Makes permanent position for Interim Public Defender after 20 years with the department; will earn $433,641 in annual salary and benefits
New Contra Costa Public Defender Ellen McDonnell. Source: CCPD
By Allen Payton
As previously reported, during their final meeting of the year on Tuesday, the Contra Costa Board of Supervisors promoted Interim Public Defender Ellen McDonnell as Contra Costa Public Defender at an annual salary of $340,510 in addition to $93,131 in pension annual compensation. She will officially take over the role of Public Defender from the retiring Robin Lipetzky effective Jan. 1, 2022.
She started with the department in 2001 and will oversee a $36 million budget and 145 employees.
McDonnell holds a Juris Doctors degree from California Hastings College of the Law and a Bachelor of Arts degree and double major in Spanish and Italian from Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton.
She has been a member of the California State Bar since 2011.
When reached for comment District 1 Supervisor John Gioia showered praise on the county’s new public defender.
“Ellen has been at the department for several years, so, it’s great to elevate to the top position someone who has worked their way up in the department,” he said. “She understands the issues, has support of her staff and will be a great public defender.”
“Ellen understands the constitutional balance in our system, for those who are accused, so innocent people aren’t convicted,” Gioia continued. “She has been very involved in re-entry solutions. She and the department have helped individuals successfully, and safely, return to housing and employment, which lowers the chance of repeating offenses and keeps the community safer.”
McDonnell had been serving as the Interim Public Defender for Contra Costa County since August, she shared. According to the Contra Costa Public Defenders’ website, during her two decades at CCPD, Ellen has specialized in representing clients in serious felony cases, been the public face of the office throughout the community and the local criminal court system, and led a dramatic expansion in innovative and holistic defense programs. Most recently, as Chief Assistant, she managed CCPD’s operations and oversaw the office’s divisions. As Interim Public Defender, Ellen stewards the office’s commitment to client advocacy, high-quality litigation, and holistic defense.
“I’m so honored to have been appointed by the Board of Supervisors with the recommendation of County Administrator Monica Nino,” McDonnell said. “I am thankful for their leadership and the trust that they’re placing in me with this appointment.”
“I’m excited to continue to lead an office of highly skilled and talented attorneys, investigators, social workers, legal assistants and clerical staff, and continue to serve the community of Contra Costa,” she continued.
“The mission of the Public Defender’s office is to vigorously defend our clients at all stages of the criminal justice process,” McDonnell shared. “A core part of our mission is also to bring our clients back into the community with support that leads to better outcomes for those we represent, their families and the community at large. We do that by connecting our clients with community-based solutions for housing, employment, healthcare and mental health resources.”
“When we look at the whole person in stabilizing individuals, we play a critical role in contributing to public safety,” she concluded. “Our office will remain committed to addressing racial disparities in the local criminal legal system and implementing new, needed, legal reforms.”
Since becoming interim public defender, McDonnell has been and will continue serving on the county’s Racial Justice Oversight Body which focuses on that commitment.
Ellen joined CCPD in 2001 after receiving her Juris Doctorate from UC Hastings College of Law, where she was a member of the Hastings Law Review. She represented clients with misdemeanors and felony cases, and has tried numerous homicide and life cases. Ellen is a skilled trial attorney and a fierce advocate, especially for those suffering from mental health conditions.
Ellen led the expansion of CCPD’s Clean Slate program and spearheaded community outreach efforts in response to the passage of Proposition 47 in 2014. Ellen coordinated and led numerous Clean Slate Day community events. She collaborated with justice system stakeholders and community-based organizations in order to assist thousands of community members in clearing their records and providing a path to rehabilitation.
Ellen has been at the forefront of implementing legislated criminal justice reforms in the Contra Costa legal system, including Prop 47, Prop 64, Felony Murder Reform, and Bail Reform. Through Ellen’s leadership, Contra Costa County has seen a reduction of incarceration rates, improved sentence equity, the minimization of court-imposed debt, and the elimination of barriers for impacted people.
Ellen has also collaborated with local groups working towards a more just and safer Contra Costa. These include the county’s Pretrial Services work group, Contra Costa LEAD diversion Local Advisory Committee (LAC), the Prerelease Planning work group, the Smart Reentry Task Force, the Alliance to End Abuse Core Project Team, and the Steering Committee for the Reentry Success Center.
Ellen helmed CCPD’s holistic defense approach. She expanded the scope and reach of the office’s services through grant funded programs, garnering state and federal recognition as a model for other defender organizations. In 2016, Ellen became the supervisor of the office’s reentry programs unit, managing CCPD’s AB109 budget and securing philanthropic and governmental funding for reentry services. Ellen also launched the Early Representation Program (EarlyRep) dedicated to preventing failures to appear in court and diverting cases from the criminal justice system. EarlyRep was awarded the Defender Program of Year by the California Public Defender Association in 2019.
Ellen secured funding to launch the Holistic Intervention Partnership (HIP), a collaborative public-private partnership which offers intensive case management, funding for housing services, and other critical resources to those impacted by our criminal legal system. CCPD was one of only two Public Defender’s Offices in the state to receive Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) funding for innovation in indigent defense.
Ellen is regularly invited to speak about holistic defense and implementing criminal justice reforms. She has presented to many groups including the California Judicial Council, the US Department of Justice, National Legal Aid and Defender Association (NLADA) Chief Defender Council, and the American Society of Criminology.
Ellen was appointed by the Chief Justice of the California Supreme Court to the Judicial Council’s Price of Justice Initiative: Ability to Pay Workgroup, the Futures Traffic Workgroup, and the Traffic Advisory Committee. She was also appointed as a member of the Executive Steering Committee of the State Board of Community Corrections tasked with making recommendations for Law Enforcement Assisted Diversion (LEAD) funding.
Ellen, who grew up in West Virginia and Florida, is a resident of Walnut Creek, where she lives with her husband and two children. Ellen speaks fluent Spanish, and she is proud to be a lifelong Contra Costa Public Defender.
Dan Borsuk contributed to this report.
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Source: Contra Costa Health Services
Will provide garage, medical clinical office, and expanded radiology lab at Contra Costa Regional Medical Center in Martinez; following crackdown, one restaurant still violating COVID-19 health orders as cases in county increase; appoint new Public Defender, will earn $433,641 in pay and benefits
“If you want to send me an email and still want to call me a ‘b***’ go ahead.” – Supervisor Karen Mitchoff in response to critics of her crusade to crack down on restaurants out of compliance with county health orders
By Daniel Borsuk
On a 4-0 vote, during their final meeting of the year on Tuesday, the Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors paved the way for officials of the over-used Contra Costa Regional Medical Center to spend $75 million of Measure X half-cent sales tax funds to construct a parking garage, a medical office complex and a state-of-the-art public health laboratory at Tuesday’s final board meeting of the year. (See CCRMC Proposed Master Plan) CCRMC Measure X funding presentation CCCBOS121421
With Board Chair Diane Burgis absent because of the death of her husband Richard Clayton for whom supervisors adjourned the meeting in honor of, supervisors narrowly met the super-majority requirement to tap into 2020 vote-approved sales tax measure revenues for the purpose of enhancing facilities at the over-used medical complex in Martinez.
Contra Costa Public Health Director Anna Roth pitched the three CCRMC capital improvement projects based on the fact the publicly funded medical center in the past year has treated 142,000 patients due to COVID-19, a 540 percent increase. The center has saved the lives of about 26,000 county residents, 70 percent of whom are on Medi-Cal. Seventy percent of the CCRMC patients do not speak English, Roth noted.
She said the medical center has been crushed with a 540 percent increase in patients seeking medical care over the past 20 years while the physical components of the medical center have been unchanged. Roth also shared there has been at least one case where a pregnant woman had safely delivered her baby in the medical center parking lot because of the unavailability of parking. According to the presentation, three babies were born in the parking lot during the last year. The proposed 325-space parking structure along with valet parking would help alleviate the parking problem, she asserted.
Marianna Moore, chair of the board of supervisors’ appointed Measure X Advisory Committee, cast concern that the supervisors’ action on the medical center capital projects might be premature and negatively hit future Measure X funding of other public services.
“This is a one-time expenditure,” responded District 4 Supervisor Karen Mitchoff of Pleasant Hill. “There will be money for other projects. The longer we delay on capital improvement projects like these the more expensive it becomes.”
Upon acknowledging Measure X chairperson Moore’s comments, District 1 Supervisor John Gioia remarked “I hear the concerns of the Measure X panel for this board to be transparent and open.” Yet, he pointed out how three major local nonprofit health providers – Kaiser Permanente, John Muir and Sutter Medical – skirt regulations that county-operated medical institutions must obey.
“They get an equity worth $25 billion in tax breaks and don’t have to encounter public scrutiny that publicly operated health care operations like Contra Costa County’s have to abide by. I am proud of the public health successes in Contra Costa County, but we need help from the nonprofit health care organizations too.”
In addition to the proposed parking garage, the supervisors’ action paves the way for the medical center to have a $30 million 40,000 square foot medical-clinical office building constructed and a $5 million 5,000 square foot state-of-the-art intervention radiology suite built.
One Restaurant Remains Out of Compliance With COVID-19 Health Order, Mitchoff on the Defense
In a follow up to last week’s meeting where Supervisor Mitchoff questioned the Health Department’s code enforcement capabilities in shutting down 13 restaurants willfully out of health code compliance, Roth announced there is currently only one eatery that is still not following health code requirements.
She did not identify the business. “All but one of the establishments are now in compliance,” said Roth.
Roth said her department has added four code enforcement officers since last week when Mitchoff blew the lid off the health department’s health code performance.
“I appreciate the progress the health department has made,” said Mitchoff. “There is still one restaurant to follow up on. One restaurant will probably have to close.”
Mitchoff, who will serve as board chair next year instead of vice chair Federal Glover of Pittsburg in recognition of her public service as she has announced she won’t seek reelection in 2022, attacked her critics on her crusade to shut down out-of-compliance restaurants.
“There’s recently been vitriolic and unclear language and comments lodged at me,” said Mitchoff, whose been a frequent target of hate emails. “If you want to send me an email and still want to call me a ‘b***’ go ahead. It would be much better if those who dislike me to write letters and that everyone gets vaccinated and wears masks. I hope to start the new year with much more appreciated language.”
County COVID-19 Cases Increase
In the meantime, Roth said Contra Costa County’s vaccination rate of 76.8 percent remains above the national average of 69.9 percent.
The county’s active COVID-19 case load stands at 1,463, an increase of 18.9 percent over a two-week period. Forty-three patients were in hospitals in the county because of COVID-19.
“Ninety-seven percent of the cases in Contra Costa County are of the Delta strain,” remarked Roth. She said there have been signs of the new Omicron variant appearing in wastewater in the county, but nowhere else.
Because of wintertime conditions forcing Californians to hunker down indoors, Contra Costa County Health Officer Dr. Chris Farnitano informed supervisors the State was expected to announce a new indoor public face mask order. The order would be in place through Jan. 15, 2022.
In a related action, supervisors adopted an ordinance calling for the continuation of remotely conducted meetings into January 2022. The ordinance also applies to commissions and advisory committees.
Ordinance Temporarily Halts North Richmond Fulfillment Center Openings
In response to increasing vehicle emission air pollution and traffic-pedestrian safety concerns issues stemming from the buildup of fulfillment centers in the unincorporated North Richmond and Richmond areas, supervisors imposed a 45-day moratorium on the opening of new fulfillment centers.
“Richmond and North Richmond have become a major destination for fulfillment centers,” said Supervisor Gioia, whose District 1 cover those areas. “We don’t want North Richmond to become a wall-to-wall fulfillment center magnet.”
The purpose of the ordinance Gioia has introduced is to compel these enterprises to deliver their products with electric vehicles. It aims to have 33 percent of a company’s fleet of vehicles electrified immediately and by 2027 100 percent of a business’s fleet of vehicles must be electrified.
At least five fulfillment centers are either under construction or planning phase, said John Kopchick, director of the Contra Costa County Conservation and Development Department.
No one from the fulfillment center sector spoke on the ordinance regulating the electrification of vehicle fleets, but Donald Gilmore of North Richmond Recreation said the ordinance does not go far enough.
“North Richmond is significantly impacted by these warehouses and the traffic coming from them. Pedestrian safety is a pressing problem. We need more time to figure out a plan,” said Gilmore.
Appoint New Public Defender, Will Earn $433,641 in Pay and Benefits
Ellen McDonnell. Source: CCPD
Supervisors promoted Deputy Public Defender Ellen McDonnell as Contra Costa Public Defender at an annual salary of $340,510 in addition to a $93,131 in pension annual compensation. She will officially take over the role of Public Defender from the retiring Robin Lipetzky effective Jan. 1, 2022.
She started with the department in 2001 and will oversee a $36 million budget and 145 employees.
McDonnell holds a Juris Doctorate degree from California Hastings College of the Law and a Bachelor of Arts degree and double major in Spanish and Italian from Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton.
She has been a member of the California State Bar since 2011. (Read more about McDonnell in a separate article.)
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Kaiser Permanente Northern California is recognized at the 44th World Hospital Congress. Pictured, far right, Carrie Owen Plietz, FACHE, president of Kaiser Permanente’s Northern California region accepts the award from representatives of Austco in Barcelona, Spain on Nov. 11, 2021. Source: Austco
The International Hospital Foundation recognizes Kaiser Permanente Northern California with the Autsco Excellence Award for Quality and Patient Safety
By Antonia Ehlers, PR and Media Relations, Kaiser Permanente Northern California
OAKLAND, Calif., – An early detection system that helps care teams predict when Kaiser Permanente Northern California’s hospitalized patients are at risk for clinical deterioration was recognized by the International Hospital Foundation with the Autsco Excellence Award for Quality and Patient Safety.
Kaiser Permanente Northern California received the Gold Award, the highest level possible, for its Advance Alert Monitor (AAM) program, which is in place at all 21 Northern California hospitals. The program is a sophisticated monitoring system that analyzes electronic hospital patient data to identify those at risk of deteriorating and alerts a specialized team of virtual nurses who determine if on-site intervention is needed. The nurses contact a rapid response team, which perform an assessment, and then work with the care team and the patient and/or family to develop a patient-centered treatment plan.
AAM predicts the probability that hospitalized patients are likely to decline, require transfer to the intensive care unit or emergency resuscitation, and benefit from interventions. Early warnings could be helpful for patients at risk of deterioration where intervention may improve outcomes.
An analysis of the program in a recent publication of the New England Journal of Medicine showed outcomes associated with lower hospital mortality, a lower incidence of ICU admission, and a shorter length of stay in the hospital.
“This program reflects our commitment to providing the safest care possible by using technology in the hands of our expert care teams to identify those patients who need immediate attention,” said Carrie Owen Plietz, FACHE, president of Kaiser Permanente’s Northern California region. “Because of this program, we are saving lives and providing the high-quality, exceptional care our patients and families deserve.”
The vital signs of Kaiser Permanente patient Erin Fowler-Jones of Pacifica triggered her to be included in the Advance Alert Monitor program when she was hospitalized last month after developing complications from foot surgery. She said she only knew that nurses were always rounding on her, making sure she was receiving the care she needed to recover.
“Staff was constantly monitoring me, which was a huge comfort,” said Fowler-Jones, a retired Kaiser Permanente nurse. “I had no idea I had been flagged for a special monitor program. I just knew that I was getting good care and safe care.”
The 2021 International Hospital Foundation Awards were revealed during the 44th World Hospital Congress in Barcelona, Spain. The IHF Awards celebrate and recognize hospitals and health care organizations with demonstrable excellence, innovations, and outstanding achievements in the health care industry. This year 250 entries were submitted from more than 38 countries/territories – a record since the awards were established in 2015.
Kaiser Permanente Northern California’s monitoring program was heralded as an example of how hospitals are committed to providing high-quality care and patient safety. The success of the program has reached other health care systems, which are inquiring about implementing it in their hospitals.
“This program demonstrates our expertise in using a predictive algorithm and standardized response workflow to provide the best care possible to our patients,” said Dr. Vanessa Martinez, DNP, MHA, RN, who is the Director of Virtual Nursing Care at Kaiser Permanente Northern California. “This innovative program is a major step forward in making sure our hospitals are the safest in the world and ensuring our patients are well-cared for as we focus on identifying problems, intervening early, and providing the appropriate medical treatment.”
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By Contra Costa Health Services
A new statewide masking order now requires everyone to wear masks in indoor public spaces regardless of their vaccination through Jan. 15, 2022. Since Contra Costa already has a local masking order in place, the new statewide masking mandate doesn’t affect us – and we will retain limited exceptions for certain indoor settings not open to the general public such as offices and gyms where everyone is vaccinated.
People in Contra Costa, regardless of vaccination status, will have to keep wearing face coverings in public settings as they have been doing since August.
While cases in Contra Costa have gone up since Thanksgiving, the county has one of the highest vaccination rates in California and hospitalizations are far below levels seen during the past summer and lower than in many other counties.
“The limited exceptions we made are for very low-risk scenarios where everyone is vaccinated,” said Health Officer Dr. Chris Farnitano. “Our community already understands and is following these rules and it would be confusing to change them for just one month.”
Contra Costa’s indoor-masking order will stay in place unless the county meets criteria for lifting the local mandate. The order is as follows:
The counties of Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Napa, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Sonoma and the City of Berkeley will lift the indoor masking requirement in public spaces not subject to state and federal masking rules when all the following occur:
- The jurisdiction reaches the moderate (yellow) COVID-19 transmission tier, as defined by the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC), and remains there for at least three weeks;
AND - COVID-19 hospitalizations in the jurisdiction are low and stable, in the judgment of the health officer
AND - 80% of the jurisdiction’s total population is fully vaccinated with two doses of Pfizer or Moderna or one dose of Johnson & Johnson (booster doses not considered) OR Eight weeks have passed since a COVID-19 vaccine has been authorized for emergency use by federal and state authorities for 5- to 11-year-olds
To see our progress for meeting those criteria, visit our Indoor Mask Mandate Dashboard.
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To Remember, Honor, Teach about veterans dating back to the Civil War
Union Cemetery in Byron, an official Wreaths Across America (WAA) location, will host a wreath-laying ceremony on Saturday, Dec. 18, joining more than 2,800 other locations across the country. The public is invited to join military and local dignitaries, veterans, active service members and their families for the ceremony and the following laying of the wreaths.
Coordinated and led by Byron Delta Lions Club and the Anne Loucks Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution, these groups are raising funds to sponsor the placement of close to 600 veterans’ wreaths on the headstones of our fallen service members laid to rest there.
Union Cemetery has been at its current location since 1878. Veterans dating back to the Civil War will be remembered.
This year, National Wreaths Across America Day is Saturday, December 18, 2021, beginning at 9 a.m. The free event is open to all people. Attendees are asked to wear a mask.
To sponsor one or more wreaths, visit www.wreathsacrossamerica.org.
Union Cemetery is located at 11545 Brentwood Blvd. in Byron.
About Wreaths Across America
Wreaths Across America is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded to continue and expand the annual wreath-laying ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery begun by Maine businessman Morrill Worcester in 1992. The organization’s mission – Remember, Honor, Teach – is carried out in part each year by coordinating wreath-laying ceremonies in December at Arlington National Cemetery, as well as at veterans’ cemeteries and other locations in all 50 states, at sea and abroad.
About Union Cemetery
The Union Cemetery is owned and operated by the Byron-Brentwood-Knightsen Union Cemetery District, a property tax and fee-supported agency that provides efficient and dignified burial services, year-round maintenance, and preservation of interment plots. Interments are restricted to residents who pay taxes into the Cemetery District boundaries. It is governed by a three-person Board of Trustees appointed by the Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors.
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Recipients of 2021 Equity Champion of Higher Education Award
By Timothy Leong, Public Information Officer, 4CD
Diablo Valley College (DVC) and Los Medanos College (LMC) each received the 2021 Equity Champion of Higher Education Award, an honor given by the Campaign for College Opportunity (Campaign) to recognize California Community Colleges and California State University (CSU) campuses for their success in conferring the Associate Degree for Transfer (ADT) to Black and Latino students at higher rates than other colleges.
ADTs were established in 2010 with the passage of SB 1440, to create a clearer pathway for students who wish to transfer and earn a bachelor’s degree. Since the program’s inception, California Community Colleges have awarded more than 300,000 ADTs, establishing this pathway as a popular transfer option for students. By successfully completing 60 units of transferrable community college coursework, students will be awarded an associate degree and receive guaranteed admission with junior standing at a CSU campus.
“We are honored to receive the recognition that DVC led all California Community Colleges in increasing the number of Black and Latinx students earning an ADT,” says DVC President Susan Lamb. “We appreciate the ongoing recognition from the campaign, and want to thank every member of our college community for their contribution to this tremendous achievement and equity work.”
According to Campaign rankings, during the 2019-20 academic year, DVC awarded 1,161 ADTs, more than half of all Associate Degrees awarded by the college during this time. Black and Latino students out earned ADTs over other student populations at the college by 6% and 3.4% respectively.
LMC was recognized for their equity work in increasing the number of Latinx students obtaining an ADT. During the 2019-20 academic year, LMC awarded 548 ADTs, or one of every three Associates Degree awarded by the college during this time. LMC’s Latino students out earned ADTs over their other student populations by 2.9%.
“I am honored to work with such dedicated classified professionals, faculty and managers, who are focused on learning, completion, and equitable outcome for all of our students,” says LMC President Bob Kratochvil. “With a Latinx student population of over 40 percent, this recognition gives us another indicator we are on the right path and making progress in helping our students achieve their educational goals with us.”
The Campaign for College Opportunity’s mission has been to ensure that all eligible and motivated students in California have an opportunity to go to college and succeed. The Campaign remains committed to keeping the State of California from breaking its promise of college opportunity to its next generation of young people in order to ensure a strong state for all of us. For more information, visit https://collegecampaign.org/ .
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A large inflatable rat on display at the Antioch Kaiser strike on Thursday afternoon, Nov. 18, 2021. Photos by Allen Payton
On strike for nearly three months
By Antonia Ehlers, PR and Media Relations, Kaiser Permanente Northern California
Kaiser Permanente has been bargaining in good faith with Local 39 IUOE (International Union of Operating Engineers Local 39 Stationary Engineers), the union that represents about 600 Kaiser Permanente operating engineers, for several months. The union decided to call a strike and have kept employees out for nearly three months. Our proposals to Local 39 will keep our engineers among the best compensated in their profession, at an average of more than $180,000 in total wages and benefits. We are not proposing any take-aways. (See related article)
In bargaining with IOUE Local 39, we delivered a comprehensive proposal that offers across-the-board pay increases and cash payments that are similar to our other employees’ and continues to include all our industry-leading benefits. Further, engineers’ retirement benefit would continue to be substantial, with several improvements.
Right now, Local 39’s position is the same as before it went on strike. The union continues to insist it receive much more – in some cases nearly 2 times more – than other union agreements covering Kaiser Permanente employees. It simply is not in line with other employees, nor is it in line with our obligation to continue addressing the affordability of health care for our more than 4.5 million members.
We will continue to bargain in good faith, and we hope that Local 39 leaders will continue to do the same. That means more discussion, fresh ideas, and compromise. At this time, we do not have any further dates scheduled to meet. We are optimistic that we can resolve the remaining issues with Local 39 at the bargaining table and reach an agreement that continues to reward our employees and supports health care affordability, just as we have with several unions recently.
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The Contra Costa County Office of the District Attorney has filed charges against Phyllis Meehan pursuant to Vehicle Code Section 192(c)(1) in the death of Stanley Middle School crossing guard, Ashley Steven Dias, age 45.
“This tragic incident has impacted an entire community,” said District Attorney Diana Becton. “The loss of Ashley Dias is a solemn reminder that drivers must exercise caution and care when children and pedestrians are present.”
September 8, 2021, Phyllis Meehan, 78 years old, was picking up her grandson from the Lafayette Middle School when she collided with a vehicle and proceeded to accelerate into a crosswalk. Witnesses observed Mr. Dias pushed a student out of the path of the GMC Yukon before the crossing guard was fatally struck by the driver. The student suffered significant scrapes and bruises. Mr. Dias succumbed to his injuries later that afternoon.
According to the Lafayette Police Department, “At 3:00pm today (9/8/21) on School Street at Paradise Court a vehicle struck one adult and one child, the child had minor injuries and the adult was transported to the hospital.”
ABC7 News reported the child will survive, and that the driver remained at the scene and cooperated with police.
An arraignment date has yet to be scheduled. The copy of the complaint and charges can be viewed, here:
Case information: Docket Number 01-197752-9
Allen Payton contributed to this report.
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Supervisor Diane Burgis and her late husband Richard Clayton in photo posted on her Facebook page on June 19, 2021.
OAKLEY, CALIF., December 11, 2021 – Supervisor Diane Burgis lost her husband Richard Clayton this morning to suicide. He is survived by his wife, his parents, John and Carol Clayton of England, his brother Barry, (Deb) and sister, Nina (Rob), daughter Kianna and son-in-law Andrew Lee, his stepsons, Jacob, Sam, and Dusty Burgis, grandsons, Arlo, Brody and Huxley, and many beloved nieces, nephews, extended family, and friends.
“Like many of us, Richard’s mental health was severely impacted by the pandemic. I would ask anyone who is suffering from a mental health crisis to reach out for help, and I’m respectfully requesting that you respect my privacy and the privacy of Richard’s family at this difficult time,” said Supervisor Burgis.
If you or anyone you know is experiencing a mental health crisis, please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255.
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Vacates court’s three judge panel ruling, will hear en banc
San Francisco — The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, at the request of Governor Gavin Newsom, agreed, on Wednesday, to vacate the court’s three judge panel ruling, earlier this year, in favor of the parents represented by the Center for American Liberty’s lawsuit Brach v. Newsom (#OpenCASchools), that Newsom’s COVID order barring private schools from in-person teaching, violated parents’ Due Process rights, and have the entire case reheard by the full Ninth Circuit Panel.
Click here to view and download the court’s order.
Click here to view and download the Ninth’s Circuit’s prior ruling
In the prior ruling for parents, the three-judge panel of the Ninth Circuit reasoned: “…the Supreme Court has long held that ‘the right of parents to make decisions concerning the care, custody, and control of their children is a fundamental liberty interested protected by the Due Process Clause,’ and that right includes ‘the right of parents to be free from state interference with their choice of the educational forum itself.’”
“It’s sad to see Governor Newsom so vigorously continue his assault on children’s education,” said Harmeet K. Dhillon, CEO of the Center for American Liberty. “The prior opinion from the Ninth Circuit was a clear victory for parents and students when the court correctly ruled that under the Constitution, parents – and not Gavin Newsom or faceless bureaucrats — have the right to decide how best to educate their children. I’m confident that the en banc panel will reaffirm that Governor Newsom’s anti-parent power grab was unconstitutional.”
“Although we believe that the original panel correctly held that Governor Newsom violated the Constitution when he closed private schools across the state, we look forward to making our case again to the en banc panel,” said Partner at Eimer Stahl LLP, Robert Dunn. “The school closure orders the Governor kept in place for nearly a year had a devastating impact on students throughout the state and plainly interfered with parents’ ability to control the education of their children. We are confident that the en banc panel will vindicate our clients’ fundamental rights and prevent the Governor from reinstituting such an order.”
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Makes permanent position for Interim Public Defender after 20 years with the department; will earn $433,641 in annual salary and benefits
New Contra Costa Public Defender Ellen McDonnell. Source: CCPD
By Allen Payton
As previously reported, during their final meeting of the year on Tuesday, the Contra Costa Board of Supervisors promoted Interim Public Defender Ellen McDonnell as Contra Costa Public Defender at an annual salary of $340,510 in addition to $93,131 in pension annual compensation. She will officially take over the role of Public Defender from the retiring Robin Lipetzky effective Jan. 1, 2022.
She started with the department in 2001 and will oversee a $36 million budget and 145 employees.
McDonnell holds a Juris Doctors degree from California Hastings College of the Law and a Bachelor of Arts degree and double major in Spanish and Italian from Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton.
She has been a member of the California State Bar since 2011.
When reached for comment District 1 Supervisor John Gioia showered praise on the county’s new public defender.
“Ellen has been at the department for several years, so, it’s great to elevate to the top position someone who has worked their way up in the department,” he said. “She understands the issues, has support of her staff and will be a great public defender.”
“Ellen understands the constitutional balance in our system, for those who are accused, so innocent people aren’t convicted,” Gioia continued. “She has been very involved in re-entry solutions. She and the department have helped individuals successfully, and safely, return to housing and employment, which lowers the chance of repeating offenses and keeps the community safer.”
McDonnell had been serving as the Interim Public Defender for Contra Costa County since August, she shared. According to the Contra Costa Public Defenders’ website, during her two decades at CCPD, Ellen has specialized in representing clients in serious felony cases, been the public face of the office throughout the community and the local criminal court system, and led a dramatic expansion in innovative and holistic defense programs. Most recently, as Chief Assistant, she managed CCPD’s operations and oversaw the office’s divisions. As Interim Public Defender, Ellen stewards the office’s commitment to client advocacy, high-quality litigation, and holistic defense.
“I’m so honored to have been appointed by the Board of Supervisors with the recommendation of County Administrator Monica Nino,” McDonnell said. “I am thankful for their leadership and the trust that they’re placing in me with this appointment.”
“I’m excited to continue to lead an office of highly skilled and talented attorneys, investigators, social workers, legal assistants and clerical staff, and continue to serve the community of Contra Costa,” she continued.
“The mission of the Public Defender’s office is to vigorously defend our clients at all stages of the criminal justice process,” McDonnell shared. “A core part of our mission is also to bring our clients back into the community with support that leads to better outcomes for those we represent, their families and the community at large. We do that by connecting our clients with community-based solutions for housing, employment, healthcare and mental health resources.”
“When we look at the whole person in stabilizing individuals, we play a critical role in contributing to public safety,” she concluded. “Our office will remain committed to addressing racial disparities in the local criminal legal system and implementing new, needed, legal reforms.”
Since becoming interim public defender, McDonnell has been and will continue serving on the county’s Racial Justice Oversight Body which focuses on that commitment.
Ellen joined CCPD in 2001 after receiving her Juris Doctorate from UC Hastings College of Law, where she was a member of the Hastings Law Review. She represented clients with misdemeanors and felony cases, and has tried numerous homicide and life cases. Ellen is a skilled trial attorney and a fierce advocate, especially for those suffering from mental health conditions.
Ellen led the expansion of CCPD’s Clean Slate program and spearheaded community outreach efforts in response to the passage of Proposition 47 in 2014. Ellen coordinated and led numerous Clean Slate Day community events. She collaborated with justice system stakeholders and community-based organizations in order to assist thousands of community members in clearing their records and providing a path to rehabilitation.
Ellen has been at the forefront of implementing legislated criminal justice reforms in the Contra Costa legal system, including Prop 47, Prop 64, Felony Murder Reform, and Bail Reform. Through Ellen’s leadership, Contra Costa County has seen a reduction of incarceration rates, improved sentence equity, the minimization of court-imposed debt, and the elimination of barriers for impacted people.
Ellen has also collaborated with local groups working towards a more just and safer Contra Costa. These include the county’s Pretrial Services work group, Contra Costa LEAD diversion Local Advisory Committee (LAC), the Prerelease Planning work group, the Smart Reentry Task Force, the Alliance to End Abuse Core Project Team, and the Steering Committee for the Reentry Success Center.
Ellen helmed CCPD’s holistic defense approach. She expanded the scope and reach of the office’s services through grant funded programs, garnering state and federal recognition as a model for other defender organizations. In 2016, Ellen became the supervisor of the office’s reentry programs unit, managing CCPD’s AB109 budget and securing philanthropic and governmental funding for reentry services. Ellen also launched the Early Representation Program (EarlyRep) dedicated to preventing failures to appear in court and diverting cases from the criminal justice system. EarlyRep was awarded the Defender Program of Year by the California Public Defender Association in 2019.
Ellen secured funding to launch the Holistic Intervention Partnership (HIP), a collaborative public-private partnership which offers intensive case management, funding for housing services, and other critical resources to those impacted by our criminal legal system. CCPD was one of only two Public Defender’s Offices in the state to receive Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) funding for innovation in indigent defense.
Ellen is regularly invited to speak about holistic defense and implementing criminal justice reforms. She has presented to many groups including the California Judicial Council, the US Department of Justice, National Legal Aid and Defender Association (NLADA) Chief Defender Council, and the American Society of Criminology.
Ellen was appointed by the Chief Justice of the California Supreme Court to the Judicial Council’s Price of Justice Initiative: Ability to Pay Workgroup, the Futures Traffic Workgroup, and the Traffic Advisory Committee. She was also appointed as a member of the Executive Steering Committee of the State Board of Community Corrections tasked with making recommendations for Law Enforcement Assisted Diversion (LEAD) funding.
Ellen, who grew up in West Virginia and Florida, is a resident of Walnut Creek, where she lives with her husband and two children. Ellen speaks fluent Spanish, and she is proud to be a lifelong Contra Costa Public Defender.
Dan Borsuk contributed to this report.
Read MoreSource: Contra Costa Health Services
Will provide garage, medical clinical office, and expanded radiology lab at Contra Costa Regional Medical Center in Martinez; following crackdown, one restaurant still violating COVID-19 health orders as cases in county increase; appoint new Public Defender, will earn $433,641 in pay and benefits
“If you want to send me an email and still want to call me a ‘b***’ go ahead.” – Supervisor Karen Mitchoff in response to critics of her crusade to crack down on restaurants out of compliance with county health orders
By Daniel Borsuk
On a 4-0 vote, during their final meeting of the year on Tuesday, the Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors paved the way for officials of the over-used Contra Costa Regional Medical Center to spend $75 million of Measure X half-cent sales tax funds to construct a parking garage, a medical office complex and a state-of-the-art public health laboratory at Tuesday’s final board meeting of the year. (See CCRMC Proposed Master Plan) CCRMC Measure X funding presentation CCCBOS121421
With Board Chair Diane Burgis absent because of the death of her husband Richard Clayton for whom supervisors adjourned the meeting in honor of, supervisors narrowly met the super-majority requirement to tap into 2020 vote-approved sales tax measure revenues for the purpose of enhancing facilities at the over-used medical complex in Martinez.
Contra Costa Public Health Director Anna Roth pitched the three CCRMC capital improvement projects based on the fact the publicly funded medical center in the past year has treated 142,000 patients due to COVID-19, a 540 percent increase. The center has saved the lives of about 26,000 county residents, 70 percent of whom are on Medi-Cal. Seventy percent of the CCRMC patients do not speak English, Roth noted.
She said the medical center has been crushed with a 540 percent increase in patients seeking medical care over the past 20 years while the physical components of the medical center have been unchanged. Roth also shared there has been at least one case where a pregnant woman had safely delivered her baby in the medical center parking lot because of the unavailability of parking. According to the presentation, three babies were born in the parking lot during the last year. The proposed 325-space parking structure along with valet parking would help alleviate the parking problem, she asserted.
Marianna Moore, chair of the board of supervisors’ appointed Measure X Advisory Committee, cast concern that the supervisors’ action on the medical center capital projects might be premature and negatively hit future Measure X funding of other public services.
“This is a one-time expenditure,” responded District 4 Supervisor Karen Mitchoff of Pleasant Hill. “There will be money for other projects. The longer we delay on capital improvement projects like these the more expensive it becomes.”
Upon acknowledging Measure X chairperson Moore’s comments, District 1 Supervisor John Gioia remarked “I hear the concerns of the Measure X panel for this board to be transparent and open.” Yet, he pointed out how three major local nonprofit health providers – Kaiser Permanente, John Muir and Sutter Medical – skirt regulations that county-operated medical institutions must obey.
“They get an equity worth $25 billion in tax breaks and don’t have to encounter public scrutiny that publicly operated health care operations like Contra Costa County’s have to abide by. I am proud of the public health successes in Contra Costa County, but we need help from the nonprofit health care organizations too.”
In addition to the proposed parking garage, the supervisors’ action paves the way for the medical center to have a $30 million 40,000 square foot medical-clinical office building constructed and a $5 million 5,000 square foot state-of-the-art intervention radiology suite built.
One Restaurant Remains Out of Compliance With COVID-19 Health Order, Mitchoff on the Defense
In a follow up to last week’s meeting where Supervisor Mitchoff questioned the Health Department’s code enforcement capabilities in shutting down 13 restaurants willfully out of health code compliance, Roth announced there is currently only one eatery that is still not following health code requirements.
She did not identify the business. “All but one of the establishments are now in compliance,” said Roth.
Roth said her department has added four code enforcement officers since last week when Mitchoff blew the lid off the health department’s health code performance.
“I appreciate the progress the health department has made,” said Mitchoff. “There is still one restaurant to follow up on. One restaurant will probably have to close.”
Mitchoff, who will serve as board chair next year instead of vice chair Federal Glover of Pittsburg in recognition of her public service as she has announced she won’t seek reelection in 2022, attacked her critics on her crusade to shut down out-of-compliance restaurants.
“There’s recently been vitriolic and unclear language and comments lodged at me,” said Mitchoff, whose been a frequent target of hate emails. “If you want to send me an email and still want to call me a ‘b***’ go ahead. It would be much better if those who dislike me to write letters and that everyone gets vaccinated and wears masks. I hope to start the new year with much more appreciated language.”
County COVID-19 Cases Increase
In the meantime, Roth said Contra Costa County’s vaccination rate of 76.8 percent remains above the national average of 69.9 percent.
The county’s active COVID-19 case load stands at 1,463, an increase of 18.9 percent over a two-week period. Forty-three patients were in hospitals in the county because of COVID-19.
“Ninety-seven percent of the cases in Contra Costa County are of the Delta strain,” remarked Roth. She said there have been signs of the new Omicron variant appearing in wastewater in the county, but nowhere else.
Because of wintertime conditions forcing Californians to hunker down indoors, Contra Costa County Health Officer Dr. Chris Farnitano informed supervisors the State was expected to announce a new indoor public face mask order. The order would be in place through Jan. 15, 2022.
In a related action, supervisors adopted an ordinance calling for the continuation of remotely conducted meetings into January 2022. The ordinance also applies to commissions and advisory committees.
Ordinance Temporarily Halts North Richmond Fulfillment Center Openings
In response to increasing vehicle emission air pollution and traffic-pedestrian safety concerns issues stemming from the buildup of fulfillment centers in the unincorporated North Richmond and Richmond areas, supervisors imposed a 45-day moratorium on the opening of new fulfillment centers.
“Richmond and North Richmond have become a major destination for fulfillment centers,” said Supervisor Gioia, whose District 1 cover those areas. “We don’t want North Richmond to become a wall-to-wall fulfillment center magnet.”
The purpose of the ordinance Gioia has introduced is to compel these enterprises to deliver their products with electric vehicles. It aims to have 33 percent of a company’s fleet of vehicles electrified immediately and by 2027 100 percent of a business’s fleet of vehicles must be electrified.
At least five fulfillment centers are either under construction or planning phase, said John Kopchick, director of the Contra Costa County Conservation and Development Department.
No one from the fulfillment center sector spoke on the ordinance regulating the electrification of vehicle fleets, but Donald Gilmore of North Richmond Recreation said the ordinance does not go far enough.
“North Richmond is significantly impacted by these warehouses and the traffic coming from them. Pedestrian safety is a pressing problem. We need more time to figure out a plan,” said Gilmore.
Appoint New Public Defender, Will Earn $433,641 in Pay and Benefits
Ellen McDonnell. Source: CCPD
Supervisors promoted Deputy Public Defender Ellen McDonnell as Contra Costa Public Defender at an annual salary of $340,510 in addition to a $93,131 in pension annual compensation. She will officially take over the role of Public Defender from the retiring Robin Lipetzky effective Jan. 1, 2022.
She started with the department in 2001 and will oversee a $36 million budget and 145 employees.
McDonnell holds a Juris Doctorate degree from California Hastings College of the Law and a Bachelor of Arts degree and double major in Spanish and Italian from Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton.
She has been a member of the California State Bar since 2011. (Read more about McDonnell in a separate article.)
Read MoreKaiser Permanente Northern California is recognized at the 44th World Hospital Congress. Pictured, far right, Carrie Owen Plietz, FACHE, president of Kaiser Permanente’s Northern California region accepts the award from representatives of Austco in Barcelona, Spain on Nov. 11, 2021. Source: Austco
The International Hospital Foundation recognizes Kaiser Permanente Northern California with the Autsco Excellence Award for Quality and Patient Safety
By Antonia Ehlers, PR and Media Relations, Kaiser Permanente Northern California
OAKLAND, Calif., – An early detection system that helps care teams predict when Kaiser Permanente Northern California’s hospitalized patients are at risk for clinical deterioration was recognized by the International Hospital Foundation with the Autsco Excellence Award for Quality and Patient Safety.
Kaiser Permanente Northern California received the Gold Award, the highest level possible, for its Advance Alert Monitor (AAM) program, which is in place at all 21 Northern California hospitals. The program is a sophisticated monitoring system that analyzes electronic hospital patient data to identify those at risk of deteriorating and alerts a specialized team of virtual nurses who determine if on-site intervention is needed. The nurses contact a rapid response team, which perform an assessment, and then work with the care team and the patient and/or family to develop a patient-centered treatment plan.
AAM predicts the probability that hospitalized patients are likely to decline, require transfer to the intensive care unit or emergency resuscitation, and benefit from interventions. Early warnings could be helpful for patients at risk of deterioration where intervention may improve outcomes.
An analysis of the program in a recent publication of the New England Journal of Medicine showed outcomes associated with lower hospital mortality, a lower incidence of ICU admission, and a shorter length of stay in the hospital.
“This program reflects our commitment to providing the safest care possible by using technology in the hands of our expert care teams to identify those patients who need immediate attention,” said Carrie Owen Plietz, FACHE, president of Kaiser Permanente’s Northern California region. “Because of this program, we are saving lives and providing the high-quality, exceptional care our patients and families deserve.”
The vital signs of Kaiser Permanente patient Erin Fowler-Jones of Pacifica triggered her to be included in the Advance Alert Monitor program when she was hospitalized last month after developing complications from foot surgery. She said she only knew that nurses were always rounding on her, making sure she was receiving the care she needed to recover.
“Staff was constantly monitoring me, which was a huge comfort,” said Fowler-Jones, a retired Kaiser Permanente nurse. “I had no idea I had been flagged for a special monitor program. I just knew that I was getting good care and safe care.”
The 2021 International Hospital Foundation Awards were revealed during the 44th World Hospital Congress in Barcelona, Spain. The IHF Awards celebrate and recognize hospitals and health care organizations with demonstrable excellence, innovations, and outstanding achievements in the health care industry. This year 250 entries were submitted from more than 38 countries/territories – a record since the awards were established in 2015.
Kaiser Permanente Northern California’s monitoring program was heralded as an example of how hospitals are committed to providing high-quality care and patient safety. The success of the program has reached other health care systems, which are inquiring about implementing it in their hospitals.
“This program demonstrates our expertise in using a predictive algorithm and standardized response workflow to provide the best care possible to our patients,” said Dr. Vanessa Martinez, DNP, MHA, RN, who is the Director of Virtual Nursing Care at Kaiser Permanente Northern California. “This innovative program is a major step forward in making sure our hospitals are the safest in the world and ensuring our patients are well-cared for as we focus on identifying problems, intervening early, and providing the appropriate medical treatment.”
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By Contra Costa Health Services
A new statewide masking order now requires everyone to wear masks in indoor public spaces regardless of their vaccination through Jan. 15, 2022. Since Contra Costa already has a local masking order in place, the new statewide masking mandate doesn’t affect us – and we will retain limited exceptions for certain indoor settings not open to the general public such as offices and gyms where everyone is vaccinated.
People in Contra Costa, regardless of vaccination status, will have to keep wearing face coverings in public settings as they have been doing since August.
While cases in Contra Costa have gone up since Thanksgiving, the county has one of the highest vaccination rates in California and hospitalizations are far below levels seen during the past summer and lower than in many other counties.
“The limited exceptions we made are for very low-risk scenarios where everyone is vaccinated,” said Health Officer Dr. Chris Farnitano. “Our community already understands and is following these rules and it would be confusing to change them for just one month.”
Contra Costa’s indoor-masking order will stay in place unless the county meets criteria for lifting the local mandate. The order is as follows:
The counties of Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Napa, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Sonoma and the City of Berkeley will lift the indoor masking requirement in public spaces not subject to state and federal masking rules when all the following occur:
- The jurisdiction reaches the moderate (yellow) COVID-19 transmission tier, as defined by the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC), and remains there for at least three weeks;
AND - COVID-19 hospitalizations in the jurisdiction are low and stable, in the judgment of the health officer
AND - 80% of the jurisdiction’s total population is fully vaccinated with two doses of Pfizer or Moderna or one dose of Johnson & Johnson (booster doses not considered) OR Eight weeks have passed since a COVID-19 vaccine has been authorized for emergency use by federal and state authorities for 5- to 11-year-olds
To see our progress for meeting those criteria, visit our Indoor Mask Mandate Dashboard.
Read MoreTo Remember, Honor, Teach about veterans dating back to the Civil War
Union Cemetery in Byron, an official Wreaths Across America (WAA) location, will host a wreath-laying ceremony on Saturday, Dec. 18, joining more than 2,800 other locations across the country. The public is invited to join military and local dignitaries, veterans, active service members and their families for the ceremony and the following laying of the wreaths.
Coordinated and led by Byron Delta Lions Club and the Anne Loucks Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution, these groups are raising funds to sponsor the placement of close to 600 veterans’ wreaths on the headstones of our fallen service members laid to rest there.
Union Cemetery has been at its current location since 1878. Veterans dating back to the Civil War will be remembered.
This year, National Wreaths Across America Day is Saturday, December 18, 2021, beginning at 9 a.m. The free event is open to all people. Attendees are asked to wear a mask.
To sponsor one or more wreaths, visit www.wreathsacrossamerica.org.
Union Cemetery is located at 11545 Brentwood Blvd. in Byron.
About Wreaths Across America
Wreaths Across America is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded to continue and expand the annual wreath-laying ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery begun by Maine businessman Morrill Worcester in 1992. The organization’s mission – Remember, Honor, Teach – is carried out in part each year by coordinating wreath-laying ceremonies in December at Arlington National Cemetery, as well as at veterans’ cemeteries and other locations in all 50 states, at sea and abroad.
About Union Cemetery
The Union Cemetery is owned and operated by the Byron-Brentwood-Knightsen Union Cemetery District, a property tax and fee-supported agency that provides efficient and dignified burial services, year-round maintenance, and preservation of interment plots. Interments are restricted to residents who pay taxes into the Cemetery District boundaries. It is governed by a three-person Board of Trustees appointed by the Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors.
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Recipients of 2021 Equity Champion of Higher Education Award
By Timothy Leong, Public Information Officer, 4CD
Diablo Valley College (DVC) and Los Medanos College (LMC) each received the 2021 Equity Champion of Higher Education Award, an honor given by the Campaign for College Opportunity (Campaign) to recognize California Community Colleges and California State University (CSU) campuses for their success in conferring the Associate Degree for Transfer (ADT) to Black and Latino students at higher rates than other colleges.
ADTs were established in 2010 with the passage of SB 1440, to create a clearer pathway for students who wish to transfer and earn a bachelor’s degree. Since the program’s inception, California Community Colleges have awarded more than 300,000 ADTs, establishing this pathway as a popular transfer option for students. By successfully completing 60 units of transferrable community college coursework, students will be awarded an associate degree and receive guaranteed admission with junior standing at a CSU campus.
“We are honored to receive the recognition that DVC led all California Community Colleges in increasing the number of Black and Latinx students earning an ADT,” says DVC President Susan Lamb. “We appreciate the ongoing recognition from the campaign, and want to thank every member of our college community for their contribution to this tremendous achievement and equity work.”
According to Campaign rankings, during the 2019-20 academic year, DVC awarded 1,161 ADTs, more than half of all Associate Degrees awarded by the college during this time. Black and Latino students out earned ADTs over other student populations at the college by 6% and 3.4% respectively.
LMC was recognized for their equity work in increasing the number of Latinx students obtaining an ADT. During the 2019-20 academic year, LMC awarded 548 ADTs, or one of every three Associates Degree awarded by the college during this time. LMC’s Latino students out earned ADTs over their other student populations by 2.9%.
“I am honored to work with such dedicated classified professionals, faculty and managers, who are focused on learning, completion, and equitable outcome for all of our students,” says LMC President Bob Kratochvil. “With a Latinx student population of over 40 percent, this recognition gives us another indicator we are on the right path and making progress in helping our students achieve their educational goals with us.”
The Campaign for College Opportunity’s mission has been to ensure that all eligible and motivated students in California have an opportunity to go to college and succeed. The Campaign remains committed to keeping the State of California from breaking its promise of college opportunity to its next generation of young people in order to ensure a strong state for all of us. For more information, visit https://collegecampaign.org/ .
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A large inflatable rat on display at the Antioch Kaiser strike on Thursday afternoon, Nov. 18, 2021. Photos by Allen Payton
On strike for nearly three months
By Antonia Ehlers, PR and Media Relations, Kaiser Permanente Northern California
Kaiser Permanente has been bargaining in good faith with Local 39 IUOE (International Union of Operating Engineers Local 39 Stationary Engineers), the union that represents about 600 Kaiser Permanente operating engineers, for several months. The union decided to call a strike and have kept employees out for nearly three months. Our proposals to Local 39 will keep our engineers among the best compensated in their profession, at an average of more than $180,000 in total wages and benefits. We are not proposing any take-aways. (See related article)
In bargaining with IOUE Local 39, we delivered a comprehensive proposal that offers across-the-board pay increases and cash payments that are similar to our other employees’ and continues to include all our industry-leading benefits. Further, engineers’ retirement benefit would continue to be substantial, with several improvements.
Right now, Local 39’s position is the same as before it went on strike. The union continues to insist it receive much more – in some cases nearly 2 times more – than other union agreements covering Kaiser Permanente employees. It simply is not in line with other employees, nor is it in line with our obligation to continue addressing the affordability of health care for our more than 4.5 million members.
We will continue to bargain in good faith, and we hope that Local 39 leaders will continue to do the same. That means more discussion, fresh ideas, and compromise. At this time, we do not have any further dates scheduled to meet. We are optimistic that we can resolve the remaining issues with Local 39 at the bargaining table and reach an agreement that continues to reward our employees and supports health care affordability, just as we have with several unions recently.
Read MoreThe Contra Costa County Office of the District Attorney has filed charges against Phyllis Meehan pursuant to Vehicle Code Section 192(c)(1) in the death of Stanley Middle School crossing guard, Ashley Steven Dias, age 45.
“This tragic incident has impacted an entire community,” said District Attorney Diana Becton. “The loss of Ashley Dias is a solemn reminder that drivers must exercise caution and care when children and pedestrians are present.”
September 8, 2021, Phyllis Meehan, 78 years old, was picking up her grandson from the Lafayette Middle School when she collided with a vehicle and proceeded to accelerate into a crosswalk. Witnesses observed Mr. Dias pushed a student out of the path of the GMC Yukon before the crossing guard was fatally struck by the driver. The student suffered significant scrapes and bruises. Mr. Dias succumbed to his injuries later that afternoon.
According to the Lafayette Police Department, “At 3:00pm today (9/8/21) on School Street at Paradise Court a vehicle struck one adult and one child, the child had minor injuries and the adult was transported to the hospital.”
ABC7 News reported the child will survive, and that the driver remained at the scene and cooperated with police.
An arraignment date has yet to be scheduled. The copy of the complaint and charges can be viewed, here:
Case information: Docket Number 01-197752-9
Allen Payton contributed to this report.
Read MoreSupervisor Diane Burgis and her late husband Richard Clayton in photo posted on her Facebook page on June 19, 2021.
OAKLEY, CALIF., December 11, 2021 – Supervisor Diane Burgis lost her husband Richard Clayton this morning to suicide. He is survived by his wife, his parents, John and Carol Clayton of England, his brother Barry, (Deb) and sister, Nina (Rob), daughter Kianna and son-in-law Andrew Lee, his stepsons, Jacob, Sam, and Dusty Burgis, grandsons, Arlo, Brody and Huxley, and many beloved nieces, nephews, extended family, and friends.
“Like many of us, Richard’s mental health was severely impacted by the pandemic. I would ask anyone who is suffering from a mental health crisis to reach out for help, and I’m respectfully requesting that you respect my privacy and the privacy of Richard’s family at this difficult time,” said Supervisor Burgis.
If you or anyone you know is experiencing a mental health crisis, please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255.
Read MoreVacates court’s three judge panel ruling, will hear en banc
San Francisco — The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, at the request of Governor Gavin Newsom, agreed, on Wednesday, to vacate the court’s three judge panel ruling, earlier this year, in favor of the parents represented by the Center for American Liberty’s lawsuit Brach v. Newsom (#OpenCASchools), that Newsom’s COVID order barring private schools from in-person teaching, violated parents’ Due Process rights, and have the entire case reheard by the full Ninth Circuit Panel.
Click here to view and download the court’s order.
Click here to view and download the Ninth’s Circuit’s prior ruling
In the prior ruling for parents, the three-judge panel of the Ninth Circuit reasoned: “…the Supreme Court has long held that ‘the right of parents to make decisions concerning the care, custody, and control of their children is a fundamental liberty interested protected by the Due Process Clause,’ and that right includes ‘the right of parents to be free from state interference with their choice of the educational forum itself.’”
“It’s sad to see Governor Newsom so vigorously continue his assault on children’s education,” said Harmeet K. Dhillon, CEO of the Center for American Liberty. “The prior opinion from the Ninth Circuit was a clear victory for parents and students when the court correctly ruled that under the Constitution, parents – and not Gavin Newsom or faceless bureaucrats — have the right to decide how best to educate their children. I’m confident that the en banc panel will reaffirm that Governor Newsom’s anti-parent power grab was unconstitutional.”
“Although we believe that the original panel correctly held that Governor Newsom violated the Constitution when he closed private schools across the state, we look forward to making our case again to the en banc panel,” said Partner at Eimer Stahl LLP, Robert Dunn. “The school closure orders the Governor kept in place for nearly a year had a devastating impact on students throughout the state and plainly interfered with parents’ ability to control the education of their children. We are confident that the en banc panel will vindicate our clients’ fundamental rights and prevent the Governor from reinstituting such an order.”
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