Morning Wrap: 4/18/13

Open calls for change of leadership at California Public Utilities Commission, starving California sea lions washing up at alarming rate, why Wall Street’s love affair with Apple appears over, more.

• Some state lawmakers openly called for a change of leadership at the California Public Utilities Commission after an internal report suggesting that the agency is beholden to the utilities it regulates. Chronicle
• Is Wall Street’s love affair with Apple over? The stock has now plummeted 40 percent from its record high last September. Mercury News
• Starving California sea lions are washing up on Southern California beaches five times higher than usual. AP
• Police say a video camera helped catch the man accused of posing as a repairman and molesting a 7-year-old girl in Oakland’s Chinatown after her mother left the room. Oakland Tribune
• Author and national real estate expert Ken Beasley says he’s innocent of felony charges brought against him in Contra Costa County of embezzling more than $1 million from a former investment client. Contra Costa Times 
• Courtroom weirdness: A San Jose defense lawyer who complained to a judge that his client had physically abused him is now representing same client and insisting that what happened was no big deal. Mercury News
• Stung by the Audrie Pott case, Los Gatos-Saratoga Joint Union High School District officials are pushing back against criticism that they didn’t do enough to prevent bullying prior to the 15-year-old student’s suicide. Mercury News
• Facing widening budget deficits, Richmond’s city council is putting the brakes on spending. Contra Costa Times
• After a dismal gamble to crack the U. S.  market, British grocer Fresh & Easy is shutting down its 200 stores across the country, including 19 in the Bay Area. LA Times