Today’s Headlines: Asian Americans grieve the recent mass shootings in California

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Hello, it’s Wednesday, Jan 24, and here are the stories you shouldn’t miss today:

TOP STORIES

Three Asian-on-Asian mass shootings. Their motives for mass murder appeared to be different, but they were all Asian men of retirement age, who within the past year are accused of expressing their bitterness by spraying fellow Asians with bullets, in the very places where Asian immigrants go escape isolation.

Even as they grieve the victims, Asian Americans are grappling with a new reality. Someone who looks like their grandfather, who traveled a similar immigrant path, did a singularly American thing — open fire on a group of innocent people.

• Half Moon Bay shootings that left seven dead appear to be a case of workplace violence, law enforcement officials say.
• The victims of the Monterey Park shooting attack are remembered as dancers, beloved family members and pillars of the community.
• Three mass shootings have been carried out in one week in California, in Goshen, Monterey Park and Half Moon Bay.
• After wave of mass shootings, what’s next for gun control in California?
• Is it just a coincidence that an 67-year-old man shot and killed seven people in Half Moon Bay just two days after a 72-year-old man shot 11 people to death in Monterey Park?
• Police officials are facing scrutiny over how long it took them to notify the public that the Monterey Park gunman was still on the loose.

The Oscar best picture nominees just made history. Surprisingly, it’s for their box office. This year marks the first time that more than one contender has grossed more than $1 billion globally as academy leaders, frustrated by years of steadily declining ratings for the show, hope to goose interest in this year’s telecast.

Classified documents were found at Mike Pence’s home too. Documents with classified markings were discovered at former Vice President Mike Pence‘s Indiana residence last week, his lawyer says — the latest in a string of recoveries of papers meant to be treated with utmost sensitivity from the homes of current and former top U.S. officials.

The revelation came as the Department of Justice was investigating the discovery of documents with classification markings at the Delaware home and a former Washington office of President Biden, as well as at former President Trump’s Florida estate.

More politics

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In the wake of Google and Amazon layoffs, tech workers reconsider the future. The industrywide downturn has led many tech workers — no longer basking in the fervent attentions of an industry desperate to woo the best and brightest talent — to reevaluate their careers. Where they head now could reshape the industry for decades to come.

The cuts come on the heels of unsustainably rapid hiring over the last five years, industry experts said. It’s a moment with notable similarities to the bursting of the dot-com bubble in the early 2000s, when an inchoate version of the internet economy turned to mist before investors’ eyes amid the collapse of Pets.com and other frothy Web 1.0 ventures.

PHOTO OF THE DAY

Sterling Klippel, principal stormwater engineer at County of Los Angeles Public Works, looks down at 600,000 cubic yards of muck that have collected in the reservoir behind the 96-year-old Santa Anita Dam. This reservoir and four others now pose a flood risk to the communities below.

(Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)

CALIFORNIA

Could charging for public restrooms help San Diego cope with downtown’s homelessness crisis? San Diego city leaders want the state to lift a nearly 50-year-old ban on pay toilets. They say the idea could solve a shortage of clean and safe downtown restrooms that repels tourists and puts homeless people’s health at risk as critics call the idea inhumane.

Julian Sands’ family speaks out as the search for the ‘beloved’ missing actor continues in the San Gabriel Mountains. On Jan. 13, a hiker was reported missing in the Baldy Bowl area of Mt. Baldy, prompting search-and-rescue efforts from the sheriff’s department. Days later the hiker was identified as Sands.

‘Did the brakes fail?’: Prosecutors are checking the car for mechanical problems in a Tesla crash off Highway 1. The Tesla crash almost killed a family of four. Now the San Mateo district attorney’s office is investigating whether the crash could have been caused by an issue with the car.

NATION-WORLD

U.S. expected to send Abrams M-1 tanks to Ukraine, directing a political message to Germany. The tanks, long sought by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, would provide the heaviest weaponry yet among the billions of dollars in military aid Washington has sent to Ukraine to help repel a brutal Russian invasion.

Proposed Brazil-Argentina common currency is met with doubts. Analysts say neither country is positioned to tackle such a complicated undertaking or instill confidence in the idea with global markets.

Why France’s president and labor unions are at odds over pensions. More than 1 million people took to the streets last week to reject a measure that would change the system. More strikes and protest action are planned for next week, and probably beyond.

HOLLYWOOD AND THE ARTS

Willie Nelson will celebrate his 90th birthday at star-studded Hollywood Bowl shows. On his birthday weekend, April 29-30, Nelson and a slew of his famous friends and admirers will convene at the Hollywood Bowl to celebrate his musical genius, longevity and herculean weed consumption.

Conservative news network Newsmax is on the verge of being dropped by DirecTV. The two companies are in a standoff over financial terms with a deadline set for midnight Eastern on Wednesday. If the two sides can’t come to an agreement, the channel will be dropped.

BUSINESS

U.S. sues Google, calls for breakup of ad-technology ‘monopoly.’ The lawsuit, from the U.S. Justice Department and eight states, represents the Biden administration’s first major case challenging the power of one of the nation’s largest tech companies, following through on a probe that began under former President Trump.

Elon Musk justifies his ‘funding secured’ tweet with a bizarre real estate analogy. The billionaire was on the witness stand Monday as he defended his tweets from 2018 about a take-Tesla-private deal that never happened and for which it was never shown that funding was in fact secured.

Californians to vote on overturning a new law that could raise fast-food worker wages. A California law seeking to increase wages and improve working conditions for fast-food workers has been set aside for now, after state officials said an effort by major restaurant and business trade groups to overturn the law had qualified as a measure on next year’s ballot.

OPINION

Challenging Kyrsten Sinema makes the 2024 Arizona Senate primary so wild that national Democrats will just stand back. Whatever they do, they don’t want to set up a general election contest in which an election-denying Republican has a shot at the seat, writes columnist LZ Granderson.

SPORTS

Mikaela Shiffrin has more wins than any woman in skiing. But don’t call her the GOAT. After resetting the women’s World Cup victory record Tuesday in Italy, Shiffrin passed fellow American Lindsey Vonn for the most World Cup wins by a woman. Columnist Helene Elliott breaks down her rise.

After 42 years, Fred Roggin bids farewell to Channel 4. It’s his choice, he says. He’ll still appear on his AM 570 radio show. But, after more than 42 years as a local sports guy, he is ready to throw his last pitch from the anchor desk.

Column: Nathan Chen’s fire still burns thanks to his mother and others who inspire him. The Olympic figure skating gold medalist won’t be competing at the U.S. championships, but he has left the door open to return to competition.

ONLY IN L.A.

The Avenue 43 stairs in Mt. Washington.

(Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times)

L.A.’s 16 hardest staircases, ranked by which walks are worth the climb. In 2010, Charles Fleming published his book “Secret Stairs: A Walking Guide to the Historic Staircases of Los Angeles.” But it wasn’t until recently that The Times’ Jeannette Maranos challenged herself to give them a try. She discovered heart-hammering, lung-bursting, are-you-serious?! climbs, but views that were totally worth the effort.

FROM THE ARCHIVES

Paul McCartney and his band in concert at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood.

(Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times)

Paul McCartney was released from jail and deported from Japan 43 years ago. McCartney was arrested at Tokyo’s Narita Airport after customs officers found marijuana in his luggage. He was held for nine days before leaving the country.

Japan normally bans foreigners with drug convictions from reentering the country, but McCartney was able to return and perform in Tokyo in 1990. The Justice Ministry gave McCartney the green light this time because he had no other convictions in those 10 years.

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