These are excerpts from the San Francisco Police Department's daily log of activities. Incidents are listed by police precincts and the neighborhoods they patrol.

In recent years, Mayor Gavin Newsom has jetted around the globe spreading the gospel of San Francisco to foreign businessmen, lobbying Washington, D.C., politicos and global municipal leaders while raising his national and global profile as he prepares for life after City Hall.

A dog that may have been restless after a long flight bolted from Continental Airlines handlers, jetted across the bustling lanes of U.S. Highway 101 and disappeared into a nearby neighborhood after arriving on a flight from Texas on Thursday night.

Soaring hundreds of feet above San Carlos in an aerobatic helicopter, my feet are where my head should be, and my stomach is somewhere near my feet.

A hit-and-run accident and another major collision minutes later may have one thing in common: two allegedly intoxicated women, police said.

These are excerpts from Peninsula police departments' daily log of activities. Incidents are listed by city.

The girls showed up repeatedly at the high school health clinic, asking for pregnancy tests. But their reactions to the test results were puzzling: high-fives if they were expecting, long faces if they werent. School officials in this hard-luck New England...

A month after the remarkable spacecraft named Phoenix landed on Mars, elated earthbound scientists reported Friday that their robot digging tool has uncovered chunks of real ice there - the first hard evidence that water exists on the Red Planet. And although...

It seems as if the smell of fire will never leave Nancy Mullers street in South Lake Tahoe. A year ago, an illegal campfire in the woods less than a mile from her home swelled into the Angora Fire, an inferno that blackened 3,100 acres, caused more than $150...

A series of fires burned 300-500 acres north of Watsonville on Friday afternoon, chasing 400 people from their homes and closing a 5-mile stretch of northbound Highway 1 in a scene that one witness called apocalyptic. Up to 15 structures were destroyed by...

Gay rights advocates asked Californias highest court Friday to keep off the November ballot a citizens initiative that would again ban same-sex marriage. Lawyers for Equality California filed a petition arguing that the proposed amendment to the California...

Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obamas campaign announced Friday that he will campaign with former rival Hillary Rodham Clinton next week, a step toward unifying a fractured Democratic Party after a bruising primary fight. Obamas campaign said in a...

Concord insurance brokerage Jenkins rebrands
Jenkins Athens Insurance Services, the Concord insurance brokerage and employee benefits firm, has renamed itself Jenkins Insurance Group in a brand repositioning move that consolidates all of its services under one name.

Seesmic raises $6 million in round two, Omidyar joins board
EBay founder Pierre Omidyar will join the board of San Francisco video company Seesmic as part of a $6 million venture funding round.

URS Corp. wins Air Force radar test site contract
URS Corp. will work for the U.S. Air Force in Alamogordo, N.M., under a support and maintenance contract worth up to $76.5 million over 7 years and 9 months. (URS) (PKI)

Linden Lab plans virtual world fair for Second Life's 5th birthday
Linden Lab plans a two-week virtual party to celebrate the fifth birthday of its simulated world Second Life.

Wine Institute names Margaret Duckhorn this year's chairman
The Wine Institute, the San Francisco-based advocacy and lobbying group for California's wine industry, elected Margaret Duckhorn of Duckhorn Vineyards as its chairman for the 2008-09 fiscal year, officials said Thursday.

Bay Area Heat Wave Sending Temps Soaring
The first heat wave of summer is sweeping over the Bay Area. The National Weather Service has issued a heat advisory for San Francisco, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, San Mateo, Marin, Monterey, Contra Costa, Napa, Sonoma and Alameda counties which remains in effect until 8 p.m.

Watsonville Wildfire Almost Fully Contained
Firefighters moved closer Saturday to gaining control over the Watsonville wildfire that has burned several homes, forced hundreds to evacuate and closed a six-mile stretch of coastal Highway 1 for hours.

Watsonville Wildfire Nears Containment
Firefighters battling the Trabing Fire in Santa Cruz County were nearing their goal of full containment, a Cal Fire official said Saturday morning.

1,000-Acre Watsonville Wildfire Destroys Homes
A fast-moving, 1,000-acre wildfire forced 2,100 mandatory evacuations and closed a six-mile stretch of scenic Highway 1 in Santa Cruz County on Friday, destroying as many as 15 homes.

6-Alarm Blaze Consumes 5 Buildings In East Oakland
Ninety firefighters struggled for several hours before gaining control of a six-alarm fire on Friday afternoon that burned five buildings along a stretch of International Blvd. in East Oakland.