The Bay

Oakland Police Chief LeRonne Armstrong was placed on administrative leave last month, after an external investigation into the handling of two police misconduct cases found he failed to hold officers accountable. This latest chapter comes two decades into the department’s reform efforts under the oversight of a federal court. 

Recent headlines have focused mostly on Armstrong’s suspension and his efforts to get reinstated. But as journalist and author Ali Winston puts it, this latest scandal is really a symptom of longstanding issues within OPD.  

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Guest: Ali Winston, independent journalist and co-author of the book The Riders Come Out At Night

This episode was produced by Maria Esquinca and Alan Montecillo, and hosted by Ericka Cruz Guevarra.

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Sandra Castañeda was convicted for a murder she didn’t commit and was sentenced to 40 years to life. She thought she was going to spend the rest of her life in prison. 

In 2018, she got hopeful news: California dismissed her sentence and ordered her release. But instead of finding freedom, she was immediately detained by Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) after being released from prison. 

Even though her crimes were dismissed in California, federal immigration authorities still consider Sandra deportable. In this months-long investigation, KQED’s Tyche Hendricks reports on the thousands of immigrants whose cases have been dismissed at the state level but whose cases are still being pursued by ICE. 

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This episode originally aired on KQED's The California Report Magazine on Jan. 27, 2023.

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The mass shooting last Monday in Half Moon Bay that left 7 farmworkers dead has brought renewed attention to the living conditions of California farmworkers. State and local officials say they plan to investigate potential wage theft and safety violations at the two farms.

But more broadly, the issues that this mass shooting highlighted are not new: farmworkers across California make very low wages, struggle to afford housing, and are vulnerable to exploitation. And looming over it all is the fact that a majority are undocumented immigrants, with less power than most Americans.

Guest: Farida Jhabvala Romero, KQED labor correspondent

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This episode was produced by Maria Esquinca and Alan Montecillo, and hosted by Ericka Cruz Guevarra

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You’ve seen the news by now: tech companies are laying people off in droves. Nearly 60,000 people have been laid off from Bay Area-based tech companies since November 2022, according to the latest estimates from Layoffs.fyi, a website that has tracked tech layoffs since the start of the pandemic.

Companies cite everything from the need to cut costs, to over-hiring during the pandemic, to fears of a looming recession. But what's really going on? And what does it mean for the tens of thousands of people who once worked in an industry that is famous for the perks, fancy offices, high pay, and stability?

Guest: Kevin Vu Nguyen, Bay Area journalist whose work has appeared in the SF Standard, the Sacramento Bee, and the Guardian

This episode was produced by Alan Montecillo, Maria Esquinca and Jehlen Herdman, and hosted by Ericka Cruz Guevarra.

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An estimated 62 million gallons of sewage — or about 94 Olympic-sized swimming pools — spilled into the San Francisco Bay during the storms in late December and January. 

Those storms are now behind us, and officials say the water is now safe. But now is actually the perfect time to unpack what went wrong with our sewage system, and how we can better prepare our infrastructure for the next big storm.

Guest: Lesley McClurg, KQED health correspondent

This episode was produced and edited by Alan Montecillo and Ericka Cruz Guevarra, and hosted by Ericka Cruz Guevarra.

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Organizers of Oakland’s Lunar New Year Parade hope it marks a new start for Chinatown and the city’s Asian communities. Over the past few years, the neighborhood has been hit hard by the pandemic and violent attacks on Asians.

Now, the mass shootings in Monterey Park, Half Moon Bay, and East Oakland this past week have revived fears over safety. But Stewart Chen, who is involved in organizing the parade, hopes that the city and the Bay Area truly show up for Oakland Chinatown this Sunday — and that people keep coming back in the future.

Guest: Stewart Chen, board president of Oakland Chinatown Improvement Council

Oakland’s Lunar New Year Parade begins at 11:00 am at Wilma Chan Park on Sunday, Jan. 29. If you are interested in volunteering, contact Christina Chen at (510) 570-9155.

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7 people were killed and 1 injured in a mass shooting in Half Moon Bay on Monday afternoon. The suspect, 66-year old Chunli Zhao, is in police custody. County Sheriff Christina Corpus says all evidence points to a workplace dispute.

Half Moon Bay, known both as a tourist destination and an agricultural community, is still recovering from the impact of the massive storms in the past few weeks. Law enforcement say the victims were Latino and Asian, and that some were migrant workers.

This shooting happened on the heels of the Monterey Park mass shooting, where 11 people were killed in the mostly-Asian suburban community on Saturday night. And later on Monday, 1 person was killed and 7 injured in a mass shooting in Oakland.

Guest: Guy Marzorati, KQED politics and government reporter/producer

Links:

• Half Moon Bay Strong Victims Fund

Episode Transcript

This episode was produced by Alan Montecillo and Maria Esquinca. Jehlen Herdman is our intern. Ericka Cruz Guevarra is the host. 

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The sun is back, and it’s a huge relief. And while the state largely avoided widespread, catastrophic disaster, communities all over California were hit hard. Cities are estimating tens of millions of dollars in damage, and at least 21 people have died since Dec. 26.

Meanwhile, one silver lining: all this rain has put a meaningful dent in the drought. So, with the rain gone for now, what did we learn these past few weeks?

Guest: Dan Brekke, KQED editor and reporter

Episode Transcript

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This episode was produced by Alan Montecillo and Maria Esquinca, edited by Alan Montecillo, and hosted by Ericka Cruz Guevarra. Jehlen Herdman is our intern.

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Pamela Price has been sworn in as Alameda County District Attorney. In the 2022 Election, Price won the seat with 53% of the vote, defeating her more tough-on-crime opponent, Terry Wiley. 

She is the first Black woman ever elected to this position and promises to make a big shift in the office's approach to prosecution; Price’s campaign emphasized changing the system in favor of a more holistic approach to public safety.

What exactly are the new DA’s plans for criminal justice reform? And what roadblocks could she face in the process? 

Guest: Annelise Finney, producer and reporter for KQED 

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Correction: an earlier version of this episode included Walnut Creek as part of Alameda County. It is part of Contra Costa County.

This episode was produced by Alan Montecillo and Maria Esquinca. Ericka Cruz Guevarra is the host. Jehlen Herdman is our intern.

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When the rain storms first started to hit Hannah Hagemann’s community in the Santa Cruz mountains, she was lucky enough to evacuate before landslides could block the only roads in and out of her neighborhood in Felton. Those left behind were left without electricity and internet for several days, virtually cutting the community off from the rest of the region.

Clean up from landslides, high winds and downed power lines are the immediate focus; But surviving another storm in this remote mountain community is going to take more systemic change.

Guest: Hannah Hagemann, weather and science editor for the San Francisco Chronicle

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This episode was produced by Adhiti Bandlamudi and Maria Esquinca, and hosted by Ericka Cruz Guevarra

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