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Marceles Peter, 20, and Jose Montano, 22, were both found guilty on three counts today by juries at the Contra Costa County Superior Court. The men face life in prison in connection with the Oct. 24, 2009 Richmond High School gang-rape of a 16-year-old girl.
In 30 years as husband and wife, Mearn Leepom, 56, and Bounkeo Viengvilai, 50, were inseparable. “They never lived away from each other. They were together in death too,” said their daughter, Kerry Viengvilai, who is mourning the loss of her parents and her brother. All three died in a house fire Friday on 21st Street. When the fire broke out early Friday morning, the victims were sleeping in a garage structure they had converted into a bedroom. The rest…
A small group of residents interrupted a Richmond City Council meeting Tuesday demanding that Chevron compensate the city and its residents for damage caused by the August 2012 refinery fire. The group also announced two events that will be held next month to commemorate the anniversary of the fire. Six refinery employees sustained minor injuries in the fire at Richmond’s Chevron refinery, and 15,000 Richmond residents sought medical treatment after breathing polluted air. The reputation of the City of Richmond has suffered because…
It’s day two of the BART strike, and commuters across San Francisco are not happy. From the Mission District to the Embarcadero, children, teenagers and adults squeezed onto overcrowded buses, hailed cabs, made phone calls to jobs and loved ones to say they’d be late, and stood in long lines for AC Transit buses and ferries headed across the Bay. “It’s a huge inconvenience for everybody,” said Joe Guthrie, of the East Bay, as he rode the 14L bus to…
Need to know how you’re getting home tonight because of the BART strike? Check out these resources to help you plan: – For people in San Francisco, Muni offers a list of alternatives here. – BART is offering limited bus service: From El Cerrito del Norte, Walnut Creek, Dublin/ Pleasanton and Fremont stations into San Francisco from 5 to 8 a.m. and back from a stop near the San Francisco Transbay Terminal from 3 to 7 p.m. From West Oakland Station to San Francisco from 5 to 9 a.m. and back from a stop near the…
It’s official: The Supreme Court has made same-sex marriage a reality in California. The justices dismissed an appeal Wednesday by sponsors of Proposition 8, a voter-approved ban on gay marriage, and ruled that same-sex couples are entitled to the same benefits as opposite-sex couples. Same-sex couples and advocates of gay marriage around the Bay Area celebrated the historic victory after word came in early this morning, and after years of uncertainty about whether or not their unions would be recognized…
Update: Wednesday’s morning results show that BART workers decided to allow union leaders to call a strike if a contract agreement isn’t reached by July 1. Bay Area Rapid Transit riders braced themselves Tuesday for a possible strike that could tremendously slow down their commute as soon as next Monday. Labor unions gathered at Metro Center in San Francisco on Tuesday to vote to authorize a strike. Results of the votes are expected to be announced Wednesday morning. More than 400,000…
A young man previously convicted in the group rape of a 16-year-old girl four years ago testified against two other suspects on Thursday. Ari Morales, 19, never testified during his own trial in January. His comments last week marked the first time his version of events has been recorded in court. The testimony is part of a new trial against suspects Marcelles Peter, 20, and Jose Montano, 22, both of whom were charged with rape, rape with a foreign object…
The woman who is allegedly the victim of a gang rape that happened four years ago outside Richmond High’s homecoming dance testified Monday to a full courtroom at Contra Costa County Superior Court in Martinez. It was the first time the woman had appeared publicly since reports of the brutal rape sent shock waves across the country in 2009, and she took the stand to give evidence against two of the men accused of sexually assaulting her. Jane Doe (the…