POLITICAL FALLOUT: The assassination of leading Mexican...

POLITICAL FALLOUT: The assassination of leading Mexican presidential candidate has shaken the White House and Wall Street (D1). The potential setback in political reforms is also being mourned on the streets in Oxnard. . . . “I’ve had a lot of people come by my office who feel that it has been a terrible loss for Mexico,” said Armando Lopez, an Oxnard business consultant who advises Mexico’s ruling political party. “Mexican politics has been a subject of intense debate in Oxnard for some time,” he said. “Now, there’s a lot of sadness.”

SHAKING FISTS: Fearing an outbreak of fights among student athletes, some high school principals in Ventura County have banned the time-honored tradition of the postgame handshake (A1) . . . . The ban was adopted in the Marmonte League after a basketball player threw a punch following a Camarillo-Thousand Oaks game. “It’s a tragedy we have to be concerned about kids punching somebody out,” said umpire Chuck Eskew. But a handshake ban, he said, defeats “using athletics to teach sportsmanship and fair play.”

A FISH STORY: Nine juvenile steelhead trout have been captured heading down the Santa Clara River, giving hope that Pacific steelhead may rebound in coming years. “These fish are beautiful,” said state Fish and Game biologist Mauricio Cardenas. He races out every morning to examine the 6- to 9-inch smolts at the Freeman Diversion Dam. He’s particularly excited to find year-old fish heading out to sea, evidence that adults made their way up the dam’s “fish ladder” last year.

HOT PROPERTY: Allans Wine and Lotto could never be accused of false advertising for its storefront sign: “Millionaire Launch Pad Starts Here.” The Port Hueneme store just sold a state lottery ticket worth $12.6 million. When the ticket is claimed, it’ll be the store’s sixth millionaire, says owner Glenn Sanders. . . . “People think it is a lucky store,” he said. But Sanders knows better. “It is the volume.” Regular customers, from as far away as Santa Barbara and Fillmore, push sales to $20,000 a week.