Newsletter: Essential California: The aerial war against the Holy fire

Good morning, and welcome to the Essential California newsletter. It is Saturday, Aug. 11. Here’s what you don’t want to miss this weekend:

TOP STORIES

This fire might be won from the air. A squadron of 12 fixed-wing planes and 14 helicopters pounded the Holy Fire, an epic aerial assault that is showing signs of success. The hot conditions and unpredictable weather have made it difficult for firefighters to get ahead of the fire. But they have one big advantage: easy access to the water from Lake Elsinore, which they have used for countless drops. The short distance to the lake has proven a key factor in tamping down the flames. Los Angeles Times

— Amid California’s destructive year of fire, a pitched battle is underway over how much slack the Legislature should — or can — provide for the state’s utility companies facing liability under a strict standard they have been held to for more than a half-century. Industry representatives have warned that those rules, combined with the forecast of a hotter and drier California, mean that proactive fire policies won’t be enough to prevent the kinds of costs that could lead to bankruptcy. Los Angeles Times

— Yosemite will finally reopen next week. Los Angeles Times

— Mapping California’s many terrible fires. New York Times

-- Northern California air quality goes from bad to worse. Record Searchlight

A deputy’s secrets

Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Deputy James Peterson testified for years in state court without his history of misconduct becoming an issue. But when he was set to testify in federal court, his past suddenly caught up with him. How could one court system keep his record a secret and another consider it so prejudicial that several drug cases built on his work collapsed? Los Angeles Times

The scooter backlash

As cities from Santa Monica to Beverly Hills struggle to control the rapid proliferation of electric pay-per-mile scooters, Westside vandals are waging a guerrilla war against the devices and destroying them in increasingly imaginative ways — including burying them at sea. Los Angeles Times

Westside vandals are waging a guerrilla war against pay-per-mile scooters. These Bird electric scooters were left on the Venice Beach boardwalk.

(Gabriel S. Scarlett / Los Angeles Times)

AROUND CALIFORNIA

Follow the money: Los Angeles officials have signed off on about $1 billion in taxpayer assistance for hotels and other development since 2005, yet they lack a rigorous process for finding out whether the money was well spent, a new audit found. Los Angeles Times

Case closed: Los Angeles prosecutors dropped all criminal charges against the “Skid Row Stabber” suspect on Friday, closing a 40-year legal saga complicated by a jailhouse scandal, overturned convictions and a defendant who may have only months to live. Los Angeles Times

Stunning decision: The plea deal for the Ghost Ship fire disaster was thrown out by a judge. Why? The defendant didn’t show remorse. SF Gate

Must be nice: Why politicians in Sacramento don’t need to worry about those long DMV lines. Sacramento Bee

Exploring their options: Facing mounting criticism for allowing Hollister Ranch landowners to keep 8.5 miles of Santa Barbara coastline largely closed to the beachgoing public, state officials indicated some regret about the controversial deal they quietly agreed to earlier this year. Los Angeles Times

Sad times: The bird population in the Salton Sea is plummeting. Desert Sun

Huge jury award: A San Francisco jury has awarded $289 million to a former school groundskeeper who claimed Monsanto’s popular Roundup weed killer contributed to his terminal cancer. Los Angeles Times

He’s impressed: A San Diego federal judge on Friday called the new plan to locate and reunite hundreds of deported parents with their separated children “impressive” and gave U.S. officials the green light to move ahead full bore over the weekend. San Diego Union-Tribune

It sold for how much?! There is no way the “Brady Bunch” house is worth that much, right? Los Angeles Daily News

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THIS WEEK’S MOST POPULAR STORIES IN ESSENTIAL CALIFORNIA

1. CBS’ “60 Minutes” executive producer Jeff Fager extends vacation amid harassment scandal. Los Angeles Times

2. Here’s what the Mendocino Complex fire looks like overlaid on Los Angeles and New York. Los Angeles Times

3. California’s optimistic bosses vs. skittish consumers: Who’s right? Orange County Register

4. Chilling details swirl in rape, kidnapping case of ex-NFL player Kellen Winslow II. San Diego Union-Tribune

5. State shuts down Pasadena-based “Celebrity Rehab” center over death, repeated violations. Los Angeles Daily News

ICYMI, HERE ARE THIS WEEK’S GREAT READS

A historic rom-com: This summer marks the return of the splashy, big-budget Hollywood romance — but with a crazy historic twist. “Crazy Rich Asians” marks the first studio film in 25 years to tell a contemporary story centered on an all-Asian cast. It’s a huge cultural moment for Hollywood. And here’s how it came about. Los Angeles Times

Make or break time: Hollywood’s “Asian August” — but will it last into September? Reuters

Ready for his closeup: Lenny Dykstra is plotting his latest comeback from Thousand Oaks. The New Yorker

Catching the wave: How these women became California’s newest surfing Mavericks. California Sunday

Please let us know what we can do to make this newsletter more useful to you. Send comments, complaints and ideas to Benjamin Oreskes and Shelby Grad. Also follow them on Twitter @boreskes and @shelbygrad.