Watch: State Street Stabbing Shocker; How Much Housing for Where? Political Gossip Aplenty - Plus: Horse People Pickled!

On this week's Newsmakers TV episode, the Indy's Callie Fausey and Christina McDermott join Noozhawk star Josh Molina and the genial host for a fast-moving conversation about SB local news

In a shocking turnabout, the Santa Barbara County District Attorney this week dropped murder charges against two men arrested for the State Street knifing death of 30-year old Anthony Bisquera-Hartley — recasting him as the protagonist, rather than the victim, of the Fiesta week carnage.

Callie Fausey has been covering the horrifying incident for the SB Independent, and returns to Newsmakers TV this week to break down the latest developments, and to surface a batch of unanswered questions about the conflicts between the narrative that DA John Savrnoch set forth in the days after the incident, and his new version of events, which has left the family of the dead man stunned and reeling.

Christina McDermott joins the conversation, with a reprise of her reporting from the annual “State of the County” conference sponsored by the SB Chamber of Commerce, which focused largely on local struggles to build more housing in the face of ongoing pressure from state government, and long-range efforts to expand the economy through the growth of tech and AI jobs.

Josh Molina has an up-close-and-personal report on dueling Labor Day picnics sponsored by the local Democratic and Republican parties, as he highlights the nascent challenge to Rep. Salud Carbajal by GOP wannabe Bob Smith, a former military officer who appears to be a credible candidate, but is running as a “moderate” Republican at a time when Trumpism has made the species all but extinct.

Plus: the story behind the story of Laura Bridley’s sudden “resignation” from the county Planning Commission; a renewed effort to add “environmental justice” to the catalogue of concerns for local development; and the simmering outrage amid the equine community over the latest effort to transform Earl Warren Showgrounds into a pickleball palace.

All this and more, right here, right now on Newsmakers TV.

Check out Episode 517 via YouTube below or by clicking through this link. Our podcast is available on Apple, Spotify, Soundcloud and other platforms. TVSB, Channel 17, airs the show every weeknight at 5 p.m. and at 9 a.m. on weekends. KCSB, 91.9 FM, broadcasts the program at 5:30 p.m. on Monday.

Image: Wikimedia Commons.