IS IT A BANNER DAY? Here’s a...

IS IT A BANNER DAY? Here’s a sight you won’t often see: Most of the public schools in the county are hanging black banners this week. . . . It’s to alert parents how much money the schools expect to lose under a proposal to iron out the county bankruptcy. School officials say the plan is unacceptable, that under state law they should get all their funds back--without any IOUs included. . . . The banners will remain up for two weeks. Says Capistrano Unified School District spokeswoman Jacqueline Price: “We’re in mourning.”

SPEEDY TRIALS? Here’s one way to get judges moving quickly on cases: At the federal building in Santa Ana on Tuesday, four courtrooms plus the Bankruptcy Court clerk’s office had to shut down for two hours--after seventh-floor cafeteria food backed up in the floor drains and rotted, creating a stench. . . . “The judges finished up their cases as quickly as possible and everyone left,” says building administrator Patricia Martens. Some employees say it gave them headaches.

YOUR HONORS: Sponsors of the National Conference on Jewish and Contemporary Law, scheduled for Newport Beach March 31-April 2, are proud of their coup in snagging U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, above, for four appearances for the weekend gathering. But they’re also pleased that Jerusalem’s Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz, a noted biblical authority, will also be there. . . . Says conference organizer Rabbi David Eliezrie: “We’ll bring together two legal systems, one which is ancient and one which is contemporary.”

MOM’S CONVERTIBLE: If you watch that Saturday night sitcom “Mommies,” you may be glad your family isn’t as zany as theirs. But the show has been good to co-stars Marilyn Kentz and Caryl Kristensen. . . . Here’s a side perk they hadn’t expected: The two have been chosen as grand marshals for Garden Grove’s annual Strawberry Festival parade in May. Reason: This year’s theme is a salute to moms.