LAKEPORT
Vision group meets this Thursday at 1 p.m. at the Lakeport Library
Natural Vision Resources and Low Vision Resources & Tech Support meet this Thursday March 28 from 1 pm to 3 pm. The Lakeport Public Library provides this ongoing vision support group. All are welcome to bring their eyesight concerns to the group.
The Lake County Library fosters inclusivity by offering a myriad of free resources specially tailored to empower individuals with low vision. Informational meetings about the library’s free low vision resources occur on the last Thursday of every month from 1pm – 3 pm at the Lakeport branch. Library Technician, Amy Patton, will be explaining the variety of free resources available. Resources covered will include large type books, mp3 players, eAudiobooks, books on cd, and more.
Chloe Karl, Occupational Therapist, will present vision support exercises based on Bates and Natural Health methods.
Amy can be contacted at Amy.Patton@lakecountyca.gov.
Visit the Lake County Library at https:/library.lakecountyca.gov, on Facebook @ https://www.facebook.com/LakeCountyLibrary, Twitter @LakeCoLibrary, Instagram@lakecountylibrary, YouTube @lakecountycalibrary, and TikTok @ lakecountycalibrary. To contact the Lakeport library by phone, call 707-263-8817.
—Submitted
SACRAMENTO
Gov. Newsom announces seizure of over half a million Fentanyl pills at border
Gov. Gavin Newsom today announced the California National Guard (CalGuard) supported counter-drug operations last month that led to the seizure of over 1 million fentanyl pills in California — including more than 592,900 pills at the state’s ports of entry. The seizures highlight the importance of counter-drug operations along the southern border and increased border security. The bipartisan border security deal, which is being blocked by Republicans in Congress, includes funding and new mechanisms to crack down on fentanyl trafficking.
“Our increased California National Guard deployment helped federal partners seize over half a million fentanyl pills at the southern border last month,” noted Newsom. “We’re doing our job, while Republicans in Congress drop the ball and block the bipartisan border security deal that would further crack down on fentanyl trafficking. They continue to choose chaos for political gain over the American people.”
Following lobbying efforts led by the California Congressional delegation and the Newsom administration, the FY24 defense appropriations bill signed into law last week by President Biden includes an approximately $10 million increase in funding for CalGuard’s counternarcotics operation.
Despite this increase, Newsom’s office noted that Republicans in Congress continue to reject a bipartisan border security deal — at former President Trump’s urging — that would further boost law enforcement efforts to stop the flow of fentanyl including through new sanctions. The bipartisan deal would also fund over 4,300 asylum officers, 100 immigration judges, and local humanitarian efforts to support a safe and orderly process for people after they are released from federal custody so they may continue to their sponsors.
Cracking down on the smuggling of illegal drugs, Newsom last year increased the number of CalGuard service members deployed to interdict drugs at U.S. ports of entry along the border by approximately 50%. The operations CalGuard supported resulted in the record seizure of 62,224 pounds of fentanyl in 2023 — a 1066% increase since 2021. CalGuard’s coordinated drug interdiction efforts in the state are funded in part by California’s $30 million investment to expand CalGuard’s work to prevent drug trafficking by transnational criminal organizations. Fentanyl is primarily smuggled into the country by U.S. citizens.
Since Governor Newsom took office in 2019, California has invested over $1 billion to crack down on opioid trafficking and enforce the law, combat overdoses, support those with opioid use disorder, and raise awareness about the dangers of opioids. The Governor’s Master Plan for Tackling the Fentanyl and Opioid Crisis provides a comprehensive framework to deepen the impact of these investments.
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SACRAMENTO
California Democrats squabbling on shoplifting bill
Legislators may be off for spring recess, but debates about their bills are still happening outside committee rooms. One spicy intra-party exchange between Democratic Assemblymembers focuses on a measure about retail theft — underscoring the difficult balance for lawmakers responding to public concerns about crime, while not over-policing historically targeted communities.
Los Angeles Assemblymember Wendy Carrillo, vice chairperson of the Legislative Progressive Caucus, introduced Assembly Bill 1990, which would allow police officers to make warrantless arrests for misdemeanor shoplifting offenses (as in, items that total $950 or less) if officers have probable cause. Officers do not need to be present when the crime occurred.
Warrantless arrests when police don’t witness the crime aren’t new — officers can already arrest people on misdemeanor charges for domestic violence, violating a restraining order or for carrying a concealed gun at an airport.
The bill has bipartisan support, and in a statement, Carrillo said that by “increasing enforcement against suspected shoplifters, we are sending a clear message: we will not tolerate these acts that threaten our public safety and economic vitality.”
A 2019 report from the Public Policy Institute of California found that African Americans in nearly all California counties have higher arrest rates than whites, and that misdemeanors have increased as a share of all arrests. (Latinos, however, were arrested at lower rates than whites in 26 out of the 58 counties.)
Carrillo argued that her bill “is committed to fairness, equity, and the protection of all individuals’ rights, regardless of race or background.”
And since we can’t forget it’s an election year, here’s where these three legislators stand: Carrillo is currently placing fourth in a race for Los Angeles City Council. If no one gets the majority of the vote, the top two face each other in the general election. McKinnor advanced from the March 5 primary and faces a Republican in her Democratic-leaning district. And besides a write-in candidate, Gipson is unopposed in his reelection bid.
The debate is emblematic of the tightrope progressive lawmakers attempt to walk on public safety. And it’s an issue that Assemblymember Kevin McCarty, chairperson of the Public Safety Committee, will have to navigate as Carrillo’s bill heads to the committee.
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