Tuesday, June 9, 2026

Good Morning! On this day in 1929, more than 50,000 people gathered at the end of Lincoln Way in San Francisco to celebrate the completion of the Great Highway, the oceanfront route along Ocean Beach.

California is about to welcome the world’s biggest soccer tournament, but one of the most eye-catching stadiums may be the one made entirely of LEGO bricks. Legoland California has unveiled a half-million-brick replica of SoFi Stadium, bringing World Cup excitement to Miniland USA. Learn more in Top Stories and Sports.

If you could visit only one World Cup attraction this summer, would it be a match at SoFi Stadium or Legoland’s giant LEGO version? Reply to this email and let us know.

Doctors say five signs reveal whether you’re aging well, and catching them early could change how the rest of your life goes. On today’s episode of The Flyover Podcast, Ayla breaks down each one, plus what you can start doing at any age to make sure you’re hitting the mark. Tune in here!

Later today, you’ll receive a message from our sponsor, Fisher Investments, with a free guide on lessons from high net worth investors, including how to plan for inflation, manage withdrawals, and build a stronger investment strategy.

If shedding extra pounds and feeling your best this summer is on your agenda, today’s sponsor, Direct Meds, is offering $150 off your first order of doctor-supervised GLP-1 weight-loss treatment delivered right to your door.

Take The Flyover with you. Busy day? Listen to our daily 15-minute podcast while commuting, cooking, or walking the dog—your Flyover fix, anywhere.

Arson Trial Opens in Palisades Fire

Jury selection began Monday in Los Angeles for the federal arson trial of the man accused of sparking the deadly 2025 Palisades Fire.

Jonathan Rinderknecht, 29, a former Uber driver and onetime Palisades resident, has pleaded not guilty to three felony counts and faces 5 to 45 years in prison. Prosecutors say he set a small fire on Jan. 1, 2025, that smoldered underground for a week before erupting Jan. 7 during a Santa Ana windstorm.

The blaze killed 12 people and destroyed nearly 7,000 structures across Pacific Palisades and Malibu, ranking among the most destructive fires in state history. Defense attorney Steve Haney calls his client a scapegoat for the Los Angeles Fire Department’s failure to fully extinguish the earlier blaze.

Opening statements are expected midweek, and the trial is likely to run about two weeks.

California Gears Up for World Cup

The first 48-team World Cup kicks off Thursday, with two California venues set to host 14 matches through July.

SoFi Stadium in Inglewood stages the U.S. team’s opener Friday against Paraguay and will hold eight games, including a quarterfinal. Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara will hold six matches, with local hotels, transit systems, restaurants, and retailers preparing for tournament crowds.

Bank of America, an official sponsor, expects a major economic lift, with CEO Brian Moynihan likening the event’s activity to “a hundred Super Bowls.” Some economists are skeptical, noting that the headline economic gains from mega-events often prove smaller or temporary.

Fan zones and watch parties are spreading well beyond the stadiums, from San Francisco’s PIER 39 to a new gathering space in East Sacramento. Both host cities have planned 39 days of fan celebrations, watch parties, and community programming.

Lithium Plans Divide Salton Sea Region

A push to develop one of the world’s largest lithium resources beneath the Salton Sea is splitting the desert communities it promises to lift.

New reporting on California’s “Lithium Valley” finds residents doubtful the promised jobs and economic benefits will materialize, even as officials tout lithium deposits in the region as potentially worth hundreds of billions of dollars. Three companies are pursuing plans to extract lithium from geothermal brine, but full-scale production could be decades away.

A county report warned that expanded geothermal operations could increase seismic activity and require handling hazardous materials. Two nonprofits have sued over what they call inadequate environmental reviews, and the county and the Imperial Irrigation District disagree over how to supply the water and power the projects need.

Backers say the find could turn Imperial County, where about 18% of residents live in poverty, into a key supplier for the nation’s clean-energy transition. One developer projects 12,000 jobs.

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➤ Oakland: Thieves stole five Alameda County vehicles, including sheriff’s office units, from a county garage Sunday. Deputies recovered all five by evening using license plate readers. No firearms were missing, and no arrests have been made. (More)

➤ San Mateo County: A county plan to repair an eroding washout along La Honda Creek is drawing pushback from neighbors who say it would take private land, clear riparian habitat, and overlook a bridge alternative. Supervisors take up the project this week. (See Details)

➤ Sacramento County: A multi-agency parole-compliance sweep dubbed “Operation Golden Grizzly” netted 13 arrests and seized a pistol, an AR lower receiver, nine bladed weapons, and ammunition. About 150 state and local officers contacted 36 targets and apprehended two fugitives. (See Details)

➤ San Mateo: A humanoid robot named Ameca appeared at the San Mateo County Fair on Saturday, holding real-time conversations in more than 50 languages and displaying lifelike facial expressions. Its maker, British firm Engineered Arts, has a Redwood City office. (See Video)

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➤ Fresno County: Officials are urging water safety after a toddler nearly drowned at Millerton Lake on Saturday. Family members pulled the child from the water, and the toddler was awake and breathing when airlifted to a hospital, though no update on the child’s condition has been released. The child was not wearing a life jacket. (More)

➤ Kerman: Four people, including three teenagers and a graduate’s mother, were arrested after a fight broke out following Kerman High School’s graduation Thursday. Police say an argument between two teens escalated after family members got involved. Newly released video shows an officer pushing the mother to the ground. (See Video)

➤ Fresno: The city’s iconic 18-foot “G” sign is back downtown. First installed in 1965 atop the former Guarantee Savings & Loan building, it displayed weather information over the Fulton Mall until 1995. An LED-lit replica returned over the weekend. (More)

➤ Clovis: Ernie Beal, who co-founded the Johnny Quik convenience store chain and grew it across the Central Valley, has died at 79. A Vietnam veteran, Bronze Star recipient, horse breeder, and philanthropist, he and his brother gave $500,000 toward Fresno State’s Save Mart Center. (More)

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➤ Los Angeles: Councilmember Nithya Raman, a Democrat, has advanced to the November runoff for Los Angeles mayor, overtaking Republican Spencer Pratt for second place as late ballots were counted, the Associated Press projects. She will face incumbent Karen Bass, who has led the field since the June 2 primary. (See Results)

➤ Pasadena: The police department has welcomed Seeka, a 1-year-old Labrador retriever training as a tracking and trailing dog to find missing people and suspects who flee crime scenes. She is partnered with Officer Daniel Velasquez and succeeds K-9 Edo, who retired after seven years of service. (More)

➤ San Diego County: Brush fires broke out Monday, forcing mandatory evacuations in the Sorrento Valley area near the Interstate 5 and Interstate 805 split and near the Oceanside airport. The larger of the two grew quickly with a dangerous rate of spread as crews worked to contain it. (See Details)

➤ Cerritos: Prosecutors say a brother and sister accused of killing a man for his SUV had also plotted to kill family members and a neighbor to gain access to money and property. Investigators allege diaries found in their car outlined the plan, and both suspects are being held without bail. (More)

➤ San Diego: Daniel Crago, an avid outdoorsman from San Diego, says he is lucky to be alive after a grizzly bear charged and bit him while hiking the Grinnell Glacier Trail in Montana’s Glacier National Park. Fellow hikers, including a doctor, came to his aid before he was airlifted out for multiple surgeries. (See Video)

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➤ USC baseball was walked off 4-3 by North Carolina this weekend, knocking the Trojans out of the NCAA tournament. The loss ended USC’s deepest postseason run in decades, leaving the Trojans one win shy of their first College World Series appearance since 2001. (More)

➤ Legoland California unveiled the world’s largest LEGO stadium—a replica of SoFi Stadium built from more than 500,000 bricks—as part of a World Cup celebration running June 11 through July 19. (More)

➤ Nelly Korda won her first U.S. Women’s Open at Riviera Country Club on Sunday after a heart-stopping 2 1/2-foot par putt hung on the edge and circled the cup before finally dropping. The victory marked her second consecutive major title. (More)

➤ Yesterday’s Results: NBA | MLB | Soccer | WNBA | NCAAB

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➤ California lawmakers are weighing Gov. Gavin Newsom’s plan to permanently cap tax credits for corporate research and development. Biotech and tech groups warn it could hurt investment, while supporters say it would raise about $1.7 billion to $1.8 billion a year for the state. (See Details)

➤ Santa Barbara-based McConnell’s Fine Ice Creams was featured in People magazine’s Best Foods of the Year issue. Its Brown Sugar with Milk Bordeaux flavor, made with See’s Candies, was named the top ice cream with mix-ins. (More)

➤ California drew $12.9 billion in foreign investment in 2024, ranking third among states behind Texas and Georgia, according to an analysis of federal data. Foreign-owned firms support about 886,000 jobs in California, the most of any state. (See Details)

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➤ A Tesla driver was filmed apparently asleep at the wheel of a moving car on Interstate 5 near Camp Pendleton on Sunday, head tilted as the vehicle, likely in self-driving mode, traveled down the freeway. Tesla requires drivers using its self-driving system to stay alert and ready to take control. (See Video)

➤ Fresno food creator Mike Martin, whose cooking videos have drawn more than 1 million followers, is competing on Food Network’s new series 100 Cooks, which debuted Sunday. The former fitness coach, who grew up in his family’s Mexican restaurant in Stockton, is among contestants vying for up to $250,000. (More)

➤ Two teachers at Fresno’s Liddell Elementary, who graduated college together and joined the school when it opened in 1998, are retiring together after 37-year careers. They started their families a month apart and now look forward to being grandmothers. (More)

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