Looking Back: The Top 10 Stories Of 2020 On CBSLA.com

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) - 2020 was truly a year unlike any other. While thousands of stories about the COVID-19 pandemic and its effect on residents here in Southern California were published to CBSLA.com, tens of thousands more chronicled everything from local elections to stories of heroism, heartbreak and everything in between.

Here are the top ten most viewed stories of 2020:

1. Search Continues For 'Glee' Actress Naya Rivera Presumed Drowned In Lake Piru; 4-Year-Old Son Found Alone On Boat
July 9, 2020

The water search for 33-year-old "Glee" actress Naya Rivera continued after she went missing a few days before while on a lake with her 4-year-old son in the Los Padres National Forest in Ventura County. Her body was later recovered. Authorities said Rivera managed to save her son before she drowned.

2. List Of Wines Cited In Lawsuit As Having High Arsenic Levels
March 20, 2015

You read that correct - this story was originally posted in 2015 after a lawsuit alleged consumers faced a serious health threat from dozens of California wineries due to "extremely elevated" levels of poisonous inorganic arsenic. This article listed all labels and the types of wine cited in the complaint.

3. Feds Arrest Rapper Who Bragged About Getting Rich From Filing EDD Claims In Music Video
October 16, 2020

Fontrell Antonio Baines, also known as Nuke Bizzle, was arrested on federal charges of fraudulently applying for more than $1.2 million in jobless benefits. According to Department Of Justice officials,  the rapper bragged in a YouTube music video about getting rich from an unemployment scam. In the music video, prosecutors say Baines rapped about doing "my swagger for EDD" and getting rich by "go[ing] to the bank with a stack of these" while holding up several envelopes from EDD. A second man in the video raps, "you gotta sell cocaine, I just file a claim…"

4. 'He Ran Because He Was Scared': LASD Deputies Shoot, Kill Auto Body Shop Security Guard In Gardena
June 6, 2019

Los Angeles County Sheriff's deputies fatally shot an 18-year-old auto shop security guard in Gardena after deputies patrolling the area said they saw a man flash a gun and then run south between two businesses. According to the owner of the auto body shop, "...the police came up, and they pulled their guns on him and he ran because he was scared, and they shot and killed him. He's got a clean background and everything. There's no reason."

5. Orange County Bans All Public, Private Gatherings – Including Work – Outside Single Household
March 17, 2020

As counties, states and countries around the world dealt with the spread of COVID-19, Orange County officials banned all public and private gatherings beyond those of a single household. County health officer Dr. Nicole Quick issued the order effective immediately prohibiting "all public and private gatherings of any number of people, including at places of work, occurring outside a single household or living space."

6. Family On Vacation Discovers Woman Staying In Their Home
June 25, 2020

A relaxing vacation for an Eagle Rock family quickly turned stressful when they say they discovered a woman staying in their home while they were gone. The woman was seen breaking in and entering the residence on security camera. Neighbors say they know her name, they have a picture of her and now they're just waiting for police to get her off the streets.

7. 'Her Boyfriend Did Shoot At The Cops': Charles Barkley, Shaquille O'Neal Face Backlash, Praise Over Breonna Taylor Comments
September 25, 2020

Charles Barkley and Shaquille O'Neal faced backlash and some praise on social media following comments made about the Breonna Taylor case. During the "NBA on TNT" pregame show, Barkley said Taylor's death should not be compared to cases such as George Floyd and Ahmaud Arbery which have sparked recent protests. "You know, we have to take into account that her boyfriend did shoot at the cops and shot a cop," said Barkley. "So like I say, even though I'm really sorry she lost her life I don't think we can put this in the same situation as George Floyd and Ahmaud Arbery, I just don't believe that."

8. 3 Men, 2 Teens Arrested In Hollywood Hills Murder Of Rapper Pop Smoke
July 9, 2020

Three men and two teen boys were arrested in the February slaying of 20-year-old rapper Pop Smoke in the Hollywood Hills. Los Angeles police reported that the five suspects had been taken into custody in the murder of Pop Smoke, whose real name is Bashar Jackson.

9. Victims In Kobe Bryant Crash Have Now All Been Identified
January 26, 2020

All nine victims of the tragic helicopter crash that claimed the lives of Kobe Bryant and his 13-year-old daughter, Gigi, were identified. The passengers were on their way to a basketball game when the chopper went down. Also on the helicopter were John Altobelli, head baseball coach at Orange Coast College in Costa Mesa, his wife Keri and their daughter Alyssa. Christina Mauser, a basketball coach at Harbor Day School in Newport Beach, where Kobe's daughter attended school, Sarah Chester and her middle school-aged daughter Payton were also on board the helicopter piloted by Ara Zobayan.

10. Navy Moving Tanks From Ventura To Inland Empire, Garcetti Says National Guard Not Deployed To LA
March 25, 2020

Social media was abuzz with speculation as residents observed a train transporting hundreds of tanks. Mayor Eric Garcetti addressed the movement during a briefing saying that the National Guard has not been mobilized to the city of Los Angeles. "They have armories, they travel through Los Angeles, but officially have not been mobilized," he said. "There are movements of troops all around our state, and to support our efforts, we have asked the governor for National Guard support for our testing sites and we anticipate asking for medical units and supplies from the military reserve to accommodate hospital overflow and other patient care planning."