Investigation Uncovers Mass Dog Graves at Fortuna Rescue

A vegetation fire broke out in Butte County on Friday afternoon, prompting an evacuation warning for residents near the town of Paradise, an area still haunted by the devastating Camp Fire of 2018. Cal Fire reported that the Pentz Fire was burning off Pentz Road near Lindenbaum Lane in lower Paradise.

The Butte County Sheriff's Office issued an evacuation warning for residents living in Zone 461, urging them to be prepared to leave at a moment's notice. Air and ground resources have been deployed to contain the blaze, which is currently burning in a rural area with vegetation.

The warning comes as a stark reminder of the 2018 Camp Fire, the deadliest and most destructive wildfire in California history, which was sparked by faulty Pacific Gas and Electric power lines. That fire claimed 85 lives, destroyed over 18,000 structures, and forced tens of thousands of residents to flee.

As of Friday afternoon, no further details on the size or containment of the Pentz Fire have been released, but officials are monitoring the situation closely. This is a breaking news story and more information will be added as it becomes available.

A driver was killed early Friday morning in a single-vehicle crash on the westbound 134 Freeway connector near the 5 Freeway, close to the Los Angeles Zoo in Griffith Park. The California Highway Patrol reported the incident occurred around 6:05 a.m.

on June 26, 2026.

Emergency responders arrived to find the driver had been pronounced dead at the scene. The crash prompted the closure of two lanes on the westbound 134 at the 5 Freeway interchange.

A SigAlert was issued at 7:05 a.m. and extended at 9:00 a.m.

as authorities worked to clear the area and investigate the cause.

Traffic was severely impacted, with westbound backups stretching to Glendale Avenue. Commuters experienced significant delays throughout the morning rush hour.

The CHP is continuing its investigation into the circumstances of the crash, and no further details about the driver's identity have been released at this time.

The area, near the Los Angeles Zoo in Griffith Park, is a busy interchange that connects the 134 and 5 freeways. Authorities urge drivers to use alternate routes and exercise caution in the area.

A Los Angeles Superior Court judge has denied District Attorney Nathan Hochman's request to delay more than $4 billion in sexual abuse settlement payments until the end of the year, ruling against the prosecutor's bid to freeze funds while his office investigates fraud allegations.

The $4 billion settlement, approved by the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors in 2025, resolves over 11,000 claims of sexual abuse brought by individuals who were previously in custody at county juvenile halls, foster homes, and children's shelters. The abuse victims' attorneys argued vehemently against any blanket freeze, emphasizing that many claimants have endured severe hardships and lengthy delays.

During a June 15 hearing before Judge Lawrence P. Riff, lawyers for the victims stressed the urgent need for payments.

Hochman had indicated he was open to clearing verified hardship cases first, but the judge wanted additional briefing and held another hearing on Thursday, ultimately denying the stay request despite Hochman's claims that fraudulent submissions could be as high as 81%.

In court filings, the victims' legal team argued that these are not active civil cases awaiting trial. "The county chose to settle.

Individual plaintiffs executed individual settlement agreements. The parties adopted a master settlement agreement and allocation protocol.

The county agreed to fund the settlement," the firm's papers stated. They further contended that Hochman has no claim to the settlement funds, is not responsible for funding the settlement, and does not gain or lose by the direct legal operation of any settlement allocation.

Although Hochman argued that payment could interfere with an ongoing criminal investigation, the judge sided with the plaintiffs' lawyers, who maintained that this does not create a direct interest in settled claims or authorize him to suspend performance of individual contracts.

In his own court papers, Hochman asserted there were "significant allegations of fraud in a very significant majority of these cases" and that a hold until December 31 was necessary to protect the integrity of the settlement process. He stated he filed the motion "with the interests of the real victims in mind," adding, "This intervention is critical to safeguarding the rights of the legitimate child abuse survivors, including preserving the integrity of the settlement process.

It will also help ensure that individuals who have allegedly filed fraudulent claims are held accountable for exploiting the horrific abuse and trauma experienced by genuine survivors."

Three other plaintiffs' law firms, including McNicholas & McNicholas, expressed in their court filings that Hochman's intervention "has added a painful new layer to years of trauma." They highlighted that many claimants are gravely ill, have taken out high-interest loans against their expected recoveries, and are being deprived of funds needed for medical care, counseling, and rising living costs. "And now they watch as a non-party, with no standing in the settlement, publicly brands them potential fraudsters," the firms added.

A man who brutally beat and strangled a woman in Scripps Ranch more than 35 years ago was sentenced Friday to 25 years to life in state prison. Randall Oyler, 65, was found guilty by a downtown San Diego Superior Court jury of first-degree murder for killing 47-year-old Margaret Orozco Jackson.

Her body was discovered on July 11, 1990, off Scripps Ranch Boulevard, on land that later became the site of Scripps Ranch High School.

Deputy District Attorney Chris Lindberg told jurors that a woman walking to work on the morning of July 11 spotted a length of rope on the sidewalk. The rope led down a hill to Jackson’s body, wrapped twice around her neck.

The prosecutor described the killing as unprovoked and a brutal attack, noting that Jackson was strangled for five to six minutes.

Oyler was not identified as a suspect until decades later when DNA testing linked him to genetic material found beneath the victim’s fingernails and from other areas of her body. He was arrested on suspicion of murder in 2023.

During the trial, video clips from an undercover jail operation showed Oyler discussing the killing. In one clip, Oyler said, "She scratched me." In another, when an operative asked if he "just left her there," Oyler responded that he "threw her down a hill."

In a probation report interview, Oyler claimed that Jackson had stolen drugs from him. However, Lindberg noted that when Oyler was placed in a cell with an undercover jail operative posing as an inmate, he made several incriminating statements but never mentioned a drug theft.

"While no one really knows if this is true, such a slight provocation is no excuse for such a cruel murder," Lindberg wrote in a sentencing memorandum.

At Friday’s sentencing hearing, Jackson’s niece, Rebecca Cepeda, called Oyler "a monster." She said, "You took her life, and for what? Now you’re going to spend, who knows, the rest of your life in prison, and for nothing."

Oyler did not make a statement in court, but his defense attorney, Kara Oien, said on his behalf, "He does want to say he is sorry and express his condolences to the family. He knows that doesn’t excuse anything, but does wish to say he is sorry."

Judge Jeffrey Fraser said he believed there was "no doubt" that Oyler committed the murder and "he did get away with it for over three decades." The judge added, "There used to be a saying that, ‘Justice delayed is justice denied,’ and to a large extent that’s true, but it’s not true today."

On one of the hottest afternoons of the summer in Southern Humboldt, temperatures climbed into the upper 90s as fans pushed warm air through the Mateel Community Center. Inside, cannabis industry stakeholders from across Humboldt County gathered for nearly three hours with California Department of Cannabis Control Director Clint Kellum and members of his staff.

The meeting, attended by Humboldt County Supervisor Michelle Bushnell and approximately 75 industry stakeholders, was emotional, passionate, and deeply personal.

The visit came at a pivotal time for Humboldt County, the heart of California’s cannabis industry. The region has experienced years of declining prices, rising production costs, and shrinking legal sales.

Speakers repeatedly emphasized that preserving the state’s remaining legacy cultivators is about more than cannabis—it’s about protecting rural communities, small businesses, and an agricultural heritage that helped shape California.

Opening the meeting, Kellum cited 2024 data showing California produced approximately 12.8 million pounds of cannabis, while about 3.8 million pounds were consumed statewide. Of that, only about 1.4 million pounds moved through the legal market.

“If people aren’t using the legal market,” Kellum said, “we can’t really achieve the consumer protections and environmental safeguards the regulated system was designed to provide.”

Throughout the late afternoon, discussion centered on licensing, METRC track-and-trace, embargoes, regulatory issues, plant tagging, taxes, security requirements, direct-to-consumer sales, appellations, and unannounced compliance inspections. Despite the wide-ranging discussion, an underlying theme emerged: whether meaningful reforms can come quickly enough for Humboldt County’s remaining legacy cultivators and cannabis businesses to endure.

Cannabis farmer Thomas Mulder reminded regulators that many licensed cultivation sites are also family homes. “These are our homes,” Mulder said, describing the realities of living on remote rural properties where theft and unannounced regulatory visits remain a constant concern.

That concern became evident when cultivator Tina Gordon asked attendees to raise their hands if they had experienced losses from theft. A large majority of the room responded, illustrating why many cannabis operators view unexpected visitors with anxiety.

Humboldt County Growers Alliance Vice Chair Indy Riggs said the challenges facing cultivators extend beyond individual farms, affecting Humboldt County’s economy, local businesses, and rural communities. Whitethorn Valley Farm’s Gaylen Doherty stated that high taxes, regulatory costs, and limited retail access continue pushing consumers toward the illicit market while making it increasingly difficult for small farms to compete.

He urged California to expand direct-to-consumer sales, comparing cannabis to the state’s wine industry, where boutique wineries benefited from tasting rooms and direct sales.

In a visual demonstration of industry concerns over plant-tagging requirements, Mikal Jakubal, owner of Plant Humboldt Cannabis Nursery in Briceland, carried a box filled with thousands of plant tags to the front of the room, illustrating the sheer volume required under the current system. “We’re the experts here on the ground,” Jakubal said.

“You should be coming to us on how to fix this mess.”

Another cultivator, Cassandra Taliaferro, described being required to destroy approximately 30 pounds of cannabis over what she characterized as a technical compliance issue, despite pursuing multiple avenues to resolve the matter. She said experiences like hers have contributed to a perception among some operators that the department is focused more on enforcement than helping businesses achieve compliance.

Responding to concerns, Kellum acknowledged the emotion expressed in the room and said he understood the historical relationship between cannabis communities and law enforcement. He defended unannounced inspections as an important compliance tool while emphasizing that the department is working to reduce regulatory burdens through proposals, including group tagging and other reforms.

He also rejected the suggestion that larger operators receive preferential treatment, saying enforcement standards apply equally regardless of operation size.

Following the meeting, Humboldt County Growers Alliance President Hannah Whyte said she hopes the visit marks the beginning of meaningful progress. “It was a step in the right direction for the department to come to Southern Humboldt,” Whyte said.

“I hope this becomes a platform for us to identify meaningful changes that reduce those pressure valves. It’s costly for the state to regulate us the way it’s happening now, and it isn’t helping the regulated market.

I hope this leads to refinements that create a healthier economic environment for California’s cannabis industry.”

With only a few hundred licensed cultivation operations remaining in Humboldt County, the nearly three-hour meeting concluded with many of the industry’s most pressing questions still unanswered. The conversation touched on only a fraction of the economic, regulatory, and cultural challenges facing Humboldt County’s legacy cannabis community—issues whose complexity cannot be fully explored, much less resolved, in a single afternoon.