A U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer looks on during an operation in Escondido, Calif., on July 8, 2019.

Turns out, federal officials don't really care how California wants to manage immigration enforcement. And voters here are leaning heavily toward Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders to take on President Trump. Plus, there's a series of events dedicated entirely to the trailblazer who brought French cooking to the American masses.

It's Arlene Martínez, bringing you top stories for Thursday.

But first, the state of California formally apologizes for its role in rounding up Japanese Americans and locking them up during World War II.

In California has your daily news, features and interviews from across USA TODAY Network newsrooms and beyond. Click here to get this straight to your inbox.

ICE gives CA sanctuary law the middle finger

Two U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers walk with a handcuffed man in Escondido, Calif., July 8, 2019

U.S. immigration agents arrested two people at a Northern California courthouse, flouting a new state law requiring a judicial warrant to make immigration arrests inside such facilities.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents made the arrests Tuesday at Sonoma County Superior Court, prompting an outcry from criminal justice and court officials who said the action undermines local authority and deters immigrants who are in the country illegally from participating in the U.S. justice system.

The agents had no warrants.

ICE said California's law doesn't supersede federal law. “Our officers will not have their hands tied by sanctuary rules when enforcing immigration laws to remove criminal aliens from our communities," David Jennings, ICE's field office director in San Francisco, said in a statement.

California is one of several states that have passed laws to push back on a Trump administration policy introduced two years ago to make immigration arrests inside courthouses. Last year, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a law to prohibit immigration arrests at courthouses without a warrant issued by a judge.

And while we're on immigration...

City planners in the Mojave Desert have green-lighted an expansion of one of the country’s largest immigration detention centers. The vote to allow the GEO Group to grow comes exactly one day after the city of McFarland denied the private company's proposal to do the same in the Central Valley.

Story continues

During more than three hours of public testimony in Adelanto on Wednesday night, immigrant advocates from across the state criticized the facility’s track record of delayed medical care and deaths.

GEO employees who live in the area highlighted the more than 600 jobs and financial contributions the company currently provides to Adelanto. The approximately $1 million the company pays the city in annual fiscal mitigation payments and administrative fees comprises about 10% of the city’s total revenue, city officials say.

The company's profits have soared with the growth of federal immigration government contracts. In the first half of 2019, GEO's profit was $83 million, a 14% increase compared to the same period the previous year. It expected to end the year with $2.47 billion in revenue.

USC waives tuition; granny flats get the nod; a flower grows into a NorCal dam controversy

USC won't charge tuition on families earning $80,000 or less annually and won't consider home equity in financial aid calculations. It isn't the only elite university to do so — Harvard and Stanford give tuition breaks to families earning as much as $150,000 per year, but USC's endowment is a fraction of theirs.

"We're opening the door wider to make a USC education possible for talented students from all walks of life,'' said USC President Carol Folt.

The solution to living comfortably (or at all) in a state with ridiculously high prices could lie in granny flats. And San Diego's helping offset some of the costs to build them.

A plant found only in Shasta County finds itself at the center of controversy over whether to raise the Shasta Dam.

Where's Warren? Not on the minds of CA voters

From left, Democratic presidential candidates, former New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., participate in a Democratic presidential primary debate Wednesday, Feb. 19, 2020, in Las Vegas, hosted by NBC News and MSNBC. (AP Photo/John Locher)

Nearly one in four likely Golden State voters support Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders, a new poll reveals. Former Vice President Joe Biden is second with the support of 17%, followed by former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg with 10%, according to the Monmouth University Poll.

Last week, a separate poll had Sanders leading with 32% of the vote. In that poll, Biden captured support from 14% of likely voters and Bloomberg had 12%.

And speaking of Democratic presidential candidates, Bloomberg is attacked, Warren fights back, Sanders holds steady: How each candidate fared in Wednesday night's rowdy debate in Nevada.

What else we're talking about

Redding Rancheria Tribal Chairman Jack Potter Jr. at the 2019 Redding Rancheria Stillwater Pow Wow at the Shasta District Fair grounds on Sunday, Oct. 6, 2019.

California's got the biggest number of Native American voters in the country. Is there anything the group has in common when it comes to their pick among the Democratic presidential nominees?

The state economy's growth is expected to slow by more than half this year compared to 2018, a new report says.

A missing Malibu woman is found dead in the crawl space of her parents' home. No foul play is suspected.

I'll leave you with a suggestion for an upcoming weekend dedicated to the queen of American French cooking.

Julia Child was a TV chef trailblazer, teaching all of us the fine points of French cuisine, beginning with "The French Chef" in 1963. She continued her TV career well into the 1990s with series including "In Julia's Kitchen with Master Chefs" and "Baking With Julia."

The Santa Barbara Culinary Experience will pay homage to all things Julia Child.

The March 13-15 gathering will give longtime followers and new fans alike a chance to immerse themselves in everything Child loved about the Central Coast region, which she visited frequently in her youth and where she spent her final years.

Ventura County Star food writer Lisa McKinnon has the full schedule of events, including cooking classes, activities for tiny cooks and how to get in on that $10,000 sponsors dinner created largely by James Beard award-winning chefs (it mostly involves having $10,000 to spend on a fancy dinner).

Suddenly need more Julia? You might remember the movie, "Julie and Julia," based on a blog that over 365 days set out to make every dish from Child's book, Mastering the Art of French Cooking. But did you know there was a blog that over 365 days watched "Julie and Julia"? The blog is still up, The Lawrence/Julie & Julia Project.

Until tomorrow.

In California is a roundup of news from across USA TODAY Network newsrooms. Also contributing: Associated Press, City News Service, Washington Post, San Francisco Chronicle, Los Angeles Times.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Immigration, ICE, Julia Child, Bernie Sanders, granny flat: Thurs news