Coronavirus has reshaped how Californians live, learn and work in uneven ways. The pandemic has exposed the state’s long-standing digital divide with a significant share of low-income and rural households lacking reliable internet access. And even though employers have quickly adapted to remote work, the opportunity to work from home...
Tulare Child Killer Dies of COVID-Related Illness on Death Row
Tulare County child killer John M. Beames died Tuesday while awaiting execution for the 1994 torture and murder of 15-month old Cassie McMains. Beames, 67, was sentenced to death row in San Quentin State Prison following his conviction in 1995. He died at a hospital outside the prison, officials said....
Could Local Elementary Schools Reopen with Waiver from COVID-19 Closures?
Big Creek Elementary School sits high in the Sierra southwest of Huntington Lake and serves 56 students. Thus far, there have been no reported cases of COVID-19 in the tiny community. So Big Creek might seem a likelier candidate than most schools to qualify for a waiver from Gov. Gavin...
AP-NORC Poll: Very Few Americans Back Full School Reopening
BOSTON — Virtual instruction. Mandated masks. Physical distancing. The start of school will look very different this year because of the coronavirus — and that’s OK with the vast majority of Americans. Only about 1 in 10 Americans think daycare centers, preschools or K-12 schools should open this fall without restrictions, according...
California Using Virus-Closed Classrooms for Child Care
While most California school districts are planning only virtual instruction to start the academic year, some are offering child care programs that will bring students into the same buildings that are off-limits for classroom instruction. In Glendale, education officials opted last week to move to online instruction due to a...
Storm Clouds Hang Over Trump's Attempted Campaign Reboot
MIAMI — Friday was supposed to be the day President Donald Trump's campaign reboot itself got a reboot. Instead, it hit another snag. Amid uncertainty over whether he can still draw big and enthusiastic crowds to his signature rallies in the coronavirus era, Trump postponed a planned Saturday rally in...
World Virus Cases Top 15M; US Labs Buckle Amid Testing Surge
WASHINGTON — Laboratories across the U.S. are buckling under a surge of coronavirus tests, creating long processing delays that experts say are actually undercutting the pandemic response. With the U.S. tally of infections at 3.9 million Wednesday and new cases surging, the bottlenecks are creating problems for workers kept off...
Federal Lawsuit Seeks to Overturn California’s School Closing Mandate
A federal lawsuit filed Tuesday seeks to overturn the mandate issued by Gov. Gavin Newsom to keep schools closed in counties like Fresno that are on the state's COVID-19 watchlist. Distance learning failed to educate children of all races, ethnicities, income levels, and education needs when it took effect last...
Trump Says Virus in US Will Get Worse Before It Gets Better
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump sought to paint a rosier picture of the coronavirus for the nation Tuesday but conceded the pandemic is likely to get worse for a time as he revived his daily briefings with an eye to halting a campaign-season erosion of support as new cases spike...
How Much Did Fresno Pay for 63,000 Masks?
The city of Fresno purchased nearly 63,000 face masks for about $137,000, documents reveal. Last week, the Fresno City Council voted to mandate masks at all businesses, whether indoor or outdoor. The city is also providing masks to its employees. Additionally, in May, Mayor Lee Brand announced the city was...