SANTA BARBARA, Calif. (KEYT) - Santa Barbara City Council member Oscar Gutierrez is launching an initiative to expand public access to school campuses outside school hours.

The proposal calls for a new partnership between the City of Santa Barbara and the Santa Barbara Unified School District to make more playgrounds, fields and courts available when classes are over.

Gutierrez points to decades of campus closures driven by safety and liability concerns, saying neighborhoods have lost valuable recreational space.

A pilot program previously opened two campuses during limited hours. Organizers say the response encouraged them to pursue broader access.

Gutierrez is now bringing together parents, educators, coaches, health organizations and community leaders before presenting the proposal.

The effort seeks to balance recreational use with campus safety while creating more opportunities for children and families.

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By Jeremy Diamond, Oren Liebermann, CNN

(CNN) — The Israeli soldier who physically assaulted a CNN photojournalist in March was formally reprimanded by his commanders for his use of force but faces no criminal charges in the matter, the Israeli military said Monday.

“The investigation found that during the encounter between the IDF (Israel Defense Forces) soldiers and the media crew in the area, physical force was used by one of the soldiers against a photographer from the media organization,” the military said in a statement to CNN.

The military police’s criminal investigations unit probed the assault, but military prosecutors ultimately did not pursue criminal charges, turning instead to the command’s disciplinary process.

“After the soldier expressed remorse for his actions during the disciplinary process, he received a formal command reprimand,” the IDF said. A military reprimand enters a soldier’s personnel file and negatively impacts his or her future in the IDF. The IDF declined to name the soldier, who was a reservist.

The investigation was initiated after the soldier put CNN photojournalist Cyril Theophilos in a chokehold and forced him to the ground while he was filming in the village of Tayasir in the occupied West Bank in March. Israeli settlers had just established an illegal outpost at the site.

During the incident, Israeli soldiers also pointed their rifles at the CNN crew and detained them. One soldier who spoke to CNN on camera about “revenge” against Palestinians during the incident was dismissed from the IDF at the time.

CNN was authorized to film in the area.

In the aftermath of the incident, the IDF chief of staff, Lt. Gen Eyal Zamir, took sweeping disciplinary action, suspending all operational activities of the battalion, which is the reserve component of the ultra-Orthodox “Netzah Yehuda” unit. The IDF said the assault represented a “serious ethical and professional failure.”

The battalion was once again redeployed to the West Bank 30 days later after undergoing an education seminar and additional training.

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By Adam Cancryn, CNN

(CNN) — President Donald Trump will support the passage of a bipartisan Russia sanctions package that was spearheaded by the late Sen. Lindsey Graham, a White House official told CNN on Monday.

The endorsement comes days after Graham’s unexpected death, likely further smoothing the path for a bill that the South Carolina senator spent years working to push across the finish line.

Graham and Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal previously indicated the administration was prepared to back the package, saying Friday that they reached an agreement following extensive negotiations. Yet it was unclear at the time whether Trump would directly support the bill, as the president had repeatedly panned the legislation and pushed for more direct discretion on imposing sanctions.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune earlier on Monday said the White House had been working closely with Graham on the measure, telling CNN that he has hopeful.

“It’ll take Democrats and Republicans here in the Senate to do that, but I’m hopeful we can make it happen,” he said.

Thune said that in Graham’s last days, the sanctions package was “the thing that he cared the most about in terms of an accomplishment, and it would certainly be an incredible legacy for him.”

In a separate interview, Blumenthal told CNN that he planned to speak with Thune on Monday afternoon about the final preparations and timing for the bill’s passage, including finding a new Republican to take Graham’s place as its lead sponsor.

The sanctions package would clear the way for Trump to impose heavy tariffs on imports from nations that buy Russian oil, uranium and natural gas, in an effort to further weaken Moscow amid its war with Ukraine.

“It should be seen as a fitting tribute to Sen. Graham to do it quickly in his memory,” Blumenthal said. “It’s exactly what we were talking about when I last spoke to him over the weekend.”

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CNN’s Morgan Rimmer contributed to this report.

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SAN LUIS OBISPO COUNTY, Calif. (KEYT) – Fire teams are responding to multiple spot fires along northbound Highway 101, north of the junction with State Route 166 and the county border, Monday.

According to the California Highway Patrol - San Luis Obispo Area, the spot fires are along northbound portions of the roadway, from the Santa Maria Speedway to Tefft Street in Nipomo.

The San Luis Obispo County Fire Department shared that crews from both counties and the Santa Maria City Fire Department are part of the emergency response and no injuries have been reported at this point.

This is an evolving emergency response and more information will be added to this article as it is received.

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The post ON Culture: Music Academy, PCPA, and Nicole Strasburg Start the Summer Out Strong appeared first on The Santa Barbara Independent.