California
Southern California mother charged with drowning 9-year-old daughter in bathtub
![Southern California mother charged with drowning 9-year-old daughter in bathtub](https://s.hdnux.com/photos/01/34/02/56/24128447/3/rawImage.jpg)
WESTMINSTER, Calif. (AP) — A Southern California woman was charged Tuesday with drowning her 9-year-old daughter in a bathtub where her decomposing body was found days later, prosecutors said.
Khadiyjah Pendergraph, 32, of Westminster, was arrested last Friday in a grocery store parking lot in Aliso Viejo — about 20 miles (32 kilometers) away — on the same day that the girl’s body was found in their shared apartment, according to a statement from the Orange County District Attorney’s Office.
The girl, identified by the office only as Victoria, had cerebral palsy and couldn’t speak, prosecutors said.
“Words simply do not exist to express the utter heartbreak knowing this little girl could not even scream for help as her mother pushed her underwater and cut her life so tragically and so unnecessarily short,” District Attorney Todd Spitzer said in the statement.
Advertisement
Article continues below this ad
Pendergraph was charged with a count of murder and could face a sentence of 25 years to life in state prison if convicted. She made her first court appearance Tuesday but did not enter a plea, although her defense was assigned to the public defender’s office, the district attorney’s office said. She remained jailed without bail.
Authorities didn’t mention a possible motive for the alleged killing.
The girl’s father was divorced from Pendergraph. He had been scheduled to pick up his daughter on Thanksgiving, but when he went to his ex-wife’s apartment, he found the door locked and nobody answered, authorities said.
On Friday, he called police to report that his daughter was missing and that he had received “concerning messages” from Pendergraph, according to the statement from the district attorney’s office. It didn’t provide details about the messages.
The girl apparently was killed Nov. 19, five days before her body was discovered, prosecutors said.
Advertisement
Article continues below this ad
![](https://newspub.live/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/np-logo.png)
California
Lancaster is California’s most desirable Fourth of July destination, Airbnb says
![Lancaster is California’s most desirable Fourth of July destination, Airbnb says](https://ktla.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2024/06/Airbnb-Logo-Horizontal-on-Gradient.png?w=1280)
When thinking about vacations in Southern California, destinations such as Los Angeles, San Diego and Palm Springs may come to mind.
However, according to Airbnb, none of the three – or maybe any SoCal city you are thinking of – ranked among their top ten trending destinations for this year’s Fourth of July weekend.
That would be Lancaster.
The short and long-term rental service’s list of trending July 4 weekend destinations includes locations renowned for scenic landscapes (such as Cle Elum, Washington and Saratoga Springs, New York) and others known for significant Fourth of July celebrations (Marshfield, Massachusetts and Sanibel Island, Florida) in addition to desirable locations as picked by potential renters themselves.
Airbnb’s top ten trending destinations for Fourth of July 2024 are:
- Pocono Township, Pennsylvania
- Saratoga Springs, New York
- Marshfield, Massachusetts
- Leadville, Colorado
- Bangor, Maine
- Lancaster, California
- Cle Elum, Washington
- Wenatchee, Washington
- Sanibel-Sanibel Island, Florida
- Fort Myers Beach, Florida
Breaking it down further, Airbnb found the “most wishlisted” home in each state; California’s was the Invisible House, located within Joshua Tree National Park.
A one-night stay at the Invisible House from July 7 to July 8 will cost $2,934 before taxes.
To view Airbnb’s list of trending towns and “most wishlisted” homes, click here.
California
California cities dominate list of places with worst commutes
![California cities dominate list of places with worst commutes](https://www.kron4.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/11/2024/06/GettyImages-2157536463.jpg?w=1280)
(NEXSTAR) – If you’re stuck in traffic every morning and every evening, is it comforting to know you’re not alone? The average American adult spends 219 hours a year – or more than nine full days – commuting every year, a new analysis by MoneyGeek found.
The personal finance site used data from the Census, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, TomTom, plus gas prices to determine where residents have the best and worst commutes.
Six of the 10 worst places for commuters are in California, MoneyGeek found.
It’s not just that drivers in Vallejo, San Jose, Stockton, Modesto and other California cities have to sit in traffic for a long time – though they do – but they have to pay out the nose to do so. Gas prices are high all around California, and residents in further suburbs (like Vallejo and Fairfield) are often driving longer distances to get into the office. (MoneyGeek factored in the cost of gas, but not the cost of public transit, in its report.)
To make matters even worse, commuters who drive to work risk damage to their car – or their own safety – every time they get behind the wheel. Crash rates weren’t highest in California cities, however. Drivers in Jacksonville, Florida; Baton Rouge, Louisiana; Albuquerque, New Mexico; and San Antonio, Texas, were more likely to experience a crash during their commute, MoneyGeek found.
The study combined these factors – commute time, rush-hour speed, crash rates and gas costs – to give of the country’s 124 largest metro areas a score. The 20 worst communities for commuters are:
Rank
Metro area
Score
Avg. 1-way commute (minutes)
Avg. rush-hour speed (mph)
Morning commute crash rate
Annual gas cost
1.
Vallejo-Fairfield, CA
0.0
34
28
0.31
$1,792
2.
Stockton-Lodi, CA
5.2
35
28
0.20
$1,791
3.
Cape Coral-Fort Myers, FL
14.3
32
27
0.32
$1,099
4.
Modesto, CA
15.0
31
28
0.18
$1,582
5.
Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA
15.5
35
31
0.12
$1,931
6.
San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA
19.5
28
26
0.27
$1,367
7.
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA
20.1
32
18
0.16
$1,042
8.
Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ
21.3
28
31
0.35
$1,243
9.
Lakeland-Winter Haven, FL
21.6
33
27
0.15
$1,133
10.
Jacksonville, FL
23.0
28
34
0.54
$1,202
11.
San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX
24.9
29
30
0.45
$1,015
12.
Birmingham-Hoover, AL
25.1
29
32
0.25
$1,161
13.
Baton Rouge, LA
25.3
29
29
0.48
$1,028
14.
Charleston-North Charleston, SC
25.6
30
26
0.36
$941
15.
Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX
27.5
33
23
0.21
$918
16.
Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT
28.1
33
30
0.06
$1,492
17.
Albuquerque, NM
28.4
27
34
0.45
$1,167
18.
Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA
28.5
31
20
0.10
$1,066
19.
Worcester, MA-CT
28.8
31
29
0.10
$1,239
20.
Port St. Lucie, FL
29.1
31
27
0.15
$1,078
If you’re looking for someone to be jealous of, look no further than Madison, Wisconsin. Drivers there benefit from low gas prices, rare crashes and short commute times, earning it the No. 1 spot for best commutes in the ranking.
The shortest average commute time overall was found in Wichita, Kansas. Meanwhile, drivers in the McAllen, Texas, metro area pay the least for gas every year. The award for fewest crashes was a three-way tie between Boulder, Colorado; Lancaster, Pennsylvania; and Trenton, New Jersey.
California
Frustration over hidden fees in California ends July 1
![Frustration over hidden fees in California ends July 1](https://fox5sandiego.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/15/2024/06/AdobeStock_764242289.jpeg?w=1280)
SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI) – Come Monday, changes will be coming to California as a variety of new laws are set to go into effect, including one aimed at banning hidden fees.
“We need to know. We need to know what we’re paying for,” said Kelley Day.
Thanks to Senate Bill 478, consumers will know the price of a product or service from the start — not when they get the bill.
“I feel like it makes it fair for consumers in general. You get what you get. You’re seeing the price and then it makes it so no one can complain,” said Zoe Miller.
Also known as the honest pricing law or hidden fees statute, the bill paves the way for transparency. It applies to the sale of most goods and services including restaurants, hotels, event tickets and food delivery service.
“If consumers see a low price at the beginning, then they are more likely to make a commitment there and then once they’ve made the commitment, they’ll have to put up then with the higher price at the end. It’s kind of a bait and switch,” said Alan Gin, an economics professor at University of San Diego.
Gin says restaurants may be among the most worried to bake the total cost of fees and surcharge into the price of what’s on your plate.
“It’s the restaurant industry particularly that’s complaining about this and they may carve out legislation that says their fees would be OK if they display them prominently on the menu,” Gin added.
Lawmakers are currently contemplating that exemption for restaurants. The law already has exemptions for taxes and things like shipping and delivery charges.
-
News1 week ago
Tracking a Single Day at the National Domestic Violence Hotline
-
Fitness1 week ago
What's the Least Amount of Exercise I Can Get Away With?
-
News1 week ago
Supreme Court upholds law barring domestic abusers from owning guns in major Second Amendment ruling | CNN Politics
-
World6 days ago
Israel accepts bilateral meeting with EU, but with conditions
-
Politics1 week ago
Trump classified docs judge to weigh alleged 'unlawful' appointment of Special Counsel Jack Smith
-
Politics1 week ago
Supreme Court upholds federal gun ban for those under domestic violence restraining orders
-
World7 days ago
New Caledonia independence activists sent to France for detention
-
World1 week ago
Is Israel’s Smotrich fulfilling his dream of annexing the West Bank?