Tag: california

Man Accused of Starting Palisades Fire Had Become Obsessed With Leftist Ideas According to Prosecutors

New court filings show that the alleged arsonist who started the January 2025 Pacific Palisades fire in California is a deranged leftist who hated capitalism, resented the rich, and was angry at the world.

As a reminder, these are the hallmarks of today’s unhinged, anti-American, anti-social left.

These findings were presented in a memorandum filed last week in the case United States vs. Jonathan Rinderknecht, ahead of his June 8 trial.

Rinderknecht has been charged with three federal felony counts for starting the Palisades Fire, which killed 12 people, destroyed 7,000 homes and businesses, and caused $150 billion in damages.

In the weeks preceding the arson, Rinderknecht’s online searches included phrases such as “lets kill all the billionaires,” “let’s take down all the billionaires,” and “free Luigi Mangione,” according to WESH-TV.

Mangione is currently in jail awaiting trial for the December 2024 assassination of United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson.

Mangione’s personal journal entries suggested he targeted the insurance executive because of his intense hatred for the American for-profit health insurance industry, which he called a “greed-fueled cartel.”

According to the memo in Rinderknecht’s case, the leftist lunatic — who worked as an Uber driver in the weeks preceding the Palisades fire — ranted against capitalism and whined about Mangione’s arrest.

“Many of defendant’s Uber passengers on December 31, 2024 and January 1, 2025, described defendant as angry, intense, driving erratically, and ranting about being ‘pissed off at the world’ and Luigi Mangione, capitalism, and vigilantism,” prosecutors wrote, per the New York Post.

“When asked why someone would ultimately set the blaze, Rinderknecht allegedly responded that it ‘would be out of resentment of the rich enjoying their money as ‘we’re basically being enslaved by them,’ and compared such an act of ‘desperation’ to the murder for which Mangione was charged,” according to the pretrial memo.

In a nutshell, Rinderknecht is the poster boy for today’s deranged left, whose primary characteristics are emotional incontinence, violence, and fetishization of criminality.

It’s not surprising that Rinderknecht romanticized accused assassin Luigi Mangione, since liberals constantly lionize criminals while undermining the safety of law-abiding Americans.

In the months preceding the Palisades fire, Democrats and their media puppets beclowned themselves by falsely blaming “climate change” for the massive blaze that, in reality, seems to have been caused by a left-wing arsonist.

Keep reading

A detransitioner confronted a California lawmaker on the harms of gender transition. Here’s why he spoke out

A young man who went viral for confronting California lawmakers about harms he says he faced from childhood medical transition is speaking out against a bill he believes could make it harder for vulnerable minors to get proper counseling.

Jonni Skinner, a detransitioner and ambassador for Genspect, testified at a California Senate Judiciary Committee hearing last week against SB 934, a bill sponsored by Democratic state Sen. Scott Wiener that would let victims of “conversion therapy” seek damages through malpractice lawsuits, even years after the counseling occurred. Wiener’s office defines conversion therapy to include “sexual orientation or gender identity change efforts.”

Critics, including the California Family Council, say SB 934 is so broadly written that it could expose therapists to lawsuits for talk therapy on sexuality and gender identity.

Skinner says he grew up in a small town in Michigan in a religious family and was diagnosed with high-functioning autism at a young age. He said he struggled with feeling different from other boys and was bullied for having stereotypical feminine interests. As he reached puberty, he became increasingly uncomfortable with his body and carried shame that he might grow up to be gay or an effeminate man. After seeing online influencers he admired undergo gender transitions, he said he found the idea appealing.

Keep reading

Billionaire California Dem Gubernatorial Candidate Gets DRAGGED Online After Sharing Footage of Himself Posing in a VERY IRONIC T-Shirt With Marxist Protesters

A billionaire California Democrat gubernatorial candidate is getting blown up online after posing in a very ironic t-shirt with his fellow socialists.

On Saturday, Tom Steyer uploaded a video on his X page showing him at a “May Day” protest where he attempts to portray himself as a traitor to his class and a ‘champion’ of ordinary Californians. He even poses in a “Workers Over Billionaires” shirt.

Does he not realize that these people want to see folks like him eliminated?

“Today is May Day…Today is the day where we celebrate the working people of California, the people who make California run,” Steyer says in the video. “And their rights are being trampled on!”

A woman then asks if he’s planning on redistributing his wealth, to which Steyer replies, “Yes, I am!”

Steyer goes on to say that his campaign is about standing up for working Californians against “corporate special interests,” before cutting to him taking photo-ops with Marxist protesters while still wearing the stupid shirt.

Keep reading

Teacher caught simulating incestuous sex act on video will be allowed back in classroom on Monday, parents told

The teacher mom of Baywatch star Noah Beck has been allowed to return to the classroom after being suspended for a video of her appearing to simulate oral sex on her son. 

Amy Beck, 55, the mom of actor and social media star Noah Beck, 24, was placed on leave from Coyote Hills Elementary School in Peoria, Arizona last week after the 2020 video resurfaced. 

The footage recirculated social media earlier this month after her daughter Haley Beck, 27, who is a teacher in the same school district, was accused of engaging in sexual misconduct with a teenage boy. 

The video was originally posted by Noah, who has 33 million TikTok followers, in 2020, and showed the mother and son singing along to the song ‘King’s Dead’ by Jay Rock, which features lyrics about oral sex.

As the pair lip-synced to the lyrics, Noah repeatedly pushed his mother’s head toward his groin.

In a statement to the Daily Mail on Friday night, the Peoria Unified School District said it was allowing Amy to come back to the classroom following her suspension for the video.

‘The school and district have addressed concerns regarding videos that were published in 2020, appropriate measures have been taken, and Mrs. Beck will transition back into the classroom on Monday, May 4,’ the district said. 

While Amy Beck will return to work, her teacher daughter Haley was terminated from Centennial High School, and the Peoria Police Department said Friday it was ‘looking into’ new allegations regarding her alleged conduct with a second student. 

Keep reading

California Can’t Define ‘Hate Speech’ But May Mandate Workplace Training Anyway

“Hate speech” is notoriously hard to define and is usually a subjective characterization of harsh words. Though the term is thrown around by people describing comments they don’t like, it generally refers to expression that might not be nice but is protected by the First Amendment to the United States Constitution as well as state speech protections. But that’s not going to stop California lawmakers from trying to hector people into refraining from voicing nasty sentiments.

Existing California law requires employers with five or more employees to provide at least two hours of training regarding sexual harassment to all supervisors, and at least one hour of training to all other employees, repeated every two years. Assembly Bill 1803, introduced by Assemblymembers Josh Lowenthal (D–Long Beach) and Rick Chavez Zbur (D–Los Angeles) and co-authored by Assemblymember Corey Jackson (D–Moreno Valley), “would additionally require that the above-described training and education include, as a component of the training and education, anti-hate speech training.”

In a press release, Lowenthal claims that “AB 1803 is about making our workplaces safer, more respectful, and more inclusive for everyone. Hate speech has no place on the job, just as sexual harassment has no place on the job. By incorporating anti hate speech training into existing sexual harassment prevention programs, we are building on a proven framework to address harmful behavior before it escalates.”

What the world really doesn’t need, it should be noted, is more state-mandated nagging about the allegedly naughty activities we shouldn’t engage in. As PBS’s Rhana Natour reported in 2018, “there’s little evidence that sexual harassment training works.” A 2016 U.S. Equal Opportunity Employment Commission report concluded that “much of the training done over the last 30 years has not worked as a prevention tool—it’s been too focused on simply avoiding legal liability.” Research by Justine Tinkler, a sociologist at the University of Georgia, found that such training mostly reinforces traditional views of sex roles by portraying men as predators and women as victims. But training is an effective time suck.

Hate speech has the added burden of being primarily a political term used to describe expression that somebody doesn’t like. This makes it very difficult to describe in an actionable way in a country that has vigorous speech protections. California’s lawmakers have not risen to the challenge.

Keep reading

Mysterious ‘dumbbell-shaped’ UFO spotted for 45 minutes over Joshua Tree before vanishing

A family hiking in Southern California has revealed stunning images of a mysterious craft flying overhead during a solar eclipse. 

The four hikers spotted a large dumbbell or H-shaped UFO flying slowly and erratically near Ryan Mountain in Joshua Tree National Park on October 14, 2023.

According to the witnesses, they followed the object for about 45 minutes, watching it disappear and reappear several times before it vanished completely.

Images of the craft, shared with safeaerospace.org, a nonprofit group focused on aerospace safety and national security, captured a clear view of the UFO, which was made of a highly reflective material described as silver.

It was described as looking like a ‘capital I’ or ‘sideways H’, and its two large panels on each end gave it a shape reminiscent of a TIE fighter from the Star Wars films.

Skeptics sharing the sighting online have suggested that the craft may have been a box kite or an escaped letter H party balloon.

However, the hikers estimated that the craft was the size of a car or small plane, which would make the object significantly larger than the typical kite and balloon.

While the Pentagon has maintained that physical evidence of UFOs or extraterrestrials has never been found, the sighting took place near several US military bases, including one that has tested experimental aircraft for decades.

Keep reading

California Approves Rules Allowing Automakers to Test, Deploy Heavy-Duty Autonomous Vehicles

The California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) on April 28 approved new regulations that would allow autonomous vehicle (AV) makers to test and deploy heavy-duty AV technology on California roadways.

The California DMV said manufacturers are required to test their vehicles with a safety driver, then progress to driverless testing, before they can apply for deployment on state roads.

Manufacturers must complete 50,000 miles of testing at each phase for light-duty vehicles and 500,000 miles for heavy-duty AVs and provide “a structured safety case” showing the safety of vehicle hardware, software, and operations in order to obtain a permit, according to the DMV.

The new rules would also expand safety and oversight requirements for all classes of AVs, allowing law enforcement agencies to cite companies for moving violations committed by their vehicles.

Under the regulations, companies operating AVs must respond to first-responder calls within 30 seconds, and local emergency officials will have the authority to issue “electronic geofencing directives” requiring autonomous vehicles to leave active emergency zones.

“California continues to lead the nation in the development and adoption of AV technology, and these updated regulations further demonstrate the state’s commitment to public safety,” DMV Director Steve Gordon said.

Keep reading

More Than 40 Mexican Mafia Members And Associates Indicted In California: DOJ

A total of 43 alleged members and associates of the Mexican Mafia prison gang were arrested this week on multiple charges, the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the central district of California said on April 23.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office said the total includes individuals already in custody, with 25 of them being arrested in Orange County, California, on April 23. They face charges including kidnapping, extortion, fentanyl and methamphetamine trafficking, running illegal gambling businesses, and murder.

First assistant U.S. attorney Bill Essayli said the arrests reflected joint efforts between federal and local law enforcement and their commitment to cracking down on violent felons and organized crime.

“Gang members who murder, extort, kidnap, and traffic drugs and firearms are a menace to our communities and our way of life,” Essayli said in a statement.

The investigation also led to the seizure of 4 kilograms (8.8 lbs) of fentanyl, 54.4 kilograms (120 lbs) of methamphetamine, 0.9 kilograms (2 lbs) of heroin, 3 kilograms (6.6 lbs) of cocaine, 25 firearms, and more than $30,000 in cash, according to the office.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office said the gang sold illegal drugs in Orange County and ran illicit gambling businesses within commercial strip malls and private residences. It also collected “extortionate taxes” and used violence to safeguard those gambling businesses, the office added.

One of the defendants, identified as Luis Cardenas, was accused of overseeing the gang’s criminal activities from his prison cell using “an encrypted messaging application on contraband cell phones” between June 2024 and April 2026. Cardenas allegedly instructed gang members to kidnap and assault those “in bad standing” with him.

Two other defendants—Matthew Kundrat and Manuel Ramos—were charged with murder that occurred at the Akua Inn, a gang-run motel in Anaheim, California, on Feb. 3, 2025. Prosecutors said the two allegedly committed the murder to be part of the Mexican Mafia and increase their standing within the gang.

“These defendants allegedly ran a ruthless criminal enterprise that murdered, kidnapped, extorted, and flooded our communities with deadly drugs,” FBI director Kash Patel said in a statement.

“The FBI will never stop working alongside our law enforcement partners to hold these individuals accountable and protect the people of Southern California.”

Some of the defendants made their initial appearances in U.S. District Court in Santa Ana and Los Angeles on April 23, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

The Mexican Mafia, also known as “La Eme,” is a U.S.-based prison gang that started in the 1950s. Federal authorities said the gang exerts “immense control” over Hispanic street gangs in Southern California, directing illegal activities from within prisons and taking a portion of the proceeds from drug trafficking, illegal gambling, and other crimes.

Keep reading

FBI swarm White House Correspondents’ Dinner gunman’s home in California as investigators reveal lone wolf’s ‘money trail’ they’re following

The FBI raided the home of the White House Correspondents’ Dinner shooter early Sunday, and investigators have said they are now examining his financial records as part of the probe. 

Chaos broke out inside the Washington Hilton after Cole Tomas Allen opened fire in the lobby Saturday night at the annual White House Correspondents’ Association dinner in Washington, DC.

The Secret Service rushed into action, securing President Donald Trump and thousands of guests attending the black-tie gala that brings politicians and journalists together.

A law enforcement official familiar with the investigation told the Daily Mail they believe Allen acted alone and are tracing his finances to determine how he paid for the hotel stay. 

Authorities gathered outside a California home linked to Allen, blocking off a residential street in Torrance with caution tape.

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said officials believe the suspect traveled by train from California to Chicago and then on to Washington. He checked into the Hilton on Thursday.

Evidence found on Allen’s electronic devices and in his writings point towards the theory he intended to target administration members in attendance at the dinner.

Photos from the raid showed law enforcement in tactical gear and armored vehicles lining the street as officers assessed the scene, with officials telling the Daily Mail they were working to access Allen’s car. 

A source told the Daily Mail that this shooting had likely been planned for a while.

‘Obviously, this was well planned. Getting the reservation at that hotel was nearly impossible,’ they told Daily Mail.

Keep reading

Cole Allen, 31-year-old California teacher, ID’d as White House Correspondents’ Dinner shooter

The gunman who opened fire at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner on Saturday night has been identified as Cole Allen of Torrance, Calif. — with President Trump calling him a likely “lone wolf whack job” who “looked pretty evil.”

The 31-year-old, identified by federal law enforcement sources, was arrested after allegedly entering the Washington Hilton hotel and charging toward the ballroom where Trump and roughly 2,500 guests had assembled.

The gunfire broke out near the event’s indoor security screening area just after 8:30 p.m. — as salad was being served. The Secret Service rushed Trump out of the room as members of his cabinet ducked under tables before they too were evacuated.

A LinkedIn profile matching his name and photo described him as a teacher at C2 Education, a tutoring and test prep company. C2 awarded him the “teacher of the month” in December 2024, according to social media posts.

Allen graduated from the California Institute of Technology in 2017 with a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering, according to the LinkedIn profile.

A spokeswoman for Caltech told the New York Times that a person named Cole Allen had earned an undergraduate degree in 2017, but the school did not have any further information immediately available.

Allen’s neighbor, who gave the name Jeff Smith, told The Post that “maybe he could be on the spectrum.”

Keep reading