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Like other cities in Orange County and around the world, Newport Beach is not alone in its experiences in a year shaped largely by the ongoing pandemic and sweeping shutdown orders.
The city saw beach closures, tragedy, new members of its City Council, a presidential visit, an agreement for a homeless shelter and the cancellation of a time-honored Christmas tradition as part of a number of events that rocked 2020.
Here are some of the top stories of Newport Beach in 2020:
A woman prays at a makeshift memorial for Lakers legend Kobe Bryant outside Pelican Crest, the gated community in Newport Coast where Bryant lived with his family. His daughter Gianna, 13, died with him in a helicopter crash in Calabasas.
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The city of Newport Beach filed an amicus brief in support of the Orange County Sheriff’s Department late last week, while Costa Mesa issued its own brief with the same intent.
The briefs come in response to a ruling in a lawsuit by Orange County Superior Court Judge Peter Wilson, ordering that the jail population be reduced in response to the coronavirus. The lawsuit was filed by the American Civil Liberties Union in April.
Wilson ruled Dec. 11 that Orange County Sheriff Don Barnes had shown “deliberate indifference” to the substantial risk that the coronavirus can pose to medically vulnerable people in custody, which in turn violates their constitutional rights.
Adan Diaz, 35, is being held on $1 million bail following a Dec. 21 attack in which prosecutors claim he broke into a man's motel room and attacked him with a metal rod and chain.
Bill Gross harassed neighbor with ‘Gilligan’s Island’ song, judge rules [Los Angeles Times :: BC-NEIGHBORS-SCULPTURE-DISPUTE:LA]
LOS ANGELES An Orange County Superior Court judge on Wednesday ruled that billionaire bond investor Bill Gross and his girlfriend harassed their neighbors with loud music, including the theme song to the classic TV show “Gilligan’s Island,” in a dispute over a $1 million outdoor lawn sculpture.
Judge Kimberly Knill also ruled that Gross had failed to prove that his Laguna Beach neighbor, Mark Towfiq, had invaded his privacy.
She issued a civil harassment order prohibiting Gross and his partner, Amy Schwartz, from violating the noise provisions of the city’s municipal code and playing music on their outdoor speakers when they were not outside themselves. She denied Gross’ own request for a civil harassment order.
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By Inside Edition Staff
Updated: 5:49 AM PST, December 24, 2020
“Everyone is entitled to quiet and peaceful enjoyment of their own home free from the interference from neighbors,” Judge Kimberly Knill said.
Billionaire Bill Gross and his girlfriend, former tennis pro Amy Schwartz, harassed their neighbor by repeatedly blasting the “Gilligan’s Island” theme song outside their Laguna Beach mansion, an Orange County Superior Court judge ruled Wednesday.
“Everyone is entitled to quiet and peaceful enjoyment of their own home free from the interference from neighbors,” Judge Kimberly Knill said.
Gross and Schwartz were accused of blasting the song for hours at a time, all to annoy their neighbor Mark Towfiq, who captured the scene on his cell phone. The feud began after Gross put a protective netting over a $1 million sculpture in his yard. Towfiq said it blocked his view.