Bishop Brown citation dropped: The Los Angeles Times reports that a contempt-of-court citation against Orange Bishop Tod Brown has been dropped as part of an almost-$7 million sex abuse settlement. Plaintiff's attorney John Manly said the diocese forced them to drop their bid for the citation: “The diocese insisted that it be done this way or they would have refused to pay our clients.” But Diocese of Orange attorney Peter Callahan, in typical Callahan form, said the contempt case was dismissed by the court because it “lacked merit.” Gustavo Arellano blogs the hell out of the Orange sex abuse scandal often enough – check out his Ex Cathedra archive here.
Late to the dance again: The Register plays catch-up with the Times on yesterday's Debbie Carona story. Kind of like the way they did when the indictment story broke last month.
Sea lion stabber fesses up: The jerk who stabbed a sea lion with a steak knife through the heart in Newport Beach last July has a name – Hai Nguyen. CBS News reports that he was fishing off a NB pier when the creature snatched the bait from his line. Nguyen told a federal magistrate that he never meant to kill the sea lion, just scare it away, y'know, with a knife. He faces up to a year in prison and a $20,000 fine.
Lost and Found: A San Clemente mother was reported missing earlier in the month and has yet to be found. Heather Lynn Gould left her two children, purse and IDs home on Oct. 15. Her fiancee waited three weeks to file a missing persons report in the hopes she would return. Meanwhile, the 65-year-old Anaheim guy with Alzheimer's who wandered away from a hospital Monday was found safe yesterday at a shopping center on Euclid Street.
Best rumor ever: Britney Spears? At our upcoming Christmas party?! Wonder who cooked that one up. . .