Bullet train project could go off the rails
Tomo Chien
March 20, 2024
Good morning. It’s Wednesday, and I’m reading about the best campsites in national parks — two of which are in California. Onto the five USC, Los Angeles and California stories you need to know for today.
1.
An ambitious plan to connect LA and San Francisco with a bullet train is at risk of going off the rails. The project, which voters approved in 2008, promises to shuttle riders between the cities in just under three hours for far cheaper than an airline ticket. But 16 years later, the state is still $7 billion short of what it needs to complete an initial segment between Merced and Bakersfield. It’ll take about $100 billion to construct the entire rail line: That’s three times the initial projection. Watchdogs say lawmakers need to decide soon whether to commit to the project or abandon it.
2.
A new state law that bans police departments from sharing mugshots of most nonviolent suspects on social media went into effect this year — so one Southern California department got creative. The Murrieta Police Department announced plans to post full-body mugshots but obscure faces with Lego heads, noting that it “prides itself in its transparency” but also “honors everyone’s rights & protections.” Not everyone’s impressed. “The effect is comical, that this is something to mock and take lightly,” a criminology professor said. “It’s part of a long tradition of humiliating and public shaming people who are arrested.”
3.
Two weeks after the primary election, Gov. Gavin Newsom’s signature mental health initiative still hangs in the balance. Proposition 1 — a sprawling measure that promises to fund housing and treatment for homeless people struggling with mental health and addiction — was supposed to pass easily. But as of yesterday morning, the proposition was only ahead by 20,000 votes with about 220,000 ballots left to count. The race is so close that supporters and opponents have launched efforts to “cure” ballots that weren’t counted because their signatures don’t match the ones on file; they’ll do that by persuading voters to complete a form that lets them appeal the rejection.
4.
Larry H. Parker, the personal injury attorney famous for his braggadocious television ads and cartoon billboards, died at 75. Over the course of his 50-year career, the Southern California lawyer ran an eponymous law firm that says it has recovered more than $2 billion in verdicts and settlements. Parker framed himself as a “real guy” who’d go to bat for everyday people against insurance companies. His approach wasn’t without controversy, though: Legislators and lawyers bristled at his ads, arguing that they encouraged people to rip off the system. “We’re always going to be attacked,” Parker said. “But in the end, in a lifetime, everyone needs a lawyer.”
5.
Dr. Dre finally earned his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in a ceremony yesterday. The hip-hop pioneer, whose real name is Andre Young, broke onto the scene in the mid-80s with the legendary N.W.A. His 1992 debut solo album, “The Chronic,” earned triple platinum status a year after its release and won him a Grammy for Best Rap Solo Performance. He also famously jump-started the careers of Eminem, Kendrick Lamar and Anderson .Paak. “I’d like to thank the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce who felt that I was finally ready to walk in the footsteps of Ice Cube, Snoop Dogg and 50 Cent. All of whom got stars before me for some fucking reason,” Young joked.