THIRD STRIKE?: Roosevelt C. McCowan tried to...

THIRD STRIKE?: Roosevelt C. McCowan tried to steal 18 bottles of cologne from a drug store, prosecutors say, and for that petty theft he should spend 25 years to life in prison. McCowan has half a dozen felony convictions, they say, amply qualifying him for the “three strikes and you’re out” law (B1).

MOON WALK: Gene Cernan wasn’t the first to stroll on the moon. But the former astronaut was the last man to leave his footprints there. . . . Cernan flew three separate space missions during his 13 years with NASA. He will share his experiences at the Ronald Reagan Library near Simi Valley at a July 26 forum to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the lunar landing.

LEGAL EAGLES: When it comes to public justice, Ventura County lawyers are in the vanguard this year. Three of 10 finalists for a national award are local attorneys. . . . The Trial Lawyers for Public Justice picked Mark O. Hiepler and Alan R. Templeman of Oxnard for their victory over Health Net, which refused to provide Hiepler’s sister with a bone-marrow transplant before she died of cancer. Oxnard civil rights lawyer Lee Pliscou also was named for his successful sex-discrimination case on behalf of women packinghouse workers.