Law Enforcement

This week, lost in the furor over the Boston Marathon Bombings and the captivating manhunt on Thursday night and Friday, was the fact that Senators caved on simple legislation that nearly 90 percent of the population, including many members of the NRA, support: background checks.

While Senators gave way to cowardice, the city of Davis was torn asunder by a gruesome double-murder of respected citizens.  While police seem to have few leads at this time, from the facts that exist, a reasonable theory was that this was a burglary that went bad, that the burglar or burglars broke into the Cowell Blvd residence and were surprised to find the occupants at home, and the burglar then brutally stabbed the occupants.

“In an effort to change the culture of Picnic Day, city and university officials, along with both police departments and community members have been working  to prepare for the April 20, 2013 Picnic Day,” a press release from the Davis Police Department reads.  The city council has renewed the “Safety Enhancement Zone” for the downtown core area for Picnic Day 2013.

Passed unanimously by council on February 26, “The Safety Enhancement Zone ordinance allows the City Council, through a proclamation, to declare a specified geographical area as a safety zone during a designated time frame. This declaration then doubles the base fine for specified city ordinance violations committed within the declared Safety Enhancement Zone.”

In the wake of the brutal double murder over the weekend, we have little choice but to revisit the question as to whether or not Davis residents should be alarmed.  Early this year, in the first month of the year, there were 41 reported residential burglaries in the city of Davis.

To be clear, the latest from police is that they are not sure of the motive for the killing.  There were reportedly signs of forced entry, that might lead to a theory that this was a burglary gone bad.  But the police also reported that the house did not appear ransacked – and while that doesn’t negate the possibility of the burglary gone bad, it muddies the water a bit.

The police still cannot say much and are officially waiting for the coroner’s report before identifying the body.  Early Monday, the Vanguard learned that the victims were 87-year-old former defense attorney Oliver Northup, and his wife Cluadia Maupin, 76.

According to the police’s afternoon press release, they were both victims of stabbings suffered sometime over the weekend.  The police made entry into the home around 9:20 pm while conducting a welfare check instituted after family members contacted them, concerned that they had failed to show up to a Sunday afternoon musical performance.

5:30 Update – A local newsstation has identified the victims as Oliver “Chip” Northrup, 88, and 76-year-old Claudia Maupin.  Mr. Northrup was a prominent defense attorney.  The couple were founding members of the Davis Unitarian Church.

Mayor Joe Krovoza has released a statement, “It’s with great sadness that the City Council and I have received news of the deaths of Claudia Maupin and Chip Northup. Our hearts go out to their families, friends, fellow congregants at the Davis Unitarian Universalist Church, and the many groups in Davis they touched. While Davis achieves a high degree of safety through our police and the watchful eyes of all, we are not imune from terrible acts. Let us all redouble our efforts to protect our fellow citizens and give support to those who have suffered this irreversible loss. Our Council is staying well-informed on the quick and comprehensive response of our police, and our Police Department’s efforts will not cease until the case is brought to closure.”

Vanguard Asks City to Independently Verify PG&Es Claims

Last week, the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) agreed to investigate complaints filed by residents of Stonegate in Davis regarding a large number of gas leaks in west Davis from distribution lines operated by PG&E.

PG&E recently reported that 88 gas leaks have occurred in the distribution lines in the Stonegate subdivision since 2006, up from the 42 leaks reported in November 2011. Because of the severity of the problem, PG&E is conducting twice-monthly gas leak detection surveys in Stonegate.

While these days I am no longer an avid bicycle rider, I have been in the past.  In fact, when I first came to Davis, I did so in the spring of 1996 via bicycle as I trekked from San Luis Obispo up to San Francisco and then cut over to Davis.

The Davis Police are reporting that a swastika was founded burned into a picnic table at Holmes Junior High.  This is the third known hate incident in the last month following the noose found at Davis High’s football stadium and the swastika and the “N” word found in a freeway underpass.

When this site was founded back on July 30, 2006 on the original free blogspot site with the white writing and the black background, our tag line was “A Vivid Description of the Dark Underbelly of the People’s Republic of Davis.”  While that tagline is no longer in use, it remains perhaps the most poignant description of what we do.

This week is the reminder of why that remains an apt description of this site.  We began this week with base ugliness.  The hanging of a noose at the Davis Football Stadium, followed by the discovery of graffiti of a Swastika and the word “Nigger,” are stark reminders to us about a dark history from a not-so-distant past.

Community Meeting Held to Discuss Incident and Stand Strong Against the Hanging of the Noose at DHS

A diverse group of community members ranging from high school age on up, of all different races and ethnicities, gathered at the Davis High School library to discuss and better understand the noose incident.

Chief Deputy District Attorney Jonathan Raven, a Davis resident, announced that on his morning run he had found under the bike and pedestrian underpass connecting UC Davis with South Davis, a Swastika and graffiti that said, “Nigger.”

Everybody responds to news differently.  Davis, a diverse community with all sorts of viewpoints, has responded in its own way and everyone has a different response to the noose incident at Davis High.

The response has been made more difficult by the uncertain nature of the incident.  We do not know why the incident occurred – whether it was meant as a joke or inspired by actual hate.  And quite frankly, it does not matter.

An investigation is underway into what the Davis Police Department is investigating as a hate incident, the hanging of a noose, found by Davis School District Safety Coordinator Marc Hicks on Friday, hanging from the goalposts at the Davis School football field.

Details are sketchy at the moment and Superintendent Winfred Roberson and Mayor Joe Krovoza are reportedly expected to issue a joint statement, perhaps as soon as today, after officials found a noose hanging from the uprights of the south goal post at the Davis High Stadium during the Juneteenth celebration this past weekend.

The investigation is still underway.  Officials are taking this matter very seriously, believing it very important that all people in this community feel safe.

Major media figures, as well as some public officials in this town, appear to have a clear agenda about Picnic Day, which would be fine if we actually had the final data.  But the Vanguard, in making a records request from the Davis Police Department was told that with the police chief and their records analyst taking the week off, a more comprehensive report is not even due out until next week.

What that suggests to me is perhaps we have to hold off making major pronouncements until we get all the data.  That of course has not and will not stop certain columnists from proclaiming “Picnic Day arrest numbers are clearly unacceptable.”