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Monday

Abortion is on the California ballot. But does that mean at any point in pregnancy?

Abortion-rights protesters march on Market Street in San Francisco on June 24, the day the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, which provided a federal right to abortion. Josie Lepe/Josie Lepe/AP hide caption

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Josie Lepe/Josie Lepe/AP

Shots - Health News

Abortion is on the California ballot. But does that mean at any point in pregnancy?

KQED

CA voters are expected to approve a constitutional amendment on abortion rights. But critics say it would actually expand abortion rights, because the amendment ignores the concept of fetal viability.

Abortion is on the California ballot. But does that mean at any point in pregnancy?

Saturday

Chinese families navigate a maze of laws and COVID rules to have babies in the U.S.
Sally Deng for NPR

World

Chinese families navigate a maze of laws and COVID rules to have babies in the U.S.

There's a well-established industry centered in California that provides surrogate births and attracts Chinese mothers to the U.S. to engage in what's known as birth tourism.

Chinese families navigate a maze of laws and COVID rules to have babies in the U.S.

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Tuesday

Pandemic-related fraud totaled billions. California is trying to get some of it back

The office of the California Employment Development Department is seen in Sacramento, Calif., Friday, Dec. 18, 2020. Facing as much as $2 b billion in fraud, the EDD is near the top of California lawmakers fixit list as they prepare to return to the state Capitol in the new year. Rich Pedroncelli/AP hide caption

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Rich Pedroncelli/AP

National

Pandemic-related fraud totaled billions. California is trying to get some of it back

A special task force is investigating claims and freezing accounts to determine who legitimately qualifies for the relief money. About $20 billion in unemployment money was stolen by criminals.

Pandemic-related fraud totaled billions. California is trying to get some of it back

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Saturday

Friday

Questions remain about who recorded the audio that led to LA City Council scandal

Los Angeles City Council President Nury Martinez addresses a press conference held at Dodger Stadium on Jan. 15, 2021, in Los Angeles. The president of the Los Angeles City Council resigned from the council on Wednesday after she was heard making racist comments and other coarse remarks in a leaked recording of a conversation with other Latino leaders. Irfan Khan/AP hide caption

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Irfan Khan/AP

National

Questions remain about who recorded the audio that led to LA City Council scandal

An anonymously leaked recording of crude, racist remarks and political scheming that led to Council President Nury Martinez's resignation left behind a mystery: Who made the tape, and why?

Saturday

California looks to target oil company profits in a special legislative session

California Gov. Gavin Newsom said on Friday that he will call a special session of the state Legislature on Dec. 5, to pass a new tax on oil companies in response to high gas prices. Rich Pedroncelli/AP hide caption

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Rich Pedroncelli/AP

National

California looks to target oil company profits in a special legislative session

Gas prices have recovered somewhat nationwide, but they have continued to spike in California, hitting an average of $6.39 per gallon on Friday.

Thursday

A kidnapped baby, parents and uncle are found dead in California

Merced County Sheriff Vern Warnke speaks at a news conference about the kidnapping of 8-month-old Aroohi Dheri, her mother Jasleen Kaur, her father Jasdeep Singh, and her uncle Amandeep Singh, in Merced, Calif., on Wednesday, Oct. 5, 2022. Andrew Kuhn/AP hide caption

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Andrew Kuhn/AP

National

A kidnapped baby, parents and uncle are found dead in California

A baby girl, her parents and uncle were found dead in a central California orchard two days after they were kidnapped at gunpoint from their business, police said.

Wednesday

Police have linked several shootings to a possible serial killer in Stockton, Calif.

Stockton Police Department officials released this undated surveillance image of a person of interest. The figure appears to match the description of the only surviving victim of a suspected serial killer who has fatally shot six people. AP hide caption

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AP

Law

Police have linked several shootings to a possible serial killer in Stockton, Calif.

Investigators are scouring old shooting homicides for possible connections to the six fatal shootings that have terrorized the the city, officials told NPR.

Thursday

Vacant stores will become homes more easily under new California laws

A commercial building sits empty Sept. 19 in Citrus Heights, Calif., northeast of Sacramento. Two new laws in California will let developers bypass local governments to build housing on commercial land. Rich Pedroncelli/AP hide caption

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Rich Pedroncelli/AP

Business

Vacant stores will become homes more easily under new California laws

Local government officials say the laws undermine their authority and cut their tax base, but it's a long-sought win for affordable housing advocates, who say such sites are ready-made for apartments.

Tuesday

She faked her kidnapping to go back to her ex. Now she'll get 18 months in prison

Sherri Papini leaves a federal courthouse Monday after Judge William Shubb sentenced her to 18 months in federal prison for faking her own kidnapping in 2016. Rich Pedroncelli/AP hide caption

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Rich Pedroncelli/AP

National

She faked her kidnapping to go back to her ex. Now she'll get 18 months in prison

Sherri Papini disappeared in 2016, triggering a three-week multi-state search. When she resurfaced, she told authorities an elaborate lie about being abducted and tortured by two Hispanic women.

Wednesday

A super-sized labor experiment
David McNew/Getty Images

The Indicator from Planet Money

A super-sized labor experiment

How would you like your burger? With a side of higher wages? Today on the menu, California's FAST Recovery Act is rethinking labor relations for the fast food industry.

A super-sized labor experiment

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Tuesday

The California Effect
David McNew/Getty Images

The Indicator from Planet Money

The California Effect

From Sacramento to San Diego, the state of California is a tryhard when it comes to regulations. Today, we're singing about how the nation's strictest standards affect economies across state lines.

The California Effect

Listen · 9:24
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Saturday

A Northern California wildfire has injured several people and destroyed homes

California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection firefighters try to stop flames from the Mill Fire from spreading on a property in the Lake Shastina subdivision northwest of Weed, Calif. on Friday. Hung T. Vu/The Record Searchlight via AP hide caption

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Hung T. Vu/The Record Searchlight via AP

National

A Northern California wildfire has injured several people and destroyed homes

About 7,500 people in the town of Weed and several nearby communities in Northern California were under evacuation orders.