Minority activists of numerous descents took to heart the idiom “strength in numbers” Monday and joined together on the steps of Old City Hall to speak out against the rising incidence of hate crime. -more-
There is no Memorial Day parade through downtown Berkeley, but one local resident made sure people remembered there was a holiday to commemorate. -more-
INDIANAPOLIS — Preening and playing to the cameras, Helio Castroneves enjoyed the spoils of winning the Indy 500. -more-
To the Editor: -more-
Don Nunes didn’t know where he was going to sleep last night. As a truck driver making a stop in the Bay Area, his choices are severely limited. -more-
SACRAMENTO — No matter what the Sacramento Kings believe, Kobe Bryant knows it’s more than luck keeping the Los Angeles Lakers on track for their third straight championship. -more-
To the Editor: -more-
RIVERSIDE — A University of California, Riverside student, who had been detained by Israel after trying to provide humanitarian aid to armed Palestinians during a church siege in Bethlehem, was back in the United States on Monday, his father said. -more-
BERKELEY — Officials at the University of California at Berkeley say they are -more-
ARCATA — Eric Striedieck’s team was making good time in the race when disaster struck — the 10-foot, human-powered sculpture they were piloting over Humboldt Bay sank, and they were overtaken by a 14-foot iguana. -more-
SACRAMENTO — After vetoing workers’ compensation reforms for three years, Gov. Gray Davis this year declared the legislation long overdue and signed the labor-friendly bill into law. -more-
LOS ANGELES — AIDS Healthcare Foundation, one of the largest providers of specialized care for HIV patients in the United States, said it will bar GlaxoSmithKline from marketing drugs at its outpatient sites to protest the company’s pricing policies. -more-
WASHINGTON — Broccoli and broccoli sprouts contain a chemical that kills the bacteria responsible for most stomach cancer, say researchers, confirming the dietary advice that moms have been handing out for years. -more-
REDDING — After five hours traveling at night, four paraplegic climbers have gained 1,200 feet on Mount Shasta by using special handcranked machines. -more-
The University of California has offered to curtail mandatory overtime for its nurses and shift from a merit pay system to one based on seniority, marking a major shift in the contract squabble between the two sides. -more-
To the Editor: -more-
xIf you think Elvis Costello, the once kingpin of Punk and New Wave angst, has stifled his sharp tongue and rocking sensibilities in favor of just collaborating with the likes of Burt Bachrach and Swedish mezzo-soprano Anne Sofie von Otter only, think again. Costello proved beyond a doubt where his musical roots lay at a recent show at the Berkeley Community Theater. He showed the crowd that though his musical styles have expanded beyond the fast-paced, witty lyrics of his early career, his origins of being a great rock 'n' roll songwriter and a captivating performer are still perfectly intact. -more-
The Berkeley Unified School District revealed new budget figures and Superintendent Michele Lawrence warned that the district may carry a deficit into next year at the Board of Education meeting Wednesday night. -more-
Solano Avenue sidewalks will explode with chocolate and colorful chalk artwork for three days during the Memorial Day holiday weekend at the Chocolate & Chalk Art Festival running May 25- 27. -more-
City Council considers new regulations as well -more-
LOS ANGELES — If you want to be among the first to own “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone,” you need to get to the store at an appropriate hour: midnight. -more-
All three Bay Area airports are expecting an especially heavy flow of travelers to pass through their terminals this Memorial Day weekend, perhaps the highest numbers since the Sept. 11 attacks traumatized American air travel. -more-
DETROIT — The Detroit Electronic Music Festival drew more than 1 million people in each of its first two years. -more-
A high pressure system along the mid-Atlantic coast brought sunny skies to much of the East on Thursday afternoon. -more-
Female genital mutilation is not usually the subject of stand-up comedy. But for African-born Sia Amma, humor has proved powerful and healing. Subjected to a clitorodectomy in her native Liberia when she was just nine years old, Amma has made the problem of female circumcision the central subject of a one-woman show. -more-
FBI agent allegedly switched allegiance to gangsters -more-
xSAN JOSE — Attorneys for former motel handyman Cary Stayner, who has admitted in grotesque detail how he killed three Yosemite National Park tourists in 1999, will try to save his life by arguing to a jury he is mentally ill. -more-
xSAN BERNARDINO — A judge said Thursday that a board that has repeatedly denied Leslie Van Houten parole in two Manson Family murders has failed to give her any guidance on what she could do to make herself suitable for release. -more-
LONDON — Some types of rubber bullets used by police to restrain unruly protesters kill and maim too often to be considered a safe method of crowd control, new research concludes. -more-
Online company’s shares skyrocket by almost 12 percent after initial IPO -more-
WASHINGTON – A federal agency set up an “Enron Information Link” for people to report suspicious activities involving Enron or other companies that may have affected West Coast energy prices. -more-
SAN FRANCISCO – Online travel service Orbitz will target footloose gays and lesbians under a marketing partnership announced Wednesday with Web portal Gay.com. -more-
SACRAMENTO – Budget negotiators will consider boosting logging fees to help trim the state’s projected $23.6 billion budget shortfall, lawmakers decided Wednesday evening. -more-
SAN JOSE — Yahoo! Inc. said Thursday it plans to pull most of its online auction initiatives in Europe and instead promote eBay’s market-leading auction site there. -more-
TRUCHAS, N.M. — Hundreds of people left their homes Thursday as a fast-moving 6,000-acre wildfire threatened a small northern New Mexico town. -more-
xLandmark cases brought by individual smokers against the tobacco industry, listing date, location, award, parties and status: -more-
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Two men who forced a bank manager to rob her own bank while they held her family hostage were convicted Thursday of armed bank robbery by extortion. -more-
Hahn, Riordan speak out against plan to separate San Fernando Valley from second-biggest U.S. city -more-
SACRAMENTO – More than a third of California’s single women live in poverty, according to a report released Wednesday by the San Francisco-based Women’s Foundation. -more-
Justice Department considering giving cops power to enforce immigration laws; Florida the first state to agree to idea -more-
ALEXANDRIA, Va. – John Walker Lindh pleaded “please don’t kill me” as U.S. troops took the captured Taliban soldier to a U.S. military camp in Afghanistan, his defense lawyers said Thursday. -more-
ALEXANDRIA, Va. – John Walker Lindh pleaded “please don’t kill me” as U.S. troops took the captured Taliban soldier to a U.S. military camp in Afghanistan, his defense lawyers said Thursday. -more-
SACRAMENTO – Pharmacies could sell hypodermic needles to adults without a doctor’s prescription under a bill approved Thursday by the state Senate. -more-
WASHINGTON – Police and forensic experts worked Thursday to solve the mystery of how Chandra Levy died, with investigators saying most evidence points to murder. -more-
GREAT FALLS, Mont. – Nathaniel Bar-Jonah, the man accused of butchering a 10-year-old boy here and feeding his remains to unsuspecting neighbors, was sentenced Thursday to 130 years in prison without parole for assaults on two other boys. -more-
Provisions to give teachers power over book and curriculum selection dropped -more-
Oceanside Unified School District to pay more than $140,000 -more-
SAN FRANCISCO – A California inmate has no right to mail his sperm from prison to impregnate his wife, a divided federal appeals court ruled Thursday. -more-
The Berkeley City Council unanimously voted to oppose the Racial Privacy Initiative Tuesday night, an initiative that would prohibit state and local governments from collecting or using information about race, ethnicity, color or national origin. -more-
Today is Thursday, May 23, the 143rd day of 2002. There are 222 days left in the year. -more-
The Berkeley Yellowjackets scored in each of the first five innings, including a five-run fourth, and cruised to a 12-6 win over Antioch High in the first round of the North Coast Section 3A East Bay playoffs on Wednesday at Cal’s Evans Diamond. -more-
Officials from the Berkeley Federation of Teachers and the Berkeley Unified School District say they hope to settle union claims of improper layoffs out of court, but a disagreement over seven “probationary status” teachers may get in the way. -more-
To the Editor: -more-
City leaders have fast-tracked safety plans for the neighborhood where a 72-year-old nun was struck and killed by a car on Addison Street earlier this month. But central Berkeley residents are concerned that bureaucratic roadblocks may delay the safety process. -more-
Approximately 100 Claremont food and beverage workers, spa workers and sympathizers braved the rain on Sunday to continue their fight against KSL Resorts Corporation, the spa’s parent company. -more-
STATELINE, Nev. — An 18-year-old Stockton, Calif. woman has pleaded guilty to misdemeanor charges she concealed the birth of her son, who was found dead at a Stateline casino. -more-
OAKLAND — Boarded up storefronts, corner liquor stores and rundown houses dominate west Oakland, where a gung-ho band of police officers known as “the Riders” were taken off the streets two years ago. -more-
It is not the artists’ fault that they live on a fault, but an expensive retrofitting job, to the co-operative gallery located in the 1700 block of Shattuck, will be their problem. -more-
LIVERMORE — Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory officials today launched a program to give public safety officials access to state-of-the-art technology to battle chemical and biological threats. -more-
TULSA, Okla. — Williams Cos. told energy regulators Wednesday that some of its California trades resembled those allegedly made by Enron Corp., but were not designed to manipulate the state’s power market. -more-
SAN FRANCISCO — Gap, Inc.’s shares plunged 15 percent Wednesday amid investor worries the unexpected retirement of Millard “Mickey” Drexler as chief executive will hobble the already limping retailer. -more-
After a two-and-a-half-day visit, a five-member team from the Western Association of Schools and Colleges said Berkeley High School has made progress on communications and governance, but needs to improve on staff development and its approach to the “achievement gap” that separates white and Asian-American students from African-Americans and Latinos. -more-
Today is Wednesday, May 22, the 142nd day of 2002. There are 223 days left in the year. -more-
Souders gets the start against Antioch -more-
xGov. Gray Davis’s proposed education budget shouldn’t inflict much harm on the Berkeley Unified School District next year, according to one highly-placed district official. But concerns about health care costs, special education and mentoring programs at two Berkeley schools linger. -more-
STANFORD – Cal’s representatives in the NCAA Women’s Tennis singles championship were eliminated Tuesday, as sophomore Raquel Kops-Jones and junior Christina Fusano both lost in the first round. -more-
xIf Berkeley can’t readily muster space for new sports fields within its city limits, maybe the city of Oakland can pinch hit. -more-
To the Editor: -more-
To the Editor: -more-
To the Editor: -more-
BERKELEY — In a time of war, the University of California, Berkeley, is launching a center devoted to the study of inner peace. -more-
City Council
BERKELEY — A Berkeley group concerned about a recent rash of racially-motivated hate crimes in the city honored Mayor Shirley Dean Tuesday for her efforts to bring the crimes to a quick halt. -more-
SAN FRANCISCO — Developers who want a piece of a one-time military oasis may find themselves squeezed under a new plan for San Francisco’s last sprawl of prime real estate. -more-
SACRAMENTO — A constitutional amendment to bolster California’s open government requirements passed its first test Tuesday, but supporters said it was still only a “semi-work in progress” that would be reshaped as it moves through the Legislature. -more-
SACRAMENTO — California grid officials asked state energy traders to buy unnecessary power at above-market rates, which the state later had to sell at a loss, a senator investigating California’s energy market said Tuesday. -more-
SACRAMENTO — The legislative committee investigating a $95 million no-bid software contract asked for permission Tuesday to subpoena five top Oracle Corp. officials to testify. -more-
AUSTIN, Texas — Lady Bird Johnson was released from an Austin hospital Thursday, three weeks after suffering a mild stroke. -more-
MODESTO — The parents of Chandra Levy tried to avoid watching television Wednesday after word broke that a body was found in a Washington, D.C., park not far from their daughter’s apartment. -more-
Berkeley’s urbanity, Palma Soriano’s agriculture, and thousands of miles may serve to separate these two cities, but as of last week they have joined an increasing sisterhood despite the estrangement. -more-
SACRAMENTO – A former aide to Gov. Gray Davis says he was surprised when a computer company lobbyist gave him a $25,000 campaign contribution for the governor at a Sacramento bar. -more-
