California Weekly Roundup
The Sacramento Bee:
Hundreds Attend Vigil Following Stockton Mass Shooting, Call To End Gun Violence
Hundreds of people showed up for the vigil after 15 people were shot at a children’s party in an unincorporated part of San Joaquin County just north of Stockton city limits. Four people have died, three of them children. (Quinn and Womack, 11/30)
Lodi News:
‘I Can’t Believe This Happened’: A Community Hurting Seeks Healing After Mass Shooting In Stockton
Lodi Unified School District Superintended Neil Young announced Sunday that counseling and mental health professionals will be on all 53 campuses this week in the wake of a mass shooting at a Stockton banquet hall Saturday that left three children and one adult dead. Lodi Unified spokeswoman Brittanie Arnett said none of the victims who had been identified were Lodi Unified students, but several Lodi Unified campuses are located within a two-mile radius from the banquet hall. (Bowers, 12/1)
housing
Bay Area News Group:
Newsom Sues Trump Administration To Halt Homeless Housing Funding Cuts
Gov. Gavin Newsom is suing the Trump administration to halt plans to divert billions of dollars in homelessness funding away from permanent housing, a move state officials warn could push tens of thousands of formerly homeless Californians back to the street. (Varian, 11/27)
Bay Area News Group:
This Nonprofit Creates Affordable Housing In The Bay Area For People With Special Needs
“There are 26,000 individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities in the Greater East Bay, meaning all of Alameda County and Contra Costa County. Of those, 80% live with their parents or family members and only 20% are employed,” says Houghton, citing statistics from the Regional Center of the East Bay. (Metcalfe, 12/2)
Monterey Herald:
Salinas City Council To Vote On Pilot Rental Assistance Program
The program aims to provide short term direct financial assistance to Salinas residents at immediate risk of eviction, helping them remain in stable housing, avoid displacement and reduce homelessness in the city. (Hamilton, 12/1)
Santa Cruz Sentinel:
Watsonville City Council To Conduct Hearing On Corralitos Creek Homeless Camp
An unsanctioned homeless encampment where between 20 and 40 people currently reside along Corralitos Creek on Airport Boulevard was set to go before the Watsonville City Council for a public hearing Tuesday. (Sestanovich, 12/1)
Santa Monica Daily Press:
Rogue Housing Facility Causes Holiday Chaos For City Staff On Ocean Ave.
Santa Monicans near Ocean Avenue spent the Thanksgiving holiday in a state of chaos and confusion over the mysterious occupation of buildings that had previously been targeted as mental health housing. (Hall, 11/29)
The Sacramento Bee:
These Are The Six Sacramento Homeless People Who Died In Government-Run Shelters
A Sacramento Bee Public Records Act request revealed the names of six people who died of drug overdoses, or apparent drug overdoses, at these government facilities. (Clift, 12/1)
Voice of San Diego:
Mayor Picks Fight Over County Homelessness, Behavioral Health Response
Throughout 2025, San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria publicly criticized San Diego County – and county officials sought to avoid a battle. (Halverstadt, 12/1)
gun violence
KQED:
After Stockton Mass Shooting At Children’s Party, Officials Warn Against Retaliation
After four people, including three children, were killed and 11 others injured in a mass shooting at a birthday party in Stockton on Saturday, local representatives and community leaders pleaded for an end to crime and violence. Those who were killed were 8, 9, 14 and 21 years old. At an interfaith vigil for the victims on Sunday, Stockton Mayor Christina Fugazi said, “Everybody deserves to live in a safe city. And if you are thinking about any type of retaliation, put the gun down. We do not need any more bloodshed in this city. … Let this not be in vain.” (DeBenedetti, 12/1)
San Francisco Chronicle:
Court Revives California Law Requiring Background Checks For Ammo
California’s requirement of background checks for buyers of firearms ammunition was revived Monday, at least for now, when a federal appeals court blocked an earlier ruling that the 2019 law was unconstitutional. (Egelko, 12/1)
Los Angeles Times:
San Bernardino Mass Shooting Still Shapes The National Conversation
A decade ago, 14 people were gunned down in San Bernardino. Survivors and family of the victims are still processing what happened, and the national impact. (Dolan, Branson-Potts and Winton, 12/2)
San Bernardino Sun:
Why Did The 2015 San Bernardino Mass Shooting Happen?
Childhood abuse, terrorism, workplace conflict and semi-automatic weapons combined in the murders of 14 people on Dec. 2, 2015. (Yarbrough, 12/1)
health industry
The Orange County Register:
City Of Hope’s Cancer Specialty Hospital Opens Doors To First Patients In Irvine
The opening marks the completion of a seven-year expansion of its cancer care in Orange County. (Le, 12/1)
Visalia Times Delta:
New Nonprofit Pharmacy To Hold Grand Opening In Three Rivers
In addition to prescription medication, Main Fork Pharmacy will stock a large assortment of over-the-counter medications and health supplies. (Pastis, 12/2)
Bay Area News Group:
Trump Administration Science Assault Slams Major Bay Area Economic Engine, Threatens ‘Amazing Innovations’
Veteran Bay Area biomedical CEO Paul Hastings had to lay off five dozen employees at his company earlier this year, thanks, he said, to what he described as the Trump administration’s attacks on universities, science and medical-research funding, he said. (Baron, 11/30)
Sacramento Business Journal:
Infinant Health Adds Liquid Drops To Probiotic Line, Relocates HQ To Sacramento
Infinant Health Inc., the Sacramento-based maker of Evivo Infant Probiotics for immunity and gut health for newborns, has released new drop formulations in addition to its powder. (Anderson, 12/2)
The Mercury News:
Is Theranos Fraudster Elizabeth Holmes Angling For A Pardon From President Trump?
Convicted of four counts of felony fraud in 2022 for bilking investors out of hundreds of millions of dollars through her now-defunct Palo Alto blood-testing startup, Holmes lost an appeal earlier this year, closing off potential avenues for early release. Her remaining options include a review by the U.S. Supreme Court hearing — which experts say is unlikely — or a presidential pardon. (Baron, 11/30)
Bay Area News Group:
South Bay Cardiologist Disciplined For Sexual Misconduct Involving Patient
A cardiologist practicing in San Jose and Gilroy lost his medical license for two months and is on probation until 2032 after the Medical Board of California found he had inappropriately touched a female patient seeking care for heart issues. (Stringer, 12/2)
San Francisco Examiner:
UCSF Cancer Patients’ Artwork Featured In SFMOMA Show
The UCSF Art for Recovery program has partnered with SFMOMA to display a special exhibit of artwork created by cancer patients. (Gurevich, 11/18)
The War Horse:
VA Sent Warning Letters To Veteran Disability Benefit Companies
Helping veterans get through the red tape of applying for VA disability benefits has become a multibillion-dollar industry over the past decade. Which might be surprising, because charging vets for such help may be against federal law. (Rosenbaum, 12/2)
Times-Standard:
Sorrel Leaf Healing Center Sees Fundraising Successes, State Funding Delays
Executive Director Shireen Varga told the Times-Standard that the center recently had to stop construction on its main building because funding from the California Health Facilities Financing Authority has not been forthcoming. (Schaulis, 11/29)
public health
The New York Times:
San Francisco Will Sue Ultraprocessed Food Companies
The San Francisco city attorney will file on Tuesday the nation’s first government lawsuit against food manufacturers over ultraprocessed fare, arguing that cities and counties have been burdened with the costs of treating diseases that stem from the companies’ products. (Knight, 12/2)
San Francisco Chronicle:
CA Immunization Leader Blasts FDA Official’s Child-Death Claim
California's immunization leader blasts FDA vaccine chief’s unsupported claim of child deaths, calling it "reckless." (Cheang, 11/29)
The San Diego Union-Tribune:
Fewer Than 25% Of San Diego County Residents Are Vaccinated
Experts warn that with a mutated virus expected to arrive this winter, going unprotected is particularly risky this time around. (Sisson, 12/1)
VC Star:
Reports Of Bats With Rabies Rise Across Ventura County
Ventura County Animal Services officials said 21 bats have tested positive so far in 2025 for the deadly disease, compared to six in 2024 and four in 2023. There have been no human cases in California since 2024. (Kisken, 12/1)
San Gabriel Valley Tribune:
Pasadena Public Health Warns Against Use Of Unregulated Edibles
Pasadena Public Health is warning residents to avoid products that contain kratom and the synthetic kratom compound known as 7-Hydroxymitragynine (7-OH). (Wilson, 12/2)
San Francisco Chronicle:
Are New PFAS Pesticides Coming To California? Here’s What To Know
“Californians should be worried about this,” said Nathan Donley, environmental health science director for the Center for Biological Diversity, by email. (Lee, 12/1)
The Washington Post:
These Very Hungry Microbes Devour A Powerful Pollutant
Researchers from a Bay Area technology company had come to the sprawling dairy farm north of San Francisco to test an emerging solution to planet-warming emissions: microscopic pink organisms that eat methane, a potent greenhouse gas. (Chiu, 11/30)
San Francisco Chronicle:
UCSF Therapy Helps Control HIV Without Meds For Months
Seven of 10 people controlled HIV for months after UCSF vaccine-antibody therapy, a Nature study shows; not a cure yet. (Allday, 12/1)
Desert Sun:
Palm Springs AIDS Memorial Breaks Ground, Completion Eyed For Spring
The Palm Springs AIDS Memorial moved one step closer to reality as a ceremonious groundbreaking was held Monday, Dec. 1, at its future home in Downtown Park in Palm Springs. (Sasic, 12/1)
The Willits News:
Segment Of AIDS Memorial Quilt On Display In Kaiser Permanente Santa Rosa Medical Building
Eight people who had ties to Sonoma County are memorialized on Block #4494 of the AIDS Memorial Quilt, considered the largest community arts project in American history. The quilt block is now on display in Santa Rosa as World AIDS Day arrived Monday. (Espinoza, 12/1)
other california news
CalMatters:
CA Farmworkers Avoid Medical Clinics Over Immigration Fears
In a change since President Trump took office, fewer immigrant farmworkers are attending medical clinics in Fresno County that bring health care to remote places. (Valenzuela, 12/1)
Los Angeles Times:
Hard Lives In California's Fields: 'The American Dream Eats Us Alive'
Immigrant farmworkers toil, season after season, in jobs that most Americans wouldn't endure for a week. It's a rough life that takes a heavy toll. (Meija, 11/30)
Bay Area News Group:
West Contra Costa Educators To Strike Thursday
For nearly 10 months, bargaining teams for the West Contra Costa Unified School District and the United Teachers of Richmond have gone back and forth about key contract issues such as pay, healthcare benefits, class sizes and working conditions. (Lopez, 12/1)
Berkeleyside:
FEMA Delays Could Cost Berkeley An $836,000 Federal Grant
FEMA awarded Berkeley $1.2 million from its Hazard Mitigation Grant Program for the retrofit of the community center, which houses after-school and summer recreation programs for young people and is one of several facilities the city expects to use as shelters in the wake of an earthquake or other disaster. The project also includes a renovation and upgrades within the center. (Savidge, 12/2)
The Orange County Register:
Tyler Skaggs Hid His Drug Addiction, Preventing Angels’ Officials From Providing Help Before His Death, Team Attorney Says
Attorneys for the Los Angeles Angels hope to prove that Tyler Skaggs was a drug addict for so long and went to such great lengths to hide his addiction that there was no way for the team to prevent his 2019 death, a lawyer for the organization told an Orange County Superior Court judge on Monday, Dec. 1 as the ongoing wrongful death trial against the ballclub entered the defense phase. (Emery, 12/1)
