The most important stories for you to know today
A large group of migrants line up for a U.S. Customs and Border Protection officer at Jacumba Hot Spring, on June 6, 2024.The L.A. County Sheriff's Department told our media partner CBS LA that it occurred during some kind of Border Patrol operation.
The incident happened near the intersection of 126th Street and Mona Boulevard at around 7:30 a.m. The Sheriff's Department said no one was hurt from the gunfire, but it's unclear if anyone was taken into custody. The Sheriff's Department told our media partner CBS LA that its deputies were responding to reports of a crash and shooting. When they arrived, they found Border Patrol officers in the middle of an operation. It wasn't immediately clear what led to the gunfire.Low-income Californians once lost millions of dollars a month to fraudsters who raided their accounts for food assistance and other public benefits. Gov. Gavin Newsom is highlighting security improvements as the Trump administration accuses Democratic states of tolerating welfare fraud.The thefts still amounted to more than $4 million a month last fall in both the CalFresh food assistance and CalWorks cash welfare benefits programs, according to a press release from Newsom’s office. That’s down, when public benefits recipients were reporting $20 million a month stolen from their accounts. The state uses taxpayer money to reimburse victims when they report theft.over social services fraud in Minnesota, some of it allegedly by immigrants, as a reason to send immigration agents to conduct aggressive raids in Minneapolis.that left low-income Californians scrambling to pay rent and afford food each month, Gov. Gavin Newsom is touting a significant decline in the reported amount stolen. The thefts still amounted to more than $4 million a month last fall in both the CalFresh food assistance and CalWorks cash welfare benefits programs, according to a press release from Newsom’s office. That’s down, when public benefits recipients were reporting $20 million a month stolen from their accounts. The state uses taxpayer money to reimburse victims when they report theft. Newsom credited the reduction to the state’s rollout of anti-fraud technology such as more secure electronic benefit cards with electronic chips. “In California, we’re leading the way by turning innovation into action by stopping theft and ensuring benefits reach those who truly need them,” he said in a press release.over social services fraud in Minnesota, some of it allegedly by immigrants, as a reason to send immigration agents to conduct aggressive raids in Minneapolis. Earlier this month the Trump administration froze some federal social services funding to five Democratic-led states, including California. A judgeThe kind of fraud in which Newsom was touting reductions is not traditional “welfare fraud” perpetrated by recipients of public benefits, but rather theft by a third party. Local social services officials Thieves have been taking advantage of California benefits recipients by using hidden “skimming” devices to steal card numbers from EBT cards loaded withCalFresh food assistance and CalWorks cash welfare benefits. They then duplicate the cards andCalifornia was particularly susceptible because of the size of the state’s social safety net, with roughly 300,000 families receiving cash aid and 3 million receiving food assistance. CalMatters reported in 2023 that the state, previously focused on detecting fraud committed by recipients of the benefits, hadWhen the pandemic brought new benefits from the federal and state governments, such as boosted unemployment benefits and stimulus checks, thieves wielding card skimmers followed the money. EBT cards, which contained only a magnetic strip at the time, were among the most vulnerable to theft. Nearly 200 people have been charged across California in the EBT schemes, Newsom's office said. Since 2023 the state responded to the skimming crisis by issuing chipped EBT cards and introducing an app allowing recipients to freeze their EBT accounts to prevent withdrawals. Last year, Newsom said, the state began using a computer model to detect fraudulent withdrawals and forced resets of some CalWorks’ recipients EBT card PINs. But local welfare fraud investigators said the Newsom’s numbers paint too rosy a picture of the theft. Gregory Mahony, president of the California Welfare Fraud Investigators Association, said he believes the state’s reported thefts are undercounted. The figures are based on how much the state reimburses county welfare departments each month to return victims’ benefits. But some recipients don’t bother making a report, or report months of thefts but only get some of the money reimbursed, Mahony said. He also criticized the California Department of Social Services for dropping a requirement in 2023 that victims file police reports each time their benefits are stolen in order to get a reimbursement. That’s hurt the state’s tracking of theft and fraud, Mahony said. “This is not a systemic victory,” he said in a statement. “It is a delayed and partial mitigation of a crisis long allowed to grow unchecked.”"We probably won't get anything unless I decide to use excessive strength and force where we would be, frankly, unstoppable. But I won't do that. That's probably the biggest statement I made because people thought I would use force, but I don't have to use force. I don't want to use force. I won't use force."The president was speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. Other world leaders there have forcefully rejected Trump's campaign to take over Greenland.when he spoke at the World Economic Forum in Davos. But his belligerent foreign policy is once again overshadowing his attempts at a cohesive economic message. Trump's aggressive push to acquire Greenland has turned to open antagonism toward allies in recent days, becoming a central focus of this year's forum.President Donald Trump said Wednesday he is seeking immediate negotiations for the ownership of Greenland but he would not"use force." "We probably won't get anything unless I decide to use excessive strength and force where we would be, frankly, unstoppable. But I won't do that," he said during his speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. "That's probably the biggest statement I made because people thought I would use force, but I don't have to use force. I don't want to use force. I won't use force," he said. Trump said U.S. ownership of Greenland is necessary for national security and that"who the hell wants to defend a license agreement or release, which is a large piece of ice in the middle of the ocean." "So we want a piece of ice for world protection, and they won't give it. We've never asked for anything else, and we could have kept that piece of land, and we didn't. So they have a choice. You can say yes and we will be very appreciative, or you can say no and we will remember," Trump said.But his belligerent foreign policy is once again overshadowing his attempts at a cohesive economic message. Trump's aggressive push to acquire Greenland has turned to open antagonism toward allies in recent days, becoming a central focus of this year's forum. Just days before the forum began, Trump on social media threatened to tariff goods from eight European nations and NATO members until they support a U.S. deal to purchase Greenland. Those countries responded with a statement saying that they stand in solidarity with Denmark and Greenland, which is an autonomous territory of the Kingdom of Denmark.It also became clear in recent days that other world leaders were seeking to dissuade Trump from attempting to take over Greenland, when Trump on Monday night posted screenshots of text messages from Rutte began his message with flattery, praising Trump's recent strikes in Syria. Rutte added,"I am committed to finding a way forward on Greenland." Macron, for his part, was harsher:"I do not understand what you are doing on Greenland," he wrote, but added that he wanted to have dinner after Davos.All of this buildup has brought American foreign policy to center stage at Davos. When Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent took the stage with Fox Business's Maria Bartiromo yesterday, her first question was about Greenland:"How do you justify taking over a country when in fact Denmark and Greenland have said they're not interested?" "Greenland's becoming more and more attractive for foreign conquest, and he very strongly believes that it must be part of the U.S. to prevent a conflict," Bessent said as part of his answer. Meanwhile, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney on Tuesday delivered a forceful speech that, without mentioning Trump explicitly, argued that his policies are leading to the breakdown of the international order. "Let me be direct: We are in the midst of a rupture, not a transition," Carney said."Great powers have begun using economic integration as weapons, tariffs as leverage, financial infrastructure as coercion, supply chains as vulnerabilities to be exploited." "We stand firmly with Greenland and Denmark and fully support their unique right to determine Greenland's future. Our commitment toBut Trump, speaking at length with reporters Tuesday, seemed to step off the gas slightly when it came to his harsh rhetoric. Asked about how his push for Greenland could result in breaking up NATO, Trump seemed to demur.The foreign policy Trump is bringing to Davos goes beyond Greenland. On Thursday, he will participate in what the White House is calling a Board of Peace Charter Announcement. The"Board of Peace" is being created as part of Trump's 20-point plan to end the conflict between Israel and Hamas and has come under sharp criticism. A copy of the chartersaid that countries that want permanent membership will have to pay $1 billion, and that Trump is the permanent chair, even after his term as U.S. president ends. The charter also says that the world needs a more effective international peace-building body — which may signal the board is hoping to act as a rival to the U.N. The board's membership is still unsettled, but Trump said he has asked Russia's president, Vladimir Putin, to take part. Meanwhile, France's Macron has said he will not join. Trump told reporters this week that his main message in Davos will be"how well the United States is doing." Economic advisor Kevin Hassett has said the president will also be revealing a new housing policy.If you're enjoying this article, you'll love our daily newsletter, The LA Report. Each weekday, catch up on the 5 most pressing stories to start your morning in 3 minutes or less.California Democratic Sens. Alex Padilla and Adam Schiff speak to the media outside the California City Immigration Processing Center in Kern County after a congressional oversight tour Tuesday.Senators Alex Padilla and Adam Schiff toured the the California City Immigration Processing Center in Kern County on Tuesday. They met with staff for roughly six hours and left the tour concerned about the conditions at the facility.The facility is the largest detention center in California. Up until March 2024, the facility served as both a state and federal prison, but was taken over by ICE last year. Roughly 1,450 people are currently being held there according to officials. The California City Immigration Processing Center in Kern County is roughly 100 miles north of Los Angeles and operated by private-prison contractor CoreCivic. The California City facility has not been inspected by the federal government since it started to receive detainees in August.“A lot of the concerns we heard were about very valid healthcare issues not being addressed. The staff here acknowledged there’s been gaps,” Schiff said. The facility has the capacity to hold 2,500 people, but it already appears short-staffed and lacking proper medical supplies, like insulin for people with diabetes, the Democratic senators said after their congressional oversight tour. Some of the detainees said they became ill after eating moldy food and drinking water while in custody.Overcrowded cells, moldy food and lack of medical care are some of the issues plaguing a California detention center amid the recent onslaught of immigration raids by the Trump administration, according to Sens. Alex Padilla and Adam Schiff, who on Tuesday toured the facility in Kern County. About 1,450 people are currently being held at the California City Immigration Processing Center, according to officials. Schiff and Padilla expect more to be brought to the facility as the The Kern County facility has the capacity to hold 2,500 people, but it already appears short-staffed and lacking proper medical supplies, like insulin for people with diabetes, the Democratic senators said after their congressional oversight tour. The majority of the detainees they met at the facility do not have a prior criminal records and were detained at their immigration appointments. The senators toured the facility and met with staff for roughly six hours Tuesday. They left the tour concerned about the conditions at the facility. “A lot of the concerns we heard were about very valid healthcare issues not being addressed. The staff here acknowledged there’s been gaps,” Schiff said. Some of the detainees said they became ill after eating moldy food and drinking water while in custody. “I’m leaving here even more concerned than I was when I arrived,” Padilla said. “If the administration is true to their word, the population here is only going to grow. So the need to address nutrition, medical attention, mental healthcare is only going to grow.Some of the men and women being held at the facility were detained in Los Angeles County, but others were taken from other parts of the country. “That is absolutely a concern, not just for people from within the state of California to travel long distances, unable to see a family member, but I met a number of detainees here from elsewhere in the country,” Padilla said. “So access to their counsel prior and certainly to their family members is only exacerbated, to that effect.” Padilla asked, “Why are people from other states being sent here? We also hear people from California being sent to other states.”At least six people have died while in ICE custody this year, according to Padilla and Schiff. “In terms of getting the standards enforced to make sure they’re being upheld, that requires oversight, and it should be more than the two of us coming out to the detention facility without the power of the subpoena,” Schiff said. “Congress should hold hearings about the conditions in these detention facilities.” The California City Immigration Processing Center in Kern County is roughly 100 miles north of Los Angeles and operated by private-prison contractor CoreCivic. CoreCivic and the Department of Homeland Security did not immediately respond to requests for comment about Tuesday’s tour. The California City facility has not been inspected by the federal government since it started to receive detainees in August. Padilla, ranking member of the Senate Judiciary Immigration Subcommittee, and Schiff toured the facility as masked agents continue to carry out an unrelenting wave of immigration sweeps across the country. The senators spoke to reporters outside the remote detention center, one year after President Donald Trump was sworn into office for his second term. “Today marks the first anniversary of the second Trump administration, and if there’s two takeaways from his first year,” Padilla said, “one is the economic chaos and uncertainty that so many working families are feeling, and the second clearly is the cruelty of a mass deportation agenda, which has included a lot of indiscriminate detentions, arrests, deportations, many without due process. ”The facility is the largest detention center in California. Up until March 2024, the facility served as both a state and federal prison, but was taken over by ICE last year. A CoreCivic officer stood guard near the facility parking lot throughout the morning. A gaggle of news reporters waited outside the facility’s barbed wire fence for the tour to be complete. The oversight visit comes as some Democrats in Congress consider various restrictions on funding for ICE operations and two weeks after federal agents shot and killed Renee Good in Minneapolis during an immigration operation. The latest estimates show that more than 73,000 people are being held in ICE custody .Early evening electricity demand is only expected to grow as the world moves away from fossil fuels, with more people buying induction stoves, heat pumps and electric vehicles. That’s a challenge for utilities, which are already managing creaky grids across the United States, all while trying to meet a growing demand for power. So they’re now trying to turn EVs from a burden into a boon.One idea showing promise is using algorithms stagger when EVs charge, instead of them all drawing energy as soon as their owners plug in. The idea is for some people to charge later, but still have a full battery when they leave for work in the morning.If you’re a typical American, you get home from work and start flipping switches and turning knobs — doing laundry, cooking dinner, watching TV. With so many other folks doing the same, the strain on the electrical grid in residential areas is highest at this time. That demand will only grow as the world moves away from fossil fuels, with more people buying induction stoves, heat pumps and electric vehicles.This article was originally published by Grist, an LAist partner newsroom. Grist is a nonprofit, independent media organization dedicated to telling stories of climate solutions and a just future. Learn more at Grist.org. Sign up for That’s a challenge for utilities, which are already managing creaky grids across the United States, all while trying to meet a growing demand for power. So they’re now trying to turn EVs from a burden into a boon. More and more models, for instance, feature “vehicle-to-grid,” or V2G, capabilities, meaning they can send power to the grid as needed. Others are experimenting with what’s called active managed charging, in which algorithms stagger when EVs charge, instead of them all drawing energy as soon as their owners plug in. The idea is for some people to charge later, but still have a full battery when they leave for work in the morning. A new report from the Brattle Group, an economic and energy consultancy, done for EnergyHub, which develops such technology, has used real-world data from EV owners in Washington state to demonstrate the potential of this approach, both for utilities and drivers. They found that an active managed charging program saves up to $400 per EV each year, and the vehicles were still always fully charged in the morning. Utilities, too, seem to benefit, as the redistributed demand results in less of a spike in the early evening. That, in turn, would mean that a utility can delay costly upgrades — which they need in order to accommodate increased electrification — saving ratepayers money.Active managed charging works in conjunction with something called “time of use,” in which a utility charges different rates depending on the time of day. Between 4 p.m. and 9 p.m., when demand is high, rates are also high. But after 9 p.m., they fall. EV owners who wait until later in the evening to charge pay less for the same electricity. Time-of-use pricing discourages energy use when demand is highest, lightening the load and reducing how much electricity utilities need to generate. But there’s nothing stopping everyone from plugging in as soon as cheaper rates kick in at 9 p.m. As EV adoption grows, that coordination problem can create a new spike in demand. “An EV can be, on its own, twice the peak load of a typical home,” said Akhilesh Ramakrishnan, managing energy associate at the Brattle Group. “You get to the point where they start needing to be managed differently.” That’s where active managed charging comes in. Using an app, an EV owner indicates when they need their car to be charged, and how much charge their battery needs for the day. When the owner gets home at 6 p.m., the owner can plug in, but the car won’t begin to charge. Instead, the system waits until some point in the night to turn on the juice, leaving enough time to fully charge the vehicle by the indicated hour. “If customers don’t believe that we’re going to get them there, then they’re not going to allow us to control their vehicle effectively,” said Freddie Hall, a data scientist at EnergyHub. The typical driver goes only 30 miles in a day, Hall added, requiring about two hours of charging each night. By actively managing many cars across neighborhoods, the system can more evenly distribute demand throughout the night: Folks will leave for work earlier or later than their neighbors, vehicles with bigger batteries will need more time to charge, and some will be almost empty while others may need to top up. They’re all still getting the lower prices with time of use rates, but they’re not taxing the grid by all charging at 9 p.m. “The results are actually very, very promising in terms of reducing the peak loads,” said Jan Kleissl, the director of the Center for Energy Research at UC San Diego who wasn’t involved in the report. “It shows big potential for reducing costs of EV charging in general.” Active managed charging would allow the grid to accommodate twice the number of EVs before a utility has to start upgrading the system to handle the added load, according to the report. Those costs inevitably get passed down to all ratepayers. But, the report notes, active managed charging could delay those upgrades by up to a decade. “As EVs grow, if you don’t implement these solutions, there’s going to be a lot more upgrades, and that’s going to lead to rate impacts for everyone,” Ramakrishnan said.At the same time, EVs could help reduce those rates in the long term, thanks to V2G, a separate emerging technology. It allows a utility to call on EVs sitting in garages as a vast network of backup power. So when demand surges, those vehicles can send power to the grid for others to use, or just power the house they’re sitting in, essentially removing the structure from the grid and lowering demand. With all that backup energy, utilities might not need to build as many costly battery facilities of their own, projects that ratepayers wouldn’t need to foot the bill for. Active managed charging and V2G could work in concert, with some batteries draining at 6 p.m. as they provide energy, then recharging later at night. But that ballet will require more large-scale experimentation. “How are we going to fit in discharging a battery, as well as charging it overnight?” Hall said. “Because you do want it available the next day.” To cut greenhouse gas emissions as quickly as possible, the world needs more EVs. Now it’s just a matter of making them benefit the grid instead of taxing it.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
San Leandro police shoot at suspect they say wielded rifleThe officer who fired is a 4 1/2-year veteran of the department, police said.
Read more »
Marina police fatally shoot man during traffic stopPolice in Monterey County fatally shot a driver during a traffic stop over the weekend, according to authorities.
Read more »
Agente federal involucrado en un tiroteo en WillowbrookUn tiroteo en el que se vio involucrado un agente federal el miércoles por la mañana en el área de Willowbrook provocó una gran respuesta de las autoridades locales y federales.
Read more »
Federal agent involved in shooting in Willowbrook, prompting massive response from authoritiesA shooting involving a federal agent on Wednesday morning in Willowbrook prompted a large response from local and federal authorities.
Read more »
Federal Agents Involved in Shooting During Immigration Operation in Los AngelesAn investigation is ongoing after a shooting involving federal agents during an immigration enforcement operation in Willowbrook, Los Angeles County. The incident occurred when agents pursued a vehicle that crashed, leading to shots being fired. Suspects are in custody, and federal authorities are conducting an internal review.
Read more »
Federal agents involved in shooting in LA's Willowbrook areaAn investigation is underway into a shooting involving federal agents during an immigration enforcement operation in Willowbrook, according to authorities.
Read more »