Contra Costa Herald

News Of By and For The People of Contra Costa County, California

Recruitment for Interim Contra Costa DA closes Friday

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Candidate Forum set for August 15

Friday, July 21, 2017, is the deadline to submit an application for the vacant position of District Attorney for Contra Costa County.  The June 14 resignation of Mark Peterson from the position of District Attorney created a vacancy that will extend until the current term of office expires on January 7, 2019.  The next election for the District Attorney will take place in June of 2018, with a potential runoff election in November of 2018.

At the August 1, 2017, Board of Supervisors meeting, the Board will review the applications and determine which applicants will continue in the process. The finalists will be invited to participate in a public forum to be held on August 15 at 6:00 p.m., with final candidate interviews by the County Board scheduled for September 12, 2017.

At the forum, a moderated discussion will take place, with questions solicited from the public in advance, as well as during the forum.  If you would like to offer a question, you can submit it online via the District Attorney recruitment section of our website. On that site, you can also offer public comment to be submitted to the Board of Supervisors and entered into the public record.  The forum will be open to the public, televised live and streamed live online.

Completed applications and a supplemental questionnaire must be returned to the County Human Resources Department no later than 5:00 p.m. on Friday, July 21.   Materials can be found online at: https://www.governmentjobs.com/careers/contracosta. A background investigation will be conducted on all finalists. Any offer of employment will be contingent upon the successful completion of a thorough background investigation, which will include fingerprinting; county, state, and national criminal records checks; Economic Disclosure Form 700; and civil filings.

 

Car fire on Highway 4 jumps to hillside burning 30 acres in Antioch, Sunday evening

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Car on fire on the side of eastbound Highway 4 near the Highway 160 offramp, Sunday, July 16, 2017.

Story and Photos By Allen Payton

A car caught fire on the side of eastbound Highway 4 just west of the Highway 160 onramp and interchange, Sunday, July 16, 2017 at approximately 6:00 p.m. The fire then jumped to the grass on the adjacent hillside and quickly spread up the hill. Fire crews were able to bring the fire under control, but not until it had consumed approximately 30 acres. See more photos and video at www.facebook.com/cocoherald.

The car fire jumped to the hillside.

 

Emergency crews arrived and began fighting the fire.

 

As crews battled the fire, it continued to quickly spread up the hill.

Oakley man drives stolen vehicle wrong way on Hwy 4 between Antioch and Brentwood, causes Sat. night crash sending eight to hospital

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Screenshots from KRON4 News video of Highway 4 crash between Antioch and Brentwood, Sat., July 15, 2017.

Car stolen in Concord

By Brandon Correia, Public Information Officer, Contra Costa CHP

Saturday night, July 15, 2017 at about 8:07 p.m., Contra Costa CHP was advised of a head-on collision at HWY4 at Sand Creek Road in Brentwood, with the report of injuries. Upon CHP arrival, it was learned that multiple parties had suffered major injuries. It was determined that one of the vehicles involved was a reported stolen vehicle out of Concord from the same day, a 1994 gold Honda Accord – License#7RAE887 – and that …the gold Honda was traveling the wrong way on HWY4. Two parties had to be air-lifted to trauma centers.

A 2015 Honda Odyssey van with seven occupants was traveling westbound on HWY4, just west of Sand Creek Road. The stolen gold Honda Accord entered the westbound lanes of HWY4, traveling wrong way-eastbound in the westbound lanes-from Lone Tree Way. The suspect vehicle was reported at a high rate of speed and passing multiple vehicles in the wrong way direction until ultimately colliding head-on with the Honda Odyssey. HWY4 was briefly shut down for the investigation.

Injured people from the 2015 Honda Odyssey are listed as follows: The driver, a 30-year-old Asian male adult, out of San Francisco, sustained moderate injuries. Passengers: a 34yr old Asian female adult, out of San Francisco, sustained minor injuries. A female baby, 1yr old-out of San Francisco, just for precaution. A 61-year-old Asian Adult female, out of San Francisco, sustained major injuries but is in stable condition. A 2-year-old Asian Female baby, out of San Francisco, sustained minor injuries. A 72-year-old Asian Adult female, out of San Francisco, sustained minor injuries. A 10-year-old Asian female juvenile, out of San Francisco, sustained minor injuries. All injured parties from the minivan were taken to John Muir Hospital in Walnut Creek.

The suspect vehicle’s passenger, a 22-year-old white male adult, out of Oakley, was transported to Eden hospital in Dublin with major injuries but is in stable condition.

The suspect driver, 24-year-old Rafael Duarte (DOB-11-16-92), out of Oakley, was transported to John Muir Walnut Creek for minor injuries. Upon his release from the hospital, Duarte was arrested and booked into the Martinez Detention Facility for the following charges; Felony DUI, possession and driving of a stolen vehicle, unlicensed drivers license, no vehicle insurance, and driving wrong way on the highway causing injury.

Asked about the victims of the collision, Brandon Correia, Public Information Officer for Contra Costa CHP said, “they’re all in stable condition. The passenger in the gold Honda had major injuries, but they’re not life threatening.”

This is an ongoing investigation and if anyone witnessed this collision or has information regarding it, please contact CHP-Contra Costa in Martinez at (925) 646-4980.

See video of the crash scene on KRON4.com.

Allen Payton contributed to this report.

Concord Councilman Leone announces run for County Schools Superintendent

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Concord Councilman Ron Leone. Photo from his campaign website RonaldLeone.net

Former high school teacher, vice principal, and Director of Student Services

By John Crowder

Concord City Councilman and one-time mayor Ron Leone, a former vice principal at Antioch’s Deer Valley High School, confirmed today that he is running for the position of Contra Costa County School Superintendent in the June 2018 election. Incumbent Karen Sakata, serving in her first term, has not yet indicated if she will seek re-election.

Leone, who is also a former Teacher of the Year and was the Director of Student Services for the Antioch Unified School District (AUSD), has been involved in education for over forty years.  In an interview with this reporter, Leone said he is running because, “education is my passion.  Everything I’ve done over my career has led me to this point, and I want to use my experience to ensure our students achieve academic success.”

According to his bio on the City of Concord’s website, “Ron Leone, a resident of Concord since 1978, was elected to the City Council in 2010, re-elected in 2014. He served as Mayor in 2012 and Vice Mayor in 2014 and 2016. Leone served 35 years in education as a high school teacher and principal. He was the teacher of the year in the San Ramon Valley Unified School District and teachers’ association president. He coached high school baseball, and several championship mock trial and constitutional academic teams.”

“I believe that I have the vision our schools need now,” he continued.  “In many ways, our schools throughout the county need help.  For example, last year the Grand Jury delivered a report on truancy that was very troubling.  Our county is one of the worst in the state for truancy, but I know first-hand that we can turn this around.  I served as the Director of Child Welfare and Attendance in Antioch some years ago, and was the first to conduct truancy sweeps, coordinating with local law enforcement.  Students who were truant were given Saturday school, and phone calls went home to parents.  In subsequent sweeps, we found that, by having real consequences for the students who skipped school, we dramatically reduced the number of repeat offenders.”

Leone also mentioned the financial challenges he plans to address.

“Another potentially serious problem is the County Office of Education’s unfunded liabilities,” he stated. “They continue to grow, and this will undoubtedly impact our ability to keep dollars in the classroom, if it continues.  We faced the same issue in Concord, but by exercising the leadership needed to tackle the matter, we were able to pay down the debt and create a $30 million reserve.”

Vocational training is strongly advocated by Leone. He described a Regional Occupation Program (ROP) his students used during his tenure in Fremont.

“The Mission Valley ROP Center that was developed was part of a Joint Powers Agreement (JPA) with three school districts,” he said.  “I believe this approach would work for our County, as well.  I’m proposing a vocational training center in Central Contra Costa County.  Students from several school districts would be able to attend after school hours.”

Leone wants to work closely with the local school districts in the County. As of today, he’s already met with twelve of the County’s local school district superintendents.

“One of the things that I’m seeing is that the County Office of Education can help our local districts through expanded support of teacher training,” he said. “In addition, we want to encourage school districts to implement programs that advance academic achievement, and to help engage parents in their students’ success.”

Prior to being elected to the Concord City Council, Leone served for 16 years as an elected member of the Mt. Diablo Hospital District Board, as well as Chairman of the Board of the John Muir Hospitals, and the City’s Planning Commission.

Leone invites anyone interested in learning more to contact him at RonaldLeone@comcast.net.

Heritage High graduate Paul Blackburn makes it to the majors, pitching for the A’s

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Opens college doors for over a dozen high school players

By Luke Johnson

After his second MLB start, it was hard for Paul Blackburn to believe it happened in real life.

“I still feel like I’m dreaming out here,” he said in a postgame interview.

Photo by Michael Zagaris.

The Oakland A’s newest pitcher spent his youth all over Eastern Contra Costa County. He was born in Antioch, grew up in Oakley and went to high school in Brentwood.

His coach at Heritage High School, Kevin Brannan, said Blackburn is responsible for the program’s influx of college-bound players.

“What he did was put Heritage on the map,” Brannan said. “Now I’m getting calls in preseason [from scouts] finding out, ‘Hey, who do you have this year?’…He definitely opened the door for a lot of kids.”

Blackburn is the first professional athlete to come out of Heritage High School (est. 2005). Before he was drafted by the Chicago Cubs in 2012, only two Heritage baseball players went straight to four-year colleges. However, since he graduated, that number has inflated to 25. This figure consists of colleges that are Division I-III according to Brannan.

“There have always been a lot of great athletes that came through here, and I’m sure there will be a lot more,” Blackburn said.

Brannan said he used to beg for scouts to look at his athletes, but now he has them constantly contacting him – eager to come to games. In the past two seasons alone, nine Heritage baseball players have received Division-I scholarships.

“Back then, a kid would go to one showcase and maybe not have his best performance,” Brannan said. “But now scouts come to multiple games and a kid will have more opportunities than just that one at bat.”

In two MLB appearances, Blackburn has pitched 13 and 2/3 innings with a 0.66 ERA. His next start is Saturday in Oakland against the reigning American League Champions Cleveland Indians.

County’s annual homelessness count shows drop in number, shifting population

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Contra Costa’s annual survey to document people experiencing homelessness showed a 7 percent drop overall in 2017 compared to last year, but a substantial rise in Central County, according to a report released by Contra Costa Health Services’ Division of Health, Housing and Homeless Services (H3).

H3 and its community partners, including many volunteers, surveyed county residents living in emergency shelters or outdoors on Jan. 25 and released detailed findings this week in the 2017 Point in Time Count report, available at ccheath.org/h3

The report shows that 1,607 people without housing during that 24-hour period were counted, including 911 who were living outside. About 1,100 were documented living outside in 2016.

“We are glad that we found fewer people experiencing homelessness. But there is a great deal more work to be done, and the housing market makes it more difficult,” H3 Director Lavonna Martin said. “It’s not surprising that 80 percent of those we surveyed lost their housing right here in Contra Costa County.”

Substantially more people were counted this year in central Contra Costa – 331 living outdoors without shelter – after an atypically low count in 2016. Numbers did decline elsewhere, including East County, which had experienced a 30 percent increase from 2015 to 2016.

Since the count, H3 and the Contra Costa Council on Homelessness have launched Coordinated Entry, a new initiative to streamline service delivery and enhance collaboration among the county’s network of nonprofit, faith-based and government providers of homeless services.

Concord, Martinez, Pleasant Hill and Walnut Creek all joined the effort this spring. Martinez and Pleasant Hill split the cost of a full-time, county-operated outreach team to connect homeless residents within their borders with shelter and services. Concord and Walnut Creek are splitting the cost of a second team, and Contra Costa’s Public Works Department also funds a team for the county’s creeks and waterways.

Those city-specific Coordinated Outreach, Referral and Engagement (CORE) teams join three other CORE teams that operate elsewhere in the county. Other elements of Coordinated Entry include:

• Regional service centers connecting clients to shelter, medical and mental health care, case managers, substance use disorder treatment and services, benefit counselors, and long-term housing;

• Overnight warming centers that supplement existing emergency shelters;

• A universal, web-based information management system used by all providers of homeless services in the county to maximize use of their collective resources;

• A standardized intake and assessment system that streamlines delivery of housing and other services to the most vulnerable clients.

Coordinated Entry is funded in part through $1.2 million in grants from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Contra Costa’s point-in-time count also fulfills a HUD requirement to document the extent of homelessness within jurisdictions receiving its funding.

Visit cchealth.org/h3 to read the 2017 Point-in-Time Count report.

Supervisors slap distance limits on tobacco retailers

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Accept Grand Jury report on overcrowded Antioch Animal Shelter

By Daniel Borsuk

Up to 94 retailers of tobacco products located in unincorporated parts of Contra Costa County will need to comply with a new ordinance designed to protect youth from using tobacco products, a leading cause of heart and lung disease related deaths in the United States.

County supervisors voted 5-0 Tuesday in approving a Tobacco Retailer Ordinance, a law that took two years in the development process at the Planning Commission level until earlier this month when the commission passed a resolution recommending that supervisors reject the proposed law.

The Planning Commission’s resolution stated denial is based on “the proposed Tobacco Retail Business Ordinance is not necessary and places an undue burden on existing tobacco retailer businesses.”

But county supervisors did not accept the Planning Commission’s recommendation to reject the ordinance. 

When supervisors initially received the Tobacco Retailer Ordinance it included a 10-year non-conforming use provision, but supervisors decided to eject that clause on grounds it would be too much of an economic burden on store owners that was lobbied by retail groups like the National Association of Tobacco Outlets (NATO).

Even then Jaimie Rojas of NATO criticized the ordinance saying it is an example of “government overreach.”  Rojas said the ordinance will also spark economic impacts by forcing retail owners to lay off employees and will “ignite consumer confusion.”

The Tobacco Retailer Ordinance imposes distance limits on existing and new tobacco retailers and operators of hookah lounges and vapor lounges even though there are no hookah and vapor lounges in operation in the unincorporated areas of the county.

The county ordinance prohibits new tobacco retailers from being located within 500 feet of any other existing tobacco retailer, hookah lounge or vapor lounge.  The new law that goes into effect next month, also prohibits these new businesses from being located 1,000 feet of a public or private school, playground, park or library.

Existing businesses can be within 500 feet of another existing tobacco retailer or within 1,000 feet of a school, park, playground or library, but the retailer, hookah lounge or vapor lounge owner but will not be permitted to expand its tobacco retail use.

District 1 Supervisor John Gioia of Richmond hailed the ordinance commenting “There will be no new ones (i.e. tobacco retailers) in unincorporated Contra Costa County.”

Next week supervisors are expected to adopt an ordinance with similar distance requirements to be applied to tobacco retailers selling flavored tobacco products marketed heavily to youth under the legal smoking age of 21.

The supervisors’ action is expected to trigger action from city councils around the county to pass similar ordinances designed to clamp down on the 636 tobacco retail, hookah lounge and vapor lounge businesses in incorporated areas.

“I think I have been a leader on this issue,” proclaimed board chair Federal Glover whose District 5 includes Bay Point that has one of the highest concentrations of tobacco retailers, 16, located nearby schools, parks, playgrounds or libraries.  “I am also pleased with the ordinance’s grandfathering provision,” he said.

District 3 Supervisor Diane Burgis of Brentwood said she was concerned about how the ordinance’s 500-foot limit might have a major economic impact on retailers in a small tourist town like Bethel Island.

“I don’t want it to punish these businesses,” Burgis said.

District 2 Supervisor Candace Andersen of Danville branded the ordinance as being “reasonable” based on how the new law will stymy new tobacco retail businesses from opening within close proximity of existing businesses or from being located within 1,000 feet from a school, playground, park, or and library. 

The supervisor said it is mainly because of the easy availability or accessibility of tobacco products that “It’s shocking to see 12, 13, and 14-year-old little league baseball players chomping on chewing tobacco during games.”

Grand Jury Report on Antioch Animal Shelter

Supervisors accepted a Civil Grand Jury report on the over-populated Antioch Animal Shelter. 

The City operated shelter has been regularly over-populated with dogs and cats, of which many of the animals are dropped off by out-of-town Antioch residents.  In 2016, the average daily animal count at the shelter was 196, when the recommended daily animal count based by the American Humane Society should be 101 at 2017 daily standards.

To help remedy the animal overpopulation problem at the shelter, the grand jury asked the Board of Supervisors to respond to two recommendations. 

One recommendation calls on county supervisors to consider funding a study to “examine the feasibility of establishing a county shelter in east county.”

The second recommendation suggests that the City of Antioch and county negotiate a memorandum of understanding whereby the Antioch shelter accepts all animals, but animals identified as non-city of Antioch animals should be regularly picked up by County Animal Control Officers and transported to the county shelter. 

House passes DeSaulnier bill to expand John Muir National Historic Site

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John Muir’s home in Martinez, CA. Photo courtesy of National Park Service.

Washington, D.C. – On Tuesday, the U.S. House of Representatives passed Congressman Mark DeSaulnier’s (CA-11) bill to expand the historic site that celebrates the life of John Muir in Martinez, CA. The John Muir National Historic Site Expansion Act (H.R. 1719) would add an additional 44 acres of donated land to the park to improve access and preserve the land for generations to come. The bill passed the House by a vote of 401-to-15 and now moves to the Senate for consideration.

“John Muir, the father of our National Park Service, championed the revolutionary idea that America’s wild spaces ought to be preserved for all to enjoy. As a nature-lover and proud Californian, it is an honor to lead this effort as a tribute to John Muir. It is my hope that expanding the site where Muir drew inspiration will allow residents to further enjoy the beauty of the East Bay. I thank the John Muir Land Trust for its stewardship and protection of John Muir’s legacy,” said DeSaulnier.

“Our sincere thanks go out to Congressman DeSaulnier for such critical legislation. Muir often walked this land with his two daughters, to admire the coast live oak that grow there, as well as the annual wildflowers that punctuate its grassy hillsides. Expansion of the John Muir Historic Site will forever protect this beautiful property and allow future generations to share in the same delights as Muir’s daughters,” said Linus Eukel, Executive Director of John Muir Land Trust.

Currently, the John Muir National Historic Site spans 330 acres of Contra Costa County, and includes the home where Muir lived and wrote. The parcel of land being donated is located on the south side of Mount Wanda.

The John Muir National Historic Site Expansion Act would authorize the National Park Service to acquire land that is being donated by the John Muir Land Trust. Since the parcel of land being donated by the trust exceeds the size the National Park Service is permitted to acquire administratively, Congressional approval is needed.

Senator Kamala Harris has introduced companion legislation in the Senate. DeSaulnier first introduced this bill last Congress, where it passed the House, but was not considered in the Senate. This effort was first spearheaded by former Congressman George Miller, who previously represented California’s 11th Congressional District.

Gov. signs Frazier bill allowing funds for out of state school field trips

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Sacramento, CA – Gov. Jerry Brown, Monday signed AB 341 by Assemblymember Jim Frazier (D-Discovery Bay), which gives local school districts the authority to use funds at their discretion for student participation in field trips or excursions to other states, the District of Columbia, or a foreign country.

“School districts have been explicitly prohibited from using funds to help students participate in field trips or educational excursions out of state,” Frazier said. “AB 341 changes this, allowing schools to use district funds to enhance educational opportunities by increasing access to student resources and improving the outcomes that students experience.”

 The idea for AB 341 came locally from the Fairfield-Suisun School District, which is in the 11th Assembly District. In the spring of 2016, Armijo High School and Grange Middle School VEX robotics teams qualified to participate in the world competition in Kentucky. The students on these teams needed financial assistance to attend the competition. The school district was required to file for a waiver to the state Department of Education, in order to use district funds for this purpose.  AB 341 will eliminate the need for a waiver, allowing school districts to use their own discretion on whether to use district funds for travel that enhances student educational experiences.

 “This common-sense legislation grants local school districts the authority to use funds to help students whose families may not have the financial means to pay for these types of opportunities,” Frazier said. “I thank Fairfield-Suisun School District for bringing the need for this legislation to my attention and for the district’s strong support of AB 341 during the legislative process.”

Assemblymember Jim Frazier represents the 11th Assembly District, which includes the communities of Antioch, Bethel Island, Birds Landing, Brentwood, Byron, Collinsville, Discovery Bay, Fairfield, Isleton, Knightsen, Locke, Oakley, Pittsburg (partial), Rio Vista, Suisun City, Travis AFB, Vacaville and Walnut Grove. To contact him please visit his website at www.asmdc.org/frazier or call his District Offices at 707-399-3011 or 925-513-0411. Follow him on Facebook and “Like” him for updates on events and happenings in the 11th AD.

Marsh Creek Road repair work during daytime, Mon.-Fri. from July 10-20

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Expect delays

Contra Costa County Public Works Department will perform work on Marsh Creek Road from Deer Valley Road to the Clayton City limits from July 10 through July 20, 2017. The work will occur Monday through Friday between the hours of 8:30 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. to shape slopes and shoulders along the road edge where mudslides occurred during the winter storms.

The work may be rescheduled based on weather conditions. Electronic message boards will alert drivers of the scheduled work. There will be traffic control through the work area and drivers can expect delays of 10-15 minutes.