Week in Review: A drought emergency was declared for all Southern California

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Good morning, and welcome to the Important California e-newsletter. It’s Saturday, Dec. 17.

Right here’s a take a look at the highest tales of the final week

A drought emergency was declared for all Southern California. Officers with the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California known as on water businesses to instantly scale back their use of all imported provides. Fears are additionally rising of “lifeless pool” on the Colorado river.

UC and graduate scholar employees attain tentative settlement. After 5 weeks of disruption, the settlement may resolve what could be the nation’s largest-ever strike of educational employees.

Brittney Griner expresses gratitude in first assertion after launch from Russian jail. “The final 10 months have been a battle at each flip,” she wrote.

As dwelling costs decline, those that purchased on the peak are nervous. For the primary time in a decade householders are seeing their fairness fall en masse.

Well being officers are urging masks once more. From rising COVID and flu charges to careworn hospitals, listed below are seven the explanation why.

Movie star mountain lion P-22 is severely deteriorating. Euthanasia or sanctuary are potential. In some ways, we helped seal his destiny.

400 empty rooms. The Cecil Lodge reopened a 12 months in the past as a privately funded everlasting supportive housing venture. Many considered it as a promising new mannequin in L.A. However a 12 months later, two-thirds of the Cecil stays unoccupied.

Paul Pelosi’s alleged attacker additionally focused Tom Hanks, Hunter Biden and Gavin Newsom, investigator says. Prosecutors introduced enough proof to ship the tried homicide case towards David DePape to trial, a choose dominated.

Girls and trans college students worry harassment and hate at CSU’s Maritime Academy. Lengthy-standing claims of sexual harassment and misconduct, homophobia, transphobia and racism on campus and through coaching cruises have roiled Cal Maritime and triggered an environment of dread for a lot of college students, a Instances investigation has discovered.

Megan Thee Stallion took the stand in Tory Lanez trial with help from demonstrators. She spoke intimately a few wild July 2020 evening that began at a Hollywood Hills occasion and ended together with her in handcuffs and later in a hospital with bullet fragments in her toes.

Southern California ports are shedding to East Coast rivals, threatening L.A.-area jobs. The backup that started early in 2020 is gone now, however massive issues stay for the ports of Los Angeles and Lengthy Seaside.

Stephen ‘Twitch’ Boss, the DJ for ‘The Ellen DeGeneres Present,’ died at 40. The previous actuality star rose via the TV ranks because the DJ and later govt producer on the “Ellen DeGeneres Present,” competed on “So You Assume You Can Dance” and appeared in “Magic Mike XXL.” Learn his spouse and dance accomplice Allison Holker’s tribute.

Can California’s electric-vehicle push overcome the red-state backlash? You’ll be able to’t full the shift to electrical automobiles if they’re considered as one thing just for wealthy liberals in California and New York. You want everybody.

L.A.’s wealthy are already scheming methods to keep away from new ‘mansion tax.’ Loss of life and taxes are life’s two certainties — however not if the wealthy may also help it.

ICYMI, listed below are this week’s nice reads

Massive Hashish is funding UCLA, Harvard, MIT research on weed. The Instances requested UCLA officers whether or not the college accepted donations from the trade to help this system. They mentioned no. However paperwork obtained by the newspaper present that hashish corporations and buyers offered a minimum of a number of the early monetary help.

Extra on pot

‘I’m not going with out you.’ Ukrainian lovers defy the foundations of warfare.

The drought persists. However one enchanted backyard on the foot of the Sierra tends to individuals.

Non-public jets and tens of millions weren’t sufficient. This con man wished one thing extra.

Hungry? These are the 101 greatest eating places in Los Angeles.

A 1926 Spanish bungalow has housed this household for practically 30 years. Can a small ADU assist shelter them for 30 extra?

This eclectic mountaintop city nonetheless looks like a secret. Welcome to Idyllwild.

At present’s week-in-review e-newsletter was curated by Karim Doumar. Please tell us what we will do to make this article extra helpful to you. Ship feedback, complaints and concepts to essentialcalifornia@latimes.com.