Newsletter: Wells Fargo CEO out amid fake-accounts scandal

Good morning. It is Thursday, Oct. 13. Billionaire Rick Caruso says he would be happy to ban billionaire (and Republican presidential nominee) Donald Trump from his mall. Here’s what else is happening in the Golden State:

TOP STORIES

After the fire

The Blue Cut fire in the West Cajon Valley burned 36,274 acres and destroyed about 105 homes. “We’ve traveled the world,” said 70-year-old Sarah Choi, “only to end up in hell.” She is among a Korean community of about 70 families who had made this desert outpost home. Los Angeles Times

Police investigation

A six-month study from the U.S. Department of Justice found the San Francisco Police Department disproportionately used force on people of color and minorities were stopped and searched more often than whites. The report was requested after Mario Woods was shot at by police 21 times while he held a knife. “Despite this notion of San Francisco being a modern place, this department is anything but modern,” said an attorney representing Woods’ family. Los Angeles Times

CEO steps down

Wells Fargo Chairman and CEO John Stumpf resigned Wednesday after criticism over revelations that bank employees created 2 million accounts without customers’ authorization. Stumpf will not receive severance, but he’ll retain $100 million in vested stock and retirement benefits exceeding $24 million. The wrongdoing was exposed by a Los Angeles Times investigation and led to an $185-million settlement. Los Angeles Times

L.A. AT LARGE

Longtime fight: “MASH” actor Mike Farrell’s opposition to the death penalty dates back more than 40 years. Now, he’s the author of a ballot measure — Proposition 62 — that would end the practice in California. “We have determined that some human beings are not human, are not worthwhile or capable, and that we can just do away with them,” Farrell said. Los Angeles Times

Vicious cycle: This story follows the many who bounce between county jail and Skid Row. 89.9 KCRW

Warning signs: A toxic fire forced residents to evacuate from their Maywood homes in June. A new investigation finds Panda International Trading Co. drew the attention of county and state investigators years before the blaze. NBC 4

Have you seen this whale? Officials are on the lookout for a blue whale that became entangled with fishing gear near the Palos Verdes area. “The whale was pretty evasive with diving behavior, very challenging, so nobody was able to get on the whale,” said Justin Viezbicke with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. City News Service

POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT

On the ballot, Part 1: Here’s the L.A. Times’ guide to California’s 17 propositions. Los Angeles Times

On the ballot, Part 2: A voter guide for Los Angeles County voters in the November election. Curbed LA

Traffic plan: Voters in San Luis Obispo County will be asked to approve a half-cent sales tax to pay for traffic improvements. If approved, the measure would potentially bring in $25 million a year for the next nine years. The Tribune

Quite the house: Republican pollster Frank Luntz has a tremendous collection of Americana. He’s also renovated his Los Angeles home to include replicas of the Oval Office and the Lincoln bedroom. The speakers outside are outfitted to play “Hail to the Chief.” Hollywood Reporter

Guerrilla safety: The San Francisco Municipal Transformation Authority is an anonymous group that installs protections for cyclists in an effort to force city officials to improve street safety. One of those guerrilla bike lanes is now going legit. City Lab

CRIME AND COURTS

Jail violence: A 73-year-old inmate is suspected of killing his cellmate at Alameda County jail, authorities said. It happened in a maximum-security housing unit for those with mental illness or behavioral issues. Associated Press

Suspected suicide: An LAPD detective investigating rape allegations against NBA star Derrick Rose died Tuesday of an apparently self-inflicted gunshot wound, police said. Det. Nadine Hernandez was a member of the Robbery-Homicide Division’s Special Assault Section. Los Angeles Times

Punishment fits the crime: An 18-year-old man will have to give a public apology to veterans after he defaced a war memorial in Danville. Jared Vance is also required to perform 100 hours of community service, preferably in the veterans community, and pay $2,200 in restitution. Mercury News

DROUGHT AND CLIMATE

Wet conditions: As much as 19 inches of rain could fall on northwestern California this week. The wet weather is a result of the Pacific storm Typhoon Songda. SF Gate

CALIFORNIA CULTURE

What friends are for: When writer Curtis Sittenfeld told her friend Sam Park that she was going to write an essay about their friendship and his cancer diagnosis, Park told her to make it a tearjerker. It is. The New Yorker

CALIFORNIA ALMANAC

Sacramento will be 74 with some sun. San Francisco will be 67 and cloudy. It will be 81 degrees in Riverside. In Los Angeles, clouds will make way for sun and temperatures are expected to reach a high of 75. San Diego will have a high of 74.

AND FINALLY

Today’s California Memory comes from Irene DeBlasio:

“My husband and I moved to Southern California with our two young daughters in 1971. One sunny day I put the top down on my car and took the girls to Tiny Naylor’s Drive-in for lunch. I figured they would love having a burger and fries in the car. They seemed excited until the roller-skating server put their food down on the trays. The older one who was 13 said, ‘What are these things on the bun?’ I said, ‘Sesame seeds — delicious!’ After several minutes of dead silence I turned around to look at them. Both girls were carefully removing each seed, one at a time. My heart sank. California living was not going to be as easy as I thought.”

If you have a memory or story about the Golden State, share it with us. Send us an email to let us know what you love or fondly remember about our state. (Please keep your story to 100 words.)

Please let us know what we can do to make this newsletter more useful to you. Send comments, complaints and ideas to Alice Walton or Shelby Grad.