Mass shooting trial, hospital rankings. Top Sacramento stories for May 12

From a mass shooting trial to hospital safety grades, Tuesday brought a wide range of news to the Sacramento region.

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Here is a roundup of top stories from The Sacramento Bee.

• Police officers testified Tuesday in the murder trial of Mtula Payton and Dandrae Martin, describing 114 spent bullet casings and a chaotic scene of 75 to 100 uncooperative bystanders after the April 2022 downtown shooting that killed six people, recounting the aftermath of Sacramento’s deadliest mass shooting.

• Stockton activist Prism Atica pleaded not guilty in Sacramento federal court to two Class C misdemeanor charges for spray-painting an ICE building in Stockton and removing an American flag in March. The charges carry possible sentences of 30 days in jail and $5,000 fines, with her next court appearance set for June 22.

• Sacramento County Board of Supervisors candidate Flojaune Cofer faces a complaint with the California Fair Political Practices Commission alleging she underreported income on her Form 700, which she filed March 5 indicating no reportable income. The complaint cites a sworn statement she made March 25 acknowledging income from speaking, lectures and consulting work.

• Four California hospitals received D grades in The Leapfrog Group’s spring 2026 patient safety rankings released May 6. A federal court ruling against the group’s methodology led to 450 hospitals nationwide receiving “grade not assigned” instead of letter grades.

• Rep. Doris Matsui’s announcement of $3.15 million in federal funds for an Interstate 5 cap project connecting downtown to the riverfront was criticized as political theater in a Bee opinion piece. The funding represents less than 1% of preliminary cost estimates, echoing a similar $3.5 million effort by the late Robert Matsui 25 years ago that ultimately stalled.