Laguna Beach home trades hands for $13.6M, first time since 1962

• April 25, 2026

A Laguna Beach mid-century home held by the same family since 1962 sold for $13.6 million, closing March 17 at $100,000 over the asking price.

The 4,376-square-foot home, completed in 1958, has six bedrooms, three bathrooms and a rare indoor 40-by-20-foot pool and spa under a retractable roof added in the 1980s. Records viewed at PropertyShark show the buyer, a Las Vegas-based family trust led by John T. Redmond, a prominent hospitality executive and former CEO of Allegiant Air, bought the property in an all-cash deal.

Set on a more than three-quarter-acre lot in the Three Arch Bay gated community, the home captures promontory views of the ocean, Catalina Island and the coastline stretching from Palos Verdes to “the islands off of Rosarito,” listing agent Bryan Gerlach of Engel & Völkers previously told Southern California News Group.

The home was the longtime home of the late Dr. Aldon Clark, a Laguna Beach pediatrician who moved his family there shortly after launching his pediatrics practice. He and his wife, Patsy, raised four children in the home as its second owners.

Throughout the late couple’s six decades of ownership, the original mid-century design and craftsmanship were meticulously maintained.

Glass walls frame these views from the living room, anchored by a stone fireplace.

The dining room connects to the tiled kitchen.

Every room connects to the outdoor wraparound patio.

Gerlach and Paul Brutoco of Engel & Völkers listed the home, while Adriana Farfan of Pacific Sotheby’s International Realty represented the buyer.

The seller accepted the offer just 13 days after the property listed Jan. 11 for $13.5 million. According to Engel & Völkers, it set the all-time record in Upper Three Arch Bay.

​ Orange County Register 

Rockets’ Kevin Durant sits out Game 3; Lakers’ Austin Reaves remains out

• April 25, 2026

HOUSTON — Lakers guard Austin Reaves went through pregame warmups for the first time in three weeks before being downgraded to out 45 minutes before Game 3 tipped off on Friday, but the Houston Rockets were dealt a significant injury blow for the second time in the first-round playoff series.

Kevin Durant, the Rockets’ leading scorer and initiator, sat out Game 3 with a left ankle sprain he suffered in the fourth quarter on Tuesday night. Durant sat out Game 1 with a knee contusion following a collision with a teammate in a practice last week, but he returned for Game 2 and led Houston with 23 points.

With Durant unavailable, Rockets coach Ime Udoka said he would lean on a smaller rotation for Game 3, a group that includes former Lakers forward Dorian Finney-Smith – who has dealt with a lingering ankle injury throughout the season – and would play forwards Jae’Sean Tate and Jabari Smith Jr. at center at times.

“With Kevin being out, possibly, or playing more small that opens up the window for Dorian, and so he’s ready to go,” Udoka said before Friday’s game. “Obviously, the health has been an issue at times this year, but he hasn’t played a lot lately and is ready to contribute.”

Lakers coach JJ Redick said the Rockets playing smaller, or even switching up their rotations – which Udoka alluded to after the Lakers took a 2-0 series lead – is something that they are prepared for.

“We’re prepared for any scenario,” Redick said.

Redick has remained relatively mum about Reaves’ recovery efforts, other than insisting for the second consecutive day that he is “progressing” from his Grade 2 left oblique muscle injury. Redick said before Game 3 that Reaves’ 5:45 p.m. local time warmup would determine whether he would suit up.

Reaves’ soft-tissue injury usually carries a four-to-six-week recovery process. As of Friday, it has been three weeks and one day since Reaves aggravated his oblique against Oklahoma City on April 2. Working with assistant coach Beau Levesque, Reaves participated in shooting drills for 15 minutes, before stopping to autograph a fan’s jersey on his way back to the locker room.

Thirty minutes later, the Lakers ruled Reaves out.

When asked about the potential of facing either Reaves or Luka Doncic (who remains “out indefinitely” with a Grade 2 left hamstring strain) during the series, Udoka said the Rockets have been more focused on the ongoing threat of how to handle LeBron James, rather than the “what if” of Reaves taking the court.

“We understood that he was going to be out for a while, if not the whole series, and so we prepared it as if they’re going to be out and those last five games they played without him and Doncic, that was our focus,” Udoka said of the team’s preparation ahead of the series.

“But you look at the sets and what we did against them previous this year, and you can look back on those and how they play very similar to Kennard and some of the actions that they run for him now. So won’t be a surprise if [Reaves] comes back, but the prep was really on focusing on LeBron and how much he’s initiating and having the ball.”

​ Orange County Register 

Riverside County firefighter suspected in multiple sexual assaults is arrested

• April 25, 2026

A 51-year-old Riverside County firefighter suspected of perpetrating multiple sexual assaults was arrested Friday, April 24 on suspicion of forcible rape and other allegations.

David Renteria III was taken into custody without incident at his Placentia home. He was booked into the Robert Presley Jail in Riverside on suspicion of the rape, as well as false imprisonment, assault with a deadly weapon, sexual penetration by force and related offenses, according to the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department.

Bail information was not immediately available.

Sheriff’s Sgt. Aaron Wolfe said personnel from the county’s Anti-Human Trafficking Task Force, which is comprised of investigators from several agencies, received information last March indicating Renteria, a firefighter-paramedic, allegedly had been involved in two separate sex crimes.

The circumstances behind the alleged assaults were not disclosed. But sufficient evidence was gathered to procure and serve a warrant at the home, Wolfe said.

Renteria’s length of service with Cal Fire, with which the county contracts for fire protection services, could not immediately be confirmed. His post-arrest employment status also wasn’t available, but Cal Fire had been informed that he was booked into jail, Wolfe said.

Investigators believe there may be additional victims, and anyone with information was asked to contact the sheriff’s department at either 951-955-1700, or 951-776-1099.

​ Orange County Register 

New Rams QB Ty Simpson ready to learn behind Matthew Stafford

• April 25, 2026

INGLEWOOD — Not many in the NIL era are willing to wait it out in college, sitting and learning but not playing, not seeing the field. Most enter the transfer portal and go on their way to what they hope will be greener pastures and more playing time.

But not Ty Simpson. The quarterback sat for three years at Alabama, biding his time, doing things the old-fashioned way before he got his chance to start as a redshirt junior. Part of it was a desire to stick things out with his teammates. But he also felt like it was the best decision to prepare him to extend his career.

“I wanted to make sure that whatever I did was going to benefit me to be an NFL player. Staying at Alabama, I knew the infrastructure that we had there was always going to set me up to play in the NFL,” Simpson explained Friday. “The SEC is the best conference in football. … Being able to get to play those type of games and play in those big moments is just going to prepare you for the NFL.”

Simpson’s patience was rewarded Thursday when the Rams selected him with the 13th overall pick in the NFL draft. And as he prepares for the next step of his career as a starting quarterback in the league, he’ll need to lean on that patience and perspective again.

The 23-year-old quarterback will again be asked to sit to begin his Rams tenure, this time behind reigning league MVP Matthew Stafford. The 38-year-old has one year left on his contract, but head coach Sean McVay has said he thinks it’s possible the veteran sticks around for another year or two beyond that, and that the Simpson pick won’t impact ongoing contract negotiations with Stafford.

But Simpson won’t mind, given that it is Stafford he has been afforded the opportunity to learn behind.

“I can’t wait to talk to Matthew,” Simpson said, in a blue suit with a Rams hat, his family off to the side as he met with the L.A. area media for the first time. “Matthew always plays on time and he always plays great with his feet. He doesn’t flinch. And so that’s something to where I can’t wait to see him in action and see how he prepares in practice and see when he takes those calculated risks.”

Simpson has actually been something of a student of Stafford and the Rams for some time. At Alabama, his coaches would show him clips of McVay’s offense. From that study, he came to admire Stafford’s control at the line of scrimmage, his ability to check into plays, his footwork to manipulate defenses.

He also saw the ways McVay schemes open Puka Nacua, how he incorporated 13-personnel into the scheme in 2025.

“He’s got the juice, man,” Simpson said after meeting McVay in person for the first time Friday. “He’s a fireball, he loves ball. Like, I’m so blessed to be a part of this organization and have him as a coach because you can really tell that he cares for his players.”

Stafford has yet to make contact, but Simpson said that his wife, Kelly, reached out via Instagram to welcome him to Los Angeles and offer any help to him and his family. So did Rams captain Quentin Lake.

He knows it will take some adjusting, joking Friday that he’s “a redneck in Los Angeles, California. So we’ll see how that goes.” But everything will be a daily process, both in the city and in the facility.

“My plan is to just get better each day. I’m blessed enough to be in the room with a great quarterback room, great coaches, reigning MVP, first-ballot Hall of Famer, the best head coach in football,” Simpson said. “The years that I sat were just as, probably more important than the years that I played because I had to learn how to practice. I had to learn how to study when I wasn’t playing because I didn’t know when that time was going to come. And so whenever that time did come, it was this year that I made the most of it.”

​ Orange County Register 

Orange County scores and player stats for Friday, April 24

• April 25, 2026

Support our high school sports coverage by becoming a digital subscriber. Subscribe now

Scores and stats from Orange County games on Friday, April 24

Click here for details about sending your team’s scores and stats to the Register.

The deadline for submitting information is 10:45 p.m. Monday through Friday and 10 p.m. Saturday.

SOFTBALL

TRINITY LEAGUE

Orange Lutheran 8, Santa Margarita 0

JSerra 2, Mater Dei 0

COAST LEAGUE

Anaheim 22, Loara 4

Los Amigos 12, Santa Ana Valley 0

EMPIRE LEAGUE

Fullerton 18, Garden Grove 0

Kennedy 11, Valencia 0

GOLDEN WEST LEAGUE

Katella 21, Ocean View 4

ORANGE COAST LEAGUE

Costa Mesa 8, Tustin 5

Santa Ana 8, Laguna Hills 3

ORANGE LEAGUE

Magnolia 14, Saddleback 4

GIRLS BEACH VOLLEYBALL

CIF-SS CHAMPIONSHIPS

DIVISION 2

Quarterfinals

Edison 3, Ventura 2

​ Orange County Register 

At Beijing auto show, Chinese carmakers flaunt new technologies as global competition heats up

• April 24, 2026

By HAN GUAN NG and CHAN HO-HIM

BEIJING (AP) — China’s top automakers are showcasing their latest models and technologies from intelligent driving to ultrafast charging in Beijing as they compete with global rivals in overseas markets.

Analysts say the biennial auto show in China’s capital, which opened to media on Friday, shows how its auto industry is setting the global pace for cutting-edge technologies in areas such as electric vehicles and batteries, eclipsing many foreign brands that used to dominate the global market.

More than 1,450 vehicles are on display at this year’s show, including 181 global debuts. The show runs until May 3.

Intelligent driving, fast charging showcased

Chinese EV maker XPeng is showing off its latest GX model, a six-seater SUV with a third row seats that can lie completely flat, among other new displays and technologies.

Huge crowds gathered for a presentation by its founder and CEO He Xiaopeng, who described more high-tech aspects of the vehicle.

“When you’re driving on the highway, you fall asleep, or if you feel unwell and can no longer control the vehicle, the system can detect the situation, pull over automatically and alert emergency services,” He said. “Many people who have tried it say it’s amazing.”

Chinese EV maker BYD showcased its new generation of the fast charging “blade” EV battery, first unveiled last month, which can achieve a near full charge in nine minutes, at the auto show, as well as demonstrated charging under the low temperature of minus 30 degree Celsius. Also showcased by Yijing, a EV joint venture between Chinese carmaker Dongfeng Motor Corp. and technology giant Huawei, was the X9, their flagship six‑seat SUV.

According to Chairman Wang Junjun, the new model will features some of the latest auto technology, including a next-generation Qiankun intelligent driving system and a new HarmonyOS cockpit and operating system developed by Huawei.

Ahead of the show, Chinese battery giant CATL unveiled on Tuesday a new version of its “Shenxing” battery, which can be charged from 10% to 98% in only about six-and-a-half minutes.

China’s ‘aggressive’ advancements

The auto show showcases the “speed and aggressiveness of advancement” among Chinese automakers, said Tu Le, managing director of consultancy ​Sino Auto Insights. “It just reinforces that the Chinese — whether in EVs, batteries, intelligent driving — are setting the pace for all these important sectors,” he said.

“China has become one of the fastest-moving markets for deploying and iterating new vehicle technologies, giving consumers early access to some of the most advanced features,” said Chris Liu, a senior analyst at research and advisory group Omdia.

China has become the world’s biggest car exporter, benefiting from its ability to reap cost advantages from its huge scale as well as significant government subsidies and support that helped automakers to rapidly scale up and more quickly rolling out new models and technologies than their foreign competitors.

But Chinese automakers has been facing immense pressure from ferocious price wars over the past months. This year, the government has scaled back subsidies encouraging drivers to switch to EVs and plug-in hybrids, weighing on domestic demand.

Sales of passenger cars in China dropped 23% in the January-March quarter from a year earlier to around 4 million vehicles, according to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers. But exports jumped 63% to almost 2 million vehicles as Chinese cars made inroads in regions like Europe, Southeast Asia and Latin America.

Omdia forecasts China’s passenger vehicle exports will grow by around 14% year-on-year in 2026.

The hypercompetitive Chinese market have pulled vehicle prices down by a fifth over the past two years, according to a report this week by consultancy AlixPartners.

Few new tech expected to be exported

Few of the new technologies showcased at the auto show may be exported to overseas markets in the short term due to regulatory and safety challenges, Liu said. But they signal “capabilities that can be refined and adapted for global markets over time.”

Even as foreign automakers have been losing market share in recent years in China, some are staging a comeback, with Volkswagen ‌Group announcing on ​Tuesday plans for installing “agentic” AI ​into ​its vehicles for China. It also unveiled new EV models for the Chinese market, including the new UNYX 09 electric sedan co-developed with XPeng.

While the foreign car brands may try to “stabilize” their market share in China, “gaining back a significant market share they had before is, to my perspective, not realistic,” said Andreas Radics, managing director at Berylls by AlixPartners specialized in the automotive industry.

Meanwhile, given the growing demand and often better profitability in overseas markets, Chinese automakers have been shifting from exporting cars from China to building more factories overseas, including in Hungary and Turkey, to increase supplies abroad and avert trade friction.

Chinese carmakers are likely to almost triple their overseas production by 2030 to 3.4 million vehicles from 1.2 million last year, according to AlixPartners estimates.

Chan reported from Hong Kong. Associated Press video producer Wayne Zhang in Beijing contributed to this report.

​ Orange County Register 

Chargers’ top pick Akheem Mesidor eager to show love for the game

• April 24, 2026

EL SEGUNDO — Akheem Mesidor’s route to the NFL was a long one, longer than most.

He looked and sounded exactly like someone who awoke before the crack of dawn, if he had slept at all after the Chargers’ picked him in the first round of the NFL draft Thursday night, and then caught the earliest flight out of town, switching planes in a foreign city before flying coast to coast.

It was a whirlwind, to be sure.

It also was a part of the larger journey that’s taken the 6-foot-3, 259-pound defensive end from his hometown of Ottawa, the capital of Canada, to a high school in Clearwater, Florida, for greater exposure, to West Virginia University and then to the University of Miami before the Chargers picked him 22nd overall.

Overall, he played six seasons of college football, going through a pandemic in one season and missing all but three games of another because of injuries to both feet. He was little known and little regarded until transferring to Miami and then having a breakout season in 2025.

The Chargers selected him as a depth player beyond future Hall of Fame outside linebacker Khalil Mack and rising standout Tuli Tuipulotu, a first-time Pro Bowl pick last season. Some day, if all goes as expected and Mesidor fulfills the Chargers’ expectations of him, he could become the 35-year-old Mack’s replacement.

Chargers general manager Joe Hortiz said the team’s college scouts were drawn to Mesidor, 25, from the early days of the 2025 season, and they never let him out of their sight as he recorded 17.5 tackles for losses, including 13.5 sacks, with 67 quarterback pressures and four forced fumbles.

Coach Jim Harbaugh said it was clear Mesidor loved the game of football, loved to play and loved to practice. Harbaugh believed Mesidor would fit seamlessly into the Chargers’ culture, especially with Mack and Tuipulotu acting as mentors, showing him the way it’s done.

“Why do I love football?” Mesidor asked, repeating a reporter’s question. “I just love the game. It’s, like, if I asked you why you love pizza. You just love it. It’s a game I’ve been playing since I was 8 years old. The physicality, the violence, the technicality, like, how technical I am in my game. Everything that comes with football, on the field and off the field, the relationships that you can build. Football is more than just how it impacts you. It’s a lifestyle for me.”

Maybe it was a long night of celebrating his selection and then a long day of travel, but Mesidor sounded reserved and looked fatigued. His voice was quiet, subdued. There was no hint of the relentless pass rusher and tackler that he became during his final season with the Hurricanes.

The transformation will come once he hits the field.

Meanwhile, Mesidor said he intends to become a good student, learning from his teammates, especially Mack. It’s the same sort of path Tuipulotu took after the Chargers drafted him in the second round out of USC in 2023. He was a quiet observer, determined to learn from Mack.

“He’s been in the game so long,” Mesidor said of Mack, entering his 13th NFL season. “How has he done that? How does he take care of his body? Really, what’s his routine when it comes to day-to-day things? When we’re in the meeting room, what are his pass-rush plans? How does he approach different looks on the field? Just trying to pick his brain as much as possible.”

In so many ways, one journey is complete, but another is just beginning.

​ Orange County Register 

Camp Mystic warned of safety plan problems as it seeks to reopen this summer after deadly 2025 flood

• April 24, 2026

By JIM VERTUNO

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Texas state regulators found nearly two dozen deficiencies in the emergency operations plan submitted in Camp Mystic’s bid to reopen less than a year after 27 children and counselors were killed in a devastating flood.

Camp Mystic’s owners have applied for a license to reopen the all-girls Christian camp in late May in part of the campus that did not flood. That has angered families of the girls killed, some of whom have filed lawsuits against the camp, and prompted several prominent state officials to call for the license to be denied or delayed pending the outcome of ongoing investigations.

The 11-page letter from the Department of State Health Services notes deficiencies that include problems with flood warning evacuation plans, use of an emergency warning and public address system, monitoring safety alerts and training campers on safety.

It was sent to the camp about a week after a three-day court hearing in the family lawsuits when several camp operators and staff acknowledged they missed official flood warnings, lacked a detailed evacuation plan and waited too long to try to get the children out. One of the camp’s owners, Richard Eastland, also died.

The letter notes that Camp Mystic is allowed to revise the emergency plan. Camp Mystic officials said they would work with the agency to address the problems cited.

“Our priority remains the safety and well-being of our campers, and we hope to continue the nearly century-long mission and ministry of Camp Mystic to provide a Christian camping experience for girls that allows them to grow physically, mentally and spiritually,” the camp said.

The camp’s emergency plan was submitted as part of strict new guidelines imposed by state lawmakers after the deadly flood.

DSHS spokesperson Lara Anton said many camps have received deficiency notices ahead of summer opening.

“This is part of the licensing application review process, and most youth camps have received a notice of deficiency letter for their emergency plan due to the statutory changes and increased emergency plan requirements,” Anton said.

Texas lawmakers have scheduled two days of hearings next week on what happened during the flood that ripped through the Guadalupe River and killed more than 130 people in all. Several lawmakers and the Texas Rangers, the state police elite investigations unit, visited the camp site this week.

​ Orange County Register