A popular furry beast made a rare appearance Tuesday morning at City Hall. Slamson, the mascot for the Sacramento Kings, joined with local officials to promote Tyreke Evans as the choice for NBA Rookie of the Year. Mayor Kevin Johnson, Assemblyman Roger Niello and County Supervisor Jimmie Yee all turned out for the press conference to cheer for Evans. “Rally for RekeROY Night” will take place March 10 during the game between the Kings and the Toronto Raptors at Arco Arena.

Emergency call response times will suffer as a result of the nearly $1 million in budget cuts facing the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Department, according to the Sacramento County Deputy Sheriff’s Association. When the Sacramento County Board of Supervisors approved the county's budget on Friday, it resolved a shortfall of $76 million. The county made major budget cuts to its programs and departments — including the Sheriff’s Department — and has laid off more than 700 employees since July.  The Sheriff’s Department will not face layoffs. However, the cuts will result in more vacancies for deputy positions at the department, said Kevin Mickelson, president of the Sacramento County Deputy