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Santa Clara moves closer to letting voters decide whether to change the police chief and city clerk from elected to appointed roles

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:08:56 GMT

Santa Clara has California’s last elected police chief, and now it’s one step closer to letting voters decide whether to change that.At a Tuesday evening meeting fraught with controversy over a “tainted” survey, a divided Santa Clara City Council provided feedback to city officials on a proposal to change the police chief and city clerk positions from elected to appointed. The city clerk position is largely part-time.In June, the council established a seven-member Charter Review Committee to examine the issue and last month it voted to recommend the council place the two measures on a future ballot.The committee gathered feedback from appointed police chiefs and city clerks in the U.S., as well as the city’s current elected officials serving in the roles — Police Chief Pat Nikolai and City Clerk Hosam Haggag. But a survey that ran from Sept. 7 to Oct. 12 on the city’s website that was meant to gather feedback from the community on the issue ...

Bay Area arts: 9 great shows and exhibits to catch this weekend

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:08:56 GMT

From Opera San Jose’s latest take on a classic show to a hip-hop dance festival and an Elvis/drag queen-themed play, there is a lot to see and do this weekend in the Bay Area.Note that if you are headed into San Francisco, the massive APEC international conference running Nov. 11-19 is going to pose traffic issues. More about that is here. And here is a map detailing the more heavily affected areas.Here’s our partial roundup.Classical picks: California Feast; ‘Barber of Seville’The Bay Area’s classical music scene extends its reach this week, as the San Francisco and California Symphonies perform as part of the California Festival, and Opera San Jose opens its new production of a treasured opera.Statewide works: The California Festival is celebrating the new. Led by three conductors — San Francisco Symphony music director Esa-Pekka Salonen, San Diego Symphony’s Rafael Payare, and L.A. Philharmonic’s Gustavo Dudamel — the two-week statewide festiva...

These 10 homes were in the week of Oct. 30 best deals for Los Gatos

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:08:56 GMT

A condo in Los Gatos that sold for $899,000 tops the list of the most affordable real estate sales in Los Gatos in the past week.For comparison, the overall average price of real estate in the area during that time was $2.2 million. The average price per square foot was $1,046. A total of 10 home sales were recorded for the period with an average square footage of 2,090 square feet, 3 bedrooms, and 3 bathrooms.For the purpose of this top 10 list, we included real estate that sold for between $10 and $10,000,000.The prices in the list below concern real estate sales where the title was recorded during the week of Oct. 30 even if the property may have been sold earlier.10. $3.6 million, detached house in the 100 block of Drysdale DriveThe 3,276 square-foot single-family home in the 100 block of Drysdale Drive, Los Gatos, has now been sold. The transfer of ownership was settled in October and the total purchase price was $3,550,000, $1,084 per square foot. The house was built in 1970. ...

California man charged with running a ‘high-end brothel network’ used by elected officials, military officers and others

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:08:56 GMT

(CNN) — Three individuals have been arrested on charges of operating a “high-end brothel network” in Massachusetts and Virginia with a clientele that included elected officials, military officers and government contractors with security clearances, the Justice Department announced Wednesday.“Pick a profession,” Joshua Levy, acting US attorney for Massachusetts, said of the sprawling client list during a press conference in Boston. “They’re probably represented in this case.”Levy did not identify any of the brothel’s clients and noted that multiple search warrants are being executed in the case in Massachusetts, California and Virginia.Han Lee, 41, of Cambridge, Massachusetts; James Lee, 68, of Torrance, California; and Junmyung Lee, 30, of Dedham, Massachusetts have been charged with conspiracy to coerce and entice to travel to engage in illegal sexual activity. They are expected to appear in federal court in Boston Wednesday or at a later date.The three individuals, Levy said, tran...

Watsonville-based farm owner charged with involuntary manslaughter after 2020 employee death

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:08:56 GMT

WATSONVILLE — The owner of a Watsonville-based farm has been formally charged with involuntary manslaughter in connection to the 2020 death of one of his employees in a workplace incident, according to the Santa Clara County Office of the District Attorney.The president of Willoughby Farms, Inc., 50-year-old David Willoughby, was arraigned on the felony charges Tuesday. He faces a potential maximum sentence of four years in prison.Around 4:50 a.m. on Oct. 15, 2020, Carlos Jimenez Cruz, a 32-year-old employee of Willoughby Farms died when the hood on his clothing was caught in the spinning shaft of a 16,000-pound spinach harvester, the DA’s Office said. Prosecutors allege that the farm didn’t provide adequate training and left dangerous parts of the machine exposed.Related ArticlesCrime and Public Safety | San Jose police arrest second teen in connection to hit-and-run that killed pregnant woman, baby Crime and Public Safety | Nine arrested in s...

Photos: Paradise moves forward, 5 years after the Camp Fire

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:08:56 GMT

Related ArticlesCalifornia News | Rebuilding Paradise: Six projects to prevent a future tragedy, five years after the Camp Fire California News | Paradise recovery from deadly Camp Fire: How to build a fireproof town California News | Philp: California fire victims may be taxed for their suffering See from ground-level and from the skies how parts of Paradise, California, have changed in the five years since the Camp Fire — California’s deadliest and most destructive ever. Bay Area News Group photographers Karl Mondon and LiPo Ching documented the town on foot and from above via drone in the days immediately after the Nov. 8, 2018 inferno killed 85 residents and razed homes and businesses. Use the sliders below to compare then and now.Click here to read our full report on Paradise five years later.Ridgewood Mobile Home ParkValley Ridge DriveDawnridge CourtMelene Court

San Carlos samurai sword beheading trial: Landaeta made murder confession, deputy testifies

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:08:56 GMT

REDWOOD CITY, Calif. (KRON) -- Testimony from key witnesses and investigators is underway for the samurai sword beheading murder trial in the San Mateo County courthouse. Jose "Rafa" Solano Landaeta, 34, of Hayward, is charged with murdering Karina Castro outside her San Carlos apartment building on Sept. 8, 2022. Landaeta refused to attend his own trial for opening statements on Tuesday, and instead remained in his jail cell. He chose to appear in the courtroom on Wednesday as testimony continued.San Mateo County Sheriff's deputy Damian Machuca testified that he was working at the grisly crime scene when Landaeta suddenly appeared with his mother and made a murder confession. Machuca said he first saw the duo when the mother and son lifted up yellow crime scene tape and crossed under it. "I yelled at them to move back," Machuca testified.Karina Castro (Images via Facebook) Prosecutor Josh Stauffer asked the deputy, "What are the exact words the defendant said to you?"Machuca a...

APEC protesters launch actions with Bay Bridge banner

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:08:56 GMT

(BCN) -- Get ready for a week of protests as the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation comes to San Francisco. Early Wednesday, the group Oil and Gas Action Network launched the actions by hanging a 75-foot banner above the Treasure Island tunnel on the Bay Bridge reading "Biden & APEC: End Fossil Fuels." As over 21 heads of state arrive for the conference starting this weekend under the theme "Creating a Resilient and Sustainable Future for All," protesters are arriving with the same challenge. Will there be a ‘homeless sweep’ before APEC? "We expect about 200 different organizations to come to the city to participate in a range of creative actions," said Matt Leonard, a spokesman for the group. Different groups will protest other causes, including labor rights and climate justice. But his group's focus is on U.S. policy on fossil fuels."President Biden has come under consistent fire for his administration's approval of massive new fossil fuel projects," the group said in a state...

What It’s Like to Give Birth in Gaza

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:08:56 GMT

KHAN YOUNIS, GAZA — The Israeli assault on the Gaza Strip has left the health sector in the besieged coastal enclave in a state of unprecedented, near-total collapse, according to an investigation by +972 Magazine and The Intercept. The dire conditions were prompted by Israel’s intensive bombardment, sometimes targeting hospitals and surrounding areas, along with power cuts, shortages of fuel and medical supplies, and an exponential increase in injuries.More than half of the 30 hospitals in Gaza have closed completely, according to the Health Ministry. For others, the window of operation remains precariously short: The crisis has pushed many of the remaining health care centers to the brink of closure, rendering them incapable of providing vital medical services. Health care workers and hospital employees fear that, even as casualties rise daily, the health care system will soon be unable to accommodate new patients.“We ran out of fuel and the electricity is cut off. The hospital is...

Is the Democratic sweep of legislative elections a minor setback or disaster for Va. Gov. Youngkin?

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:08:56 GMT

Democrats took full control of Virginia’s General Assembly, retaining their majority in the state Senate and winning enough seats to gain a majority in the House of Delegates.Analysts predicted both chambers would be highly competitive going in to Tuesday’s election. Now that the smoke has cleared, WTOP has spoken with analysts to figure out what happens next.Kyle Kondik, managing editor of Sabato’s Crystal Ball from the University of Virginia Center for Politics, joined WTOP Wednesday to talk about what Tuesday’s results mean going forward.Steven Farnsworth, political-science professor at the University of Mary Washington, also spoke with WTOP about Tuesday’s results.Find both conversations below:Kyle Kondik toggle audio on and off change volume ...