Month: May 2012

Sac Bee and LA Times Sue For Names of the Redacted Officers in Kroll Report

Sac Bee and LA Times Sue For Names of the Redacted Officers in Kroll Report

By David GreenwaldMay 24, 201223 comments

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On April 26, the Vanguard ran a second article removing any doubt that the second officer involved in the pepper spray incident was Alexander Lee, recently promoted from security guard in the UC Davis Police Department to police officer.

A few days later, the Davis Enterprise ran a follow-up story also naming Officer Alexander Lee, and noting that university officials had confirmed there were only three officers suspended over the pepper-spray incident and that they were all UC Davis officers.

The Story About How an Innocent Man was Executed

The Story About How an Innocent Man was Executed

By David GreenwaldMay 24, 20120 comments
Possley-MauriceThe Atlantic, on May 14, published an account of Carlos DeLuna who was put to death back in December of 1989 for a murder that occurred in Corpus Christi.  It was a crime that he did not commit but shows the depths of the problems with capital punishment.

This case is most notable from our perspective for a key reason. On June 27, 2006 “Chicago Tribune reporters, Steve Mills and Maurice Possley, published the last of a three-part, groundbreaking series about the legal and factual problems with the DeLuna case.”

Closing Up Shop: End of the Line For Ill-Fated IE Committee

Closing Up Shop: End of the Line For Ill-Fated IE Committee

By David GreenwaldMay 23, 201270 comments

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The Independent Expenditure Committee that triggered so much attention early in May will not be launching a second mailer, after their first mailer has likely backfired, depending on what its actual purpose was.  Or at least it appears that way.

On May 8, a mailer from the group backed by Sacramento-based unions, Plumbers and Pipefitters Local 447, IBEW Local 340 and Operating Engineers Local Union 3, in Support of Stephen Souza and in Opposition to Sue Greenwald, sent out an attack mailer to Davis residents reminding them of Councilmember Sue Greenwald’s publicized incident with former Mayor Ruth Asmundson.

Davis Hires New Fire Chief to Clean House

Davis Hires New Fire Chief to Clean House

By David GreenwaldMay 23, 201222 comments
Kenley-Scott-682x1024Late on Tuesday, the City of Davis confirmed that they had hired a new interim fire chief, replacing Bill Weisgerber.  Scott Kenley was hired as the new interim fire chief, the second interim chief since the retirement of Rose Conroy in March 2010.

“Interim Chief Kenley has been active in fire services for over forty years and brings with him a diversity of experience ranging from firefighter operations to fire chief,” a city release stated.

Vanguard Obtains Critical New Portions of Davis Fire Department Investigation in Settlement with City

Vanguard Obtains Critical New Portions of Davis Fire Department Investigation in Settlement with City

By David GreenwaldMay 22, 201238 comments

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Uncovered Portions Show Union President Bobby Weist Received SIGNIFICANT Preferential Treatment in Promotion to Captain

In newly-released segments of a 2008 report, the Vanguard has learned that Bobby Weist, the long-time union president and arguably one of the most powerful public figures in city government, received preferential treatment in his 2007 promotion to fire captain.

In April of 2007, then Chief Rose Conroy of the Davis Fire Department promoted Mr. Weist, over “at least one of the candidates [who] was demonstrably and significantly more qualified for and deserving of the promotion than [Bobby Weist] promoted by Chief Conroy.”

Guest Commentary: Conspiracy of Silence

Guest Commentary: Conspiracy of Silence

By uptownstudiosMay 22, 201257 comments

union-sg-1By Michael Bartolic

Bribery. Blackmail. Intimidation. Extortion. Election tampering. Conspiracy to commit fraud. The ugliness of the smear aimed at Davis City Councilwoman Sue Greenwald has rightly been widely condemned as all of the above, especially by Stephen Souza, who is also running for re-election, on whose behalf this outrage ostensibly was perpetrated.

Some have treated this as a joke, a way to make mean fun of Greenwald and her supporters, as if she cued up such slander on her behalf. Others haven’t given Souza even the benefit of the doubt per his dissociation from the mailer damning Greenwald, choosing instead to believe he’d throw away a lifetime of passionate, honorable work for the community on a cheap shot chance to boost his re-election.
Vanguard Interviews with Council Candidates

Vanguard Interviews with Council Candidates

By David GreenwaldMay 21, 20129 comments

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The Vanguard sat down with the candidates for ten minute interviews on their candidacy and a few issues.  Lucas Frerichs, Brett Lee, and Dan Wolk were able to make the interview.  Unfortunately, we were not able to interview either incumbent – Sue Greenwald or Stephen Souza.

It was nice to be able to press the candidates on a couple of key issues, though ten minutes is too short of time to real get into detail.

New Report Reveals Many More Exonerations and False Convictions than Previously Found, but Represents Only “the Tip of the Iceberg”

New Report Reveals Many More Exonerations and False Convictions than Previously Found, but Represents Only “the Tip of the Iceberg”

By David GreenwaldMay 21, 201214 comments

Event-Caldwell-5Edward Carter was a 19-year-old African-American man.  He was convicted of the rape of a pregnant woman in Detroit in 1974 and sentenced to life in prison.  That conviction, researchers Samuel Gross and Michael Shafer say, was based entirely on the cross-racial identification by the white victim.

But Mr. Carter was one of the more fortunate people to have been wrongly convicted, because there was DNA evidence in this case that would exonerate him.

Chamber Launches Measure D Ad and Latest Disclosure

Chamber Launches Measure D Ad and Latest Disclosure

By David GreenwaldMay 20, 201231 comments

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The Chamber of Commerce PAC has launched their first major ad. The bulk of it is on the parks tax, Measure D, while a single line is dedicated in support of their endorsed candidates.

Executive Director Kemble Pope sent the email to Thomas Randall, the only known opponent to the parks measure.

Sunday Commentary: Public Gets a Rare Glimpse into Real DA’s Office

Sunday Commentary: Public Gets a Rare Glimpse into Real DA’s Office

By David GreenwaldMay 20, 201237 comments

Reisig-2010_copyClinton Parish’s candidacy for judge effectively ended the moment that he made unchecked and unsupportable charges against his opponent, Judge Dan Maguire.  The fact that they were so quickly and easily brushed aside shows either a level of desperation or just plain amateurism by the candidate.

Mr. Parish wants the voters to believe that he is a good attorney who exercised some indiscretions as a political candidate.  The truth is that Mr. Parish is in fact the person that we saw this week.  That is the view that everyone in the courthouse got, that is why Public Defender Tracie Olson, normally cautious, early on signaled that her office would simply not trust him to preside over their cases.

Vanguard Analysis: Handicapping the Council Race

Vanguard Analysis: Handicapping the Council Race

By David GreenwaldMay 19, 2012123 comments

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Spoiler alert, if you are not interested in horse race analysis, do not read this.  It has been a rare week in Davis where the big story has been not the city council election, but rather the judicial race.

That is good news for some, a sense of relief for others, and bad news for those on the outside looking in… at least perhaps.

Nastiest Race: How About the Supervisor’s Race

Nastiest Race: How About the Supervisor’s Race

By David GreenwaldMay 19, 201251 comments
woodland-dcc-3.jpgWe spent last week talking about the mailer attack on Sue Greenwald by a third party, and this past week talking about a mailer attack on Judge Dan Maguire by his electoral opponent, but one of the nastiest fights is one between incumbent Duane Chamberlain and Woodland Mayor Artemio Pimentel for the Fifth Supervisorial District.

Most of our reading audience will not be able to vote in this race, which is why we have not covered it extensively as we have the judgeship race or the Davis City Council race.

Commentary: Reisig Pulls Endorsement of Parish, Distances Himself, But His Fingerprints are All Over This One

Commentary: Reisig Pulls Endorsement of Parish, Distances Himself, But His Fingerprints are All Over This One

By David GreenwaldMay 18, 201259 comments
Parish-3On Thursday night, District Attorney Jeff Reisig, after first standing by his man, pulled his endorsement of his own employee.

He sent an email to the Davis Enterprise stating: “Having considered all the facts and circumstances surrounding judicial candidate Clint Parish’s attack mail piece, including recent explanations from his campaign, I have decided to retract my endorsement of his candidacy.”

Social Sustainability: What is it? Who are its champions?

Social Sustainability: What is it? Who are its champions?

By uptownstudiosMay 18, 201216 comments

social-sustianabilityby Robb Davis

When the Davis Chamber PAC announced its City Council Candidate endorsements in late April, spokesperson Steve Greenfield noted that there are three legs of sustainability for vibrant community: social sustainability[1], environmental sustainability and economic sustainability. At the event Mr. Greenfield noted that the last leg-economic sustainability-was what businesses, and the Chamber PAC needed to focus on. Even though Mr. Greenfield did not define “sustainability” it is clear that he and the Chamber PAC were suggesting that a vigorous community is one that is able provide a broadly healthy environment for its citizens today AND have in place policies and practices that will enable the continual renewal of the resources necessary for a healthy community into the future.

The Chamber PAC has provided some sense of their definition of economic development, including what economic sustainability might look like. Further, I assume that many of us have ideas around the meaning of environmental sustainability even if we do not agree with all the details about how to achieve it. If the business community and the Chamber PAC are the “champions” of economic sustainability, it would seem that organizations like the Sierra Club or the Cool Davis Initiative would be natural “champions” for this “leg” of sustainability.

Commentary: Stuck in the Dilemma on Parks Tax

Commentary: Stuck in the Dilemma on Parks Tax

By David GreenwaldMay 17, 201260 comments

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On Tuesday, I received an interesting email, “Most people I know are voting against the parks parcel tax.  I’m still thinking about it.”

The email surprised me a bit.  We ran a parks article and even most of the conservatives seems to have not much of a problem with the idea of extending the well-underfunded tax.

Judge Candidate Admits He Failed to Vet Attack Mailer’s Charges

Judge Candidate Admits He Failed to Vet Attack Mailer’s Charges

By David GreenwaldMay 17, 20125 comments

Parish-3Clinton Parish Acknowledges Some Accusations Baseless But Does Not Go Far Enough for His Opponent

On Wednesday, Clinton Parish, whose candidacy for judge in Yolo County can only be described as on life support, acknowledged that he failed to properly vet charges that were launched in his mailer.

According to the Sacramento Bee, the Yolo County Deputy District Attorney Parish admitted that he “did not verify claims in an attack mailer that alleged campaign rival Judge Dan Maguire was involved in corporate fraud and bribery while working at a Colorado law firm in the mid-1990s.”

Word To The Wise: When Is The Use Of Antipyschotic Drugs On The Elderly Unwarranted?

Word To The Wise: When Is The Use Of Antipyschotic Drugs On The Elderly Unwarranted?

By David GreenwaldMay 17, 20126 comments

drugs-nursinghomesBy E. Roberts Musser

A cause for concern, that has come to the forefront of public discussion recently, is the overly frequent administration of psychoactive drugs to nursing home residents.  California Advocates for Nursing Home Reform (CANHR) are strong activists against such practices.  According to a quote in their brochure Toxic Medicine: What You Should Know To Fight The Misuse Of Psychoactive Drugs In California Nursing Homes, “Tens of thousands of nursing home residents with dementia receive powerful antipsychotic drugs that are not intended or approved for their medical conditions.  Rather, the drugs are often used to sedate and control them, a terrible substitute for the individualized care they need and deserve.”

It continues by noting “Antipsychotic drugs don’t just hasten death, they often turn residents into people their own families barely recognize by dulling their memories, sapping their personalities and crushing their spirits.  When families win battles to take residents off these drugs, they sometimes find that the person they’ve always known is still there.”  This issue was recently discussed at both the Yolo County Commission on Aging & Adult Services, and the Davis Senior Citizens Commission.  I would like to share three different experiences various citizens and professionals in the field have related in the commissions or to me as an individual on this very issue.