Newsletter: Essential California: Chasing danger

Good morning, and welcome to the Essential California newsletter. It’s Thursday, April 4, and here’s what’s happening across California:

TOP STORIES

As many modern police agencies move away from high-speed chases, placing tight restrictions on when their officers can pursue suspects, the Border Patrol allows its agents wide latitude to use them to catch people trying to enter the country illegally, a practice that often ends in gruesome injuries and, sometimes, death, a ProPublica and Los Angeles Times investigation has found. At speeds deemed by experts to be wildly unsafe, agents box in moving vehicles, puncture tires and employ tactics intended to spin cars off the road. Los Angeles Times

The Nielsen paradox

Fifteen months into her tenure as head of the government’s third-largest department, Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen embodies a paradox: She has succeeded in holding onto her job, defying numerous reports that President Trump had decided to fire her, but has done so by becoming the public face of controversial policies that haven’t worked as planned — and in some cases have backfired. Despite being publicly berated and rejected by Trump, the 46-year-old Nielsen, soon to be one of only four female Cabinet members, is one of its longest-serving members. And one of its most embattled. Los Angeles Times

New alert systems proposed

In Mendocino County, emergency staffers waited for a supervisor to show up before they warned residents of a growing fire siege in 2017. In Santa Barbara County, officials hesitated to issue blanket evacuation orders before mudslides ripped through Montecito in 2018 because they worried they might trigger a panic. And in Butte County in November, whole neighborhoods in Paradise were never told to evacuate as the Camp fire swept toward town. In each case, local emergency preparedness agencies failed to adequately warn communities that death was approaching. Now, for the first time, the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services has proposed a standard set of emergency alert protocols for counties throughout the state. Los Angeles Times

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L.A. STORIES

Another fired deputy returns: L.A. County Sheriff Alex Villanueva has reinstated a second deputy fired for misconduct. The Sheriff’s Department had fired the deputy, Michael Courtial, last June, concluding he used unreasonable force and failed to use de-escalation techniques in the 2016 incident in Lancaster. Now, Courtial has been newly granted a badge and gun. Los Angeles Times

Looking at the loose ends: Unanswered questions remain in the killing of Nipsey Hussle. Los Angeles Times

Plus: This interactive explores how Hussle saw Slauson Avenue. Los Angeles Times

Live from Boston: The popping flashbulbs, scrum of reporters and gawking onlookers that greeted actresses Felicity Huffman and Lori Loughlin on Wednesday had the makings of a red carpet appearance. But the path that police and Homeland Security agents cleared for the women led not to an awards show, but the federal courthouse in Boston, where they and other parents charged in the college admissions scandal appeared before a judge. Los Angeles Times

Actress Felicity Huffman arrives at federal court in Boston on Wednesday to face charges in a nationwide college admissions bribery scandal.

(Charles Krupa / AP)

Ouch: “What’s life like as a student at USC? Depends on the size of the bank account.” New York Times

A call to action: USC has investigated its recent scandals. Now it should release the results, our Editorial Board says. Los Angeles Times

IMMIGRATION AND THE BORDER

A crash on the other side of the border: Seven young men and women from a Guatemalan village were among the dead as a smuggling vehicle packed with U.S.-bound migrants crashed in southern Mexico. Los Angeles Times

Rumblings from D.C.: “Even as President Donald Trump threatens to shut down the southern border, his administration is quietly working on a plan to expand some forms of legal immigration into the U.S.” Politico

POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT

Beyond the tampon tax: How far will California go to end “menstrual inequity”? CalMatters

Getting organized: Staff scientists at the University of California set to form a first-of-its-kind union exclusively for academic researchers who are not faculty, postdocs, or graduate students. STAT News

CRIME AND COURTS

Scary: The Seattle man accused of trying to run over two Jewish men outside a Los Angeles synagogue last year in what prosecutors allege was a hate-fueled attack had previously researched a New York City terror act in which a vehicle was used to kill pedestrians, a detective testified in court Wednesday. Los Angeles Times

Charged: The father of a missing 8-year-old Corona boy who has been charged with murder in the child’s death purchased bolt cutters, four gallons of muriatic acid, a 32-gallon trash can and several bottles of drain opener around the time his son was last seen in early March. Los Angeles Times

Ghost Ship trial begins: “More than two years after a fire roared through an East Oakland warehouse, killing 36 people, the trial for two men blamed for their deaths began Tuesday, with attorneys arguing over motions, including not allowing the defense to use words such as ‘scapegoat’ or ‘cover-up,’ and excluding Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf from testifying.” East Bay Times

Free fallin’: Management of Tom Petty’s estate is getting ugly as his widow and the late rocker’s daughters slug it out in probate court over who will be in charge of key decisions. Los Angeles Times

CALIFORNIA CULTURE

Hollywood brawl: Writers and agents give their brutally honest take on the fight over fees and conflicts. Los Angeles Times

Plus: As Hollywood writers declare war, who will blink first? The Hollywood Reporter

Noise filter: Fox News Chief Executive Suzanne Scott keeps her focus on winning. Los Angeles Times

Plus: Go deep on Rupert Murdoch’s empire. New York Times Magazine

Moving west: HBO will relocate its West Coast home to Culver City’s Ivy Station development. Los Angeles Times

RIP: Architect Francois Perrin has died at 50. The imaginative curator defied architectural boundaries and united L.A.’s design community. Curbed LA

Who’s watching? “YouTube executives ignored warnings, letting toxic videos run rampant.” Bloomberg

CALIFORNIA ALMANAC

Los Angeles area: Partly cloudy, 67, Thursday and Friday. San Diego: Showers, 65, Thursday. Partly cloudy, 66, Friday. San Francisco area: Cloudy, 60, Thursday. Rain, 60, Friday. San Jose: Cloudy, 62, Thursday. Showers, 62, Friday. Sacramento: Rainy, 61, Thursday. Showers, 59, Friday. More weather is here.

AND FINALLY

Today’s California memory comes from Margot Smith:

“Every Easter, my mom and I would travel from L.A. to Kerman (just north of Fresno) to enjoy dinner with family. We would travel over the Tehachapis on the narrow, winding Grapevine road in our 1934 Plymouth, to arrive at the glorious scene of the San Joaquin Valley in full bloom. Golden poppies and purple lupine as far as the eyes could see. A breathtaking sight. Never to be forgotten.”

If you have a memory or story about the Golden State, share it with us. Send us an email to let us know what you love or fondly remember about our state. (Please keep your story to 100 words.)

Please let us know what we can do to make this newsletter more useful to you. Send comments, complaints and ideas to Benjamin Oreskes and Shelby Grad. Also follow them on Twitter @boreskes and @shelbygrad.