Today’s Headlines: Can public schools legally ‘out’ trans students to their parents?

Hello, it’s Wednesday, Aug. 30, and here are the stories you shouldn’t miss today:

TOP STORIES

Do students have privacy rights when it comes to their parents? It’s complicated. As a wave of California public school districts explore policies around students and gender identity, the extent to which state law grants young people privacy rights from their parents has come under a sharp spotlight. And while the state’s Democratic leaders contend such privacy rights are clear-cut, constitutional experts say the legal realities are more nuanced, igniting a heated debate likely to move its way through the courts.

“The law on this is unclear, because it is a new issue,” said Erwin Chemerinsky, dean of the UC Berkeley School of Law.

Biden targets 10 drugs for Medicare price negotiations. President Biden touted the potential cost savings of Medicare‘s first-ever price negotiations for widely used prescription drugs on Tuesday as he struggles to convince Americans that he’s improved their lives as he runs for reelection.

The drugs include the blood thinner Eliquis, diabetes treatment Jardiance and eight other medications.

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After more than 100 years, gray wolves reappear in Giant Sequoia National Monument. Biologists are cautiously optimistic that California’s southernmost wolf pack, which includes the female’s four offspring — two males and two females — will adapt to its new environs some 130 miles north of Los Angeles.

Yet the sudden appearance of the so-called Tulare Pack is already generating friction among Central Valley livestock owners and the managers of ambitious fuel reduction projects underway in and around areas of Sequoia National Forest and Giant Sequoia National Monument scorched by recent wildfires.

PHOTO OF THE DAY

Midget Wrestling Warriors promoter and star Short-Sleeve Sampson, aka Daniel DiLucchio, fights Jessie “the Rock” Salazar, a fellow dwarf performer, at a sold-out show at the Sonoma County Fair.

(Sonja Sharp / Los Angeles Times)

Stunned Sonoma asked him to drop the word ‘midget’ from the wrestling show. Then this happened. Critics say such wrestling is an exploitative and dangerous spectacle that fuels public harassment and glorifies a derogatory slur. Promoters say, who cares?

CALIFORNIA

Erika Girardi, Secret Service and American Express engaged in a corrupt conspiracy, a lawsuit claims. In the 70-page suit, Christopher Psaila accuses Erika Girardi and her estranged husband of having “weaponized the Secret Service to maliciously prosecute” him in 2017 to secure a $787,000 refund from American Express at a time when the Girardi family was “in desperate financial straits.”

The Los Angeles City Council votes to regulate ‘vanlords’ who rent RVs to the homeless. City officials say they are responding to growing concern about landlords who rent RVs and vans to homeless residents.

• As challenges loom, the L.A. City Council approves $150 million in ‘mansion tax’ spending.

California could make it easier to scrub your personal data from the web. Businesses are pushing back. Privacy advocates say it should be easier for people to delete personal information held by data brokers. Businesses say doing so will “destroy California’s data-driven economy.”

With fire risk high, Northern California braces for power shutoffs and smoky skies. Officials are warning that thousands across Northern California could experience planned power outages Wednesday, facing a critical fire threat.

NATION-WORLD

Maui residents consider the unthinkable: Las Vegas, the ‘ninth island.’ After Maui’s wildfire, with tourism down and Hawaii home prices already high, some are making mainland moves, with California and Las Vegas in their sights.

Dementia risk grows with increased exposure to air pollution, a study finds. Researchers at the University of Michigan have concluded that people living with higher levels of fine particulate matter, or PM2.5, could face a greater risk of being stricken with dementia.

Previously classified documents released by the U.S. show knowledge of the 1973 Chile coup. While the newly declassified documents don’t substantially change the story, they reveal the considerable amount of detail that Nixon knew about the steps leading to the coup.

HOLLYWOOD AND THE ARTS

Our expert picks for fall’s can’t-miss albums, concerts and music books. From a young pop queen’s much-anticipated sophomore album to a final tongue-waggle from hard-rock’s master showmen to the debut of a $2-billion orb in Las Vegas, fall promises thrills for multiple generations of music fans.

Norman Pfeiffer, prolific architect of SoCal institutions and L.A. Central Library expansion, has died at 82. “Norman is perhaps the architect with the greatest impact on Los Angeles’s cultural sector,” said his wife, Patricia Zohn, in reference to his contributions to venues including Griffith Observatory, Los Angeles Central Library, and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, among others.

Why ‘Suits,’ ‘Ugly Betty’ and other comfort food shows are having a moment on streaming. Sometimes titles can gain popularity if there are events that spur interest in certain celebrities, such as Meghan Markle (now the duchess of Sussex) who starred in “Suits.”

BUSINESS

Farmers Insurance lays off 2,400 workers as insurers pull back from California. The Los Angeles-based company cited a need to reduce operational costs and focus on “long-term sustainable profitability” in an announcement Monday to explain the job cuts.

American Airlines hit with largest-ever fine for long tarmac delays that trapped passengers. The federal government is fining American Airlines $4.1 million, the largest such fine against an airline since rules covering long ground delays took effect about a decade ago.

SPORTS

Column: Spain’s soccer chief kissed a World Cup winner. What he’s done since might be worse. After Luis Rubiales planted an unwelcome kiss on star midfielder Jenni Hermoso, he could have apologized. Instead, his response has only deepened the scandal.

Meet Crocky-J, the pet alligator that makes UCLA’s Carson Steele a rare breed. UCLA running back Carson Steele is fearless when it comes to linebacker contact, and growing up with a pet alligator may have something to do with that.

College football roundtable: Will USC or UCLA win the Pac-12 title? Times experts Ben Bolch, Brady McCollough and Thuc Nhi Nguyen weigh in on what to expect for UCLA, USC and the rest of the Pac-12.

OPINION

Why Trump’s outlandish legal maneuvers are backfiring with the federal judge in the Jan. 6 case. The former president’s lawyers tried to employ a political strategy in the Jan. 6 case. But U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan isn’t having it.

American political leaders have a hard time condemning racist shootings like the one in Jacksonville. Why? After attacks on minority communities, U.S. leaders from across the political spectrum should condemn the violence and the conspiracy theories behind it. Failure to do so is costing lives.

ONLY IN L.A.

(Jim Cooke / Los Angeles Times)

25 shady L.A.-area spots to beat the heat right now. Trees can solve so many problems. On the hottest of summer days, their evergreen canopies cool our homes and streets and shelter us from ultraviolet rays.

FROM THE ARCHIVES

On Aug. 30, 1983, astronaut Guion S. Bluford Jr., became the first African American to travel into space.

(Associated Press)

On Aug. 30, 1983, U.S. astronaut Guion S. Bluford, Jr., became the first African American to travel into space, serving as a mission specialist aboard the space shuttle Challenger during its maiden flight.

Two years later, The Times wrote about his visit to Lynwood, Compton and Inglewood district schools to help launch a space agency program aimed at getting inner-city youths interested in science careers.

By the end of his visit, he had talked to more than 4,000 students.

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