A blog about Marinwood-Lucas Valley and the Marin Housing Element, politics, economics and social policy. The MOST DANGEROUS BLOG in Marinwood-Lucas Valley.
A Town Mouse once visited a relative who lived in the country. For lunch the Country Mouse served wheat stalks, roots, and acorns, with a dash of cold water for drink. The Town Mouse ate very sparingly, nibbling a little of this and a little of that, and by her manner making it very plain that she ate the simple food only to be polite.
After the meal the friends had a long talk, or rather the Town Mouse talked about her life in the city while the Country Mouse listened. They then went to bed in a cozy nest in the hedgerow and slept in quiet and comfort until morning. In her sleep the Country Mouse dreamed she was a Town Mouse with all the luxuries and delights of city life that her friend had described for her. So the next day when the Town Mouse asked the Country Mouse to go home with her to the city, she gladly said yes.
When they reached the mansion in which the Town Mouse lived, they found on the table in the dining room the leavings of a very fine banquet. There were sweetmeats and jellies, pastries, delicious cheeses, indeed, the most tempting foods that a Mouse can imagine. But just as the Country Mouse was about to nibble a dainty bit of pastry, she heard a Cat mew loudly and scratch at the door. In great fear the Mice scurried to a hiding place, where they lay quite still for a long time, hardly daring to breathe. When at last they ventured back to the feast, the door opened suddenly and in came the servants to clear the table, followed by the House Dog.
THE TOWN MOUSEANDTHE COUNTRY MOUSE
The Country Mouse stopped in the Town Mouse's den only long enough to pick up her carpet bag and umbrella.
"You may have luxuries and dainties that I have not," she said as she hurried away, "but I prefer my plain food and simple life in the country with the peace and security that go with it."
Better a little in safety, than an abundance surrounded by danger.
Once again, tonight the Marinwood CSD board shows its callousness and incompetence by failing to improve security in Marinwood Park during events and at the recreation center. All discussion is off the table and quashed by Isabela Perry, CSD Board Member and the rest of the Board during tonight's meeting of the CSD board on December 10, 2019, a full EIGHT MONTHS after a juvenile escaped a perpetrator wielding a stolen handgun.. All board members have children, yet they fail to take even elementary steps to make the Marinwood Center safer. How utterly, self serving and selfish of the board to ignore the safety of the community. Jeff Naylor, Isabella Perry, Leah Green, Sivan Oyserman, and Bill Shea are cowards. The safety lock on bathroom at the pool house does not work and is open 24hours a day. It was on a timed lock but it has not been working for years. Here is a photo I took at 9:30 PM after the park had closed at 5 pm We asked for this small fix to be done but Eric Dreikosen, Marinwood CSD manager did nothing except hide the issue. We asked for an inexpensive video surveillance system to be installed to assist police in case of future incidents but the CSD will not even consider it.
Eric Dreikosen, Marinwood CSD manager hid the April 2019 incident from the public until September 2019 and has done NOTHING to improve security since that time.
Photo of the Marinwood Pool House Bathroom door that has been broken for years despite safety concerns of the public. It is open 24 hours a day and is in a remote location making it an attractant for crime. Marinwood CSD has the money to fix it but will not. In April 2019, a juvenile was victim of an attempted rape while attending a party at the facility. The perpetrator pointed a stolen handgun at her and demanded sex. Fortunately, the girl escaped unharmed but the trauma of the incident will live with her for a long time.
Shouldn't the district improve safety around the Marinwood Community Center.
By GARY KLIEN | gklien@marinij.com | Marin Independent Journal
PUBLISHED: August 25, 2019 at 11:43 am | UPDATED: August 25, 2019 at 12:25 pm
A man accused of threatening a teenage girl with a gun during a sexual attack in Marinwood was sentenced to 120 days in jail.
Jordan Adelso Escobar Perez, 19, of San Rafael was arrested in April during a party at the Marinwood Community Center. He and the 16-year-old victim were both guests at the party.
The victim told investigators that a party guest forced himself on her and pointed a gun at her head, according to a case summary filed by the probation department. Eventually she was able to escape by locking herself in a bathroom and calling her mother.
The victim, who only knew the suspect through social media, was able to provide sheriff’s deputies with his first name. Deputies found the suspect at the party and identified him as Escobar. He initially struggled with deputies and had a Glock handgun in his jacket. Escobar admitted he brandished the unloaded gun but described the girl as the sexual aggressor, according to the probation report. He also said he was intoxicated at the party.
The Marin County District Attorney’s Office charged Escobar with counts that included carrying a stolen firearm, resisting arrest, sexual battery and false imprisonment. Escobar accepted a plea offer and admitted to the felony gun charge and the misdemeanor resisting charge, and the other counts were dismissed.
The plea bargain called for the 120-day jail sentence and five years of probation. Judge Geoffrey Howard sentenced Escobar on Thursday.
“Mr. Escobar is gainfully employed and is taking the case seriously,” said his public defender, Tamara York. “He looks forward to making the best of his probation and using the resources to continue to better his life.” Editor's Note:
Why are we just learning of this today? Did the Marinwood CSD inform their residents of this serious crime?
According to court records the case was filed on April 10, 2019. The crime likely occured around April 6th. Why did the Marinwood CSD hide this from the public?
By GARY KLIEN | gklien@marinij.com | Marin Independent Journal
PUBLISHED: August 25, 2019 at 11:43 am | UPDATED: August 25, 2019 at 12:25 pm
A man accused of threatening a teenage girl with a gun during a sexual attack in Marinwood was sentenced to 120 days in jail.
Jordan Adelso Escobar Perez, 19, of San Rafael was arrested in April during a party at the Marinwood Community Center. He and the 16-year-old victim were both guests at the party.
The victim told investigators that a party guest forced himself on her and pointed a gun at her head, according to a case summary filed by the probation department. Eventually she was able to escape by locking herself in a bathroom and calling her mother.
The victim, who only knew the suspect through social media, was able to provide sheriff’s deputies with his first name. Deputies found the suspect at the party and identified him as Escobar. He initially struggled with deputies and had a Glock handgun in his jacket. Escobar admitted he brandished the unloaded gun but described the girl as the sexual aggressor, according to the probation report. He also said he was intoxicated at the party.
The Marin County District Attorney’s Office charged Escobar with counts that included carrying a stolen firearm, resisting arrest, sexual battery and false imprisonment. Escobar accepted a plea offer and admitted to the felony gun charge and the misdemeanor resisting charge, and the other counts were dismissed.
The plea bargain called for the 120-day jail sentence and five years of probation. Judge Geoffrey Howard sentenced Escobar on Thursday.
“Mr. Escobar is gainfully employed and is taking the case seriously,” said his public defender, Tamara York. “He looks forward to making the best of his probation and using the resources to continue to better his life.” Editor's Note:
Why are we just learning of this today? Did the Marinwood CSD inform their residents of this serious crime?
According to court records the case was filed on April 10, 2019. The crime likely occured around April 6th. Why did the Marinwood CSD hide this from the public?
Luke Fretwell, Recreation Director and Eric Driekosen, CSD Manager explain what they have done since the April 2019 armed sex attack on a juvenile during a party. In short, they have done nothing except stop taking reservations. No improvement in security, no video surveillance, no policies on alcohol, no security deposits, etc.
I was shocked to learn about the armed sexual assault that occured in the Marinwood Community Center against a juvenile in April 2019. (Marin IJ 8/25/19) Thankfully, the 19 year old perpetrator was caught and sentenced and the 16 year old girl is safe.
Unfortunately there was no news of this crime when it happened and Marinwood CSD did not inform the community. It is too bad because there are lessons to be learned and safety steps that can be taken.
First, the 16 year old victim deserves to be recognized for her bravery and swift action to protect herself and calling for help. That is an inspiration for all of us who suddenly find ourselves in a situation beyond our control.
Second, apparently they victim only knew the first name of her "date" via the Internet. This was very unwise and is a cautionary tale for everyone on social media. They were in a public place but it could have really gone wrong had they met elsewhere.
Third, the perpetrator claimed he was drunk and blamed the victim. While this is a typical defense, the real issue is the lack of security at Marinwood Community Center events where alcohol is served. The Marinwood CSD puts on many events like the beer festival and there is no uniformed officers present. This is a recipe for disaster. The ONLY uniformed police presence I have seen in Marinwood has been at CSD meetings where they intimitate the public in attendence who dare criticise the CSD.
The Marinwood CSD has kept this shocking sex assault quiet for months and has done nothing to improve security at alcohol fueled events. We need to know our public spaces are safe and teach our children about the dangers of Internet encounters. This story ends well but the lessons should never be forgotten.
Stephen Nestel
Former Marinwood Parks and Recreation Commissioner
Marinwood, CA
See the Marin IJ story on the Marinwood Sex Assault HERE
By GARY KLIEN | gklien@marinij.com | Marin Independent Journal
PUBLISHED: August 25, 2019 at 11:43 am | UPDATED: August 25, 2019 at 12:25 pm
A man accused of threatening a teenage girl with a gun during a sexual attack in Marinwood was sentenced to 120 days in jail.
Jordan Adelso Escobar Perez, 19, of San Rafael was arrested in April during a party at the Marinwood Community Center. He and the 16-year-old victim were both guests at the party.
The victim told investigators that a party guest forced himself on her and pointed a gun at her head, according to a case summary filed by the probation department. Eventually she was able to escape by locking herself in a bathroom and calling her mother.
The victim, who only knew the suspect through social media, was able to provide sheriff’s deputies with his first name. Deputies found the suspect at the party and identified him as Escobar. He initially struggled with deputies and had a Glock handgun in his jacket. Escobar admitted he brandished the unloaded gun but described the girl as the sexual aggressor, according to the probation report. He also said he was intoxicated at the party.
The Marin County District Attorney’s Office charged Escobar with counts that included carrying a stolen firearm, resisting arrest, sexual battery and false imprisonment. Escobar accepted a plea offer and admitted to the felony gun charge and the misdemeanor resisting charge, and the other counts were dismissed.
The plea bargain called for the 120-day jail sentence and five years of probation. Judge Geoffrey Howard sentenced Escobar on Thursday.
“Mr. Escobar is gainfully employed and is taking the case seriously,” said his public defender, Tamara York. “He looks forward to making the best of his probation and using the resources to continue to better his life.” Editor's Note:
Why are we just learning of this today? Did the Marinwood CSD inform their residents of this serious crime?
According to court records the case was filed on April 10, 2019. The crime likely occured around April 6th. Why did the Marinwood CSD hide this from the public?
SAN RAFAEL — Marin County Sheriff’s Deputies arrested a 25-year-old man suspected of using social media for drug dealing. The suspect was nabbed outside a grocery store during an undercover sting operation.
The suspect was the subject of months of investigation conducted by the Marin County Major Crimes Task Force. In fact, undercover agents purchased drugs from the suspect several times during the last few months. Authorities also monitored his social media activity.
Besides purchasing illicit drugs directly from the suspect, agents observed the suspect making other drug deals. Many of these drug deals took place in the Canal district of San Rafael.
On March 25, detectives traveled to a prearranged meeting with the suspect to the unincorporated community of Marinwood. Subsequently, authorities arrested the suspect identified as Jorge M. Martinez, 25 of Richmond, at Marinwood Shopping Center.
Investigators searched the suspect’s car and his residence in Richmond. Inside, they recovered a large quantity of drugs, handguns and nearly $40,000 in cash as evidence.
Martinez was booked on open charges and he remains in custody at Marin County Jail. Incidentally, Martinez was already on probation from a previous conviction at the time of his arrest.
His latest charges include possession of a controlled substance for sale and conspiracy to commit a crime. He is also accused of possession of stolen property.
At the time of his arrest, Martinez was accompanied by a woman and an infant. Consequently, his actions also led him to being charged with willful cruelty to a child. His woman companion was released after being briefly detained.
Sheriff’s Deputies Arrest Suspected Social Media Drug Dealer was last modified: March 28th, 2019 by admin
Editor's Note: Although Marinwood CSD is currently replacing the sodium halide streetlights with LED streetlights for dramatic energy savings, we have no reason to suspect that they will have this technology here. Still the fact that this technology is in use in a free society, it is worthwhile to consider the impacts on our liberty. For us, this is a chilling reminder of Orwell's "Big Brother" and dangers of a omniscient powerful central government. They already are installing license plate readers on the Golden Gate bridge and the highways...
In the Netherlands city of Eindhoven, the streetlights lining a central commercial strip will glow red if a storm is coming. It's a subtle cue that harkens back to an old phrase about a red sky warning mariners that bad weather is on the way. The automated color change is possible because satellite weather data flows over a network to tiny processors installed inside the lampposts, which are linked by an integrated wireless system.
Lighting hues reflecting atmospheric changes are only the beginning of myriad functions these so-called "smart streetlights" can perform. Each light has something akin to a smartphone embedded inside of it, and the interconnected network of lights can be controlled by a central command center.
Since they have built-in flexibility for multiple adaptations, the systems can be programmed to serve a wide variety of purposes. Aside from merely illuminating public space, possible uses could include street surveillance with tiny cameras, monitoring pedestrian or vehicle traffic, or issuing emergency broadcasts via internal speaker systems.
The smart streetlights aren't just streetlights — they're data collection devices that have the potential to track anything from pedestrian movements to vehicle license plate numbers. And, through a curious process distinctly lacking in transparency, these spylights are on their way to San Francisco.
So far, the implications of using this technology for such wide-ranging objectives have barely been explored. "San Francisco thought they were upgrading their 18,000 lamps with LEDs and a wireless control system, when they realized that they were in fact laying the groundwork for the future intelligent public space," LLGA cofounder Sascha Haselmeyer stated in an interview with Open Source Cities. "Eindhoven is pioneering this with ... completely new, intelligent lighting concepts that adapt to the citizen not just as a utility, but a cultural and ambient experience. So many questions remain," he added, and offered a key starting point:"Who owns all that data?"
LUMINARIES IN LIGHTING
Phillips Lighting, which was involved in installing the Eindhoven smart streetlights system, played a role in launching the San Francisco pilot. Paradox Engineering recently opened a local office. Oracle, a Silicon Valley tech giant, is also involved — even though it's not a lighting company.
"Oracle, of course, manages data," Haselmeyer explained to the Guardian when reached by phone in his Barcelona office. "They were the first to say, 'We need to understand how data collected from lampposts will be controlled in the city.'"
According to a press release issued by Paradox Engineering, "Oracle will help managing and analyzing data coming from this ground-breaking system." Oracle is also a corporate sponsor of the LLGA program. It has been tangentially involved in the pilot project "because of a longstanding relationship we had with the city of San Francisco," Oracle spokesperson Scott Frendt told us.
Paradox was selected as the winner for San Francisco's "sustainability challenge" through LLGA, which is now housed under CityMart.com, "a technology start-up offering a professional networking and market exchange platform," according to the company website.
In May of 2012, the SFPUC sent one of its top-ranking officials, Assistant General Manager Barbara Hale, to Rio for the LLGA awards summit. There, technology vendors of all stripes showcased their products and mingled with local officials from Barcelona, Cape Town, Glasgow, Fukuoka and other international cities. San Francisco was the only US city in attendance. San Francisco will even host the next summit this coming May at Fort Mason.
In Rio, Paradox was lauded as the winning vendor for San Francisco's LLGA streetlights "challenge." It didn't take long for the company to hit the ground running. "Soon after the Rio Summit on Service Innovation in Cities, where we were announced winners for San Francisco, we started discussing with the SFPUC the objectives and features of the pilot project," Paradox announced on the LLGA website. "Working closely with the SFPUC, we also had the opportunity to build solid partnerships with notable industry players such as Philips Lighting and Oracle."
WINNERS' CIRCLE
On Nov. 15, Paradox hosted an invite-only "networking gala" titled "Smart Cities: The Making Of." The event brought together representatives from Oracle, the SFPUC, Phillips, LLGA, and the Mayor's Office of Civic Innovation, "to learn about the challenges of urban sustainability in the Internet of Things era," according to an event announcement.
"The project we're piloting with the SFPUC is highly innovative since it puts into practice the new paradigm of the 'Internet of Things,' where any object can be associated with an IP address and integrated into a wider network to transmit and receive relevant information," Gianni Minetti, president and CEO at Paradox, stated in a press release.
The event was also meant to celebrate Paradox's expansion into the North American urban lighting space, a feat that was greatly helped along by the LLGA endeavor. But how did a Swiss company manage to hook up with a San Francisco city agency in the first place — and win a deal without ever going through the normal procurement process?
San Francisco's involvement in LLGA began with Chris Vein, who served as the city's Chief Technology Officer under former Mayor Gavin Newsom. (Vein has since ascended to the federal government to serve as Deputy U.S. Chief Technology Officer for Government Innovation for President Barack Obama.)
To find the right fit for San Francisco's wireless LED streetlights "challenge" under the LLGA program, a judging panel was convened to score more than 50 applicant submissions received through the program framework. Judges were selected "based upon knowledge and contacts of people in the SFPUC Power Enterprise," Tienken explained. The scoring system, Haselmeyer said, measures sustainability under a rubric developed by the United Nations.
Jurists for San Francisco's streetlight program were handpicked from the SFPUC, the San Francisco Department of Technology, Phillips, and several other organizations. An international jurist is designated by LLGA for each city's panel of jurists, Haselmeyer said, "so as to avoid any kind of local stitch-up."
He stressed that "the city is explicitly not committing to any procurement." Instead, vendors agree to test out their technology in exchange for cities' dedication of public space and other resources. Tienken, who manages the city's LED Streetlight Conversion Project, noted that "Paradox Engineering is not supposed to make a profit" under the LLGA program guidelines. "We'll pay them a $15,000 stipend," she said, the same amount that will be awarded to the firms that are now in negotiation for pilot projects of their own.
"San Francisco is using this to learn about the solution," Haselmeyer added. "This company will not have any advantage," when it comes time to tap a vendor for the agency's long-term goal of upgrading 18,500 of its existing streetlights with energy-saving LED lamps and installing a $2 million control system.
At the same time, the program clearly creates an inside track — and past LLGA participants have landed lucrative city contracts. Socrata, a Seattle-based company, was selected as a LLGA winner in 2011 and invited to run a pilot project before being tapped to power data.SFgov.org, the "next-generation, cloud-based San Francisco Open Data site" unveiled by Mayor Ed Lee's office in March of 2012.
The mayor's press release, which claimed that the system "underscores the Mayor's commitment to providing state of the art access to information," made no mention of LLGA.
PRIVACY AND PUBLIC SPACE
Throughout this process of attending an international summit in Rio, studying applications from more than 50 vendors, selecting Paradox as a winner, and later issuing an RFP, a very basic question has apparently gone unaddressed. Is a system of lighting fixtures that persistently collects data and beams it across invisible networks something San Franciscans really want to be installed in public space?
And, if these systems are ultimately used for street surveillance or traffic monitoring and constantly collecting data, who will have access to that information, and what will it be used for? Haselmeyer acknowledged that the implementation of such a system should move forward with transparency and a sensitivity to privacy implications.
"Many cities are deploying sensors that detect the Bluetooth signal of your mobile phone. So, they can basically track movements through the city," Haselmeyer explained. "Like anything with technology, there's a huge amount of opportunity and also a number of questions. ... You have movement sensors, traffic sensors, or the color [of a light] might change" based on a behavior or condition. "There's an issue about who can opt in, or opt out, of what."
Tienken and Sheehan downplayed the RFP's reference to "street surveillance" as a potential use of the wireless LED systems, and stressed that the pilot projects are only being used to study a narrow list of features. "The PUC's interest is in creating an infrastructure that can be used by multiple agencies or entities ... having a single system rather than have each department install its own system," Tienken said. The SFPUC is getting the word out about the next batch of pilots by reaching out to police precinct captains and asking them to announce it in their newsletters, since "streetlighting is a public safety issue," as Tienken put it.
Haselmeyer acknowledged that public input in such a program is important: "It's very important to do these pilot projects, because it allows those community voices to be heard. In the end, the city has to say, look — is it really worth all of this, or do we just want to turn our lights on and off?"
LIGHTS, BUT NO SUNSHINE
One company that is particularly interested in San Francisco pilot is IntelliStreets, a Michigan firm that specializes in smart streetlights. IntelliStreets CEO Ron Harwood told the Guardian that his company was a contender for the pilot through LLGA; he even traveled to Rio and delivered a panel talk on urban lighting systems alongside Hale and a representative from Oracle.
A quick Google search for IntelliStreets shows that the company has attracted the attention of activists who are worried that these lighting products represent a kind of spy tool, and a spooky public monitoring system that would strip citizens of their right to privacy and bolster law enforcement activities.
"It's not a listening device," Harwood told the Guardian, when asked about speakers that would let operators communicate with pedestrians, and vice-versa. "So you can forget about the Fourth Amendment" issues.
Harwood seemed less concerned about the activists who've decried his product as a modern day manifestation of Big Brother, and more worried about why his company was not chosen to provide wireless LED streetlights in San Francisco. After being passed over in the LLGA process, Harwood said IntelliStreets responded to the RFP issued in the weeks following the Rio summit. Once again, Harwood's firm didn't make the cut.
Since his company provides very similar services to those described in the RFP, Harwood said he was "confused" by the outcome of the selection process. IntelliStreets' Chief Administration Officer Michael Tardif was more direct. "Clearly we think this was an inside deal," Tardif told the Guardian. Tienken, for her part, declined to discuss why San Francisco had rejected IntelliStreets' application.
And when a public records request was submitted to the agency last August for details on San Francisco's participation in LLGA, the response was opaque at best. "After a duly diligent search we find that there are no documents responsive to your request," an SFPUC public records coordinator responded via email. "The San Francisco Public Utilities Commission is not a participant, nor is involved with Living Labs Global Award. Please know that we take our obligations under the Sunshine Ordinance very seriously." That was just an honest mistake, Sheehan tells the Guardian now by way of explanation. In the public records division, "Clearly, nobody had any familiarity with LLGA."
We found out about www.intellistreets.com which boasts new LED technology and are passing this on to you. The Marinwood CSD is installing new LED lamps but to our knowledge they do not possess any of this surveillance technology.
This Orwellian technology down right spooky and learned that San Franscisco has similar snooping cameras on its buses. Other communities nationwide are looking into this technology and are expected to install it in 2013.
They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety.- Ben Franklin
Editor's Note: This post below is from March 2016. Since then the project was approved the project is now TEN Months behind schedule and NO SOLAR POWER. The Marinwood CSD claimed that "county" was at fault for not approving permits. This is highly questionable since most projects are approved in a matter of delays. Finally, after most of the project was installed in August 2016, Marinwood CSD manager, Eric Dreikosen claimed that PGE didn't have the proper generator for three months. This is the same equipment replaced with hours or days after an outage duringa storm. Finally, the latest "explanation" is there is "no explanation from the contractor" and at the same time he claims that the contractor IS COMPLYING WITH THE SOLAR CONTRACT.
The Marinwood CSD directors, notably Leah Kleinman Green who approved of the initial Solar consulting contract in 2013 with sitting CSD board member Cyane Dandridge claims that we will be getting FREE solar electricity through the PPA. Now after MONTHS delay the board is silent and will not hold the Solar Company nor the Marinwood CSD director accountable.
This deserves a full investigation immediately. The Marinwood CSD is refusing to release documents under the California Records ACT.
A little protection from legal and financial exposure can prevent nasty surprises later.
An Open Letter to the Marinwood CSD on the proposed SolEd contract approval on 3/8/2016
Dear Marinwood CSD board Member,
Tonight
you will be making a fateful decision to encumber Marinwood Community
Services District into a twenty five year commitment with a young
inexperienced Solar company, SolEd and and an unknown financiers C2Beta
Holdings llc, a Delaware Corporation formed in May 2015.
As
you know, Soled Benefit Corporation was fired by the City of St Helena
for "FAILURE TO PERFORM" its contract duties on November 10, 2015.
C2Beta Holdings is run by a 29 year old financial entrepreneur from New
York.
There are many red flags.
The above link
is a very detailed explanation of the risks involved in Solar PPAs that
is posted to the California School Boards Association website HERE. According
to all accounts it is a VERY EXPENSIVE way to purchase solar and does
little to guarantee competitive energy prices in a changing marketplace.
A
outright cash purchase using conventional financing may result in as
much as 75% savings over a PPA. This means faster payback and less risk
due to technical obsolescence.
Please weigh the facts carefully before putting our finances at risk for twenty five years.
Stephen Nestel
Marinwood, CA
Editor's Note: The
attached power point presentation makes all of the points we have been
making against the SolEd contract. I doubt if anyone other than Jeff
Naylor even bothers to read the presentation. For the rest of the CSD,
they seem ready to blindly accept the contract without any
modifications .
SAN RAFAEL, CA -- Police are seeking information in a case where an elderly man who was on a morning walk was brutally beaten by an unknown person.
On Nov. 29, San Rafael officers responded to a report of an elderly subject who was assaulted as he walked on the McInnis Parkway path. The victim, a 74-year-old male, said he was walking as part of his morning routine around 6 am when he was approached by a male subject who punched him in the face, knocking him to the ground.
The suspect then continued punching the victim in the face before fleeing. The victim suffered significant injuries to his face.
The suspect is described as possibly being a Hispanic male, 30 years old, 180 pounds, 5 feet 10 inches tall, wearing a black hoodie and tan colored pants.
Anyone with information about this crime is asked to call San Rafael Police at (415) 485-3000. Tips can also be made online at http://www.srpd.org/tips
Editor's Note: [This article in the July 8, 2013 Marin IJ about criminal activity is disturbing. When youths pelted an officer with rocks while stopping a suspected criminal it sparked a major response from the police. Consequentially the community felt police shouldn't have shot at the suspect. We will receive little money from the non-profit developers for upgrading our public safety. More people will invariably mean that total crime will increase. Who will pay for additional police presence? ] See July 10, 2013 story on Gang Shooting in San Rafael here. ==============
The 2008 report identifies three areas of heavy gang activity centered near large affordable housing complexs in Novato, Canal District and Marin City where coincidentally Bridge Housing also has it complexes.
Sheriffs have long been concerned with gang activity spilling onto the streets of Marinwood and drugs coming into our schools from local gangs.
Irish gangs in the UK.
The increase in our population by 25% from residents in low income housing (83% of all extremely low to low income units in all of Unincorporated Marin) will undoubtedly bring an increase in crime and gang activity.
Of particular concern is the high density of the low income units whose inhabitants will living in an "island of poverty" and socially isolated. Integrating low income housing with market rate housing is preferable as it doesn't isolate the poor from the rest of the community and promotes social stability.
Developers make more money when they build dense apartment buildings on small lots. The dirty little secret is that often times "low income housing" is far more expensive than surrounding custom homes. Bridge Housing's latest family apartment building in Emeryville cost $500,000 per unit. The developer sells LIHTC tax credits for big profits for the partners. Marinwood Village may be worth 40 million dollars and have 55 years of tax free existance.
Gang graffiti in Hamilton affordable housing complex.
Gang activity and crime will most certainly come to Marinwood-Lucas Valley if large high density affordable housing is built like Marinwood Village.
*not all of the original "Neighborhood Leaders" appointed by Susan Adams currently support the plan. In fact some of then are strong advocates for an improved planning process and resent being used by the fake "community input" process. Ask your neighbors if they still support the housing plans.
A former employee of the Association of Bay Area Governments pled guilty to wire fraud and will return $3.9 million to local municipalities after embezzling the money in an embarrassing saga for the agency.
Clarke Howatt, a former finance secretary at the Finance Authority for Nonprofit Corp., an ABAG affiliate, embezzled $1.3 million from a bank account with funds for public improvements in San Francisco's South of Market neighborhood. He also embezzled $2.6 million from accounts meant to fund public improvements at Windemere Ranch in San Ramon, an additional theft that wasn't previously disclosed until Tuesday.
Howatt has cooperated with the investigations and confessed to the multiple thefts. He is returning all the money and the agencies are in the process of refunding the money to the appropriate accounts.
ABAG and FAN hired the law firm Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe and FTI Consulting Inc. to investigate the criminal activity. The investigation didn't uncover any additional theft and found that Howatt acted alone. The consultants recommended that ABAG and FAN hire additional staff to monitor funds and improve documentation to prevent future incidents.
"The accounts embezzled by a former employee will be restored in full. ABAG wishes to thank the U. S. Attorney's office and the Federal Bureau of Investigation for their prompt and thorough attention to this matter," said Ezra Rapport, ABAG executive director, in a statement.
"We are committed to protecting and preserving public funds and we will be working to put measures into place that will enhance our ability to detect and avert any future malfeasance," he said.
Editor's Note: Too bad he didn't rob a 7-11 or caught with a low level drug offense. Then he would get a LONG SENTENCE. Sick of these so called "white collar" criminal scumbags getting away with millions and only a slap on the wrist after they get caught.
This photo from the Los Angeles Times and the Hispanic Journal was published in a Save Marinwood 2013 in story about crime and the Grand Jury Report on Gangs in Marin.
Critics called me racist and issued me death threats which I reported to the police. I published the photo because the heavily tattooed person looked like some of the surfers I had seen in Southern California. I specifically wanted to avoid the discussion of race because it is irrelevant to the article. Later, I learned that the tattoo signifies the Mexican cartel gang MS-13. Today we learn that the violent gang death in Novato has an MS13 gang connection. For the record, I am pro immigration and support better immigration laws. It is racist to link ethnicity to criminal behavior.
New suspect in Novato teen’s slaying arrested in Maryland
Authorities raid a home on Rowland Boulevard in Novato on May 26, 2016, in pursuit of a suspect in the slaying of Novato High School student Edwin Ramirez Guerra. (Robert Tong/Marin Independent Journal)
The list of suspects continues to get longer in the gang-related slaying of a Novato High School student last spring.
The sheriff’s department disclosed Monday that an alleged gang leader, Edenilson Misael Alfaro, was arrested in Maryland in connection with the Novato homicide case.
Marin investigators developed information that Alfaro was in Montgomery County, Maryland, and asked local authorities to look for him.
Alfaro, 22, is the seventh suspect to be implicated in the homicide. An eighth suspect was also arrested but the prosecution determined there was insufficient evidence to try him in the attack.
Alfaro is a leading “shotcaller” for the MS-13 gang, said sheriff’s Lt. Jamie Scardina. The Latin American gang, also known as Mara Salvatrucha, is on the U.S. Treasury list of significant “transnational criminal organizations” for its activities in murder, sex trafficking, drug trafficking, kidnapping and other major crimes.
Investigators suspect Alfaro was one of the men who directly participated in the fatal attack. Alfaro was injured with a cut to the hand during the slaying, Scardina said.
Scardina, citing the ongoing investigation, declined to release details on how Alfaro was identified as a suspect. Alfaro was living in San Mateo at the time of the attack but also has lived in Los Angeles, New York and Maryland, Scardina said.
The affidavit for Alfaro’s arrest warrant is under seal. The Marin County District Attorney’s Office is still preparing the criminal complaint against Alfaro, said prosecutor Geoff Iida.
The attack occurred May 25 near the open space area at the end of Fairway Drive in Novato. Edwin Ramirez Guerra, 17, was struck several times in the head and on his body with a machete, and had several fingers severed, the prosecution alleges. He died at the scene. See the full story HERE
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Secretary Julián Castro revisited they are not going to tolerate landlords banning renters with criminal records from leasing their properties.
According to HUD, the Fair Housing Act prohibits discrimination in the sale, rental, or financing of dwellings and in other housing-related activities on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, disability, familial status or national origin.
HUD’s Office of General Counsel issues this guidance concerning how the Fair Housing Act applies to the use of criminal history by providers or operators of housing and real-estate related transactions. Specifically, this guidance addresses how the discriminatory effects and disparate treatment methods of proof apply in Fair Housing Act cases in which a housing provider justifies an adverse housing action – such as a refusal to rent or renew a lease – based on an individual’s criminal history.
Julián Castro, the HUD secretary, is expected on Monday to announce guidance that details his agency’s interpretation of how the fair housing law applies to policies that exclude people with criminal records, a group that is not explicitly protected by the act but falls under it in certain circumstances. Federal officials said landlords must distinguish between arrests and convictions and cannot use an arrest to ban applicants. In the case of applicants with convictions, property owners must prove that the exclusion is justified and consider factors like the nature and severity of the crime in assessing prospective tenants before excluding someone.
Mr. Castro said housing bans against former offenders were common.
“Right now, many housing providers use the fact of a conviction, any conviction, regardless of what it was for or how long ago it happened, to indefinitely bar folks from housing opportunities,” Mr. Castro said in a statement. “Many people who are coming back to neighborhoods are only looking for a fair chance to be productive members, but blanket policies like this unfairly deny them that chance.”
HUD’s guidance released on April 4, 2016, states that as many as 100 million U.S. adults – or nearly one-third of the population – have a criminal record of some sort. The United States prison population of 2.2 million adults is by far the largest in the world. As of 2012, the United States accounted for only about five percent of the world’s population, yet almost one quarter of the world’s prisoners were held in American prisons. Since 2004, an average of over 650,000 individuals have been released annually from federal and state prisons, and over 95% of current inmates will be released at some point. When individuals are released from prisons and jails, their ability to access safe, secure and affordable housing is critical to their successful reentry to society. Yet many formerly incarcerated individuals, as well as individuals who were convicted but not incarcerated, encounter significant barriers to securing housing, including public and other federally-subsidized housing, because of their criminal history. In some cases, even individuals who were arrested but not convicted face difficulty in securing housing based on their prior arrest.
Neither Castro nor the lawyers who advise property management companies and tenant screening services on fair housing issues, are surprised this is happening.
“Right now, many housing providers use the fact of a conviction, any conviction, regardless of what it was for or how long ago it happened, to indefinitely bar folks from housing opportunities,” Mr. Castro said in a statement.
“Many people who are coming back to neighborhoods are only looking for a fair chance to be productive members, but blanket policies like this unfairly deny them that chance,” added Castro.
The New York times also states:
The new federal housing guidance applies a legal standard that was upheld by the United States Supreme Court last year that allows plaintiffs to challenge housing practices that have a discriminatory effect without having to show discriminatory intent. The ruling allows plaintiffs to show instead that the practices both have a “disparate impact” on racial groups and are not justified. Blacks and Latinos are arrested, convicted and imprisoned in disproportionate numbers, and civil rights groups say they face equally disparate discrimination in finding housing.
Federal housing officials said the guidance was meant to emphasize to landlords that blanket bans are illegal, as well as to inform housing applicants of their rights. Housing officials said they can investigate violations and bring discrimination charges against landlords that could result in civil penalties for them, and damages for a person denied housing.
HUD’s revised guidance also discusses the three steps used to analyze claims that a housing provider’s use of criminal history to deny housing opportunities results in a discriminatory effect in violation of the Act.
1. Evaluating whether the criminal history policy or practice has a discriminatory effect
2. Evaluating whether the challenged policy or practice is necessary to achieve a substantial, legitimate, nondiscriminatory interest
3. Evaluating whether there is a less discriminatory alternative
“Criminal screenings when used properly have been a reliable way to protect an apartment community from threats to residents including children and from severe damage to the property or residents' property HUD has allowed for criminal screening for housing managers for many years. A recently convicted and released sex offender may pose a serious threat to young children who freely play all around the property,” said Michael W. Skojec, lawyer and specialist from Ballard Spahr.
“HUD has had a longstanding prohibition against allowing convicted dealers in illegal drugs from living in public housing and now says those convictions may be used to deny a housing application because they pose a serious danger to others living nearby. Individuals who have been convicted of shooting, stabbing or raping other people are likely to be a greater threat to other residents based on the historic rates of repeat offenders,” added Skojec.
In October 2015, HUD announced it awarded $38 million total to more than 100 groups to be used for fighting housing discrimination.
The money is being awarded as part of HUD’s Fair Housing Initiatives Program.
According to HUD, the funding provided through the competitive grants will help to support a range of fair housing enforcement efforts, including fair housing testing, as well as activities that help educate the public, housing providers and local governments about their rights and responsibilities under the Fair Housing Act.
On April 1, 2016, HUD kicked off Fair Housing Month 2016 with the launch of a new national media campaign that helps the public to envision what communities with shared opportunity for all might look like. The new campaign is designed to further educate the public about their housing rights and the ideals behind HUD’s new Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing initiative.
The campaign, developed in partnership with the National Fair Housing Alliance, will include print and television public service announcements in English and in Spanish, as well as online videos and social media.
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