Family remembers Xavier McClanahan

The first thing Xavier McClanahan’s family says is that everyone loved him. As they gathered in a meeting room at the Praise Fellowship Bible Church in Richmond after Sunday services, his mother Ligé spoke of his magnetic personality—people just wanted to be around him. His cousin Daniel, wearing an “R.I.P Xavier” t-shirt, said that he…

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Police steamed after small fire sets off sprinklers at headquarters

It wasn’t the heat, it was the humidity that got to members of the Richmond Police Department when a small fire broke out in the department headquarters Sunday morning. The fire-activated sprinkler systems extinguished the flames, but the sprinklers caused water damage severe enough to force the temporary relocation of 30 detectives and supervisors. Smoke damage…

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Police investigating marijuana find at Richmond officer’s home

Just before Thanksgiving last year, a UPS Store employee turned over a box containing about 5 lbs. of marijuana to Richmond police officer Joe Avila. But the marijuana he carried from the shop that afternoon was never booked into evidence at the precinct. According to a search warrant issued by the Contra Costa Superior Court in September, the drugs didn’t make it to the Richmond Police Department’s property vault, but ended up at Avila’s home in Oakley, 44 miles away.

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