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Today’s Headlines: After the atmospheric rivers, Southern California is blooming everywhere

The bright yellow blooms of the black mustard plant cover a hillside in the Elysian Park neighborhood.
The bright yellow blooms of the black mustard plant cover the hillside of the Elysian Park neighborhood in Los Angeles.
(Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times)
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Hello, it’s Wednesday, May 10, and here are the stories you shouldn’t miss today:

TOP STORIES

In Southern California, everything is blooming everywhere all at once

Everything is growing everywhere all at once in Southern California.

The lush greenery in city parks, the mustard flowers electrifying the hillsides, the burst of unexpected blossoms from carefully tended gardens and sidewalk cracks alike — all of it is thanks to an ideal balance of precipitation and temperature that has catalyzed plant growth across the state.

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The combination of 31 atmospheric rivers and moderate regional temperatures has produced “an absolutely glorious spring,” one that has been more vibrantly colorful for longer than any in recent memory, said Jeremy Yoder, a Cal State Northridge biologist.

Jury finds Trump liable for sexual abuse

A jury found Donald Trump liable Tuesday for sexually abusing advice columnist E. Jean Carroll in 1996, awarding her $5 million in a judgment that could haunt the former president as he campaigns to regain the White House.

The verdict was split: Jurors rejected Carroll’s allegation that she was raped, finding Trump responsible for a lesser degree of sexual assault. But the judgment adds to Trump’s legal woes and offers vindication to Carroll, whose allegations had been mocked and dismissed by Trump for years.

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An 18-year-old dies, apparently of an overdose, in L.A. County juvenile hall

An 18-year-old was found dead of an apparent overdose Tuesday morning inside one of L.A. County’s juvenile halls, just weeks after a state oversight board declined to shut the troubled facility down following years of concerning reports, officials said.

Concerns about rampant drug use inside the Secure Youth Treatment Facility have been increasing in recent weeks. A report released last month by the L.A. County Office of the Inspector General detailed two incidents in late February in which youths were taken to local medical facilities or revived with Narcan after overdoses involving fentanyl.

Writers’ strike 2023: How much will it cost L.A.?

The cascading impact of the Hollywood writers’ strike could touch almost every facet of the economy in Southern California, including the housing market, and lead to economic fallout that eclipses the estimated $2.1 billion in losses during the last work stoppage, experts say.

Although it’s possible that the sides may come to an agreement more quickly this time than in 2007, it’s not likely, according to several economic experts, who noted that multiple factors make the current situation more complex — lingering instability from pandemic shutdowns, a seismic shift in the industry in the streaming era and mounting concerns that studios will replace writers with artificial intelligence.

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PHOTO OF THE DAY

Dennis Kasumba throws an old tire toward the camera
Dennis Kasumba throws an old tire to build strength outside his home in Guyaza, Uganda. While living in poverty, Kasumba tries to salvage trash to help build strength in hopes of playing for a Major League Baseball team someday. Read more: In Uganda a man rescues an orphan and brings kids together — through baseball
(Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

CALIFORNIA

A former top city attorney gets 9 months of home detention in a Los Angeles Department of Water and Power corruption case. Thomas Peters was sentenced for his role in an extortion scheme related to the Los Angeles DWP’s 2013 billing debacle.

Long Beach releases plan for the largest offshore wind turbine facility at any U.S. port. Pier Wind would generate 20 megawatts of energy for the state, helping California move toward a zero-emission future.

The remains of a missing tech CEO were found on abandoned property in Santa Monica. Beau Mann, 39, was last seen Nov. 30, 2021, at a convenience store in the 11000 block of Ventura Boulevard in Studio City, according to the Los Angeles Police Department.

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NATION-WORLD

An expert panel that sparked mammogram controversy now says tests should start at 40. Doing so is expected to reduce the number of breast cancer deaths by 19% compared to following the mammography regimen it previously endorsed.

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King Charles inherits a changed Britain — and public apathy about the crown. The polls show hefty numbers of Britons giving an apathetic shrug to the monarchy and the coronation. It’s as if the nation had been waiting for the queen‘s life to end before exhaling a breath it’s held for years, Patt Morrison writes.

She wrote a children’s book on grief after her husband died. Now she’s charged with his murder. Kouri Richins was arrested Monday in Utah and is accused of poisoning her husband with a lethal dose of fentanyl at their home in Kamas, a small mountain town near Park City.

Why so many mass killings? Families and experts seek answers. It will take years — if it’s even possible — for researchers to pinpoint what’s behind the drastic increase in gun violence. Advocates say there are measures that could perhaps avert such crimes — firearms reform and weapons bans among them — but note there is little appetite on Capitol Hill to implement them.

HOLLYWOOD AND THE ARTS

Tom Hanks claims he’s been a jerk on movie sets. He sounds like the nicest jerk ever. Noted Hollywood nice guy Tom Hanks just made a stunning admission about his movie-set demeanor: He hasn’t always been nice.

Richard Dreyfuss slams movie academy’s diversity efforts: ‘They make me vomit.’ The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is ready to change its approach to representation and inclusion among Oscar nominees, but Oscar-winning actor Richard Dreyfuss is clearly not a fan.

The trial and tribulations of Ed Sheeran. A potentially ruinous lawsuit is nobody’s idea of the perfect album launch. But that’s kind of how it’s worked out for Ed Sheeran and his new LP.

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‘Few people ask us what we think about ourselves’: This L.A. art show elevates Black women and nonbinary artists. On view through May 27 at WACO Theater Center in North Hollywood, the exhibition features 14 artists who explore themes of family, community and identity in works that feel celebratory, honest and uninhibited.

BUSINESS

Fox News owner posts $50-million loss after landmark Dominion defamation settlement. The net loss is a massive swing from $290 million in net income reported during the same period a year ago and underscored the financial toll from the landmark case on the conservative cable news network.

California regulator cites social media and digital banking as key factors in Silicon Valley Bank’s failure. California’s chief banking regulator took its fair share of blame for Silicon Valley Bank’s collapse, admitting that the department was slow to demand fixes at the troubled institution.

SPORTS

Zach Neto’s parents in awe of their son’s big league rise: ‘Is this real?’ Maggie and Joaquin Neto have watched every minute of the games that their son, Angels starting shortstop Zach Neto, has played since he received his call-up to the big leagues.

Commentary: Angel City midfielder Madison Hammond is proud to be a Native American trailblazer. When Hammond played her way onto the OL Reign as a non-roster invitee in 2020, she became the first Native American in NWSL history — and an influence for others who, like many in her family, grew up on a reservation.

The Dodgers-Padres series might be played in South Korea in 2024. The games would be Major League Baseball’s first in South Korea, and would put the budding rivalry involving the Dodgers and Padres under an international spotlight.

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Appreciation: The staying power of Joe Kapp’s ‘The Toughest Chicano’ Sports Illustrated cover. Kapp, the former quarterback and coach once labeled “The Toughest Chicano” by Sports Illustrated, made a big impact as a Latino role model.

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OPINION

Opinion: One simple rule could save the birds that migrate over L.A. One key step to make our city safer for birds is to require the use of bird-safe glass, which is designed to obscure windows’ reflections. This helps birds recognize windows as obstacles and minimizes collisions.

Opinion: How fighting oppression and patriarchy led me to my own Romani feminism. “Some may call me a pioneer, or a traitor for splintering the Romani rights movement. For others, I am not radical enough. But after three decades as a Romani feminist, I am still acting against ‘anti-gypsyism,’ manifesting the love of my people, crying out loud with pain when I feel and see how others hate us,” Nicoleta Bitu writes.

Opinion: God save King Charles if the coronation was his idea of modernizing the monarchy. “Promises that this would be a ‘pared back’ affair from a newly ‘slimmed down’ royal family were meant to signal that the monarchy is attuned to the concerns of the people. Yet it didn’t appear as though anything beyond the most superficial of changes had been made,” writes Charlotte Lytton.

ONLY IN L.A.

Table with tea, sandwiches, scones and desserts
Tea service at the Maybourne includes blends from the Rare Tea Company, sandwiches, scones and desserts, with indoor and outdoor seating.
(Victoria Wall Harris)
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Many Americans associate formal tea with Britain and the pomp and circumstance of the monarchy. But a tea party, at its core, transcends the court of the queen. And you don’t have to be across the pond to enjoy it.

Here are 15 of the best places to pop in for a cuppa, or host a full-blown tea soirée in Los Angeles. Get your best gloves and fascinator out of the closet and give it a whirl.

FROM THE ARCHIVES

On May 10, 1994, Nelson Mandela brought three centuries of bitter white rule to a dramatic close when he was unanimously elected South Africa’s first Black president by its first all-race Parliament.

The Times’ Bob Drogin wrote about Mandela’s historic victory, which changed the color and face of South Africa’s power elite.

We appreciate that you took the time to read Today’s Headlines! Comments or ideas? Feel free to drop us a note at headlines@latimes.com.

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