A California parole board says a one-time Manson-family member convicted of two murders should be released from prison. But Bruce Davis isn’t home free. Gov. Jerry Brown will have the final say, and he’s already denied parole for Davis once. Davis is now 71. He’s served more than 40 years for taking part in the killings of ranch hand Donald “Shorty” Shea” and aspiring musician Gary Hinman. Davis was not implicated in the most notorious Manson family crimes – the murders of actress Sharon Tate and others in Benedict Canyon, and the killings of Leno and Rosemary LaBianca in Los Feliz.
FBI agents are scouring Hawaii’s Big Island for a suspected domestic terrorist from California. Animal rights activist Daniel Andreas San Diego has been on the lam since 2003 when he was fingered for setting off pipe bombs outside of northern California companies with ties to animal experimentation. The FBI added San Diego to its most wanted terrorist list in 2009, the first alleged domestic terrorist to be placed on that list.
California faces a critical funding shortfall when it comes to managing the state’s water, according to a new study from the Public Policy Institute of California. The report says the state would need an additional $2 billion to $3 billion a year to fill the gaps. Areas of the biggest need include safe drinking water in poor communities; flood protection; and stormwater runoff. The report says some voter-approved propositions that limit fee and tax assessments have limited local governments’ ability to manage water responsibly.
The Federal Trade Commission is investigating Herbalife, the L.A.-based nutritional supplement maker accused by critics of being a pyramid scheme. The company’s disclosure of the probe triggered a sell-off, sending Herbalife shares down more than seven percent. Herbalife says it welcomes the inquiry given the “misinformation in the marketplace.”
Texas Governor Rick Perry is planning another swing through Southern California next week as part of his ongoing campaign to convince local companies to move to the Lone Star state. It’ll be Perry’s third trip here since last year. This time, the L.A. Times reports Perry will be armed with a $300,000 advertising blitz. It could be that Perry is having an effect: Last month, L.A. oil giant Occidental Petroleum Corp. announced that it’s relocating to Houston. Chevron Corp., meanwhile, is transferring hundreds of employees from California to Texas.