SeaWorld Takes in Rescued Sea Turtle

Dehydrated Turtle Rescued

A dehydrated, underweight and hypothermic olive ridley sea turtle was rescued from a beach at Camp Pendleton Thursday, according to SeaWorld San Diego.

Veterinarians said the turtle had some damage to its shell and ingested some plastic trash.

Plastic bags are mistaken for food by sea turtles and can cause intestinal problems.

"Sea turtles tend to feed on jellyfish -- plastic trash that floats in the ocean is often mistaken for jellyfish," said Dr. Hendrik Nollens, a SeaWorld veterinarian. "This is a perfect example of why we need to keep marine debris, especially plastics, out of our oceans."

The 42-pound turtle is less than half the weight of what the species can reach. Its sex and age were undetermined.

Park officials are treating the sea turtle with fluids and antibiotics, and said they hope to return it to the wild this summer.

SeaWorld San Diego rescues nearly 400 marine animals and birds each year.

The olive ridley sea turtle species that breeds along the coast of Mexico is considered endangered, while those in other areas are listed as threatened, according to SeaWorld.

Whooping Cough in San Diego

A 5-year-old San Diego child was diagnosed with whooping cough—also known as pertussis—bringing the 2011 total to 426, about a third the number of the previous year's record total, county health officials said Thursday.

The child, who attends Kate Sessions Elementary School in Pacific Beach, contracted the illness despite being up-to-date on vaccinations.

"Resolve to protect your children from vaccine-preventable diseases with regularly scheduled immunizations," said Dr. Wilma Wooten, the county public health officer. "Pertussis is a highly contagious disease and can be fatal to unimmunized infants."

Authorities in the county Health and Human Services Agency carefully tracked the number of whooping cough cases last year, following the 2010 outbreak that infected 1,144 people in San Diego County.

They said that 426 might not be the final tally for 2011, since other cases still might be reported to them.

A typical case of pertussis starts with a cough and runny nose for one to two weeks, followed by weeks to months of rapid coughing fits that sometimes end with a whooping sound. Fever, if present, is usually mild.

Sweetwater Union High Leaders to Be Arraigned

Five people—including the ex-superintendent of the Sweetwater Union High School District—are scheduled to be arraigned Friday in what prosecutors call the largest public corruption case of its kind in San Diego County.

Accused of bribery, perjury and other crimes are former district Superintendent Jesus Gandara, trustees Arlie Ricasa and Pearl Quinones, 16-year former board member Greg Sandoval, and Henry Amigable, a contractor who worked for a construction company hired by the school district.

All were allegedly involved in a "pay-for-play" culture with businesses that were awarded contracts for voter-approved bond projects worth hundreds of millions of dollars, said District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis.

Between 2008 and 2011, the defendants frequented San Diego-area restaurants, spending hundreds of dollars on food and drinks, sometimes more than $1,000 per outing, Dumanis said. The defendants were also given Los Angeles Lakers playoff tickets, Rose Bowl tickets and a trip to Napa Valley, she said.

Dumanis said the investigation has been going on for a year.

She said for years, the public officials regularly accepted what amounted to bribes in exchange for their votes on multimillion-dollar construction projects.

Gandara, Sandoval, Quinones and Ricasa are charged with perjury, filing a false document and other charges. Amigable is charged with giving or offering a bribe.

If convicted, the defendants face between four and seven years in state prison.