Safety
The first of six defendants in the Richmond High gang rape of 2009 was sentenced in Contra Costa County Superior Court in Martinez today to 32 years in prison. The sentencing was a formality after Manuel Ortega, 22, plead guilty last month to counts of rape, rape by a foreign object, forced oral copulation resulting in great bodily injury and robbery. The Contra Costa County District Attorney was about to start jury selection earlier this year when Ortega approached Senior…
When the door opened at West County Detention Facility for Tamisha Walker, it was dark. After six months in jail, Walker was free. But she was alone. No one was there to pick her up. All she had was a bus ticket and a bag. “You just get on a bus,” Walker said. “And it’s a long, lonely ride.” Jeff Rutland knows the lonely freedom Walker spoke of. He’s reminded of it every time he sees a released inmate walk…
Governor Jerry Brown signed a bill late last month making it illegal to visibly carry loaded or unloaded shotguns or rifles. In San Francisco the open carry ban has spurred debates and some protests by open carry advocates. But across the Bay in Richmond, the response has been more muted, and some citizens said the ban won’t have a substantial impact on their city. Kevin Muccular, a change agent with the Office of Neighborhood Safety, said that his organization hadn’t…
Jury selection began Tuesday in Contra Costa County Superior Court in Martinez for a double homicide inside a Richmond restaurant in 2009. Four men have each been charged with two counts of murder plus gang offenses for the shooting and killing of Alvaro Garcia, 23, and Intaz Ahmed, 32, on Aug. 30, 2009 at the Pitt Boss Barbeque on San Pablo Avenue. The jury will consider the case of two of the defendants, Steven Miranda, 23, and Ignacio Ruiz, 31,…
As an advocate for non-violence, Dr. Joseph Marshall had devoted the better part of his adult life to teaching others how to answer tough questions. Questions like: How thin is the line between killing someone and turning the other cheek? What would it take for you to justify murder? Can you conquer your instincts when those instincts were shaped from years of fighting on the streets? But it wasn’t until a few years ago that he had to face the…
One year has passed since California transferred responsibility for low-level felons to its counties, and Contra Costa officials have yet to pass a budget for the $19 million the county received in July to handle the transition — stalling services for inmates and people getting out of jail now. At a meeting Thursday the Community Corrections Partnership, a seven-member group charged with overseeing realignment, celebrated what it has accomplished: collaboration between departments and agencies. The partnership brings department heads from…
City Councilmembers Tuesday night refused to publicly discuss last week’s assault involving Councilmember Corky Booze, saying they would leave the matter to law enforcement. Booze was involved in a fight with a member of the Richmond Progressive Alliance last week, and the RPA, the NAACP and members of the public gave statements in public comment condemning political violence. ”The NAACP rises in opposition of any violence used by any person or organizations as a tool to silence conflicting opinions,” the…
A 30-year-old Richmond man pleaded not guilty to murder charges for a shooting in mid-September at a hearing Tuesday in the Richmond Superior Court. Jafari Sargent turned himself in to the Richmond police on Sept. 18, a week after the shooting death of Isaiah Thomas. Eyewitnesses said the shooting resulted from an escalating argument between Thomas and Sargent, who were cousins. Sargent’s attorney, Colin Cooper, said that the victim provoked Sargent. “It wouldn’t have happened had he not been put…
About 120 pounds of prescription drugs were dropped off at the Richmond Police Department’s Prescription Drug Take Back Day Saturday at the Hilltop Mall police substation. A strategically placed 2012 Chevy Camaro patrol car attracted the attention of passersby, which gave police representatives the opportunity to educate the adults on the risks of prescription drugs in the home and drug abuse while entertaining the kids who played a trunk-mounted X-Box. The RPD’S purpose is to combat drug trafficking on the…