Aaron Schrank

Los Angeles has turned off the power to a home that hosted several large parties. The city said the resident violated public health orders meant to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.

One way Catholic leaders hid sexually abusive priests was to move them into immigrant communities where victims may be less likely to speak up.

No schools in Wyoming have a policy protecting transgender students. In Laramie, the district has been working to formulate one. But amid national debate, that local policy may be stalled.

There are huge gaps in school funding between affluent and property-poor districts. And, with evidence that money matters, especially for disadvantaged kids, something has to change.

Pope Francis' encyclical on the environment is getting a thorough reading in Wyoming, which is the country's top coal-producing state. The letter presents a moral framework for approaching issues such as global climate change, but it's a difficult subject for Catholics in coal country.

Many public high schools lack funding for STEM — Science, Technology, Engineering and Math — programs. Energy companies worried about finding future employees are donating to schools.

So far, 13 states have adopted the Next Generation Science Standards, but elsewhere these standards are causing controversy because of what they say about climate change. In Wyoming, reports Aaron Schrank, it's a particularly touchy issue.

Opponents of a new California law that aims to accommodate transgender students say they've gathered enough signatures to try to overturn it on next year's ballot. The law allows transgender students to use the bathrooms and join the sports teams that match their gender identity.

Homeless-services providers in Los Angeles County are gathering data on the homeless population and ranking people by vulnerability. The goal is to get the most in need into permanent housing quickly. The "housing first" approach has been used in cities nationwide, but it has its critics, even among other advocates.

California condor conservationists are among those pushing for a statewide ban on lead ammunition in California. Some of the critically endangered birds are dying of lead poisoning. The Los Angeles Zoo has been breeding condors in captivity for decades to restore the species' population. Now a major part of their job is treating birds who've dined on lead-tainted animal remains in the wild. They — along with a bill making its way through the Legislature — identify lead bullets as the top condor threat. But hunters and shooters question lead's environmental impact. And they say a ban would leave them with few affordable, convenient options.