California's financial picture darkened Thursday after Senate Republicans blocked a legislative attempt to avoid having the state issue IOUs through a complicated cash-saving maneuver. The move would have temporarily cut and delayed billions in education funding, raising concerns among officials that it could further strain K-12 and university finances.

Blake Griffin is heading to the Los Angeles Clippers, having been taken as the No. 1 pick in the NBA draft. Commissioner David Stern announced Griffin's name from the stage at New York's Madison Square Garden on Thursday night. Across the country, Clippers officials gathered at the team's practice facility heartily applauded the franchise's only pick in this year's draft.

The Sacramento Kings selected University of Memphis guard Tyreke Evans with the fourth overall draft pick Thursday night. The Kings hope the 6-foot-5 Evans will mature into a star point guard and a foundation of the franchise's rebuilding effort. The 19-year-old left Memphis after just one season, but he already is a natural scorer who led the Tigers with 17.1 points per game while also running their offense at the point.

An off-duty police officer shot and wounded two men who assaulted him in the crowded Angel Stadium parking lot after Wednesday night's Colorado Rockies-Los Angeles Angels game, authorities said. The officer, who was walking to his car with his wife and two small children about 25 minutes after the game, was hit in the head with beer bottles, police Sgt. Tim Schmidt said.

The Golden State Warriors selected guard Stephen Curry with the No. 7 pick in the NBA draft Thursday, adding a pure shooter to coach Don Nelson's up-tempo offensive scheme. The 6-foot-3, 181-pound Davidson star and All-American led the nation in scoring at 28.6 points per game and will join a backcourt with Monta Ellis and Stephen Jackson.

Across the country, people reacted in stunned disbelief Thursday as word spread that Michael Jackson had collapsed and died. Within minutes of Jackson's arrival by ambulance at Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center people began arriving by the hundreds, the crowd quickly filling a grassy entrance outside the hospital. Overhead, news helicopters whirred noisily and TV trucks clogged streets. As word spread a few minutes later that Jackson had died, several people burst into tears. Others stood silently, looking pensive, as they waited for official word from the hospital. Still others whipped out cell phones and began calling or texting friends to pump them for information.

California air regulators voted unanimously Thursday for a mandate requiring auto manufacturers to include sun-reflecting glass on all vehicles sold within the state by 2014. The move by the California Air Resources Board was intended to keep cars, pickup trucks and sport utility vehicles cooler during hot weather, reducing the use of air conditioning.

First you paid to insure your car. Soon you may have to add health insurance premiums to that stack of monthly bills as well. In a revamped health care system envisioned by senators, people would be required to carry health insurance just like motorists must...

As Californias fiscal crisis careened out of control with todays issuance of IOUs, Democrats and Republicans remained deadlocked, largely over one of the states biggest responsibilities: providing a safety net for poor and sick residents. At the center of...

The next round of anti-tax Tea Party protests will be held nationwide on Saturday - July 4 - as organizers and leaders hope the 1,300-plus events, including several in the Bay Area, evolve into a growing opposition movement to the Obama administrations...

For generations, the Washington Post has been a scrupulous watchdog over the capitals cozy world of power networking. For a short time, it almost became the networks host. The Post decided today to cancel plans to charge lobbyists and trade groups $25,000...

The investigation of Michael Jacksons death is widening as questions intensify about the drugs he took, the doctors who provided them and the actions of police. Why didnt police seal the mansion where he had been living? Why were moving vans seen at the...

An American soldier is believed being held by the Taliban after he walked off his base in eastern Afghanistan without his body armor and weapon, officials said Thursday. The military has intercepted communications in which insurgents said they had captured an...

Pedestrian Struck In Point Reyes
A pedestrian suffered major injuries Friday afternoon after being struck by a vehicle near Point Reyes Station in unincorporated Marin County, a California Highway Patrol officer said.

Antioch Man With Dementia Goes Missing
Antioch police were searching for a missing 61-year-old man who is believed to be at risk due to having dementia.

High Speed Rail Plans Met By Peninsula Opposition
California's high-speed rail plan is raising objections among some in the San Francisco Bay area who say the line could take out trees, homes and businesses and split their communities.

Santa Rosa Man Arrested For Biting Police Officer
A 44-year-old Santa Rosa man was arrested after an altercation in which he allegedly bit a police officer who responded to a disturbance at his home Thursday evening, according to Santa Rosa police.

Undersecretary Kernan To Plead Guilty To DUI
The undersecretary who oversees California parolees and adult and juvenile prisons says he will plead guilty to driving under the influence.