California Assembly candidate gets a DUI. It’s her second in 10 years.

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ASSEMBLY CANDIDATE GETS SECOND DUI IN A DECADE

Riverside City Councilmember Clarissa Cervantes’ bid for an Assembly seat hit a major stumbling block on July 1, when she was arrested for driving under the influence. Again

Cervantes, 32, was arrested while traveling on I-10 in Banning, according to CBS News.

“Last night, I made an irresponsible decision that I deeply regret. I take full responsibility, and I want to apologize to my family, my community, and the residents of the district that I represent,” Cervantes said in a statement to the Press-Enterprise.

Cervantes was arrested for driving at nearly twice the legal limit in 2014, according to CBS News.

She is running to replace her sister, Assemblywoman Sabrina Cervantes, who is seeking a seat in the Senate.

The arrest comes not long after State Sen. Dave Min, D-Irvine, was busted for driving under the influence in Sacramaneto. Min is running to replace Rep. Katie Porter in Congress.

The California GOP was quick to make political hay of this latest DUI, releasing a statement saying, “The last thing Californians need is another Democrat politician like Clarissa Cervantes who disregards public safety, endangers fellow Californians, and still believes they should be rewarded with a promotion to higher office.”

ANTISEMITISM WATCHDOG ASKS NEWSOM TO TAKE ACTION

Via Maggie Angst...

Antisemitism in California is on the rise — and Gov. Gavin Newsom is being urged to do something about it.

In a letter to Newsom, Liora Rez, executive director of the nonprofit organization StopAntisemitism, has asked the governor to pursue legislation that would adopt a clearer definition of antisemitism and strengthen penalties for those who commit religious-based hate crimes.

“Now is the time for decisive action,” Rez wrote in the letter. “By taking these steps you will send a powerful message that California stands united against antisemitism and is committed to upholding the values of tolerance, understanding, and respect that define our great state.”

Hate crimes targeting Jewish people in California jumped 24% from 2021 to 2022, according to a new hate crimes report released last month by Attorney General Rob Bonta. Nearly two-thirds of California’s religious-based hate crimes last year targeted Jewish people, the report found.

Just in recent weeks, the Sacramento area has seen several public displays of antisemitism — from hate speech at Sacramento City Council meetings to antisemitic flyers blanketing lawns and front porches throughout Sacramento and neighboring communities.

StopAntisemitism is specifically seeking a state law to mirror Florida’s House Bill 269, which would make it a felony to deface or damage religious cemeteries, distribute threatening materials on private property or harass someone for wearing religious clothing. The group is also asking California to adopt the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance, or IHRA, definition of antisemitism — a move that the Los Angeles City Council took late last year.

IHRA defines antisemitism as a “certain perception of Jews, which may be expressed as hatred toward Jews. Rhetorical and physical manifestations of antisemitism are directed toward Jewish or non-Jewish individuals and/or their property, toward Jewish community institutions and religious facilities.”

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“That DeSantis anti-gay campaign ad was so unhinged, sick and demented. What in the post-modern, fascist homophobic hell was that. He is a dangerous, despicable menace. His campaign and 5 minutes of attention will go to the dustbin of history.”

- Assemblyman Matt Haney, D-San Francisco, via Twitter.

Best of The Bee:

• A new federal policy kicked in July 1 that allows incarcerated students to receive Pell grants to pay for college courses, making it easier to pay for and attain a college degree from inside prison walls, via Grace Scullion.

• Pay for the most common state worker positions in Sacramento County has not kept up with inflation, leaving tens of thousands of local workers effectively making less than they were a few years ago, according to a Sacramento Bee review of 14 years of pay scales published by the state controller’s office, via Phillip Reese.

• California Gov. Gavin Newsom, Attorney General Rob Bonta and the sheriff of Bexar County, Texas, are demanding more answers for the flights that have transported Latin American migrants to Sacramento and Massachusetts over the last nine months, via Mathew Miranda.

• California and some of the nation’s leading truck manufacturers have struck a deal that would make it easier for companies to meet the state’s ambitious goal of 100% zero-emissions vehicle sales by 2036, via Maya Miller.

• What was once the nation’s largest network of youth prisons is no more, via Maggie Angst.

• A state bill to bolster California’s civil rights protections by banning caste discrimination cleared a major obstacle Wednesday, passing through the Assembly Judiciary Committee by a 9-0 vote after some language changes, via Shaanth Nanguneri.

• After months of negotiations and a number of vigils, marches and rallies to spur public support, California’s unionized child care providers have reached a new labor deal with the state, via Maya Miller.