Relocation notice!
Effective October 17, 2013, News Ticker has moved out of the blogs and into the News & Stories section.
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Entries
Hilton Mission Valley to lay off 148
Has been scene of many labor disputes
The Hilton San Diego Mission Valley hotel has filed with the state its intention to lay off 148 workers on March 2. The hotel filed the notification under the state's WARN (Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification) system run by the …
Woman sentenced to ten years for fatal DUI crash
Debbie Pacheco Sumi read a statement that she is "sorry"
A woman convicted of killing three persons by crashing into a car parked on the side of a freeway two years ago, was sentenced yesterday to ten years in prison. There were so many people who wanted to hear the …
Filing: SDGE, SCE ratepayers getting shafted over San Onofre
CPUC head Peevey appears to be still cozy with former employer, SCE
San Diego attorney Mike Aguirre yesterday (Feb. 1) filed a paper with the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), asking that Southern California Edison's (SCE's) original plan to replace four steam generators at the San Onofre nuclear plant be reexamined. Aguirre …
Alleged Mexican Mafia gangster sent back to prison
Shot three persons in Carlsbad, five days after he was released from prison
An admitted gangster who was declared guilty of three attempted murders, after he shot three persons that were out walking their dog in Carlsbad one night, was sentenced today. Luciano Velasquez got 30 years plus 75-years-to-life, the terms to run …
San Diego's great red light camera rebellion
August story on secretive Sanders bid solicitation preceded today's dumping of red light cameras by new mayor
Back on August 22, we reported here on a plan by Republican then-mayor Jerry Sanders to extend the city's controversial red light camera program. There was no notice to the public, other than a request for proposal quietly posted by …
Mary Jo White fretted about "aggressive" regulator
Matt Taibbi has another revealing piece on her role in the Gary Aguirre firing
Today (Feb. 1) in Rolling Stone online, author Matt Taibbi asks more probing questions about the fitness of Mary Jo White, lawyer with a white shoe law firm, to be head of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), as President …
Appeals court rules wrongful conviction for Mexican national who believed he was helping FBI nab drug traffickers
The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled that an unnamed Mexican national was wrongly convicted for drug crimes after he contacted U.S. agents in San Diego and, at the direction of a detective linked to the local agent, arranged …
Ben Hueso uses campaign funds for his brother's campaign and to pay for hotel stays with his son
Ben Hueso rakes in campaign funds but shares the wealth with his family
Ben Hueso's political fundraising machine is now in high gear. Last month, Hueso, through his three active campaign committees, reported a positive balance of $204,316. http://sandiegoreader.com/users/photos/2013/feb/01/39403/ The former city councilmember, turned state assemblyman, turned candidate for the open state senate …
Lobbyists, lawyers, and land developers anted up for Dumanis’s post-loss fundraising
San Diego district attorney and mayoral candidate raked in big money in December after placing fourth in June primary; still carried $50,000 debt to self
San Diego's Republican District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis, who placed fourth in last year's mayoral primary, did well at post-election fundraising, bringing in a total of $17,060 in cash for her mayoral campaign committee during the final six months of 2012, …
City Attorney says Mayor's questions about port appointment process "lacks merit"
City Attorney says Mayor's reasons for vetoing council's appointments to port commission lacked legal footing
Mayor Bob Filner was wrong to say that the process of appointing commissioners to the Port commission was "flawed," states a memo from City Attorney Jan Goldsmith. On January 18, Filner vetoed the council's decision to appoint Marshall Merrifield and …
Six arrested in Fallbrook's Operation Guacamole
San Diego Sheriff’s deputies in Fallbrook arrested five adults and a juvenile yesterday in an action they’re calling “Operation Guacamole VII.” Between the hours of 6:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m., authorities visited area residences to conduct probation or parole compliance …
Economy adds 157,000 jobs but unemployment rate rises
Jobless rate goes to 7.9% in January, up from 7.8%
The nation's economy added 157,000 jobs in January, slightly below economists' expectations, as the jobless rate inched up to 7.9% from December's 7.8%. Job gains in November and December were revised substantially upward. All in all, it was a so-so …
Military contractors indicted for stealing medical equipment
Said to have stolen and resold more than $3 million of equipment
Henry Bonilla, Richard Navarro, and Michael Tuisee, employees of a medical logistics operation at Camp Pendleton, were arraigned today (Jan. 31) on charges of stealing more than $3 million of expensive medical equipment, transporting it to Southern California locations, and …
Jury selection began for two California Border Patrol agents
Accused of lewd acts in public and then attacking a witness
Two Border Patrol agents, a man and a woman, who are accused of committing lewd acts in public and then battery on a witness, have begun selecting a jury for their trial in San Diego County Superior Court. Kallie Lamb …
George Shultz, wealthy lumbermen backed ex-GOP mayor candidate after loss
Ex-Secretary of State, San Francisco financiers, rich loggers, and billionaire Silicon Valley heir give post-election cash to Nathan Fletcher's failed bid.
Months after his defeat, former GOP Assemblyman turned independent Nathan Fletcher remained a big money favorite of some high-profile establishment Republicans, according to the year-end campaign disclosure statement of his San Diego mayoral campaign committee posted online by the city …
General Atomics worst in transparency, says watchdog
The drone maker also provides big bucks to politicians
Transparency International, the watchdog group that measures openness in the defense industry, has ranked General Atomics the worst of major world contractors, according to Wired magazine. The watchdog ranks companies on whether they have anti-corruption programs in place, whether they …
Plaza de Panama Committee continues to send lobbyists to City Hall
Irwin Jacobs-backed committee has hired lobbying outfit to get approval for Plaza de Panama project
The Plaza de Panama committee, the group heading up the controversial project to remove traffic from Balboa Park's hub, hasn't stopped their efforts to gain approval for their project even as the project is hung up in court. Instead, the …
Defense contractor pleads guilty to tax offenses
She didn't pay government payroll taxes withheld from employees
Ildiko Pinero, owner of Alpha Machining Products & Development, pleaded guilty today (Jan. 31) to not giving to the United States payroll taxes she had withheld from employee paychecks. In the 2006-2008 period, she withheld $110,000 in employee taxes, but …
Don't believe bank reports, says Partnoy
USD prof says regulators encourage banks' dangerous opacity
University of San Diego Professor of Law and Finance Frank Partnoy, along with Pulitzer Prize-winning Pro Publica reporter Jesse Eisinger, say in the January/February issue of the Atlantic magazine that even the most discerning analyst cannot comprehend the financial reports …