Teen stabbed to death at high school

Good morning, and welcome to the Essential California newsletter. It’s Wednesday, April 20. I’m Justin Ray.

A teen in Stockton died after being stabbed to death Monday by a man in what police described as a random attack, authorities said. National news outlets have covered the tragedy in the city located almost 50 miles south of Sacramento.

Investigators said the man, who was identified as Anthony Gray, 52, drove to Stagg High School’s front parking lot, exited his car, walked up to the student — Alycia Reynaga, 15, as confirmed to The Times by the San Joaquin County Medical Examiner & Coroner — and stabbed her.

Stockton Unified School District Supt. John Ramirez Jr. said during a news conference that Gray walked through an unlocked gate at the front of the campus. Several school staff members were near the gate when the stabbing occurred, including a district police officer, he said.

District spokesperson Melinda Meza said Gray had tried to grab two female students, according to the Stockton Record. She added that there is no known connection between Gray and Reynaga. The campus was placed on lockdown after the attack.

“It has been a sad day at SUSD,” the district wrote in a Facebook post. “There will be School Counselors, Mental Health Clinicians and School Psychologists available at Stagg all week and as needed. There will also be extra security on campus.”

Gray, 52, who is from Stockton, is scheduled to appear in court at 1:30 p.m. Wednesday for arraignment on a murder felony charge, according to the San Joaquin County Sheriff’s inmate database. He was detained without bail.

Parents told ABC 10 that Reynaga was one of the high school softball team’s star players.

Officers and Stagg staffers were seen patrolling the school’s parking lots and entrances as students arrived for class Tuesday morning, according to the Record.

“My heart is shattered by the violence that ended the life of a young student today,” Stockton Mayor Kevin J. Lincoln said in a statement. “My deepest condolences to the family and friends of the victim. No child should ever have to experience or witness such senseless acts of violence.”

The Stockton Police Department told KCRA in February that the city had seen a “very concerning and unacceptable” spike in homicides in 2022.

And now, here’s what’s happening across California:

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Three people who were killed in the April 3 downtown Sacramento shootout that left six dead and a dozen others injured were associated with gangs and involved in a conflict that preceded the deadly incident, Sacramento County prosecutors allege. Los Angeles Times

L.A. STORIES

Column: The house was listed at $1.2 million. The sale price? Even crazier than you might think. “In the insane Southern California housing market — in which legions of people are priced out of home ownership while people with boatloads of hard cash are battling it out in epic bidding wars — we’re all familiar with houses selling above the listing price,” writes Steve Lopez. “But I think we’ve now, officially, reached a level of absurdity.” Los Angeles Times

A resident pulls weeds in South Pasadena, where a house just sold for more than double the asking price.

(Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT

A recent San Francisco Chronicle report raised doubts about California Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s mental well-being and capacity to keep doing her job. Theoretically, “if Feinstein were to quit now, her replacement would be chosen by Gov. Gavin Newsom, who has already appointed California’s junior U.S. senator, Alex Padilla. That would mean one individual selecting both U.S. senators on behalf of those 40 million Californians,” writes columnist Mark Z. Barabak. Los Angeles Times

CRIME, COURTS AND POLICING

An Arizona man involved in supplying counterfeit prescription pills that led to the 2018 overdose death of rapper Mac Miller has been sentenced to nearly 11 years in prison. Ryan Michael Reavis, 39, pleaded guilty to one count of distributing fentanyl, according to documents filed in U.S. District Court for the Central District of California. Los Angeles Times

A woman found dead along a highway nearly 30 years ago, a victim of the Happy Face Killer, has been identified, authorities said Monday. Patricia Skiple of Colton, Ore., had been known only as “Blue Pacheco” — for the color of her clothing — until genetic genealogy was used to identify her last week, the Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Office said. Canadian serial killer Keith Hunter is serving a life sentence at the Oregon State Penitentiary. He was given his moniker because he drew smiling faces atop letters to the media claiming that he had killed women in various states. Mercury News

HEALTH AND THE ENVIRONMENT

Fontana settles with California over alleged environmental violations. Nine months after California Atty. Gen. Rob Bonta sued the city of Fontana for allegedly flouting a state-mandated environmental review process when it approved the construction of a trucking warehouse next to a high school, city officials have enacted new regulations intended to rein in air pollution from logistic centers as a part of a legal settlement. Los Angeles Times

California Atty. Gen. Rob Bonta.

(Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)

CALIFORNIA CULTURE

Vice President Kamala Harris is a big Wordle fan. “My nighttime ritual is the mini New York Times crossword. And then sudoku, although I don’t think I’ve pronounced that right ever. Wordle, for me, is like a brain cleanser. So it’s in the middle of very long days, back-to-back meetings on a lot of intense issues,” Harris said in a recent interview. The Ringer

College admission season wraps up with a rejection party, a paper shredder and joy. “You went for something that you weren’t sure would even work out, and in some cases it did not. But you know what? You’re all going to college somewhere,” a high school college counselor said. For seniors at Downtown Magnets High School in Los Angeles, it was a cathartic experience.
Los Angeles Times

Nick Saballos shreds a college rejection letter April 6 at Downtown Magnets High School.

(Dania Maxwell / Los Angeles Times)

Netflix said Tuesday that it lost 200,000 subscribers in the first quarter, missing its projection of adding 2.5 million customers and marking the first decline in a decade. Los Angeles Times

CALIFORNIA ALMANAC

Los Angeles: Overcast 67 San Diego: Overcast 63 San Francisco: Rainy 63 San Jose: Overcast 70 Fresno: Overcast 77 Sacramento: Rainy 70

AND FINALLY

Today’s California memory is from Sarah Rin:

If you have a memory or story about the Golden State, share it with us. (Please keep your story to 100 words.)

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