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Richard Gonzales

Wednesday

National

Oakland Looks At Taxing Pot To Close Budget Gap

Oakland, Calif., is laying off police officers to cope with a spiraling budget crisis. The cuts come as Oakland is wrestling with lingering racial unrest over the death of a young black man shot by a transit police officer. Money is the only solution to the city's budget problems, and some of it may come from a new proposal to tax marijuana.

Oakland Looks At Taxing Pot To Close Budget Gap

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Friday

Justice Department To Investigate BART Shooting

A worker with the Downtown Oakland Association sweeps the sidewalk near graffiti painted by protesters outside a drug store in Oakland on Friday. The federal government said it will investigate now that officer Johannes Mehserle was convicted Thursday of involuntary manslaughter, touching off angry protests that damaged stores and netted dozens of arrests. Eric Risberg/AP hide caption

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Eric Risberg/AP

Law

Justice Department To Investigate BART Shooting

On Thursday, former BART police officer Johannes Mehserle was convicted of involuntary manslaughter in the slaying of 22-year-old Oscar Grant on an Oakland train platform last year. A Justice Department spokesman announced Friday that the civil rights division will review the case.

Law

Transit Officer's Verdict Sparks Violent Protests

A former transit officer from northern California has been convicted of involuntary manslaughter in the fatal shooting of an unarmed man. Johannes Mehserle said he meant to use his taser, but accidentally pulled his gun instead and shot 22-year-old Oscar Grant. The 2009 shooting continues to spark racial tension in Oakland where the shooting happened on a BART train platform. The ex-officer is white, Grant was black.

Transit Officer's Verdict Sparks Violent Protests

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Thursday

Law

Oakland Waits For Verdict In BART Shooting Trial

Jury deliberations are under way in the trial of a former Bay Area Rapid Transit officer accused of fatally shooting an unarmed man on a train platform in Oakland, Calif. The case of the white officer and the black victim has sparked racial tensions. The trial was moved to Los Angeles.

Oakland Waits For Verdict In BART Shooting Trial

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Thursday

Law

Judge To Take Weeks To Rule On Gay Marriage

A judge is considering the fate of California's Proposition 8, in which the voters banned same-sex marriage. Two couples sued, saying the ban violates their civil rights. The proponents of Prop 8 say it preserves the true definition of marriage.

Judge To Take Weeks To Rule On Gay Marriage

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Thursday

Law

Ex-Cop Faces Trial In Racially Charged Murder Case

Opening statements begin Thursday in the trial of Johannes Mehserle, a former transit police officer who is charged with second-degree murder in the shooting death of an unarmed black man on New Year's Day 2009 in Oakland, Calif. The killing was captured on video and widely posted on the Internet.

Ex-Cop Faces Trial In Racially Charged Murder Case

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Monday

The Man Bankrolling California's Pot Initiative

Richard Lee has created a multimillion-dollar empire in Oakland, Calif., built largely on medicinal pot. And now, he wants to take it a step further, by turning marijuana into a totally legal, taxable commodity for any Californian age 21 or older. Jeff Chiu/AP hide caption

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Jeff Chiu/AP

The New Marijuana

The Man Bankrolling California's Pot Initiative

Richard Lee, who has created a multimillion-dollar empire in Oakland, Calif., largely off of medicinal pot, financed the expensive petition drive that put marijuana on the November ballot. He says legalizing pot for recreational use will help the police focus on "real sociopaths." His critics say he just wants to make money.

The Man Bankrolling California's Pot Initiative

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Wednesday

Economy

Jump Start: NUMMI Is Reborn For Electric Cars

A storied auto factory in Northern California called NUMMI will be reopened in 2012 by Toyota and Tesla to manufacture electric cars. Toyota says it will invest $50 million in Tesla to collaborate on the construction of a new electric vehicle.

Jump Start: NUMMI Is Reborn For Electric Cars

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Wednesday

Tuesday

Sports

The Controversy Over Aluminum Bats

A governing body for high school baseball in Northern California says aluminum bats are still OK for now. The recent nearly fatal injury of a 16-year-old baseball player in Marin County prompted a call for a ban on aluminum bats. He was hit in the head by a line drive. NPR's Richard Gonzales looks at the controversy over whether aluminum bats add power and speed to the ball in a way that makes the game more dangerous.

The Controversy Over Aluminum Bats

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Tuesday

National

San Mateo, Calif., Grapples With Economic Fallout

As the national economy slowly recovers from the 2008 Wall Street meltdown, San Mateo, Calif., is still grappling with the fallout. The city lost more than 150 million dollars when Lehman Brothers went under. That loss, combined with California's overall economic crisis, has forced San Mateo to make deep cuts in spending and personnel.

San Mateo, Calif., Grapples With Economic Fallout

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Thursday

Thursday

NUMMI Plant Closure Ends Toyota-GM Venture

New United Motor Manufacturing Inc., also known as NUMMI, was a unique joint venture between Toyota and General Motors in Fremont, Calif. Jennifer Baires/KQED hide caption

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Jennifer Baires/KQED

Economy

NUMMI Plant Closure Ends Toyota-GM Venture

New United Motor Manufacturing Inc. was a unique partnership that ended when GM pulled out last year and Toyota decided to shut the plant down. Toyota officials say the plant simply wasn't economically viable, but many workers suspect that it may have had something to do with their union.

NUMMI Plant Closure Ends Toyota-GM Venture

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Thursday

National

California Voters Could Legalize Pot In November

California may be on the verge of blazing another trail toward legalized marijuana. The state has certified petitions for a statewide ballot referendum in November that would make the use and sale of recreational pot legal. Polls show a slim majority of Californians favor legalized marijuana.

California Voters Could Legalize Pot In November

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Monday

California Pension Costs Fuel Growing Anxiety

Deferred Promises: America's Pension Crisis

California Pension Costs Fuel Growing Anxiety

With more than 1 million public employees, the state's pension tab is running at more than $3 billion a year. And as Gov. Schwarzenegger tries to close a $20 billion deficit, there's growing anxiety about the high pension costs. An economic adviser says pension costs divert money from other important government services, but pensioners say they earned it.

California Pension Costs Fuel Growing Anxiety

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