Kings still hurting and second-guessing after series loss to Edmonton

• May 6, 2025

EL SEGUNDO –– The Kings held their exit interviews but there were more questions than answers from a club that parted ways with its general manager on Monday morning after bowing out of a playoff series it led 2-0 before holding third-period leads in Games 3 and 4.

Vanishing acts in those two games, a desiccated effort in Game 5 and some too-little-too-late surges in Game 6 left them reverse swept by the same Edmonton Oilers that have escorted them out of four straight first rounds, leading to the dismissal of GM Rob Blake.

“This one hurt, like, big time. In past years, I’m not gonna say we didn’t think we could maybe win, but this year I truly felt we were going to win the series,” Drew Doughty said. “We’re very tight off the ice, on the ice everyone bought into what we were supposed to do, and I think this is the best team we’ve had here in a long, long time.”

Indeed it was, in some qualified ways, the best Kings campaign ever, as they tied single-season bests for wins and points while raising the bar for home victories. That was fueled by a sharp ascent from 12th to sixth in the league standings and from 23rd to 14th in goals-per-game from March 8 onward. The Kings continued their offensive surge, particularly on the power play, in the postseason, but became much more vulnerable defensively when facing Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl and their cohorts over half a dozen matches.

“We definitely made progress, the regular-season record showed (that). But, at the end of the day, that’s not what you’re playing for,” captain Anže Kopitar said. “You’re playing, obviously, to win the championship, and we failed to do so, so it’s disappointing. We felt like this year would be different. We got off to a good start, but we couldn’t close.”

A failed challenge in Game 3 that let the winner stand and invited Edmonton to summarily score a power-play game-winner off the resulting bench minor did the Kings in, and then a pair of failed clears –– one by Doughty before Edmonton’s second goal and one by Quinton Byfield before the late equalizer that sent the contest to overtime –– loomed large in Game 4.

“My thought process was that I didn’t want to ice the puck on an empty-netter, so I tried to make the safe, smart play and chip it out, and I didn’t get it out,” Byfield said. “If I make that play there, we’re up 3-1, so it’s a tough one to swallow and I think all summer I’ll be thinking about that.”

That sort of risk-averse mentality hurt the Kings repeatedly in the series, with Doughty and others averring that they were not told to sit back and absorb play late. Doughty pointed to “human nature” as a reason for the Kings’ tentativeness. Winger Kevin Fiala remarked that the St. Louis Blues also went into a defensive shell before allowing a tying goal with 1.6 seconds left in a Game 7 they ultimately lost in double overtime to the Winnipeg Jets on Sunday.

Still, there was no denying the impact of Games 3 and 4, which converted a potential convincing series victory into yet another deflating defeat. The Kings’ road struggles persisted as they won none of the three games in Edmonton and turned in perhaps their flattest performance at home, where they had the NHL’s best points percentage this season, in Game 5.

“They took the series over from there. We came back home and we were gassed from the overtime. There were just little key moments that cost us big time,” Phillip Danault said.

Part of both the safety-first-and-last mindset was the deployment by coach Jim Hiller and his staff, which leaned very heavily on three forward lines and two defensive pairings. While Adrian Kempe, who led the Kings with 10 points in the series, said he personally didn’t feel fatigued playing such intense minutes, it was a strategy that might have been foreseeably untenable just the same.

“I can only speak for myself in that case, but playing three lines through almost a full series could be tough,” Kempe said. “It could be tough if you go further in the playoffs. I think that you maybe need to play some more lines and more guys to not have the top guys get too tired.”

“You look at Edmonton, in previous years, how much they played Leon (Draisaitl) and Connor (McDavid), you watched the next rounds and thought maybe they were getting tired, too.”

Given how the series went and that Blake was sacked, there was no shortage of heat under the collar of Coach Jim Hiller. He was asked how he would evaluate his own performance in the series against Edmonton.

“I haven’t gotten to that, necessarily. It was a hard series. You can always look back and say, ‘Maybe we could have done this,’ or, ‘Maybe we could have done that,’” Hiller said. “In the end, you make decisions in the moment with the information you have, and it didn’t turn out for us.”

Hiller was also asked about his own job security, and he said he was going about his day-to-day duties as head coach.

“I haven’t had any of those conversations yet,” Hiller said. “I do understand that whenever there’s significant change like that, there’s usually more [changes].”

​ Orange County Register 

Graduation 2025 schedule: Dates, times for Orange County high schools

• May 6, 2025

Graduation caps are flying again.

From high schools across Orange County, graduates are celebrating 2025 commencement ceremonies.

• • Anaheim High – Wednesday, May 21, 2025 @ 6 p.m., Handel Stadium, Western High campus
  • Cypress High – Tuesday, May 20, 2025 @ 6 p.m., Handel Stadium, Western High campus
  • Katella High – Tuesday, May 20, 2025 @ 2 p.m., Handel Stadium, Western High campus
  • Kennedy High – Friday, May 23, 2025 @ 2 p.m., Handel Stadium, Western High campus
  • Loara High – Thursday, May 22, 2025 @ 10 a.m., Handel Stadium, Western High campus
  • Magnolia High – Wednesday, May 21, 2025 @ 10 a.m., Handel Stadium, Western High campus
  • Oxford Academy – Friday, May 23, 2025 @ 10 a.m., Handel Stadium, Western High campus
  • Savanna High – Thursday, May 22, 2025 @ 6 p.m., Handel Stadium, Western High campus
  • Western High – Thursday, May 22, 2025 @ 2 p.m., Handel Stadium, Western High campus
  • Brea Olinda High – Tuesday, June 3, 2025 @ 6 p.m., Brea Olinda High stadium
  • Aliso Niguel High School – Thursday, June 5, 2025 @ 4 p.m., Wolverine Stadium Aliso Niguel HS
  • Capistrano Valley High – Thursday, June 5, 2025 @ 4 p.m. , Saddleback College Stadium
  • Dana Hills High School – Thursday, June 5, 2025 @ 4 p.m., Dana Hills High stadium
  • San Clemente High – Thursday, June 5, 2025 @ 4 p.m., Thalassa Stadium at San Clemente High School
  • San Juan Hills High – Thursday, June 5, 2025 @ 5 p.m., The Badlands Stadium at San Juan Hills High School
  • Tesoro High – Thursday, June 5, 2025 @ 4 p.m., Tesoro High School, Titan Stadium
  • Buena Park High – Thursday, May 29, 2025 @ 6 p.m., Buena Park High stadium
  • Fullerton Union High – Wednesday, May 28, 2025 @ 7 p.m., Fullerton Joint Union High School District stadium
  • La Habra High – Wednesday, May 28, 2025 @ 6 p.m., La Habra High stadium
  • Sonora High – Thursday, May 29, 2025 @ 6 p.m., La Habra High stadium
  • Sunny Hills High – Thursday, May 29, 2025 @ 3 p.m., Fullerton Joint Union High School District stadium
  • Troy High – Thursday, May 29, 2025 @ 7 p.m., Fullerton Joint Union High School District stadium
  • Bolsa Grande High – Tuesday, May 27, 2025 @ 2 p.m., Bolsa Grande High stadium
  • Garden Grove – Tuesday, May 27, 2025 @ 2 p.m., Michael A. Monsoor Memorial Stadium
  • La Quinta High – Wednesday, May 28, 2025 @ 3 p.m., Bolsa Grande High stadium
  • Los Amigos High – Tuesday, May 27, 2025 @ 6 p.m., Michael A. Monsoor Memorial Stadium
  • Pacifica High – Tuesday, May 27, 2025 @ 6:30 p.m., Bolsa Grande High stadium
  • Rancho Alamitos High – Wednesday, May 28, 2025 @ 6:30 p.m., Bolsa Grande High stadium
  • Santiago High – Wednesday, May 28, 2025 @ 3 p.m., Michael A. Monsoor Memorial Stadium
  • Edison High – Thursday, June 12, 2025 @ 4 p.m., Huntington Beach High School Stadium
  • Fountain Valley High – Wednesday, June 11, 2025 @ 4 p.m., Orange Coast College Lebard Stadium
  • Huntington Beach High – Wednesday, June 11, 2025 @ 4 p.m., Huntington Beach High School Stadium
  • Marina High – Thursday, June 12, 2025 @ 4 p.m., Westminster High School Stadium
  • Ocean View High – Wednesday, June 11, 2025 @ 5 p.m., Ocean View High School Stadium
  • Westminster High – Wednesday, June 11, 2025 @ 5 p.m., Westminster High School Stadium
  • Irvine High – Thursday, June 5, 2025 @ 9 a.m., Irvine High stadium
  • Northwood High – Thursday, June 5, 2025 @ 1:30 p.m., Bren Center
  • Portola High – Thursday, June 5, 2025 @ 6 p.m., Portola High stadium
  • University High – Thursday, June 5, 2025 @ 5:30 p.m., Bren Center
  • Woodbridge High – Thursday, June 5, 2025 @ 4 p.m., Irvine High stadium
  • Laguna Beach High – Thursday, June 12, 2025 @ 7 p.m., Laguna Beach High stadium
  • Los Alamitos High – Thursday, June 5, 2025 @ 7 p.m., Dignity Health Sports park Tennis Center in Carson
  • Corona del Mar High – Thursday, June 5, 2025 @ 2 p.m., Corona del Mar stadium
  • Costa Mesa High – Thursday, June 5, 2025 @ 3:30 p.m., Mustang Field on campus
  • Estancia High – Thursday, June 5, 2025 @ 1:30 p.m., Jim Scott Stadium, on campus
  • Newport Harbor High – Thursday, June 5, 2025 @ 5:30 p.m., Davidson Field, Newport Harbor High
  • Canyon High – Thursday, June 12, 2025 @ 7 p.m., Fred Kelly Stadium
  • El Modena High – Thursday, June 12, 2025 @ 3 p.m., Fred Kelly Stadium
  • Orange High – Wednesday, June 11, 2025 @ 3 p.m., Fred Kelly Stadium;
  • Villa Park High – Wednesday, June 11, 2025 @ 7 p.m., Fred Kelly Stadium
  • El Dorado High – Wednesday, June 11, 2025 @ 6 p.m., Bradford Stadium
  • Esperanza High – Thursday, June 12, 2025 @ 6 p.m., Nathan Shapell Stadium Memorial Stadium
  • Valencia High – Thursday, June 12, 2025 @ 6 p.m., Bradford Stadium, on campus
  • Yorba Linda High – Wednesday, June 11, 2025 @ 6 p.m., Nathan Shapell Stadium Memorial Stadium
  • El Toro High – Thursday, June 5, 2025 @ 6 p.m., ETHS Athletic Complex (Charger Stadium)
  • Laguna Hills High – Thursday, June 5, 2025 @ 7 p.m., Laguna Hills High stadium
  • Mission Viejo High – Thursday, June 5, 2025 @ 6 p.m., MVHS stadium
  • Trabuco Hills High – Thursday, June 5, 2025 @ 6 p.m., Trabuco Hills High stadium
  • Century High – Wednesday, May 28, 2025 @ 7 p.m., Santa Ana Bowl
  • Godinez High – Tuesday, May 27, 2025 @ 7 p.m., Santa Ana Bowl
  • Middle College High – Tuesday, May 27, 2025 @ 6 p.m., Santa Ana High auditorium
  • Saddleback High – Friday, May 30, 2025 @ 7 p.m., Saddleback High stadium
  • Santa Ana High – Thursday, May 29, 2025 @ 7 p.m., Santa Ana Bowl
  • Santa Ana Valley High – Thursday, May 29, 2025 @ 7 p.m., Santa Ana Public Schools Sports Complex
  • Segerstrom High – Wednesday, May 28, 2025 @ 7 p.m., Segerstrom High stadium
  • Beckman High – Wednesday, May 28, 2025 @ 3 and 6:30 p.m., Northrup Stadium on the Tustin High School campus
  • Foothill High – Thursday, May 29, 2025 @ 5:45 p.m., Northrup Stadium on the Tustin High School campus
  • Tustin High – Tuesday, May 27, 2025 @ 6 p.m., Northrup Stadium on the Tustin High School campus
  • Calvary Chapel (SA) – May 31 @ 10 a.m.
  • Capistrano Valley Christian – May 30 @ 6:30 p.m., Harbor Point Church
  • Crean Lutheran – May 31 @ 9 a.m. , Mariners Church, Irvine
  • Eastside Christian – May 30
  • Fairmont Prep
  • JSerra Catholic High School – May 31 @ 4 p.m., Varsity football field
  • Mater Dei – May 31 @ 9:30 a.m. , Bren Center at UCI
  • Rosary Academy – May 23 @ 5 p.m., Karcher Center
  • Sage Hill High – June 6 @ 5 p.m., Wilkins Town Square
  • Santa Margarita Catholic High – May 30 @ 10 a.m., Honda Center
  • Servite High – May 30 @ 5 p.m., Friends Church, Yorba Linda
  • St. Margaret’s Episcopal – June 7 @ 6 p.m., Chalmer’s Field
  • Whittier Christian – May 23
  • Orange Lutheran – June 1 @ 3 p.m., Bren Events Center

​ Orange County Register 

Hegseth directs 20% cut to top military leadership positions

• May 6, 2025

By TARA COPP, Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Monday directed the active duty military to shed 20% of its four-star general officers as the Trump administration moves forward with deep cuts that it says will promote efficiency but that critics worry could result in a more politicized force.

Hegseth also told the National Guard to shed 20% of its top positions and directed the military to cut an additional 10% of its general and flag officers across the force, which could include any one-star or above or officer of equivalent Navy rank.

The cuts are on top of more than a half-dozen top general officers that President Donald Trump or Hegseth have fired since January, including the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. CQ Brown Jr. They also have fired the only two women serving as four-star officers, as well as a disproportionate number of other senior female officers.

In the earlier rounds of firing, Hegseth said the eliminations were “a reflection of the president wanting the right people around him to execute the national security approach we want to take.”

As Pentagon chief, Hegseth has touted his efforts to root out any programming or leadership that endorses diversity in the ranks, tried to terminate transgender service members and begun sweeping changes to enforce a uniform fitness standard for combat positions.

In a memo announcing the cuts Monday, Hegseth said they would remove “redundant force structure to optimize and streamline leadership.” He said the aim was to free the military from “unnecessary bureaucratic layers.”

Adding to the turmoil in the Pentagon, Hegseth in recent weeks has dismissed or transferred multiple close advisers, tightly narrowing his inner circle. He also has been facing questions from both Democrats and Republicans about his handling of sensitive information and use of the Signal messaging app.

There are about 800 general officers in the military, but only 44 of those are four-star general or flag officers. The Army has the largest number of general officers, with 219, including eight four-star generals.

The number of general officer positions in the military is set by law. Members of Congress were not provided with the advance notification they normally would receive on the cuts but were given a “very brief alert” this afternoon, according to a congressional staffer, who spoke on condition of anonymity to provide details not made public.

The cuts were first reported by CNN.

The Pentagon is under pressure to slash spending and personnel as part of the broader federal government cuts pushed by Trump and ally Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency.

Hegseth last week ordered a sweeping transformation of the Army to “build a leaner, more lethal force,” including merging or closing headquarters, dumping outdated vehicles and aircraft, slashing as many as 1,000 headquarters staff in the Pentagon and shifting personnel to units in the field.

Also last week the Army confirmed that there will be a military parade on Trump’s birthday in June, as part of the celebration around the service’s 250th birthday. Officials say it will cost tens of millions of dollars.

Lolita C. Baldor contributed to this report.

​ Orange County Register 

Could Dodgers find a permanent bench role for Hyeseong Kim?

• May 6, 2025

MIAMI — Dodgers manager Dave Roberts was honest when Hyeseong Kim arrived from Triple-A on Saturday.

It was going to be “potentially a short stint,” a chance to “get his feet wet” and see what big-league life is like for a week until Tommy Edman is ready to return from his ankle injury, possibly as soon as Saturday. Then Kim would go back to Triple-A Oklahoma City to play every day and continue adapting his swing to the challenges of playing in the United States.

“That’s the plan, yes,” Roberts said on Saturday.

What Kim did in Sunday’s game, however, might cause the Dodgers to at least consider altering that plan.

Kim entered the game in Atlanta as a pinch-runner with the Dodgers trailing by a run in the ninth inning. He stole second base then raced to third when Will Smith struck out on a pitch in the dirt, beating the throw from first to third.

Kim was stranded at third but his speed created a scoring opportunity that wouldn’t have materialized otherwise and it gave Roberts reason to think about what a weapon Kim could be off the bench.

“It’s definitely a thought,” Roberts said. “I think with Hyeseong, with young players, there’s always that dynamic of what in the short term can help the long run, and certainly his skill set plays to that. But then also the longer term, giving him the repetitions, the opportunity, to take as many at-bats (in the minors), to play defense, to get acclimated to American baseball – what kind of nets out most positive? And that’s kind of the discussion.”

Kim got his first major-league start in Monday’s game against the Miami Marlins.

Roberts called Kim’s swing changes “a work in progress” and it is clear the Dodgers do not think he is ready for an every-day role in the major leagues. Something would have to change in the makeup of the Dodgers’ bench (populated by veterans Chris Taylor, Kiké Hernandez, Austin Barnes and Miguel Rojas on most days) to create a spot for Kim once Edman returns.

“He’s such a good kid,” Roberts said of the 26-year-old Kim. “For him to get his first major-league start, I think we’re all excited as teammates. We saw a little bit (Sunday) of what he can bring as far as the athleticism, the speed. To get him a start, second base, and take some at-bats is exciting.”

SHORTEN UP

With the Dodgers playing on 10 consecutive days before their next off day (next Monday), Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Roki Sasaki are scheduled to start Thursday and Friday – on five days of rest for each. It will be the first time this season the Dodgers will ask the pair of Japanese right-handers to pitch on less than six days of rest. Through the first six weeks of the season, the Dodgers kept the pair on a one-start-per-week schedule, similar to what they were used to in Japan.

“Yoshi I don’t think it’s going to be that significant because we did that last year,” Roberts said of Yamamoto, who made 11 of his 18 starts last season on five days of rest. “With Roki being a young pitcher and that being all he’s known (six days between starts), it’s going to be different. I know he’s excited about it. And really he initiated the conversation about when this was going to happen. … I think he’s looking forward to it.”

Sasaki threw 98 pitches in his most recent start, the most in his seven MLB starts as Roberts extended him to get through five innings and collect his first MLB win. Yamamoto only threw 91 pitches in his most recent start. Roberts pulled him after six one-hit innings in anticipation of Thursday’s start.

CHICKEN STRIP

Right-hander Ross Stripling announced his retirement on Monday.

Stripling, 35, was the Dodgers’ fifth-round draft pick out of Texas A&M in 2012. He made the majors in 2016, taking a no-hitter into the eighth inning in his big-league debut against the San Francisco Giants.

Stripling spent parts of five seasons with the Dodgers, making the National League All-Star team in 2018. He pitched for the Toronto Blue Jays, then-Oakland A’s and San Francisco Giants over the past five seasons. He signed a minor-league contract and went to spring training with the Kansas City Royals this year but was released when he didn’t make their season-opening roster.

UP NEXT

Dodgers (RHP Tony Gonsolin, 1-0, 4.50 ERA) at Marlins (RHP Cal Quantrill, 2-3, 8.31 ERA), Tuesday, 3:40 p.m., SportsNet LA, 570 AM

​ Orange County Register 

Juan Vargas: Trump administration’s hostility to due process is un-American

• May 6, 2025

As a young adult, I entered the Jesuits, a Catholic religious order, where among other missions, I worked with orphaned children and internally displaced people in El Salvador during their civil war. It was a dangerous time, and people were frequently “disappeared.”

I never thought I’d be watching similar scenes play out here in America.

In March, President Donald Trump invoked the archaic Alien Enemies Act to disappear over 100 Venezuelan immigrants to a megaprison in El Salvador. This law was passed in 1798 as part of the Alien and Sedition Acts, a suite of highly partisan statutes designed to target immigrants under the guise of national security. Thomas Jefferson allowed three of the four laws to expire, but the Alien Enemies Act remains.

The Alien Enemies Act grants the president sweeping powers to detain or deport immigrants based solely on nationality during times of war. The law has been used just three times: in the War of 1812, World War I, and, infamously, in World War II to imprison Japanese-Americans in internment camps — a shameful chapter in our history.

Trump has illegally used this law now to sidestep due process. The men sent to El Salvador under the Alien Enemies Act were given no trials, no judges and no opportunities to argue their case. Their families were given no information on their whereabouts.

The Trump administration has admitted in court that at least one of the men imprisoned, Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a Maryland father with protected legal status, was wrongfully deported. The administration called it an “administrative error,” but despite this admission — and a unanimous Supreme Court order — it is still refusing to bring him back. Kilmar and these men remain in prison with no end in sight. That is morally reprehensible.

That is why I’ve stood with my colleagues to call on Trump to bring Kilmar Abrego Garcia home, and I’ve helped introduce legislation that would finally repeal the Alien Enemies Act.

Trump would like to make this a debate about deporting criminals. But it’s really about our fundamental rights. The Constitution requires the government to give every one of us the right to fairly contest allegations.

If the government can abuse its authority and deport anyone without due process, then none of us are safe. Trump is moving us closer and closer to that reality.

Just recently, three children — all U.S. citizens — were deported to Honduras. One of the children, a 4-year-old with Stage 4 cancer, was deported without medication. If this innocent child who has committed no crime is not returned to the U.S., he has been handed a death sentence, as his medical team is in the United States. The presiding judge — a Trump appointee — said it’s their “strong suspicion that the government just deported a U.S. citizen with no meaningful process.”

In March, Rümeysa Öztürk, a graduate student, was walking down the street when plainclothes ICE agents ambushed her and took her from her school in Massachusetts to a detention center in Louisiana. It appears her detention is due to an op-ed she co-authored in her school paper.

In April, U.S. citizens who had recently moved to Oklahoma had their home mistakenly raided by ICE agents. A mother and her daughters were forced outside while agents tore apart the house. The officers seized phones and their life savings in cash without telling the family how to get their items back.

If these instances sound unlawful and un-American, it’s because they are.

Trump is working to weaponize immigration enforcement to create an increasingly brutal and unaccountable system — one where anyone could be mistreated, denied justice and left without recourse. No American voted to give up rights or access to due process when Trump won last year.

We all must stand united against these continued attacks on immigrants, our Constitution and the rule of law.

Juan Vargas has represented the San Diego border region in the House of Representatives since 2013. 

​ Orange County Register 

OpenAI reverses course and says its nonprofit will continue to control its business

• May 5, 2025

By MATT O’BRIEN and THALIA BEATY

After months spent pursuing a plan to convert itself into a for-profit business, OpenAI is reversing course and said Monday its nonprofit will continue to control the company that makes ChatGPT and other artificial intelligence products.

“We made the decision for the nonprofit to stay in control after hearing from civic leaders and having discussions with the offices of the Attorneys General of California and Delaware,” said CEO Sam Altman in a letter to employees.

Altman and the chair of OpenAI’s nonprofit board, Bret Taylor, said the board made the decision for the nonprofit to retain control of OpenAI. The nonprofit already has a for-profit arm, but that arm will be converted into a public benefit corporation “that has to consider the interests of both shareholders and the mission,” Taylor said.

However, Taylor declined to say Monday how large of an ownership stake the nonprofit will have in the new public benefit corporation. Altman said in a call with reporters that the nonprofit will choose the board members if the public benefit corporation.

Public benefit corporations were first created in Delaware in 2013 and other states have adopted the same or similar laws that require the companies to pursue not just profit but a social good. Public benefit corporations, which include Amalgamated Bank and the online education platform Coursera, need to define that social good, which can vary broadly, when they incorporate.

Altman said that converting from a limited liability company to a public benefit corporation “just sets up us to be a more understandable structure to do the things that a company of our scope has to do.”

“There’s so much more demand to use AI tools than we thought there was going to be,” Altman said. Getting access to more capital will make it easier for OpenAI to pursue mergers and acquisitions “and other normal things companies would do,” Altman said.

Altman said it would “maybe be easier” to raise money if OpenAI were a “fully normal company,” but given its mission, “we don’t want to be a fully normal company, and we believe this is well over the bar of what we need to be able to fundraise.”

“We’ve had plenty of investors who think OpenAI is a great business but don’t care about or don’t appreciate our mission, and, you know, we’re like happy not to have their money,” Altman said.

OpenAI’s co-founders, including Altman and Tesla CEO Elon Musk, originally started it as a nonprofit research laboratory on a mission to safely build what’s known as artificial general intelligence, or AGI, for humanity’s benefit. Nearly a decade later, OpenAI has reported its market value as $300 billion and counts 400 million weekly users of ChatGPT, its flagship product.

OpenAI first outlined plans last year to convert its core governance structure but faced a number of challenges. One is a lawsuit from Musk, who accuses the company and Altman of betraying the founding principles that led Musk to invest in the charity. A federal judge last week dismissed some of Musk’s claims and allowed others to proceed to a trial set for next year.

OpenAI also faced scrutiny from the top law enforcement officers in Delaware, where the company is incorporated, and California, where it operates out of a San Francisco headquarters. The California attorney general’s office said in a statement that it was reviewing the plan and, “This remains an ongoing matter — and we are in continued conversations with Open AI.”

The attorney general’s office in Delaware did not immediately return a request for comment.

A number of advocates, including former OpenAI employees and other charities, had petitioned California Attorney General Rob Bonta and Delaware Attorney General Kathy Jennings, both Democrats, to use their authority to protect OpenAI’s charitable purpose and block its planned restructuring.

Some were concerned about what happens if the ChatGPT maker fulfills its ambition to build AI that outperforms humans, but is no longer accountable to its public mission to safeguard that technology from causing grievous harm.

Multiple other artificial intelligence companies have opted to incorporate as public benefit corporations, including Anthropic and xAI, Musk’s company. However, OpenAI would remain unique in that its public benefit corporation would still be controlled by the nonprofit’s board.

​ Orange County Register 

Detained Tufts student seeking transfer says asthma attacks worsened in custody

• May 5, 2025

By KIMBERLEE KRUESI

A Turkish Tufts University student says her asthma attacks continue to worsen since she was taken into custody, arguing ahead of her latest court hearing that her health has suffered while being held in crowded conditions.

Rumeysa Ozturk, 30, was detained by immigration officials as she walked along a street in the Boston suburb of Somerville on March 25. She is currently being held in a detention center in Basile, Louisiana. A federal three-judge panel will hear arguments Tuesday over whether to grant a federal judge’s order to transfer Ozturk to Vermont.

“Since my arrest, in the span of five weeks, I have had at least eight asthma attacks where I have felt unable to control my coughing,” Ozturk wrote in court documents released Monday. “Prior to my arrest, in the span of 2-3 years, I had approximately 9 such asthma attacks in which I felt unable to control my coughing.”

A district court judge in Vermont had earlier ordered that the 30-year-old doctoral student be brought to the state for hearings to determine whether she was illegally detained. Ozturk’s lawyers say her detention violates her constitutional rights, including free speech and due process.

The U.S. Justice Department, which is appealing that ruling, said that an immigration court in Louisiana has jurisdiction over her case.

In court filings, Ozturk says she’s had trouble receiving proper medical care while at the Louisiana detention center, noting that her asthma attacks can last up to 45 minutes and that she’s rarely given opportunities for fresh air.

“I do not have control over the exposure to potential triggers,” Ozturk added. “The dorm rooms in detention are very crowded, and the other women have reported seeing mice in the dorm rooms. Additionally, the air conditioning is running most of the day, and I do not have immediate access to fresh air.”

Immigration officials surrounded Ozturk as she walked along a street in a Boston suburb on March 25 and drove her to New Hampshire and Vermont before putting her on a plane to a detention center in Louisiana.

Ozturk was one of four students who wrote an op-ed in the campus newspaper, The Tufts Daily, last year criticizing the university’s response to student activists demanding that Tufts “acknowledge the Palestinian genocide,” disclose its investments and divest from companies with ties to Israel.

A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson said in March, without providing evidence, that investigations found that Ozturk engaged in activities in support of Hamas, a U.S.-designated terrorist group.

​ Orange County Register 

OC softball Top 25: Cypress leaps into Top 10 after Crestview League surge

• May 5, 2025

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The Orange County high school softball rankings for this week, as of Monday, May 5.

Notable this week: Cypress jumps four spots to No. 8 after moving into a tie for third place in the Crestview League. The Centurions have won five consecutive games, including two against No. 9 El Modena by a combined score of 18-0. …  No. 1 Rosary has won 15 consecutive games and the Pacific Coast League title.

SOFTBALL TOP 25

(Records through Sunday, May 4)

1. Rosary (24-2-1): K’lene Gutierrez has an Orange County-leading 47 RBIs for the Royals, who clinched their first league title since 2008.

Previous ranking: 1

2. Orange Lutheran (22-4): The Lancers dropped their second game to Santa Margarita last week but have clinched a sixth straight Trinity League title.

Previous ranking: 2

3. Fullerton (20-7): Katelynn Mathews fired a six-inning perfect game and a three-hit shutout last week for the Empire League-leading Indians.

Previous ranking: 3

4. Mater Dei (15-11-1): The Monarchs are tied with Santa Margarita for second place in the Trinity League and hold the tie-breaker with the Eagles.

Previous ranking: 7

5. Santa Margarita (18-8-1): Payton Kennedy hit two home run as the Eagles beat Orange Lutheran 4-2 take the Trinity League series against the Lancers.

Previous ranking: 8

6. Pacifica (15-10): The Mariners lost twice in the Crestview last week but can capture the league title outright with a win at Cypress on Tuesday.

Previous ranking: 4

7. Canyon (19-8): If the Comanches beat Esperanza on Tuesday and Cypress defeats Pacifica, there will be a four-way tie for the Crestview League title.

Previous ranking: 5

8. Cypress (18-9): Senior Makayla Bishop has a school-record 128 career hits for the Centurions, who have won five straight games.

Previous ranking: 12

9. El Modena (18-8): If the Vanguards finish in a four-way tie for first in the Crestview, they’ll claim the third automatic playoff entry based on taking the league series from Pacifica.

Previous ranking: 6

10. JSerra (14-13): The Lions will finish fourth in the four-team Trinity League and will need an at-large berth to make the playoffs.

Previous ranking: 9

11. Los Alamitos (15-12)

Previous ranking: 11

12. Huntington Beach (19-7)

Previous ranking: 13

13. La Habra (21-7)

Previous ranking: 10

14. Capistrano Valley (15-10)

Previous ranking: 17

15. Marina (12-13)

Previous ranking: 15

16. Mission Viejo (12-13)

Previous ranking: 19

17. Tesoro (11-9)

Previous ranking: 16

18. Aliso Niguel (14-12-1)

Previous ranking: 18

19. Whittier Christian (20-6)

Previous ranking: 14

20. El Dorado (16-11)

Previous ranking: 20

21. Sonora (16-8)

Previous ranking: 21

22. Villa Park (13-14)

Previous ranking: 22

23. San Clemente (20-7-1)

Previous ranking: 24

24. Brea Olinda (17-5)

Previous ranking: 23

25. Fountain Valley (14-11)

Previous ranking: not ranked

Also considered: Beckman (17-7)

Please send feedback on the softball rankings to Dan Albano at [email protected] or @ocvarsityguy on X or Instagram

​ Orange County Register