Essential California Week in Review: Monkeypox hits one region of L.A. County hard

Good morning, and welcome to the Essential California newsletter. It’s Saturday, Aug. 20.

Here’s a look at the top stories of the last week.

Monkeypox is on the rise in L.A. County. Cases more than doubled in the last two weeks as officials raced to better track the virus and vaccinate vulnerable communities. Just under half of the county’s cases for which geographic information is available have been among residents in a central area that includes West Hollywood, Hollywood, downtown Los Angeles, Eagle Rock, Highland Park and Boyle Heights.

A school meal program was extended. Students at public schools across California can continue to receive at least two free meals a day this academic year, thanks to the Universal Meals Program, a state initiative launched during the pandemic. The Los Angeles Unified School District is providing even more help, making three free meals a day available to students.

State hospitals and a healthcare union form an unusual pair. California hospitals, which have long sought to weaken legally required and costly seismic upgrades meant to ensure that their doors remain open after a major earthquake, have an unexpected ally in that fight: An influential union is supporting the watered-down seismic standards in a deal that gives employees it represents a wage bump.

$310 million to combat the “megadrought.” Federal officials announced the funding of 25 water recycling projects, 20 of which are in California. The money will come from the bipartisan infrastructure bill President Biden signed last year.

A bill that would seal certain criminal records could open doors for millions of Californians. State lawmakers approved legislation that would allow some residents with criminal convictions to have those records sealed if they maintain a clean record, a move cheered by criminal justice reform advocates and criticized by law enforcement. Those who have done jail time often face discrimination when trying to find a job or a place to live.

George Gascón avoided another recall attempt. A campaign to force the Los Angeles Count district attorney into a recall election fizzled after backers failed to secure enough valid signatures. Gascón’s policies have faced intense criticism from law enforcement and business leaders, but it’s the second time a recall effort has failed.

A lawyer’s boasting led to a tossed verdict. Robert McKenna III appeared in an online celebration video, bragging of his work representing a surgeon in a medical malpractice suit and saying the case involved “a guy that was probably negligently killed, but we kind of made it look like other people did it.” Citing McKenna’s remarks, the judge who presided over the trial has vacated the verdict, ordering the case back to court.

Children head back to school, with changes and challenges. The school year began in Los Angeles, San Francisco and other districts. The first bell rang in later start times, relaxed pandemic measures and, at many campuses, increased security as educators and families expressed optimism for near-normal times despite lingering problems.

The Windsor Hills crash is testing the state’s fetal homicide law. Authorities found six bodies after a driver barreled through a busy intersection: four adults, one baby and the remains of an unborn child torn from his mother’s body in the violent crash. Yet California law remains split over how to count the victims and what defines justice for pregnant women whose babies die before birth.

The Kobe Bryant photos trial highlights conflicting testimony. Two Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies and a retired fire captain took the stand in the trial over photos of the helicopter crash that killed the basketball star, his daughter and seven others. But their testimony provided little clarity into how the photos were leaked, with shifting stories, sudden amnesia and inconsistencies.

Southern California home prices dropped again. Are more declines coming? Rising mortgage interest rates have put the brakes on a hot housing market, with would-be buyers choosing to sit on the sidelines, sales plunging and homeowners slashing prices. Few predict a crash similar to that of 2008, but a growing number of experts say overall home values are likely to decline.

ICYMI, here are this week’s great reads.

Violence has shadowed the world’s largest concert promotion company for years. Live Nation has been repeatedly accused of failing to follow industry safety protocols for controlling large crowds and protecting concertgoers and performers from weapons and faulty stage construction, The Times has found. We look at past tragedies, including the stabbing of L.A. rapper Drakeo the Ruler and the Astroworld disaster — an event likened to “hell on Earth” by many of its thousands of attendees, as eight people were killed in a crowd surge. Those incidents have served as a wake-up call for the industry as well as Congress.

Dr. Dre and Jimmy Iovine’s high school has officially opened. The Iovine and Young Center Integrated Design, Technology, and Entrepreneurship Magnet is the brain child of of Andre “Dr. Dre” Young and fellow music mogul Iovine. The star power of the school’s namesakes has helped to draw first-year and sophomore students — and educators hope the school in the Leimert Park neighborhood of Los Angeles will serve as a bright spot for reversing declining enrollment by engaging young minds in cool and cutting-edge ways.

They love plants and each other. SarahCotta Plants opened its doors in Glendale in July 2020, a bold move by its married owners, Sarah and Tadeh. Their store grew from tough soil — the summer the pandemic shuttered many small businesses — but it’s still thriving two years later. Now, standing behind the shop’s wooden counter, the Baziks answer the big question: How?

Today’s week-in-review newsletter was curated by Laura Blasey and Jason Sanchez. Please let us know what we can do to make this newsletter more useful to you. Send comments, complaints and ideas to essentialcalifornia@latimes.com.