By Dan Phiffer, Tomas Apodaca, Miles Hilton and Maddy Varner Stay up-to-date with free briefings on topics that matter to all Californians. Subscribe to CalMatters today for nonprofit news in your inbox. Gaza solidarity encampments have appeared on college campuses across California and the nation, joining a growing wave of protests against Israel’s ongoing war […]
Imperial Awards Bid for Townsite Street Project
By Richard Montenegro Brown IMPERIAL — Finding a qualified bidder for the Imperial Townsite Street Improvement Project — formerly known as the “Imperial Corridor Improvement Project” — to rehabilitate Seventh, 10th and 14th streets in Imperial appears to have been a temporary challenge for the Community Development Department. During the Imperial City Council meeting on […]
Did Tulare County find a way to reduce CA jail deaths?
By Lynn La Stay up-to-date with free briefings on topics that matter to all Californians. Subscribe to CalMatters today for nonprofit news in your inbox. A mental health staff member speaks with an inmate through their cell door in an inmate housing unit at the Tulare County Adult Pre-Trial Facility on Sept. 18, 2023. Photo […]
How a suicide crisis led to change in one small California county jail
By Nigel Duara Stay up-to-date with free briefings on topics that matter to all Californians. Subscribe to CalMatters today for nonprofit news in your inbox. VISALIA – Lt. Buddy Hirayama sagged into his desk chair after a busy morning on his first day leading a county jail system running along the eastern edge of California’s […]
California restricts how police respond to protests. Why were bean bag shotguns used at UCLA?
By Jeff Wenninger Stay up-to-date with free briefings on topics that matter to all Californians. Subscribe to CalMatters today for nonprofit news in your inbox. Guest Commentary written by Jeff Wenninger Jeff Wenninger retired as a lieutenant after 30 years with the Los Angeles Police Department. He helped investigate and adjudicate more than 700 deadly […]
Who owns the apartment next door? California agency says it will take millions to find out
By Ben Christopher Stay up-to-date with free briefings on topics that matter to all Californians. Subscribe to CalMatters today for nonprofit news in your inbox. Who is the flesh-and-blood landlord with a city-spanning portfolio of apartments concealed behind an obscurely-named limited liability company? Who is the proprietor of a local restaurant, hotel or regional car […]
Real Public Safety Means Centering Our Youth
By Carolyn Strudwick As one who has helped people navigate multiple government systems, I know the real reasons that youth can end up involved in our legal systems: poverty, restricted access to resources and over-policing. But I also know that these policies and approaches don’t keep people or communities safe. I have seen how the […]
The Biz Beat: San Jose’s Burger Bar is a 1950s classic
By Robert Eliason Burger Bar in San Jose might have been what musician Chuck Berry was thinking about when he rhapsodized in “Back in the U.S.A.”about a place where “hamburgers sizzle on an open grill night and day.” The restaurant, founded in 1953 by Albert Berger, predates the classic song by six years and was […]
IVHD Still Determining Makeup of 7 Voting Districts
By Richard Montenegro Brown EL CENTRO — The Imperial Valley Healthcare District Board of Directors is racing to beat deadlines laid out by Assembly Bill 918 to establish the geographical footprint for each of the seven districts that will make up the official service areas and voting boundaries of Imperial County’s new healthcare system. Dr. […]
Fifth IV Taco Festival Spices Up the Night in Brawley
By Richard Montenegro Brown BRAWLEY — Brawley kicked off local Cinco de Mayo celebrations with a vibrant fiesta downtown — the fifth annual Imperial Valley Taco Festival hosted by the Chamber of Commerce for Greater Brawley on Friday night, May 3. Brawley’s Main Street was adorned with colorful booths, drawing crowds of all ages as […]