North Richmond
A flare up of deadly shootings in Richmond and unincorporated North Richmond has police and anti-violence workers mobilized in an effort to quell further violence. A version of this article appeared first in the Contra Costa Times. On Monday morning, 22-year-old Orlando Yancy was killed in a drive-by in unincorporated North Richmond, the second homicide in that area this year. Two days later, 27-year-old Donald Washington died after being shot at least five times as he sat in his car…
Joe “Fatter” Blacknell III was sentenced to life in prison plus more than 200 years without possibility of parole for the March 2009 murder of an up-and-coming East Bay rap artist and a September 2009 shooting and carjacking spree in Richmond and Oakland. Blacknell, now 21, was arrested after a brief foot pursuit with Richmond Police at the tail-end of the September 2009 crime spree. He was 18 at the time, and police and District Attorney Office officials say he…
Richmond police have had a busy 18 hours. Since 10 p.m. Tuesday, police and other emergency personnel have dealt with a seven-hour standoff with an attempted murder suspect, an early morning fire at an illegal marijuana cultivation warehouse and a deadly shooting at 10 a.m. Wednesday. The pot fire is the lowest priority investigation, according to police. “Detectives are trying to find out the information of who owns the building,” where the pot was being grown, said Richmond Police Lt….
How do you say hello to a convicted murderer? The thought darted through my head as I strode through the Martinez Courthouse jail facility’s winding corridors of concrete and steel. In moments I would be face-to-face—albeit divided by two-inch thick Plexiglas—with Joe Blacknell III, the young man described by police and District Attorney’s Office officials as one of the most violent offenders in Richmond’s history. I opened the steel door and there he was. His fist was pressed against the…
A man was shot and killed Monday morning as he walked in front the North Richmond Senior Center. No suspect or motive is yet known. By 8:20 a.m., the victim’s body was covered with a yellow tarp at the southwest corner of Silver Avenue and Fifth Street. Contra Costa County Sheriff’s deputies and detectives roped off a square block area around the scene, and large crowds of residents clustered near the four entry points to the intersection. More than 20…
North Richmond is a unique Bay Area community poised for growth and investment in the coming years. But it’s also saddled with a history of decades of poverty and violence, and a jaded outlook toward political leaders and outside forces. How well the tiny community of about 4,000 residents can reconcile those clashing realities could determine the future, according to a report produced by UC Berkeley graduate students. “This is part of a process of building institutional linkages between this…
More than 100 residents and activists turned out in force to work and celebrate Earth Day in North Richmond on Saturday. But they had a lot of help from those no longer here in body, but very much loom over this historic community in spirit. “It feels so good that the community thinks so much of my brother to want to dedicate this garden to him,” said Leo Jackson, brother of longtime community advocate Fred Jackson, who died of cancer…
The day after Tuesday’s shooting in unincorporated North Richmond left a 22-year-old man dying on the sidewalk, a city anti-violence agency filed a complain tagainst a Contra Costa Sheriff’s deputy, accusing him of assaulting one of its staff members minutes after the fatal shooting of Lonnie Peterson III. Office of Neighborhood Safety staff say a deputy shoved ONS Agent Kevin Muccular and kicked and dented a Richmond city vehicle. Muccular rushed to the scene after receiving a tip that a…
There’s a lot happening in Richmond Friday thru Sunday. It’s a mix of environmental, social, educational and political-themed events in our community. FRIDAY Occupy Richmond Earth Day March: 4:30 p.m. to 8 p.m., begins at Richmond BART station. Progressive activists will march from BART station to City Hall in Richmond to protest pollution and tax rates for big corporations. Gathering at City Hall will feature speakers and food. More info here. Ceasefire/Lifelines to Healing Nightwalk: 7 p.m. at Bethlehem Missionary…