In response to yesterday’s announcement by SEIU United Healthcare Workers, regarding launching a protest at Kaiser headquarters in Oakland, today at 5:00 p.m., John Nelson, Vice President Communications, Kaiser Permanente offered the following response.
Regarding the question about gardeners:
As we do with our other medical center campuses, Kaiser Permanente is engaging a professional commercial landscaping vendor at our remaining facilities in Northern California, giving all of our campuses the benefit of the most expert, efficient, and ecologically sound practices.
The decision about landscaping affects 63 employees, some of whom have already found other positions at Kaiser Permanente. We value these employees, and any affected employee who wishes to remain employed with Kaiser Permanente in a new role will be able to do so.
SEIU-UHW is making statements about Kaiser Permanente’s commitment to its employees that are misleading and incorrect. The truth is that Kaiser Permanente is growing and adding jobs overall. With more than 149,000 employees and 16,000 physicians, we have added more than 13,000 jobs in the state since 2016. In fact, the number of our employees represented by SEIU-UHW has grown by more than 8,000 statewide since 2016.
On the planned labor activity:
Kaiser Permanente has been notified by SEIU-UHW leadership that the union plans to conduct informational picketing at several of our California offices and medical centers during May 2019. It’s important for our members and patients to know that informational picketing is not a strike and it does not impact our care delivery or operations. While this union is staging picketing, the physicians and employees of Kaiser Permanente will remain focused on the important work of delivering high-quality, affordable care to our members and improving the health of the communities we serve.
Kaiser Permanente started bargaining with the Coalition of Kaiser Permanente Unions in mid-April. We believe that by working together in partnership with the unions that represent our employees, we will continue to achieve the best results for our members, patients, and the communities who depend on Kaiser Permanente to provide high-quality, affordable health care — and help to keep Kaiser Permanente a great place to work for all. We reiterate our pledge to bargain in good faith and our commitment to reach fair and equitable agreements that provide our employees with excellent, market-competitive benefits and wages.
We are disappointed that some union leaders are choosing to make false allegations and pursue an adversarial, destructive approach as part of their bargaining strategy.
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Photo of crash scene by NBC Bay Area.
By CHP-Contra Costa
This afternoon, at about 4:34pm, Contra Costa CHP was advised of a head on collision involving two vehicles on HWY-4 eastbound, east of Balfour Road. Upon emergency personnel and CHP arrival, it was determined that a 2018 Honda SUV was driven across the solid double yellow lines, into oncoming traffic, and collided head on into a 2013 Toyota Corolla. The solo male driver of the Toyota (51-year-old man from Ripon) was pronounced deceased at the scene. The Contra Costa County Sheriff-Coroner’s Office will be handling the release of his identity. The solo male driver of the Honda was ultimately arrested for suspicion of felony DUI.
In the initial investigation, it appears that the solo male driver of the Honda was traveling on HWY-4 westbound (in that area HWY-4 is a two lane undivided highway) and then veered to the left and across the solid double yellow lines and directly head on into the Toyota traveling in the eastbound lane. Upon emergency personnel arrival, the driver of the Toyota was pronounced deceased. The driver of the Honda, a 46-year-old man from Concord, was not injured and investigated for driving under the influence of alcohol and was subsequently arrested for suspicion of felony DUI.
If anyone witnessed this collision or the events leading up to it (that did not remain at the scene to speak with CHP) please contact Contra Costa CHP in Martinez, (925) 646-4980. HWY-4 was completely reopened at 6:25 pm.
Impaired DUI driving is 100% preventable 100% of the time. There is never an excuse for it, and it cannot ever be tolerated. In this situation it tragically cost the life of an innocent person. When will we all learn… #neverdriveimpaired?
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Claim health giant is sitting on $31 billion, yet layoffs begin June 7
OAKLAND, Calif. – Hundreds of healthcare workers, elected officials, faith leaders and community members concerned about healthcare giant Kaiser Permanente’s increasingly profit-driven behavior will rally at 5 p.m., Tuesday, May 7 at national company headquarters, 1 Kaiser Plaza in Oakland, to urge the company to reverse its plan to eliminate jobs at several facilities across Northern California. It is part of a protest at the headquarters and will include an encampment of laid-off workers and their families, a candlelight vigil, visits from politicians and clergy, and the building of a live garden.
“It really tells you something that Kaiser is sitting on tens of billions of dollars in reserves and paying its CEO $16 million a year but then cuts good jobs that support families – it tells you Kaiser is a corporation that has stopped caring about the community,” said Phil Osmond, a Kaiser gardener for 23 years in Oakland. “Kaiser is a non-profit company, and for many years it acted that way and was part of the community. But over the past 10 years it more and more acted like a typical for-profit corporation worried only about the bottom line.”
Under the plan, 63 gardeners will lose their jobs June 7 and an outside company would oversee an entirely new workforce that is paid less and receives fewer benefits than current Kaiser employees. Nearly 100 federal, state and local elected officials in California have sent letters to Kaiser opposing the corporation’s outsourcing plans.
Although the gardeners may be eligible for other jobs within the company, many are concerned they will not find suitable positions because they pay less, are part-time or do not match their skills and experience. Supporters of the workers also have expressed concern that a majority of the affected staff are women and people of color.
The gardeners work at facilities in the following 16 cities: Antioch; Fremont; Manteca; Modesto; Oakland; Richmond; San Francisco; San Jose; San Leandro; San Rafael; Santa Clara; Santa Rosa; Stockton; Vacaville; Vallejo; and Walnut Creek.
Despite being a non-profit organization and self-described community-oriented health provider, Kaiser appears to be behaving just like any other large, for-profit corporation. It reported reserves of $31.5 billion and profits of $6.3 billion the last two years. In 2017, its CEO received a 60 percent raise to more than $16 million in annual compensation, and 35 other executives received more than $1 million annually.
All the while, because it’s a non-profit organization, Kaiser does not have to pay income taxes or property taxes—thus saving itself an estimated $1.1 billion on California and federal income taxes alone in 2017. In contrast, the savings from outsourcing the gardeners is about $1 million, meaning those jobs could easily be protected without putting even a perceptible ripple in the company’s bottom line.
More than 55,000 Kaiser Permanente employees in California are members of SEIU-UHW.
SEIU-United Healthcare Workers West (SEIU-UHW) is one of the largest unions of hospital workers in the western United States with 95,000 members. Learn more at www.seiu-uhw.org
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Ben Riley. Photo from bzbm.com.
In their 2019 rankings of lawyers around the world, Chambers and Partners identified Ben Riley as one of the 12 top litigators in California in the category of Intellectual Property Litigation: Trademark, Copyright & Trade Secrets. Riley is a resident of Orinda and a principal of the firm Bartko Zankel Bunzel & Miller, PLC in San Francisco.
For 30 years, the London-based firm of 200 researchers has conducted thousands of interviews to identify the top lawyers and law firms in the world. Chambers requires that any applicant submit a detailed questionnaire about their practice and cases, and list 20 client and colleague references. Then they conducted telephone and email interviews with each of the references.
From those interviews, Chambers published the following comments about him: “Benjamin Riley is ‘very organized, writes beautifully and is great in front of judges,’ report sources, further noting: ‘He’s very bright, quick to grasp technical and legal issues, and he’s very efficient.’ He is an experienced practitioner skilled in handling a broad range of contentious IP matters. He is particularly highlighted for his expertise in trade secret disputes.”
The full ranking may be found here.
Riley serves on the firm’s executive committee and has tried nearly 30 cases to verdict including jury trials, court trials, and complex arbitrations. His practice focuses on Intellectual Property Litigation, including patents, trade secrets, copyrights, trademarks and license disputes. He also has an active practice in Business Litigation, including class action defense, defense of “consumer claims” under the Lanham Act and unfair competition statutes, accounting issues, and real property litigation.
Riley also represents companies in connection with director and officer, securities, fiduciary duty, and internal investigation issues, and obtained a defense verdict in a six-week securities class action jury trial. Finally, Mr. Riley represents private clients and charities in Trust and Estate Litigation.
Riley has lectured and published extensively as to Intellectual Property, Business Litigation, Trust & Estate Litigation, and trial practice skills. He is an expert in commercial arbitration law and procedure and regularly handles important cases before the world’s leading arbitration forums. He also has an active practice as a Mediator for the Northern District of California and for private litigants.
Riley has been honored as a California Lawyer of the Year and as a “Super Lawyer” every year since 2004. He earned a degree in history from Dartmouth in 1979 and his J.D. from U.C. Berkeley’s Boalt Hall School of Law in 1983.
Allen Payton contributed to this report.
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One of the dogs in a wire crate, Jeremiah Weberling and the trailer that housed the 10 dogs. Photos: Concord PD
By Concord Police Department
On Thursday, a concerned community member called the Concord Police Department reporting that there were three or four dogs “going crazy” inside of a travel trailer that was parked on the street. When Officers arrived on scene, they saw a small dog standing inside by the open trailer door. The dog was barking, panting heavily, and its fur appeared matted and wet. From outside, the officer was able to see that the trailer was filthy and stacked with various items that were almost touching the ceiling in some places.
Shortly after arriving on scene, Officers were able to find the registered owner of the trailer, Jeremiah Weberling, who admitted the dogs belonged to him and that he used the trailer as a mobile “dog house.” Concerned for the well-being of the other dogs inside, an officer stepped in the trailer and saw five more dogs in wire crates. None of the pups appeared to have any water or food and looked to be in poor health. The condition of the trailer was so bad that the officer was only able to take a couple steps before having to go back outside. After seeing the poor condition of the trailer and the dogs, the investigating Officer placed Weberling under arrest for animal cruelty and requested Contra Costa County Animal Services respond to the scene.
Animal Services arrived at the location and a total of ten dogs were found; one of whom was dead. Since all of the other nine dogs were in such poor health, Animal Control brought them to a local emergency vet for treatment. Unfortunately, two of the dogs were so sick and injured they had to be euthanized; the remaining seven are expected to survive.
We know that these cases are extremely sad and difficult to even read. This is a reminder that animal abuse is a very serious crime. Today, the District Attorney’s Office filed ten charges of felony animal cruelty against Weberling and he will remain in jail on a $100,000 bail. There is no word yet on if or when the other seven dogs can be adopted, but we will let you know as soon as we hear.
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Photo: CA Dep’t of Water Resources.
SACRAMENTO – The Department of Water Resources (DWR) today is taking formal steps to withdraw proposed permits for the WaterFix project and begin a renewed environmental review and planning process for a smaller, single tunnel project that will protect a critical source of water supplies for California.
Today’s actions implement Governor Gavin Newsom’s direction earlier this year to modernize the state’s water delivery infrastructure by pursuing a smaller, single tunnel project through the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. The project is needed to protect water supplies from sea-level rise and saltwater intrusion into the Delta, as well as earthquake risk. It will be designed to protect water supply reliability while limiting impacts on local Delta communities and fish.
This action follows the Governor’s recent executive order directing state agencies to develop a comprehensive statewide strategy to build a climate-resilient water system.
“A smaller project, coordinated with a wide variety of actions to strengthen existing levee protections, protect Delta water quality, recharge depleted groundwater reserves, and strengthen local water supplies across the state, will build California’s water supply resilience,” said Natural Resources Secretary Wade Crowfoot.
DWR Director Karla Nemeth took action today to rescind various permitting applications for the WaterFix project, including those in front of the State Water Resources Control Board, California Department of Fish and Wildlife, and federal agencies responsible for compliance with the Endangered Species Act. Documents related to these actions are available here.
DWR will work with local public water agencies that are partners in the conveyance project to incorporate the latest science and innovation to design the new conveyance project, and work with Delta communities and other stakeholders to limit local impacts of the project.
Assemblymember Jim Frazier (D-Discovery Bay), co-chair of the California Delta Legislative Caucus, issued the following statement today after the state Department of Water Resources officially withdrew its permit application to build the twin tunnels.
“It’s very encouraging that after all these years we are finally being heard by the Governor’s Office. The withdrawal of the permit application acknowledges that alternative solutions have been either overlooked or ignored. I look forward to working with the Governor and Secretary Crowfoot to build a comprehensive water plan that is a benefit for all Californians.”
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By Lafayette Police Department
On April 30, 2019, at approximately 3:12 p.m., Lafayette Police Officers were dispatched to a report of a robbery that had just occurred at the Bank of America. Additional information was received that one of the suspects had stated he had a gun.
As Officers were responding, they received information that the suspects were fleeing the scene in a black, four-door sedan and a citizen had provided a license plate number for the vehicle.
When Officers arrived on scene, they determined that no crime had occurred at the Bank of America, but instead at Peet’s Coffee. Officers learned that four suspects drove into the Plaza Shopping Center on Mt. Diablo Blvd., where two of the suspects exited the vehicle, and entered Peet’s Coffee shop. The two suspects each stole a laptop from patrons that were sitting inside and ran to the waiting Saturn sedan.
Two local students were eating in a nearby business and observed the suspects running out of Peet’s with the laptops. They ran out to provide aid and saw the suspect vehicle driving away. Believing a robbery had just occurred, one of the students ran after the vehicle. While the suspect vehicle was stopped in traffic, the student began taking pictures with his cell phone. One of the suspects saw him and yelled out that he had a gun and would shoot him. The student safely backed away and called 911 to report his actions. Lafayette PD will not be releasing the student’s identity.
With the information provided, Officers were able to use city-owned cameras to locate the vehicle and obtain images of the occupants. Lafayette Detectives were able to identify of all the occupants with assistance from Oakland Police. Detectives learned that the registered owner of the vehicle, along with two of the passengers, had active arrest warrants for prior, similar crimes in the City of Berkeley.
By 8:00 p.m., Oakland Police were able to locate the vehicle and detain two of the suspects. Lafayette and Berkeley Police Detectives responded to Oakland and arrested the two suspects. Lafayette Detectives are working with Berkeley Detectives and the investigation is currently active; with two suspects still outstanding. The suspects are not being identified at this time.
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On Saturday, May 4, pet lovers will have the opportunity to adopt a pet for $25 and BISSELL Pet Foundation will sponsor the remaining cost at 110 participating organizations in 20 states. All potential adopters are screened by qualified adoption counselors at every participating shelter to ensure each pet is matched with the right family.
You are required to pay a $25 adoption fee during Empty the Shelters. You are also responsible for paying any dog licensing fees.
Read MoreAlso served as Under Secretary of State for Arms Control under President Obama, and on U.C. Board of Regents
Ellen Tauscher. Photo by U.S. State Department.
By Allen Payton
Ellen Tauscher, who represented parts of Contra Costa County, including Antioch, in California’s 10th Congressional District during her six terms in Congress, died on Monday, April 29 at the age of 67, according to news reports. According to an L.A. Times report, she died of pneumonia after battling it since January.
Tauscher was elected in 1996, beating former Congressman Bill Baker, and served until 2009. She was considered a centrist and become a leader in two fiscally conservative Democratic caucuses, the pro-business New Democratic Coalition and the balance-budget minded Blue Dog Coalition, in the House of Representatives.
During her years in Congress, as a member of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee and the Surface Transportation Subcommittee, Tauscher helped secure $33 million in federal funds for projects in her district, including the widening of Highway 4 in Eastern Contra Costa County, as part of a total $2 billion in funding for regional transportation projects. She also helped create the first balanced budget in 30 years, that gave middle class families a much needed tax cut. She also served as vice chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee
In 2009, during President Obama’s first year in office, Tauscher accepted a position with the U.S. State Department as the Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security Affairs. In that position, she helped negotiate the New Start treaty with the Russian federation in May 2010. In February 2012 Tauscher began serving as Special Envoy for Strategic Stability and Missile Defense at the State Department until August 31, 2012.
She later served on the University of California Board of Regents and as chairman of the Board of Governors for both the Los Alamos and Lawrence Livermore National labs.
According to her Wikipedia page, “Since leaving the State Department, Tauscher assumed a number of publicly held corporate and non-profit board positions, including serving on the boards of Edison International/Southern California Edison (EIX) in Rosemead, California, and eHealth (EHTH) in Mountain View, California. She served on the Board of Advisors of SpaceX, the Board of Directors of BAE Systems, INC., NTI, and the Executive Committee of the Atlantic Council. She served as vice chair of the Atlantic Council’s Brent Scowcroft Center on International Security.”
According to her 2000 campaign biography, Tauscher “was born in East Newark, NJ on November 15, 1951. The first member of her family to attend college, she received a Bachelor of Science degree in Early Childhood Education from Seton Hall University in 1974.
Tauscher began her career on Wall Street. At 25 years of age, she was one of the first and youngest women to hold a seat on the New York Stock Exchange. During her 14 years on Wall Street, Congresswoman Tauscher worked for Bache Securities and then joined…SEC Chairman Arthur Levitt to transform the American Stock Exchange…into a reputable rival to the New York Stock Exchange.”
Also according to Wikipedia, “In 1989, Tauscher moved to California and later founded the ChildCare Registry, the first national research service to help parents verify the background of childcare workers. She also published The ChildCare Sourcebook and headed the Tauscher Foundation, which provided funds for elementary schools to buy computers and Internet access.
In July 2010, Tauscher was diagnosed with Stage 3 esophageal cancer, one of the fastest growing cancers in the United States and one of the deadliest, with a survival rate of 18%. After a grueling regimen of chemotherapy, radiation, and surgery to remove her esophagus, Tauscher was declared cancer-free in December 2010.”
On Tuesday, Congressman Mark DeSaulnier (CA-11) released the following statement on her passing:
“Ellen was a public servant, fierce advocate, and glass ceiling breaker. From her early days as founder of the first service to help parents screen childcare workers to her 12 years as a United States Representative, she was always working to improve the lives of families. In the East Bay, Ellen was involved in every major transportation project including Highway 4 and the Caldecott Tunnel with the goal of helping people spend less time on the roads and more time enjoying life. As an Under Secretary of State, Ellen played an important in role in negotiating the reduction of arms with Russia. After leaving politics, she invested her time in the issues she most cared about including as Chair of the Board of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network Foundation. Throughout her time in government, Ellen was an inspiration and mentor in our community especially for many young women starting their careers.
“Ellen lived a life in service to others. I am honored to have called her a friend. My heart goes out to her family and loved ones in Contra Costa and across the nation.”
U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) released the following statement on the death of Congresswoman Ellen Tauscher:
“The passing of Ellen Tauscher is a loss for us all.
“Ellen was brilliant, gracious and generous and always did her level best to lift up those around her. Ellen was a best friend and I’ll never forget her.
“Ellen had a huge heart and was always ready with a story. She wouldn’t hesitate to help anyone in need, always with a kind word or quip to lift your spirits. My favorite times with Ellen were our weekend dinners in Washington where we’d laugh and trade stories over a glass of California wine.
“At heart, Ellen was a great human being and a wonderful mother to Katherine, a remarkable young woman herself who stayed at her mother’s side in the hospital and was steady, steadfast and warm.
“Ellen never backed down from a challenge and always stood up for what she thought was right. Before she entered the world of politics she was a trailblazer in finance, one of the first woman members – and the youngest – of the New York Stock Exchange.
“When Ellen put her mind to politics, she was a force. She chaired my first two Senate campaigns, and soon after went on to win her own seat in Congress where she served for 12 years. She would spend another three years as Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security Affairs. She was recognized as an expert in the field and really understood weapons of war. She was also appointed by Governor Brown to the University of California Board of Regents, another position at which she excelled.
“Ellen had a practical and effective way with policy. She had a knack for getting to the bottom of an issue smartly but also in ways that people could really understand. She truly loved her country and it was an honor to work with her. She remains an inspiration for all of us in Congress and I hope younger members will look to her as an example to emulate. She’ll always be remembered.”
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Spring-run Chinook. Photo by Bureau of Reclamation.
By Nick Cahill, Courthouse News Service
Surviving an exhaustive maze of manmade barriers and hungry predators, a hardy group of salmon have beat the odds and returned to spawn in one of California’s most-heavily dammed rivers.
Friant Dam on the San Joaquin River. The dam impounds Millerton Lake, 15 miles north of Fresno, California. (Nick Cahill/CNS)
The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation says for the first time in over 65 years, threatened spring-run Chinook adult salmon have returned to the San Joaquin River near Fresno to complete their life cycle. The return of the hatchery-reared fish marks a huge milestone for a billion-dollar undertaking to revive an ancient population of salmon that disappeared in the 1940s with the opening of Friant Dam.
Officials announced that at least five adult spring-run Chinook born in fish hatcheries and released into the wild several years ago, have made the 370-mile trek from the Pacific Ocean back to the San Joaquin River.
Don Portz, who oversees the fish restoration program for the bureau, says the salmon that have been caught in nets prove that the joint-effort by the feds and state is going in the right direction.
“This is monumental for the program,” Portz said in a statement. “It’s a clear indication of the possibility for these fish to make it out of the system as juveniles and then return as adults in order to spawn.”
For years California’s second largest river teemed with salmon, providing food for Native American tribes and then settlers during the 1800s. But as the Gold Rush died down, Californians headed south and found the Central Valley ripe for farming.
3. Chinook salmon equipped with tracking tags being readied for release into the San Joaquin River in California. (Nick Cahill/CNS)
In their pursuit of water, farmers and government agencies ended up damming the river dry in some parts by the 1940s. Water was divvyed up and delivered in canals to farmers for crops like almonds and cotton, but the native salmon species and their spawning habitat vanished. Today, parts of the river go dry during certain times of the year and other sections have manmade barriers that prevent salmon from reaching their spawning beds.
Thanks to a nearly two-decade-long lawsuit fought by the National Resources Defense Council, things are changing on the San Joaquin. A settlement reached in 2006 with the federal government set goals of restoring native fish populations to “good condition” without overtly damaging water suppliers’ take of the river; the state and federal government plan to spend over a billion dollars to restore flows, wetlands and fish to the river.
The five Chinook captured this month returned from the ocean on their own, but had to be transported by researchers in a 500 gallon tank to bypass manmade barriers. The biologists confirmed that the fish were from a California hatchery because they were missing a small rear fin.
The five adult salmon and any others that may return will hold in the cool water below Friant Dam for the summer, before hopefully spawning in the fall.
“Now, that’s worth a toast!,” tweeted Kate Poole about the salmon’s return, senior director at the NRDC.
The long-term goal is to update the barriers to allow fish to swim upstream in the future without being transported, Portz said. Restoration efforts are meant to help spring and fall-run Chinook, Pacific lamprey and white sturgeon.
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In response to yesterday’s announcement by SEIU United Healthcare Workers, regarding launching a protest at Kaiser headquarters in Oakland, today at 5:00 p.m., John Nelson, Vice President Communications, Kaiser Permanente offered the following response.
Regarding the question about gardeners:
As we do with our other medical center campuses, Kaiser Permanente is engaging a professional commercial landscaping vendor at our remaining facilities in Northern California, giving all of our campuses the benefit of the most expert, efficient, and ecologically sound practices.
The decision about landscaping affects 63 employees, some of whom have already found other positions at Kaiser Permanente. We value these employees, and any affected employee who wishes to remain employed with Kaiser Permanente in a new role will be able to do so.
SEIU-UHW is making statements about Kaiser Permanente’s commitment to its employees that are misleading and incorrect. The truth is that Kaiser Permanente is growing and adding jobs overall. With more than 149,000 employees and 16,000 physicians, we have added more than 13,000 jobs in the state since 2016. In fact, the number of our employees represented by SEIU-UHW has grown by more than 8,000 statewide since 2016.
On the planned labor activity:
Kaiser Permanente has been notified by SEIU-UHW leadership that the union plans to conduct informational picketing at several of our California offices and medical centers during May 2019. It’s important for our members and patients to know that informational picketing is not a strike and it does not impact our care delivery or operations. While this union is staging picketing, the physicians and employees of Kaiser Permanente will remain focused on the important work of delivering high-quality, affordable care to our members and improving the health of the communities we serve.
Kaiser Permanente started bargaining with the Coalition of Kaiser Permanente Unions in mid-April. We believe that by working together in partnership with the unions that represent our employees, we will continue to achieve the best results for our members, patients, and the communities who depend on Kaiser Permanente to provide high-quality, affordable health care — and help to keep Kaiser Permanente a great place to work for all. We reiterate our pledge to bargain in good faith and our commitment to reach fair and equitable agreements that provide our employees with excellent, market-competitive benefits and wages.
We are disappointed that some union leaders are choosing to make false allegations and pursue an adversarial, destructive approach as part of their bargaining strategy.
Read MorePhoto of crash scene by NBC Bay Area.
By CHP-Contra Costa
This afternoon, at about 4:34pm, Contra Costa CHP was advised of a head on collision involving two vehicles on HWY-4 eastbound, east of Balfour Road. Upon emergency personnel and CHP arrival, it was determined that a 2018 Honda SUV was driven across the solid double yellow lines, into oncoming traffic, and collided head on into a 2013 Toyota Corolla. The solo male driver of the Toyota (51-year-old man from Ripon) was pronounced deceased at the scene. The Contra Costa County Sheriff-Coroner’s Office will be handling the release of his identity. The solo male driver of the Honda was ultimately arrested for suspicion of felony DUI.
In the initial investigation, it appears that the solo male driver of the Honda was traveling on HWY-4 westbound (in that area HWY-4 is a two lane undivided highway) and then veered to the left and across the solid double yellow lines and directly head on into the Toyota traveling in the eastbound lane. Upon emergency personnel arrival, the driver of the Toyota was pronounced deceased. The driver of the Honda, a 46-year-old man from Concord, was not injured and investigated for driving under the influence of alcohol and was subsequently arrested for suspicion of felony DUI.
If anyone witnessed this collision or the events leading up to it (that did not remain at the scene to speak with CHP) please contact Contra Costa CHP in Martinez, (925) 646-4980. HWY-4 was completely reopened at 6:25 pm.
Impaired DUI driving is 100% preventable 100% of the time. There is never an excuse for it, and it cannot ever be tolerated. In this situation it tragically cost the life of an innocent person. When will we all learn… #neverdriveimpaired?
Read MoreClaim health giant is sitting on $31 billion, yet layoffs begin June 7
OAKLAND, Calif. – Hundreds of healthcare workers, elected officials, faith leaders and community members concerned about healthcare giant Kaiser Permanente’s increasingly profit-driven behavior will rally at 5 p.m., Tuesday, May 7 at national company headquarters, 1 Kaiser Plaza in Oakland, to urge the company to reverse its plan to eliminate jobs at several facilities across Northern California. It is part of a protest at the headquarters and will include an encampment of laid-off workers and their families, a candlelight vigil, visits from politicians and clergy, and the building of a live garden.
“It really tells you something that Kaiser is sitting on tens of billions of dollars in reserves and paying its CEO $16 million a year but then cuts good jobs that support families – it tells you Kaiser is a corporation that has stopped caring about the community,” said Phil Osmond, a Kaiser gardener for 23 years in Oakland. “Kaiser is a non-profit company, and for many years it acted that way and was part of the community. But over the past 10 years it more and more acted like a typical for-profit corporation worried only about the bottom line.”
Under the plan, 63 gardeners will lose their jobs June 7 and an outside company would oversee an entirely new workforce that is paid less and receives fewer benefits than current Kaiser employees. Nearly 100 federal, state and local elected officials in California have sent letters to Kaiser opposing the corporation’s outsourcing plans.
Although the gardeners may be eligible for other jobs within the company, many are concerned they will not find suitable positions because they pay less, are part-time or do not match their skills and experience. Supporters of the workers also have expressed concern that a majority of the affected staff are women and people of color.
The gardeners work at facilities in the following 16 cities: Antioch; Fremont; Manteca; Modesto; Oakland; Richmond; San Francisco; San Jose; San Leandro; San Rafael; Santa Clara; Santa Rosa; Stockton; Vacaville; Vallejo; and Walnut Creek.
Despite being a non-profit organization and self-described community-oriented health provider, Kaiser appears to be behaving just like any other large, for-profit corporation. It reported reserves of $31.5 billion and profits of $6.3 billion the last two years. In 2017, its CEO received a 60 percent raise to more than $16 million in annual compensation, and 35 other executives received more than $1 million annually.
All the while, because it’s a non-profit organization, Kaiser does not have to pay income taxes or property taxes—thus saving itself an estimated $1.1 billion on California and federal income taxes alone in 2017. In contrast, the savings from outsourcing the gardeners is about $1 million, meaning those jobs could easily be protected without putting even a perceptible ripple in the company’s bottom line.
More than 55,000 Kaiser Permanente employees in California are members of SEIU-UHW.
SEIU-United Healthcare Workers West (SEIU-UHW) is one of the largest unions of hospital workers in the western United States with 95,000 members. Learn more at www.seiu-uhw.org
Read MoreBen Riley. Photo from bzbm.com.
In their 2019 rankings of lawyers around the world, Chambers and Partners identified Ben Riley as one of the 12 top litigators in California in the category of Intellectual Property Litigation: Trademark, Copyright & Trade Secrets. Riley is a resident of Orinda and a principal of the firm Bartko Zankel Bunzel & Miller, PLC in San Francisco.
For 30 years, the London-based firm of 200 researchers has conducted thousands of interviews to identify the top lawyers and law firms in the world. Chambers requires that any applicant submit a detailed questionnaire about their practice and cases, and list 20 client and colleague references. Then they conducted telephone and email interviews with each of the references.
From those interviews, Chambers published the following comments about him: “Benjamin Riley is ‘very organized, writes beautifully and is great in front of judges,’ report sources, further noting: ‘He’s very bright, quick to grasp technical and legal issues, and he’s very efficient.’ He is an experienced practitioner skilled in handling a broad range of contentious IP matters. He is particularly highlighted for his expertise in trade secret disputes.”
The full ranking may be found here.
Riley serves on the firm’s executive committee and has tried nearly 30 cases to verdict including jury trials, court trials, and complex arbitrations. His practice focuses on Intellectual Property Litigation, including patents, trade secrets, copyrights, trademarks and license disputes. He also has an active practice in Business Litigation, including class action defense, defense of “consumer claims” under the Lanham Act and unfair competition statutes, accounting issues, and real property litigation.
Riley also represents companies in connection with director and officer, securities, fiduciary duty, and internal investigation issues, and obtained a defense verdict in a six-week securities class action jury trial. Finally, Mr. Riley represents private clients and charities in Trust and Estate Litigation.
Riley has lectured and published extensively as to Intellectual Property, Business Litigation, Trust & Estate Litigation, and trial practice skills. He is an expert in commercial arbitration law and procedure and regularly handles important cases before the world’s leading arbitration forums. He also has an active practice as a Mediator for the Northern District of California and for private litigants.
Riley has been honored as a California Lawyer of the Year and as a “Super Lawyer” every year since 2004. He earned a degree in history from Dartmouth in 1979 and his J.D. from U.C. Berkeley’s Boalt Hall School of Law in 1983.
Allen Payton contributed to this report.
Read MoreOne of the dogs in a wire crate, Jeremiah Weberling and the trailer that housed the 10 dogs. Photos: Concord PD
By Concord Police Department
On Thursday, a concerned community member called the Concord Police Department reporting that there were three or four dogs “going crazy” inside of a travel trailer that was parked on the street. When Officers arrived on scene, they saw a small dog standing inside by the open trailer door. The dog was barking, panting heavily, and its fur appeared matted and wet. From outside, the officer was able to see that the trailer was filthy and stacked with various items that were almost touching the ceiling in some places.
Shortly after arriving on scene, Officers were able to find the registered owner of the trailer, Jeremiah Weberling, who admitted the dogs belonged to him and that he used the trailer as a mobile “dog house.” Concerned for the well-being of the other dogs inside, an officer stepped in the trailer and saw five more dogs in wire crates. None of the pups appeared to have any water or food and looked to be in poor health. The condition of the trailer was so bad that the officer was only able to take a couple steps before having to go back outside. After seeing the poor condition of the trailer and the dogs, the investigating Officer placed Weberling under arrest for animal cruelty and requested Contra Costa County Animal Services respond to the scene.
Animal Services arrived at the location and a total of ten dogs were found; one of whom was dead. Since all of the other nine dogs were in such poor health, Animal Control brought them to a local emergency vet for treatment. Unfortunately, two of the dogs were so sick and injured they had to be euthanized; the remaining seven are expected to survive.
We know that these cases are extremely sad and difficult to even read. This is a reminder that animal abuse is a very serious crime. Today, the District Attorney’s Office filed ten charges of felony animal cruelty against Weberling and he will remain in jail on a $100,000 bail. There is no word yet on if or when the other seven dogs can be adopted, but we will let you know as soon as we hear.
Read MorePhoto: CA Dep’t of Water Resources.
SACRAMENTO – The Department of Water Resources (DWR) today is taking formal steps to withdraw proposed permits for the WaterFix project and begin a renewed environmental review and planning process for a smaller, single tunnel project that will protect a critical source of water supplies for California.
Today’s actions implement Governor Gavin Newsom’s direction earlier this year to modernize the state’s water delivery infrastructure by pursuing a smaller, single tunnel project through the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. The project is needed to protect water supplies from sea-level rise and saltwater intrusion into the Delta, as well as earthquake risk. It will be designed to protect water supply reliability while limiting impacts on local Delta communities and fish.
This action follows the Governor’s recent executive order directing state agencies to develop a comprehensive statewide strategy to build a climate-resilient water system.
“A smaller project, coordinated with a wide variety of actions to strengthen existing levee protections, protect Delta water quality, recharge depleted groundwater reserves, and strengthen local water supplies across the state, will build California’s water supply resilience,” said Natural Resources Secretary Wade Crowfoot.
DWR Director Karla Nemeth took action today to rescind various permitting applications for the WaterFix project, including those in front of the State Water Resources Control Board, California Department of Fish and Wildlife, and federal agencies responsible for compliance with the Endangered Species Act. Documents related to these actions are available here.
DWR will work with local public water agencies that are partners in the conveyance project to incorporate the latest science and innovation to design the new conveyance project, and work with Delta communities and other stakeholders to limit local impacts of the project.
Assemblymember Jim Frazier (D-Discovery Bay), co-chair of the California Delta Legislative Caucus, issued the following statement today after the state Department of Water Resources officially withdrew its permit application to build the twin tunnels.
“It’s very encouraging that after all these years we are finally being heard by the Governor’s Office. The withdrawal of the permit application acknowledges that alternative solutions have been either overlooked or ignored. I look forward to working with the Governor and Secretary Crowfoot to build a comprehensive water plan that is a benefit for all Californians.”
Read MoreBy Lafayette Police Department
On April 30, 2019, at approximately 3:12 p.m., Lafayette Police Officers were dispatched to a report of a robbery that had just occurred at the Bank of America. Additional information was received that one of the suspects had stated he had a gun.
As Officers were responding, they received information that the suspects were fleeing the scene in a black, four-door sedan and a citizen had provided a license plate number for the vehicle.
When Officers arrived on scene, they determined that no crime had occurred at the Bank of America, but instead at Peet’s Coffee. Officers learned that four suspects drove into the Plaza Shopping Center on Mt. Diablo Blvd., where two of the suspects exited the vehicle, and entered Peet’s Coffee shop. The two suspects each stole a laptop from patrons that were sitting inside and ran to the waiting Saturn sedan.
Two local students were eating in a nearby business and observed the suspects running out of Peet’s with the laptops. They ran out to provide aid and saw the suspect vehicle driving away. Believing a robbery had just occurred, one of the students ran after the vehicle. While the suspect vehicle was stopped in traffic, the student began taking pictures with his cell phone. One of the suspects saw him and yelled out that he had a gun and would shoot him. The student safely backed away and called 911 to report his actions. Lafayette PD will not be releasing the student’s identity.
With the information provided, Officers were able to use city-owned cameras to locate the vehicle and obtain images of the occupants. Lafayette Detectives were able to identify of all the occupants with assistance from Oakland Police. Detectives learned that the registered owner of the vehicle, along with two of the passengers, had active arrest warrants for prior, similar crimes in the City of Berkeley.
By 8:00 p.m., Oakland Police were able to locate the vehicle and detain two of the suspects. Lafayette and Berkeley Police Detectives responded to Oakland and arrested the two suspects. Lafayette Detectives are working with Berkeley Detectives and the investigation is currently active; with two suspects still outstanding. The suspects are not being identified at this time.
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On Saturday, May 4, pet lovers will have the opportunity to adopt a pet for $25 and BISSELL Pet Foundation will sponsor the remaining cost at 110 participating organizations in 20 states. All potential adopters are screened by qualified adoption counselors at every participating shelter to ensure each pet is matched with the right family.
You are required to pay a $25 adoption fee during Empty the Shelters. You are also responsible for paying any dog licensing fees.
Read MoreAlso served as Under Secretary of State for Arms Control under President Obama, and on U.C. Board of Regents
Ellen Tauscher. Photo by U.S. State Department.
By Allen Payton
Ellen Tauscher, who represented parts of Contra Costa County, including Antioch, in California’s 10th Congressional District during her six terms in Congress, died on Monday, April 29 at the age of 67, according to news reports. According to an L.A. Times report, she died of pneumonia after battling it since January.
Tauscher was elected in 1996, beating former Congressman Bill Baker, and served until 2009. She was considered a centrist and become a leader in two fiscally conservative Democratic caucuses, the pro-business New Democratic Coalition and the balance-budget minded Blue Dog Coalition, in the House of Representatives.
During her years in Congress, as a member of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee and the Surface Transportation Subcommittee, Tauscher helped secure $33 million in federal funds for projects in her district, including the widening of Highway 4 in Eastern Contra Costa County, as part of a total $2 billion in funding for regional transportation projects. She also helped create the first balanced budget in 30 years, that gave middle class families a much needed tax cut. She also served as vice chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee
In 2009, during President Obama’s first year in office, Tauscher accepted a position with the U.S. State Department as the Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security Affairs. In that position, she helped negotiate the New Start treaty with the Russian federation in May 2010. In February 2012 Tauscher began serving as Special Envoy for Strategic Stability and Missile Defense at the State Department until August 31, 2012.
She later served on the University of California Board of Regents and as chairman of the Board of Governors for both the Los Alamos and Lawrence Livermore National labs.
According to her Wikipedia page, “Since leaving the State Department, Tauscher assumed a number of publicly held corporate and non-profit board positions, including serving on the boards of Edison International/Southern California Edison (EIX) in Rosemead, California, and eHealth (EHTH) in Mountain View, California. She served on the Board of Advisors of SpaceX, the Board of Directors of BAE Systems, INC., NTI, and the Executive Committee of the Atlantic Council. She served as vice chair of the Atlantic Council’s Brent Scowcroft Center on International Security.”
According to her 2000 campaign biography, Tauscher “was born in East Newark, NJ on November 15, 1951. The first member of her family to attend college, she received a Bachelor of Science degree in Early Childhood Education from Seton Hall University in 1974.
Tauscher began her career on Wall Street. At 25 years of age, she was one of the first and youngest women to hold a seat on the New York Stock Exchange. During her 14 years on Wall Street, Congresswoman Tauscher worked for Bache Securities and then joined…SEC Chairman Arthur Levitt to transform the American Stock Exchange…into a reputable rival to the New York Stock Exchange.”
Also according to Wikipedia, “In 1989, Tauscher moved to California and later founded the ChildCare Registry, the first national research service to help parents verify the background of childcare workers. She also published The ChildCare Sourcebook and headed the Tauscher Foundation, which provided funds for elementary schools to buy computers and Internet access.
In July 2010, Tauscher was diagnosed with Stage 3 esophageal cancer, one of the fastest growing cancers in the United States and one of the deadliest, with a survival rate of 18%. After a grueling regimen of chemotherapy, radiation, and surgery to remove her esophagus, Tauscher was declared cancer-free in December 2010.”
On Tuesday, Congressman Mark DeSaulnier (CA-11) released the following statement on her passing:
“Ellen was a public servant, fierce advocate, and glass ceiling breaker. From her early days as founder of the first service to help parents screen childcare workers to her 12 years as a United States Representative, she was always working to improve the lives of families. In the East Bay, Ellen was involved in every major transportation project including Highway 4 and the Caldecott Tunnel with the goal of helping people spend less time on the roads and more time enjoying life. As an Under Secretary of State, Ellen played an important in role in negotiating the reduction of arms with Russia. After leaving politics, she invested her time in the issues she most cared about including as Chair of the Board of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network Foundation. Throughout her time in government, Ellen was an inspiration and mentor in our community especially for many young women starting their careers.
“Ellen lived a life in service to others. I am honored to have called her a friend. My heart goes out to her family and loved ones in Contra Costa and across the nation.”
U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) released the following statement on the death of Congresswoman Ellen Tauscher:
“The passing of Ellen Tauscher is a loss for us all.
“Ellen was brilliant, gracious and generous and always did her level best to lift up those around her. Ellen was a best friend and I’ll never forget her.
“Ellen had a huge heart and was always ready with a story. She wouldn’t hesitate to help anyone in need, always with a kind word or quip to lift your spirits. My favorite times with Ellen were our weekend dinners in Washington where we’d laugh and trade stories over a glass of California wine.
“At heart, Ellen was a great human being and a wonderful mother to Katherine, a remarkable young woman herself who stayed at her mother’s side in the hospital and was steady, steadfast and warm.
“Ellen never backed down from a challenge and always stood up for what she thought was right. Before she entered the world of politics she was a trailblazer in finance, one of the first woman members – and the youngest – of the New York Stock Exchange.
“When Ellen put her mind to politics, she was a force. She chaired my first two Senate campaigns, and soon after went on to win her own seat in Congress where she served for 12 years. She would spend another three years as Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security Affairs. She was recognized as an expert in the field and really understood weapons of war. She was also appointed by Governor Brown to the University of California Board of Regents, another position at which she excelled.
“Ellen had a practical and effective way with policy. She had a knack for getting to the bottom of an issue smartly but also in ways that people could really understand. She truly loved her country and it was an honor to work with her. She remains an inspiration for all of us in Congress and I hope younger members will look to her as an example to emulate. She’ll always be remembered.”
Read MoreSpring-run Chinook. Photo by Bureau of Reclamation.
By Nick Cahill, Courthouse News Service
Surviving an exhaustive maze of manmade barriers and hungry predators, a hardy group of salmon have beat the odds and returned to spawn in one of California’s most-heavily dammed rivers.
Friant Dam on the San Joaquin River. The dam impounds Millerton Lake, 15 miles north of Fresno, California. (Nick Cahill/CNS)
The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation says for the first time in over 65 years, threatened spring-run Chinook adult salmon have returned to the San Joaquin River near Fresno to complete their life cycle. The return of the hatchery-reared fish marks a huge milestone for a billion-dollar undertaking to revive an ancient population of salmon that disappeared in the 1940s with the opening of Friant Dam.
Officials announced that at least five adult spring-run Chinook born in fish hatcheries and released into the wild several years ago, have made the 370-mile trek from the Pacific Ocean back to the San Joaquin River.
Don Portz, who oversees the fish restoration program for the bureau, says the salmon that have been caught in nets prove that the joint-effort by the feds and state is going in the right direction.
“This is monumental for the program,” Portz said in a statement. “It’s a clear indication of the possibility for these fish to make it out of the system as juveniles and then return as adults in order to spawn.”
For years California’s second largest river teemed with salmon, providing food for Native American tribes and then settlers during the 1800s. But as the Gold Rush died down, Californians headed south and found the Central Valley ripe for farming.
3. Chinook salmon equipped with tracking tags being readied for release into the San Joaquin River in California. (Nick Cahill/CNS)
In their pursuit of water, farmers and government agencies ended up damming the river dry in some parts by the 1940s. Water was divvyed up and delivered in canals to farmers for crops like almonds and cotton, but the native salmon species and their spawning habitat vanished. Today, parts of the river go dry during certain times of the year and other sections have manmade barriers that prevent salmon from reaching their spawning beds.
Thanks to a nearly two-decade-long lawsuit fought by the National Resources Defense Council, things are changing on the San Joaquin. A settlement reached in 2006 with the federal government set goals of restoring native fish populations to “good condition” without overtly damaging water suppliers’ take of the river; the state and federal government plan to spend over a billion dollars to restore flows, wetlands and fish to the river.
The five Chinook captured this month returned from the ocean on their own, but had to be transported by researchers in a 500 gallon tank to bypass manmade barriers. The biologists confirmed that the fish were from a California hatchery because they were missing a small rear fin.
The five adult salmon and any others that may return will hold in the cool water below Friant Dam for the summer, before hopefully spawning in the fall.
“Now, that’s worth a toast!,” tweeted Kate Poole about the salmon’s return, senior director at the NRDC.
The long-term goal is to update the barriers to allow fish to swim upstream in the future without being transported, Portz said. Restoration efforts are meant to help spring and fall-run Chinook, Pacific lamprey and white sturgeon.
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