Topline:
A California Senate committee just gutted one of the state’s most substantial DUI reform bills in years, despite widespread support from other lawmakers and families of drunk driving victims.
Why it matters: The bill would have required in-car breathalyzers for anyone convicted of a DUI, bringing California in line with most states. State law currently only requires the devices, called ignition interlock devices, after repeat offenses or injury crashes.
A California Senate committee just gutted one of the state’s most substantial DUI reform bills in years, despite widespread support from other lawmakers and families of drunk driving victims.
The bill would have required in-car breathalyzers for anyone convicted of a DUI, bringing California in line with most states. State law currently only requires the devices, called ignition interlock devices, after repeat offenses or injury crashes.
Sabrina Cervantes, a Democrat from the Inland Empire and chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, provided a hint of changes last week when she said there were amendments to the bill that had been approved unanimously by the committee. This week, an updated version of the legislation emerged, and it effectively killed a key provision to start requiring the devices for thousands of first-time offenders. Such changes are commonly referred to as “hostile amendments” because they are made without the involvement or support of the bill’s author.
Cervantes was arrested for a DUI in a high-profile incident in Sacramento in May 2025. The District Attorney’s Office did not prosecute her after a blood test showed no drugs or alcohol in her system. Cervantes then sued the city of Sacramento and several of its police officers, alleging that that police fabricated evidence and falsely arrested her. Cervantes’s sister, state Assembly candidate Clarissa Cervantes, has herself been convicted of two DUIs in Southern California, according to media reports.
Sabrina Cervantes did not respond to our request for comment for this story. We will update it if she does.
As news of the bill’s gutting spread this week, Kellie Montalvo was left wondering if there’d been some sort of horrible mistake. Montalvo, whose 21-year-old son Benjamin was killed by an impaired driver in Cervantes’s district in 2020, said she was just in Sacramento two weeks ago lobbying lawmakers – including Cervantes – on a slate of dangerous driving bills. Many of those bills have already failed.
“It’s heartbreaking, and I try to tell myself not to lose hope,” Montalvo said. “I mean, California has got to do something. Our numbers are horrific.”
Alcohol-related roadway deaths in California spiked more than 50% in a decade — an increase more than twice as steep as the rest of the country, federal data shows. More than 1,300 people die each year statewide in drunken collisions.
Over the last two years, a CalMatters investigation has shown how state officials have allowed dangerous drivers to stay on the road and kill, and how elected leaders have looked away even as the death toll skyrocketed.
For years, lawmakers have tried and failed to require in-car breathalyzers for all DUI offenders. Progressive justice reform groups and the DMV have opposed similar bills in the past, citing fears about unfairly penalizing poor DUI offenders, high costs and the DMV’s aging technology.
Montalvo and other advocates thought this year might be different. The DMV has actively participated in state hearings and, she and others said, provided technical advice to make sure the bill was realistic. Gov. Gavin Newsom also instructed lawmakers last year to continue to work on the state’s breathalyzer laws and develop “a lasting program that strengthens public safety.”
It’s unclear why this year’s bill was gutted at the 11th hour. Public records show that Senate Appropriations committee staff recently expressed concern about costs.
The amendment process is opaque even to Sacramento insiders.
“Honestly it’s sometimes a bit of a black box even for us as legislators,” said the bill’s author, Assemblymember Cottie Petrie-Norris, an Orange County Democrat. “I am still trying myself to get to the bottom of it.”
Petrie-Norris, who has spent the past three years trying to pass a version of this bill, said she does not believe Cervantes’ personal experience played a role in the decision to amend the bill. She added that she is still working to re-amend the measure after “unintended consequences” that she says would make the policy unworkable for the DMV and hurt California’s eligibility for federal funding.
Asked for an interview to explain the changes to the bill, Senate President Pro Tem Monique Límon’s office referred questions to Cervantes. Diana Crofts-Pelayo, Newsom’s chief deputy director of communications, also declined to answer questions about the breathalyzer bill, saying the office does not typically comment on pending legislation.
While the bill heads into the final days of negotiations, Montalvo and other victims’ families are grappling with deja vu. It was just about a year ago that they were standing in the Capitol with photos of their loved ones and told the bill was doomed.
She stays busy checking in with the parole officer for the Riverside County driver who killed her son. Last she heard, the driver was trying to get her license back after being released early from prison.
Topline:
Republican Sonja Shaw conceded the race for California Superintendent of Public Instruction to Democrat Richard Barrera late Wednesday evening. “Last night voters made their choice. I would be lying if I said my heart wasn’t heavy,” Shaw said in a statement shared on social media. “As a mother and a protector of children, I feel deeply saddened for the kids. They are the ones who deserve so much better.”
The backstory: The office of California superintendent of public instruction is nonpartisan, with no party affiliation listed on the ballot. In past races, it was not unusual for two Democrats to advance to the November election. But this year, endorsements, campaign funding and campaigning broke largely along partisan lines. Shaw, a Republican and board president of Chino Valley Unified, emerged as the top vote getter in a crowded June primary that featured several Democratic state lawmakers. But she contended in her statement that her race didn’t have the “money or machinery” that her opponent did in the November election.
What to know: Shaw trailed Barrera by nearly 15 percentage points, according to the latest election results Thursday morning. Shaw’s campaign raised about $595,000 compared to Barrera’s $812,000. However, the California Teachers Association, the state’s largest teachers union and a heavy spender in state superintendent races, also spent $8.4 million to support Barrera, the board president of San Diego Unified.
Republican Sonja Shaw conceded the race for California Superintendent of Public Instruction to Democrat Richard Barrera late Wednesday evening.
“Last night voters made their choice. I would be lying if I said my heart wasn’t heavy,” Shaw said in a statement shared on social media. “As a mother and a protector of children, I feel deeply saddened for the kids. They are the ones who deserve so much better.”
In her social media post, which included a photo of Shaw locking hands with her husband and two daughters, Shaw said her kids had motivated her to run for state superintendent. Shaw won election to the Chino Valley Unified school board in 2022, fueled by support from conservative parents.
“The problem is that for decades, the same people have had their hands on our education system while our children have continued to fall behind,” Shaw said. “I believe we had an opportunity to change that.”
The office of California superintendent of public instruction is nonpartisan, with no party affiliation listed on the ballot. In past races, it was not unusual for two Democrats to advance to the November election. But this year, endorsements, campaign funding and campaigning broke largely along partisan lines.
Shaw, a Republican and board president of Chino Valley Unified, emerged as the top vote getter in a crowded June primary that featured several Democratic state lawmakers. But she contended in her statement that her race didn’t have the “money or machinery” that her opponent did in the November election.
Shaw trailed Barrera by nearly 15 percentage points, according to the latest election results Thursday morning. Shaw’s campaign raised about $595,000 compared to Barrera’s $812,000. However, the California Teachers Association, the state’s largest teachers union and a heavy spender in state superintendent races, also spent $8.4 million to support Barrera, the board president of San Diego Unified.
That pales in comparison to the combined $50 million raised in the 2018 state superintendent race Tony Thurmond won against Marshall Tuck in 2018. The 2026 state superintendent race had the distinction of featuring two local school board members.
Shaw said she’s not sure what her next steps will be.
“I don’t know exactly what God has next, but I know He isn’t finished,” she said.
Shaw will not be returning to the Chino Valley Unified school board where she began her political career. Her husband, Chris Shaw, ran for her open seat and is trailing his challenger by 11 points, according to the San Bernardino County Register of Voters.
This story was originally published by EdSource.
EdSource is an independent nonprofit organization that provides analysis on key education issues facing California and the nation. LAist republishes articles from EdSource with permission.
Topline:
A coyote has become the first large animal to be seen using the wildlife crossing over the 101 Freeway ahead of its opening next month.
The backstory: The expansive bridge, on which construction began in 2022, is aimed at giving animals a way to safely cross the freeway in Agoura Hills.
Why it matters: The crossing took years of planning and research, and footage of a coyote using it has encouraged those behind the bridge. “The animals are already blessing this crossing and saying, ‘Yep, you got it right,’” said Beth Pratt, president of the Wildlife Crossing Fund.
What’s next: The crossing officially opens on Dec. 2 in a ribbon-cutting ceremony.
Read on… to learn more about the sighting.
The Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing over the 101 Freeway in Agoura Hills is set to officially open next month, but that hasn’t stopped some wildlife from already using it.
Cameras captured coyote footage twice — once last week and again on Thursday morning — making the mammal the first large animal species seen using the crossing.
“This is amazing — obviously, the wildlife are not waiting for our opening date,” said Beth Pratt, president of the Wildlife Crossing Fund. “The animals are already blessing this crossing and saying, ‘Yep, you got it right.’”
Construction of the expansive bridge began in 2022, aimed at giving wildlife safe passage between the Santa Monica Mountains and Simi Hills after years of research.
Pratt said it’s unclear whether the images of the coyote are of the same animal. The coyote in the most recent image from Thursday morning can be seen on the 101 structure holding a bone or a stick in its mouth.
“The coyote is validating that we got this designed right, and I think that there's something also about a coyote being first — kind of the L.A. mascot next to P-22,” Pratt said.
The National Park Service is installing more cameras along the crossing to document and study how animals use it. While images will be made publicly available, there will not be a livestream.
“We can't, for security reasons, because this is L.A., and if there's a mountain lion going across, somebody's gonna go try to pet it,” Pratt said.
Topline:
Marissa Roy will be the next L.A. city attorney. Her opponent, John McKinney, appeared to concede Thursday.
Topline:
Marissa Roy will be the next L.A. city attorney. Her opponent, John McKinney, appeared to concede Thursday.
Topline:
Construction of the green metal fence around MacArthur Park will begin Monday, Nov. 16, with work scheduled to continue through fall 2027. The city announced the start date on Thursday, saying crews will install an 8-foot fence around the park’s perimeter. Nearby residents and businesses can expect some noise, dust and vibration during construction, although the city said mitigation measures will be in place.
Why it matters:
The backstory: Crews will work Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., and the park will remain open while crews are working. The fence is the city’s latest attempt to tackle longstanding problems at MacArthur Park, including drug use, homelessness and crime. The city first approved plans for the fence in October 2025, and the proposal has since drawn both support and criticism from residents and community groups.
Go deeper: for more details on the fence roll out.
Construction of the green metal fence around MacArthur Park will begin Monday, Nov. 16, with work scheduled to continue through fall 2027.
The city announced the start date Nov. 4, saying crews will install an 8-foot fence around the park’s perimeter. Nearby residents and businesses can expect some noise, dust and vibration during construction, although the city said mitigation measures will be in place.
Crews will work Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., and the park will remain open while crews are working.
The fence is the city’s latest attempt to tackle longstanding problems at MacArthur Park, including drug use, homelessness and crime.
The city first approved plans for the fence in October 2025, and the proposal has since drawn both support and criticism from residents and community groups.
Some say they hope the fence will make the park safer, while others question whether it will actually improve conditions there. Police and city officials say the fence will give them more control over the space and make it easier to enforce the law.
Ana Luz Vazquez, a street vendor near MacArthur Park, said her main concern about the fence is what will happen to the unhoused people who stay in the park throughout the day and whether the city plans to address that issue directly.
She is also concerned that construction during the day could affect her ability to work because of traffic, less parking availability and loud noise.
Vazquez said she would prefer construction to take place at night so it would have less of an impact on street vendors.
“If they’re working in the day then how are we supposed to come here and who is going to help us survive,” Vazquez said.
Phase 1
Phase 2
Existing trees will be protected and monitored during the work, according to the Department of Recreation and Parks. Traffic control measures will be in place during work hours, and crews will post temporary “No Parking” signs near active work areas in advance.
Services at the park are expected to remain the same throughout construction. The schedule could change because of weather or other unforeseen circumstances, according to the city.
The city has allocated $2.3 million for the project, but officials have not said whether that will cover the full cost.
After the fence is installed, the city plans a second phase focused on adding decorative elements. Officials have said residents will have an opportunity to provide input on the design.
Residents with questions or concerns about the project can contact Recreation and Parks at RAP.PublicInfo@lacity.org or 213-202-2700.
The post MacArthur Park fence construction to begin Nov. 16 appeared first on LA Local.
