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On Sunday, a Los Angeles County Sheriff’s deputy shot and killed a man suspected of stabbing an elderly woman near a gas station in Altadena. Both the Sheriff’s homicide unit and its

Internal Affairs Bureau reportedly launched investigations. On Wednesday, Attorney General Rob Bonta announced that the state Department of Justice launched its own probe, noting in a press

release that preliminary findings indicated that the man killed “ was not in possession of a deadly weapon at the time of the fatal shooting.” Bonta didn’t launch the investigation solely

out of personal interest. A state law passed in 2020 — and supported by Bonta, then an Assemblymember — requires the Department of Justice to investigate whenever a law enforcement officer

kills a citizen who isn’t armed with a deadly weapon. But as CalMatters’ justice reporter Nigel Duara found, the department isn’t always investigating the cases referred to it. Nor is it

explaining why. Nor was it even tracking “non-qualifying” killings — until Nigel started asking about them. * A JUSTICE DEPARTMENT SPOKESPERSON: “Given the mandate and the need to rapidly

implement a major new statewide initiative, our office focused on…qualifying events.” The lack of record-keeping has angered shooting victims’ advocates and local prosecutors alike,

including those in Sonoma County after Bonta’s office declined a case: * IZAAK SCHWAIGER, A LAWYER REPRESENTING THE FAMILY OF A MAN SHOT BY A SONOMA COUNTY SHERIFF’S DEPUTY: “To just get

turned a cold shoulder like this is indefensible, and it’s a misapplication of the attorney general’s duty under the law.” * SONOMA COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY JILL RAVITCH: “It would be

helpful to have a written explanation of how the determination was made to decline participation in the investigation.” Ever since the law was passed, evidence has been mounting that the

Department of Justice was straining under the added caseload of dozens of new complex shooting investigations.  Even when an investigation is opened, that’s only the beginning. Last

November, the state had opened 25 cases and resolved only one. Now, it’s 31 opened, two resolved, according to the CalMatters tracker. CALMATTERS COVERS THE LEGISLATURE: With the state

Legislature back in session, CalMatters has you covered with guides to keep track of your lawmakers, explore its record diversity, make your voice heard and understand how state government

works. We also have Spanish-language versions for the Legislature’s demographics and the state government explainer.    OTHER STORIES YOU SHOULD KNOW ------------------------- 1 CALIFORNIA’S

JUNGLE CRUDE A report published by two conservation nonprofits estimates that a major fraction of the gas in your tank comes from one of the most biodiverse and ecologically sensitive

places on earth. For all it’s green cred, the New York Times reports, California is the Amazon oil drilling industry’s top customer: * 50% of Amazonian crude (most of it Ecuadorian) is

shipped to California; * Half of _that_ goes to three L.A.-area refineries; * LAX is a major consumer: 1 in 6 gallons of jet fuel pumped there comes from the Amazon. What conclusion should

we draw? It may depend on your political views. Environmentalists say the report underscores just how important it is for the world to wean itself from fossil fuels.  But the analysis also

backs up one of the California oil industry’s biggest (and most memed) talking points: Make it easier to drill more here and save Ecuador’s exceedingly cute sloths.  Meanwhile, an industry

effort to overturn a law that drastically restricts where new oil and gas wells can go is expected to qualify for the 2024 ballot any day now. Expect fierce pushback from Gov. Gavin Newsom

and most other Democrats. Nearly two months into the Legislature’s special session on Newsom’s proposed “price gouging penalty” on oil companies, legislative leaders appointed Assembly and

Senate committees this week. IN OTHER ENERGY NEWS, this from CalMatters’ environment reporter Nadia Lopez: Federal regulators earlier this week rejected a request from operator Pacific Gas

and Electric to resume a review of its application to extend the lifespan of California’s last nuclear facility, the Diablo Canyon power plant. How we got here: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory

Commission’s decision to deny the license extension means the utility will need to start the relicensing application process all over again to extend operations. The utility on Wednesday

told CalMatters that it will submit a new renewal application for a 20-year period at the end of this year.  * PG&E SPOKESPERSON SUZANNE HOSN: “PG&E remains committed to complying

with current legislative policy to ensure the state has the option to keep the Diablo Canyon power plant online to ensure electrical reliability as California continues toward its clean

energy future.” Environmental justice groups and anti-nuclear advocates opposed to the plant’s extension praised the decision, citing long-held concerns over spent nuclear waste and safety

issues due to the plant’s proximity to seismic fault lines.  2 THE CASE OF THE DISAPPEARING STUDENT BODY As with office furniture, Zoom and that video game with the talking raccoon, demand

was high for a California State University education at the height of the pandemic. In the fall of 2020, Cal State posted its highest-ever enrollment figures. But as CalMatters’ higher

education reporter Mikhail Zinshteyn explains, that boom has busted — and that could come with a hefty price tag for the county’s largest public university system. * CALIFORNIA STATE

UNIVERSITY SYSTEM VICE CHANCELLOR STEVE RELYEA: “The California State University is facing an unprecedented moment in its 62-year history.” The numbers: * In the last two years, the system

saw a decline of 27,000 students * Seven campuses — including CSU Channel Islands, Chico State and San Francisco State — are under their state enrollment targets by 10% or more * More than

18% of last year’s freshman didn’t come back this year Now CSU leaders are warning the under-enrolled campuses to find new students or prepare for budget cuts. Starting in 2024 (at the

earliest), any campus missing its enrollment target by 10% or more will permanently lose up to 5% of its state enrollment funding. 3 CALIFORNIA’S PARALLEL POLITICAL UNIVERSE What are the

biggest issues facing California? It turns out Gov. Gavin Newsom and California’s GOP legislators actually agree: The cost of living, homelessness, the drought and the fentanyl crisis. So

how should the state address those problems, particularly under the specter of a projected $22.5 billion-dollar budget shortfall?  Well, there’s the rub. On Wednesday, California’s Senate

Republicans laid out their agenda. The caucus is just 8 members — not enough to field a full baseball team, much less push through their own legislation in the chamber of 40. So as noted by

my colleague, Sameea Kamal, they’ll need a lot of cooperation from Democrats to get any of these bills passed.  IDEAS WITH A FIGHTING CHANCE: DEAD ON ARRIVAL:  OTHER THINGS WORTH YOUR TIME

------------------------- Some stories may require a subscription to read TWO MASS SHOOTINGS IN THREE days. Are these copycat crimes? // Los Angeles Times HALF MOON BAY SHOOTING HIGHLIGHTS

POOR CONDITIONS on farms // San Francisco Chronicle A LEADER IN GUN CONTROL efforts, California confronts its limits // Washington Post THE SPECTRE OF ANTI-ASIAN VIOLENCE in the Monterey

Park shooting // The New Yorker SHASTA TO BECOME FIRST California county to drop Dominion // Record Searchlight WAVE OF RURAL NURSING home closures grows amid staffing crunch // California

Healthline A RECKONING OVER RACE: HOW 4 words upended a university’s journalism program // LAist L.A. SCHOOLS LEARNING LOSS DAYS COST $611 per student a day // Los Angeles Times AS BIDEN

MULLS 2024, A progressive group is urging ‘Don’t Run Joe’ // San Francisco Chronicle FACEBOOK TO reinstate Trump // Axios CALIFORNIA’S SOCIAL SERVICES agency website included links to

anti-immigrant group // KPBS THE FIGHT OVER CALIFORNIA’S ancient water // The Atlantic  MILLIONS IN CHILD CARE FUNDS unspent as providers wait months for money // San Diego Union-Tribune

JUDGE QUESTIONS LAW TARGETING docs who share COVID-19 misinformation // Sacramento Bee JUDGE ORDERS RELEASE of Paul Pelosi 911 call // Los Angeles Times SAN JOSE GUN SHOP inspections by

police have big holes // San Jose Mercury News SF STREET ARTIST SWIPES city property, sells it online for thousands // San Francisco Standard SACRAMENTO-AREA PEET’S COFFEE first US location

to unionize // Sacramento Bee WHY CALIFORNIA WASN’T PREPARED for the atmospheric rivers // Los Angeles Times OPINION: ALEC BALDWIN DIDN’T have to talk to the police. Neither do you // New

York Times