Daily Briefs


Drug dealing doctor’s son arrested

The stepson of the Santa Barbara physician who was arrested on federal drug trafficking was also arrested Wednesday for drug sales. While searching the Goleta home of Dr. Julio Diaz, 63, police discovered marijuana and an unregistered revolver in 27-year-old... (Continue reading)

Morro Bay woman jailed for beating 86-year-old mother

A Morro Bay woman allegedly entered her sleeping mother’s bedroom and started beating the 86-year-old woman on Monday at about 3 a.m. Neighbors heard the altercation and called police who arrived to find the elderly woman suffering from visible injuries.... (Continue reading)

KCOY lays off 13 people

UPDATE: KCOY laid off meteorologist Jim Byrne and 12 others on Wednesday. KCOY parent company Cowles California Media Company is consolidating in order to cut costs, inside sources said. Many news staffers will be replaced with its Salinas news team which... (Continue reading)

Santa Barbara doctor accused of trading sex for drugs

A Santa Barbara physician was arrested Wednesday on federal drug trafficking charges and allegations the doctor traded pain killers for sex. Julio Gabriel Diaz, 63, allegedly wrote prescriptions for powerful painkillers, such as OxyContin, for “patients” who were drug addicts... (Continue reading)

Firefighter dies on hike

A California Men’s Colony inmate firefighter on a routine training hike collapsed and died Tuesday at Camp San Luis National Guard Base, according to a Cal Fire press release. The man, whose name has not been released pending notification of... (Continue reading)

More attacks at ASH

No arrests have been made yet in the aftermath of two attacks this week by patients on Atascadero State Hospital employees. [Tribune] A psychiatric technician was assaulted Friday, said hospital officials, and another incident the following day involved a patient... (Continue reading)

Handgun open carry law unconstitutional?

A California resident filed a lawsuit arguing that a law prohibiting the open carrying of an unloaded handgun is unconstitutional. [CaliforniaWatch] Charles Nichols filed the lawsuit in federal court against the state seeking to overturn restrictions on where he can... (Continue reading)

Cold case murder suspect arrested in Paso Robles

A man suspected of a nearly 30-year-old murder in south Monterey County was arrested in Paso Robles in 2011 on a domestic charge. [Californian] Ubaldo Solis Sanchez, 51, served time in San Luis Obispo County Jail before he was transferred... (Continue reading)

Cal Poly is good value: Kiplinger

Cal Poly is one of a dozen California universities to make Kiplinger’s list of the 100 top values in public colleges during 2011-12. [SFChronicle] Kiplinger, the Washington, D.C.-based publisher of business and personal finance advice, ranks each year the public... (Continue reading)

Walmart return line bandit struck again?

The robbery of a Paso Robles Walmart on Saturday is oddly similar to a heist that occurred at a Gilroy Walmart a week earlier. In both cases, a white man wearing a ball cap walked up to the cashier at the... (Continue reading)