Bay Area

State Sets Bail to Zero for Misdemeanors and Some Lower-Level Felonies

Published

5 years ago

April 16, 2020

Antonio Ray Harvey, California Black Media

In an effort to protect the safety and health of the citizens of California, the state’s Judicial Council set bail to zero for non-violent crimes. The new rule is one among 11 the council has adapted to avoid filling up jails during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Certain lower-level felonies and misdemeanors will get temporary 90-day reprieves in order to shield attorneys, court staff, judges, law enforcement agents, employees and incarcerated inmates in jail facilities from the deadly effects of the coronavirus.

The action by the policy-making body of the courts was called to help control the spread of the virus among inmates and reduce the number of prisoners from lock-up. The city of Los Angeles first enacted a zero-bail initiative a couple of weeks ago.

Now, the measure is statewide.

California Chief Justice Tani Cantil-Sakauye, the chairperson of the Judicial Council, said the measure received a lot of input and considerations before approval to reduce the jail population.

“We listened to suggestions from our justice system partners, the public, and the courts, and we greatly appreciate all of the input,” said Cantil-Sakauye in a written statement. “Working with our stakeholders, I’m confident we can preserve the rule of law and protect the right of the victims, the accused, litigants, families and children, and all who seek justice. It’s truly a team effort.”

In mostly overcrowded conditions, African Americans are overrepresented in California’s prison population. Nearly 29% of the state’s male inmates were Black in 2017, the Public Policy Institute of California reported.

Social justice advocates up and down the state have been pressuring officials about the welfare of inmates in jails and prisons since the onset of the COVID-19 crisis.

Across the state, many inmates, as well as California prison officials, have been diagnosed with the virus. Advocates believe releasing inmates will solve the solution to prevent the spreading of the virus and save lives.

Jamilia Land is an African-American community activist and member of California Families United 4 Justice, a Sacramento-based nonprofit organization that supports families impacted by police-involved shootings and violence. She said the cancellation of bail is a “wonderful idea,” but it is something that should have taken place long before the pandemic.

“It’s something that been needed to happen,” Land told California Black Media. “Unfortunately, when we look at the demographic of people who are incarcerated and overpopulating the jails in general, they look like us. They are Black and Brown people. Also, bail is feeding a lobster that is known as mass incarceration. We need to end it.”

In 2018, when Gov. Gavin Newsom was lieutenant governor in Gov. Jerry Brown’s administration, California passed Senate Bill 10 (SB 10). It was landmark legislation that abolished the cash money bail system for defendants waiting for trial, and also gave judges more discretion to determine who will be sent to jail or not – based on risk.

California was the first state in the nation to do so.

But the bail industry and other opponents of SB 10 rallied against the bill and collected more than 400,000 signatures, preventing the legislation from becoming state law the following year.

Now, it is up for a statewide referendum vote on the California ballot in November 2020.

Antonio Ray Harvey, California Black Media

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Oakland Post: Week of May 21 – 27, 2025

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of May 21 – 27, 2025

Published

3 days ago

May 25, 2025

Oakland Post

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Bay Area

Chevron Richmond Installs Baker Hughes Flare.IQ, Real-time Flare Monitoring, Control and Reduction System

While the sight of flaring can cause concern in the community, flares are essential safety systems that burn pollutants to prevent them from being released directly into the atmosphere. They activate during startup and shut-down of facility units or during upsets or equipment malfunctions. The typical flare stack is about 200 feet high so that vapors are well above street levels.

Published

1 week ago

May 19, 2025

Oakland Post

Image courtesy The Richmond Standard.

The Richmond Standard

Chevron Richmond recently installed flare.IQ, a real-time, automated system that will improve the facility’s flaring performance.

The technology, developed by Panametrics, a Baker Hughes business, uses sensors to monitor, reduce and control flaring in real time. It collects and assesses data on refinery processes, such as temperature, pressure, gas flow and gas composition, and adjusts accordingly to ensure flares burn more efficiently and cleanly, leading to fewer emissions.

“The cleaner the flare, the brighter the flame can look,” said Duy Nguyen, a Chevron Richmond flaring specialist. “If you see a brighter flame than usual on a flare, that actually means flare.IQ is operating as intended.”

“A key element in Baker Hughes’ emissions abatement portfolio, flare.IQ has a proven track record in optimizing flare operations and significantly reducing emissions,” said Colin Hehir, vice president of Panametrics, a Baker Hughes business. “By partnering with Chevron Richmond, one of the first operators in North America to adopt flare.IQ, we are looking forward to enhancing the plant’s flaring operations.”

The installation of flare.IQ is part of a broader and ongoing effort by Chevron Richmond to improve flare performance, particularly in response to increased events after the new, more efficient hydrogen plant was brought online in 2019.

Since then, the company has invested $25 million — and counting — into flare minimization. As part of the effort, a multidisciplinary refinery team was formed to find and implement ways to improve operational reliability and ultimately reduce flaring. Operators and other employees involved in management of flares and flare gas recovery systems undergo new training.

“It is important to me that the community knows we are working hard to lower emissions and improve our flaring performance,” Nguyen said.

Also evolving is the process by which community members are notified of flaring incidents. The Community Warning System (CWS), operated by Contra Costa County is an “all-hazard” public warning system.

Residents can opt-in to receive alerts via text, e-mail and landline. The CWS was recently expanded to enable residents to receive notifications for “Level 1” incidents, which are considered informational as they do not require any community action.

For more information related to these topics, check out the resources included on the Chevron Richmond, CAER and Contra Costa Health websites. Residents are also encouraged to follow @chevronrichmond and @RFDCAOnline on Facebook and X (formerly Twitter), where additional information may be posted during an incident.

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Oakland Hosts Town Hall Addressing Lead Hazards in City Housing

According to the city, there are 22,000 households in need of services for lead issues, most in predominantly low-income or Black and Latino neighborhoods, but only 550 to 600 homes are addressed every year. The city is hoping to use part of the multimillion-dollar settlement to increase the number of households served each year.

Published

1 week ago

May 18, 2025

Oakland Post

iStock.

By Magaly Muñoz

The City of Oakland’s Housing and Community Development Department hosted a town hall in the Fruitvale to discuss the efforts being undertaken to remove lead primarily found in housing in East and West Oakland.

In 2021, the city was awarded $14 million out of a $24 million legal settlement from a lawsuit against paint distributors for selling lead-based paint that has affected hundreds of families in Oakland and Alameda County. The funding is intended to be used for lead poisoning reduction and prevention services in paint only, not water or other sources as has been found recently in schools across the city.

The settlement can be used for developing or enhancing programs that abate lead-based paint, providing services to individuals, particularly exposed children, educating the public about hazards caused by lead paint, and covering attorney’s fees incurred in pursuing litigation.

Most of the homes affected were built prior to 1978, and 12,000 of these homes are considered to be at high risk for lead poisoning.

City councilmember Noel Gallo, who represents a few of the lead-affected Census tracts, said the majority of the poisoned kids and families are coming directly from neighborhoods like the Fruitvale.

“When you look at the [kids being admitted] at the children’s hospital, they’re coming from this community,” Gallo said at the town hall.

In order to eventually rid the highest impacted homes of lead poisoning, the city intends to create programs and activities such as lead-based paint inspections and assessments, full abatement designed to permanently eliminate lead-based paint, or partial abatement for repairs, painting, and specialized cleaning meant for temporary reduction of hazards.

In feedback for what the city could implement in their programming, residents in attendance of the event said they want more accessibility to resources, like blood testing, and information from officials about lead poisoning symptoms, hotlines for assistance, and updates on the reduction of lead in their communities.

Attendees also asked how they’d know where they are on the prioritization list and what would be done to address lead in the water found at several school sites in Oakland last year.

City staff said there will be a follow-up event to gather more community input for programming in August, with finalizations happening in the fall and a pilot launch in early 2026.