Top of the morning’s news
- The search for seven Northern California fishermen, including three from the Bay Area, missing since their charter boat sank in the Sea of Cortez July 3 was called off. Contra Costa Times
- Arizona GOP state Sen. Lori Klein was on the defensive after reports that she pointed her semi-automatic pistol at a reporter while demonstrating its laser sight during a recent interview. AP
- What do House Minority leader Nancy Pelosi and House Majority Leader Eric Cantor have in common? They’re both camping on the fringes of their respective parties in the high-stakes jockeying over raising the debt ceiling. Chronicle
- Anti-war milestone: Rep. Lynn Woolsey (D-Petaluma) delivered her 400th speech against the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan on the House floor Tuesday. Press Democrat
- Hobnobbing with other governors doesn’t appear to be high on Jerry Brown’s agenda. He’ll miss this weekend’s annual meeting of the National Governors Association in Salt Lake City and spokesman Gil Duran says only, “He is staying in the great state of California.” Capitol Alert
- Joe Montana got the backing he sought from Santa Clara’s city council for a major commercial project he’s fronting planned near where the 49ers want to build their new stadium. Mercury News
- The state’s high-speed rail authority is stopping almost all planning on the $6.1 billion Peninsula section of the bullet-train system until it is determined whether it’s possible to use two tracks between San Francisco and San Jose instead of the four tracks the authority proposes. San Mateo County Times
- Porn impresario James Mitchell was convicted of first-degree murder for beating the mother of his child to death with a metal softball bat two years ago at her Novato house. Chronicle
- Reacting to a public relations snafu, PG&E lawyers amended a complaint filed last week to make clear the utility does not blame any of the victims for the San Bruno pipeline disaster. Chronicle
- After a Monday night protest over the latest BART police shooting that snarled traffic throughout the system, BART declared there will be “zero tolerance” for such protests in the future. Chronicle
- ABC 7 reports that the San Mateo County District Attorney has decided not to file charges against the University of New Mexico football player tossed from a U. S. Airways flight at SFO for allegedly refusing to pull up his baggy pants.
- Ex-cons as a protected class in San Francisco? A proposal circulating at City Hall would make it illegal for landlords and employers to discriminate against applicants on the basis of their being “previously incarcerated.” Chronicle
- A judge upheld most of the redevelopment plan for the former Hunter’s Point Naval Shipyard but said that development of some sections can’t proceed before environmental cleanup. Bay City News Service
- Walgreens is jumping into the grocery war, saying that it will deploy fresh food sections at many of its stores, including dozens in the Bay Area. Oakland Tribune
- Flip Video founder turned hamburger impresario Jonathan Kaplan has signed leases for the first three of “The Melt” eateries in San Francisco as a prelude to what he plans eventually as a nationwide chain. SF Business Times
- Fines against “johns” who pay for sex with minors will range up to $25,000 under a bill by Assemblyman Sandre Swanson (D-Oakland) signed into law by Gov. Jerry Brown. Oakland Tribune
