According to the City it was not a "Sweep." It was "Homeless Outreach" and the people arrested were being connected to services. This is preliminary information, but we understand out of the 32 arrests only 1 was released and the rest get their services in jail for the weekend. The charges were: LAMC 41.18 d - sleeping on a sidewalk, which is not supposed to be given out between 9pm and 6am according to the Jones decision. LAMC 63.44 B14(b) - a law that closes the beach from midnight to 5am - that the city did NOT get approved by the California Coastal Commission to even do LAMC 63.93 h - Says: remain, stay or loiter within the limits of any public library between the hours of 9:00 p.m. and 9:00 a.m. the following day. Not sure if this law is constitutional. What is a limit and how do they know the people were even at the library the day before? These were people sleeping under the overhang in front of the Venice library. Also people were arrests based on warrants, like one man who was arrested for some old shopping cart tickets.

The council decided to draft a moratorium, but the rule would have little effect for most residents because most renters live in smaller mom-and-pop landlorded buildings. "On an 8-6 vote, the council asked City Atty. Carmen Trutanich to prepare a rent moratorium for buildings constructed before 1978 that have six or more units -– a group that is governed by the city’s rent control law." "Housing officials are still trying to determine how many of the city’s 630,000 rent-controlled apartments would be exempted from the proposed moratorium. Out of 118,000 rent-controlled buildings, 89,000 have four units or less, one housing official said." In many older areas of L.A. like Pico Union, apartments are converted houses, duplexes, or houses with a granny flat in the back. These are exempted from the moratorium. Needless to say, these are some of the poorest people in L.A. The large apartment complexes generally have higher rents and are considered "luxury" apartments. These apartments generally rent to middle class people who can afford the high rents. In between the large complexes and quads are the midsized apartment buildings that generally take up more than one lot on a residential street, or are on commercial streets like La Brea. As for mom and pops losing their buildings... I don't care. It's a business - there's no guarantee of profits, and 2/3 of new businesses fail. Join the majority. Or renegotiate with your lender to get a lower payment.

Miércoles / Wednesday (5/may)

COLUMBIA (MO) - "The checkpoint will be set up within the Columbia city limits from around 10 p.m. to 3 a.m. each night." (http://www.columbiamissourian.com/stories/2010/05/05/sobriety-checkpoint/)

FULLERTON (CA) - "6:PM The Fullerton Police Department will conduct a sobriety and driver's license checkpointat 200 block of East Commonwealth Avenue." (City News Service)

GREELEY (CO) - "The checkpoints will be operating between 6 p.m. and 3 a.m. on the main streets in Greeley, such as 23rd Avenue, 10th Street, 8th Avenue, 35th Avenue and other heavily-traveled areas. There will be two checkpoint teams out on Wednesday night, moving locations throughout the 9-hour time period." (http://www.greeleytribune.com/article/20100504/NEWS/100509884/1005&parentprofile=1001)

LOS ANGELES COUNTY (CA) - "Los Angeles County Avoid the 100 DUI Taskforce will deploy overtime patrols and conduct drunken driving checkpoints." (City News Service)

ORANGE (CA) - "The Orange Police Dept. is conducting a DUI and driver’s license checkpoint from 7 p.m. to 3 a.m. on Wednesday, May 5 at 200 The City Drive South." (http://www.ocregister.com/news/dui-247098-checkpoint-mayo.html)

ST. LOUIS (MO) - "Specially trained officers will be conducting DWI Enforcement from 8:00 p.m. to 1:00 a.m. on Wednesday, May 5, 2010." (http://www.globe-democrat.com/news/2010/may/05/sobriety-checkpoints-set-cinco-de-mayo/)

TEMECULA (CA) - "On Wednesday, May 5, 2010, beginning at 8: PM, officers from the Temecula Police Department will conduct a DUI / Driver’s License checkpoint in the City of Temecula." (http://www.riversidesheriff.org/press/sws10-0504.htm)



Jueves / Thursday (6/may)

COLUMBIA (MO) - "The checkpoint will be set up within the Columbia city limits from around 10 p.m. to 3 a.m. each night." (http://www.columbiamissourian.com/stories/2010/05/05/sobriety-checkpoint/)

KANSAS CITY (MO) - "Police said the checkpoint will be held May 6. They didn’t release a time or location for the checkpoint" (http://www.kansascity.com/2010/04/29/1911165/kc-police-to-hold-driver-license.html)



El fin de semana / This weekend (7-9/may)

GRAND FORKS (ND) - "A sobriety checkpoint will be conducted on May 8th in the Grand Forks area." (http://www.kfgo.com/news_Detail.php?ID=10907)

LAS CRUCES (NM) - "The Las Cruces Police Department will conduct at least one sobriety checkpoint within city limits during the weekend of May 7 to 9." (http://www.lcsun-news.com/las_cruces-news/ci_14989245)



Viernes/Friday (7/may)

CALCASIEU PARISH (Louisiana) - "the Calcasieu Parish Sheriff’s Office will be conducting a seatbelt check from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. at an undisclosed location in the parish." (http://www.sulphurdailynews.com/news/x289798760/CPSO-to-conduct-seatbelt-checkpoint-this-weekend)

COLUMBIA (MO) - "The checkpoint will be set up within the Columbia city limits from around 10 p.m. to 3 a.m. each night." (http://www.columbiamissourian.com/stories/2010/05/05/sobriety-checkpoint/)

COSTA MESA (CA) – "The Costa Mesa Police Department is planning to hold a sobriety/drivers license checkpoint from 6 to11 p.m. Friday on Bristol Street at Bear Street." (http://www.ocregister.com/news/checkpoint-247336-traffic-mesa.html)



Sábado / Saturday (8/may)

CALCASIEU PARISH (Louisiana) - "The Calcasieu Parish Sheriff’s Office will be conducting a DWI checkpoint on Saturday, May 8 at an undisclosed location in the parish." (http://www.sulphurdailynews.com/news/x577128221/CPSO-to-conduct-DWI-checkpoint-this-weekend)

COLUMBIA (MO) - "The checkpoint will be set up within the Columbia city limits from around 10 p.m. to 3 a.m. each night." (http://www.columbiamissourian.com/stories/2010/05/05/sobriety-checkpoint/)

NORCO (CA) - "The Norco Office of the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department will conduct a DUI/Driver’s License Safety checkpoint in Norco on May 8, 2010, from 7:00 p.m. to 3:00 a.m." (http://www.riversidesheriff.org/press/jvs10-0508.htm)



Domingo / Sunday (9/may)

COLUMBIA (MO) - "The checkpoint will be set up within the Columbia city limits from around 10 p.m. to 3 a.m. each night." (http://www.columbiamissourian.com/stories/2010/05/05/sobriety-checkpoint/)

DODGE CITY (KS) - "The Kansas Highway Patrol and the Dodge City Police Department will conduct a sobriety checkpoint May 9 in Ford County" (http://www.dodgeglobe.com/announcements/x1042476326/Sobriety-checkpoint-scheduled)

The rally began at Sam Hicks Memorial Park and marched through downtown Temecula to the the bewildered looks of the gringo community. The marchers arrived at the Temecula Duck Pond, where chants and cheers were uplifted.

The mood was festive, despite a latent anger about the bill legalizing discrimination in our neighboring state and the constant harassment of immigrants by local police. The security team, though inexperienced, were very professional.

Although most of the protesters were themselves immigrants, they did count on the solidarity of some concerned native-born folks, including a local high school teacher.

Only one counterprotester attempted to disrupt the action, demanding to know if the protesters had read the text of SB 1070. "Sir, as a activist, I assure you that I read every controversial law!" a young man reassured him. "Well let's sit down and read it," said the man. Once the activists realized his ploy, they, in the words of one witness, "enthusiastically ignored" him and frustrated his attempt to disrupt the manifestation.

For many of the march participants, it was the first time participating in a protest. A sense of empowerment was felt as they realized that they do not have to tolerate the abuses they suffer daily, and that there is a means to fight back.

"El mes que entra" (impreciso) / "Next month"

CLEARFIELD COUNTY (PA) - "In accordance with Pennsylvania State Police Checkpoint Strikeforce II, Troop C will conduct a sobriety checkpoint within Clearfield County during May. The checkpoint will take place on roads that have high incidences of alcohol related crashes." (http://gantdaily.com/2010/04/27/psp-clearfield-9/)

HAMLET (NC) - "The memory of a woman who was killed in Charlotte by a drunk driver in 2006 has inspired the Hamlet Police Department to set up a special DWI checkpoint next month." (http://www.yourdailyjournal.com/view/full_story_home/7251264/article-Checkpoint-in-memory-of-woman-killed-by-drunk-driver-?instance=homesecondary_news_left_column)



"La semana que entra" / "Next week"

TENNESSEE - "This weeks drivers license safety checkpoint will be located on Highway 31-South." (http://www.wksr.com/wksr.php?rfc=src/article.html&id=23974)



"Este fin de semana" (impreciso) / "This weekend"

FORT MYERS (FL) - "The operation will take place at an undisclosed location in the City of Fort Myers" (http://www.news-press.com/article/20100428/NEWS0110/100428026/1075/Sobriety-checkpoint-planned-in-Fort-Myers-this-weekend)

SPRINGFIELD (DE) - "The Northern Delaware County DUI Taskforce will be conducting a DUI checkpoint at an undisclosed location this weekend in Springfield Township." (http://www.delcotimes.com/articles/2010/04/30/news/doc4bda4cb1cf418929699052.txt)



Viernes / Friday (30/apr)

CANTON TOWNSHIP (OH) - "The Stark County Sheriff’s Office, along with other members of the OVI Task Force, will conduct a sobriety checkpoint on Friday, April 30, in Canton and Perry townships." (http://www.the-press-news.com/news/article/4817906)

FOUNTAIN VALLEY (CA) - "The sobriety checkpoint will take place beginning at 9 p.m. Friday until 3 a.m. The location of the event will be available to the public on Friday by calling the police department." (Hablé y me dijeron que iba a ser en la Brookhurst y Heil. I called and they told me it was going to be at the intersection of Brookhurst and Heil.) (http://www.ocregister.com/news/traffic-246128-checkpoint-friday.html)

GUAM - "Airport Police will be conducting a D.U.I. Checkpoint from this Friday, April 30, through Sunday, May 1, along Route 10-A, Tiyan, and other airport roadways." (http://www.pacificnewscenter.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=4665:airport-police-conducting-dui-checkpoints-again-this-weekend&catid=45:guam-news&Itemid=156)

IMPERIAL BEACH (CA) - "A checkpoint is scheduled for April 30th, 2010 between 7:30 p.m. and 2:30 a.m. The checkpoint will be conducted in the 1000 block of Palm Avenue in Imperial Beach." (http://apps.sdsheriff.net/press/Default.aspx?FileLink=c34794b2-ed6c-4dbd-a804-a24755a41a24)

LEESBURG (FL) - "Troopers tonight will conduct a sobriety checkpoint at U.S. Highway 441 and County Road 449, also known as Stewart Lane, a spokeswoman said. The checkpoint will begin at 9 p.m." (http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/local/breakingnews/os-fhp-checkpoint-leesburg-20100430,0,1756871.story)

MONROE (OH) - "The low-manpower checkpoint will be held from 11 p.m. to 4 a.m. on Ohio 4 in Monroe" (http://www.oxfordpress.com/news/oxford-news/ovi-checkpoint-planned-on-ohio-4-681061.html?showComments=true)

NAPA (CA) - "The checkpoint will be in an area of the city where police have seen a high number of DUI arrests or drunk-driving-related collisions" (http://www.napavalleyregister.com/news/local/article_388a9c4e-53f5-11df-a17a-001cc4c03286.html)

ONTARIO (CA) - "Officers will be stopping cars at an undisclosed location from 6 p.m. to 2 a.m. Saturday, according to a news release." (http://www.dailybulletin.com/ci_14988635)

PALM SPRINGS (CA) - "Palm Springs police plan to hold a sobriety and driver’s license checkpoint tonight at an undisclosed location in the city, officials said." (http://www.mydesert.com/article/20100430/NEWS0801/100430010/1263/update/DUI-checkpoint-planned-for-tonight-in-Palm-Springs)

PERRY TOWNSHIP (OH) - "The Stark County Sheriff’s Office, along with other members of the OVI Task Force, will conduct a sobriety checkpoint on Friday, April 30, in Canton and Perry townships." (http://www.the-press-news.com/news/article/4817906)

PETALUMA (CA) - "A team of eight to 10 officers will set up the first checkpoint at 5 p.m. somewhere in the city (they’re not telling) and at some point will shut that checkpoint and move it elsewhere in the city until 2 a.m. Saturday" (http://roadwarrior.blogs.pressdemocrat.com/10051/dui-checkpoints-in-petaluma/)

PLAINVILLE (CT) - "The Police Department will conduct a DUI Sobriety Checkpoint off State Route 372 from 7:30 p.m. Saturday to 2:30 a.m. Sunday." (http://www.bristolpress.com/articles/2010/04/28/news/doc4bd8aec4b9c8a802707945.txt)

SAN BERNARDINO (CA) - "San Bernardino police will hold a drunken driving checkpoint from 6 p.m. Friday to 2 a.m. Saturday in the 1000 block of N. Del Rosa Avenue." (http://www.sbsun.com/news/ci_14975251)

SHREWSBURY (NJ) - "The checkpoint will be run from 11 p.m. Friday through 3 a.m. Saturday on Route 35 South." (http://www.app.com/article/20100429/NEWS/100429051/DWI-checkpoint-being-held-in-Shrewsbury-this-weekend)



Sábado / Saturday (1/may)

LAKE COUNTY (CA) - "The California Highway Patrol (CHP) will conduct a sobriety checkpoint on Saturday in Lake County." (http://www.record-bee.com/ci_14973294)

LAWRENCE TOWNSHIP (OH) - "The township and Canal Fulton’s police departments and the Stark County Sheriff’s Department will join the Ohio Highway Patrol in conducting a checkpoint between 5 p.m. Saturday and 1 a.m. Sunday on State Route 21 in both directions between the Stark-Wayne county line and Marshallville Road" (http://www.cantonrep.com/stark/x359580981/Lawrence-Twp-roadside-sobriety-checkpoints-announced)



Miércoles / Wednesday (5/may)

FULLERTON (CA) - "6:PM The Fullerton Police Department will conduct a sobriety and driver's license checkpointat 200 block of East Commonwealth Avenue." (City News Service)

TEMECULA (CA) - "On Wednesday, May 5, 2010, beginning at 8: PM, officers from the Temecula Police Department will conduct a DUI / Driver’s License checkpoint in the City of Temecula." (http://www.riversidesheriff.org/press/sws10-0504.htm)



Jueves / Thursday (6/may)

KANSAS CITY (MO) - "Police said the checkpoint will be held May 6. They didn’t release a time or location for the checkpoint" (http://www.kansascity.com/2010/04/29/1911165/kc-police-to-hold-driver-license.html)



Sábado / Saturday (8/May)

NORCO (CA) - "The Norco Office of the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department will conduct a DUI/Driver’s License Safety checkpoint in Norco on May 8, 2010, from 7:00 p.m. to 3:00 a.m." (http://www.riversidesheriff.org/press/jvs10-0508.htm)



El fin de semana que entra / Next weekend (7-9/may)

LAS CRUCES (NM) - "The Las Cruces Police Department will conduct at least one sobriety checkpoint within city limits during the weekend of May 7 to 9." (http://www.lcsun-news.com/las_cruces-news/ci_14989245)

"This weekend" / "Este fin de semana" (Impreciso)

KITTANNING (PA) - "The Pennsylvania State Police Troop D, Kittanning, will conduct a sobriety checkpoint at a predetermined location this coming weekend." (http://www.kittanningpaper.com/2010/04/23/police-to-conduct-checkpoint/6348)



Wednesday / Miércoles (21/apr)

MORENO VALLEY - "The Moreno Valley Police Department will conduct a sobriety and driver's license checkpoint on Wednesday April 21, from 6:00 p.m. to 12:00 a.m." (http://www.riversidesheriff.org/press/mvs10-0421.htm)



Jueves / Thursday (22/apr)

GARDENA (CA) - "Police will conduct a driving-under -the influence and driver's license checkpoint from 7:30 tonight to 3:30 a.m. Saturday in the eastbound lanes of El Segundo Boulevard at Halldale Avenue." (http://www.dailybreeze.com/news/ci_14939481)

MANHATTAN BEACH (CA) - "Police will conduct a driver's license and sobriety checkpoint from 9 tonight to 3 a.m. Saturday in the 800 block of Manhattan Beach Boulevard." (http://www.dailybreeze.com/news/ci_14939481)

WEST LAFAYETTE (IN) - "police officers from several local departments will operate a sobriety checkpoint in West Lafayette." (http://www.purdueexponent.org/index.php?module=article&story_id=21176)



Friday / Viernes (23/apr)

CALVERT and ST. MARY'S COUNTIES (MD) - "Police announced plans for a "border to border sobriety checkpoint" Friday in Calvert and St. Mary's counties. Officers from the respective sheriff's offices and Maryland State Police barracks will participate." (http://somd.com/news/headlines/2010/11778.shtml)

FAIRFIELD (CA) - "A sobriety and driver's license checkpoint will be conducted by Fairfield police in the 700 block of East Travis Boulevard from 6 to 11 p.m. Friday." (http://www.thereporter.com/news/ci_14934768)

MIDDLESEX COUNTY (MA) - "The Massachusetts State Police will conduct a sobriety checkpoint on a secondary state highway in Middlesex County, Friday, April 23, into Saturday, April 24." (http://www.wickedlocal.com/stoneham/homepage/x932345966/State-Police-sobriety-checkpoint)

NORTH MIAMI BEACH (FL) - "The North Miami Beach Police Department will be conducting a DUI checkpoint starting 7 p.m. Friday at 160th Street and West Dixie Highway." (http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/palm-beach/fl-dui-checkpoints-20100423,0,2752576.story)

OAKLAND (CA) - "On Apr. 23rd from 6 p.m. to 2 a.m., there will be DUI/Driver's License checkpoints to help crackdown on drunk driving." (http://oaklandlocal.com/blogs/2010/04/oakland-police-department-targets-impaired-drivers-checkpoint-apr-23-community-voices)

PALM BEACH COUNTY (FL) - "The Florida Highway Patrol will be conducting a "Safety and Sobriety Checkpoint" along the 4400 block of Lake Worth Road." (http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/palm-beach/fl-dui-checkpoints-20100423,0,2752576.story)

POMONA (CA) - "The checkpoint will run from 9 p.m. until 3 a.m. on Sunday" (http://www.contracostatimes.com/california/ci_14940240)

PORTERVILLE (CA) - "The California Highway Patrol will be stopping vehicles Friday in Porterville to catch drunken drivers and those driving without licenses." (http://www.visaliatimesdelta.com/article/20100421/NEWS01/100421015/California+Highway+Patrol+planning+Porterville+checkpoint+Friday)

SANTA ANA (CA) - "Santa Ana police will conduct a driving under the influence checkpoint. 300 S. Main St." (City News Service)

SANTA CLARITA (CA) - "The Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff's Station will be conducting a Driving Under the Influence (DUI) checkpoint beginning on Friday at 7 p.m. and concluding at 3 a.m. Saturday morning." (http://hometownstation.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=20081:dui-sheriff-checkpoint-clarita-2010-04-23-15-37&catid=26:local-news&Itemid=97)

TEMPLE TERRACE (FL) - "Police will stage a DUI checkpoint Friday night on 56th Street just north of Fowler Avenue. The checkpoint will wrap up about midnight, at which point the agencies will saturate the area until about 4 a.m., looking for other potentially impaired drivers." (http://www.tampabay.com/news/publicsafety/temple-terrace-dui-checkpoint-planned-for-friday/1089146)

VISTA (CA) - "Vista Station will be conducting a DUI/Drivers License checkpoint on the evening of April 23, 2010, at an undisclosed location in the City of Vista." ()

VICTORVILLE (CA) - "Victorville Police Department announced today they will be holding a DUI/Driver’s License checkpoint on Friday, April 23rd, 2010 from 7:00 p.m. to 3:00 a.m., in the City of Victorville." (http://www.sbcounty.gov/sheriff/public/pressreleases/PRDetail.asp?PRID=2891)

WEST HARTFORD (CT) - "The checkpoint will take place Friday from 5 p.m. to 1 a.m. Saturday on a portion of Trout Brook south of Farmington Avenue." (http://www.westhartfordnews.com/articles/2010/04/22/news/doc4bd09e2a17a34971626539.txt)

WEST MONROE (Louisiana) - "The West Monroe Police Department will conduct a sobriety checkpoint from 10 p.m. until 3 a.m. Saturday." (http://www.thenewsstar.com/article/20100421/UPDATES01/100421011)

WYANDOTTE (MO) - "The Kansas Highway Patrol, the Bonner Springs Police Department and the Wyandotte County Sheriff’s Office have announced they will conduct a sobriety checkpoint this weekend. The DUI checkpoint will be Friday at an undisclosed time and location." (http://blogs.kansascity.com/crime_scene/2010/04/dui-checkpoint-friday-in-wyandotte.html)



Sábado / Saturday (24/abr)

COACHELLA (CA) - "The Coachella Police Department will be conducting a DUI / Driver's License checkpoint on Saturday, 04/24/10, between the hours of 7:00 P.M. to 2:00 A.M." (http://www.riversidesheriff.org/press/ind10-0424.htm)

EL CENTRO (CA) - "The El Centro Police Department will be conducting a DUI checkpoint on Saturday from 8 pm to 3 am." (http://www.kswt.com/Global/story.asp?S=12344614)

ESSEX COUNTY (MA) - "state police will also have a sobriety checkpoint set up somewhere in Essex County sometime from Saturday night into Sunday." (http://www.salemnews.com/local/x1612548802/Anti-DUI-checkpoint-this-weekend)

HAMILTON COUNTY (OH) - "A drunk driving checkpoint will be held somewhere in Hamilton County on Saturday night, according to the Ohio State Highway Patrol. The time and location will be announced on Saturday morning. Most operations are held between 11 p.m. and 3 a.m." (http://news.cincinnati.com/article/20100423/NEWS01/304230006/DUI+checkpoint+Saturday)

MARINA DEL REY (CA) - "Los Angeles police will conduct a driving-under-the influence and sobriety checkpoint from 8 tonight to 3 a.m. Saturday on Lincoln Boulevard between Washington Boulevard and Maxella Avenue." (http://www.dailybreeze.com/news/ci_14939481)

NORTH HOLLYWOOD (CA) - "Police will conduct a sobriety and driver's license checkpoint from 9 p.m. Saturday to 4 a.m. Sunday on Cahuenga Boulevard between Broadlawn Driver and Lankershim Boulevard." (http://www.dailybreeze.com/news/ci_14939481)

REDLANDS (CA) - "Redlands police will conduct a sobriety checkpoint from 10:30 p.m. Saturday to 3:30 a.m. Sunday in the southbound lane of Alabama Street between Park and Orange avenues." (http://www.sbsun.com/news/ci_14930336)

RIALTO (CA) - "The checkpoint will be on the south end of the city at an undisclosed time." (http://www.sbsun.com/news/ci_14927810)

SAN MARCOS (CA) - "The checkpoint is scheduled from 8 p.m. Saturday to 3 a.m. Sunday" (http://www.nctimes.com/news/local/san-marcos/article_b0e22653-72ab-5b8e-b61a-bbbfab168287.html)

VENTURA (CA) - "The Ventura Police Department will conduct a sobriety checkpoint on Saturday night in an undisclosed location in the city, authorities said. The checkpoint will take place between 8 p.m. and 3 a.m." (http://www.vcstar.com/news/2010/apr/22/ventura-will-have-dui-checkpoint-saturday-night/)

VERNON (CT) - "The Police Department and Metro Traffic Services will conduct sobriety checkpoints from 8 p.m. Saturday to 3 a.m. Sunday on routes 83, 74, 31, and 30." (http://www.journalinquirer.com/articles/2010/04/23/towns/vernon/doc4bd1bdb18753a061768918.txt)



Upcoming / Próximamente

Mayo

JACKSON COUNTY (MO) - "The Missouri Highway Patrol will conduct a sobriety checkpoint in Jackson County during May." (http://www.kansascity.com/2010/04/21/1892498/missouri-highway-patrol-to-hold.html)

4/18/2010 JULIO RODRIGUEZ UPDATE (SPREAD THE WORD!) Sisters and Brothers, Today 3 of us went to the LAPD Parker Center in downtown Los Angeles to visit our brother behind enemy lines but unfortunately Parker Center only allows one visitor per day, which we were unaware of. For those wondering how Julio is doing, know that he is staying strong and positive regarding his situation and as suspected, the charge of "Felony Assault With A Deadly Weapon On An Officer" is indeed trumped up, as the original charge was intended to be "Misdemeanor Battery" until Julio's possessions were tampered with. It is important that we recognize Julio as political prisoner, and that as members of the movement he represents we are obligated to support him. For those wondering how to support Julio please spread the word and be prepared for benefit events and fundraisers. At the moment we are currently trying to find legal council for our brother as well as provide the means for people to donate as well, which I will post as time permits. I was told that Julio's first court date is Tuesday April 20th, and that he most likely will be transferred from Parker Center to Division 30, located on Temple St. between Spring and Broadway, so I will keep people posted on both his court date and transfer. He has asked that people try to make it out to his court dates to support him. He has requested a reduction in bail, which is currently set at 50,000 dollars and we should have an estimate of what we are up against in regards to this after April 20th. Until then please, please, please spread the word that our brother is in dire need of support and be prepared to contribute in any way you can. If anyone knows of any lawyer that would be interested in taking the case, any fundraising ideas, any means to contribute, or is interested in receiving updates please contact me at MapachinABC@gmail.com Spread the word and be ready to mobilize for our brother Julio. FREE JULIO RODRIGUEZ! -Mapa ABCF

hey! if you want to be ridiculed for being mexican, hear unfair stereotypes about african-americans, hear homophobic rants about whether or not tom cruise is gay, or hear words like slut whore and tits and ass in the classroom, you should totally go to LACC. Los Angeles Community College on vermont at santa monica blvd. we even have a teacher who talks about prostitution 80% of the time. and others obsessed by masturbation. gym teachers who harass female students. sexist english teachers. the administrative oversight likes to push stuff under the carpet. the professors are hell-bent on being offensive as often as possible. LACC is getting sued. they are so confused. you can get free tuition with a fee waiver. but be prepared to be abused, on the taxpayer's dime. LACC district counsel eric kim says i should take down my expose blog. i think they need to get sued again for protecting abuse. they act like the internet never happened. professors who specifically have a weird way about women in the classroom: lanzer: slut, dumb woman, horrible women lewis: hooker, topless dancing assignment, homophobia, harasses women of color bartelt: "tits and ass" shouted at student, jokes about margaret thatcher being a man and "show your tits" duffy: speaks of women as "cheesecake" and of wives who gain 100 lbs. eating bon-bons while trying to take advantage of men financially vargas: brings in film with every other word whore or the n-word. not kidding. if you guys have some more examples please comment or write me. lots of students are confirming a school-wide quality control problem. reports of islamophobia too. please contact laccequalitycoalition@yahoo.com for stories or assistance.

4/17/2010 Sisters and brothers, Our beloved friend and comrade Julio Rodriguez was arrested today 4/17/10 in Downtown Los Angeles, while protesting against white supremacy, by the LAPD. For those of you who do not know Julio he has been involved with Communities For A Better Environment Huntington Park, Anarchist Black Cross Guadalajara, Nahuatl education in Brown communities, and most recently helped organize the April 10th event to raise funds for Oso Blanco and the children of Chiapas. He is being held on the trumped up charge of "Assault with a deadly weapon on a police officer or fireman," which is a felony. His court date is Tuesday 4/20/10; his bail is 50,000 dollars, and he is currently in the LAPD Parker Center, located at 150 N. Los Angeles Street, Los Angeles, CA. His booking number is #2301368. Tomorrow, Sunday, 4/18/10, visiting hours are from 10-12 and 1-3 pm. I will be able to make at least two trips to visit him tomorrow and one on Monday, if anyone has a government issued ID and wants to carpool, please contact me at MapachinABC@gmail.com . I will post the court time, address, and room number as soon as the information becomes available to me. It is crucial that as Anarchists, anti-imperialists, anti-racists, and anti-fascists we support our friend behind enemy lines, as well as his family, offering our aid in any way possible. Please circulate this message. FREE JULIO! Mapache Los Angeles Anarchist Black Cross

Excerpts from an LA Observed post by David Cay Johnston about Darryl Gates: "I reported this in the Los Angeles Times in a story that told how the May Day 1982 violence between Revolutionary Communist Party marchers and the LAPD began when an undercover officer posing as one of the communists gave a signal for people to run. That gave the police a pretext to attack. No one would have known this except that the officer was inadvertently captured on videotape. "At a meeting in South Central that has been used by TV and many screenwriters, a gathering of blacks upset about LAPD violence erupted into demands from one person after another in the audience to attack LAPD officers and division buildings. The leaders at the actual meetings told these people to shut up. Year later court documents showed that the calls for violence all came from undercover LAPD officers, one of whom stole hundreds of dollars from the organization he infiltrated and served as treasurer. "My piece on how LAPD instigated the May Day riot was virtually the last story I wrote before the paper shut me down and moved on to a new narrative - that the political spying bad guy was a single sergeant who lived in a trailer, rather than the carefully directed work of Chief Gates." Also: "There were other women besides the one that the officer in the May Day incident slept with for several years. I interviewed seven of them, who told me the same story of becoming intimate with buff young men who showed up at their political meetings. Only months or years later, after telling tales between the sheets to men they thought cared about them, did they find out they were just used to collect information. None of the other women would go on record because by the time I got to them they had married or had children or had careers." Great blog post overall. Check it out at the link.

Entre el 15 y el 30 de abril / Between April 15th and 30th

CALVERT COUNTY (MD) - "The Calvert County Sheriff’s Office participates in the Checkpoint Strikeforce initiative and will be conducting a DUI checkpoints as well as continued DUI enforcement and patrols between April 15th and April 30th, 2010." (http://www.thebaynet.com/news/index.cfm/fa/viewstory/story_ID/17466)



Jueves / Thursday (15/apr)

TUCSON (AZ) - "The checkpoint will be conducted within the city limits of Tucson and in an area, which has experienced a high number of DUI related collisions." (http://tucsoncitizen.com/hot-off-the-press-release/2010/04/12/dui-checkpoint-hits-tucson-streets-thursday/)



Viernes / Friday (16/apr)

CHINO (CA) - "The Chino Police Department will conduct a DUI /driver's license checkpoint from 9 p.m Friday to 3 a.m. Saturday." (http://www.sbsun.com/breakingnews/ci_14889104)

COSTA MESA - "The sobriety checkpoint will be held from 6-11 p.m. on Bristol between Bear Street and Randolph Avenue." (http://www.ocregister.com/news/drivers-244234-checkpoint-police.html)

EATONTON (NJ) - "The checkpoint will run from 11 p.m. Friday through 3 a.m. Saturday on Route 36." (http://www.app.com/article/20100415/NEWS/100415018/DWI-checkpoint-planned-for-this-weekend-in-Eatontown)

ELKHART (IN) - "Officers from local law enforcement agencies will be staged at a location west of Elkhart, and drivers who are under the influence of alcohol will be arrested and prosecuted." (http://www.southbendtribune.com/article/20100415/News01/100419690/1130)

LEE COUNTY (FL) - "The operation will take place at an undisclosed location in Lee County" (http://www.cape-coral-daily-breeze.com/page/content.detail/id/515964.html?nav=5069)

ONTARIO (CA) - "The Ontario Police Department is planning a DUI /driver's license checkpoint from 6 p.m Friday to 2 a.m. Saturday at an undisclosed location in the city." (http://www.sbsun.com/breakingnews/ci_14892070)

PALM BEACH GARDENS (FL) - "11:00 P.M. until 2:00 A.M. and Saturday, April 17, 2010. The checkpoint location, they say, will be in the 13600 block of Alternate A1A between Hood Road and Donald Ross Road, in the northbound lanes only." (http://www.wptv.com/content/news/northpbc/palmbeachgardens/story/PB-Gardens-Police-announce-DUI-checkpoint/fiQYcYKDdEScX-2T8jwyOw.cspx)

SANTA ROSA (CA) - "The checkpoint will be from 7 p.m. to 2 a.m. Saturday. Police officials have not revealed the location." (http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20100414/NEWS/100419814/1350?Title=Drunken-driving-checkpoint-planned-for-Santa-Rosa-)



Sábado / Saturday (17/apr)

CALCASIEU PARISH (Louisiana) - "The Calcasieu Parish Sheriff’s Office will be conducting DWI checkpoints on Saturday, April 17 at undisclosed locations in the parish." (http://www.sulphurdailynews.com/news/x43853909/CPSO-to-conduct-DWI-checkpoint-this-Saturday)

CYPRESS (CA) - "the Cypress Police Department will conduct a DUI and driver's license checkpoint from 7 p.m. to 3 a.m. on Lincoln, west of Valley View." (http://www.ocregister.com/news/dui-244274-department-checkpoint.html)

NORFOLK COUNTY (MA) - "a “sobriety checkpoint” will be implemented by the Massachusetts State Police on a secondary State highway in Norfolk County Saturday, April 17 into Sunday, April 18. " (http://www.wickedlocal.com/canton/news/x863096122/State-Police-setting-up-sobriety-checkpoint-in-Norfolk-County-April-17-18)

VISALIA (CA) - "Visalia police are having a DUI and drivers license checkpoint Saturday at an undisclosed location." (http://www.visaliatimesdelta.com/article/20100415/NEWS01/100415007/1002/Visalia+police+announce+DUI+checkpoint+)



Next Week / La semana que entra Viernes /Friday (23/apr)

OAKLAND (CA) - "On Apr. 23rd from 6 p.m. to 2 a.m., there will be DUI/Driver's License checkpoints to help crackdown on drunk driving." (http://oaklandlocal.com/blogs/2010/04/oakland-police-department-targets-impaired-drivers-checkpoint-apr-23-community-voices)

VICTORVILLE (CA) - "Victorville Police Department announced today they will be holding a DUI/Driver’s License checkpoint on Friday, April 23rd, 2010 from 7:00 p.m. to 3:00 a.m., in the City of Victorville." (http://www.sbcounty.gov/sheriff/public/pressreleases/PRDetail.asp?PRID=2891)

Sometime this week/En algún momento durante esta semana

NAPLES (FL) - "The Collier County Sheriff’s Office, Naples Police Department and Marco Island Police Department will be conducting a sobriety checkpoint during the week targeting drivers who choose to drive after consuming alcohol or drugs." (http://www.naplesnews.com/news/2010/apr/05/collier-naples-marco-law-enforcement-plan-dui-chec/)



Jueves/Thursday (8/apr)

BOONE COUNTY (MO) - "The checkpoint lasts from Monday, April 5 to Sunday, April 11." (http://www.komu.com/satellite/SatelliteRender/KOMU.com/ba8a4513-c0a8-2f11-0063-9bd94c70b769/d7ff97f7-80ce-0971-0056-29b3c8e8c781)

UPLAND (CA) - "Upland police officers will conduct a DUI/driver's license checkpoint Thursday. The checkpoint will run from 6 p.m. to 1:15 a.m. on Friday" (http://www.sbsun.com/news/ci_14838911)



Friday/Viernes (9/apr)

BOONE COUNTY (MO) - "The checkpoint lasts from Monday, April 5 to Sunday, April 11." (http://www.komu.com/satellite/SatelliteRender/KOMU.com/ba8a4513-c0a8-2f11-0063-9bd94c70b769/d7ff97f7-80ce-0971-0056-29b3c8e8c781)

FOLSOM (CA) - "The Folsom Police Department will conduct a DUI checkpoint Saturday April 9, 2010. The checkpoint will run from 7 PM to 3 AM, at an undisclosed location." (http://newsblaze.com/story/20100405122109nnnn.nb/topstory.html)

LA MIRADA (CA) - "The La Mirada Public Safety Team will be conducting a DUI and driver's license checkpoint from 7 p.m. Friday to 1 a.m. Saturday in a undisclosed location." (http://www.whittierdailynews.com/news/ci_14838888)

MISSION (KS) - "Mission police with the help of other area law enforcement agencies will conduct a sobriety checkpoint Friday night." (http://www.kansascity.com/2010/04/08/1864471/mission-police-to-conduct-dui.html)

OKLAHOMA CITY (OK) - "Six sobriety checkpoints will be set up in the Oklahoma City metro area over the weekend. The checkpoints will be at undisclosed locations from 7 p.m. Friday to 3 a.m. Saturday and again from 7 p.m. Saturday to 3 a.m. Sunday." (http://newsok.com/article/3452185)



Saturday/Sábado (10/apr)

BOONE COUNTY (MO) - "The checkpoint lasts from Monday, April 5 to Sunday, April 11." (http://www.komu.com/satellite/SatelliteRender/KOMU.com/ba8a4513-c0a8-2f11-0063-9bd94c70b769/d7ff97f7-80ce-0971-0056-29b3c8e8c781)

CALCASIEU PARISH (Louisiana) - "The Calcasieu Parish Sheriff’s Office will be conducting a sobriety checkpoint on Saturday, April 10 at an undisclosed location in the parish." (http://www.sulphurdailynews.com/news/x1661773991/CPSO-to-conduct-dwi-checkpoint-this-weekend)

FONTANA (CA) - "Fontana police said they will hold a sobriety checkpoint from 6 p.m. Saturday to 1:30 a.m. Sunday." (http://www.sbsun.com/news/ci_14845379)

OKLAHOMA CITY (OK) - "Six sobriety checkpoints will be set up in the Oklahoma City metro area over the weekend. The checkpoints will be at undisclosed locations from 7 p.m. Friday to 3 a.m. Saturday and again from 7 p.m. Saturday to 3 a.m. Sunday." (http://newsok.com/article/3452185)



Sunday/Domingo (11/apr) BOONE COUNTY (MO) - "The checkpoint lasts from Monday, April 5 to Sunday, April 11." (http://www.komu.com/satellite/SatelliteRender/KOMU.com/ba8a4513-c0a8-2f11-0063-9bd94c70b769/d7ff97f7-80ce-0971-0056-29b3c8e8c781)

Próximo viernes / Next Friday (16/apr)

CHINO (CA) - "The Chino Police Department will conduct a sobriety and driver's license checkpoint on Friday, April 16th from 9:00 p.m. to 3:00 a.m." (http://www.chinohills.com/news-articles-details/Chino_Police_Department_Targets_Impaired_Drivers_with_Checkpoint_-1251)



En dos semanas / In two weeks

OAKLAND (CA) - "On Apr. 23rd from 6 p.m. to 2 a.m., there will be DUI/Driver's License checkpoints to help crackdown on drunk driving." (http://oaklandlocal.com/blogs/2010/04/oakland-police-department-targets-impaired-drivers-checkpoint-apr-23-community-voices)

Seeking to overturn the city's medical marijuana ordinance even before it takes effect, a loose-knit coalition of Los Angeles collectives is quietly gathering signatures to force a referendum on the law. The scrappy, largely volunteer effort faces a Monday deadline to turn in 27,425 valid signatures. "We're getting down to the wire here," said Dan Halbert, who runs Rainforest Collective in Mar Vista and has coordinated the campaign. "It's going to be close." http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-referendum14-2010mar14,0,6946869.story?track=rss Read about the petition here: http://www.thegapp.com/ClubPortal/ClubStatic.cfm?clubID=2733&pubmenuoptID=29937 Go HERE for your local petition signing location: http://www.thegapp.com/clubportal/ClubStatic.cfm?clubID=2733&pubmenuoptID=31207 Join for free here https://www.memberize.net/clubportal/MemberJoin.cfm?clubID=2733 Work fast Black Sunday is TOMORROW March the 14th!!!! Pass it along-FAST

Sábado / Saturday

COSTA MESA (CA) - "The Costa Mesa Police Department will conduct a DUI checkpoint from 8 p.m. today to 2 a.m. Sunday at the intersection of Harbor Boulevard and Peterson Place." (http://www.dailypilot.com/articles/2010/03/05/publicsafety/dpt-duicheckpoint030610.txt)

MODESTO (CA) - "Modesto police will be out looking for drunken drivers Saturday night at a sobriety checkpoint at an undisclosed location within the city." (http://www.modbee.com/2010/03/03/1073190/police-planning-dui-checkpoint.html)

PONTOON BEACH (IL) - "The checkpoint will be held beginning at 10 p.m. Saturday at an intersection in the Pontoon Beach area." (http://www.bnd.com/2010/03/05/1161419/state-police-to-dedicate-safety.html)

La investigación analiza las cifras producidas por distintas agencias de autoridad pública y concluye que el retén es más eficaz para aplicar leyes antimigrantes, como la discriminación que prohibe licensias a conductores indocumentados, que para contrarrestar los conductores ebrios. Además, recalca que las encautaciones de autos resulta con grandes ganancias para municipalidades.

The investigation examines figures from various law enforcement agencies and concludes that the checkpoint is a much more effective tool to enforce anti-immigrant laws such as the discrimination that prohibits licensing of undocumented drivers, than it is to halt drunk drivers. Furthermore, it points out that checkpoints are a cash cow for the municipalities that use them.

Checkpoints this weekend / Retenes este fin de semana

"Throughout February and March" "Durante los meses de febrero y marzo" (impreciso)

LAS CRUCES (NM) - "New Mexico State Police will conduct sobriety checkpoints around Las Cruces throughout February and March" (http://www.lcsun-news.com/las_cruces-news/ci_14467770)



Jueves / Thursday (25/feb)

RANCHO CUCAMONGA (CA) - "Sheriff's deputies will be conducting a vehicle safety checkpoint at Rochester Avenue and Stadium Parkway in Rancho Cucamonga on Thursday." (http://www.dailybulletin.com/ci_14455150)

UPLAND (CA) - "The Upland Police Department will conduct a DUI /driver's license checkpoint from 6 p.m. Thursday to 1:15 a.m. Friday." (http://www.sbsun.com/breakingnews/ci_14463598)



"This weekend" "Este fin de semana" (impreciso)

BUCKS COUNTY (PA) - "State police will be conducting a sobriety checkpoint in Bucks County this weekend." (http://www.phillyburbs.com/news/news_details/article/92/2010/february/24/sobriety-checkpoint-slated-for-weekend.html)

FORT MYERS (FL) - "DUI sobriety checkpoint sometime this coming weekend beginning Friday, Feb. 26. The operation will take place at an undisclosed location in the city of Fort Myers" (http://www.cape-coral-daily-breeze.com/page/content.detail/id/514921.html)



Viernes / Friday (26/feb)

SANTA ANA (CA) - "Officers may stop any vehicle at the checkpoint, which will be in the area of 1000 N. Newhope St., near Rosita Park. The checkpoint stops will begin at 7:30 p.m. and are scheduled to go until 1 a.m." (http://www.ocregister.com/news/checkpoint-236094-police-impaired.html)

LAFAYETTE (Louisiana) - "A sobriety checkpoint will be conducted from 9 p.m. Friday until 3 a.m. Saturday. The Lafayette Police Department and Lafayette Parish Sheriff’s Office will be conducting the OWI checkpoint within the incorporated areas of Lafayette" (http://www.theadvertiser.com/article/20100225/NEWS01/100225009/OWI+checkpoint+planned+for+Friday)

SOUTH LAFOURCHE (Louisiana) - "Sheriff's deputies will man an insurance checkpoint in south Lafourche between 9 a.m. and noon." (http://www.dailycomet.com/article/20100223/HURBLOG/100229826/-1/OBITS?Title=Deputies-to-staff-insurance-checkpoint-Friday-in-south-Lafourche)

VICTORVILLE (CA) - "San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Victorville station officials will conduct a sobriety checkpoint Friday ...from 7 p.m. to 3 a.m., authorities will also check to make sure drivers are properly licensed and have valid insurance." (http://www.vvdailypress.com/news/checkpoint-17516-friday-scheduled.html)



Sábado / Saturday (27/feb)

REDLANDS (CA) - "Redlands police said they will operate a sobriety checkpoint from 10:30 p.m. Saturday to 3:30 a.m. Sunday in the southbound lane of Alabama Street between Park and Orange avenues." (http://www.dailybulletin.com/news/ci_14464274)



La próxima semana / Next week

HOBOKEN (NJ) - "Hoboken police will be conducting a DWI checkpoint somewhere in the mile square city over the course of the first weekend in March." (http://www.nj.com/hobokennow/index.ssf/2010/02/hoboken_police_to_conduct_dwi.html)



Viernes / Friday (5/mar)

ATWATER (CA) - "The Atwater Police Department said it would conduct a DUI and driver's license checkpoint March 5." (http://www.mercedsunstar.com/2010/02/24/1325981/atwater-pd-to-conduct-duidl-check.html)



En dos semanas / In two weeks (17/mar)

MONTGOMERY COUNTY (TN) - "The Tennessee Highway Patrol will be conducting driver license roadside safety checkpoints during the week of March 17 on SR-149 at Montgomery/Stewart County Line in Montgomery County." (http://www.theleafchronicle.com/article/20100224/NEWS01/2240323)

Justice for Oscar Grant III:
The People vs. Johannes Mehserle Second Los Angeles Hearing
Notes from Inside the Courtroom:

The preliminary hearing on February 19, 2010 dealt with four main things: the reduction of bail, the removal of the Alameda DA, a ruling made by Judge Espinoa, and the schedule of the case.

Reduction of Bail:

Bail was originally set in January 2009 for $3 million. Since that time Mehserle has been out on bail. The prosecution initially argued that Mehserle deserved such a large bail because he was a flight risk, had no long standing ties to the community, had quit his job, was not married, and owned no property. The defense originally argued against this bail amount, arguing that because Mehserle’s his parents lived in the Bay, this proved he had ties to the community. They also argued that the judge should consider the fact that he had made all of his court appearances thus far.

Along with these points, it seemed that the primary argument put forward by Rains, Mehserle's defense attorney, was that bail should be reduced on the grounds that the DA had failed to disclose documents that showed that they actually knew he was not a flight risk and that bail was set under false pretenses.

Judge Perry stated that “it was understandable” that Mehserle would leave the jurisdiction based on the supposed “death threats” that he has claimed to receive. This was one of many references that Judge Perry has made to supposed "death threats" that Mehserle has received after being indicted. The defense supported that claim by arguing that there were at times “threatening crowds” and that he was even “scared at times.” Still Judge Perry ultimately decided that he did in fact have the jurisdiction to review bail and that his finding was that the DA did not argue for bail under a false pretense and that while Mehserle is under “very stressful circumstances” he is still considered a flight risk and his bail would not be reduced.

Writ of Mandate:

The defense has filed this writ twice, once in Alameda and once in LA. The writ of mandate seeks to disqualify the Alameda DA Office and remove the Alameda DA from the case. Not only did the Alameda DA oppose to this writ, the California State Attorney General also filed an opposition to this disqualification. Essentially the defense argues that Mehserle’s 6th Amendment rights were violated because they mirandized him and ask him if he wanted to answer questions. Mehserle refused, invoking his 5th Amendment right to remain silent. The defense argued that despite the fact that Mehserle invoked his rights to remain silent and refused to make a statement, that the police had violated his 6th Amendment rights by asking him questions after he had obtained a lawyer.

The defense argued that the original District Attorney, Orloff, acted with impunity to deny Mehserle his 6th Amedment rights and that this was indicative of an "overall conspiracy" by Orloff, Creighton, the entire Alameda DA's office, and the Oakland Police Department to deny Mehserle access to a fair trial. The defense attorney Rains called these acts "shameful" and "unseemly." He went on to claim that there was evidence representing a "smoking gun," proof that it was Mehserle that had had his rights violated. Rains made numerous references to this supposed "smoking gun," a metaphor that seemed highly inappropriate given the circumstances of the case.

Judge Espinoza's ruling:

Both the prosecution and the defense were clarifying a ruling by Judge Espinoza about the public nature of witness's names. The main question was around whether to redact witnesses names or not. The defense claimed that they have witnesses that were on the platform that support Mehserle's claims that he intended to tase Oscar Grant, but that now these witnesses have refused to speak to them for fear of their safety. In essence, the defense used this opportunity in front of Judge Perry and the media to once again attack the family's attorney, Burris, and again challenge his ability to speak to the press about the case. He was also making another claim that witnesses for the _defense_ have been threatened. The defense attorney appeared to be trying to lay the argument that the only person who has had anything to fear in this process has been Mehserle. Judge Perry eventually ruled that both sides can file names or issues about the case under seal if they choose.

Scheduling and Jury Selection:

Both the prosecution and the defense will be using a juror questionnaire to help filter potential jurors for the case. Judge Perry noted that he was usually against the use of questionnaires because of “a lack of juror literacy” but that there was no where near the pretrial publicity in Los Angeles as there was in Oakland. He ultimately ruled that the defense and prosecution should work together on a questionnaire that would exclude people with certain attitudes towards the police or law enforcement.

It appears that the direction of this trial and the arguments that are going to be made are going to center on the "state of mind" of Mehserle. Judge Perry stated in court that he felt this case was "fairly straightforward" because it was a "state of mind case." Because of this, it appears as though a great deal of testimony will center on experts and most likely Mehserle himself. The court has scheduled the trial to begin June 7th and last 3-4 weeks.

The next hearing is scheduled for March 26 at 1:30 pm and will address eliminating motions and the questionnaire.

Video of protest outside:

http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2010/02/21/18638342.php

By Traci and Erinn

~ LA Coalition for Justice for Oscar Grant

Witness to Police Misconduct Speaks to ACLU Forum on Privacy Rights Discusses Attack on Busby Fundraiser Last June by MARK GABRISH CONLAN Copyright © 2010 by Mark Gabrish Conlan for Zenger’s Newsmagazine • All rights reserved PHOTOS, top to bottom: Chris Carlino (wearing a scarf she also wore on June 26, 2009), Mike Marrinan, Beth Givens, Lorraine Wrightman, David Blair-Loy, and Max Oglethorpe (right) receiving a Bill of Rights Award from San Diego ACLU board member David Higgins “I’ve been agonizing over how to relate to you what happened,” said Christine “Chris” Carlino at the annual meeting of the San Diego chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) February 18. “It was one of the most frightening experiences of my life.” She was there to talk about being a victim of a lone sheriff’s deputy, Marshall Abbott, and his raid on the home of a Lesbian couple in Encinitas last June 26 while they were hosting a fundraiser for Democratic Congressional candidate Francine Busby. The incident was widely reported in the local media when it happened, but Carlino — a surprise guest at the ACLU event at the San Diego County Bar Association -— had a chilling personal story to tell about how it went down. Mike Marrinan, an attorney representing the homeowners and others at the event in their lawsuit against the county, also spoke. An attorney, Carlino said she and her husband got to know the hosts of the fundraiser, Shari Barman and Jane Stratton, when she did legal work for them. Carlino recalled the June 26 fundraiser as “a very low-keyed event” that was already winding down when Deputy Abbott arrived at 9:30, a half-hour after the event had been scheduled to end. “Most of the guests had left,” Carlino recalled. “The caterers were cleaning up, Busby’s staff was packing and nothing was happening that would indicate the police would show up. I was talking to Shari and someone came over and said there was a police officer looking for one of the homeowners. I thought maybe it was a parking issue. I saw this very large, young sheriff’s deputy coming from the left side of the house. I thought maybe he had walked all the way around and come in the back way.” The incident reportedly began when Abbott asked Barman for her name — which she gave him — and her date of birth. According to attorney Marrinan, Barman bristled at having to give her date of birth because “she had just turned 60 and was uncomfortable with that.” Then, Marrinan said, Abbott told Barman that she had to tell him her date of birth, and if she didn’t, he would arrest her. “He not only arrested her, he grabbed her arm and twisted it as he slammed her down to the ground,” Marrinan explained. “Jane, her partner, came up and saw that Shari was on the ground. She explained that Shari had had shoulder surgery two months before and he should be careful, and he took his arm and knocked Jane, who’s in her 50’s, up against the wall without saying a word. Then he started backing up, while people were coming over and asking him what he was doing, and pepper-spraying the crowd.” Carlino said she approached Berman just as Abbott was grabbing her arm and pushing her to the floor. “I couldn’t figure out what was going on,” Carlino said. “I thought I would identify myself as an attorney. I was scared, but I felt I had to go to Shari’s defense, so I started walking to their location. He got up and turned towards me, and I think I was the first person he pepper-sprayed. My eyes were burning, as if I’d just held them to an open flame, and since I’d never been pepper-sprayed before I was scared to death. I was worried that I’d be blinded for life. While I was on the ground, I was hearing pandemonium and I couldn’t tell what was going on because I couldn’t see. A woman came over and asked if she could help. She walked me into the bathroom and I started splashing cold water on my face. By the time I came out of the bathroom, Shari had been handcuffed and taken to a police car. … Deputy Abbott said he only pepper-sprayed people who posed a threat to him,” Carlino said. The San Diego County Sheriff’s Department, which handles police services for the city of Encinitas, said later that Deputy Abbott had gone to the house in the first place in response to a noise complaint. According to Marrinan, Francine Busby had spoken at the event for about half an hour — between 8 and 8:30 p.m. — and had used a small public-address system. While she was speaking, Marrinan said, a neighbor heckled her, making “rude, loud and profaine” comments not only about Busby but about the sexual orientation of the party’s hosts. Marrinan said that since the incident happened, he and others representing people at the fundraiser have been trying to find out whether the person who heckled Busby’s speech was the same as the person who called the noise complaint to 911, but they haven’t got a definitive answer either way. “We all need to appreciate the amount of courage it takes for someone like Chris to come out and speak about what happened that night,” Marrinan said. “I think we underestimate the amount of courage it takes for somebody who’s been abused by the police actually to do something about it. I do civil rights cases, mostly police misconduct cases, and so few people are aware of the fear that people have when they challenge the police, when they bring a lawsuit against them — including the fear of retaliation, which does happen. Inevitably, there’s an effort to trash the plaintiff: ‘Maybe we can find they’ve done something wrong. Maybe we can say there were drugs in the house, they’d been drinking or they resisted arrest. But by God, we’re going to see if we can’t find something negative about them.’ That happens every time, and that’s happened in this case.” According to Marrinan — who said his version of what happened has been pieced together from interviews with people who were there — Deputy Abbott responded to a single noise complaint called in a full hour before he arrived. “He walked up a long driveway and through a doorway,” Marrinan said. “The door was open because people were leaving the event, and without a concern for the Fourth Amendment he just walked through the door. According to witnesses, he seemed to be a man on a mission.” Marrinan said there were “six or seven Constitutional violations” committed by Deputy Abbott that night — and the first was going through that doorway. “You can’t enter a house without a warrant, consent of the occupants, or an emergency,” Marrinan explained. “Then there’s the question of his asking Shari for her date of birth. He wanted to have that so he could write up a citation if he had to come back a second time. But you shouldn’t be arrested just because you don’t give your date of birth. Even if you are arrested, unreasonable force is not allowed” — and Marrinan is arguing that it was unreasonable force for a 29-year-old ex-Marine who’d been a sheriff’s deputy for three years to grab and squeeze the arm of a much shorter 60-year-old woman and take her down. In the most dramatic part of his presentation, Marrinan displayed a poster-sized enlargement of a photo of Barman’s right arm after the incident. The photo showed a forearm that was a virtually solid mass of bruises. Marrinan also held up another enlarged photo from the event, a group shot taken by one of the attendees with a cell phone. This showed the table at which Busby’s campaign workers were collecting money, which Marrinan said had been set up “20 to 30 feet” inside the house from the doorway. “Deputy Abbott claims that there was this big uproar and he was really afraid of these people,” Marrinan said. But, he pointed out, that photo shows a second deputy who arrived on the scene after Abbott did and “isn’t treating this as any sort of emergency. My ‘read’ on him is he’s looking at Abbott and thinking, ‘What did you get yourself into?’” Asked about the reports in the news media that there had been two noise calls from neighbors that night, Marrinan said that was a typical example of the disinformation law enforcement agencies routinely put out when one of their people is accused of abusive conduct. “The ‘second call’ is an example of the stuff that comes out of law enforcement that is totally false, and they have now admitted it,” Marrinan said. “When incidents like this happen, we get law enforcement officials giving reports to the media that are totally false.” In the aftermath, Shari Barman was held for three to four hours at a sheriff’s substation in Encinitas, then taken to a facility in Vista and held there overnight. She was released at 11 a.m. and given three citations, on which the San Diego County district attorney’s office eventually declined to prosecute. Deputy Abbott was completely exonerated by the sheriff’s department’s internal investigation, and the district attorney declined to prosecute him for misconduct. According to Marrinan, he’s still working the job and doing regular patrols as if nothing untoward had happened on June 26. Marrinan said he can’t be sure whether Abbott was a rogue officer or whether the sheriff’s department is doing a lousy job of training its deputies in the constitutional limits on their ability to act — but he left the impression that he thinks it’s a system-wide problem. “A lot of cops in our community think that when they get a noise complaint, they can just walk into a house without a warrant, consent or an emergency.” (An example of an emergency, he added, would be if the police heard two people screaming at each other and sounds associated with physical abuse; then they could invoke the emergency exception and enter immediately because that would be probable cause for domestic violence.) “It’s pretty scary that [local law enforcement personnel] have so little respect for the Constitution,” Marrinan said. “It’s important that we remain vigilant about law enforcement.” Keeping Your Life Secure In addition to the dramatic presentations by Carlino and Marrinan, the ACLU annual meeting also featured a more down-to-earth program by Beth Givens, director of the San Diego-based Privacy Rights Clearinghouse. She briefly introduced her assistant, Lorraine Wrightman, and mentioned a series of precautions to protect your personal information and guard against both harassment by marketers and identity theft. The recommendations, which she made available as a written handout and can also be obtained on her group’s Web site, http://www.privacyrights.org/, include pretty basic ones like how to get on the National Do Not Call Registry list to cut down unwanted calls from telemarketers (you call 1-[888] 382-1222 or do it online at www.donotcall.gov) but also some counterintuitive recommendations for which she offered logical explanations despite the contrary conventional wisdom. One of those was a surprise: don’t use debit cards. Her handout recommends that if your bank gives you a debit card, send it back and say you want a simple ATM card instead. According to Givens, credit cards are actually more secure than debit cards because debit cards can give unauthorized users a direct pipeline into your bank account. “There’s the risk of losing all the money in your account,” she said. Though banks are supposed to replace any money you lose due to unauthorized withdrawals or purchases with debit cards, Givens said that they frequently take months to “investigate” such claims — during which time you’re out whatever money was stolen from you — and sometimes they deny them altogether. “We heard of a man whose ex-fiancée took his debit cards and cleaned him out,” Givens said. “His bank, Wells Fargo, said, ‘You should have been more careful,’ and refused to reimburse him. He lost over $100,000.” Another was to avoid using the common search engines — Google, Yahoo and MSN (Microsoft). “Search engines save quite a lot of information, including your IP address — the unique identifier of your computer — and many also save the content of your searches as well,” Givens explained. “Yahoo, Google and Microsoft all have different retention policies for how long they keep your information, but it can be up to several months.” The search engine she recommended, especially for human rights activists concerned about information being leaked to the authorities they’re investigating, is StartPage (http://www.startpage.com), a Netherlands-based company whose home page bills it as “the world’s most private search engine.” Though Givens lamented that, largely due to corporate pressure, the U.S. doesn’t have a broad-based, government-enforced privacy policy like the European Union and Canada do, she also listed a surprising number of options for people to opt out of having their personal information ending up in corporate databases. In addition to the Do Not Call Registry, there’s another toll-free number, 1-[888] 567-8688, to keep from getting unsolicited credit card offers — a basic protection against identity theft because people are sometimes victimized by scammers who answer one of those credit card ads and take out a card in your name. You typically don’t know that your identity has been stolen until that person has racked up so much in uncollectible debt that the credit card company starts coming after you for it. Givens also gave two mailing addresses to avoid other unwanted information: the Direct Marketing Association Mail Preference Service, P. O. Box 643, Carmel, NY 10512 and Abacus, P. O. Box 1478, Broomfield, CO 80038. For a $1 fee the Mail Preference Service will put your name on a list instructing their members not to send you junk mail, and Abacus will take your name off the database for sending catalogs. These services are also accessible online; you can download the Mail Preference Service form at https://www.dmachoice.org/dma/static/pdf/registration_form.pdf, or register for the service directly via the Web at https://www.dmachoice.org/dma/member/regist.action. Abacus can be reached via e-mail at abacusoptout@epsilon.com — your e-mail should include your full name (including middle initial) and current address (along with your previous address if you moved in the last six months). Abacus’s Web site is www.abacusoptout.com While Givens said a better alternative would be “opt-in” rather than “opt-out” — to keep your name from getting on these databases unless you specifically asked for it to be there — she said that until that happens you should “take advantage of all these opt-out opportunities to send a message” to both politicians and businesspeople that Americans are concerned about privacy and do not want unsolicited sales pitches clogging up their mailboxes or phone lines. She said the Do Not Call Registry got started in the first place because so many people complained to Congressmembers and state legislators, they got the message that something had to be done to stop unwanted telemarketing calls — though she said the list didn’t go far enough because you still can’t stop charity, survey or political calls. Givens said that under no circumstances should you carry anything with your Social Security number on your person — it’s too easy to steal — and you should question whenever anyone asks you for it. She also said that you should routinely exercise your right under federal law to request your own credit report once a year. “There are three credit bureaus — Equifax, Experian and TransUnion — and we urge people to request a report from one of them every four months,” Givens said. “If you’re trying to rent an apartment or get a job, then get them all at once because landlords and employers check them routinely. We think it’s wrong for employers to use credit checks to determine whether you’re suitable for a job, and we tried to stop that but we failed.” She also recommends that people — especially senior citizens who aren’t going to be moving or looking for work any time soon — use their opportunity under state law to freeze their credit records so no one can look them up. The Web links are www.consumersunion.org/campaigns/learn_more/003484indiv.html and www.privacy.ca.gov/res/docs/pdf/cis10securityfreeze.pdf The ACLU’s Legal Agenda In addition to the guest speakers, the February 18 ACLU meeting also heard a rapid-fire presentation from its own staff legal director, David Blair-Loy, who explained that the local chapter closed 28 cases in 2009 and has 28 additional cases still pending. Using attorneys from a variety of sources — grant funding, loan-outs from private firms and the ACLU’s own donations — Blair-Loy boasted that the chapter handles “an increasingly diverse legal docket, including free speech, immigrants’ rights, youth rights and the poor. We are litigating cutting-edge issues involving trademarks and free speech.” The case Blair-Loy was referring to involved a motorcycle gang under threat from the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF), which was “summarily confiscating their jackets and insignia because individuals in that group had been accused — not convicted — of certain crimes.” Blair-Loy raised the grim spectre that if the government wins that case, their next step could be to seize everything with the ACLU’s own logo if any ACLU members also engage in civil disobedience. “We represented a Marine Corps private who was charged with breaking an order not to speak to the media on unclassified matters,” Blair-Loy said. “We continue to fight for disclosure of information on federal surveillance of the Muslim community in San Diego. We just settled a case against the Fallbrook Union High School District, and the Ramona high-school district recently apologized for prohibiting student Natalie Jones from giving a classroom presentation on Harvey Milk. We also have an ongoing legal battle with Southwestern College, which — surprisingly for a college which is supposed to celebrate the free exchange of ideas — recently declared its entire campus a non-public forum.” Blair-Loy also discussed the San Diego ACLU’s involvement in immigrant rights, including a high-profile case involving a native of Somalia who fled torture in his own country, came here, sought political asylum — and was immediately put in federal detention, where he’s been held for 18 months so far without any hearing at all. “We also were involved in a case about the right of mentally ill immigrant detainees to a competency hearing before they’re deported and/or appointment of a guardian to protect their interests,” Blair-Loy said. “We were instrumental in denouncing the federal government’s summary deportation of three high school students who were rounded up at the Old Town Trolley Center. We were able to prevail on the government to give them humanitarian parole back into the U.S. to be reunited with their families and pursue their rights in immigration court.” Other issues the ACLU is pursuing, Blair-Loy said, include protecting the rights of high school students to go off campus to obtain confidential medical services; challenging an Imperial city police officer who Tasered a 16-year-old in his backyard; filing an amicus curiae brief in a case claiming that it’s a violation of due process for the courts to pay defense counsel in death-penalty cases a flat fee; and a suit against the city of San Diego challenging the police department’s practice of raiding homeless people’s encampments while the homeless people themselves are being served lunch or accessing services, confiscating their shopping carts and dumping all their belongings willy-nilly into dumpsters. Blair-Loy noted that the city of Fresno recently paid a $2.5 million settlement in a similar case but “San Diego took the wrong message” from that history. The ACLU also elected its new board of directors for the year and gave out two “Bill of Rights Awards” to local civil-liberties activists. One, Marilyn Adams, wasn’t there to receive her award; but the other, 18-year-old Max Oglethorpe, was. A student at San Dieguito High School who plans to enter college this fall, Oglethorpe won the award for preparing Web-based maps of all the prisons, lockups, detention camps and other secure facilities in San Diego County so the families of prisoners can log onto the Internet and find their incarcerated relatives. He’s also pursuing other programs to help prisoners’ families.

Thursday / Jueves

NEWPORT BEACH (CA) - "Newport Beach police will be conducting a DUI checkpoint from 9 tonight to 3 a.m. Saturday. Police will be stopping drivers on northbound Dover Drive at 16th Street." (http://www.dailypilot.com/articles/2010/02/11/publicsafety/dpt-checkpoint021210.txt)



Friday / Viernes

ANAHEIM - "The Anaheim Police Department Traffic Bureau hosts a DUI Sobriety and Driver's License checkpoint from 8 p.m. Friday to 3 a.m. Saturday somewhere along Magnolia Avenue" (http://blogs.ocweekly.com/navelgazing/a-clockwork-orange/anaheim-dui-checkpoint-magnoli/)

NEWPORT BEACH (CA) - "Newport Beach police will be conducting a DUI checkpoint from 9 tonight to 3 a.m. Saturday. Police will be stopping drivers on northbound Dover Drive at 16th Street." (http://www.dailypilot.com/articles/2010/02/11/publicsafety/dpt-checkpoint021210.txt)

OUACHITA PARISH (Louisiana) - "The checkpoint will be conducted in Ouachita Parish from 9 p.m. to 3 a.m." (http://www.thenewsstar.com/article/20100211/UPDATES01/100211028)

PASADENA (CA) - "The checkpoint will be held between 7 p.m. Friday and 3 a.m. Saturday morning" (http://www.pasadenastarnews.com/news/ci_14386570)

PLACENTIA (CA) - "The Police Department is holding a drunk driver and driver's license checkpoint in the city from 5 p.m. Friday to 12 a.m. Saturday." (http://www.ocregister.com/news/driver-233473-impaired-driving.html)

WEST COVINA (CA) - "Police will conduct a sobriety and driver's license checkpoint Friday starting at 6 p.m." (http://www.sgvtribune.com/news/ci_14376690)



Saturday / Sábado

LA VERNE (CA) - "The La Verne Police Department will conduct a DUI /driver's license checkpoint from 6 p.m Saturday to 12 a.m. Sunday." (http://www.sbsun.com/news/ci_14382642)

CEDAR CITY (UT) - "The Cedar City Youth Alcohol Task Force, along with local area law enforcement, will sponsor a sobriety checkpoint for several hours Saturday afternoon on state Route 143." (http://www.thespectrum.com/article/20100211/NEWS01/2110331/Law+enforcement+to+hold+sobriety+checkpoint)

MODESTO (CA) - "Modesto police will be out looking for drunken drivers Saturday night at a sobriety checkpoint at an undisclosed location within the city. Officers also will be looking for drivers without valid licenses." (http://www.modbee.com/local/story/1043786.html)

PERRIS - "A DUI and driver's license checkpoint is scheduled for Saturday night in Perris, authorities said. The checkpoint begins at 6 p.m. and ends at 2 a.m" (http://www.pe.com/localnews/inland/stories/PE_News_Local_W_se10_dui.36f71ea.html)

REDLANDS (CA) - "The roadblock will be operated between 10 p.m. Saturday until 3 p.m. Sunday in the eastbound lane of Colton Avenue between New York and Texas Streets" (http://www.pe.com/localnews/inland/stories/PE_News_Local_W_nb11_duired.3500a27.html)

SANTA BARBARA (CA) - "Police officials plan to stage the roadblock at an undisclosed location in the city from 6 p.m. to 2 a.m." (http://www.thedailysound.com/021210duicheckpoint)

SEAL BEACH (CA) - "Police will hold a sobriety and drivers license checkpoint Saturday on Pacific Coast Highway, officials said. The checkpoint will run from 8 p.m. to 3 a.m." (http://www.ocregister.com/news/checkpoint-233593-police-driving.html)

Sometime this weekend (impreciso)

KANSAS CITY (Missouri) - "The location of the checkpoint was not disclosed. It will be held sometime between Friday and Sunday." (http://www.kansascity.com/news/breaking_news/story/1722114.html)

SCHUYLKILL COUNTY (PA) - "The North Central Regional Sobriety Checkpoint DUI Taskforce has announced that sobriety checkpoints and roving DUI patrols will be conducted through Sunday on various roadways in Schuylkill County." (http://standardspeaker.com/news/police-feb-3-1.595246)

Jueves / Thursday (4/feb)

CHARLESTON (SC) - "there will be a sobriety checkpoint on Thursday, Feb. 4 on lee Street between Washington Street and Delaware Avenue. The checkpoint will begin at 5 p.m. and end at approximately midnight." (http://www.statejournal.com/story.cfm?func=viewstory&storyid=74517)



Viernes / Friday (5/feb)

APPLE VALLEY (CA) - "The Apple Valley sheriff’s station plans a DUI/Drivers License checkpoint from 6 p.m. to 2 a.m. Friday on Kiowa Road" (http://www.vvdailypress.com/news/valley-17137-apple-checkpoint.html)

CALCASIEU PARISH (Louisiana) - "the Calcasieu Parish Sheriff’s Office will be conducting a seat belt checkpoint from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. at an undisclosed location in the parish." (http://www.sulphurdailynews.com/news/x1090832874/CPSO-to-conduct-seatbelt-checkpoint-on-Friday)

ESSEX COUNTY (Mass) - "The Massachusetts State Police will conduct a sobriety checkpoint on a secondary state highway in Essex County, Friday, Feb. 5, into Saturday, Feb. 6." (http://www.wickedlocal.com/northshoresunday/news/x1103042977/State-Police-sobriety-checkpoint)

MONTEBELLO (CA) - "a checkpoint at an undisclosed location Friday and other checkpoints in the city throughout the year" (http://www.sgvtribune.com/news/ci_14320526)

SAN BERNARDINO (CA) - "The sobriety and driver's license checkpoint will be from 6 p.m. until 2 a.m. in the 1300 block of South E Street" (http://www.sbsun.com/news/ci_14338593)



Domingo / Sunday (7/feb)

LAS VEGAS (NV) - "officers will conduct a sobriety checkpoint at West Flamingo Road and Redwood Street from 6 p.m. Sunday to 2 a.m. Monday. " (http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2010/feb/06/dui-checkpoint-planned-amid-increased-enforcement-/)

TRUCKEE MEADOWS (NV) - "The Sparks Police Department notes it will be joined by the Reno Police Department, the Nevada Highway Patrol, the sheriff’s offices of Carson City and Lyon and Storey counties for a DUI checkpoint at an undisclosed location." (http://www.rgj.com/article/20100203/NEWS01/100203017/1003/CARSON/DUI-checkpoint-planned-for-Super-Bowl-Sunday-in-the-Truckee-Meadows)

CALVERT COUNTY (MD) - "Troopers will be out in full force this Super Bowl Sunday, patrolling and holding sobriety checkpoints." (http://www.somdnews.com/stories/02052010/rectop170904_32218.shtml)