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Ventura County real estate agent gets 6 months in jail for fraud, must repay more than $100K

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:44:54 GMT

A Camarillo real estate agent was sentenced to six months in jail for forging clients' signatures on documents.Daniel Montano, 29, was also ordered to repay more than $102,000 in restitution and will be on probation for two years, Ventura County District Attorney Erik Nasarenko said in a Wednesday press release. Of that restitution, $68,500 has already been repaid.Montano pleaded guilty in August to four felony counts of forgery, though he initially faced 15 counts of theft and forgery. He also admitted that "the crimes indicated planning, sophistication, and professionalism, and that he took advantage of a position of trust and confidence when he committed the offenses," the release said. A licensed real estate agent for RE/MAX Gold Coast Realtors in Ventura, Montano was representing victims in 2020 when he "forged the victims’ signatures on multiple California Association of Realtors forms.""After forging the victims’ signatures, Montano sent the documents to escrow on the sale an...

Newsom signs bill banning 'junk fees' in California

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:44:54 GMT

Hidden fees, which sellers use to mislead customers with an artificially low headline price before imposing additional unavoidable charges later in the buying process, will no longer be allowed in California.Gov. Gavin Newsom signed into law Senate Bill 478 (SB 478) that will ban hidden fees, or "junk fees," in the state starting on July 1, 2024, California Attorney General Rob Bonta said in a news release Saturday.“These deceptive fees prevent us from knowing how much we will be charged at the outset. They are bad for consumers and bad for competition. They cost Americans tens of billions of dollars each year," Bonta said. Biden says the FTC’s proposed ban on junk fees will help families and ‘honest’ businesses Bonta added that these fees "hit families who are just trying to make ends meet the hardest.""And, because a growing list of websites, apps, and brick-and-mortar businesses are using them, they penalize companies that are upfront and transparent with th...

California law banning large-capacity gun magazines likely to survive lawsuit

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:44:54 GMT

In a setback to California gun rights advocates, a federal appeals court has temporarily blocked a lower court's ruling that the state cannot ban gun owners from having detachable magazines that hold more than 10 rounds.The ban on higher-capacity magazines remains in effect while the case is still pending.The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeal on Tuesday granted state Attorney General Rob Bonta's motion for a stay of last month's ruling by U.S. District Judge Roger Benitez.The appeals court wrote that the attorney general's defense of the law is likely to succeed.The September ruling came in a legal action filed by five individuals and the California Rifle & Pistol Association challenging the law's constitutionality under the Second Amendment. It was the second time Benitez struck down the law. The first time he struck it down was in 2017 and an appeals court ended up reversing his decision.Last year, the U.S. Supreme Court set a new standard for how to interpret the nat...

Rider Killed in Motorcycle/Pickup Collision on Interstate 5 [Bakersfield, CA]

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:44:54 GMT

Multi-Vehicle Crash Near Fort Tejon Road Left 33-Year-Old Motorcyclist DeadBAKERSFIELD, CA (October 11, 2023) – In the late hours of Sunday morning, a tragic collision between a motorcycle and a pickup truck occurred on Interstate 5, resulting in the loss of a motorcyclist’s life.Around 11:09 a.m., reports came in regarding a stationary pickup truck obstructing the second lane of the southbound Interstate 5, near Fort Tejon Road.Amid their response, two motorcycles collided with the rear of the pickup truck, causing both riders to be ejected from their bikes.The 25-year-old male motorcyclist from Santa Ana was swiftly taken by emergency responders to Kern Medical Hospital for necessary medical attention.Regrettably, the other motorcyclist, a 33-year-old man from Fontana, suffered fatal injuries and passed away at the scene. His identity remains undisclosed, pending notification to his next of kin.Furthermore, both directions of the roadway were temporarily closed to faci...

San Jose Sharks coach uses ‘S’ word in regard to Logan Couture’s injury

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:44:54 GMT

SAN JOSE – San Jose Sharks captain Logan Couture has had a setback in his rehabilitation from an undisclosed lower-body injury, further muddying the timeline for when he could possibly return to the team’s lineup.Couture skated last Friday and also on Monday in his first two times on the ice since the Sharks began their training camp began on Sept. 21. He came out of Friday’s on-ice workout OK but was given days off on both Tuesday and Wednesday, with Sharks coach David Quinn revealing that Couture “had a little bit of a setback” and remains week-to-week.Couture, who had already been ruled out for the Sharks’ season-opening game on Thursday at home against the Vegas Golden Knights, will undergo more tests and continue to be evaluated. He will be off his skates for at least a few more days, Quinn said.Couture has played in every Sharks’ season-opener since 2010, and Quinn said the centerman was eager to return from his injury as soon as he could.“There always is, especially with some...

Misinformation floods social media, none more than Musk’s X

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:44:54 GMT

By Barbara Ortutay | Associated PressWhile Twitter has always struggled with combating misinformation about major news events, it was still the go-to place to find out what’s happening in the world. But the Israel-Hamas war has underscored how the platform now transformed into X has become not only unreliable but is actively promoting falsehoods.Experts say that under Elon Musk the platform has deteriorated to the point that it’s not just failing to clamp down on misinformation but is favoring posts by accounts that pay for its blue-check subscription service, regardless of who runs them.If such posts go viral, their blue-checked creators can be eligible for payments from X, creating a financial incentive to post whatever gets the most reaction — including misinformation.Ian Bremmer, a prominent foreign policy expert, posted on X that the level of disinformation on the Israel-Hamas war “being algorithmically promoted” on the platform “is unlike anything...

What’s wrong with the California Golden Bears’ defense?

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:44:54 GMT

BERKELEY — Cal defensive coordinator Peter Sirmon has a new title these days.“I’m the suggestion coach right now,” he said.He figures he has earned the moniker after the Bears experienced something they’ve never faced in his six seasons on coach Justin Wilcox’s staff.Twice in the past three weeks, Cal has allowed more than 50 points in a game — 59 at Washington and 52 at home against Oregon State. Opponents reached the 40s a few times against the Bears but never 50.Until now.“When things are going good there’s not a lot of people who offer suggestions,” Sirmon said. “Right now, giving up some points the last three weeks . . . a lot of suggestions are coming across the desk. Sometimes they’re great suggestions.”If only it were that easy.The Bears (3-3, 1-2) are in just Week 2 of their five-game gauntlet against Pac-12 rivals ranked in the AP Top-25. Cal visits No. 16 Utah (4-1, 1-1) on Saturday afternoon at Rice-Eccles Stadium, where the Utes have won 17 in a row and 28 of 29, ...

Mary Lou Retton’s lack of insurance raises questions as crowdfunding passes $250,000

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:44:54 GMT

News broke Tuesday that Olympian champion gymnast Mary Lou Retton is in an ICU unit at a Texas hospital, “fighting for her life” with a rare form of pneumonia, sparking alarm among sports fans all over the United States. But fans were just as dismayed to learn from her daughters that Retton, a highly decorated public figure who supposedly earned millions from endorsement deals over the years, has no health insurance.Because of this lack of health insurance, the oldest of Retton’s four daughters said the family had had to start a crowdfunding campaign to help cover the hospital bill. As of Wednesday morning, the Spotfund campaign for Retton, a star gold medalist at the 1984 Olympics, had blown well past its original goal of $50,000, exceeding $250,000 and growing.“My amazing mom, Mary Lou, has a very rare form of pneumonia and is fighting for her life,” Retton’s daughter McKenna Kelley wrote on Spotfund. Kelley also said her mother is not able to breathe on her own ...

USS Eisenhower to deploy to Mediterranean amid Israel-Hamas war

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:44:54 GMT

For the first time in more than two years, the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower aircraft carrier will deploy Friday from Naval Station Norfolk.The warship and its strike group — a combined force of more than 5,000 sailors — have long been scheduled to deploy to the Mediterranean.“Our presence will undoubtedly strengthen relationships with our allies and partners, as we share the goal to deter aggression, and if required, deliver overwhelming combat power,” Rear Adm. Marc Miguez, commander of the strike group, said Tuesday in a written statement.The warship will be supported by Norfolk-based cruiser USS Philippine Sea and destroyer USS Gravely. The USS Mason, a destroyer, will depart from Naval Station Mayport in Florida.Embarking with the strike group will be the Virginia Beach strike fighter squadrons known as Gunslingers, Fighting Swordsmen, Rampagers and Wildcats. From Norfolk will be the Screwtops of Carrier Airborne Early Warning Squadron 123, the Dusty Dogs of Helicopter Sea Combat Sq...

“Beheaded Babies” Report Spread Wide and Fast — but Israel Military Won’t Confirm It

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:44:54 GMT

This article includes graphic images and depictions of death.The Israel Defense Forces could not confirm a horrific claim that Hamas beheaded babies during a weekend assault, a spokesperson for the military told The Intercept on Tuesday. The claim went viral, becoming a headline-grabbing aspect of a massacre that left more than 1,000 Israelis dead.“Women, children, toddlers, and elderly were brutally butchered in an ISIS way of action and we are we are [sic] aware of the heinous acts Hamas is capable of,” the spokesperson wrote in response to questions from The Intercept about the viral reports. “We cannot confirm it officially, but you can assume it happened and believe the report,” she reiterated in a follow-up phone call.Despite the IDF’s inability to confirm the report, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s spokesperson Tal Heinrich repeated it on Wednesday — a window into how unverified reports become part of the historical record.The claim about beheaded babies is the ...