Another winter, another scare on Oregon's Mt. Hood. As three stranded climbers return safely home, a closer look at the economics of search and rescue.
Feb. 20, 2007 - This time, there was a happy ending. An emergency locator beacon and a four-year-old Labrador retriever named Velvet were credited with the survival of three stranded climbers on Oregon's tallest peak, Mt. Hood.
Velvet kept the crew warm after they fell off a cliff on the mountain's south face on Sunday and spent the night in below-freezing temperatures and 70 mile-per-hour gusts. The beacon, a radio transmitter that rents for $5 at a nearby outdoors shop, helped guide rescuers to Matty Bryant, 34, Kate Hanlon, 34, and Christine Redl, 26—Portland schoolteachers found in surprisingly good shape on Monday morning. Their story was a welcome contrast to the failed rescue attempt last December that left three out-of-state climbers dead after a widely pubicized, 11-day search. Only one of the bodies was recovered.
But with traffic exploding on Mt. Hood—about 10,000 people a year attempt to scale the 11,300-foot peak visible from downtown Portland—some nature-loving Oregonians are starting to ask the tough question: why should taxpayers be responsible for saving thrill-seekers, in some cases from their own folly?
"There's always a group of people who think, 'If we get lost or hurt, somebody will come and get us,' " says Ken Murphy, director of the Oregon Office of Emergency Management. Murphy's office helps local officials with the toughest searches, providing a Blackhawk helicopter that costs up to $2,000 per hour to operate. When paychecks for rescue personnel are factored in, even search-and-rescue operations that involve volunteers can cost cash-strapped local governments up to $6,000 an hour. "There are a lot of unseen, unknown costs," Murphy says.
Oregon is one of only three states with a law on the books requiring lost mountaineers to reimburse the government for search costs. But the cap is $500, and the fine can only be applied if the stranded climbers didn't exercise "reasonable care" to avoid the mishap. The teachers rescued Tuesday did everything right, authorities say. They brought plenty of warm clothing, sleeping bags, energy bars and climbing gear, plus a charged cell phone and two locator beacons. Plus, they filled out a climbing registry when they arrived, letting the rescuers know what their route was. But other weight-conscious day-trippers may bring only a fraction of that gear; that type of hiker typically monitors Mt. Hood's dynamic weather patterns with far less care.
The state fine is a punishment rarely levied, in part because it's tough to second-guess climbers: even the most experienced mountaineers can fall victim to a storm. There's also a fairly widespread sentiment among climbers and rescuers alike that it doesn't make sense to punish people for getting into that kind of trouble.
Phil Powers, executive director of the American Alpine Institute, said Oregon rescuers spent only 4 percent of their budgets annually on climbers, according to research the nonprofit group has conducted."Climbing rescues are more interesting," he said. "But you can spend more money trying to locate a lost hiker, where the terrain in which you're looking is much more vast. The big cost in rescue is search, not rescue." Last December, for example, searchers combed hundreds of square miles of the Siskiyou National Forest, searching for a San Francisco family who had gotten lost trying to cross the Coast Range. Rescuers found Kati Kim and her two children alive after spending nine days in the family car along a logging road, but her husband, James, perished while trying to hike out for help.
No one argues that those who are genuine victims of weather or road conditions should bear the cost of their own rescue. But the question is trickier for those who get into trouble as a result of recreation. Rosie O'Donnell made headlines the same month the Kims got lost for criticizing the high costs involved in the search for the three out-of-state climbers who eventually died on Mt. Hood. "What warrants 27 helicopters and 1,000 people looking?" she asked on the television show The View.
Forcing climbers to pay search-and-rescue costs isn't the answer, said Fran Sharp, president of the National Mountain Rescue Association, a nonprofit group established in 1958 at Mt. Hood's Timberline Lodge to coordinate teams across the country.
"The Coast Guard doesn't charge for rescues at sea," Sharp said. "All that would do is put us at more risk. People won't call in time. They'll wait longer. They'll get in more trouble."
About 10,000 people attempt to summit Mt. Hood each year, said Steve Rollins, a search leader for the Mountain Rescue Association, an all-volunteer group that spends its $30,000 annual budged on communications equipment. Between 2004 and this Monday, Rollins says his group had engaged in 15 rescue missions involving climbers. The number of deaths annually varies between one and three, with no marked increase in recent years. Rollins said 99 percent of the Monday rescue was a volunteer effort that cost taxpayers nothing.
Oregon Rep. John Lim introduced a bill this session that would require Mt. Hood climbers aiming higher than 10,000 feet to carry locator beacons, which transmit a radio signal to rescuers to pinpoint a stranded adventurer's location.
The Mountain Rescue Association opposes Lim's bill. The reason: beacons can give climbers a false sense of security—prompting more dangerous approach attempts. And they add weight, Rollins says, which can slow a climber down in an environment where speed getting on and off the mountain is one of the most important safety measures to consider.
"The climber equipped with the bare essentials is safer than someone carrying a tent, stove and sleeping bags," Rollins adds. "When you do mountaineering, you're literally counting grams."
The three climbers plucked from Hood's fierce winds on Monday are surely counting something else today: their blessings.
Tuesday, February 20, 2007
Morrison returning, says he is HIV negative
I'm not the only one:
CHESTER, W.Va. (AP) - Former WBO heavyweight champion Tommy Morrison is staging a comeback, saying Tuesday that a positive HIV test that ended his career more than a decade ago was inaccurate.
"I'm negative and I've always been negative and that should be the end of it," Morrison said in a telephone interview with The Associated Press.
The 38-year-old will face John Castle in a four-round fight Thursday at Mountaineer Racetrack and Gaming Resort.
"The rug was yanked out from under my feet by a misdiagnosis," he said. "All I want to do is fight. ... It's unfinished business."
State Athletic Commissioner Steve Allred said Tuesday he approved Morrison's participation in the fight after reviewing medical records and consulting with the Association of Boxing Commissions' medical review committee. Allred said confidentiality laws prevent him from discussing Morrison's medical history or the records he reviewed.
West Virginia does not have mandatory blood testing for boxers.
"I assure you that West Virginia is doing due diligence to make sure everyone who steps into the ring is healthy," Allred said.
Morrison (46-3) and Castle (4-2) square off in one of seven bouts scheduled at Mountaineer.
Morrison won the WBO title in 1993 by outpointing George Foreman. He lost it later that year. Morrison, who was featured in the movie "Rocky V," also served a couple of years in an Arkansas prison on drug and weapons charges.
He announced he had human immunodeficiency virus in February 1996 and last fought in Japan that November, knocking out Marcus Rhode in the first round.
Morrison said Tuesday that he has taken several HIV tests while preparing for his comeback and all have been negative.
He has signed a contract with Top Rank promoters for at least eight fights this year.
"I have no doubt I'll be a better fighter than I ever was before," he said. "I am more relaxed. Something that comes along with age causes you to simmer a bit."
CHESTER, W.Va. (AP) - Former WBO heavyweight champion Tommy Morrison is staging a comeback, saying Tuesday that a positive HIV test that ended his career more than a decade ago was inaccurate.
"I'm negative and I've always been negative and that should be the end of it," Morrison said in a telephone interview with The Associated Press.
The 38-year-old will face John Castle in a four-round fight Thursday at Mountaineer Racetrack and Gaming Resort.
"The rug was yanked out from under my feet by a misdiagnosis," he said. "All I want to do is fight. ... It's unfinished business."
State Athletic Commissioner Steve Allred said Tuesday he approved Morrison's participation in the fight after reviewing medical records and consulting with the Association of Boxing Commissions' medical review committee. Allred said confidentiality laws prevent him from discussing Morrison's medical history or the records he reviewed.
West Virginia does not have mandatory blood testing for boxers.
"I assure you that West Virginia is doing due diligence to make sure everyone who steps into the ring is healthy," Allred said.
Morrison (46-3) and Castle (4-2) square off in one of seven bouts scheduled at Mountaineer.
Morrison won the WBO title in 1993 by outpointing George Foreman. He lost it later that year. Morrison, who was featured in the movie "Rocky V," also served a couple of years in an Arkansas prison on drug and weapons charges.
He announced he had human immunodeficiency virus in February 1996 and last fought in Japan that November, knocking out Marcus Rhode in the first round.
Morrison said Tuesday that he has taken several HIV tests while preparing for his comeback and all have been negative.
He has signed a contract with Top Rank promoters for at least eight fights this year.
"I have no doubt I'll be a better fighter than I ever was before," he said. "I am more relaxed. Something that comes along with age causes you to simmer a bit."
Sunday, February 18, 2007
Man's body found in front of TV year after death
HAMPTON BAYS, N.Y. - The partially mummified body of a man dead for more than a year has been found in a chair in front of his television, which was still on, authorities said.
Vincenzo Ricardo, 70, apparently died of natural causes, said Dr. Stuart Dawson, Suffolk County’s deputy chief medical examiner.
Police found Ricardo’s body this week when they investigated a report of burst pipes.
The home’s dry air had preserved his features, morgue assistant Jeff Bacchus said.
“You could see his face. He still had hair on his head,” Bacchus said.
Ricardo’s wife died years ago, and he lived alone, Dawson said.
“He hasn’t been heard from in over a year. That’s the part that baffles me,” he said. “Nobody sounded the alarm.”
Neighbors said they had thought Ricardo was in a hospital or nursing home.
“We never thought to check on him,” said neighbor Diane Devon.
© 2007 The Associated Press.
Vincenzo Ricardo, 70, apparently died of natural causes, said Dr. Stuart Dawson, Suffolk County’s deputy chief medical examiner.
Police found Ricardo’s body this week when they investigated a report of burst pipes.
The home’s dry air had preserved his features, morgue assistant Jeff Bacchus said.
“You could see his face. He still had hair on his head,” Bacchus said.
Ricardo’s wife died years ago, and he lived alone, Dawson said.
“He hasn’t been heard from in over a year. That’s the part that baffles me,” he said. “Nobody sounded the alarm.”
Neighbors said they had thought Ricardo was in a hospital or nursing home.
“We never thought to check on him,” said neighbor Diane Devon.
© 2007 The Associated Press.
Friday, February 16, 2007
S.F. School Teaches Business Basics To 5th Graders
Now, if they would also do the same for a project teaching 'the arts':
(AP) SAN FRANCISCO Like any ambitious entrepreneur, Amy Lee has created a global marketing plan, approved the product manufacturing specifications and memorized a business pitch to venture capitalists."I'm nervous, but I think I can get people to invest," said the president and founder of Friends Forever Bracelet Inc., a jewelry retailer that plans a major Internet advertising campaign in China.After a brief conversation with investors, she walked away with $32 in fake currency—no treasure for a Silicon Valley executive, but a proud fortune for an 11-year-old girl.Amy is a fifth grader at San Francisco's Jean Parker Elementary School, where she's enrolled in a monthlong crash course in the fundamentals of business administration. The students learn new words like "revenue" and "prototype," meet venture capitalists and executives, and even tour the glass offices of San Francisco's financial district.At the end of the month, they all sell their bracelets to fourth graders. Whichever team makes the most make-believe "BizBucks" wins the contest, and everyone celebrates with a big party sponsored jointly by San Francisco-based software company Salesforce.com and BizWorld Foundation, a nonprofit founded by a local venture capitalist.The program is one of many that aim to teach business skills to kids. Some, like Colorado-based Junior Achievement have been around for generations and are offered at schools around the world. But the programs, long commonplace in America's high schools, are increasingly being offered to students in middle and even elementary schools, advocates say, and are reaching a more diverse population than ever before.Jean Parker, for example, is on the edge of San Francisco's Chinatown and many students are the children of first-generation Asian immigrants.Advocates say the initiative gets students thinking about entrepreneurship, finance, marketing and other real-world jobs, expanding their options beyond firefighters, veterinarians and other typical fifth-grade career picks. Proponents—including millionaire backers from the tech industry—want every school in America to teach business basics."Business curriculum engages students in learning much more than the basic 'two-plus-two-is-four' system, and it gives them a way to connect to their education," said Gerald Richards, executive director for the Bay Area Office of the National Foundation for Teaching Entrepreneurship. The group sponsors its own business school-style programs for students age 11 through 18 in San Francisco, New York, Chicago, Boston, Washington, Los Angeles, Miami, Baltimore and Pittsburgh."It needs to become a standard part of education nationwide as a way to give students a way to take ownership of their futures."But critics say these "kiddie MBA" programs—often sponsored by corporations—are thinly veiled advertisements that undercut the nonprofit motive of public education. They worry that dividing students into teams, then appointing one person president and giving lesser roles to other kids, needlessly exposes children to the cutthroat world of corporate America."If you're just trying to make every student want to be an entrepreneur, that's not necessary and could be harmful," said Ikhlaq Sidhu, who runs the Center for Entrepreneurship and Technology at the University of California, Berkeley.He applauds any program that teaches kids communication and sales skills. But in a nation desperate for more rank-and-file scientists and engineers, emphasizing business ownership might send the wrong message to students who have no desire to start a company, Sidhu said.At Jean Parker, students meet once a week for a couple hours with businesspeople such as Bobby Napiltonia, a Salesforce.com senior vice president. Earlier this month, he pretended to be a VC for Amy Lee and other fifth graders—something he himself did when launching his own Internet startup before joining Salesforce."One of the kids was actually sweating, he was so nervous when he was pitching me. I thought, 'Hey, I know that feeling!"' Napiltonia said. "The best part of this is that they are learning that in the real world, they can do whatever they want, as long as they can get investors to get on board. It's empowering."The idea behind the program at Jean Parker came in 1993, when the 8-year-old daughter of Silicon Valley venture capitalist Tim Draper asked her dad to describe his job. At a loss to explain entrepreneurship to a third grader, he used his daughter's love of friendship bracelets to create a mock company for her and her classmates.Draper—founder and managing director of Draper Fisher Jurvetson, which has backed startups such as Skype, Overture and Hotmail—established BizWorld Foundation in 1997. Google, Merrill Lynch, Salomon Smith Barney and the New York Stock Exchange Foundation have donated at least $100,000 to the foundation, which runs academic business curricula in all 50 states.Jean Parker teacher Celia Magtoto says the program gets her 30 fifth graders thinking about careers far different from those of their parents, many of whom work blue-collar jobs.Magtoto was initially concerned that a program promoting business culture could marginalize aspiring musicians, painters and others kids interested in non-corporate careers. But she quickly realized that the kids—who have music, art and other classes— rarely glimpse the business world.The program turns some of her shiest wallflowers into straight-talking ramrods."I see kids who normally wouldn't talk to their peers suddenly pitching their company to adults they don't even know—that's great for self esteem," Magtoto said. "And it's great for them to see that there are adults out there who really care and really listen to them."
(AP) SAN FRANCISCO Like any ambitious entrepreneur, Amy Lee has created a global marketing plan, approved the product manufacturing specifications and memorized a business pitch to venture capitalists."I'm nervous, but I think I can get people to invest," said the president and founder of Friends Forever Bracelet Inc., a jewelry retailer that plans a major Internet advertising campaign in China.After a brief conversation with investors, she walked away with $32 in fake currency—no treasure for a Silicon Valley executive, but a proud fortune for an 11-year-old girl.Amy is a fifth grader at San Francisco's Jean Parker Elementary School, where she's enrolled in a monthlong crash course in the fundamentals of business administration. The students learn new words like "revenue" and "prototype," meet venture capitalists and executives, and even tour the glass offices of San Francisco's financial district.At the end of the month, they all sell their bracelets to fourth graders. Whichever team makes the most make-believe "BizBucks" wins the contest, and everyone celebrates with a big party sponsored jointly by San Francisco-based software company Salesforce.com and BizWorld Foundation, a nonprofit founded by a local venture capitalist.The program is one of many that aim to teach business skills to kids. Some, like Colorado-based Junior Achievement have been around for generations and are offered at schools around the world. But the programs, long commonplace in America's high schools, are increasingly being offered to students in middle and even elementary schools, advocates say, and are reaching a more diverse population than ever before.Jean Parker, for example, is on the edge of San Francisco's Chinatown and many students are the children of first-generation Asian immigrants.Advocates say the initiative gets students thinking about entrepreneurship, finance, marketing and other real-world jobs, expanding their options beyond firefighters, veterinarians and other typical fifth-grade career picks. Proponents—including millionaire backers from the tech industry—want every school in America to teach business basics."Business curriculum engages students in learning much more than the basic 'two-plus-two-is-four' system, and it gives them a way to connect to their education," said Gerald Richards, executive director for the Bay Area Office of the National Foundation for Teaching Entrepreneurship. The group sponsors its own business school-style programs for students age 11 through 18 in San Francisco, New York, Chicago, Boston, Washington, Los Angeles, Miami, Baltimore and Pittsburgh."It needs to become a standard part of education nationwide as a way to give students a way to take ownership of their futures."But critics say these "kiddie MBA" programs—often sponsored by corporations—are thinly veiled advertisements that undercut the nonprofit motive of public education. They worry that dividing students into teams, then appointing one person president and giving lesser roles to other kids, needlessly exposes children to the cutthroat world of corporate America."If you're just trying to make every student want to be an entrepreneur, that's not necessary and could be harmful," said Ikhlaq Sidhu, who runs the Center for Entrepreneurship and Technology at the University of California, Berkeley.He applauds any program that teaches kids communication and sales skills. But in a nation desperate for more rank-and-file scientists and engineers, emphasizing business ownership might send the wrong message to students who have no desire to start a company, Sidhu said.At Jean Parker, students meet once a week for a couple hours with businesspeople such as Bobby Napiltonia, a Salesforce.com senior vice president. Earlier this month, he pretended to be a VC for Amy Lee and other fifth graders—something he himself did when launching his own Internet startup before joining Salesforce."One of the kids was actually sweating, he was so nervous when he was pitching me. I thought, 'Hey, I know that feeling!"' Napiltonia said. "The best part of this is that they are learning that in the real world, they can do whatever they want, as long as they can get investors to get on board. It's empowering."The idea behind the program at Jean Parker came in 1993, when the 8-year-old daughter of Silicon Valley venture capitalist Tim Draper asked her dad to describe his job. At a loss to explain entrepreneurship to a third grader, he used his daughter's love of friendship bracelets to create a mock company for her and her classmates.Draper—founder and managing director of Draper Fisher Jurvetson, which has backed startups such as Skype, Overture and Hotmail—established BizWorld Foundation in 1997. Google, Merrill Lynch, Salomon Smith Barney and the New York Stock Exchange Foundation have donated at least $100,000 to the foundation, which runs academic business curricula in all 50 states.Jean Parker teacher Celia Magtoto says the program gets her 30 fifth graders thinking about careers far different from those of their parents, many of whom work blue-collar jobs.Magtoto was initially concerned that a program promoting business culture could marginalize aspiring musicians, painters and others kids interested in non-corporate careers. But she quickly realized that the kids—who have music, art and other classes— rarely glimpse the business world.The program turns some of her shiest wallflowers into straight-talking ramrods."I see kids who normally wouldn't talk to their peers suddenly pitching their company to adults they don't even know—that's great for self esteem," Magtoto said. "And it's great for them to see that there are adults out there who really care and really listen to them."
BOMB at STARBUCKS Near My Home -- NOT!
About 100 people were evacuated and traffic on two busy San Francisco thoroughfares was rerouted Monday as police disabled a homemade bomb in the restroom of a Starbucks coffee shop.
An employee saw what appeared to be a suspicious device on the floor of the unisex bathroom at the Starbucks at Van Ness Avenue and Bush Street around 1:15 p.m. and called police, Sgt. Neville Gittens said.
Gittens would not describe the bomb or its size other than to say it "would have caused damage if it exploded.''
Don Henschke, sales manager at Ellis Brooks Auto Center across the street from the coffeehouse, said a police officer described the bomb to him as "a portion of a flashlight and a fuse."
Mamoru Ogawa said police called the device a pipe bomb as they evacuated him, his wife and two customers from the sushi restaurant that he owns next door to the building that houses the Starbucks.
The bomb squad disabled the device at about 2:10 p.m., and witnesses said they heard a popping sound at the time.
Gittens said no one phoned in a bomb threat or took responsibility for the device, but he said investigators have a "pretty good lead" on a suspect.
Traffic on Van Ness between Sutter and Pine streets, and on Bush between Franklin and Polk streets was rerouted from about 1:30 to 2:30 p.m. People were evacuated from the Starbucks, a seven-story apartment building above the coffee house and Ogawa's restaurant.
Vandals have targeted San Francisco Starbucks in the past.
NOT!!!!
San Francisco authorities struggled to explain Thursday how they concluded that an object left in a Starbucks bathroom was a bomb, when tests revealed it was nothing more than a flashlight with corroded batteries.
"This appeared, by itself, to be a bomb,'' said police spokesman Sgt. Neville Gittens, who was the first to relay word from bomb squad investigators Monday afternoon that the object was an "improvised explosive device." The news quickly went national, and at one point CNN was broadcasting developments.
Gittens would not specify what about the device was so convincing, other than to say that all the people who saw it described it as a "tube-shaped cylinder with a fuse.''
The incident began when an employee of the Starbucks at 1401 Van Ness Ave. spotted the object in the bathroom after a man came in, asked for coffee grounds and then used the restroom.
The employee called police. Officers evacuated the store and an apartment building above it, and bomb squad officers used a high-power hose to blast the object with water.
On Wednesday, the residue from the device was sent to the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives for testing. The results showed that the device was harmless, authorities acknowledged Thursday.
Gittens defended the department's handling of the matter, saying that in the post-Sept. 11 world, police are inclined to err on the side of caution.
"This was done in the interest of public safety," Gittens said. "If we had a similar situation tomorrow, we would take the same actions. I think the public would expect us to.''
He would not confirm that the device was simply a flashlight. But authorities speaking on condition of anonymity confirmed that was the case.
They said a muffled noise that police heard when the water cannon hit the object, which they took to be an explosion, may have been the sound of a chemical reaction between the water and the corroded batteries.
Local officials with the ATF would not say anything about the case Thursday other than that they had completed testing and forwarded the results to investigators.
The man who says he left the flashlight in the Starbucks, Ronald Schouten, 44, remains in custody in County Jail on unrelated matters. He told police he had found the flashlight on the street and thought it could be used for self-defense, but decided to leave it behind after using the restroom.
He was charged Thursday with burglary and is expected to be back in court today. After visiting the Starbucks, he allegedly went to a Circuit City and used the bag the coffeehouse gave him for the coffee grounds to shoplift a camera, prosecutors said.
An employee saw what appeared to be a suspicious device on the floor of the unisex bathroom at the Starbucks at Van Ness Avenue and Bush Street around 1:15 p.m. and called police, Sgt. Neville Gittens said.
Gittens would not describe the bomb or its size other than to say it "would have caused damage if it exploded.''
Don Henschke, sales manager at Ellis Brooks Auto Center across the street from the coffeehouse, said a police officer described the bomb to him as "a portion of a flashlight and a fuse."
Mamoru Ogawa said police called the device a pipe bomb as they evacuated him, his wife and two customers from the sushi restaurant that he owns next door to the building that houses the Starbucks.
The bomb squad disabled the device at about 2:10 p.m., and witnesses said they heard a popping sound at the time.
Gittens said no one phoned in a bomb threat or took responsibility for the device, but he said investigators have a "pretty good lead" on a suspect.
Traffic on Van Ness between Sutter and Pine streets, and on Bush between Franklin and Polk streets was rerouted from about 1:30 to 2:30 p.m. People were evacuated from the Starbucks, a seven-story apartment building above the coffee house and Ogawa's restaurant.
Vandals have targeted San Francisco Starbucks in the past.
NOT!!!!
San Francisco authorities struggled to explain Thursday how they concluded that an object left in a Starbucks bathroom was a bomb, when tests revealed it was nothing more than a flashlight with corroded batteries.
"This appeared, by itself, to be a bomb,'' said police spokesman Sgt. Neville Gittens, who was the first to relay word from bomb squad investigators Monday afternoon that the object was an "improvised explosive device." The news quickly went national, and at one point CNN was broadcasting developments.
Gittens would not specify what about the device was so convincing, other than to say that all the people who saw it described it as a "tube-shaped cylinder with a fuse.''
The incident began when an employee of the Starbucks at 1401 Van Ness Ave. spotted the object in the bathroom after a man came in, asked for coffee grounds and then used the restroom.
The employee called police. Officers evacuated the store and an apartment building above it, and bomb squad officers used a high-power hose to blast the object with water.
On Wednesday, the residue from the device was sent to the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives for testing. The results showed that the device was harmless, authorities acknowledged Thursday.
Gittens defended the department's handling of the matter, saying that in the post-Sept. 11 world, police are inclined to err on the side of caution.
"This was done in the interest of public safety," Gittens said. "If we had a similar situation tomorrow, we would take the same actions. I think the public would expect us to.''
He would not confirm that the device was simply a flashlight. But authorities speaking on condition of anonymity confirmed that was the case.
They said a muffled noise that police heard when the water cannon hit the object, which they took to be an explosion, may have been the sound of a chemical reaction between the water and the corroded batteries.
Local officials with the ATF would not say anything about the case Thursday other than that they had completed testing and forwarded the results to investigators.
The man who says he left the flashlight in the Starbucks, Ronald Schouten, 44, remains in custody in County Jail on unrelated matters. He told police he had found the flashlight on the street and thought it could be used for self-defense, but decided to leave it behind after using the restroom.
He was charged Thursday with burglary and is expected to be back in court today. After visiting the Starbucks, he allegedly went to a Circuit City and used the bag the coffeehouse gave him for the coffee grounds to shoplift a camera, prosecutors said.
Thursday, February 15, 2007
Homeless woman's horrible death
In a crime prosecutors say showed "exceptional depravity," two San Francisco women stand accused of dousing a longtime homeless woman with gasoline and burning her alive in an apparent witness retaliation slaying.
Mia Sagote, 30, and Leslie Siliga, 29, are believed to have selected the victim, Leslie "Jill" May, 49, after May told police on the day of her death that she had been robbed by Sagote on the street in the Tenderloin the day before.
"The victim was kidnapped off the street and taken to Candlestick Park, doused with gasoline and set on fire," said Assistant District Attorney George Butterworth. He said the crime was especially heinous and showed "exceptional depravity."
Authorities say May was first accosted in the Tenderloin the morning of Jan. 11 by Sagote, who was angry that May's boyfriend owed her $150 on a loan. When May said she had no money, Sagote allegedly slammed May to a wall, then threw her to the ground and punched her face, police said.
Later that morning, Sagote pulled May behind a trash container and stripped the victim of her clothing and cash, leaving her naked behind a garbage bin, authorities say. The incident was witnessed, according to police.
May went to authorities the next day and reported the crime. Authorities believe that at least one of the women involved had learned, apparently by word on the street, of May's police report naming Sagote. That afternoon, May was back in the Tenderloin when she was approached by two women, forced into the backseat of a car, and driven to the stadium parking lot at Candlestick Point and set on fire, authorities said.
Sagote, who was arrested on Jan. 23, is charged separately in the robbery of May on Jan. 11. Siliga was arrested Tuesday and appeared in court Wednesday and pleaded not guilty. Both women are charged with murder and murder in commission of a kidnapping, which could lead to life in prison without parole.
Both remain in custody and are scheduled to return to court on Feb. 22.
May had been a longtime homeless woman and crack addict who stayed in the Tenderloin. She was one of the hardcore homeless who had been identified for outreach help under Mayor Gavin Newsom's effort to move the chronically homeless off the street and into housing and social service programs.
May told her story to The Chronicle in 2004. She said her mother was a drunk, and when May was 12, she found her mother dead on the kitchen floor from alcohol poisoning.
The girl was then raised in Pocatello, Idaho, by her father, but she ran away, she said, after he raped and impregnated her at age 16.
After a miscarriage, she became a prostitute and came to the Bay Area in 1976. She and Ricky Smith -- a onetime pimp known as "Slick Rick" who had 24 prostitutes working for him -- shared a life on and off the streets. They had three children together.
Back then, May was a stunner dubbed "Legs" who attracted business from men of all professions and income levels, according to people who knew her.
"She had legs like Tina Turner, you know?" Smith said on a recent afternoon.
"Jill was a classy hooker," agreed her longtime friend Anne Griffin. "She had that personality. She had that look. She was the glamorous girl -- she looked like she stepped out of a magazine."
In the 1990s, May and Smith struggled with parenthood and keeping a roof over their heads, eventually turning over their children to Smith's brother to raise.
The couple repeatedly had been arrested for drugs and prostitution but never entered into court-ordered rehabilitation programs. They ended up living on two blocks of the Tenderloin on Jones Street, between Geary and Ellis streets.
Addicted to heroin and crack, May lost her teeth and so much weight she was practically skin and bones. Her once-famous legs grew infected from dirty syringes, and she couldn't walk anymore so much as shuffle.
In 2004, May told a Chronicle reporter, "Just one day before I die, I'm going to see the Statue of Liberty. I'm going to get on a Greyhound bus, see the country. Go to school, get a job. I want to do normal things."
Last fall, with the assistance of the city, the couple finally got permanent housing, but May still spent her days out on Jones Street using drugs. The city outreach team leader said May was singled out for efforts on a regular basis.
"It's horrible. It's a tragedy," said Fire Department paramedic Capt. Niels Tangherlini, who heads a city outreach team working with San Francisco's hard-core homeless population. "It's really sad -- we feel like we invested our heart and soul in her situation. We felt her situation was finally improving. Then the street can reach and grab some people.
"It was wrong -- for all she had been through, it felt very wrong," Tangherlini said.
Friends recently held a memorial for May, remembering her as someone who cared about her fellow downtrodden of the Tenderloin.
"Oh man, I miss Jill," Smith said. "She used to get on my nerves. I loved her, though. Jill had a one-track mind. She never had enough drugs. I worried about her all the time. Now I can rest, man."
How to help
City outreach workers who tried to get Leslie "Jill" May into housing have set up a fund to help pay for her burial. For information, e-mail Ben Amyes at benjamin.amyes@sfgov.org.
I HATE GAY PEOPLE!
Hardaway's new legacy a hateful one
The man who once went 0-for-17 in an NBA regular-season game has thrown up another brick.
Only this one didn't bounce harmlessly off the rim. Tim Hardaway's latest chuck was a brick thrown right at the gay community. What did the gay community ever do to Tim Hardaway, you ask? Uh, exist, I guess.
"I hate gay people," Hardaway announced proudly during a sports radio interview Wednesday.
Doesn't get much clearer than that. So much for love the sinner hate the sin.
Discussing former NBA center John Amaechi's revelation that he is gay, Hardaway said, "You know, I hate gay people, so I let it be known. I don't like gay people and I don't like to be around gay people. I am homophobic. I don't like it. It shouldn't be in the world or in the United States."
The world or the United States? Man, we haven't seen this kind of tough talk against homosexuality since Reverend Ted Haggard's pre-suspensions sermons.
Now I'm not suggesting that Tim Hardaway planned on surreptitiously attending the Thunder from Down Under male dance revue on the Down Low this weekend while his NBA brethren were at the All-Star festivities. But one has to wonder where this level of antipathy against the gay community comes from.
As for the non-hateful-self-assured-straight-male response to Amaechi's revelation, that was provided by Shaquille O'Neal.
''If he was on my team, I guess I would have to protect him from the outsiders," O'Neal said in Boston on Wednesday night. ''I'm not homophobic or anything.... I'm not the type who judges people. I wish him well.''
Definitely straight.
While the Big Aristotle had a typically wise take on Amaechi, Hardaway sounded like a 6-year-old afraid of cooties.
"And second of all, if he was on my team, I would, you know, really distance myself from him because, uh, I don't think that's right. And you know I don't think he should be in the locker room while we're in the locker room. I wouldn't even be a part of that," Hardaway said.
Ah, kind of puts you in the mind of those wistful good old days when certain ballplayers weren't allowed to eat with the rest of the team.
Hardaway says he doesn't like to be around gay people, which must explain why he lives in that hot pink hetero haven, Miami. (According to a Syracuse University study, Miami is No. 5 on the list of America's top 10 gay-friendly cities, a ranking that may plummet if Hardaway stays in town.)
Of course it's understandable why Hardaway might choose to live in a city that is largely tolerant of homosexuals. You see, if he went looking for a city that hated gays as much as he does, he might learn that places that hate gay people are often not too fond of other minorities either.
Cincinnati amended its city charter in 1993 after 68 percent of its voters chose to make the deceptively-nicknamed Queen City the only major city in America that explicitly refused protection against discrimination for gays, lesbians and bisexuals. Yeah, now that's Hardaway's kinda place! Except for the semi-regular appearances by the Ku Klux Klan in Fountain Square. D'oh! At least Timmy and the Klan would be able to find some common ground in their shared views of gay people. (Cincinnati has since overturned its anti-gay ordinance.)
Hardaway's bigotry, while hardly unique, is particularly sad given that he played college ball at the University of Texas-El Paso, which made history in 1966 as Texas Western by defeating Kentucky in the NCAA final with an all-black starting five. When the Miners beat Kentucky, which was coached by the retrograde Adolph Rupp who refused to recruit black players, it was a landmark on the "glory road" to racial equality in college athletics. Presumably, Hardaway, an African-American, would reject Rupp's racism as immoral. But apparently he would have no problem with discrimination against gays.
Tim Hardaway was once famous as the avatar of the killer crossover. He was once famous for throwing a television monitor onto the court in a rage. He was once famous for merely hating referee Dick Bavetta.
Now he has a whole new legacy.
Tim Hardaway hates gay people. This is his new legacy. Hate. He felt it, he said it. Nobody put the word in his mouth. Lord knows who put the feeling in his heart.
The man who once went 0-for-17 in an NBA regular-season game has thrown up another brick.
Only this one didn't bounce harmlessly off the rim. Tim Hardaway's latest chuck was a brick thrown right at the gay community. What did the gay community ever do to Tim Hardaway, you ask? Uh, exist, I guess.
"I hate gay people," Hardaway announced proudly during a sports radio interview Wednesday.
Doesn't get much clearer than that. So much for love the sinner hate the sin.
Discussing former NBA center John Amaechi's revelation that he is gay, Hardaway said, "You know, I hate gay people, so I let it be known. I don't like gay people and I don't like to be around gay people. I am homophobic. I don't like it. It shouldn't be in the world or in the United States."
The world or the United States? Man, we haven't seen this kind of tough talk against homosexuality since Reverend Ted Haggard's pre-suspensions sermons.
Now I'm not suggesting that Tim Hardaway planned on surreptitiously attending the Thunder from Down Under male dance revue on the Down Low this weekend while his NBA brethren were at the All-Star festivities. But one has to wonder where this level of antipathy against the gay community comes from.
As for the non-hateful-self-assured-straight-male response to Amaechi's revelation, that was provided by Shaquille O'Neal.
''If he was on my team, I guess I would have to protect him from the outsiders," O'Neal said in Boston on Wednesday night. ''I'm not homophobic or anything.... I'm not the type who judges people. I wish him well.''
Definitely straight.
While the Big Aristotle had a typically wise take on Amaechi, Hardaway sounded like a 6-year-old afraid of cooties.
"And second of all, if he was on my team, I would, you know, really distance myself from him because, uh, I don't think that's right. And you know I don't think he should be in the locker room while we're in the locker room. I wouldn't even be a part of that," Hardaway said.
Ah, kind of puts you in the mind of those wistful good old days when certain ballplayers weren't allowed to eat with the rest of the team.
Hardaway says he doesn't like to be around gay people, which must explain why he lives in that hot pink hetero haven, Miami. (According to a Syracuse University study, Miami is No. 5 on the list of America's top 10 gay-friendly cities, a ranking that may plummet if Hardaway stays in town.)
Of course it's understandable why Hardaway might choose to live in a city that is largely tolerant of homosexuals. You see, if he went looking for a city that hated gays as much as he does, he might learn that places that hate gay people are often not too fond of other minorities either.
Cincinnati amended its city charter in 1993 after 68 percent of its voters chose to make the deceptively-nicknamed Queen City the only major city in America that explicitly refused protection against discrimination for gays, lesbians and bisexuals. Yeah, now that's Hardaway's kinda place! Except for the semi-regular appearances by the Ku Klux Klan in Fountain Square. D'oh! At least Timmy and the Klan would be able to find some common ground in their shared views of gay people. (Cincinnati has since overturned its anti-gay ordinance.)
Hardaway's bigotry, while hardly unique, is particularly sad given that he played college ball at the University of Texas-El Paso, which made history in 1966 as Texas Western by defeating Kentucky in the NCAA final with an all-black starting five. When the Miners beat Kentucky, which was coached by the retrograde Adolph Rupp who refused to recruit black players, it was a landmark on the "glory road" to racial equality in college athletics. Presumably, Hardaway, an African-American, would reject Rupp's racism as immoral. But apparently he would have no problem with discrimination against gays.
Tim Hardaway was once famous as the avatar of the killer crossover. He was once famous for throwing a television monitor onto the court in a rage. He was once famous for merely hating referee Dick Bavetta.
Now he has a whole new legacy.
Tim Hardaway hates gay people. This is his new legacy. Hate. He felt it, he said it. Nobody put the word in his mouth. Lord knows who put the feeling in his heart.
Friday, February 09, 2007
SF Mayor Newsom Admits Affair, Apologizes
SAN FRANCISCO -- San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom issued an apology Thursday following reports that he had an affair between his former assistant, the wife of his campaign manager, who resigned earlier this week
"Thank you all for coming here on short notice. I want to make it clear that everything you've heard and read is true," Newsom said. "I am deeply sorry about that. I hurt someone I care deeply about, Alex Tourk, his friends and family. That is something I have to live with and something that I am deeply sorry for."
Newsom said that he held himself accountable and will work hard to rebuild the trust of San Franciscans. Sources told NBC11 News that Tourk resigned Wednesday after confronting the mayor about an alleged affair involving Tourk's wife, 34-year-old Ruby Rippey-Tourk. Rippey-Tourk was Newsom's appointment secretary at the time of the alleged affair. She worked for the mayor from the time he took office to the spring of last year.
The San Francisco Chronicle reports Tourk's wife confessed to the affair as part of a substance abuse program.
The paper also said Tourk and Newsom were close and often socialized outside of work.
The report said the affair was short-lived and happened about a year and a half ago, during the mayor's divorce proceedings with his then-wife, Kimberly Guilfoyle.
Guilfoyle has since remarried and works as a Fox legal analyst in New York City.
The paper also said Tourk and Newsom were close and often socialized outside of work.
The report said the affair was short-lived and happened about a year and a half ago, during the mayor's divorce proceedings with his then-wife, Kimberly Guilfoyle.
Guilfoyle has since remarried and works as a Fox legal analyst in New York City.
Political observers said the divorced mayor's effusive apology, which came only hours after the story broke, may have helped defuse a scandal that threatened to haunt his bid for re-election in November.
"It has been an honor and a privilege to serve the Newsom campaigns and the city of San Francisco and its residents," Tourk said in a statement released Wednesday. "However, for personal reasons, I must resign my position as campaign manager of the mayor's re-election campaign. I am honored that, as deputy chief of staff, I helped create and implement key policy initiatives such as the Homeless Connect program that is now a national model for its compassionate and comprehensive approach to helping the homeless."
Newsom said he accepted the resignation with great sadness.
"It has been an honor and a privilege to serve the Newsom campaigns and the city of San Francisco and its residents," Tourk said in a statement released Wednesday. "However, for personal reasons, I must resign my position as campaign manager of the mayor's re-election campaign. I am honored that, as deputy chief of staff, I helped create and implement key policy initiatives such as the Homeless Connect program that is now a national model for its compassionate and comprehensive approach to helping the homeless."
Newsom said he accepted the resignation with great sadness.
Newsom's senior campaign strategist, Eric Jaye, would not confirm or deny the report, and declined to comment on it further.
Some Bay Area residents submitted their thoughts to NBC11:
"This is not the Mayor's private life. His affair he conducted was with the wife of a good friend. That is deplorable, but both the wife and his friend were also on the public payroll, as was the Mayor. Clinton's impeachment proceedings went forward on less scandal and betrayal of the public. The mayor should step down and out of the office he betrayed. His ethics are clearly tainted and unseemly and here that is certainly not a personal matter, but a public concern. Taking advantage of his position as Mayor to make love to a friend's wife would have been bad enough but here all involved in this triangle worked for the City and County of San Francisco. An effusive apology given only because he knew the truth had been told is no more honorable than the affair itself was," Sharon Jones said.
"The only issue I want to bring up that hasn't been mentioned is the fact that Alex Tourk's wife was the person who was unfaithful. She's the one who made the decision to end her marriage. Even if Mayor Newsome was the instigator, she should of (stet) thought about her husband and child. I guess this is why the divorce rate is so high in this country, because people just turn a deaf ear when they hear their wedding vows," Ed Bustos said.
"So he's human. He had an affair. Big deal. This is none of our business and has nothing to do with his role as the mayor. This is between the parties involved and their significant others. Period. We do not warrant or deserve his apology," Kathy McGilvery said.
"What a humiliating thing to do to someone who helped you get elected and was going to help you get re-elected. This type of thing is just a sign of total weakness on the part of the mayor. You are not even considering the fact that in the business world, having sexual relations with an employee, your secretary no less, could be considered sexual harassment in many cases and grounds for immediate termination," said John Rosica of San Jose.
"So he's human. He had an affair. Big deal. This is none of our business and has nothing to do with his role as the mayor. This is between the parties involved and their significant others. Period. We do not warrant or deserve his apology," said Kathy McGilvery.
Some Bay Area residents submitted their thoughts to NBC11:
"This is not the Mayor's private life. His affair he conducted was with the wife of a good friend. That is deplorable, but both the wife and his friend were also on the public payroll, as was the Mayor. Clinton's impeachment proceedings went forward on less scandal and betrayal of the public. The mayor should step down and out of the office he betrayed. His ethics are clearly tainted and unseemly and here that is certainly not a personal matter, but a public concern. Taking advantage of his position as Mayor to make love to a friend's wife would have been bad enough but here all involved in this triangle worked for the City and County of San Francisco. An effusive apology given only because he knew the truth had been told is no more honorable than the affair itself was," Sharon Jones said.
"The only issue I want to bring up that hasn't been mentioned is the fact that Alex Tourk's wife was the person who was unfaithful. She's the one who made the decision to end her marriage. Even if Mayor Newsome was the instigator, she should of (stet) thought about her husband and child. I guess this is why the divorce rate is so high in this country, because people just turn a deaf ear when they hear their wedding vows," Ed Bustos said.
"So he's human. He had an affair. Big deal. This is none of our business and has nothing to do with his role as the mayor. This is between the parties involved and their significant others. Period. We do not warrant or deserve his apology," Kathy McGilvery said.
"What a humiliating thing to do to someone who helped you get elected and was going to help you get re-elected. This type of thing is just a sign of total weakness on the part of the mayor. You are not even considering the fact that in the business world, having sexual relations with an employee, your secretary no less, could be considered sexual harassment in many cases and grounds for immediate termination," said John Rosica of San Jose.
"So he's human. He had an affair. Big deal. This is none of our business and has nothing to do with his role as the mayor. This is between the parties involved and their significant others. Period. We do not warrant or deserve his apology," said Kathy McGilvery.
Senate President pro Tem Don Perata said Thursday that Newsom can politically survive the scandal.
"So-called sex scandals or affairs of the heart come up in almost everybody's political life. The governor had to face that, other people have faced it, and you just move on," Perata said.
Perata said that most people are not interested in the private life of the mayor. He added that people are interested in his political and public work, and he thinks Gavin has done a fine job.
"People make judgments and then they either forget or they hold it against you. I just think it's very unfortunate that you have people around you who are allegedly your allies and close associates who drop the dime on you and go to the media. That is the bigger problem for Gavin Newsom. He has some people in his inner circle who do not want him to do well and that's the thing that bothers me the most," Perata said.
Perata said that the scandal "goes to the level of the spectacular tabloid kind of stuff."
"I would think the people who would hold this against him, already have a head start on not wanting to support him. I'm sorry that (the scandal) was made public. This is clearly something that should be done privately. I don't know anything other than what I read and I know not to trust much of what I read."
Former San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown did not hold back comment.
"I don't think the public is terribly distracted. I think the public in many cases finds it rather entertaining that suddenly they have someone who's still alive holding public office," said Brown.
Calls to Tourk from NBC11 were unanswered.
NBC11's Cheryl Hurd called Rippey-Tourk's place of employment and they said she would not be coming to work Thursday.
"So-called sex scandals or affairs of the heart come up in almost everybody's political life. The governor had to face that, other people have faced it, and you just move on," Perata said.
Perata said that most people are not interested in the private life of the mayor. He added that people are interested in his political and public work, and he thinks Gavin has done a fine job.
"People make judgments and then they either forget or they hold it against you. I just think it's very unfortunate that you have people around you who are allegedly your allies and close associates who drop the dime on you and go to the media. That is the bigger problem for Gavin Newsom. He has some people in his inner circle who do not want him to do well and that's the thing that bothers me the most," Perata said.
Perata said that the scandal "goes to the level of the spectacular tabloid kind of stuff."
"I would think the people who would hold this against him, already have a head start on not wanting to support him. I'm sorry that (the scandal) was made public. This is clearly something that should be done privately. I don't know anything other than what I read and I know not to trust much of what I read."
Former San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown did not hold back comment.
"I don't think the public is terribly distracted. I think the public in many cases finds it rather entertaining that suddenly they have someone who's still alive holding public office," said Brown.
Calls to Tourk from NBC11 were unanswered.
NBC11's Cheryl Hurd called Rippey-Tourk's place of employment and they said she would not be coming to work Thursday.
Since Newsom's February 2006 divorce from Guilfoyle, he has been linked to a series of women, including CSI star Sofia Milos. He also was reportedly dating a 20-year-old restaurant hostess.
The news of the alleged affair is in stark contrast to the first days as mayor of San Francisco. Newsom and Guilfoyle were once referred to as the "New Kennedys." At one point, the couple were pictured on the front page of Harper's Bazaar. The two were lying on the floor of the Gordon and Ann Getty mansion.
The scandal also hits as the mayor is gearing up for re-election.
Other top politicians have survived affairs, including former San Jose Mayor Ron Gonzales, who was re-elected in 2002 after his extra-marital relationship with a young staff member.
Former New York mayor and potential presidential candidate Rudy Giuliani married his third wife after a public affair.
Former President Bill Clinton remains one of the country's most popular politicians despite his affair with Monica Lewinsky.
San Francisco City Hall Is "Abuzz"
City Hall "is all abuzz and chattering," Supervisor Tom Ammiano said. "Everyone's on adrenaline. Then there's going to be a crash."
Supervisor Chris Daly, a vocal critic of the Newsom administration, and former Supervisor Tony Hall, a possible candidate in the 2007 mayoral election, also commented Thursday on the political implications of the mayor's affair.
Daly said the affair raises concerns about a relationship with a woman working in the office, but his main concern was for Alex Tourk, who has a young child with Rippey-Tourk.
"While we've been on opposite sides of the political battle, I feel sorry for him," Daly said. "He's a good guy."
Daly went on to say that the real ramifications of today's announcement -- both ethical and legal -- won't be known for weeks, but he did say that the management of the mayor's office could be thrown into turmoil, and that he wouldn't capitalize on that disruption.
"There's no secret that I've been looking for a good progressive candidate to challenge the mayor," Daly said. "This, frankly has put that search on hold."
Hall, who is considering challenging Newsom, said his possible mayoral bid "is certainly not going to be based on Newsom's misdeeds."
However, he said, "I'm getting an awful lot of encouragement, especially after today."
Hall said Newsom's affair is an example of what the former supervisor calls a pattern of dishonesty and had harsh criticism for the mayor.
The news of the alleged affair is in stark contrast to the first days as mayor of San Francisco. Newsom and Guilfoyle were once referred to as the "New Kennedys." At one point, the couple were pictured on the front page of Harper's Bazaar. The two were lying on the floor of the Gordon and Ann Getty mansion.
The scandal also hits as the mayor is gearing up for re-election.
Other top politicians have survived affairs, including former San Jose Mayor Ron Gonzales, who was re-elected in 2002 after his extra-marital relationship with a young staff member.
Former New York mayor and potential presidential candidate Rudy Giuliani married his third wife after a public affair.
Former President Bill Clinton remains one of the country's most popular politicians despite his affair with Monica Lewinsky.
San Francisco City Hall Is "Abuzz"
City Hall "is all abuzz and chattering," Supervisor Tom Ammiano said. "Everyone's on adrenaline. Then there's going to be a crash."
Supervisor Chris Daly, a vocal critic of the Newsom administration, and former Supervisor Tony Hall, a possible candidate in the 2007 mayoral election, also commented Thursday on the political implications of the mayor's affair.
Daly said the affair raises concerns about a relationship with a woman working in the office, but his main concern was for Alex Tourk, who has a young child with Rippey-Tourk.
"While we've been on opposite sides of the political battle, I feel sorry for him," Daly said. "He's a good guy."
Daly went on to say that the real ramifications of today's announcement -- both ethical and legal -- won't be known for weeks, but he did say that the management of the mayor's office could be thrown into turmoil, and that he wouldn't capitalize on that disruption.
"There's no secret that I've been looking for a good progressive candidate to challenge the mayor," Daly said. "This, frankly has put that search on hold."
Hall, who is considering challenging Newsom, said his possible mayoral bid "is certainly not going to be based on Newsom's misdeeds."
However, he said, "I'm getting an awful lot of encouragement, especially after today."
Hall said Newsom's affair is an example of what the former supervisor calls a pattern of dishonesty and had harsh criticism for the mayor.
"The city deserves so much more. This really speaks volumes about Newsom's trustworthiness that he would do this to his best friend," Hall said. "It's sad that people have to see this type of thing unravel to see that this administration is mainly concerned with spin and fooling the public. It's time the truth started coming out."
Newsom fired Hall as executive director of the Treasure Island Development Authority in October after appointing him in 2005. Hall was a member of the Board of Supervisors when Newsom tapped him to lead the agency in August 2004.
"Homelessness, crime, the facts about the 49ers -- everything (Newsom) has touched he's messed up and now he's messing up the relationships of his best friends," Hall said.
After the announcement, Newsom walked into his office with his head bowed, but his press secretary, Peter Ragone, spent at least a half hour outside the Room 200 answering questions about the future of the administration.
Ragone was adamant that the mayor's staff will remain behind Newsom as he seeks re-election in November. He added that top officials in the administration all gathered before today's announcement to discuss the mayor's "dramatic mistake."
"What is the political fallout?" Ragone said. "That's for the media, the pundits, the political talkers to figure out. That's not what we're focused on. What we're focused on is helping the mayor fix anything he needs to fix here in the city ... He's admitted to making a very serious mistake and there's a tremendous amount of weight on his shoulders."
Ragone added that the mayor is relying on friends, family and his "political family" to get through the tough times ahead.
Ammiano said he believes time will tell whether Newsom can recover from the scandal.
"If he's going to prove his character, it's going to be in the way he responds to this," Ammiano said this afternoon. "People allow stumbles, but you only get so many. How he's going to perform and how he's going to behave is going to determine his future. The ball's in his court."
Newsom has a lot of support, Ammiano noted, but the admission of the affair has raised grave concerns among his constituents and colleagues.
"He has morale issues, he has trust issues. Certainly I have deep concerns about judgment," he said.
The scandal will also likely prove difficult for Newsom's staffers, Ammiano said.
"They have to deal with the public reaction as well as their own personal feelings. Therein could be the morale issue," he said.
Ultimately, Newsom's indiscretion will not change what San Franciscans expect of their city leaders, but news of the affair has been a major distraction for lawmakers, Ammiano said.
"It's been messy. I think the worst thing is it's such a distraction to the everyday city governance," he said.
Daly echoed those sentiments and added that the mayor's infidelity goes way beyond politics.
"I have a strong set of core beliefs in politics but they're not as important as personal relationships," said Daly, who added that he felt lucky to be in a committed relationship with his wife of three-and-a-half years. "Respect and trust when you're an elected official is paramount."
In light of the announcement, Newsom canceled a scheduled appearance Thursday afternoon with police Chief Heather Fong and Municipal Transportation Authority Director Nathaniel Ford.
Newsom fired Hall as executive director of the Treasure Island Development Authority in October after appointing him in 2005. Hall was a member of the Board of Supervisors when Newsom tapped him to lead the agency in August 2004.
"Homelessness, crime, the facts about the 49ers -- everything (Newsom) has touched he's messed up and now he's messing up the relationships of his best friends," Hall said.
After the announcement, Newsom walked into his office with his head bowed, but his press secretary, Peter Ragone, spent at least a half hour outside the Room 200 answering questions about the future of the administration.
Ragone was adamant that the mayor's staff will remain behind Newsom as he seeks re-election in November. He added that top officials in the administration all gathered before today's announcement to discuss the mayor's "dramatic mistake."
"What is the political fallout?" Ragone said. "That's for the media, the pundits, the political talkers to figure out. That's not what we're focused on. What we're focused on is helping the mayor fix anything he needs to fix here in the city ... He's admitted to making a very serious mistake and there's a tremendous amount of weight on his shoulders."
Ragone added that the mayor is relying on friends, family and his "political family" to get through the tough times ahead.
Ammiano said he believes time will tell whether Newsom can recover from the scandal.
"If he's going to prove his character, it's going to be in the way he responds to this," Ammiano said this afternoon. "People allow stumbles, but you only get so many. How he's going to perform and how he's going to behave is going to determine his future. The ball's in his court."
Newsom has a lot of support, Ammiano noted, but the admission of the affair has raised grave concerns among his constituents and colleagues.
"He has morale issues, he has trust issues. Certainly I have deep concerns about judgment," he said.
The scandal will also likely prove difficult for Newsom's staffers, Ammiano said.
"They have to deal with the public reaction as well as their own personal feelings. Therein could be the morale issue," he said.
Ultimately, Newsom's indiscretion will not change what San Franciscans expect of their city leaders, but news of the affair has been a major distraction for lawmakers, Ammiano said.
"It's been messy. I think the worst thing is it's such a distraction to the everyday city governance," he said.
Daly echoed those sentiments and added that the mayor's infidelity goes way beyond politics.
"I have a strong set of core beliefs in politics but they're not as important as personal relationships," said Daly, who added that he felt lucky to be in a committed relationship with his wife of three-and-a-half years. "Respect and trust when you're an elected official is paramount."
In light of the announcement, Newsom canceled a scheduled appearance Thursday afternoon with police Chief Heather Fong and Municipal Transportation Authority Director Nathaniel Ford.
Molester's Former Roommate Gets 800 Years In Prison
SAN JOSE, Calif. -- When Frederick Everts was sentenced to 800 years to life in prison Friday for molesting three boys, ages 3, 9 and 11, the case's prosecutor gave the judge graphic descriptions of additional molestations in arguing for the maximum sentence.
Deputy District Attorney Steve Fein told Superior Court Judge Alfonso Fernandez that there have been many other victims in addition to the three boys Everts, 36, molested in San Jose between 2002 and 2005.
"He has admitted to over 40 victims over the course of his life ... including his biological son, who he orally copulated when he was 3 months old," Fein said.
Everts did not speak during the sentencing hearing. Nor did any of his victims address the court.
Everts was convicted approximately a year ago of the San Jose molestations. At the time of the molestations he was sharing a house with convicted serial child molester Dean Arthur Schwartzmiller. Schwartzmiller also molested one of Everts' victims. (Everts and Schwartzmiller pictured)
Everts' attorney, Steve Woodsom, argued that his client did not deserve to receive a harsher sentence than Schwartzmiller, whom authorities have called one of the most prolific child molesters in history.
Schwartzmiller was sentenced last month to 152 years to life in prison for the molestations he committed at the Vineyard Drive home he shared with Everts between 2002 and 2005.
"There are mitigating factors that I would not hesitate to say did not apply in the Schwartzmiller case," Woodson said.
Woodson cited Everts' cooperation with police and his expression of remorse for his actions, neither of which occurred with Schwartzmiller.
Fein argued that he treated both men equally by asking for the maximum possible sentence in each case.
"I'm asking that Mr. Everts be treated exactly the same as Mr. Schwartzmiller. Mr. Schwartzmiller was sentenced to the maximum allowed under the law," Fein said.
Fernandez ultimately sentenced Everts to less than the maximum possible 1,175 years to life in prison because it was unclear whether a number of the 17 felony counts were committed on separate occasions or at the same time as some of the other molestation charges.
A 12-year-old boy, identified only as "M" in court records, testified that Schwartzmiller molested him "more than 20 times." He also confirmed that Schwartzmiller took sexually explicit pictures of him in the bedroom of the man's Vineyard Drive home.
The boy also testified that he lied to police about what Schwartzmiller told him after he discovered a sticky substance on his body one morning.
Deputy District Attorney Steve Fein told Superior Court Judge Alfonso Fernandez that there have been many other victims in addition to the three boys Everts, 36, molested in San Jose between 2002 and 2005.
"He has admitted to over 40 victims over the course of his life ... including his biological son, who he orally copulated when he was 3 months old," Fein said.
Everts did not speak during the sentencing hearing. Nor did any of his victims address the court.
Everts was convicted approximately a year ago of the San Jose molestations. At the time of the molestations he was sharing a house with convicted serial child molester Dean Arthur Schwartzmiller. Schwartzmiller also molested one of Everts' victims. (Everts and Schwartzmiller pictured)
Everts' attorney, Steve Woodsom, argued that his client did not deserve to receive a harsher sentence than Schwartzmiller, whom authorities have called one of the most prolific child molesters in history.
Schwartzmiller was sentenced last month to 152 years to life in prison for the molestations he committed at the Vineyard Drive home he shared with Everts between 2002 and 2005.
"There are mitigating factors that I would not hesitate to say did not apply in the Schwartzmiller case," Woodson said.
Woodson cited Everts' cooperation with police and his expression of remorse for his actions, neither of which occurred with Schwartzmiller.
Fein argued that he treated both men equally by asking for the maximum possible sentence in each case.
"I'm asking that Mr. Everts be treated exactly the same as Mr. Schwartzmiller. Mr. Schwartzmiller was sentenced to the maximum allowed under the law," Fein said.
Fernandez ultimately sentenced Everts to less than the maximum possible 1,175 years to life in prison because it was unclear whether a number of the 17 felony counts were committed on separate occasions or at the same time as some of the other molestation charges.
A 12-year-old boy, identified only as "M" in court records, testified that Schwartzmiller molested him "more than 20 times." He also confirmed that Schwartzmiller took sexually explicit pictures of him in the bedroom of the man's Vineyard Drive home.
The boy also testified that he lied to police about what Schwartzmiller told him after he discovered a sticky substance on his body one morning.
Thursday, February 08, 2007
Anna Nicole Smith Collapses, Dies at 39
HOLLYWOOD, Fla. -- Anna Nicole Smith, the pneumatic blonde whose life played out as an extraordinary tabloid tale — Playboy centerfold, jeans model, bride of an octogenarian oil tycoon, reality-show subject, tragic mother — died Thursday after collapsing at a hotel. She was 39.
She was stricken while staying at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino and was rushed to a hospital. Edwina Johnson, chief investigator for the Broward County Medical Examiner's Office, said the cause of death was under investigation and an autopsy would be done on Friday.
Just five months ago, Smith's 20-year-old son died suddenly in the Bahamas in what was believed to be a drug-related death.
Seminole Police Chief Charlie Tiger said a private nurse called 911 after finding Smith unresponsive in her sixth-floor room at the hotel, which is on an Indian reservation. He said Smith's bodyguard administered CPR, but she was declared dead at a hospital.
Through the '90s and into the new century, Smith was famous for being famous, a pop-culture punchline because of her up-and-down weight, her Marilyn Monroe looks, her exaggerated curves, her little-girl voice, her ditzy-blonde persona, and her over-the-top revealing outfits.
Recently, she lost a reported 69 pounds and became a spokeswoman for TrimSpa, a weight-loss supplement. On her reality show and other recent TV appearances, her speech was often slurred and she seemed out of it. Some critics said she seemed drugged-out.
Her former lawyer Lenard Leeds told the celebrity gossip Web site TMZ that Smith "always had problems with her weight going up and down, and there's no question she used alcohol." Leeds said it was no secret that "she had a very troubled life" and had "so many, many problems."
"She wanted to be like Marilyn her whole life and ironically died in a similar manner," Leeds said. Monroe died of a drug overdose at age 36 in 1962.
Her attorney Ron Rale told The Associated Press that he had talked to Smith on Tuesday or Wednesday, and she had flu symptoms and a fever and was still grieving over her son.
"Poor Anna Nicole," he said.
She was stricken while staying at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino and was rushed to a hospital. Edwina Johnson, chief investigator for the Broward County Medical Examiner's Office, said the cause of death was under investigation and an autopsy would be done on Friday.
Just five months ago, Smith's 20-year-old son died suddenly in the Bahamas in what was believed to be a drug-related death.
Seminole Police Chief Charlie Tiger said a private nurse called 911 after finding Smith unresponsive in her sixth-floor room at the hotel, which is on an Indian reservation. He said Smith's bodyguard administered CPR, but she was declared dead at a hospital.
Through the '90s and into the new century, Smith was famous for being famous, a pop-culture punchline because of her up-and-down weight, her Marilyn Monroe looks, her exaggerated curves, her little-girl voice, her ditzy-blonde persona, and her over-the-top revealing outfits.
Recently, she lost a reported 69 pounds and became a spokeswoman for TrimSpa, a weight-loss supplement. On her reality show and other recent TV appearances, her speech was often slurred and she seemed out of it. Some critics said she seemed drugged-out.
Her former lawyer Lenard Leeds told the celebrity gossip Web site TMZ that Smith "always had problems with her weight going up and down, and there's no question she used alcohol." Leeds said it was no secret that "she had a very troubled life" and had "so many, many problems."
"She wanted to be like Marilyn her whole life and ironically died in a similar manner," Leeds said. Monroe died of a drug overdose at age 36 in 1962.
Her attorney Ron Rale told The Associated Press that he had talked to Smith on Tuesday or Wednesday, and she had flu symptoms and a fever and was still grieving over her son.
"Poor Anna Nicole," he said.
"She's been the underdog. She's been besieged ... and she's been trying her best and nobody should have to endure what she's endured."
The Texas-born Smith was a topless dancer at strip club before she entered her photos in a search contest and made the cover of Playboy magazine in 1992. She became Playboy's playmate of the year in 1993. She was also signed to a contract with Guess jeans, appearing in TV commercials, billboards and magazine ads.
In 1994, she married 89-year-old oil tycoon J. Howard Marshall II, owner of Great Northern Oil Co. In 1992, Forbes magazine estimated his wealth at $550 million.
In a 2005 interview with ABC Smith recalled meeting Marshall at what she called a "gentleman's club' in Houston. "He had no will to live and I went over to see him," she said. "He got a little twinkle in his eyes, and he asked me to dance for him. And I did."
Marshall died in 1995 at age 90, setting off a feud with Smith's former stepson, E. Pierce Marshall, over whether she had a right to his estate.
A federal court in California awarded Smith $474 million. That was later overturned. But in May, the U.S. Supreme Court revived her case, ruling that she deserved another day in court.
The stepson died June 20 at age 67. But the family said the court fight would continue.
She starred in her own reality TV series, "The Anna Nicole Show," in 2002-04. Cameras followed her around as she sparred with her lawyer, hung out with her personal assistant and interior decorator, and cooed at her poodle, Sugar Pie. She also appeared in movies, performing a bit part in "The Hudsucker Proxy" in 1994.
After news came of Smith's death, G. Eric Brunstad Jr., the lawyer who represented Marshall, said in a statement: "We're very shocked by the news and extend the deepest condolences to her family."
In a statement, Playboy founder Hugh Hefner said: "I am very saddened to learn about Anna Nicole's passing. She was a dear friend who meant a great deal to the Playboy family and to me personally."
Smith's son, Daniel Smith, died Sept. 10 in his mother's hospital room in the Bahamas, just days after she gave birth to a daughter.
An American medical examiner hired by the family, Cyril Wecht, said he had methadone and two antidepressants in his system when he died. Low levels of the three drugs interacted to cause an accidental death, Wecht said. Last month, a Bahamas magistrate scheduled a formal inquiry into the death for March 27.
Meanwhile, the paternity of her now 5-month-old daughter remained a matter of dispute. The birth certificate lists Dannielynn's father as attorney Howard K. Stern, Smith's most recent companion. Smith's ex-boyfriend Larry Birkhead was waging a legal challenge, saying he was the father.
Debra Opri, the attorney who filed his paternity suit, said Birkhead "is devastated. He is inconsolable, and we are taking steps now to protect the DNA testing of the child. The child is our No. 1 priority."
She was born Vickie Lynn Hogan on Nov. 28, 1967, in Houston, one of six children of Donald Eugene and Virgie Hart Hogan. She married Bill Smith in 1985, giving birth to Daniel before divorcing two years later.
"From my professional exposure to Anna Nicole, I can say she was always personable, down to earth and driven. All in all, a joy to have as a client," said Wayne Munroe, her Bahamian lawyer who has overseen the aftermath of her son's mysterious death in Nassau.
The Texas-born Smith was a topless dancer at strip club before she entered her photos in a search contest and made the cover of Playboy magazine in 1992. She became Playboy's playmate of the year in 1993. She was also signed to a contract with Guess jeans, appearing in TV commercials, billboards and magazine ads.
In 1994, she married 89-year-old oil tycoon J. Howard Marshall II, owner of Great Northern Oil Co. In 1992, Forbes magazine estimated his wealth at $550 million.
In a 2005 interview with ABC Smith recalled meeting Marshall at what she called a "gentleman's club' in Houston. "He had no will to live and I went over to see him," she said. "He got a little twinkle in his eyes, and he asked me to dance for him. And I did."
Marshall died in 1995 at age 90, setting off a feud with Smith's former stepson, E. Pierce Marshall, over whether she had a right to his estate.
A federal court in California awarded Smith $474 million. That was later overturned. But in May, the U.S. Supreme Court revived her case, ruling that she deserved another day in court.
The stepson died June 20 at age 67. But the family said the court fight would continue.
She starred in her own reality TV series, "The Anna Nicole Show," in 2002-04. Cameras followed her around as she sparred with her lawyer, hung out with her personal assistant and interior decorator, and cooed at her poodle, Sugar Pie. She also appeared in movies, performing a bit part in "The Hudsucker Proxy" in 1994.
After news came of Smith's death, G. Eric Brunstad Jr., the lawyer who represented Marshall, said in a statement: "We're very shocked by the news and extend the deepest condolences to her family."
In a statement, Playboy founder Hugh Hefner said: "I am very saddened to learn about Anna Nicole's passing. She was a dear friend who meant a great deal to the Playboy family and to me personally."
Smith's son, Daniel Smith, died Sept. 10 in his mother's hospital room in the Bahamas, just days after she gave birth to a daughter.
An American medical examiner hired by the family, Cyril Wecht, said he had methadone and two antidepressants in his system when he died. Low levels of the three drugs interacted to cause an accidental death, Wecht said. Last month, a Bahamas magistrate scheduled a formal inquiry into the death for March 27.
Meanwhile, the paternity of her now 5-month-old daughter remained a matter of dispute. The birth certificate lists Dannielynn's father as attorney Howard K. Stern, Smith's most recent companion. Smith's ex-boyfriend Larry Birkhead was waging a legal challenge, saying he was the father.
Debra Opri, the attorney who filed his paternity suit, said Birkhead "is devastated. He is inconsolable, and we are taking steps now to protect the DNA testing of the child. The child is our No. 1 priority."
She was born Vickie Lynn Hogan on Nov. 28, 1967, in Houston, one of six children of Donald Eugene and Virgie Hart Hogan. She married Bill Smith in 1985, giving birth to Daniel before divorcing two years later.
"From my professional exposure to Anna Nicole, I can say she was always personable, down to earth and driven. All in all, a joy to have as a client," said Wayne Munroe, her Bahamian lawyer who has overseen the aftermath of her son's mysterious death in Nassau.
Man Who Fled U.S. To Avoid Rape Charges Found Guilty
HAMILTON - A man who fled the country after being accused of impersonating a police officer to kidnap and rape three women has been found guilty on all charges. Authorities said Brian Stepp, 33, was accused in 2004, then fled to Canada, then the Netherlands. He was finally arrested in October 2005 in Cambridge, England, then fought extradition until he was returned in July 2006.
Stepp was charged with three counts each of rape, kidnapping and impersonating a police officer, and one count of sexual battery. The impersonating charges were dropped to help in the extradition process.
On Thursday, after a three-day trial, Stepp was found guilty.
Stepp was charged with three counts each of rape, kidnapping and impersonating a police officer, and one count of sexual battery. The impersonating charges were dropped to help in the extradition process.
On Thursday, after a three-day trial, Stepp was found guilty.
Father, Son Argument Leads To Gun Fight
6:13 p.m. EST January 20, 2007
CINCINNATI - Florence police responded Friday to a call about a shooting that occurred at 8428 Pleasant Valley Road. Police arrived at the scene to learn that Mike McCann, 46, had been shot allegedly by his son, Eric Mayo, 19, with what police believed was a 9 mm handgun.
Police said they were told that both men were involved in an escalating argument.
At one point during the argument, Mayo was heard saying, "Is this going to end in a gun fight?" At that point, both men went to their bedrooms and retrieved handguns, police said.
McCann was at the top of the stairs with a gun in his hand asking where may was, at which point Mayo was heard saying, "Dad, do you have a gun?" police said.
McCann replied that he did, and Mayo stepped around a wall and fired four or five shots in the direction of McCann, hitting him twice: once in the abdomen and once in the right thigh, police said.
McCann then retreated into his bedroom where he was found when police arrived, officials said.
Mayo placed his gun down on a pool table and waited for police to arrive and was arrested without incident, police said.
Mayo has been charged with first-degree assault and wanton endangerment, police said.
McCann, who was conscious, was transported to St. Luke Hospital and subsequently airlifted to University of Cincinnati Hospital, authorities said..
His condition was not released.
CINCINNATI - Florence police responded Friday to a call about a shooting that occurred at 8428 Pleasant Valley Road. Police arrived at the scene to learn that Mike McCann, 46, had been shot allegedly by his son, Eric Mayo, 19, with what police believed was a 9 mm handgun.
Police said they were told that both men were involved in an escalating argument.
At one point during the argument, Mayo was heard saying, "Is this going to end in a gun fight?" At that point, both men went to their bedrooms and retrieved handguns, police said.
McCann was at the top of the stairs with a gun in his hand asking where may was, at which point Mayo was heard saying, "Dad, do you have a gun?" police said.
McCann replied that he did, and Mayo stepped around a wall and fired four or five shots in the direction of McCann, hitting him twice: once in the abdomen and once in the right thigh, police said.
McCann then retreated into his bedroom where he was found when police arrived, officials said.
Mayo placed his gun down on a pool table and waited for police to arrive and was arrested without incident, police said.
Mayo has been charged with first-degree assault and wanton endangerment, police said.
McCann, who was conscious, was transported to St. Luke Hospital and subsequently airlifted to University of Cincinnati Hospital, authorities said..
His condition was not released.
Police: Mom gave teen a gun for revenge slaying
NEW ORLEANS - Police on Thursday were searching for a teenager and his mother, who they say gave the boy a handgun after he lost a fight and told him to take revenge.
The warrants accuse both Vanessa Johnson, 44, and Clarence Johnson, 17, of second-degree murder of another 17-year-old, whose name was not immediately released, New Orleans police Sgt. Joe Narcisse said.
He said both teens had walked away after the original fight Wednesday evening.
"Detectives learned Johnson went home and shared the details of the fight with his mother. Johnson's mother, 44-year-old Vanessa Johnson, gave him a handgun and instructed him to exact revenge on the victim because Johnson had apparently lost the fight," Narcisse said.
Clarence Johnson found the other youth shortly afterward and fired several rounds, hitting him once in the abdomen, Narcisse said. The other teen died at the city's trauma center.
Last month, city officials announced efforts to try to curb the violence in New Orleans after nine killings in the first eight days of the year.
They increased patrols, set up early-morning checkpoints and rushed homicide cases through the court system. National Guard troops and State Police also remain in the city after being called in last summer to help local police combat a spike in violence.
Copyright 2007 The Associated Press.
The warrants accuse both Vanessa Johnson, 44, and Clarence Johnson, 17, of second-degree murder of another 17-year-old, whose name was not immediately released, New Orleans police Sgt. Joe Narcisse said.
He said both teens had walked away after the original fight Wednesday evening.
"Detectives learned Johnson went home and shared the details of the fight with his mother. Johnson's mother, 44-year-old Vanessa Johnson, gave him a handgun and instructed him to exact revenge on the victim because Johnson had apparently lost the fight," Narcisse said.
Clarence Johnson found the other youth shortly afterward and fired several rounds, hitting him once in the abdomen, Narcisse said. The other teen died at the city's trauma center.
Last month, city officials announced efforts to try to curb the violence in New Orleans after nine killings in the first eight days of the year.
They increased patrols, set up early-morning checkpoints and rushed homicide cases through the court system. National Guard troops and State Police also remain in the city after being called in last summer to help local police combat a spike in violence.
Copyright 2007 The Associated Press.
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