his father. The father said his son told him, “You got to see what’s on this guy’s phone.” The father …

Position will be the eighth salaried position for the PBID.

The Downtown San Diego Partnership is willing to spend any amount of money, taxpayer money that is, to cut down on panhandlers in downtown and to end homelessness. The agency is looking for a person to fill a newly created …

News people get the axe in North County restructuring

The Union-Tribune laid off 4 or 5 news people in a restructuring in North County today (May 28), according to good sources. I don't have more details at this time but will add them as I get more. As previously …

Despite getting cut out of immigration reform bill, DHS will continue to analyze possibility of crossing fee

A proposal to implement mandatory fees, for crossing into the United States from Canada or Mexico, was cut out of the Senate immigration reform bill but is still being analyzed by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). According to Fox …

McClatchy News Service investigates national circuit of lie detector experts, including one in San Diego

Washington-based McClatchy News Service is out with an investigative report targeting what it says is a national network of lie detector experts who work part time for a major polygraph manufacturer, creating what the expose characterizes as a potential for …

Up 10.2% on yearly basis, beating U.S.

San Diego County home values shot up 2.2% in March from February, topping the increase of 1.2% among the 20 largest metro areas, according to Standard & Poor's/Case Shiller data released this morning (May 28). Over the last 12 months, …

Timely ceremony at Mount Soledad veterans' memorial

If you have not yet been to the Mt. Soledad veterans’ memorial, this is the perfect weekend to visit. It is a pleasant drive while you rise more than 800 feet above the landscape, with wonderful views all around San …

Judge Ana Espana, who is presiding over the corruption investigations begun in December 2010 will release grand jury transcripts May 29/30

In the South County Superior Court on May 25, Judge Ana Espana inclined toward making 99.9 % of the transcripts available from the grand jury investigation into South County corruption in three school districts: Southwestern College, Sweetwater Union High School …

Partially completed Blue Moon mural on side of downtown bar building complies with city code and is protected by the First Amendment, proprietor maintains

2013 seems to be shaping up as San Diego's year of the great billboard battle, as noted here earlier this week in Dorian Hargrove's report about the intense behind the scenes lobbying at city hall for high tech electronic signage, …

Jury must decide who is lying

The Honorable Judge Kathleen Lewis now presides over a difficult trial in which an Escondido man has been accused of child-rape. Defense claims the case is the result of an ugly divorce and child-custody battle. In opening statements, defense attorney …

The Mayor and developer have stepped down from their 4-week standoff.

It's settled, developer Carmel Partners are permitted to get back to work on a 332-unit building on the corner of 63rd Street and El Cajon Boulevard near SDSU in Rolando. The developer and Mayor Bob Filner were at a standoff …

The Port of San Diego has announced that, in partnership with recently embattled Ace Parking Management, it will again operate the Big Bay Shuttle service this summer, starting today (May 24). After a successful trial run last year that saw …

Local figures up moderately -- others up stoutly

April occupancy rates in San Diego County hotels dropped slightly from 71.1% in April of last year to 71% the same month this year. However, average daily room rate rose from $126.42 to $131.19, according to Smith Travel Research. For …

A group of graduate students at San Diego State University led by Professor Jill Esbenshade teamed with the labor-friendly local think tank Center on Policy Initiatives to produce Driven to Despair: A Survey of San Diego Taxi Drivers, which was …

Carriers say they were misclassified as independent contractors

Preliminary matters in the case of newspaper carriers suing the Union-Tribune begin tomorrow (May 24) in the Superior Court department of Judge John S. Meyer. Persons who signed contracts with the U-T as home delivery carriers beginning in 2005 say …

Group files two lawsuits in San Diego Superior Court against the Transportation Corridor Agency

The Save San Onofre Coalition, a coalition comprised of basically every environmental advocacy group in California, is accusing the Transportation Corridor Agency of moving forward with plans to build a controversial 16-mile expressway through Orange County and North San Diego …

Amid considerable grousing about budget cuts in the state’s court system, Governor Jerry Brown has announced the appointment of eleven new California Superior Court judges, two from San Diego, Courthouse News Service is reporting. Patricia Guerrero, a graduate of UC …

Mayor Filner’s office announced yesterday (May 21) that San Diego has been awarded $16.9 million out of a total of nearly $559 million made available by the Department of Homeland Security in 2013 through its Urban Areas Security Initiative grant …

UCSD alumnus and self-styled emperor of the worlds genomes recasts not so miraculous $300 million deal with ExxonMobil for genetically engineering fuel from algae, reports MIT Tech Review

As first reported here in November 2008, La Jolla's Craig Venter, the self-styled human genome king, had grand plans for altering the DNA of algae to produce a variety of so-called biofuels, hopefully to replace the world's rapidly depleting supply …

In a May 15 memo, City Attorney finds issue with Filner's so-called temporary plan.

Not so fast, Mayor Filner. That's the gist of a May 15 memo from the City Attorney's Office regarding the Mayor's plan to close the Cabrillo Bridge, thus removing traffic in the Plaza De Panama. Filner's announced his proposal shortly …

Child disappeared from home on May 18 without a trace

Baja California authorities and family members are asking for help in locating a missing 11 year old girl. Cristina del Rosario Cancino Cota vanished from her grandmother’s home in Ensenada on the evening of May 17th. No trace of the …

Neighbors in Carlsbad no longer at ease after home invaded

A fifteen-year-old girl was home when two intruders went around to the back of the house in Carlsbad and kicked in the doggie door to gain entry. The terrified girl was already on the phone with her mother and screamed …

Antonio Zermeno Garcia has joined co-defendants Luis Miguel Salas Rodriguez and Carlos Alberto Andrade-De La Cruz in pleading guilty to conspiracy to commit kidnapping, U.S. Attorney Laura Duffy has announced. His partners in crime had already pleaded guilty in April. …

Woman admitted stealing jewelry and wrestling with homeowner

A woman who confronted a burglar leaving her Oceanside home five months ago was in court yesterday afternoon to see the criminal sentenced to four years prison. Homeowner Kathleen was able to briefly stop the tall, thin woman whom she …

Judge wants felony-bad-driver to pay restitution

Aaron Danny Hernandez, 25, was sentenced to 365 days custody plus 5 years formal probation in San Diego’s North County Courthouse late yesterday, May 22, 2013. Hernandez made a plea deal, admitting his guilt after he drove his Expedition into …

Timothy Ty Craine must register as a sex offender

A man who exposed himself to a woman working at a spa in Encinitas was sentenced yesterday to 2 years prison and ordered to register as a sex offender. It was two months ago when Timothy Ty Craine, 31, approached …

Superior court wrongly dismissed racial, age discrimination complaints

Richard Hodges, an African American aged 63, claimed in a Superior Court suit that he was wrongfully terminated by Ace Parking in 2009, ostensibly because of a business slowdown, but actually as a result of racial and age discrimination, harassment, …

He fled to Mexico, but returned to do more mischief -- and got nabbed

Tax preparer Neil Thomsen was sentenced today (May 22) to 15 years in prison. He was convicted in a jury trial in late 2011 of using 292 stolen identities to cheat the Internal Revenue Service of $515,000 in fraudulent tax …

32,000 pounds of fruits and vegetables were distributed to local soup kitchens and food pantries following the United Fresh Produce Association industry conference that took place last week in San Diego, the group announced along with partner group Feeding America …

Candidates found to have solicited votes and cash from city employees, including councilmembers and the Mayor

From claims about hanging out at crack houses to accusations over prior campaign infractions, the race between Myrtle Cole and Dwayne Crenshaw to become District 4's representative was anything but pretty. In an election separated by just over 700 votes, …

Derrick Lewis was taken into custody by Sheriff’s deputies in Encinitas Monday afternoon after an attempted robbery gone wrong. Lewis first attempted to rob an individual in front of a L.A. Fitness gym on the 200 block of S. El …

Escondido's Classical Academy High School charter up for approval of big loan in form of "pass through" conduit bonds

Republican U-T publisher Douglas Manchester's deal to sell the former campus of the North County Times in Escondido for a reported $7 million finally appears to be close at hand, thanks to school bond financing from a little known state …

Cops say experienced criminals from Vista came to Carlsbad

It was 9:33 a.m. on a Wednesday morning almost a year ago, on June 20 2012, when a woman phoned police and said her daughter was at home while two intruders came into their house through the doggie door. The …

Mayor Bob Filner yesterday (May 21) released revisions to his proposed 2013-2014 fiscal year budget, taking advantage of anticipated increased property tax revenues and savings from a newly negotiated lease on office space to increase spending by $11 million. According …

22 year old attempted to smuggle cocaine and heroin into San Diego from Tijuana

A 22 year old Pennsylvania woman, who attempted to smuggle narcotics into the United States, has made a plea bargain at the U.S. District Court in San Diego. Samantha Kurdilla was apprehended on January 15 with 75 grams of cocaine …

More than one-third of 2012 grads unemployed

According to a story in the Sacramento Bee, 33.9% of 2012 graduates of San Diego's Thomas Jefferson School of Law were unemployed nine months after graduation. The data are from the American Bar Association. Jefferson had the highest unemployment rate …

Over time, firm couldn't access hundreds of millions of emails

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) has fined San Diego's LPL Financial $7.5 million and ordered it to deposit $1.5 million into an escrow account to establish a fund to make payments to customers in arbitrations or litigations against the …

Men planned to kidnap three in San Diego and take them back to Tijuana to face drug debts

According to United States Attorney Laura Duffy, the last of three men charged in a cross-border kidnapping plan has entered a guilty plea on May 21. Antonio Zermeno Garcia, Luis Miguel Salas Rodriguez and Carlos Alberto Andrade-De La Cruz, have …

Previously, the judge noticed defendant wore the same shirt seen in evidence photos

A California man chose to wear a different plaid shirt today, when he made a felony plea deal in San Diego’s North County Superior Courthouse. At a hearing in the same courthouse a month ago, on April 23, 2013, the …

The Surfrider Foundation yesterday (May 20) released 2012 results from its Blue Water Task Force, a collective monitoring effort that processed 2,740 water samples through 23 labs, a 42 percent increase in data from the 2011 survey. Water samples taken …

The Port of San Diego celebrated a milestone yesterday (May 20) in its efforts to implement the North Embarcadero Visionary Plan, moving traffic along North Harbor Drive about 60 feet east between Navy Pier and the B Street Pier to …

Rent increases, though, are more subdued

San Diego County home values in April soared 19.7% from the year earlier, according to a report from Zillow.com today (May 21). Of the largest 30 metro areas, only five (San Francisco, Phoenix, Sacramento, San Jose and Columbus, Ohio did …

Uncle Marcial and Aunt Inez admitted crimes in their Oceanside home

A man-and-wife who abused and prostituted their own niece in their Oceanside home more than ten years ago were sentenced today to more than 20 years in prison, according to San Diego County District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis. Uncle Marcial Garcia …

A busy day in U.S. Attorney's office

Michael Tuisee, who worked in a medical warehouse at Camp Pendleton, was sentenced to six months in prison today (May 20) for stealing and reselling expensive medical equipment that was due to be shipped overseas to treat injured Marines. In …

Denver-based firm FinWater Advisors has teamed up with the Downtown San Diego Partnership to push for a San Diego Arts and Entertainment District

Downtown San Diego Partnership, in conjunction with a Denver-based consulting firm FinWater Advisors, believe they have found a good way to revitalize downtown's North Broadway Corridor while at the same time addressing homelessness and introducing more arts and culture to …

U.S. Customs made unusual marijuana haul Friday

Dogs of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection sniffed out three creative attempts to bring marijuana into the U.S. last Friday. At 4:45 p.m. a Mexican citizen tried to bring in 185 pounds of pot hidden in auto tires. Then …

Mayor Bob Filner, long a friend of the medical marijuana community and thus foe of U.S. Attorney Laura Duffy, came out this afternoon denouncing a gag order imposed by a federal court judge against the lawyer of a former dispensary …

Legally separated more than three years, GOP real estate developer, hotel magnate, and U-T San Diego owner Doug Manchester files for divorce against estranged wife

He tied the knot back in January 1965, got sued for divorce in June 2009, and was proclaimed legally separated in January 2010. Now UT publisher Doug Manchester, 70, who's been photographed partying with a bevy of young women in …

Will the Lorena Gonzalez campaign gain more support with more mailers?

Residents of Chula Vista have received a deluge of mailers from the Lorena Gonzalez campaign. Gonzalez, former CEO of the San Diego and Imperial Counties Labor Council, AFL-CIO, is running against former Chula Vista council member Steve Castaneda for the …

One defendant already released, the other to be released on probation today

This morning two men were sentenced to time already served, after jury trials decided two different cases in which both men were accused of badly handling the same autistic patient, in San Diego County. The Honorable Blaine Bowman, who heard …

A six-hour DUI checkpoint conducted over the weekend on the 900 block of Palm Avenue in Imperial Beach from 8:30 Friday night until 2:30 Saturday morning netted two drunk driving arrests, the San Diego Sheriff is reporting. Fourteen deputies were …

Private equity firm Vista Equity Partners is the buyer

San Diego-based Websense, which specializes in software to protect organizations from cyber attacks and data theft, agreed to be purchased today (May 20) for $902.88 million, or $24.75 per share, up from Friday's closing of $19.23. The buyer is private …

Controversial developer, backer of county GOP and downtown San Diego lobbying group, must comply by November, state agency says

Giant North County developer Rancho Guejito Corporation has been hit by a Cleanup and Abatement Order issued by the state's Regional Water Quality Control Board, requiring the firm to fix environmental damage caused by unauthorized road grading on the 22,500-acre …

Suspects confess to killing former chief in 2012

Two suspects have allegedly confessed to the 2012 homicide of a high ranking municipal police officer, Jesús Alberto Hurtado Estrada, after being apprehended by authorities on Saturday, May 18th. Municipal authorities released details on the arrest and confession after the …

Families on hunger strike convince authorities to create special unit

Mexico has promised to create a special unit to investigate missing persons after families of those missing staged a hunger strike for nine days. According to Agencia EFE, Mexico’s Government Secretariat and the federal Attorney General’s office will create the …

Gas-powered Coachella Valley plant online three months early

The Sentinel Energy Project, an 800-megawatt natural gas fueled power plant under construction in the Coachella Valley near Desert Hot Springs, is online three months early, private operator Competitive Power Ventures is reporting. The plant, which can provide power for …

Mayor and Councilmember ordered halt after hearing complaints that project was more dormitory than residential development

As of now, the 332-unit, 10,000 square foot commercial space, mixed use development known as Centerpoint Luxury Apartment sits dormant at the intersection of 63rd and El Cajon Boulevard near San Diego State University. Progress has been halted by Mayor …

Farzad John Daftari admitted felony resisting arrest in plea deal

Farzad John Daftari, 23, was sent to State prison a week ago, after he pleaded guilty to felony resisting arrest. Encinitas Sheriff’s deputies responded to a report of an assault last summer, in July of 2012. At that time, Farzad …

Will get six months local jail time, according to the plea deal

Ramona Elena Montes, 18, made a plea deal in San Diego’s North County Superior Courthouse last week, admitting five different acts of graffiti as felony defacement of public property. At the time of her arrest, on April 30, 2013, a …

But the heavy metal singer won’t make that bail either, his attorney said

A San Diego Superior Court judge lowered bail from $3 million to $2 million this afternoon for a man accused of hiring a hitman to kill his wife. The accused man, Timothy Peter Lambesis, 32, is in the midst of …

San Diegans for Open Government want the Council President to turn over all emails and text messages from his personal device that pertain to City business

Just how transparent is Council President Todd Gloria? Not very, according to city watchdog group San Diegans for Open Government. On May 16, the group filed a lawsuit against the City after the Council President failed to respond to a …

Basketball's Kings franchise, long a popular venue for lobbyists’ wining and dining of California politicos, to get luxurious new home, per drawings released today by Sacramento mayor

As reported earlier today, members of La Jolla's billionaire Jacobs family are said by the Sacramento Bee to be among the new owners and leadership of the Sacramento Kings, the city's NBA basketball franchise. http://sandiegoreader.com/users/photos/2013/may/17/45764/ Family scion Irwin Jacobs, founder …

Are San Diegans drinking more?

The April unemployment rate in the county dropped to 7% from 7.7% in March as the 2800 jobs were added, according to the California Employment Development Department. The rate for April a year ago was 8.6%, as the county gained …

Kings reportedly will stay in state capital, courtesy of taxpayer arena subsidy

For years, Irwin Jacobs and his family have done a lot of political business in Sacramento - example number one is their standard bearer, newly-minted Democrat Nathan Fletcher - and now it looks like they are going to own part …

The median price for an existing single-family home in California surpassed $400,000 for the first time in five years last month, the California Association of Realtors is reporting. In San Diego County, prices are even higher, and rising at a …

After removing funds, Kent Houston didn't provide documentation to regulator

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (known as FINRA) has suspended Carlsbad's Kent Houston for two years and fined him $25,000 for failure to provide testimony, and additionally given him a consecutive one-year suspension and $50,000 fine for having outside business …

San Diego attorney Gary Aguirre handles whistleblower case

In late 2004, Kathleen Furey, a senior attorney in the New York office of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), started investigating a financial advisor who, she thought, might have violated the Investment Company Act of 1940 and the Investment …

Heavy metal rocker held in lieu of $3 million now, accused of ordering a hit on his wife

A judge will hear new argument tomorrow, regarding the bail amount for Tim Lambesis, who is currently held in lieu of $3 million. Timothy Peter Lambesis, 32, who is lead singer for the band As I Lay Dying, was charged …

Teachers union blocked several lanes of northbound traffic for over an hour

Members of the national teachers union in Tijuana succeeded in their plan to block traffic at the San Ysidro international border on Wednesday, May 15th. As reported by the San Diego Reader before the protest, the union members planned to …

Sheriff’s deputies arrested 26 year-old Patrick Christopher Harvey in Fallbrook yesterday afternoon (May 15) on charges of indecent exposure related to a February incident involving a 16 year-old high school student. On the morning of February 27, the victim alleges, …

Despite population growth and more cars, smog level recedes

The United States Environmental Protection Agency announced today (May 16) that San Diego County is now breathing the cleanest air in more than six decades. The county has met the 1997 national air quality standard for smog, or ground-level ozone. …

Carlsbad man was killed by shotgun blast in his own garage

Jury selection is set to begin Monday, for a man accused of gunning down a homeowner in his own garage in Carlsbad, two years ago. Joseph Robertson Verkade, now 36, is accused of being part of a group that demanded …

A San Diego-based Cessna 182 small aircraft apparently experienced engine troubles and made an emergency landing at Purdue University Airport in West Lafayette, Indiana early Wednesday morning (May 15) when the airport was closed and the tower unmanned. Sometime between …

School district has until August to respond to findings.

San Diego Unified School District isn't doing enough to prevent adults and teachers from bullying children, says a recently released report from the San Diego County Grand Jury. In fact, according to the Grand Jury the district doesn't even have …

Coastal Commission issues three year permit for permanent barrier at Children's Pool

Yet another blow was struck yesterday (May 15) in the long-running battle between beachgoers and seals over access to the La Jolla Children’s Pool, this one could be the knockout punch in favor of the seals. The city of San …

San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG), in partnership with the Federal Transit Administration, has proposed a project to extend the San Diego Trolley Blue Line northward to include up to nine additional stops, with a new terminus at the University Towne Center Transit Center.

Dubbed the "Mid-Coast Transit Corridor Project," the light rail expansion would include two stops at UC San Diego, one at Pepper Canyon and one at the Preuss School/Thornton Hospital/Scripps Hospital, with an option for a third near the Veterans Administration …

But stock has been rising steadily and sharply over last five days

On May 10, controversial for-profit education company Bridgepoint Education reported that it would delay its quarterly (10-Q) to the Securities and Exchange Commission. Today (May 15) the company reported it had found "a material weakness in internal control over financial …

Comments from Nuclear Regulatory Commission chair Alison Macfarlane on the future of San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station have generated media confusion and potentially put her at odds with environmental groups, Senator Barbara Boxer, and the NRC’s own Atomic Safety Licensing …

Political land rush for wide-open Sixth District and other seats virtually guarantees huge special interest spending binge in 2014

With the direct-mail big money brawl between two Democrats in San Diego's Fourth District still raging, county Republicans are already ramping up to endorse their standard bearers for next year. As previously reported, the battle between union-backed Myrtle Cole and …

Man accused of missing shot-to-the-head after smoking sample pot

A Kansas City man accused of missing a point-blank shot-to-the-head during a marijuana robbery three years ago, had his trial delayed again yesterday, in San Diego’s North County Courthouse. It was in April of 2010 when Phillip Esquire Miller IV …

La Mesa Police yesterday (May 14) released details on a coordinate prostitution sweep that took place May 9 involving the FBI, ICE Homeland Security Operations, the California Department of Labor Standards Enforcement and the San Diego Sheriff’s Department that resulted …

Public Utilities Department may seek approval from City Council for a five-year increase

San Diego's City Attorney is already looking for legal justification for what appears to be an upcoming pitch to increase water rates in order to make up for the rising cost of wholesale water prices. The problem, reads an April …

Teachers protesting education and labor reform on national level

Teachers from the Sindicato Nacional de Trabajadores (SNTE or National Union of Workers) plan to block a portion of the San Ysidro international border, on Wednesday, May 15th. The group is protesting a plan by President Enrique Peña Nieto, who …

Zapf will be running for her second-first term as District 2 representative.

It's official, first term councilmember Lorie Zapf is running for council in 2014. On May 8, Zapf filed papers with the City Clerk's office to set up the Lorie Zapf for City Council 2014 campaign committee. This time, however, Zapf …

Matthew McDuffie denied that he mishandled his autistic patient

The judge ordered a man who had been accused of six felonies to be immediately released from custody, after the jury today announced him guilty of only two misdemeanors. The defendant was acquitted of all felony charges. Matthew Alexander McDuffie, …

City to hold celebrations throughout the week

Playas de Rosarito, which lies approximately 20km southwest of Tijuana, is celebrating its 128th year as a city on May 14, 2013. The city will be holding events for the remainder of the week, highlighted by a festival on Saturday …

Scantily-clad lasses in bikinis added to the festivities

Some think the political biases of Papa Doug Manchester of the Union-Tribune are atavistic, but his spirit sure isn't. He held his 70th birthday party bash almost a year ago at his Grand Del Mar hotel, but a video of …

1,600 pounds of marijuana seized at Otay Mesa border crossing

A truckload of cucumbers provided ineffectual cover to a clandestine shipment of marijuana that was intercepted last week at the Otay Mesa border crossing, U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials reported yesterday. On Thursday evening, a Mexican national driving a …

Recent donations to new Filner fund show Democratic mayor already building war chest observers say could counter wealthy GOP hotel magnates

As reported here in February, in the midst of a legal attack by the city's top three hotel moguls to force him to sign a funding contract negotiated by previous GOP mayor Jerry Sanders, Democrat Bob Filner set up a …

Jennifer Orey was shot outside her house while deputies searched for a suspected prowler.

One day after the August 19, 2012 shooting, San Diego County Sheriff Bill Gore told KGTV the bullet fired by one of his deputies only grazed Jennifer Lynn Orey's arm and amounted to nothing more than a "scratched pinky." Orey …

Increasing housing prices are again putting a serious squeeze on affordability, the California Association of Realtors reports. Just 44 percent of Californians could afford to purchase a median-priced single family home in the first quarter of 2013, according to the …

Unions and other union affiliated committees continue to be the source for Gonzalez's large campaign chest

The week got off to a stellar start for Lorena Gonzalez and her run for State Assembly. On Monday, May 13, Gonzalez once again showed off her fundraising skills, raking in just shy of $20,000 in one day's worth of …

First poppy plantation found this year in Baja California despite rise in national production

According to the Baja California state police, an opium poppy plantation was discovered near Tecate in a rural area. Few details on the find were released, besides that the plantation was located in a mountainous area and was found during …

Amendment to Mexican Constitution hopes to bring in more international investments

An amendment to the Mexican Constitution, which has already been approved by the Chamber of Deputies, is currently in the hands of the Senate which could allow foreign ownership of beachfront property. Legislators are hoping to draw in more international …

Final week of public comment on proposal to change rules for re-start without full license amendment

The nuclear watchdog group San Onofre Safety is trying to expand its public outreach in the days leading up to the May 16 deadline for public comment on Southern California Edison’s plan to redefine the meaning of “full power” in …

County's lawman-in-chief is veteran fundraiser from tribal casinos, prison vendor, hotel mogul, and very old boys network

San Diego county Sheriff and ex-FBI man Bill Gore has filed a statement of intention to run for re-election next year and has set up a newly formed campaign committee to fund the effort. http://sandiegoreader.com/users/photos/2013/mar/08/41423/ As previously reported, Gore has …

Two brothers were arrested early Saturday morning (May 11) on charges of robbery and battery after beating a 52 year-old taxi driver and stealing his cell phone, valued at $40. A Sheriff’s deputy noticed the victim sitting on the grass …

Matthew McDuffie took witness box to deny rough handling

On Monday morning, a jury in San Diego’s North County Courthouse will begin deliberating the fate of a nurse who is accused of mishandling an autistic patient in his care last summer. Matthew Alexander McDuffie, 28, took the witness stand …

Suspect led authorities to home where large stash was hidden

Over one ton of marijuana was seized at a residence in the early hours of Friday, May 10th, according to state authorities. State police arrested 27 year old Edgar Saldaña Torres, when found with marijuana in a vehicle, who then …

Poway's bond gets Grand Golden Fleece award

Blogger W.C. Varones points out that the San Diego County Taxpayers Association gave its Grand Golden Fleece award to Poway for its bond that raised $105 million but in the long run will cost about $1 billion. But the taxpayer …

DDA Patrick Espinoza filed "special circumstance" charge in Superior Court, yesterday

An attorney prosecuting the Brittany Killgore murder case has taken another step toward the death penalty, when he filed new paperwork in San Diego’s North County Superior Courthouse yesterday, May 10, 2013. Deputy District Attorney Patrick Espinoza is now alleging …

Unions continue to spend big in race for 80th Assembly district seat

It's no stretch to say that the unions will be backing Lorena Gonzalez in her run for State Assembly against former Chula Vista city councilmember Steve Castaneda. And it's not much of a surprise to see those same unions reach …

They are sentenced to 10 months in prison

Isaiah Konkus and Justin Petersen were sentenced today (May 10) to ten months in prison and ordered to pay $268,832 to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) for masterminding a scam to exploit the Earned Income Credit program. That program is …

Questions over internal financial control behind delay

Bridgepoint Education, the for-profit university that is under investigation on many fronts, today (May 10) filed a document saying that it will be late turning in its quarterly report (10-Q) to the Securities and Exchange Commission. The company cited "unanticipated …

Bipartisan cast of local politicos perform for influence peddlers' group on video, minus real Filner and Goldsmith

Rancho Guejito Corp., enmeshed in a web of controversy over efforts to develop a big chunk of the 23,000 acres it owns between Route 78 nearly to Route 76 in North County, drew top billing at last night's San Diego …

Cloth booties worn by passengers in a 2008 Mercedes sedan tipped Border Patrol agents off to a human smuggling operation and led to four arrests last Sunday, the Department of Homeland Security reports. At about 11:15 p.m. on the evening …

Defense attorney for the heavy metal rocker said the criminal case is “entrapment”

"Tim never had the intention to harm his wife, absolutely not,” an attorney for the lead singer of a heavy metal rock band said today. Timothy Peter Lambesis, 32, who is a co-founder of the band As I Lay Dying, …

Outlook negative, says Fitch

Fitch, the bond rating agency, has affirmed the BBB-minus rating of San Diego County's certificates of participation issued on behalf developmentally disabled and mentally impaired persons. The outlook is negative, says Fitch. The program is called Arc and serves 1800 …

Amgen Tour of California bike race kicks off this Sunday

A host of road closures have been announced that will affect traffic and parking this weekend (May 11 and 12) in Escondido in order to accommodate the Amgen Tour of California road bicycle race as the 102.6-mile Stage 1 of …

Tim Lambesis denies hiring a hitman to kill his wife

The lead singer for a heavy metal band was brought into a San Diego County Superior Courthouse today and charged with one count of solicitation for murder. Timothy Peter Lambesis, 32, is facing a “maximum exposure” of nine years, according …

Typical bill will jump 12.2%. Decision was unanimous

The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) today (May 9) approved a rate hike for San Diego Gas & Electric customers that will come to almost $10 a month for the average electric ratepayer. The vote of the commission was unanimous. …

San Diegan Timothy E. Shannahan is the latest person to plead guilty in a scam where he and others acted as “straw buyers” at the behest of Kathryn Sylvester and her Sylvester Financial, Inc., fraudulently obtaining as many as 80 …

Awful evidence right before Mother's Day is averted

In September 2011 a jury found Adam Brown guilty of first degree murder for plunging a kitchen knife into his mother’s head as she sat on the edge of her bed. Adam Brown, now 47, is the youngest of nine …

Newspaper and real estate magnate's charitable report valued 1.2 million Nextwave shares at $169,487

Mega-millionaire U-T publisher and hotel and real estate mogul Douglas Manchester also controls a relatively small non-profit foundation, which he has used over the years to stash various investments and hand out some six figure gifts of cash to favored …

City says water officials were wrong to grant permission of 1.26 million extraction effort.

1.26 million gallons; that's the amount of groundwater that Kinder Morgan would like to extract from the MIssion Valley Aquifer and discharge in nearby Murphy Canyon Creek on a daily basis as part of a remediation agreement to clean up …

SDUSD officials are forced to revisit stadium lighting after an appeals court ruled that the environmental review was insufficient and did not fall under Proposition S improvements.

It wasn't the first time that dozens of Talmage residents took seats inside Hoover High School auditorium to discuss the newly erected stadium lights and it won't be the last. On May 8, thirty or so residents attended an environmental …

A police pursuit that started in La Mesa early yesterday morning (May 8) and drew assisting officers from La Mesa, El Cajon, National City, San Diego State University, and the Sheriff’s Department ended with one officer injured and a suspect …

Official stated that local leaders and gangs have been identified, authorities working to stop them

Daniel de la Rosa Anaya, the Secretary of Public Security in Baja California, spoke briefly with the press on Wednesday, May 8th, in regards to organized crime in the state. The official stated that eight crime cell lieutenants are responsible …

Timothy Lambesis allegedly "solicited an undercover detective to kill his wife"

The lead singer for a heavy metal band has been arrested in California on suspicion of soliciting murder, according to a statement from the San Diego County Sheriff. Timothy Lambesis, 32, was arrested when he “solicited an undercover detective to …

The $220 million for Levi's Stadium probably 4th highest in NFL history

Levi Strauss & Co. has signed a deal to pay $220.3 million to the city of Santa Clara and the San Francisco 49ers for naming rights at the new stadium, now under construction, in Santa Clara, according to MercuryNews.com. The …

Police in El Cajon are warning residents about a scam operation in which a resident is distracted by an individual falsely posing as a government employee while an accomplice burglarizes their home. On Friday afternoon (May 4), a suspect described …

Commerce nominee's company paid money to settle suit by retirees

Chicago billionaire Penny Pritzker, nominated by President Obama to be Secretary of Commerce, faces a grilling confirmation process. As media are pointing out (and I noted in a 2007 Reader piece), the Pritzker family has a background of consorting with …

Representative Scott Peters, named by Business Insider as the nation’s second-wealthiest freshman legislator, announced yesterday that in a symbolic gesture protesting the ongoing sequestration budget cuts he would begin donating eight percent of his monthly salary, or about $1,300, to …

Watchdog also slices pay of remaining workers in bid to keep going

Troubled watchdog Utility Consumers' Action Network (UCAN) yesterday (May 6) filed a suit asking that the lawsuit earlier filed by its former executive director, Michael Shames, be thrown out on the ground that it is a "strategic lawsuit against public …

Slurs made at presentation in Carlsbad

Harvard professor and economist Niall Ferguson, a stern critic of Keynesian economics, has apologized profusely for linking the late economist's alleged sex life to his economic ideas, according to today's (May 7) New York Times. At a Strategic Investment Conference …

Grand Jury report says San Diego Unified had political messages on website. District officials blame insufficient staffing.

San Diego Unified School District's website is meant to educate and inform the public of its policies not its politics. It's the latter that has caught the attention of the San Diego County Grand Jury in a new report released …

City Auditor suggest better monitoring of property tax revenues used by San Diego Zoo

The San Diego Zoo is essentially on the lamb...rather lam...free to do whatever it chooses with $10.5 million a year from property tax subsidies paid for by San Diego residents, says a new report by San Diego's City Auditor. The …

Top traveled San Diego representative and husband hit the road again, racking up $17,096 in travel tab paid for by corporation-backed think tank

San Diego Democratic congresswoman Susan Davis, who last summer was ranked by a database maintained by Washington-based Legistorm.com as the 17th biggest spending congressional free traveler, including both the House and Senate, has taken off again, this time on a …

But date and duration of possible strike not yet determined

More than 97% of the American Federation of State, County & Municipal Employees (AFSCME) 3299 members working at all ten University of California (UC) medical and student health centers have voted to authorize a strike. The union says it represents …

Homicides are up in the first quarter of 2013 for BC, yet most can be attested to gang and drug violence

The Secretaría de Seguridad Pública del Estado released crime statistics for the first three months of 2013 in Baja California on Monday, May 6th. Overall incidents of reported crime were down in the state, compared to the same time period …

Differing analyses of a new report from the California Independent Systems Operator (ISO), which controls the state’s energy grid, paint a conflicting picture of the challenges the hot summer months will bring Southern California electricity customers facing a second straight …

Felony charges of mishandling 23-year-old autistic patient

A nurse accused of abusing an autistic patient in his care is expected to testify in his own defense today, in San Diego’s North County Courthouse. Matthew Alexander McDuffie, 28, is the second caregiver to go on trial, facing felony …

Man believed to have committed 2000 homicide in Ukiah

A Northern California man who had been on the run for almost 13 years from authorities was apprehended in Ensenada, Baja California, on Sunday, May 5th. Jerred Raymond Hernandez is alleged to have committed a homicide in August of 2000, …

Safety division recommends shareholders pick up tab, not ratepayers

The state agency investigating the 2010 horrific San Bruno blast recommended today (May 6) that Pacific Gas & Electric pay $2.25 billion for its negligence and spend $2.25 billion to make its gas transmission system safe. "This penalty will be …

Sheriff’s deputies are searching for a man suspected of a “hot prowl” burglary last week in Cardiff by the Sea, in which a suspect enters a potentially occupied residence with criminal intent. On April 29 at around 3:00 in the …

Mitch McConnell, Kelly Ayotte among other politicians of Grand Old Party denounced by ex-Republican assemblyman getting Qualcomm cash

Ex-Republican state assemblyman Nathan Fletcher, who proclaimed himself an independent during his ill-fated mayoral race last year only to turn Democrat over this past weekend, used the occasion of his conversion to take some shots on his Facebook page at …

Today's decision states that citywide zoning restrictions are not in violation of Compassionate Use Act

Call it a blow, a hit, a pot shot, regardless of which clever play on words you choose, all describe today's ruling from the California State Supreme Court that allows city officials to ban Medical Marijuana dispensaries from their city. …

The City of Chula Vista appears set to settle a class action lawsuit brought by wireless phone users who claim the city has been charging an illegal tax rate on the devices. Under the terms of the settlement, which received …

Money that was raised from what organizers described as a “social experiment” was used to throw a free barbecue Saturday afternoon at Ocean Beach Park benefitting the area’s local homeless population. At the Wednesday farmer’s market on Newport Avenue, a …

Attorney: “No time waiver,” case set for trial later this month

Kevin Albert Richard Coset, 23, is due in San Diego Superior Court next Tuesday, to confirm his trial date for later this month. Coset pleads not guilty to murder and denies the special circumstance of “lying in wait,” which could …

3,492 square foot home had been listed for $4.495 million

An architecturally innovative home at 702 Jersey Court, Mission Beach, formerly owned by the late Union-Tribune owner David Copley, has sold for $3.85 million, according to county and Redfin.com records. It had been listed at $4.495 million. The home is …

Wanted poster offers reward on six Mexican drug traffickers

The United States Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) released a poster which shows six Mexican drug traffickers and offers a reward for each on Friday, May 3rd. According to the DEA, the men featured in the poster are allegedly the top …

James Cameron will be in San Diego May 31st to accept the 2013 Nierenberg Prize for Science in the Public Interest awarded by Scripps Institution of Oceanography.

Academy-award winning filmmaker James Cameron will visit San Diego on May 31st to accept the 2013 Nierenberg Prize for Science in the Public Interest. Beginning in 2001 Scripps Institution of Oceanography has annually awarded the prize, which includes a bronze …

Ex-GOP assemblyman who turned "independent" in midst of losing campaign for mayor backed by Qualcomm execs now says he's a Democrat

This past April Fools day, some wag posted an item on the Internet saying that ex-Assemblyman Nathan Fletcher, who began his run for mayor last year as a Republican and switched mid-campaign to a self-proclaimed "independent," was returning to the …

Seventeen-year-old Oceanside boy used the shotgun, jury decided

A boy accused of shooting and killing another teen when he was 16-years-old has been declared guilty of murder and armed robbery, in San Diego’s North County courthouse. Samuel Ortega Ricardez recently turned 17-years-old while in custody and was tried …

Killer couldn’t sleep nearby because of loud conversation, investigators say

Bruce Eric Hunt, 52, was charged with murder in San Diego’s North County Superior courthouse yesterday afternoon, May 3, 2012. Oceanside police and other sources stated that Hunt confronted two men who were in a parking lot overlooking a riverbed, …

Teenager held in lieu of $50,000 bail

Ramona Elena Montes, 18, was charged with 40 felonies and 20 misdemeanors for an alleged nine-month spree of graffiti vandalism, from last August until April of this year. The young Latina wore shackles and glared at the prosecutor when he …

Needs variances from city council before construction can begin

Manchester Texas Financial Group is having troubles beginning a planned 50-story, 1000-room hotel in Austin. According to the Austin Business Journal, the proposed Fairmont Austin Hotel is located in an area undergoing dramatic change because construction of a large underground …

Valley Center man gets probation and must pay medical bills

A Valley Center man has been sentenced to 30 days public work service and 3 years probation and ordered to pay the victims’ medical bills. The medical bills total more than $130,000, according to the judge who pronounced sentence today, …

Next Tuesday may not be the most ideal time to find oneself Downtown. In addition to a 7:10 p.m. baseball game in which the Padres host the Miami Marlins, the Port of San Diego reports that three cruise ships will …

Woman claims she suffered a broken jaw, concussion, and was shot with a stun gun during her first Charger game.

As if it wasn't painful enough seeing a Chargers game last year, throw in a broken jaw, a concussion, and two teeth getting knocked out, and it gets even more worse. On May 2, a 30-year old woman filed a …

Political committee sanctioned by ethics commission for Filner mailing violations posts independent expenditures for Cole, against Crenshaw

If the race to occupy San Diego city council's fourth district seat wasn't rich enough already, a campaign committee run by a local teachers union has just thrown more cash into the fray. http://sandiegoreader.com/users/photos/2013/may/03/44926/ As previously reported here, the well-heeled …

Embattled CPUC president stiffs state senators, reports NBC

Michael Peevey, president of the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), on April 25 ducked a meeting of the Senate Budget and Fiscal Review subcommittee so he could imbibe with utility company representatives at an upscale Napa winery, according to the …

El Cajon Police were led on a wild chase yesterday afternoon when a driver ran a red light at the intersection of Naranca and Oro, refusing to stop after an attempt to pull him over. Jerry Lee Hickethier, described by …

Unemployment rate drops to 7.5% and previous months revised upward

The U.S. created 165,000 jobs in April, beating forecasts of 135,000, as the unemployment rate dropped to 7.5% from 7.6% the prior month. An additional 114,000 jobs were created in March and February than previously reported. The labor force increased, …

Authorities release number for those arrested offering cash for release

Tijuana city authorities released statistics on Thursday, May 2nd, which detail the number of suspects who have attempted to bribe municipal police officers after being arrested. According to the Secretaría de Seguridad Pública Municipal, 222 attempted bribes have been recorded …

And ordered to pay $4,592.55 restitution for funeral expenses

An Oceanside man was sentenced today to 20-years-to-Life for killing a transgender prostitute more than a year ago. Tyree Davon Paschall, 29, admitted second-degree murder in the beating death of 47-year-old Crain Conaway, in the victim’s rented home in Oceanside, …

Ailing watchdog asks for punitive damages

The financially-strapped watchdog Utility Consumers' Action Network (UCAN) filed suit this week against its former executive director, Michael Shames, who had earlier sued UCAN for libel, wrongful termination, privacy invasion, and other alleged offenses. In a suit that was filed …

Rancho Santa Fe real estate man doing volunteer lease work for mayor gives big debt paying cash to city council Democrat Lightner

Rancho Santa Fe's Jason Hughes made headlines on April 10 when San Diego mayor Bob Filner posted a news release announcing the appointment of the downtown office real estate maven as a volunteer special assistant for city leases. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hjoORS_zVWE&list=PLBC2B2E452E0FD051&index=1 (Bailey …

GRID Alternatives, a non-profit solar panel installer focused on providing access to solar power to low-income families and training green industry workers, today (May 2) announced a partnership with local business Sullivan Solar Power that the organizations hope will place …

Another holiday weekend means another drunk driving crackdown is in the works from the Avoid the 15 organization of local law enforcement groups headed up by the San Diego Sheriff’s Department. “Buzzed driving is drunk driving, and is never safe …

Ted Shaw works for land-use consultant Atlantis Group which represents major developers trying to push projects through city hall.

San Diego City Planning Commissioners have almost always had some ties to developers or some level of interest in new development projects. For instance, commissioner Mary Lydon once served as vice president on downtown corporate non-profit the Downtown San Diego …

Trip hopes to strengthen trade ties, reaffirm security

United States President Barack Obama traveled to Mexico Thursday, May 2nd, on the first leg of a three day trip. Obama will be meeting with Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto in Mexico City on Thursday afternoon. Peña Nieto has expressed …

A two year campaign to improve transit along the frequently congested SR-78 highway in North County ended yesterday (May 1) with the opening of two new eastbound lanes to traffic, one beginning at Woodland Parkway and the second beginning at …

Trust continues to be a major issue on campus

April 29 the Southwestern Board of Trustees selected Nora Vargas to fill the position vacated by former trustee William Stewart. In March, only a few months into his term, Stewart resigned from the board. His resignation alluded to the "alleged …

City council agreed to end the lawsuit during an April 16 closed session meeting.

During a closed session meeting last week, San Diego city councilmembers approved the settlement offer from SCI Consulting for mistakes made in the engineer's report for the Downtown Property-based Business Improvement District. The Orange County-based consultant will pay the City …

Firm of mayoral political guru Tom Shepard, whose lobbying boutique represents SDG&E, reports final take from January office bash

On the evening of January 23, a variety of high-end vehicles arrived at the downtown offices of Public Policy Strategies, Inc., depositing a virtual who's who of city hall influence peddlers for a fundraiser to benefit new Democratic mayor Bob …

Eighteen-year-old woman signed her defacements HAZE, a sergeant said

An 18-year-old woman was arrested last night on suspicion of causing more than $100,000 in damage to the city of Vista, according to a Sheriff’s spokesman. Sergeant G. Twyman said Ramona Montes is responsible for more than 300 incidents of …

Mr. T appears to have sat this one out. Nevertheless, the San Diego Sheriff’s Department is calling “Operation A Team,” in which deputies partnered with three local school districts for undercover narcotics operations, a success. During the course of the …

Plant operator say it could decide by year-end whether to permanently shutter nuclear reactors

Last November, we reported that the costs piling up related to the ongoing emergency shutdown at San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station along San Diego’s northern coast had topped $300 million, and by February the total had reached $400 million. By …