Editor’s Note: What follows is a smattering of some of the headlines and topics which were newsworthy in the year that was.
JANUARY
Colleges reassess safety plans after omicron surge
As the new year began, California college students were headed back to classrooms just as new COVID-19 cases in the state were starting to decline from the peak of the omicron surge. But that doesn’t mean it was an easy road ahead for the university administrators tasked with keeping them safe.
Administrators had to figure out things such as how many isolation beds are needed on campus? Should in-person classes be resumed all at once, or phased in?
Those were just some of the questions colleges grappled with as they went into the spring term, after postponing in-person instruction for the first few weeks of January. On the one hand, many public health experts felt the virus would soon become endemic: constantly present, but with predictable transmission rates that health systems could manage without being overburdened. On the other hand, face-to-face learning was returning just weeks after the highly-transmissible omicron variant swept through California campuses, straining campuses’ ability to separate infected students from the uninfected.
“If anything, (the surge) taught us that we can’t be complacent with this,” USC chief health officer Dr. Sarah Van Orman told CalMatters at the time.
Some California colleges looked to increase isolation capacity and were updating masking policies to require surgical, KN95 or N95 masks indoors. Most said they would continue regularly testing students for the virus, on top of requiring booster shots.
—Zappelli, Rashad, Federis
Maskless Gov. Newsom, Mayor Breed spotted at 49ers-Rams game despite mandate
Photos surfaced of Gov. Gavin Newsom, San Francisco Mayor London Breed and at least one other elected official maskless at at San Francisco 49ers-Los Angeles Rams football game, despite a mandate that face coverings be worn when people are not eating or drinking.
SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, where the game took place, said masks are “required for all attendees” and can “only be removed to actively eat or drink, after which they must be immediately put back on.”
Los Angeles County, where the game took place, also requires people attending large indoor and outdoor events to mask up, and California required residents at the time to wear masks in indoor public spaces. In addition to Newsom and Breed, the photos also showed Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti without a mask covering his face.
There were plenty of other football fans and Hollywood celebrities also ditching masks. But the photos, posted by former Los Angeles Lakers player Magic Johnson, drew immediate fire from conservative critics of Newsom and the Democratic mayors, who touted masking as an important tool for controlling the coronavirus pandemic, blasting them for failing to follow their own rules.
Republican state Sen. Melissa Melendez tweeted at the time, “Toddlers are being forced to wear masks all day long in school. Maybe one day they’ll be governor or the mayor of LA and they won’t have (to) follow the rules they impose on others.”
—Deruy
FEBRUARY
PG&E seeks higher electric bills to put lines underground
PG&E monthly bills proposed a jump of about $30 a month under a new proposal by the utility behemoth to bury thousands of lines underground as a way to ward off the risk of catastrophic wildfires.
The power utility was seeking state approval for a revenue increase of $10.5 billion to bury 3,600 electricity lines, according to a PG&E proposal that was sketched out in early February in a federal regulatory filing.
Electric bills would rise by $31.41 a month for average residential non-care customers whose bills aren’t subsidiary and $20.73 a month for care customers who have low incomes, PG&E estimated at the time of the filing.
—Avalos
New Paradigm College shutters its doors amid COVID and depleted funds
While most accredited institutions of higher learning in the region had been offering some type of instruction or online curriculum since the onset of the pandemic nearly two years ago, the fledgling institution which had been offering in person lectures, workshops, specialized courses and certificate programs in permaculture and ecology from the property previously known as the Castle in Lucerne, closed its doors to educational opportunities in Summer 2020 amidst COVID and depleted operational funds, despite reporting $111,874 from 228 donors in 2019, their only full year of operation.
Moreover, the property’s landlord, Andrew Beath of the Malibu based Earthways Foundation, was embroiled in a property tax dispute with the County of Lake over taxes owed on the parcel and 75,000-square-foot building.
The college had effectively ceased operations when the Record-Bee looked into the matter, partly as a result of the Romero Institute no longer being associated with the institution, according to former provost William Stranger. The Santa Cruz based organization, described as an interfaith, law and public policy center, pulled out from the nonprofit they formed in 2019, taking with them the brand name and a number of board members previously involved in the founding and operation of the college, including its President, Vice President and Treasurer.
Stranger said at the time that trying to get the college off the ground during the pandemic was like a plane taking off the runway and having its wheels shut down upon take off. “We never really got underway before COVID,” he said, adding that the college had not established their full curriculum prior to the onset of the pandemic, even though they had been in discussion to partner with University of San Francisco, a private Jesuit University whose main campus is located on a 55-acre hilltop nestled between the Golden Gate Bridge and Golden Gate Park.
Former Supervisor and NPC co-founder Denise Rushing, who has been associated with the college since 2020 told the Record-Bee then that she was focusing on other projects. Rushing confirmed that in addition to about $40,000 in community based donations, Earthways also made donations which allowed the college to operate for most of 2019. Up until the shutdown, the college had been renting itself out to host business conferences and myriad of other events, including meetings of the Lucerne Area Town Hall. According to information which was previously posted on the college’s website, donations ranged from $50 to $5,000 from a plethora of community members.
—Carmona
MARCH
District Attorney Susan Krones announces she’s running for another term
Endorsed by two Retired Lake County Judges – Robert L. Crone Jr. and Arthur H. Mann – Susan Krones kicked off her campaign in March with a serious message, “experience in criminal law and prosecution is the foundation for effective leadership.”
Krones explained that Lake County communities deserved experienced and tested leadership to tackle the tough criminal cases that daily come to the District Attorney’s Office. “To have the endorsement of two distinguished Lake County Judges, and U.S. Congressman Mike Thompson is a terrific way to begin campaigning for re-election.”
As a 29-year career prosecutor, Krones has prosecuted a wide variety of cases – murder, sexual assault of children and adults, and many other felonies. Throughout her career, she has put away hundreds of violent criminals.
One recent case stands out. In 2020 Krones successfully prosecuted Alan Ashmore for killing two people and shooting at a CHP Officer. He plead no contest and was sentenced to 140 years to life in prison. In another case, Damon Pashilk was sentenced to 15 years prison for setting four fires including the Clayton Fire. “My Chief Deputy, Richard Hinchcliff, did an excellent job in preparing this case but the reality is it all comes down to what we can prove in Court. We had several meetings with experienced Cal Fire Investigators that investigated these fires. It isn’t always possible to put a criminal behind bars for life even though they deserve it. The bottom line is that Mr. Pashilk is in prison where he belongs and our office will be there to oppose any possibility of early release.”
Krones chose her profession early. “When you love what you do and stick to it, you gain knowledge and experience that becomes vital to do the job well and make a difference in the community. That’s been my approach. I am not a politician. My goal is not to climb the political ladder. I want to continue to put my experience and training into serving the public as District Attorney.”
“The top job as District Attorney is not a training ground for inexperienced politicians with pie in the sky promises they can’t keep. Coming into the job you must stand ready to be a trainer – not the trainee. Expecting others to do what you don’t know how to do yourself is not leadership. That is why it is so important to have experience as a Prosecutor before going for the top job.”
A full understanding of the laws – especially those recently passed to reduce inmate populations – is foundational to the job. “New regulations recommended by the Department of Corrections seek to dramatically increase prison credits for inmates in prison for serious and violent felonies. That is why I joined 39 other District Attorneys state-wide in a lawsuit to prevent these credits from implementation.”
Krones agrees that the Courts have a backlog of trials. Covid, as most would understand, is the culprit she said. “My opponent proposes to get rid of the backlog of misdemeanor cases by denying defendants the right to a jury trial and instead taking all the cases to a Judge for a Court trial. Under Article 16 of the California Constitution defendants have a right to jury trial for all felonies as well as misdemeanor charges. This is something every attorney would know if they have any experience in criminal law.”
—Submitted
Cop cash: California law enforcement gives big to campaigns
Amid rising concerns about crime and recent criminal justice reforms, California’s law enforcement groups spent big this year in several high-profile races.
In the 2022 election cycle through March, these groups contributed more than $1 million to campaigns for the state Legislature and several statewide offices, slightly less than the $1.2 million contributed at the same point in 2020 and significantly more than the roughly $305,000 in 2018, according to a CalMatters analysis.
As of March of 2022 nearly $1 out of every $6 donated by law enforcement groups had gone into the attorney general’s race, specifically to Sacramento District Attorney Anne Marie Schubert. The $176,900 in cop cash given to Schubert was about 10% of her total contributions.
A Republican turned independent was the preferred pick of these groups looking to unseat Attorney General Rob Bonta, a Democrat who was appointed by Gov. Gavin Newsom in 2021.
Schubert was endorsed by one of the largest contributors: the Peace Officers Research Association of California, an advocacy and lobbying group. The organization gave Schubert $16,200, the maximum allowed for the June 7 primary, while none of her opponents reported any law enforcement contributions – not Bonta, who had raised $6.4 million total at the time, and not Republican challengers Nathan Hochman or Eric Early.
This was the first time since at least 1999 the organization has not contributed to the coffers of the incumbent in the attorney general’s race, according to Secretary of State records. The Peace Officers Research Association sees it differently. Brian Marvel, president of the association, told CalMatters at the time that “PORAC doesn’t consider there to be an incumbent in this race” because Bonta was appointed and not elected.
The other major sources of law enforcement cash are unions: the California Association of Highway Patrolmen and the L.A. Police Protective League. The CHP union contributed $112,800 in 38 races, with $11,000 going to Schubert’s campaign, its first donation to a candidate for attorney general since 2007. The protective league had donated $146,600 in 25 races, but nothing to Schubert.
As the attorney general is the state’s top law enforcement officer, agencies can be directly impacted by decisions, including investigations of police officers.
Bonta and Schubert had different priorities about what they would do in office. Though both their campaigns discussed gun violence and prosecuting polluters, Bonta’s website highlighted “fighting hate and protecting civil rights” and Schubert’s promised to “aggressively [prosecute] violent criminals.” Both candidates were in support of the law Bonta wrote while he was a legislator that directs the attorney general’s office to investigate when law enforcement officers kill unarmed civilians.
The attorney general’s race wasn’t the only statewide election where law enforcement groups were giving money. For the primary, they were limited to giving $16,200 for statewide offices, other than governor ($32,400), and $9,700 in legislative races.
Fiona Ma, who ran for reelection as state treasurer, received the second most so far. Why do law enforcement officers care who is treasurer? The treasurer can affect their pensions as a board member of the California Public Employees’ Retirement System.
Ma’s campaign took in $55,200, with $47,100 coming from two of the three big police groups: the Peace Officers Research Association and the Los Angeles Police Protective League. Ma’s relationship with law enforcement unions isn’t new. According to campaign finance watchdog OpenSecrets, the Peace Officers Research Association is the fifth largest contributor to Ma over her career.
In the 2022 election, law enforcement groups also placed bets in 42 of the 80 Assembly races and in seven of the 20 state Senate campaigns, after redistricting dramatically changed many of the legislative districts and after a rash of resignations and decisions not to seek reelection created open seats.
Assemblymember Phillip Chen, a Republican who ran in the 59th District near Los Angeles, raised the most from law enforcement groups of all legislative candidates, $47,400 at the time, even though he ran unopposed.
While accepting cop cash might be a contentious issue within the California Democratic Party, some Democratic candidates for Assembly aren’t shy. Assemblymember James Ramos from Rancho Cucamonga took $37,200, while his foe in the 45th District, Republican Joe Martinez, received no cop money.
Assemblymember Cottie Petrie-Norris of Laguna Beach raised $27,100, while her opponent, Republican Assemblymember Steven Choi, didn’t take any as they competed to represent the new 73rd District centered around Irvine. And Democratic Assemblymember Evan Low of Cupertino received $26,900, while his opponents in the 26th District, Democrat Long Jiao and Republican Tim Gorsulowsky, haven’t reported any law enforcement contributions at the time.
In the state Senate, the top four recipients of law enforcement money were also Democrats, including three sitting senators: Tom Umberg from Garden Grove who got $26,200, Bob Archuleta from Pico Rivera took $22,700, and Anna Caballero from Salinas accepted $16,700.
Democrat Angelique Ashby, a Sacramento City Council member, is one of the few top recipients of law enforcement money who isn’t already in the Legislature. She took $14,900 while Democrat Dave Jones – her most prominent opponent, a former legislator and state insurance commissioner – had not reported any contributions from law enforcement. The fifth largest recipient at the time was Republican Sen. Brian Jones of El Cajon, who pulled in $6,000 in his campaign for the 40th District, while his opponents reported no police donations.
Law enforcement unions invested about $2.7 million during the 2019-20 election cycle and more than $2.1 million in 2021 when Newsom faced a recall. With $1 million contributed more than two months before the June 7 primary, it wasn’t a long shot to surmise law enforcement groups would be even more generous in 2022.
— Kimelman
