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ByJanieHar TheAssociatedPress SAN FRANCISCO SanFran- cisco city leaders unani- mously granted landmark status to a tall, slender pine tree that a San Fran- cisco property owner wants to cut down but that neigh- bors rallied to save. The vote Tuesday by the Board of Supervisors pro- tects a Norfolk pine hybrid that stands in the backyard of a small parcel of private property. The tree's age is in dispute, with proponents saying it was planted more than a century ago and oth- ers saying it dates to the 1940s. The tree, which is esti- mated to be 85 feet to 100 feet tall, is not rare in Cali- fornia but not abundant in San Francisco, according to one tree expert. Neighbors and others have been trying to save the tree for a year, saying the pine is an important part of the street's landscape. A bi- ology professor submitted testimony that the tall tree probably provides a resting spot for raptors and other birds making their way to Golden Gate Park. The saga began last year when Dale Rogers, who bought the house in 2012, cut down three trees in his backyard — two palms and one of two pines — as part of a plan to redevelop his property. Afraid that the owner would cut down the remain- ing pine, a couple living in the house in the backyard and another couple living nearby got a restraining or- der to stop its removal and began the process to get the tree landmarked, over the owner's objections. The Urban Forestry Council, which recom- mends landmark status to city leaders, declined to nominate the tree on a tied vote in October. But in March, the council granted landmark status after sub- stantial public testimony. "I was very moved by the community concern for the tree," vice-chairwoman Carla Short said. "It's a very striking tree; you can see it from lots of different places in the neighborhood." Eighteen trees or groves of trees have landmark sta- tus in San Francisco, prized for their rarity or historic significance. Six are on pri- vate property, often in back or side yards. They include an impres- sive Moreton Bay fig tree in the city's Mission District and a coast live oak in res- idential Noe Valley. A giant sequoia near the Castro Dis- trict received landmark sta- tus over the owner's objec- tions, Short said. Attorney Barri Bonapart, who represents the home- owner, said the tree is an ordinary pine that poses problems for the home's infrastructure. Granting it landmark status would be a severe infringement on private property rights, she said. "There is no question the ordinance has been misused and misapplied," Bonapart said. "This is the wrong tree in the wrong place." But Vanessa Ruotolo, a musician and neighbor who has been leading the land- mark charge with her hus- band, said the tree and its visiting songbirds are what give the neighborhood its beauty and music. "We're thankful that the tree was given its due pro- cess," she said. NORFOLK PINE HYBRID SanFrancisco officials save backyard pine tree from getting the ax SERIAL KILLINGS ALSEIB—LOSANGELESTIMES Lonnie Franklin Jr., le , appears in Los Angeles Superior Court for opening statements in his trial in Los Angeles. By Brian Melley The Associated Press LOS ANGELES A lawyer for the man accused in the "Grim Sleeper" serial kill- ings in Los Angeles told ju- rors Tuesday that a "mys- tery man" was the real killer. Defense attorney Sey- mour Amster said in his closing argument that the case against Lonnie Frank- lin Jr. collapses on the tes- timony of the sole known survivor of attacks that spanned more than two decades. Enietra Washington de- scribed an assailant who was younger than Frank- lin and pock marked, Am- ster said. "Each and every mur- der in this case could have been done by a mystery man with a mystery gun with mystery DNA," Am- ster said. Amster said the real killer was an unknown "nephew" who had ac- cess to Franklin's Ford Pinto when he stopped at an "uncle's house" to get money with Washington in the car before she was shot. Washington later iden- tified a photo of Frank- lin, who is accused of 10 counts of murder and her attempted killing, as her assailant. Franklin, 63, a former garbage collector who also worked as a mechanic for the Los Angeles Police De- partment, could face the death penalty if convicted of the slayings of a 15-year- old girl and nine young women. He has pleaded not guilty to murder and attempted murder in the case. Deputy District Attor- ney Beth Silverman spent hours Monday in her clos- ing argument discuss- ing how ballistics tests showed that most of the women had been killed by the same gun that shot Washington. All the bod- ies were dumped in alleys and Franklin's DNA found on most victims and on the zip tie of the trash bag holding the body of the fi- nal victim, Janecia Peters. Amster said prosecutors had built a circumstantial case using inferior science and that patterns they at- tempted to show were nothing more than illu- sions. He compared govern- ment work on the case to a rancher who calls himself a marksman after draw- ing bullseyes around bul- let holes in his barn. Amster said Frank- lin was obsessed with sex and could have inno- cently spread his DNA to the breasts of murder vic- tims because he often gave women bras and other gar- ments. "His DNA is probably on more women out there than we'll ever know," Am- ster said, noting it wasn't a morality case. Franklin is one of three men to face charges in slay- ings initially attributed to a single killer called the "Southside Slayer" dur- ing the crack cocaine epi- demic, when crime spiked. All but one of the victims had cocaine in their bod- ies. The killings Franklin is charged with were later dubbed the work of the "Grim Sleeper" because the first victim was found in 1985 and the last in 2007, but there was a 14-year gap when no bodies turned up. Despite that, prosecutors believe his violence never ceased. Police figured the killer laid low after Washington survived a gunshot in 1988 and told her harrowing ac- count to police. Silverman said Washing- ton provided the blueprint that explained how Frank- lin preyed on the other vic- tims. Washington described being sexually assaulted and shot in the chest in 1988 as she sat in Frank- lin's orange Pinto. She said her attacker snapped a Po- laroid of her as she slipped into unconsciousness and was pushed from the car. Defense claims 'mystery man' is 'Grim Sleeper' killer By Ellen Knickmeyer The Associated Press California regulators ap- proved a $3.2 million grant Tuesday to bring safe water to a California trailer park where three dozen house- holds for years have been provided with tap water containing dangerous lev- els of uranium. The grant from the Cal- ifornia Water Resources Control Board will pay to install lines from a new well in a nearby town to the Double L Mobile Ranch Park outside Fresno, in the agriculturally rich Central Valley. One in 10 public water systems and up to one in four private wells in some areas of the Central Valley now have raw water with unsafe levels of uranium, officials say. "Uranium con- tamination is a fact and is a challenge, a gigantic chal- lenge. There is no question about that," said Frances Spivey-Weber, vice chair- woman of the water board. The Double L Mobile Ranch Park was high- lighted in a 2015 article by The Associated Press look- ing at the growing problem of uranium in the water of California's farming heart- land. U.S. Geological Survey researchers believe irriga- tion is responsible for slowly rising levels of naturally oc- curring uranium in under- ground water supplies. Uranium can damage kidneys and raise cancer risks if consumed long-term at concentrations above federal and state limits for drinking water. TAP WATER Fix for California trailer park reflects uranium problem 741Main Street,Suite#2 Red Bluff, CA 96080 1-800-287-2187 (530) 527-2187 OPEN 7 DAYS A WEEK www.redbluffcoldwellbanker.com See All Tehama County Listings at If you are Considering Selling Your Home, Now is the Time! PropertyisSelling and Listings are in Short Supply! CallTehamaCountiesLargest Real Estate Office and let our Knowledgeable and Professional Realtors assist you Today! 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