A.M. Splash: Big Comcast Job Cuts; PG&E Says Being Scapegoated Over San Bruno

Comcast will eliminate about 1,000 jobs in Northern California, including more than 300 in the East Bay and more than 300 in the South Bay, as it closes call centers in Livermore, Morgan Hill and Sacramento. The telecommunications giant blamed the cuts on California's high costs...Comcast, the dominant provider of cable television services in the Bay Area, will transfer its call center work to existing similar operations in Portland, Seattle and Denver.

Pacific Gas and Electric Co. dismissed nearly all of state utility regulators' accusations of wrongdoing stemming from the 2010 San Bruno gas-pipeline explosion as an exercise in scapegoating, as the state opened a hearing Tuesday that could lead to hundreds of millions of dollars in fines against the company.

Google co-founder Sergey Brin and Gov. Jerry Brown carpooled to work Tuesday in a white Toyota Prius, but no one was driving. One day, in the not-so-distant future, you can join them. Brown hitched a futuristic ride to Google's Mountain View headquarters to sign landmark legislation that will allow self-driving cars to hit California streets by 2015.

California Sen. Dianne Feinstein, who chairs the Senate Intelligence Committee, said Tuesday in San Francisco that while Iran's nuclear capability is rapidly advancing, she does not believe that the United States would make a pre-emptive strike on that country, "nor do I believe that would be the right thing to do."

Occupy Oakland supporters announced plan to retake Frank H. Ogawa Plaza on Oct. 25 -- the anniversary of the initial eviction of the Oakland encampment and the ensuing protest for which police were sharply criticized. The announcement posted online Monday calls for a noontime rally at Oscar Grant Plaza, efforts to shut down nearby banks and a 7 p.m. march against Oakland's police department.

Gov. Jerry Brown gave California's 278 state parks a two-year reprieve from closures Tuesday after embarrassing revelations that parks officials were hiding funds for years. The governor signed Assembly Bill 1478, which prohibits the state Department of Parks and Recreation from closing a park or proposing shutdowns until July 2014. The legislation also provides $10 million to match future contributions from donors who help keep parks open, $10 million for operating costs and $10 million in bond funds for park improvements.

An ex-cop turned private investigator at the center of a Contra Costa police corruption scandal was sentenced to eight years in federal prison and ordered to pay a $20,000 fine Tuesday for crimes that brought down a Department of Justice vice squad and led to the prosecution of officers from three law enforcement agencies. "(I want to) apologize to the community for the anxiety, fear and suffering I have caused others. I want to apologize to the law enforcement community for the betrayal and embarrassment I inflicted upon it. I want to apologize to my family and friends who supported me through all of this," Christopher Butler said, his voice breaking. He pleaded guilty in May to seven felony counts covering methamphetamine and marijuana distribution, theft, conspiracy, extortion, robbery and illegal wiretapping.

Resurgent perjury allegations against Mayor Ed Lee have fueled political tension at City Hall in advance of a special Oct. 9 Board of Supervisors hearing that is expected to conclude the nine-month hullabaloo about suspended Sheriff Ross Mirkarimi. Mirkarimi’s attorneys filed a request Monday that asks supervisors to subpoena four witnesses who might shed light on Lee’s June 29 testimony in the sheriff’s official misconduct proceedings at the Ethics Commission.

Ranging from casual riders to the elite, 7,500 cyclists from around the world are converging on Sonoma County this week for Levi's GranFondo, a mass ride on Saturday morning that will take participants from Santa Rosa to the coast and back again.