Violent crime in Fresno declined in 2024, with significant decreases in shootings, homicides, and gunshot victims, the Fresno Police Department said Monday at a downtown news conference. Interim Police Chief Mindy Casto reported that homicides fell to 30 in 2024, down from 35 in 2023. This continues a downward trend...
Hurdles Remain as Israel and Hamas Once Again Inch Toward a Ceasefire Deal
JERUSALEM — Israel and Hamas once again appear to be inching toward a ceasefire that could wind down the 15-month war in Gaza and bring home dozens of Israelis held hostage there. Both Israel and Hamas are under pressure from outgoing U.S. President Joe Biden and President-elect Donald Trump to...
First US Bird Flu Death Is Announced in Louisiana
NEW YORK — The first U.S. bird flu death has been reported — a person in Louisiana who had been hospitalized with severe respiratory symptoms. State health officials announced the death on Monday, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed it was the nation's first due to bird...
Gov. Newsom Proposes $322B Budget With No Deficit
TURLOCK, Calif. — California Gov. Gavin Newsom has proposed a $322 billion budget without a deficit, a welcome change after two years of significant budget shortfalls in the nation's most populous state. But the budget Newsom announced Monday is mostly a placeholder as California waits to see if incoming President...
Biden Vetoes Bill to Add More Fresno Judges. Will Trump Come to the Rescue?
Despite bipartisan House support and backing from Central Valley legislators, President Joe Biden vetoed a bill that could have added more judges to local federal courtrooms. That includes the overworked Eastern District of California, with a courthouse in downtown Fresno. Each district judge has a caseload of 1,308, more than...
Is a Fresno County GOP Leadership Rebellion Underway?
Two elected councilmembers from Fresno County cities have called for new leadership in the Fresno County Republican Party. The party will decide its next leader Tuesday evening. Sanger City Councilmember Michael Montelongo and Coalinga City Councilmember Nathan Vosburg sent party membership emails over the weekend with a list of complaints....
Lawsuit Against Saint Agnes Says Patients Will Lose Access to Their Physicians
A lawsuit from a group of hospitalists against Saint Agnes Medical Center says an exclusive contract agreed to by the hospital will take away many patients' ability to see their current physician. Since at least 2020, Saint Agnes policy allowed physicians to see patients on an open basis, according to...
Will Fresno School Boards Renew Pledges to Keep Kids Safe from Immigration Raids?
Two Fresno-area school boards are considering renewing their commitments not to cooperate with immigration officials seeking to verify that students are legal U.S. residents. Fresno Unified trustees passed such a pledge for the first time in March 2017, shortly after President Donald Trump started his first term with promises to...
The Jan. 6 Rioters, 4 Years Later
In the past four years, nearly 1,600 people have been prosecuted in connection with the storming of the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. Some were accused of felonies such as assault or seditious conspiracy and are still in prison. But hundreds charged with lesser crimes have wrapped up their cases...
Trump Is Certified as the 2024 Election Winner Without Challenge
WASHINGTON — Congress certified President-elect Donald Trump as the winner of the 2024 election in proceedings that unfolded Monday without violence or mayhem, in stark contrast to the Jan. 6, 2021, violence as his mob of supporters stormed the Capitol. Lawmakers convened under heavy security and a snowstorm to meet...