It happened on college avenue near Haste Street at around 2:19 a.m., according to Berkeley police. 

The woman said she was riding her scooter when a man grabbed it and caused her to crash. Thinking she had hit the man, the woman stopped to check on him.

That’s when the man got up, grabbed her, and tried to carry her toward a nearby building. After a struggle, the woman broke free and ran away. 

An investigation into the attempt is underway, according to police. 

They ask anyone with information about it to call the Berkeley Police Department.

At about 2:20 a.m. Wednesday, Berkeley police received a call reporting the attack. The woman was riding her scooter on College Avenue near Haste Street when a male subject jumped out and grabbed the scooter, causing “a collision,” Berkeley police said.

The woman thought she hit the suspect and dropped the scooter to check on him, and when she walked back to the scooter in an attempt to leave the area, the suspect grabbed the victim from behind and started carrying her toward a nearby building, police said.

The woman screamed and managed to fight off the suspect, running to a nearby secure location to call police while the suspect fled the scene, police said.

When officers arrived at the scene, they were unable to find the suspect, described only as a man in his 20s, police said.

Anyone with information about the incident should report it to Berkeley police at 510-981-5900.

The celebration is the longest running in the Bay Area, now going on to its 36th year. 

In addition to music, the Sunday event also had dance performances as well as food and other vendors. 

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One vendor shared her pride in sharing her heritage at the event.

“It’s very, very special,” said Felicia Gold, of Nubian Queen Natural Beauty. “It represents freedom for African-Americans. 90% of my products come from Ghana, the motherland.”

The Juneteenth festival held an event each day from June 11 to June 18, targeting a range of interests. Those included a farmer’s market in South Berkeley on Thursday, a workshop for preserving family stories on Friday, and a softball tournament in San Pablo park on Friday. 

He was arrested around 7 p.m. on suspicion of criminal threats, battery, public intoxication and probation violation.

Back in 2021, Somerville made headlines for a high-profile crash in Oakland.

He was arrested after he rear-ended another car and then used his Porsche to push the car across the intersection into a pole.

Now they’re demanding something be done so this doesn’t happen to any other family.

It happened on a Berkeley bike path Jonathan Carey and Amy Schoenblum have taken plenty of times before.

“You just don’t imagine that this could happen to you and it was over in a second,” said Carey of Oakland.

A ride Monday around noon, with two of their friends, soon turned into open wounds on the head.

The Berkeley Fire Department called and the only ride they were getting was one to a hospital.

Schoenblum now has a broken arm and wrist and she might need surgery. All because the fence they say was only standing on the concrete feet, trapped them under when the bay winds likely toppled it.

“My experience was horrifying because I thought it was just me and the woman my friend and I started calling to the men so they knew to stop,” Schoenblum said.

But even 50 or so yards ahead of them, Carey was under the metal too.  

“We happen to be in the middle of the tidal wave as it started on one end and went to the other end within seconds,” Carey said. 

People passing or driving by helped free the four.

Caltrans said the fence was actually installed as a safety precaution while its contractor constructs the I-80 Gilman Street Interchange Project.

A Caltrans spokesperson said they’re currently working with the contractor OC Jones on the situation who hired a subcontractor to install the fence.

In a statement the department of transportation said, “Caltrans and OC Jones are working together regarding this situation. The fence will be further reinforced by June 1, 2023 to protect the public.”

But wouldn’t go as far to say if the fence was installed incorrectly, saying it is an active investigation.

We reached out to OC Jones and the subcontractor number listed on the fence, but didn’t hear back.

Yellow ropes are now fashioned in different spots from a sign and a tree, onto the fence.

It’s unclear when those appeared, but Carey and Schoenblum said they weren’t there Monday.

They want safety for everyone and that means taking the whole fence down.

“Definitely, it shouldn’t have happened and our whole reason for making our story even public is because we don’t want this to happen to anybody again,” said Schoenblum.

The couples say what’s ahead are doctor’s visits and likely rehab for Schoenblum.

Caltrans reps told them they could file a claim with the department.

Dozens were forced to evacuate and the question late Monday is whether the blaze was intentionally set.

“It was really terrifying,” UC Berkeley student Eli said.

Neighbors at the University Village Albany heard screaming right before the fire started. Investigators said they are not only looking into the cause of the blaze, but if domestic violence played a part.

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Police said officers were initially called to a home in the area for a family disturbance.

Officers found two people were found injured at the home minutes before flames erupted.

Police said when they tried to contact a third family member inside the home, smoke started coming from the apartment.

Terrified neighbors said they started to panic since they did not know how fast the fire would spread. Fire crews were able to knock down the fire before it spread to any other homes.

Arson investigators are looking into the cause of the fire. A second apartment is said to have water damage and it is not clear when residents will be able to go back home.

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Bruce O’Neill showed NBC Bay Area where somebody spray painted the date of the insurrection on his neighbor’s property. While the graffiti’s has now been removed, Berkeley police said vandals painted racial slurs, profanity and symbols on the home of UC President Michael Drake last week.

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“It was the front of the house, maybe like four patches in front, and then the back wall,” said O’Neill.

The UC office of the President said they’re working with investigators to find those responsible. They released the following statement:

“The University of California condemns all hate crimes committed against members of our campus communities. We will continue doing everything possible to create a safe and welcoming university community for all.”

Neighbors said the house has been targeted before. They said someone recently smashed the windows prompting University officials to install a fence around the home.

Residents said that they want Drake and his family to know they are welcome there and hope whoever’s responsible is caught.

Every person receives a commemorative Belgian style glass to enjoy unlimited tastings of some of the best local craft beers and ciders, local artisan wines, handcrafted vodka and more! The event will also feature live music, games, an auction, food trucks, and hundreds of crowd-friendly dogs. 

Support shelter animals and register for the event or donate today. Get 10% off your tickets to Pints for Paws® May 1-15 with code BP23.

Purchase your ticket here: berkeleyhumane.org/pints-for-paws

When: Saturday, June 3rd from 2PM-5PM
Where: 2700 Ninth Street, Berkeley

For more information, please click HERE.

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Berkeley City Council members, joined by counterparts in Emeryville and Oakland, say the decision from the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals is not a done deal.

Earlier this month the court ruled that natural gas piping should be permitted in new construction in perpetuity, essentially blocking Berkeley’s first-in-the-nation ban on gas piping.

Emma Goss has the full story in the video above.

Daniel Widyanto Condronimpuno, 34, of Palm Beach, is accused of sexually assaulting a woman in a pedestrian tunnel that connects California and Alma avenues in Palo Alto on April 9, according to the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office.

At about 2:45 p.m., Condronimpuno allegedly passed the woman going the opposite direction as she was walking her bike through the tunnel. He turned around, snuck up behind her and shoved her to the ground, according to prosecutors.

The woman hit her head on the pavement and was then allegedly sexually assaulted and choked by Condronimpuno as she tried to call for help, prosecutors said.

The attack was interrupted by another person walking into the tunnel, at which point Condronimpuno allegedly took the woman’s phone and fled.

Palo Alto Apr 11

Suspect in Palo Alto Sexual Assault Arrested on UC Berkeley Campus

UC Berkeley Apr 11

Suspect Arrested in Connection With 4 Sexual Batteries at UC Berkeley

A couple of days later, officers with the University of California at Berkeley Police Department got in touch with Palo Alto investigators to say they were investigating a man matching Condronimpuno’s description in a series of sexual assaults on campus, according to prosecutors.

On April 11, campus police arrested Condronimpuno for one of the alleged assaults they were investigating and turned him over to Palo Alto police.

“Thanks to the quick and decisive actions of the witnesses and police here and across the Bay, this dangerous and violent criminal is off the streets,” District Attorney Jeff Rosen said in a news release Wednesday. “Now my Office will try to make sure he stays off of them.”

Condronimpuno is being held without bail and his next court date is scheduled for June 13.

Investigators are asking anyone who might have additional information to call Palo Alto police at (650) 329-2413.

On Monday, the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco sided with the California Restaurant Association to halt the city’s effort, saying it violates federal law that gives the U.S. government the authority to set energy-efficiency standards for appliances.

The ruling has drawn criticism from Berkeley officials and environmentalists, although it’s unclear what kind of impact the decision will have on climate advocates’ fight to go electric, given its narrow scope and the possibility of an appeal to a broader panel of judges. Berkeley banned the installation of natural gas piping in new construction, which the judges said turned the energy use of an appliance to a quantity of zero.

Berkeley City Councilmember Kate Harrison, who authored the 2019 ordinance, said she doesn’t know how the city council will respond, but noted that a ban on natural gas or effort to curtail the use of natural gas has spread to 70 communities in California, and even to Seattle and New York City.

“This is a movement that can’t be stopped,” she said. “They’ve conflated a 1970s regulation about the efficiency of appliances with what kind of materials can come into our house. We did not change appliances, we changed the source of fuel that can come into new buildings.”

Gas stoves are in the spotlight in America’s culture wars, as more Democrat-controlled cities move to limit their use, citing indoor pollution concerns and climate policies that aim to phase out fossil fuels in favor of carbon-free electricity.

In January, comments from the federal Consumer Product Safety Commission that “any option is on the table” to regulate gas stoves sparked outrage from conservatives who said it amounted to government intrusion in people’s homes. The White House has said that President Joe Biden doesn’t support a ban on gas stoves.

The ruling in Berkeley Monday does not affect the majority of cities and counties that have already banned or curtailed natural gas through building codes that meet certain federal requirements and are allowed by the decision, environmental groups said. Other municipal policies to regulate gas distribution and air emissions are not impacted either.

About two dozen cities may be at risk because they are constructed similar to Berkeley, according to the Building Decarbonization Coalition, a nonprofit aimed at eliminating fossil fuels. They include San Francisco, Los Angeles and Oakland.

But not all agreed the ruling negated their city’s ordinance.

“San Francisco’s ordinance differs from Berkeley’s and remains in effect,” said Jen Kwart, spokesperson for the office of City Attorney David Chiu.

Judge Patrick Bumatay wrote in the 3-0 Ninth Circuit ruling that a local ordinance that bans appliances such as gas stoves “impacts the quantity of energy” they consume, which is under federal regulation. The ruling overturned the decision of a judge in a lower court in 2021, dismissing the case because city officials were not trying to regulate energy efficiency for appliances but only the fuel they used.

One likely next step is to seek a rehearing with a larger panel of 11 judges on the appellate court that might lean more liberal, said Josh Blackman, a professor at South Texas College of Law Houston.

The three judges in Monday’s 3-0 ruling were selected at random, and include Bumatay and Judge M. Miller Baker, who is visiting from the U.S. Court of International Trade. Both are appointees of former President Donald Trump, and the third, Judge Diarmuid O’Scannlain, was appointed by former President Ronald Reagan.

The panel was “a very strange trifecta, that’s just a matter of statistics,” Blackman said.

The Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals includes California, Washington state and seven other states in the western region, and helps set legal precedent on some of the country’s biggest issues, including gun control and labor. Trump made gains in adding more conservative judges to the historically liberal court, although it still has more judges appointed by Democratic presidents.

Last year, the California Air Resources Board voted to ban sales of new gas furnaces and water heaters in 2030. Last month, the Bay Area Air Quality Management District adopted rules to phase out and eventually ban the sale of gas water heaters and furnaces.

Kristine Roselius, a spokesperson for the air quality management district, said attorneys are reviewing the ruling but it has regulated air pollution for decades and that its rule is different from that of Berkeley.

Daniel Widyanto Condronimpuno was booked into Santa Clara Main Jail on multiple felony crimes and police said he may be linked to other incidents. UC Berkeley police on Tuesday also announced an arrest in a string of sexual batteries reported near or on campus. Police have not named the suspect in the UC Berkeley crimes.

Police said Condronimpuno faces the following felony crimes tied to a sexual assault reported Sunday at a pedestrian underpass in Palo Alto: attempted rape by force, sexual penetration by force, assault with intent to commit rape, forcible sexual battery, false imprisonment, felony battery, assault with a deadly weapon, and robbery.

Palo Alto Apr 10

Sexual Assault Reported at Palo Alto Pedestrian Underpass

UC Berkeley Apr 11

Suspect Arrested in Connection With 4 Sexual Batteries at UC Berkeley

The hatching of four eggs of a falcon named Annie and her new mate Lou atop UC Berkeley’s Campanile tower was the inspiration for a party being held all day at the UC Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive (BAMPFA), which was showing a live video feed of the birds on an outdoor screen as part of a free event.

Jan Ambrosini, who is with the Cal Falcons group of scientists and volunteers that monitors the falcons and posts regular photos, videos, commentary and memes about them onto social media, said hundreds of people as of Tuesday afternoon had already come to the “Hatch Day” party to watch the live video feed and learn from falcon experts there.

One of the four chicks had come out of its shell and looked fluffy and white on the webcam while a second was trying to make its way out of its egg as of Tuesday afternoon, according to Ambrosini.

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Pair of UC Berkeley Peregrine Falcons Welcome Triplets

The female peregrine falcon Annie and her late mate Grinnell initially made their home at the Campanile in 2017 and a crowdfunding campaign in 2019 led to the installation of two webcams that live-stream the nesting area and balcony to the public 24 hours a day.

Grinnell was found dead in March 2022 on the UC Berkeley campus and eggs Annie laid before Grinnell’s death would not have hatched except for the arrival of a new falcon, eventually named Alden, that helped incubate the eggs.

Two eventually hatched, though Alden then left in November and has not been seen again by the Cal Falcon experts. That absence allowed a new mate, Lou, to swoop in and become Annie’s new mate among multiple suitors, Ambrosini said.

“They’re all about survival and reproduction. For them, if they lose a mate, it’s very typical that they replace that mate almost immediately,” Ambrosini said. “They don’t sit and mourn like people do.”

She said Lou “is doing all the right things and seems to be a really good partner” for Annie, helping to incubate the eggs and bringing food, including a meal earlier Tuesday for Annie and the new chick.

“He’s a very dedicated dad for sure,” Ambrosini said.

The “Hatch Day” party at BAMPFA on Center Street in Berkeley will continue through 5 p.m.

The live-stream of the nest, for those who can’t make it to the party in person, and social media updates on the hatchings and other information about the falcons can be found at the Cal Falcons website at https://calfalcons.berkeley.edu/.

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The university confirmed the person arrested is a suspect in all four attacks. Additional details about the arrest and the suspect weren’t immediately available.

Meanwhile, Palo Alto police late Tuesday said it worked with UC Berkeley police to make an arrest in a sexual assault case. The suspect was arrested in connection to a sexual assault at a pedestrian underpass in Palo Alto. It was not immediately clear if the suspect arrested is the same one in both the UC Berkeley and Palo Alto cases.

The latest sexual battery in Berkeley occurred at about 12:25 a.m. Tuesday at the Foothill Complex, where a female victim was grabbed from behind and knocked to the ground, police said. The victim fought back and was able to get away.

At around 9:40 a.m. Sunday near Stephens Hall, a suspect grabbed a female student’s private body parts over their clothing, police said.

On Saturday, at about 5:40 p.m., a female was walking by Memorial Stadium when a male suspect approached her from behind and placed his hands on her buttocks and breast, police said. The suspect then pushed the the victim against a wall, but the victim was able to push back and run away.

On Wednesday, April 5, a sexual battery was reported in the Eucalyptus Grove at about 1:30 p.m., police said.

Anyone with information about the crimes or about any similar incidents should contact UCPD at 510-642-6760.

Palo Alto Apr 11

Suspect in Palo Alto Sexual Assault Arrested on UC Berkeley Campus

Berkeley Apr 11

UC Berkeley Celebrates Hatching of New Peregrine Falcon Chicks

Bay City News contributed to this report.

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The ruling by federal judge Andrew Kacsmaryk in Texas now puts access to the abortion drug mifepristone in question.

Mifepristone was approved by the FDA in September 2000 and is used in several other countries.

His ruling is a victory for an anti-abortion group called the alliance for Hippocratic medicine, who brought the suit against the FDA. 

In California, Governor Gavin Newsom has already responded by announcing that the state has secured two million pills of misoprostol — a different abortion pill — as an emergency stockpile.

Almost immediately after that federal in Texas issued his ruling, a federal judge in Washington ordered the FDA to continue providing mifepristone in 17 states that sued over the issue.

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In a statement, Planned Parenthood Northern California President and CEO Gilda Gonzalez said they will continue providing care as usual.

“Planned Parenthood Northern California continues to monitor the conflicting legal rulings out of Texas and Washington on Friday, April 7,” said Gonzalez. “We are waiting to see what additional actions occur in the coming days before making any modifications to our health care delivery.”

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has already moved to appeal the Texas decision, asking a higher court to block the ruling.

“We have a very strong case, because the FDA has followed all the rules and used the evidence to make a decision. We feel very confident that we will prevail in court,” said Secretary Xavier Becerra of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

At the White House, press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre raised concerns about the precedent the Texas ruling could set for other drugs as well.

“If the decision stands, it will put women’s health at risk and undermine the FDA’s ability to ensure patients have access to safe and effective medications when they need them the most,” said Jean-Pierre.

That’s the same concern that executives from 200 bio-pharma companies are raising in a letter they’ve signed criticizing the Texas federal judge’s ruling.

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The robbery and assault reportedly took place shortly after 1 a.m on the 2200 block of Hearts Avenue. According to police, the suspect approached a woman and punched her in the head, then stole her purse and fled. 

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Investigators described the suspect only as a person wearing a white shirt and black pants. Anyone with information about the robbery is asked to call Berkeley police at (510) 981-5900.

KC’s Barbecue first opened its doors in Berkeley in 1968.

Now they say challenges are forcing them to close, but they say they’re a part of Berkeley and they’re hoping to do more in the future.

Longtime customer Michael King stopped by KC’s BBQ, looking forward to the tasty lunch he’s gotten many times before.

“I like theirs because the meat is more tender, fall off the bone,” he said.

But instead of a good meal, he found a locked door Thursday. KC’S BBQ has closed up shop after 55 years in business.

“About two weeks ago, we made a decision to close,” said KC co-owner Kristen Davis.

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Davis is a third-generation co-owner of KC’s and said hey had to consider their well-being, they added that keeping the restaurant going has been a struggle.

“With the state of the economy right now the increase in supplies and the decrease in people actually shopping and coming out had a big effect on us in the last six months,” she said.

They tried to make changes, but couldn’t change enough to overcome the post pandemic and economic challenges.

“I’m a little sad to see that we had to make the decision to close something that is all I have known my whole life, all that my dad has known his whole life,” Davis said. “But honestly, it’s a relief, the brick and mortar are a monster for a lot of small businesses. People are trying to find funding and to hold onto and retain employees.”

Davis’ family has run the Kansas City style barbecue spot since 1968, starting with her grandfather. And then her father, Patrick Davis. She became part owner in 2017 when a fire damaged the restaurant and they moved.

More recently, they appeared on the show “Restaurant Impossible,” that helps businesses trying bounce back.

“It was great for a while and we were very hopeful that we would continue to survive all that was COVID and small business we definitely were hopeful,” Davis said.

But Davis added this may not be the end, as she believes when one door closes another opens.

“If we could get a food truck, that would be great. If we could get our sauce and seasoning in stores, that would be great. In the near future, we are going to have pop ups,” she said.

He is the second person in the neighborhood to be targeted by armed teenagers in less than a week. 

Berkeley police say the armed suspects in the latest attack were only 12 to 15 years old.

“It’s very disconcerting because you would normally think this is a pretty safe area,” said Edward Long, Berkeley resident.

That’s how people who live in the normally-quiet and safe neighborhood are feeling after two of their neighbors were held up at gunpoint in just the last week.

Police say two kids, armed with a gun violently attacked a 62-year-old man for a walk.

“He got approached from behind. He was pushed down to the ground, and they demanded some property that he had in his possession,” said Jessica Perry of the Berkeley Police Department. 

The kids stole the man’s watch and left him bleeding after hit his head on the sidewalk.

“He actually knocked on the neighbor’s door and they were the ones who called the police department to get him some assistance,” said Perry. 

Just last week, a 78-year-old woman was targeted by another armed teenager while walking her dog  just a few blocks away.  She used a stick to fight the attacker off. Police arrested the 16-year-old boy. 

“A little shocked that something like that happened. I was a little shocked that the people that committed the robbery were so young,” said resident Curtis Sakai. 

While police say the cases are not connected, some fear seniors are being deliberately targeted. 

“Might be an easier mark, so it’s a lot safer for them to attack somebody they think is vulnerable,” said Long. 

Police are urging residents to walk in groups and to be aware. And they say it’s best to hand over belongings instead of fighting back. 

Many seniors say they plan to take precautions.

“My wife and I will go out in pairs, we won’t go at night, will be careful. I don’t have a jewelry, but my wife won’t be wearing any jewelry. We won’t have our pocketbooks, or wallets so we won’t look like we’re sort of an easy mark,” said Long. 

“I will be careful. I think everyone has to be careful,” said neighbor Karen Borst-Rothe.

The two kids responsible for Monday’s attack have not yet been caught. They sped away in a gray, two-door Infiniti. Police are actively investigating.

“I heard a loud smash, really loud but I had been asleep really drowsy,” said Cory Carr. “The dogs didn’t bark and I didn’t think too much of it.”

Turns out, the smashing Carr heard Friday night was somebody ramming a car through her garage door. She woke up to a lot of damage Saturday morning.   

“It was completely smashed in. They were able to get a mountain bike, a fairly new mountain bike,” said Carr.

She’s not the only victim. There were smashed-in garage doors all over the Uplands neighborhood in Berkeley.

“It’s disheartening and yeah, a nuisance,” said Susan Meadows.

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Her house was also hit Friday night. Fortunately there wasn’t anything worth grabbing in her garage. But she’s feeling very uneasy. 

“It’s unsettling and I just talk to the garage door guy, who came to talk about the new door and we’re going to put in a new door and then it’s going to happen again and he said maybe,” said Meadows. 

Another neighbor’s surveillance cameras captured a suspect in the act.

The video shows a white car ramming into the garage before ultimately speeding away. 

“The police said it takes them 10 seconds to get in and get what they need and disappear,” said Carr.

Neighbors said they’re considering investing in street cameras to watch over the area and hopefully deter future smash-ins. Berkeley police did not respond to NBC Bay Area’s calls Monday but residents say police are investigating. 

Meanwhile, victims are now left picking up the pieces and repairing the damage.

“I think it’s a new low and it’s expensive and it’s frustrating,” said Carr.

Earlier this week in a memo to the mayor and City Council, the Berkeley city manager announced that the police department would have to go from a 16-beat to a 14-beat configuration because the department is consistently understaffed and it hasn’t been able to hire enough officers.

Berkeley Scanner, an independent news website, reported that Berkeley PD normally has about 150 officers, and that number is down by more than 30 because of leave, injuries and other issues. The department is authorized to have about 180 officers but cannot seem find people to fill those roles.

Berkeley Scanner also reported that the new beat structure means non-emergency calls will take longer to respond to, and if there’s a big emergency, Berkeley police may need to call for mutual aid from other agencies.

The Berkeley Police Department released a statement Friday, saying in part: “BPD is not currently on mandatory staffing. If a patrol team falls short of the minimum staffing numbers, this will be backfilled with officers volunteering to sign up to fill the overtime.”

Here is the statement in it entirety from the department’s spokeperson:

“BPD is not currently on mandatory staffing. If a patrol team falls short of the minimum staffing numbers, this will be backfilled with officers volunteering to sign up to fill the overtime.

“Minimum patrol staffing is not the same as having all of the beats filled. We have a minimum staffing number for each patrol team, if the team falls short of the minimum staffing number (i.e. sick calls) then it is filled with overtime. During day time hours when the department has officers working in other assignments, such as our Bike Unit, officers can assist with patrol and fill a beat as well. It varies.

“We have a 14 beat map. Each patrol team is two Sergeants and 8-10 officers depending on the shift. A patrol team in itself does not fill all the beats. When shifts overlap, majority of the day, all the beats are filled.

Patrol Teams:

• Team 1: 6 am – 4 pm M/T/W/TH
• Team 2: 11 am – 9 pm M/T/W/TH
• Team 3: 3:30 pm – 1:30 am M/T/W/TH
• Team 4: 8:30 pm – 6:30 am M/T/W/TH
• Team 5: 6 am – 6:30 pm F/S/SU
• Team 6: 12:30 pm – 1 am F/S/SU
• Team 7: 6 pm – 6:30 am F/S/SU

“BPDs minimum staffing levels are determined by the Department, in collaboration with the Berkeley Police Association. This is based on data analysis and a collaborative review by all involved parties.

“I do not have any information pertaining to budget, cost savings or OT hours. This is something that would have to be a public records request. At face value, one body was cut from each patrol team, 7 bodies a week, this in its self is a cost saving. The department is currently working to finalize the firm to conduct a staffing study. This was a recommendation based on the audit and reimagining process. Once the firm is finalized, the study should be completed in 9-12 months.”

The school district will hold its first meeting about creating a task force Thursday.

“If we do this we will be the first school district in the nation to provide reparations or to even explore what true reparations would even look like for our students,” said BUSD board member Ka’Dijah Brown.

At an informational meeting Thursday, Berkeley Unified School District will be looking to fill spots that include board members, teachers, community members and at least one student.

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The work has already begun on a state level. Earlier Wednesday in Sacramento, a panel considering reparations were told by economists it could cost California more than $800 billion to compensate Black residents for generations of over policing, disproportionate incarceration and housing discrimination.

It’s an estimate two in a half times the state’s budget. Those numbers are what’s driving some criticism about the plans on all levels.

Last Tuesday in Alameda County, Supervisor Nate Miley said a small handful opposed their plans to move forward with reparations efforts.

“It’s not about giving African Americans a paycheck, what it’s about is trying to look at the historical discrimination and disparities that have impacted the quality of life for African Americans in Alameda County,” he said.

Miley added that he’s not sure about how the different work being done on reparations will come together yet. But he’s excited students could be involved in BUSD.

BUSD said eventually, the committee will be tasked to figure out, what true reparations, funding sources and structure and implementation would look like.

“Excellence in education is not a zero sum process and so, we, every single day engage in many opportunities and engage in many initiatives that allow excellence in education and so, this will be just one of those opportunities,” Brown said.

Berkeley Public Schools will hold the informational meeting about the reparations task force Thursday at 6 p.m.

For more information, visit berkeleyschools.net.

For decades, Eastwind Books in Berkeley held space for Asian American authors that often couldn’t be found at mainstream bookstores.

It was a mission for co-owners Harvey and Beatrice Dong, who bought the store in the late 1990s.

Both were activists during the Civil Rights movement and among other things, protested for ethnic studies curriculum at college campuses.

“We need to promote Asian American studies, ethnic studies, African American studies, Chicanx, Latinx studies, Native American studies because the American public doesn’t know very much about people of color,” said Eastwind Books co-owner Harvey Dong.

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California Governor Vows to Change Law Blocking New Housing for UC Berkeley Students

The store not only carried titles you can’t find in bigger stores, but also provided a space for those authors to promote upcoming books.

But at the end of April, the store will close for good. Harvey and Beatrice said there are a number of reasons, both personal and financial.

Customers told NBC Bay Area Wednesday that it will be a huge loss for the community.

“The books in this store and the programs presents the real truth of what Asian Americans have to go through,” said customer Connie Chan.

As for what’s next, Harvey Dong said they’re adjusting to the new marketplace by taking their book store online. They also plan to continue book promotion events for Asian American authors.

While the business model may be changing, the mission of Eastwind Books will remain the same.

“The physical bookstore will no longer be here, but our mission, giving voice to the community though books and literature will continue,” Harvey Dong said.

The horse, Ultimate Diva, was entered in race 3 on March 3 at the track. But after taking the lead early and finishing in first place, the filly “suffered a catastrophic injury past the wire and was euthanized on the track,” according to the Equibase race card about the event. 

Details on the horse’s injury were not available, but the California Horse Racing Board lists the death as “musculoskeletal,” meaning a bone injury.

The thoroughbred’s death is the fourth so far this year at Golden Gate Fields, and the track’s 19th since January 2022. In 2021, 26 racehorses died at the track.

Causes of death listed by the horse racing board include colic-gastrointestinal, neurological, cellulitis, cardiovascular, musculoskeletal and unknown. Some causes are still pending and three of the deaths are listed as accidents.

Samantha Eachus, an advocate for horses who is critical of the racing/gambling industry, flagged the most recent death at Golden Gate Fields as a sign that horses are ridden far too young, aren’t exercised enough and fed a diet that’s only aimed to improve their racing, not their health, she said.

Over a two-year period, Ultimate Diva won $32,380 for her owner, listed as Baseline Equine LLC, according to statistics listed by Equibase

“They are ridden much younger than they should be ridden and are used as money-making machines,” Eachus said. “There’s no amount of money that is worth racing a young horse to death.”

Golden Gate Fields did not respond to a request for comment on Monday.

The California Horse Racing Board, which tracks racing horse fatalities, has taken measures that have reduced deaths at California tracks by more than 50% over the past three years, spokesperson Mike Marten said.

One of those has been a requirement that every horse is reviewed by an expert panel to determine its fitness for a race.

The moratorium began in March 2020 at the height of the pandemic. Many households were unable to pay rent because of employment losses when much of the economy was shut down. Some essential workers became ill as well.

The Alameda County eviction moratorium covers Berkeley residents and is in place until at least May 1, meaning Berkeley property owners would’ve been able to serve eviction notices beginning in May.

But on Monday night, the City Council voted to extend the current moratorium through August and are even considering extending it, despite property owners and managers saying that the ordinance has overstayed its usefulness.

“I know from personal experience and the properties that we manage, that none of the people that have been basically not paying rent all this time, they all have jobs … they are just taking advantage of the situation,” said a community member.

On Tuesday, the Alameda County Board of Supervisors will consider ending the protection set to expire in April.

The announcement comes more than a year before the March 2024 primary. If he wins, Arreguin will succeed state Sen. Nancy Skinner, who is terming out.

Arreguin is Berkeley’s first Hispanic mayor and has held the seat since 2016. He served as a city councilmember beginning in 2008. He is also currently the president of the Association of Bay Area Governments, a regional governing body representing the Bay Area’s 101 cities and nine counties.

“I know what we need to do,” Arreguin said by phone Wednesday.

He said he will bring to the Senate a deep body of experience, which comes from 20 years of public service in Berkeley and as president of ABAG since 2019. Before serving on the City Council, Arreguin served on the city’s rent board.

Arreguin will launch his campaign publicly with an event March 22.

Arreguin comes from a family of farmworkers. At 10 years old, he marched with Dolores Huerta.

His family lived in San Francisco and was evicted multiple times. Despite the hardship, Arreguin graduated from University of California at Berkeley and was the first in his family to graduate from college.

Through his work on a plan by ABAG, the Bay Area may see more than 440,000 new housing units over the next eight years. In particular, he wants more affordable housing built. Like others, Arreguin sees housing as a human right.

As a state senator, Arreguin says he would plan to increase housing construction, make the state more affordable for working families, take more steps to alleviate homelessness and, among other things, make California a bolder leader in addressing climate change.

He also wants to bring universal health care to residents of California. Like housing, he believes health care is a basic human right.

Currently, he is opposing the closure of Alta Bates Summit Medical Center in Berkeley. He wants to make sure areas don’t become hospital deserts.

In Berkeley, Arreguin wrote the law that raised the city’s minimum wage. Arreguin has been a prolific author of legislation, writing more than 300 pieces of it.

As mayor, he helped end single-family zoning in his city. During the last three years, homelessness has dropped by 5 percent while countywide it has increased by 22 percent.

Arreguin helped write Plan Bay Area 2050, a $1.4 trillion long-term strategy to improve the region’s public transportation, increase construction of affordable housing and among other things, address climate change.

At about 9:50 p.m., officers were alerted to a stolen vehicle in the southern part of the city, police said. Officers spotted the vehicle in the area of California and Harmon streets and tried to stop it, but the driver sped away.

Officers did not chase after the car, but they did stay in the area, police said. A short time later, officers spotted the car on Market Street. The driver had crashed into a parked car between 60th and 61st streets.

When officers approached the car, the two children hopped out and ran away, police said. Officers chased after them and eventually detained them a few blocks away.

The children – the boy from Oakland and the girl from San Pablo – were arrested on suspicion of possession of stolen property and resisting arrest, police said. They were later cited and released to their parents or guardians.

All incidents happened back to back in the course of three days. While the motive is not clear, cyclists believe these are targeted attacks meant to both scare and injure those in the cycling community.

“It’s incredibly frustrating that someone for no seemingly better reason then just to get the joy out of hitting someone would do this,” said cyclist Ross Judge.

Judge said a grey Hyundai ran into him just seconds after leaving his house on Shafter Avenue last Friday.

Judge was on his way to join the group East Bay Bike Party in Oakland when it happened. 

“I heard it continue to speed up and all of a sudden it was just bam it hit me, it took me a second to realize what had just happened and realized, ‘oh my god, I was just hit by a car!’” said Judge. “I saw the person open the passenger side door and look back and was actually pointing and laughing at me after they did it.”

The impact ripped his pants but didn’t cause any serious injuries. But other riders weren’t so lucky. 

Several other cyclists reported the same car trying to hit several riders the same night. 

They say the cars were doing something called “dooring,” where a car driver or passenger intentionally opens their door into a cyclist.

Someone in that same gray Hyundai is also suspected of putting a woman in the hospital after she was hit by a door, fell, and needed several stitches in her head. 

“I’ve been volunteering for bike party for about 10 years and bike party is 13 years old,” said Charlotte Hryse, East Bay Bike Party volunteer. “This does seem far and beyond anything that we have encountered before.”

Hryse says the attacks happened at the beginning and end of the ride. After posting the incident on social media, the group learned three other cars are suspected of the same kind of targeted attacks throughout Oakland, Emeryville and Berkeley from Thursday through Saturday.

In one case, a rider broke his foot. 

The group is calling for immediate action from local governments to protect cyclists.  

“Let’s set things up so that these conflicts are less likely to happen,” said Hryse. “You know physical barrier in a bike lane so a car can’t really open a car door onto a bike.”

In total, 14 people say they were targeted and eight were injured.    

Cyclists believe at least some of the suspects are teenagers and they suspect the same people may be involved in multiple attacks.  

“I would love to see that person off the streets, never with the option to drive a car again,” said Judge.

OPD is investigating and East Bay Bike Party says they are looking to possibly host their rides outside of Oakland for now.

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The new billboards are spread throughout eight different parts of Berkeley and are hard to miss.

The red signs come with a message directed to UC Berkeley’s School of Law. It reads: “You don’t need to go to law school to know anti-Zionism is antisemitism.”

The billboards were posted by the nonprofit group “JewBelong” as a response to a student group. At the law school, they recently voted to ban “pro-Israel” and “zionist” speakers from giving lectures on campus.

Walnut Creek Dec 9, 2022

Bay Area Elected Officials Fight Against Antisemitism

anti-semitism Dec 3, 2022

Jewish Leaders Fear Antisemitic Celebrities Are Normalizing Hate: ‘Everyone Needs to Be Concerned'

The non-profit co-founder Archie Gottesman hopes the message challenges students and the community to fight against antisemitism.

“To be out there with this just really hateful rule is incredibly scary. It’s scary for jews and scary for people, who are not Jewish, who want to have freedom of speech,” Gottesman said.

Jessica Pearlman, who identifies as Jewish, said she hopes the message will start a conversation.

“I think people really think they are absolutely two different things and that they are never mistaken for another and I think it’s important to see those two phrases together,” she said.

But the billboards appear to be fuel for another debate as one billboard has already been vandalized with someone spray painted the words “Free Palestine.”

Some UC Berkeley students are concerned the billboards are creating more conflict on campus.

“I know plenty of people that are Jewish and antizionist, so that logically, I don’t know. It’s frustrating to see right wing groups capitalizing on things at Berkeley’s campus,” said UC Berkeley student Enrique Marisol.

In a statement the dean at UC Berkeley law said that following: “It’s nonsense to say the school is promoting antisemitism.” They explained that “student groups have the first amendment, right to choose speakers based on their viewpoints. I condemn the bylaw, but groups have the right to have it.”

The student group, who initially voted to ban certain speakers did not return NBC Bay Area’s call for comment.

After critics of the original 600-page plan, dubbed the Housing Element, felt it didn’t spread out the new construction to include wealthier neighborhoods, the City Council approved an amendment that commits Berkeley to rezoning such areas for more housing development.

Much of the focus of recent housing development in the city has been with projects along Shattuck Avenue in the downtown area.

The plan doesn’t list any specific projects, but it does lay out a vision of what housing in Berkeley could look like in the next several years.

The city was required by the state to complete the plan by the end of January. By comparison, the same state mandate calls for 82,000 housing units San Francisco, 62,000 in San Jose and more than 26,000 in Oakland.

Berkeley’s plan will now go to the state for final approval.

Public works crews were at St. Andrews Street in the Oakland Hills cleaning up a muddy mess, spending hours removing debris and sludge. 

All while neighbors brace for the potential for more damage after three landslides since Saturday.  

“Hold on baby, we aren’t clear yet. We are dealing with water, one of the major forces of nature and water goes where it wants to,” said John Johnson of Oakland.

He lives across the hill that turned into a river of mud. Neighbors were still cleaning up from one landslide when the hill gave way again Monday, taking a tree along with it. 

“I’m anticipating tomorrow’s work and I’m anticipating the next rain that comes,” said Johnson. “Right now, we just have a water main issue that is the source of the water, I’m apprehensive to what else comes down that hill.”

In the Berkley Hills, more than a dozen homes are red tagged after a landslide on Middlefield Road poured feet of mud into a home, forcing the owners out of their house.  

Back in Oakland, some neighbors along Alvarado Road are refusing to come back home until the hillside there is more secure. 

bay area storm Jan 17

Landslide Danger in East Bay Hills Prompts Evacuations, Warnings

bay area storm Jan 16

Crews Continue Clearing Out East Bay Landslides

“I haven’t been sleeping here and I do think it would be hard to fall asleep with this huge hill hanging over our house,” said Sari Cooper.

Crews are still working to clear the mess from Monday’s mudslide where Cooper lives that left a car stranded. 

While the road is reopened, crews say a clogged drain and water continues to be a problem.  

Consistent clean up leaving neighbors wondering what’s next. 

“I’m concerned that this mudslide is not finished, that more will come down,” said Cooper.

Oakland Public Works crews will be back Wednesday and reopen St. Andrews road then.

The Spiral, a short road off Wildcat Canyon Road, and Middlefield Road north of the Crossways, are both closed, Berkeley police said in an advisory.

Wildcat Canyon Road between Sunset and Park Hills roads is also closed due to a mudslide. Authorities responded to the area shortly after 7 a.m.

The ground was still moving and trees were heard cracking from the slide, Berkeley Fire Battalion Chief Bill Kehoe said about 9 a.m.

Additional evacuations were not expected, police said later Monday, but residents were still advised to avoid the area if possible.

“Basically we’ve been slowly watching this river of dirt and debris,” said Marjorie Cruz. “Slide down the hill and make its progress across our yard.”

It’s a situation the longtime Berkeley resident never thought she’d be faced with when she and her husband woke up to a nightmare outside their side door. 

“He woke up and he was making his coffee and noticed it was extra dark and he looked out at the door on the side of the house, and there’s about 4 feet of mud at the door, and that’s when he realized we had a major problem,” said Cruz.

A few hours later, the mud had made its way inside the house and as the dirt moved, they evacuated seven other houses located downhill.

“Mud can be more damaging. It seems like it’s slow moving at first, but can cause really big damage so we don’t wanna take any risks at least with ourselves,” said Erin Zatlin, evacuated resident. “We’ll see what happens to our house. Hopefully it stays safe and everybody stay safe.”

No injuries were reported. About 20 residents in homes that were evacuated are being assisted by the Red Cross.

Residents in the area should be prepared to evacuate quickly if notified, Berkeley officials said.

At nearby UC Berkeley on Monday, a landslide shut down a campus roadway, according to university police.

Just a few miles away, in the Oakland hills another muddy scene, neighbors say a hillside on Alvarado Road started sliding at about 3 a.m. eventually blanketing the road.

“We’ve lived here for 35 years and seen everything: mountain lines, skunks, possums, deer rats, I’ve got them all, and mud!!” said Oakland Hills resident Gary Plotner.

The driver of a Mini Cooper learned the hard way: his car and mud — not a good mix. 

“If you see a mudslide driveway, don’t try to get around it which I tried and that was a mistake,” said Kathy Eyre.

Back in Berkeley, Cruz and her husband are grateful nobody was hurt. They say It’s time for the weather to settle down. 

“I think mother nature can take a break now. I really think she’s done enough. I think we’re good. We’re good on rain. We can just take it easy now. Let us dry out a bit,” she said.

It’s unclear how many years the remains were in the shuttered building on the Clark Kerr Campus, which is a residential hall complex and event space that’s about a mile from the main campus, the university’s police department said in a statement.

There are no outstanding cases of missing persons from the Berkeley campus community, the statement said. The building “has not been occupied for many years.”

The Alameda County coroner will determine the cause of death.

The university is about 10 miles from downtown San Francisco.

Three suspects went into the store on Fourth Street at about 10 a.m., stole the phones and left the area in a white sedan.

No one was injured, according to police. 

The grand theft follows a similar though less costly theft when five suspects stole a dozen phones on Friday evening from the same store.

“Sadly, it’s returned,” said Berkeley police spokesperson Officer Byron White about the thefts. “We haven’t seen that in a while.”

White said the reason for the resumption of thefts could very well be the recent removal of a police officer parked outside of the store.

For about two years, Berkeley police stationed an officer outside the Apple store. But police had to discontinue that, White said.

The shooting occurred at around 3 p.m. near The Sylvia Mendez Elementary School on Oregon Street.

Police said that they are looking for a shooter in a silver car. They believe the driver opened fire on someone who happened to be on their phone with police at the time.

Officers shut down Oregon Street, Fulton Street and Shattuck Avenue for a few hours to investigate.

The elementary school had early dismissal Wednesday, so there were no children in the school at the time of the incident.

No one was hurt in the shooting.

If the city council approves the proposal, Berkeley will become the first city in the country to have such an ordinance.

That same measure includes decriminalizing the use of natural psychedelics like mushrooms – which 15 cities across the U.S. have now done – including neighboring Oakland and San Francisco.

But no city has loosened restrictions for synthetic drugs like LSD.

California state law still considers use of any hallucinogenic a criminal offense.

UAW Local 5810, which represents over 11,000 postdoctoral scholars and academic researchers at the University of California and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, on Tuesday said a tentative agreement has been reached, but workers will remain on strike until members ratify the new deal.

“We are proud to have reached agreements that address the soaring cost of living, and reflect the value of our contributions at UC,” UAW Local 5810 President Neal Sweeney said in a statement. “These agreements represent a new, best-in-class model that will improve quality of life – and the quality of research – for scientists across the US. It is now time for UC to make serious proposals to Academic Student Employees and Student Researchers and to reach fair agreements that recognize the contributions these workers make.”

The agreement includes wage increases of 20% or more, as well as childcare subsidies and other improvements for international scholars — a win post doc scholars hope sets a new standard across the country.

“I think it is going to help retain this top talent,” said Olivia Gunther, a UC Berkeley postdoctoral scholar. “This contract language that we have created I think is going to make the best minds in the country feel a lot more confident coming to a UC and feel like there is actual support there.”

UC Berkeley Nov 14, 2022

UC Berkeley Workers Strike Brings Grading, Classes, Research to a Halt

University of California Nov 12, 2022

Thousands of Workers on Strike Across the UC System

The University of California is still negotiating with two other groups still on strike and provided the following statement:

“Our dedicated colleagues are vital to UC’s research activities and we are very pleased to have reached agreements that honor their many important contributions,” Letitia Silas, UC’s executive director of systemwide labor relations, said in a statement. “These agreements also uphold our tradition of supporting these employees with compensation and benefits packages that are among the best in the country.”

Thousands of workers at all 10 UC campuses first walked out on the job on Nov. 14 and called for better pay and benefits.

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As students celebrate the Thanksgiving holiday, there are concerns over what happens if an agreement between the UC system and university employees is not reached when they come back.

“As we rely on them to get help and stuff during office hours, a lot of stuff isn’t getting graded as well, it is a little bit concerning going into finals week pretty soon,” said UC Berkeley student Mia Difilippo.

Difilippo is one of many students whose classes have either gone virtual or been completely cancelled since thousands of UC workers, including researchers and graduate students walked out the classroom demanding better working conditions and livable wages.

“I’m hoping I don’t have to retake anything. As of now, I’m at a pretty good standing but I know a lot of students that are concerned,” she said.

UC Berkeley Nov 14, 2022

UC Berkeley Workers Strike Brings Grading, Classes, Research to a Halt

University of California Nov 12, 2022

Thousands of Workers on Strike Across the UC System

“It hinders some education on my part and for many other students. But sometimes, I think a necessary cost in order to have progressive change,” said law student Jay Krishman.

Even faculty, who support the protest explained they have had to put new material on hold. Instead, they are posting recorded lectures with hopes the university will extend the grading period.

“It’s going to be another disastrous semester for our students if it ends in a strike,” said UC Berkeley professor Jonathan Simon. “Faculty are facing having no preparation time for the spring because they may have to do all the grading, so it really is a crisis.”

Workers on strike said while some progress has been made. It’s not enough to go back to the class.

NBC Bay Area reached out to UC officials Thursday and they released the following statement:

“The University is committed to achieving a fair and reasonable contract that honors the important contributions these bargaining unit members make toward UC’s mission of education, research, and providing quality patient care.”

Announced Wednesday, Berkeley City College, College of Alameda, Laney College and Merritt College are offering fee waivers to those who complete their Free Application for Federal Student Aid.

The campaign follows the colleges’ previously successful “Fall is Free” program, which kickstarted enrollment after student numbers were dwindling during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Laney College President Dr. Rudy Besikof said the institute saw a 15 percent enrollment increase following the fall campaign.

“Our Fall efforts in this arena were a great success, as students, particularly those from historically underserved communities, need all the help we can give them while they get an education that will build their earning power and enrich their lives,” Besikof said.

The program is possible thanks to federal dollars from the Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund.

Not only will the four colleges waive course fees, each one has additional resources and benefits for students who enroll.

At Laney College, those who complete FAFSA or Dream Act applications can receive free groceries and lunches, hotspots and Chromebook laptops, parking and public transportation passes if they take more than six units. Residents who are refugees or undocumented will also have tuition and textbook costs waived.

At Berkeley City College, students who enroll in more than six units can apply for a $150 Clipper card, free parking and an academic grant.

“We looked at the success of our Fall is Free program and got creative with ways to do more for our students with Spring to Success,” Berkeley City College President Dr. Angélica Garcia said. “Berkeley City College is pleased to remove the barriers to attaining higher education by expanding the benefits and widening the pool of eligible students. Building on our Fall efforts with a focus on completion can keep students connected to their career and academic goals.”

At the College of Alameda, students who enroll in more than six units will provide a $500 grant for books and other academic supplies.

“This is an extraordinary opportunity for our students and their families to save significantly on the cost of their college education,” said Acting College of Alameda President Dr. Diana Bajrami. “Whether they are planning to transfer to four-year universities, earn a degree/certificate or focus on skill building, students and our community members will find a broad selection of high-quality courses free of charge at College of Alameda this spring.”

And for students who apply for FAFSA and enroll in six units at Merritt College, they can receive a $600 grant and free breakfast, parking, hotspots and laptop use.

“Merritt College puts students first,” said Merritt College President Dr. David M. Johnson. “We want to support students financially and lighten the load where we can. We took some inspiration from the Black Panther Party and their iconic ‘free breakfast for kids’ for our own free breakfast program this fall. We’re excited to keep that going for students this spring.”

Students can enroll in the Spring 2023 semester on Nov. 21 at home.peralta.edu/enroll.

The city manager Tuesday pulled the item that would make Louis permanent, canceling the confirmation vote during the city council meeting.

This all started when a fired Berkeley police officer sent an email last week to city officials containing screen shots made public by the online group Secure Justice.  

The messages were allegedly written by the head of the police union, and contained derogatory comments about unhoused residents and people of color.

At Tuesday night’s city council meeting, there was a brief discussion over the controversial messages.

Berkeley Nov 15, 2022

Leaked Text Messages Prompt Push to Delay New Police Chief in Berkeley

The Alameda County public defender is now questioning whether the interim chief should lead the department.

“Arrest quotes, remarks about the unhoused and racism have no place in policing but is prevalent with the police department and under the current leadership,” said Brendon Woods.

The city manager said she pulled the item to get results from an upcoming investigation and consult with the community.

The mayor believes Interim Chief Louis had no knowledge of the controversial messages before they were made public.

Leaked texts are alleging a police officer made disparaging remarks about the unhoused and people of color and now, a battle is brewing over what the chief may have known about it.

“I don’t think we’re at a point where anyone could have public confidence in appointing a chief without knowing the full facts of these allegations,” said Nathan Mizell, the vice chair of Berkeley’s Police Accountability Board.

He is concerned about Tuesday’s confirmation vote to make Interim Berkeley Police Chief Jennifer Louis the permanent top cop.

He said allegations that a member of the Police Officers Association made negative comments about the unhoused and people of color are giving him pause.

“I can’t speculate if she knew, she didn’t know,” he said. “I don’t know if city managers knew or didn’t know.”

What he does know is that a former Berkeley police officer, who was terminated for unknown reasons last year, is leaking text messages to Berkeley city officials.

NBC Bay Area got a hold of the screen shots when they were made public by the advocacy group Secure Justice. Mizell said they contain language unfit for a police officer.

“There was one remark that said homeless folks could be wiped out by some sort of strain and BPD bike force would ride by the bodies,” said Mizell.

He said he’s also seen comments second hand that were racially offensive.

The city of Berkeley released a statement calling the allegations very disturbing, saying, “We take them very seriously. We will be hiring an external investigator to verify and investigate any and all documentation and allegations arising from the complaint.”

Louis is also weighing in, saying she is making it clear that if the allegations are true, “none of the alleged incidents occurred underneath my supervision.”

A police chief confirmation vote is set for Tuesday evening.

The police accountability board plans to meet before that.

They said they plan to stay on the picket line until the university gives them a living wage. 

Some of the graduate students are making as little as $24,000 a year which if anyone who lives in Berkeley or Los Angeles or any of these high cost cities knows isn’t enough to make ends meet.

Vetri Velan is a full time researcher at the University’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory who is working on understanding what the universe is made out of, while struggling to make his rent. 

“To be honest, it’s something I’m very passionate about. I’d love to be doing that but I am on strike today because the university has left us no choice,” said Velen.

“Classes are generally shuttered. Research isn’t happening. Lab work isn’t happening. Data isn’t being communicated to advisers. All work of the University is stopped,” said striking workers Tanzil Chowdhury.

University of California Nov 12, 2022

Thousands of Workers on Strike Across the UC System

University of California Nov 14, 2022

Thousands of Workers on Strike Across the UC System

For many students that means discussion classes and office hours have been canceled and some lectures have gone online only, just a month before finals are set to start. 

But some undergraduates said they support the strikers. 

“You guys are very strong and brave and standing up for yourselves instead of staying quiet,” said student Georgie Pantazis. “They basically do all the work so I applaud them.”

The university said it will continue to negotiate fairly saying, “These employees make valuable contributions to the university’s teaching and research mission…. we believe our offers of fair pay, quality health and family friendly benefits are fair.” 

The workers say they will continue to strike until they get what they’re asking for. 

Hundreds gathered at St. Joseph the Worker Catholic Church in Berkeley to remember 15-year-old Angel and his 17-year-old brother Jazy Sotelo Garcia. The two were killed during a house party at an Airbnb rental home in Oakland on Oct. 1.

“It’s a really difficult time for us and it’s the kind of pain that we will never be able to forget or get over,” uncle Ruben Garcia said in Spanish.

Many of those who spoke at the funeral talked about the boys’ kindness. Family members asked everyone in attendance to wear white to symbolize the peace that cousin Melani Garcia said the brothers represented.

“Their energy was just so warm and engulfing,” she said. “Their power as brothers and as a unit, that will never go away.”

The boys’ mother, Maria Garcia, is now raising their four younger siblings. She knows her sons are with God and wants them to be remembered as good kids.

“I want them to remember them as really good kids, really good guys,” she said in Spanish. “I was raising really good citizens.”  

Oakland Oct 17, 2022

Coroner Backlog Delays Funeral for Teen Brothers Killed in Oakland

Oakland Oct 2, 2022

2 Teen Brothers Dead Following Oakland House Party Shooting

As police continue to look for at least three suspects, family members said they will continue to fight for justice.

“I want the person who did this to my kids to pay for what they did to them, and I believe in our authorities and in God, too,” Maria Garcia said.

Soccer teammates of Angel are dedicating their season to his memory while the Berkeley Unified School District said both brothers’ legacies will live on through their community.

“Everything that we are going to do is just going to be for them,” said Allan, one of Angel’s teammates.

The collision occurred at about 12:40 p.m. where the train tracks intersect with Bancroft Way. 

The truck was carrying construction materials, which were scattered in the collision, Berkeley police spokesperson Officer Byron White said.

No one was injured, White said. White said traffic impacts are expected to be minimal.

Police have not determined the cause of the collision.

The California Nurses Association/National Nurses United announced Sunday that registered nurses at Alta Bates Summit Medical Center (ABSMC) in Oakland and Berkeley have voted to hold a five-day strike from through 7 a.m. Friday.

The nurses union says this strike is in response to “persistent patient care issues” including a lack of a workplace violence prevention plan and high turnover rates.

Nurses at the 350 Hawthorne Ave. campus in Oakland, the 2450 Ashby Ave. campus in Berkeley, and the 2001 Dwight Way campus in Berkeley will participate, the union said.

“We have nurses leaving constantly, in my unit alone there’s usually three or four nurses leaving a pay period which is about every two weeks,” said Mike Hill, an ICU nurse at Alta Bates Summit Medical Center in Oakland and the chief nurses union representative for the hospital.

kaiser permanente Oct 18, 2022

Kaiser, Striking Mental Health Therapists Reach Tentative Deal

Santa Clara County Oct 19, 2022

Doctors' Union to Announce Planned Strike in Santa Clara County

“And it’s not that they want to necessarily leave, it’s just that they can no longer put up with the working environment,” Hill continued, adding that many of the nurses who have left go on to work with other local health care providers.

Hill added that the staffing issues have led to employees taking double shifts day after day, not getting breaks, or not being able to take their benefits.

“When you don’t get your meals and your rest breaks on a 16-hour shift, you’re exhausted,” Hill said.

ABSMC is an affiliate of Sutter Health.

A Sutter Health spokesperson sent NBC Bay Area the following statement:

“By moving forward with a costly and disruptive strike at Alta Bates Summit Medical Center, union leadership has made it clear they are willing to put politics above patients and the nurses they represent – despite the intervention of federal mediators and our willingness to bargain in good faith while under threat of a strike. We remain focused on providing safe, high-quality care to the patients and communities we’re honored to serve, and we are confident in our ability to manage this disruption. We are hopeful the nurse union shares our desire to reach an agreement and enable our nurses to turn their focus back to the patients the union has asked them to walk away from. We stand by our commitment to patient safety, and Alta Bates Summit Medical Center remains open and fully operational despite the union’s actions.”

The California Nurses Association says it represents1,800 nurses at Sutter Health’s ABSMC campuses.

Union representatives said they are not sure exactly how many nurses will be out at the picket lines because nurses might join in at different days or times.

Picket lines started Monday morning at Hawthorne Avenue in Oakland and Ashby Avenue in Berkeley.

The measures in Berkeley and San Francisco, both identified as Measure M, would tax property owners who choose to leave their rental homes vacant rather than rent them out.

The activists are taking to the bridge Sunday at 3 p.m. following a report by the San Francisco Budget and Legislative Analyst’s office. The report said the number of vacant homes in that city rose 50 percent between 2019 and 2021 to as high as 61,000.

“Not another empty unit while mothers with children remain unhoused,” said Dominique Walker, co-founder of Moms 4 Housing and member of the Berkeley rent board commission. “Vacancy taxes are an important tool to making housing available and Berkeley in line with the human right to housing.”

Activists said that according to projections the measures will make thousands of new units available and raise millions of dollars in revenue.

In response to the recent crime, the university has hired private security to patrol the area.

Some students NBC Bay Area spoke to Thursday said they were feeling a little safer as several private security guards were patrolling the areas around three dorm complexes.

“I think that it could be pretty revolutionary because it kind of incentivizes safety for the students and for the Berkeley community as a whole. And really prioritizes everyone’s health and safety,” said UC Berkeley student Rucha Acholkar.

On Oct. 8, 29-year old Isamaeli Mataafa was shot and killed near the UC Berkeley campus, police said.

Three others were hurt that same night. Police said that none of the people involved in the shooting were Cal students.

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Seema Burke told NBC Bay Area that her daughter, who attends Cal, was out with friends when the shooting happened.

“They were so close, that one of her friends actually saw the gun,” she said.

Since then, Burke along with hundreds of other parents have been pushing the university and city of Berkeley for change, mobilizing on Facebook and speaking out at city council meetings.

Parents said while the temporary fix is great, there’s more work to be done.

“We look forward to working with Cal and the city on workable solutions that will continue to have an immediate impact, while longer term initiatives that can include professional security are explored and implemented,” Burke said.

At this time, the hiring of the private security guards is temporary. The university said it’s working on hiring and training more UCPD officers and student security monitors.

Parents are urging the school and city to hire additional officers and security guards full time.

A Berkeley Police Department spokesperson said the person was struck by the train at around 4:30 p.m. where Carleton Street meets the railroad tracks.

The police investigation is continuing into early Thursday evening. Some intersections near the tracks may be blocked until the train can be cleared.

There are no further details at this time.

Alameda County Sheriff’s Office Coroner’s Bureau said the delay in starting the boys’ autopsies is due to a shortage of doctors.

“It feels really soul crushing,” said Melani Garcia, the boys’ cousin. “For us, having a funeral in a timely fashion is one of the most vital steps in healing and moving forward. And I feel like we can not properly do that.”

It has been more than two weeks since brothers 15-year-old Angel and 17-year-old Jazy Sotelo Garcia were shot and killed.

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Alameda County Sheriff’s Office Sgt. Erik Bordi said the coroner’s bureau has been backlogged for a year and the recent spike of violence in Oakland has only made it worse.

“I’ve been here 10 years. I have never seen it close to like this,” Bordi said. “There is a nationwide shortage of pathologists, that coupled with an increase in homicide deaths, violent crimes, overdoses with fentanyl — it’s just leading to a backlog.”

Out of 35 pending autopsies, 13 are from homicides. Also adding to the delay is most pathologists have to be flown in from other states.

Typical autopsies are completed in one to three days. In Alameda County, that timeframe is now two to three weeks or longer — something Bordi said is out of their control.

“I would love it if I could bump everyone up the list so all families could get their funerals done on time,” Bordi said. “But then it is not fair to another family member, so it has been very difficult.”

A delay grieving family members said only adds to their pain.

“I just can’t stop thinking of the fact that their bodies are just laying in the morgue when they could be laid to rest appropriately,” Garcia said.

The Alameda County Sheriff’s Office said the boys’ autopsy is scheduled for Thursday pending any complications.

The incident was first reported at 5:41 a.m.

Police said the victim reported he was robbed of his cell phone by a suspect with a stick and using a chemical agent spray.

The victim described the suspect as a light-skinned man.

No other information about the incident was immediately available.

“It was not an accident that he was here. But it’s just a tragedy that he left us before he was going to graduate in the spring,” said Leonard McMahon, assistant professor at Pacific School of Religion in Berkeley.

Isamaeli Mataafa, 29, was one of McMahon’s students. The victim, who also went by “Eli,” was an American Samoan in the master of divinity program at the Pacific School of Religion, and was on track to graduate next year.

“He was tough minded, large hearted, kind, gentle, firm and steady,” McMahon said.

Mataafa was killed Saturday in a shooting that followed an altercation a block away from UC Berkeley’s campus. He was on a boy’s night out with three other men, they were also hurt in the shooting.

“Isamaeli was never involved with the criminal element anymore. As matter of the fact, he lived in neighborhoods that he wanted to transform. He was dedicated to that. He was also dedicated to climate change,” McMahon said.

Mataafa was also a youth minister and mentor in the Samoan community in San Lorenzo.

Family and friends will hold a candlelight memorial at the community church in San Lorenzo Thursday at 7 p.m.

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