April 9, 
2026 (San Diego’s East County) — East County Roundup highlights top stories of interest to East County and San Diego’s inland regions, published in other media. This week’s round-up stories include:
LOCAL
- County supervisors used obscure events fund to solicit over $100K from influential donors since 2024 (KPBS)
- SDG&E customers to receive $32.53 climate credit in April billing cycle (City News Service)
- El Cajon native who died saving two boys awarded posthumous Carnegie Medal for heroism (KGTV)
- San Diego neighborhoods push back against massive housing developments under Complete Communities plan (ABC)
- Navy ‘looking into’ Campa-Najjar’s use of military status in campaign (KPBS)
- New razor wire along the U.S.-Mexico border threatens the survival of endangered bighorn sheep (10 News)
- San Diego Court Tosses Key Sex Convictions for Ex-Granite Hills Teacher (Hoodline)
- Department of Education axes protections for transgender students in La Mesa (KPBS)
- Fewer people are riding the San Diego trolley. Officials blame the unexpected drop on ICE and affordability. (San Diego Union-Tribune)
STATE
- Record heat, melting snow: What does it mean for California’s reservoirs? (CalMatters)
- Trump endorsing Hilton may change governor race (Cal Matters)
- Agents of Chaos: Border Patrol’s Year of Unchecked Force (Evident Media)
- Imperial County supervisors clear path for massive data center complex amid fierce opposition (KPBS)
- The 9 Rat-Repelling Flowers California Gardeners Are Planting Now (Positive Bloom)
- Sparse snowpack in California fuels concern over fast-approaching fire season (KPBS)
For excerpts and links to full stories, click “read more” and scroll down.
LOCAL
County supervisors used obscure events fund to solicit over $100K from influential donors since 2024 (KPBS)
A KPBS investigation found supervisor offices tapped influential companies, associations and individuals for monetary gifts. Some of the entities had business before the county at the time
SDG&E customers to receive $32.53 climate credit in April billing cycle (City News Service)
Residential SDG&E customer should look for the credit automatically applied to their bills. Later this year, a $49.36 electric Climate Credit will be delivered twice.
El Cajon native who died saving two boys awarded posthumous Carnegie Medal for heroism (KGTV)
A lifelong San Diegan who died saving two boys from drowning in the Colorado River will be posthumously awarded a Carnegie Medal, recognized as the highest honor for civilian heroism in North America. / Jeff Brady, a native of El Cajon, drowned during a July 4th weekend outing in Yuma after helping save the lives of his girlfriend’s 10-year-old nephew and the boy’s 12-year-old brother.
Residents in Mission Hills, Golden Hill, and other communities say the city’s Complete Communities plan is allowing developers to build massive projects that change the character of neighborhoods.
Navy ‘looking into’ Campa-Najjar’s use of military status in campaign (KPBS)
The Navy said it is looking into allegations Reserve Lt. j.g. Ammar Campa-Najjar violated Pentagon regulations governing the use of military status and images in partisan political campaigns.
New razor wire along the U.S.-Mexico border threatens the survival of endangered bighorn sheep (10 News)
New border security measures in the Jacumba Wilderness are raising concerns among wildlife scientists about the safety of endangered Peninsular bighorn sheep.Razor wire and new barriers installed along parts of the U.S.-Mexico border are cutting off the animals’ migration paths and their water supply.
San Diego Court Tosses Key Sex Convictions for Ex-Granite Hills Teacher (Hoodline)
A state appeals court last Friday wiped out the most serious convictions against Gerald Lopez, a former English teacher and coach at Granite Hills High School who was found guilty in 2024 of sex-related charges involving a then-17-year-old student. The decision tosses both the felony child-sexual-abuse-material conviction tied to a photograph and a related child-molestation-related conviction, while keeping legal options alive for prosecutors. The three-judge panel zeroed in on what it called insufficient evidence for one count and improperly handled testimony for another.
Department of Education axes protections for transgender students in La Mesa (KPBS)
The Department of Education on Monday announced it was dissolving Title IX agreements with five school districts and a college intended to protect the rights and privacy of transgender students — including one with the La Mesa-Spring Valley School District.
Fewer people are riding the San Diego trolley. Officials blame the unexpected drop on ICE and affordability. (San Diego Union-Tribune)
Local transit officials are blaming a recent dip in San Diego trolley ridership on the federal immigration crackdown and on lower-income transit users making fewer leisure trips because of rising household expenses. / Ridership rose 7% last fiscal year and had been projected to rise another 6.5% this fiscal year. Instead it’s down 1.3% since July — a drop that will cost the cash-strapped Metropolitan Transit System $8.4 million.
STATE
Record heat, melting snow: What does it mean for California’s reservoirs? (CalMatters)
… California’s reservoirs are in good shape, brimming above historic averages with many nearing capacity. But that summertime snow bank on the slopes of the Sierra Nevada is disappearing early, and fast — dropping to 38% of average for mid-March statewide….Bottom of Form
But this year’s snowpack is rapidly approaching the worst five on record for April 1st.
Trump endorsing Hilton may change governor race (Cal Matters)
For weeks, leaders of California’s Democratic Party have worried aloud about having so many Democrats running for governor that two Republicans could finish first and second in the state’s June 2 primary election, thus guaranteeing election of a GOP governor in November. Late Sunday, Democratic worrywarts got some relief from an unexpected source — President Donald Trump.
Agents of Chaos: Border Patrol’s Year of Unchecked Force (Evident Media)
Border Patrol agents, far from their home bases in California and elsewhere on the U.S./Mexico border, have been roving from city to city over the last 15 months, engaged in an unprecedented mass deportation campaign. Over that time, a collaboration between CalMatters, Evident Media and Bellingcat has tracked these agents, documenting their tactics on the ground and through mountains of video footage, since their first proof-of-concept raid in Bakersfield in January 2025.
Imperial County supervisors clear path for massive data center complex amid fierce opposition (KPBS)
In a tense and tightly controlled public hearing Tuesday, the Imperial County Board of Supervisors approved a lot merger that opens a path for construction to begin on a massive data center complex proposed in the heart of the county. / The supervisors voted 4-1 to combine several parcels of land where the proposed complex will be built.
The 9 Rat-Repelling Flowers California Gardeners Are Planting Now (Positive Bloom)
If rats have been turning your garden into their own personal buffet, it’s time to fight back with flowers that do more than look pretty. California gardeners are quietly planting blooms that seem to send rodents packing, turning once vulnerable beds and borders into far less inviting hangouts for those whiskered troublemakers.
Sparse snowpack in California fuels concern over fast-approaching fire season (KPBS)
Though precipitation to date has been near average, much of it fell as rain rather than snow. Then March’s record-breaking heat melted most of the snow that remains. The state’s major reservoirs are nevertheless brimming above historic averages and are flirting with capacity, and a smattering of snow, rain and thunderstorms are dousing last month’s heat wave.