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"Dad gave me a bruise yesterday:" Asm. Joaquin Arambula (D-Fresno) and his legal team started trial by delivering a 35-page motion to dismiss filled to the brim with salacious detail regarding the incident that led to Arambula's December 10 arrest.
Overall, the motion contradicts Arambula's sole contention in the immediate fallout of his arrest: that his conduct was a mere spanking on his daughter's bottom. Instead, the motion details an injury to his seven-year-old daughter's face caused by Arambula's slapping during a skirmish.
The motion also details, among other things, allegations of Arambula kicking his daughters for misbehaving.
Background on the motion: Behind the push for a dismissal is the fact that Fresno Police managed to gain custody of confidential Child Protective Services records without a court order. Arambula's legal team cited an email sent by Fresno County District Attorney Lisa Smittcamp to Fresno Police Chief Jerry Dyer noting that she had never witnessed such an incident during his prosecutorial career.
However, as ABC30's Corin Hoggard reports, the law regarding accessing those files in these circumstances changed in 2007 and such police access appears to be kosher.
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OPINSKI PLEADS IN CORRUPTION CASE
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No jail time for the Merced contractor: Greg Opinski pleaded guilty to one count of aiding and abetting an official to become financially interested in a contract after he worked to pass $12,000 to a former Los Banos school board member Dominic Falasco to ensure the approval of a contract for a school construction project.
Falasco was working secretly with the Merced County District Attorney's office.
A number of bribery counts were dropped and Opinski received an ankle monitor and three years of probation as part of the plea deal.
Fellow former school board member Tommy Jones, responsible for making the transaction between Opinski and Falasco, previously struck a plea deal for no jail time in exchange for testifying against Opinski.
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Bankrupt utility requests a rate hike: PG&E submitted a request to the California Public Utilities Commission seeking a rate and profit hike to garner added investment and aid wildfire prevention and safety efforts.
The Big Stat: $22. The average rate hike for a $100 PG&E bill under the rate hike proposal sent to CPUC.
And gets OK for $235mil in bonuses: U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Dennis Montali approved $235 million in bonus payments to 10,000 company employees on Tuesday.
PG&E argued that denying the bonuses would have "punitive consequences" on employees who had no connection to fire safety.
The company cancelled a $130 million bonus payout in 2018 amid rising costs related to wildfires and looming bankruptcy.
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MADERA GOLF COURSE ON THE BLOCK
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Madera explores options for city-owned course: A 10-year lease on Madera's Municipal Golf Course is six months away from expiration and the City of Madera is leaving all options on the table for its future.
Including selling the property.
The City Council approved a measure to begin negotiating an extension to the current lease with Sierra Golf Management, the firm that also operates Airways Golf Course in Fresno and Pheasant Run Golf Club in Chowchilla.
Among the issues facing the property: Slackening conditions of the course's banquet hall and overestimation of green fees collected by the City.
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CRAFT BREW HITS DAIRYTOWN
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Hanford celebrates opening of Hop Forged Brewery: Downtown Hanford is now playing host to a new craft brewery.
After more than eight years of work, Hop Forged Brewing Company opened its doors in downtown Hanford on Saturday, due in part to the hard work of owners Brian Alves and AJ Soares.
Their location off of Seventh Street – built in the early 1800s – was acquired a year ago after more than 20 years of vacancy.
The company launched the brewery with six beers on tap, including a Tropical IPA, a Hazelnut Brown Ale, and a Blonde Ale.
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Fresno State extends win streak to 6: Fresno State's baseball team extended their win streak with a dominating 11-3 performance over the Tigers of the University of the Pacific at Pete Beiden Field.
The Dogs' streak has surged them into first place in the Mountain West standings, with a 25-12 overall record and 11-6 record in conference play.
What's next: The Dogs return to Mountain West play with a three-game homestand series against the New Mexico Lobos starting Friday. First pitch is at 6:05 p.m.
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A remembrance of the 104th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide: Tomorrow, the city of Fresno will host a number of public memorials of the anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, the first genocide of the 20th century.
Memorials include a flag raising at Fresno's City Hall at 10 a.m. today hosted by the Armenian National Committee of America Central California.
The Armenian Genocide Commemorative Committee will host a remembrance ceremony at the Armenian Genocide Memorial on the campus of Fresno State starting at 6 p.m.
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