Medical Puzzle: Calif. Officer Dies From Fentanyl Ingestion After Giving Narcan

Los Angeles Times: Soon After Giving Narcan To Suspect, CHP Officer Died From Ingesting Fentanyl
Shortly after administering Narcan to a DUI suspect experiencing a possible overdose, CHP Officer Miguel Cano started to feel unwell, swerved his patrol car into a tree and was killed. His sudden death left many questions unanswered. On Monday, one piece of the puzzle was revealed — his cause of death was ruled an accident due to the effects of fentanyl, according to the L.A. County medical examiner. (Harter, 2/24)

Los Angeles Times: Autism Training For Law Enforcement Aims To Prevent Tragic Outcomes
Kate Movius moved among a roomful of Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies, passing out a pop trivia quiz and paper prism glasses. She told them to put on the vision-distorting glasses, and to write with their nondominant hand. As they filled out the tests, Movius moved about the City of Industry classroom pounding abruptly on tables. Then came the cowbell. An aide flashed the overhead lights on and off at random. The goal was to help the deputies understand the feeling of sensory overwhelm, which many autistic people experience when incoming stimulation exceeds their capacity to process. (Purtill, 2/24)

AP: California Program Sends Birthday Cards To Babies Treated For Botulism 
The California program that provides the world’s only medical treatment for potentially deadly infant botulism also offers traumatized families hope of a different sort – silly cards on their babies’ first birthdays. Every year, staff at the state’s Infant Botulism Treatment and Prevention Program decorate and mail roughly 200 cards to celebrate the recovery of children affected by the rare and dangerous condition. In recent months, that group has included dozens of U.S. babies affected by an outbreak of botulism tied to contaminated ByHeart infant formula. (Aleccia, 2/24)

San Francisco Chronicle: San Francisco Lawmaker Pushes Ban On Nitrous Oxide Sales
A San Francisco lawmaker is pushing a city-wide ban on retail sales of nitrous oxide — an inhalable gas, also known as laughing gas or whippets — that has addicted teens and young adults across the nation with sometimes devastating consequences. On Tuesday, Supervisor Danny Sauter asked the City Attorney to draft legislation that would ban retail sales of the gas, which “has been exploding in popularity in San Francisco and across the U.S.,” Sauter said at a meeting of the Board of Supervisors on Tuesday. (Park and McFadden, 2/24)

CBS News: Rain Forces Delays As Cleanup Continues After Yuba County Pipeline Failure
Nearly two weeks after a major pipeline failure at the Colgate Powerhouse in Northern California's Yuba County, the weather has been making things even more difficult for crews who are trying to get a handle on the situation. There has also been major concern surrounding the health of the Yuba River following the incident. Yuba Water Agency suspended operations on Tuesday due to safety concerns with incoming rain. (Moeller, 2/24)

The Washington Post: Nick Reiner Pleads Not Guilty In Stabbing Deaths Of His Parents
Nick Reiner, his head shaved and wearing brown clothes, pleaded not guilty Monday to two first-degree murder charges in the December stabbing deaths of his parents, 78-year-old filmmaker Rob Reiner and photographer Michele Singer Reiner, 70. ... Reiner has spoken on a podcast about his struggles with drug addiction and his trips to Los Angeles’s Skid Row to procure heroin. Over the course of a decade, he spent time at at least 18 rehab facilities paid for by his parents, and he lived in a guesthouse on their $13.5 million property in Brentwood. The Los Angeles Times reported in late December that Reiner was prescribed schizophrenia medicine before the deaths of his parents. (Reston, 2/23)