California
California bears make themselves at home as humans build closer to nature
Humans are building homes closer to the forest in southern California, and bears are putting their foot, or their paw, down.
Residents in Sierra Madre, a city neighboring the more than 700,000-acre (283,280-hectare) Angeles national forest, have had black bears break into their homes, cars and yards.
It’s also no coincidence that residents in the area might be seeing more bears as winter approaches, since bears are getting ready for hibernation.
“They’re frankly just seeking food, water or shelter and, when they find it, it’s not uncommon for them to either stay for a while or return on a fairly regular basis,” said Tim Daly, a public information officer with the California department of fish and wildlife.
“This is the time of year that this activity tends to pick up because bears tend to fatten up for the winter.”
The Sierra Madre deputy city manager, Laura Aguilar, said a number of mitigation efforts have been implemented, including providing bear-resistant trash cans for residents as bears tend to dig into trash for food.
“We get coyotes, deer and the occasional mountain lion, so it’s not unusual to see wildlife because we’re at the base of the foothills,” Aguilar said.
Daly said bears are capable of getting through open doors and open windows, and of opening car doors. Bears have heightened eyesight and hearing, and their sense of smell is seven times greater than that of a bloodhound.
“These animals are considered smart,” Daly said. “They’re considered to have good memories of where they’ve been successful getting food or water or shelter.”
This was the impression of Susan and Bob Nesler, residents in Sierra Madre, who have had a frequent furry visitor in their home for more than two weeks.
A black bear has been entering their home daily through an open crawl space and leaving at night. The couple are working with California officials to block the space using a bear-resistant metal screen. The wildlife agency installed a camera to monitor the bear’s movements, helping them track its schedule and plan the best time to install the screen.
“He’s a good bear. He doesn’t hurt anybody,” Bob Nesler said.
“We have a lot of bears here in Sierra Madre, and I’ve heard of bears going into people’s homes and raiding their refrigerators, but he hasn’t done anything like that.
“He’s been very polite, a real gentleman.”
Still, Daly encourages people to take preventative measures to protect their homes, including closing up crawl spaces and making sure garbage cans are secure.
“If you have a fruit tree in your yard, make sure you pick up fruit that’s falling on the ground,” he said. “Make sure you don’t leave pet food out at night.”
It’s not just Sierra Madre. Communities near the forest, including Altadena and Monrovia, are no strangers to bear sightings.
Daly said that as humans move in closer to the forest, more animals will appear in residents’ homes.
“As humans, we like having our homes up against the mountains, close to nature, higher with views available,” he said. “As we keep building into what used to be wild areas, nature areas that did not have any homes, it’s not surprising that these people would then have an increase in sightings.”
The black bear population in California has also seen an upward tick in recent years, jumping from 10,000 to 15,000 in the early 1980s to between 25,000 and 30,000 in early 2024.
This tendency also coincides with the number of bear sightings in Los Angeles county.
In 2017, California registered 28 bear sightings in the county. In 2023, that number rose to 455.
Daly recommends not attacking a bear once a person is face-to-face with it.
“Turning and running is a bad idea. With a lot of wildlife things, that might trigger their response to chase,” he said.
Instead, he said people should slowly turn and back away from any wildlife they might confront. He also stressed that black bears are not dangerous, and it’s rare for a bear to attack someone.
“It might take a swat at you, but bears don’t seek us to attack us or to harm us,” Daly said.
California
Republican governor candidate Chad Bianco says he’s the ‘antithesis to California state government’
We are counting down to the California governor’s race. Chad Bianco, the sheriff of Riverside County, is one of the two biggest names running on the Republican ticket.
In a one-on-one interview with Eyewitness News political reporter Josh Haskell, Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco said, “I am the antithesis to California state government because I am going to take a nuclear bomb into that building and absolutely destroy everything that they do to us behind closed doors.”
Although he’s been elected by the voters twice, Bianco says he’s not a politician — which is why he believes his campaign for California governor is resonating, as reflected in the polls.
“President Trump, in one year, from 2025 when he took over, until now, did absolutely nothing to harm California. What’s harming California is 30 years of Democrat one-party rule that have created an environment here that no one can live in anymore. They’ve only been successful here in California because we vote D no matter what. You vote D or die. I mean, that’s it. Charles Manson would be elected in California if he was the only Democrat on the ballot,” Bianco said.
Bianco isn’t the only conservative Republican running for governor, and according to polling, he’s neck-and-neck with former Fox News host Steve Hilton.
SEE ALSO: CA governor candidate Steve Hilton says ‘everybody supports’ Trump’s immigration policies
Leading in some polls in the wide-open California Governor’s race as the June primary creeps closer is Republican and former Fox News host Steve Hilton.
“Steve has no chance of winning in November. The Democrats know that I’m going to win in November, and so they have to do everything they can to keep me out of that,” Bianco said.
When asked about the affordability crisis in the state, Bianco said, “Almost the entire issue of affordability in California is because of regulation, excessive regulation imposed by government. Every single regulation can be signed away with the governor’s signature.”
“It is a drug and alcohol addiction problem that, and a mental health problem,” he said about the homelessness crisis. “Every single bit of money that is going to these nonprofits that say ‘homeless,’ zero money. You’re getting absolutely nothing. I can’t tell you that we would end what we see in the homeless situation within a year, but I guarantee you we would never see it again after two years.”
When challenged on that prediction, pointing to how the state doesn’t have the facilities to treat the number of people living on our streets, Bianco responded, “We have been conditioned to believe that buildings take five years to build. It takes 90 days or less to build a house, but in California, it takes three to five years because the government won’t allow it. The regulations that are destroying this state are going to be removed with me as the governor.”
Bianco also said California jails shouldn’t have to play the role of treatment facilities.
Although he says he supports the Trump administration and wants the president’s endorsement, Bianco has been traveling the state — meeting not just with Republicans, but Democrats and independents as well. He says all of our state government officials have failed.
The primary election is June 2.
No clear front-runner in race for California governor, new poll shows
A new poll shows there’s still no clear front-runner in the race to replace Gov. Gavin Newsom.
Copyright © 2026 KABC Television, LLC. All rights reserved.
California
PlayOn Sports fined $1.1 million by California watchdog over student data violations
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (FOX26) — California’s privacy watchdog has ordered PlayOn Sports to pay a $1.10 million fine and change how it handles consumer data after finding the company’s practices violated state law in ways that affected students and schools in the state.
The California Privacy Protection Agency Board issued the decision following a settlement reached by CalPrivacy’s Enforcement Division.
The decision is the first by the board to address privacy violations involving students and California schools.
Schools across the country use PlayOn Sports’ GoFan platform to sell digital tickets to high school sporting events, theater performances, and homecoming and prom dances, with attendees presenting tickets at the door on their mobile phones.
Schools also use PlayOn Sports’ platforms for other sports-related activities, including attending games, streaming them online, and looking up statistics about teams and players.
In California, about 1,400 schools contract with PlayOn Sports for these services.
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GoFan is also the official ticketing platform for the California Interscholastic Federation, the governing body for high school sports.
According to the board’s decision, PlayOn Sports used tracking technologies to collect personal information and deliver targeted advertisements to ticketholders and others using its services.
The company allegedly required Californians to click “agree” to tracking technologies before they could use their tickets or view PlayOn Sports websites, without providing a sufficient opt-out option.
“Students trying to go to prom or a high school football game shouldn’t have to leave their privacy rights at the door,” said Michael Macko, CalPrivacy’s head of enforcement. “You couldn’t attend these events without showing your ticket, and you couldn’t show your ticket without being tracked for advertising. California’s privacy law does not work that way. Businesses must ensure they offer lawful ways for Californians to opt-out, particularly with captive audiences.”
The decision also describes students as a uniquely vulnerable population and warns that targeted advertising systems can subject students to profiling that can follow them for years, expose them to manipulative or harmful content, and develop sensitive inferences about their lives.
Instead of providing its own opt-out method, PlayOn Sports directed students and other users to opt out through the Network Advertising Initiative and the Digital Advertising Alliance, which the decision said violated the company’s responsibility to provide its own way for consumers to opt out. The company also allegedly failed to recognize opt-out preference signals and did not provide Californians with sufficient notice of its privacy practices.
“We are committed to making it as easy as possible for all Californians — from high school students to older adults, and everyone in between — to make the choice of whether they want to be tracked or not,” said Tom Kemp, CalPrivacy’s executive director. “Californians can opt-out with covered businesses, and they can sign up for the newly launched DROP system to request that data brokers delete their personal information.”
Beyond the $1.10 million fine, the board’s order requires PlayOn Sports to conduct risk assessments, provide disclosures that are easy to read and understand, and implement proper opt-out methods.
The order also requires the company to comply with California’s privacy law prohibiting the selling or sharing of personal information of consumers between 13 and 16 without their affirmative opt-in consent.
California
California bill to bar police from taking second job with ICE advances in state Assembly
Wednesday, March 4, 2026 4:43AM
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (KABC) — A bill that would prevent police officers from moonlighting with federal immigration enforcement agencies, such as U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, is advancing through the California State Assembly.
AB 1537 passed the State Assembly’s committee on public safety on Tuesday.
The bill also requires that officers report any offers for secondary employment related to immigration enforcement to their place of work.
Those failing to comply could face decertification as a peace officer in California.
The bill was introduced by Assemblymember Isaac Bryan, whose district includes Mar Vista, Ladera Heights, Mid-Wilshire and parts of South Los Angeles.
Copyright © 2026 KABC Television, LLC. All rights reserved.
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