Newsletter: Essential California: Nipsey Hussle’s quest to buy back South L.A.

Good morning, and welcome to the Essential California newsletter. It’s Monday, April 2, and here’s what’s happening across California:

TOP STORIES

Nipsey Hussle, who was shot to death Sunday outside one of his stores in South Los Angeles, stood out in the hip-hop industry, where flashy cars and jewelry dominate artists’ music videos and social media pages, for turning his street hustle legit. He owned businesses and commercial property in South L.A. and was on a quest to buy back the neighborhood. Hussle’s rags-to-riches story, along with his desire to give back, endeared him to his community. Los Angeles Times

Big dreams: “Driven by a rapacious desire to reinvest in the streets that raised him and rebuild the community, Nipsey Hussle became an entrepreneur, community organizer, activist and mentor as he transformed into a rap star,” writes The Times’ Gerrick Kennedy. “His death in front of the strip mall he was redeveloping a few blocks away from that celebratory banner feels particularly cruel.” Los Angeles Times

Investigation continues: Police have identified a suspect in the killing. Los Angeles Times

Surge in violence: Los Angeles Police Chief Michel Moore said Hussle was one of 26 people shot across L.A. in a “troubling surge” over the last week. Los Angeles Times

Vigil injuries: Several people were hurt when a Hussle memorial abruptly ended in a stampede. Los Angeles Times

Wiping the slate

Prosecutors in Los Angeles and San Joaquin counties have announced plans to automatically clear about 54,000 marijuana-related convictions, part of a growing movement to offer a clean slate for Californians hamstrung by their past now that pot is legal. The effort is part of a partnership with Code for America, a nonprofit that developed an algorithm to quickly analyze county data to find out which cases are eligible to be cleared under Proposition 64. Los Angeles Times

Bowing to Hollywood pressure?

No one much noticed when the Sultan of Brunei bought the Beverly Hills Hotel in 1996. But a recent announcement by the sultanate that it will stone to death anyone charged with adultery or homosexuality, in accordance with sharia law, has prompted George Clooney to call on Hollywood to boycott the hotel and others. And already there’s a backlash to the backlash. Los Angeles Times

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L.A. STORIES

Suspended: Fifteen players and three coaches of the L.A. Jr. Kings youth hockey team were suspended and their actions are being investigated by the California Amateur Hockey Assn. after a video was posted to a social media site in which one player performed a Nazi salute and others reportedly were heard to make what sounded like anti-Semitic comments. Los Angeles Times

Good question: How much of USC’s sweeping sexual abuse investigation will stay secret? Los Angeles Times

Plus: USC Athletic Director Lynn Swann spent a Saturday in Virginia signing autographs for money. Los Angeles Times

Great story: Columnist Frank Shyong explores why he feels like an outsider at a local Koreatown bar that he’s been frequenting for years. Los Angeles Times

The OB Bear restaurant in Koreatown.

(Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times)

ICYMI: Food columnist Lucas Kwan Peterson gave New York (and its paper of record) a taste of its own medicine. Los Angeles Times

IMMIGRATION AND THE BORDER

In D.C.: The Trump administration “is considering bringing on a ‘border’ or ‘immigration czar’ to coordinate immigration policy across various federal agencies, according to four people familiar with the discussions.” Associated Press

By the border: Trump’s threats to close the U.S.-Mexico border, explained. Vox

Plus: “In Tijuana, migrants grapple with the border crisis Trump created.” Mother Jones

POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT

On the ballot: L.A. City Council candidate John Lee was accused of harassment. Will that sway voters in the San Fernando Valley? Los Angeles Times

On the road: Forget the trip to El Salvador, writes columnist George Skelton. Gov. Gavin Newsom needs to focus on California’s problems. Los Angeles Times

2020 watch: As a senator, Kamala Harris has embraced efforts to eliminate cash bail. Earlier in her career, though, as a prosecutor and then as state attorney general, she was a nonentity on the issue. Associated Press

Diving in: A closely watched effort in the Legislature to expand job protections for unpaid family leave received a public endorsement from First Partner Jennifer Siebel Newsom in an early embrace of a bill that could signal broader support from the administration of Gov. Gavin Newsom. Los Angeles Times

Picking up the pieces: “PG&E Corp. knows it needs new leaders to guide it through bankruptcy and potentially major structural changes, after its power lines were blamed for a series of devastating Northern California wildfires. But putting the right people in place is proving to be a bumpy ride for the San Francisco energy company and its subsidiary Pacific Gas and Electric Co.” San Francisco Chronicle

CRIME AND COURTS

Taking them to task: Federal officials say a Los Angeles program for developing affordable housing continues to discriminate against people with disabilities, producing kitchens, bathrooms, balconies and other living spaces that aren’t safely accessible to wheelchair users. Los Angeles Times

In court: The accountant who recently took control of operations at Michael Avenatti’s longtime law firm says bank records support prosecutors’ allegation that the celebrity attorney embezzled money from a client. Avenatti has denied wrongdoing. Los Angeles Times

Op-ed: Scientists have #MeToo issues too. Don’t exempt them from accountability laws. Los Angeles Times

Listen: Check out this new podcast about California’s attempt to reduce police shootings. CALmatters

THE ENVIRONMENT

Times, they are a-changing: As anti-fur sentiment grows, California’s oldest trappers are calling it quits. Los Angeles Times

Passing the baton: Al Gore is near the end of his quest to save the Earth. Nina Barrett just got started. Washington Post

Lasers in the snow: “Lawmakers are considering spending $150 million to fund new high-tech measurements of the snowpack using lasers.” CBS Sacramento

CALIFORNIA CULTURE

The actor’s craft: How actors who are in their late 20s pull off portraying children onstage. Los Angeles Times

April Fools! Rams coach Sean McVay tricked Cardinals coach Kliff Kingsbury into thinking Arizona might lose the No. 1 pick in the NFL draft. Los Angeles Times

Baseball blues: The punchless Angels must overcome Justin Upton’s injury, and soon. Los Angeles Times

Rupert’s son: “How Lachlan Murdoch went from studying philosophy at Princeton to exploiting white nationalism at Fox News.” The Intercept

CALIFORNIA ALMANAC

Los Angeles area: Partly cloudy, 69, Tuesday. Cloudy, 67, Wednesday. San Diego: Partly cloudy, 66, Tuesday. Cloudy, 65, Wednesday. San Francisco area: Showers, 59, Tuesday. Cloudy, 60, Wednesday. San Jose: Showers, 64, Tuesday. Cloudy, 65, Wednesday. Sacramento: Showers, 63, Tuesday. Cloudy, 67, Wednesday. More weather is here.

AND FINALLY

Today’s California memory comes from Jeanne Gibson:

“In 1947, I was 7 years old and was called into the principal’s office in Washington Grammar School, in Culver City, to be told I and four fellow students would be going to Hollywood to be on the Art Linkletter radio show ‘Kids Say the Darndest Things.’ A limousine picked us up in front of the school while the entire student body came out to wave goodbye. My strongest memory of the day was a tour of the studio’s sound effects facility and, to my great disappointment, I was shown that the ‘horses’ we heard on the radio were, in fact, coconut half-shells clapped on sandbags!!!”

If you have a memory or story about the Golden State, share it with us. Send us an email to let us know what you love or fondly remember about our state. (Please keep your story to 100 words.)

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.