Fat Leonard is back in San Diego
Good Morning, I’m Debbie Cruz….it’s Friday, January 5th.
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After more than a year in hiding, Fat Leonard is back in San Diego.
More on that next. But first... let’s do the headlines….
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The latest covid surveillance shows a big increase in the amount of virus in the county right now.
The numbers are the highest they’ve been in two years.
Dr. Christopher Longhurst of UC-SD Health says the reason for the current spike is simple.
“We just finished the holidays and so this is a normal occurrence every winter. Before COVID we traded other viruses like the Flu and RSV, and in fact, influenza and RSV are also quite high right now. So it's common that people will have had the sniffles at the holiday parties and exchange those viruses.”
There are far fewer hospitalizations now compared to 20-22, but Longhurst says they will likely increase in the next few weeks.
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The San Diego Humane Society took in about 100 pets after New Year’s Eve.
And they’re looking to reunite them with their owners.
Only 15 of the pets have been claimed so far.
The Humane Society says it’s waiving fees to reclaim lost pets through this Sunday, but some other fees will still apply.
If you or someone you know lost a pet, you can text “LOST” to 858-SAN-LOST, or, visit sd-humane-dot-org-slash-lost.
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The SD-SU Aztecs are on a winning streak and return to the court tomorrow (Saturday).
The team beat Fresno State on Wednesday, in the Mountain West Conference opener.
The 27-point victory is the second-largest margin of victory for the Aztecs in series history.
They will be playing against U-N-L-V at Viejas Arena tomorrow.
Tip-off is at 1 P-M.
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From KPBS, you’re listening to San Diego News Now. Stay with me for more of the local news you need.
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The man who bribed scores of Navy officers over two decades then escaped from house arrest in San Diego more than a year ago is back and was in court yesterday (Wednesday).
Military reporter Andrew Dyer was at the federal courthouse downtown.
Attorneys for former Navy contractor Leonard Glenn Francis, better known as Fat Leonard, told a federal judge Thursday they'd no longer be representing the former businessman. Francis was arrested at a San Diego hotel in 2013 and in 2015 pleaded guilty to bribery. His sentencing was postponed while he helped federal prosecutors secure convictions against dozens of Navy officers. After four of those convictions were overturned due to prosecutorial misconduct, Francis fled house arrest escaping to Venezuela, where he was eventually arrested. Last month, Francis was returned to the United States in a prisoner swap. He's due back in court February 8 where prosecutors hope to finally see him sentenced more than 8 years after his conviction. They expect to file charges related to his flight from custody at a later date. Andrew Dyer, kpbs news.
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Some UC-SD postdoctoral scholars are facing the threat of deportation later this month.
Education Reporter M.G. Perez says, it’s the latest conflict with administration over their union contract.
It’s been almost a year since academic workers at UC San Diego signed a new contract with the administration…and there have been ongoing protests that the U-A-W contract is not being enforced in many ways. five international post doctoral scholars say their jobs were unexpectedly terminated over the holidays. And since they are on visas….they may be forced to leave the country unless they get their jobs back …by the end of the month. ja-NEEN knock-vee is Head Steward of the post doc union local 5810.. “it’s our view that the university really doesn’t really want to implement this contract that they signed…our position is that we’re going to continue to fight and make sure that every worker gets the rights that they deserve.” U-C San Diego administration did not respond to our request for comment on these terminations. MGP KPBS News.
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San Diego got another taste of big ocean waves this week.
Environment reporter Erik Anderson says several factors led to the heavy winter surf.
The waves were not washing over the sea wall at the La Jolla’s Children’s pool, but they were big enough. Beth Samous was visiting from Annapolis Maryland and she was taking in the sights. “Lots of beautiful waves that are coming in a nice formation.” Sea levels are up, the ocean is warmer, there are high tides and a storm is generating waves. Climatologist Dan Cayan says those conditions happened with a vengeance back in 1983. “That was a winter when a lot of the structures along the west coast were damaged and a lot of sediment loss and transport erosion and so forth.” Cayan says big wave events will happen more often as the planet warms. Erik Anderson KPBS News.
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Coming up.... Details on some of the arts events that are in store for the county this year. We’ll have that, just after the break.
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Arts editor and producer Julia Dixon Evans has a look into what we can expect from the arts in 20-24.
She joined my colleague Andrew Bracken.
Here’s their conversation.
So let's start with an event that combines visual art, music and performance — it's happening later this month. Project BLANK brings back their "Working Title" project for another year. What can you tell us about this event?
And one more arts event that combines both visual art and music… but this one involves a little road trip to the desert ….and its at The Borrego Art Institute.
Both San Diego and Tijuana were selected as the World Design Capital for 2024- they mark the first binational cities to receive that honor…. And that will bring events to the region throughout the year, but there are two festivals happening, in the spring and one in the fall. Tell us about those.
San Diego has about 50 theater companies and we've seen more than a few plays and musicals emerge from San Diego and then head to Broadway or become nationwide hits. So what does 2024 have to offer in San Diego's prolific theater scene?
And Idina Menzel is coming to town… she was the voice for Elsa in Frozen (Let it go) and has a long history on Broadway. How can we see her on stage here?
There's always a lot going on musically in San Diego so let's just do a quickfire round on some things on your radar throughout the year.
TAG: That was KPBS arts editor and producer Julia Dixon Evans, speaking with KPBS Midday Edition producer Andrew Bracken.
You can find details on all the things you just heard, and lots more, at KPBS dot ORG slash ARTS.
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That’s it for the podcast today and that’s a wrap on the first week of 20-24! This podcast is produced by Emilyn Mohebbi and edited by Brooke Ruth. Join me on Monday for the day’s top stories. I’m Debbie Cruz. Thanks for listening and have a great weekend.
