Daily Business Report: Friday, December 19, 2025
How CARE Court lost its teeth in the California Legislature
By Yue Stella Yu and Erica Yee | CalMatters
Three years ago, Gov. Gavin Newsom called for a court with real power both to force a government agency to treat a mentally ill patient, and to compel that patient to stick to the program.
That’s how many Californians remember his CARE Court proposal: As a mandate to bring people with severe mental illness off the street and into treatment. Noncompliance, Newsom said at the time, would lead to consequences — counties could face fines for not providing court-ordered services, and participants who fail the program could be referred to conservatorship, which often means involuntary treatment in locked facilities.
But a CalMatters review of the legislative record shows that vision is not what became law, and, as a result, the state has rarely mandated treatment of a mentally ill person or referred someone to conservatorship. It has not handed down a single fine for counties that failed to provide court-ordered services to many CARE participants.
‘False hope’: Why families who celebrated Newsom’s new mental health court feel let down by it
By Jocelyn Weiner | CalMatters
Boom.
Ronda Deplazes had just gotten out of the shower and placed curlers in her long blond hair when she heard something slam against her front door.
Boom.
Outside, her son — a man who could fix anything, who loved his family, who never remembered these incidents but always apologized later — was yelling and swearing as he pulled large gray river rocks from the planter beds and hurled them at the front of his parents’ suburban Concord home.
Boom.
Deplazes heard a woman scream.
North County Report: Your 2025 North County Wrapped
By Tigist Layne | Voice of San Diego
The countdown to 2026 has begun, and I’ve got a feeling next year is going to be a big one.
But before that, let’s take a moment to look back at some of the biggest North County stories of 2025. Think of it as a Spotify Wrapped for local news.
Also, this is the last North County Report of the year, so a huge thank you for reading and supporting.
Without further ado, here’s your 2025 North County Wrapped.
