California

Four people have been left temporarily homeless after a man set his apartment ablaze trying to kill a spider with a blowtorch.

The death toll from the mudslides that swept through Santa Barbara county is expected to rise as rescue workers search for an unknown number people still unaccounted for.

The mud was unleashed in the dead of night by flash flooding in the steep, fire-scarred Santa Ynez Mountains.

Rosendo Xo Pec was charged with murder over the violent death of 76-year-old Betty Jane Willis. If found guilty he'll face life in prison without the possibility of parole.

Friends told local news that a man who died after attending a frat house in Fresno was allegedly given fentanyl and left unconscious for hours before getting help.

Police in Anderson, California said that a man suspiciously asked them for directions. When they searched his car and phone they found out he was trying to get to a drug deal.

California has legalised the sale of recreational marijuana, and it's no surprise its retail outlets emulate California's most successful brand.

Pot is now legal in California for adults 21 and older, and individuals can grow up to six plants and possess as much as an ounce of the drug.

California couple Vincent Calogero and Sarah Nilson accused of putting their own children up for sale to fund drugs habit.

An American woman berated two Korean speakers for daring to use a language other than English in a California Walmart.

Stephanie Smith detained following 'largest ever' cannabis bust in San Bernardino across three buildings she owned.

Good Samaritan Lindsay Shabazian lost both her legs while trying to help a stranger in a stalled car in Sacramento County, California.

Hollywood Chamber of Commerce has repeatedly refused to remove plaques of controversial stars from the star-studded pavement.

25 race horses have been killed after wildfire tore through stalls at a training facility in San Diego. The surviving horses were transported to the Del Mar race track.

Ames took her own life earlier this week following a Twitter war-of-words between her and a number of leading gay porn stars.

At least four major southern California wildfires have prompted the evacuation of about 200,000 people and destroyed hundreds of homes and buildings.

Rupert Murdoch's property is in an evacuation zone threatened by blazing wildfires that have hit Los Angeles.

While one fatality was reported in Santa Paula, the cause of the fire has not been determined yet.

Rosalie Avila's parents found her hanging in her bedroom. They say their daughter, who dreamed of becoming a lawyer, was driven to suicide by bullies at Mesa View Middle School.

The less than 10 seconds video shows the 16-year-old California boy laughing as he lifts the cat with both hands and flings it onto the road.

18-year-old Joseph Hayden Boston from California has confessed to molesting more than 50 children over several years and was only caught after confessing his crimes to his mother.

Woman contracted to work for Amazon filmed on CCTV squatting in front of house before pulling up trousers and driving away.

Deputy Nevins, also known as the "bear whisperer", followed the animals in his cruiser and asked chuckling, "What are you guys doing?" Then added, "Fleeing felons."

Frank O'Connell was charged and later sentenced for the murder of a man in a car park back in the 1980s.

A destitute California man who was living on disability checks has told of how he became a millionaire when a Navajo blanket sold at auction for $1.5m.

Stevens Millancastro also masturbated into the woman's water bottle and smeared his semen on her computer mouse, La Palma Police and Orange County Attorneys say.

The news of Manson's death was confirmed by Debra Tate, sister of actress Sharon Tate, who was one among the seven killed in 1969.

The man thought to have gone on a shooting rampage in Northern California had been banned from owning guns by a judge, according to court documents.

The US president seemed to be confused as he tweeted his condolences about the wrong shooting incident.

Officials said that no students had been killed but that a number had been injured in a shooting that reportedly took place over multiple locations in California.