Valley Headlines

Exec’s outrageous spending

Modesto Bee. StanCOG director spent lavishly at taxpayers’ expense, grand jury says. 
Synopsis: Stanislaus Council of Governments executive director Rosa de Leon Park likes to travel well, staying in luxury hotels, driving fancy rental cars and flying first class all on the taxpayers’ dime, says the Grand Jury. She spent $100,000 renting BMWs, Mercedes-Benz’s and a Grand Cherokee in Elk Grove then commute between Modesto and her home in Stockton. That is on top of her $4,800 annual car allowance. She preferred the Ritz-Carlton when in Chicago, DC or Atlanta and didn’t skimp on meals. In one 7-month period, she listed 62 transactions and no receipts. The StanCOG board is “deeply disturbed by the supposed waste, mismanagement and lack of accountability within StanCOG’s management. If true, these actions are unacceptable.” But when board members traveled with Park, they also went first-class. The report says Park mistreated staff leading to a high turnover rate. The investigation arose from citizen complaints. Councilmember Chris Ricci says Park should quit now.

Turlock Journal. Grand jury: StanCOG director misused public funds.
Synopsis: Reporter Joe Cortez writes about the grand jury’s devastating rebuke of Rosa de Leon Park, who has headed the agency since 2015. He pointed to $4,800 car allowance and the $100,000 she spent on rental cars over three years. That includes driving 7,000 miles in a single month – “more than the distance from San Francisco to New York City and back.” But it was a drive she didn’t take that the grand jury offered as an indicator of misuse. Park flew from Sacramento to Monterey to attend a conference, laying over in LA. “The drive would have been faster, especially since the taxpayers were already paying for the rental of a 2022 Mercedes Benz GLC300.”

‘Lion Bridge’ to be replaced

Modesto Bee. New 7^th Street Bridge in Modesto gets final funding.
Synopsis: John Holland writes that the “once-grand” Seventh Street Bridge is “barely drivable today.” The CA Transportation Commission voted unanimously to approve a $15 million grant, bringing the total state and federal funding to $134 million to build a replacement bridge over the Tuolumne. Work begins next year and will be finished by early 2028. The old bridge, with its distinctive lions, will remain open through next spring. Included is restricting the Seventh Street / Crows Landing junction.
MAD Take: Sure hope there’s room for some lions on the new bridge.

89 arrested; politicians nitpick

KVPR. Massive law enforcement operation in Fresno County ends in dozens of gang-related arrests.
Synopsis: Operation Shock Collar resulted in federal charges for 38 alleged gang members and state charges for “dozens of others.” In all, 89 arrests were made and officials seized weapons, meth, heroin and cocaine. Those arrested are said to be members of Huron Dog Life, Coalinga Dog Life and San Joaquin Ruthless Perro – all affiliated with the notorious Fresno Bulldogs. One ringleader, Ignacio “Giddy” Sanchez, was arrested in his prison cell.

GV Wire. Tensions flare at announcement of major Fresno County gang takedown.
Synopsis: David Taub reports on the press conference to announce 92 arrests during “Operation Shock Collar.” He notes the arrests even contributed to the solving of “an 8-year-old murder.” But during all the typically self-congratulatory press conference, DA Lisa Smittcamp and Sheriff John Zanoni criticized the state’s incarceration policies and lack of funding to implement Prop 36. That was a bit awkward, considering Attorney General Rob Bonta -- a candidate for governor – was standing there. He didn’t take the bait, but he didn’t appear happy.

Police board: Stay neutral

Modesto Bee. Modesto’s Community Police Review Board jeopardizes its neutrality.
Synopsis: Phil Trompetter writes an op-ed defending the conduct of Modesto police officers at the No Kings and Ice Out protests on June 7 and the organization charged with law-enforcement oversight. He says reaction to the “small number” of arrests (6) at the events surprised him. He chastises NAACP President Wendy Byrd for “undermining the credibility” of the review board and insists that in the interactions he saw, police were professional and courteous. “We need to be advocates for the process – not just the outcome – if we truly want to build a system worth of public trust.”
MAD Take: Nothing Mr. Trompetter says is wrong. But he failed to offer much context. While 6 arrests might seem like a small number as 1,000x that number protested in Modesto, perhaps it should be looked at in the context of how many arrests occurred in other communities. There were 0 arrests in San Diego as 60,000 protested; 0 arrests in San Francisco during protest by 50,000; in LA no one was arrested as 200,000 took part, though 38 were arrested that evening – 35 for violating curfew. Arresting people for wearing masks requires an explanation. And not just, “we have a rule.”

Gray, Costa grateful to 1^st responders

Valley Sun. Costa, Gray join CA Republicans in vote to condemn LA riots.
Synopsis: Two Central Valley Democrats sided with Republicans to condemn the recent riots in Los Angeles. Jim Costa and Adam Gray were among seven Democrats voting to condemn the riots.
MAD Take: The term “riot” is pejorative. Some call what happened in LA disturbances or vandalism. The Valley Sun, published by a GOP campaign consultant, used the Fox News term. “The Hill,” which also covered the same vote, put this in its headline: “7 Democrats vote for GOP resolution condemning LA protests.” The other Democrats were from Texas, New York, North Carolina and Maine. The Hill didn’t mention any “riots.” The story also quoted Rep. Gray, “Messaging bills like this have no real force of law and simply express the sentiments of Congress – including the sentiment included in today’s resolution that Congress is grateful for the first responders and public safety officers who keep us safe day in and day out.” Gray also condemned ICE raids in California as “terror-inducing.”

Criminals dressing like ICE

The Guardian. US sees spate of arrests of civilians impersonating ICE officers. 
Synopsis: Fernando Diaz was wearing a face mask, camouflage and a police vest when arrested in Huntington Park. He was also carrying a loaded gun and fake documents identifying him as a Homeland Security agent. He is one “of several cases involving people allegedly impersonating immigration officials.” Experts have been warning that allowing plainclothes officers to enforce the law will lead to criminal abuses. In Boston, Philadelphia and North Carolina, women have been targeted by imposters and sexually assaulted. In Florida, immigrants were asked for bribes by imposters to avoid deportation.
MAD Take. Madera County has seen one arrest of a man pretending to be an officer. His disguise was, uh, less than convincing.

Frightened Dreamer ‘self deports’

Fresno Bee. Fresno DACA recipient ‘self-deports’ to Mexico after two decades in CA.
Synopsis: Patricia Vazquez Topete “achieved the American dream,” but began to feel like a fugitive in America. With her DACA work permit expiring in 2026, she decided to leave. Now 32, Topete arrived at age 12, attended schools, learned English, worked a series of menial-labor jobs including picking crops and cleaning toilets, then graduated from Fresno Pacific. Eventually, she got a high-profile state job. In the past few months, she began asking herself: “Am I at risk every time I drive? Am I at risk being at the airport?” Such questions led her to sell all her belongings, get on a plane and leave. “I am a strongly skilled individual and a woman. … This woman, this Dreamer, can really succeed in other places.” Her departing message: Getting citizenship is not “as easy as just getting in line.”

How much will prices rise?

Cal Matters. Controversial climate rule, which could raise gas prices, about to go into effect. 
Synopsis: The revamped Low Carbon Fuel Standard takes effect Tuesday. It will broaden the cap-and-trade program but is guaranteed to raise gasoline prices – which are already the highest on the continent. Under a similar change in 2011, prices went up 9 cents a gallon. A UC Davis researcher expects a 5- to 8-cent bump this time – not counting the 1.6-cent bump in the annual excise tax.
MAD Take: With all the money the oil industry has been spending on bashing California, refiners will raise prices a lot more than 8 cents a gallon. They’re not alone. Republicans are the loudest, but some Democrats are making noise, too. Dr. Jasmeet Bains called for the chair of the air board to quit. What the refiners and politicians fail to mention is the “mystery surcharge” – documented by the UC Berkeley School of Business dean 40 years ago -- of about 50 cents per gallon that every Californian pays for gasoline. Oil companies could lower prices 40 cents a gallon and still make a healthy profit.

Tough times for grapes, cherries

Ag Net West. Allied Grape Growers president sees signs of long-term correction amid struggles. 
Synopsis: Jeff Bitter of Fresno-based Allied Grape Growers says the news is bad across the board for the wine industry. “We’re seeing a lot of vineyard acreage being pulled out, abandoned or mothballed.” He believes such downturns are cyclical, but says it is getting more difficult to maintain “consumer engagement with wine.”

Ag Net West. Morada Produce reports cherry shortage. 
Synopsis: One of the preeminent shippers of cherries in California packed only 4.8 million cartons this spring, mainly from San Joaquin County. That’s “nearly half of what we saw the previous two years,” said Michael Jameson. Excessive heat, poor pollination and tree fatigue contributed to poor yields. Demand “pushed prices to record levels.” He said exports to Japan, Korea and Canda are “key to California’s success.” 

Low-cost housing opens in Modesto

Modesto Bee. Clarion Inn now has 143 low-cost apartments; check out the food vendor. 
Synopsis: The aging Clarion Inn on Sisk Road has been renovated and turned into 143 studio apartments. Residents making only 30% to 80% of the area’s median annual income are eligible to rent one. Rents range from $517 to $1,380, including most utilities. There is a conference room in the middle of the complex and amenities such as a playground, laundry, exercise room and a restaurant – staffed by the Turlock Gospel Mission under chef John Martin. Councilmember Jeremiah Williams said he recalled working in the motel’s kitchen as a teen. It’s the second significant project opened this year; the first was the conversion of the Travelers Motel into Jenny’s Place on Ninth, which has 57 units.

Shelter closing in Turlock

Turlock Journal. We Care shelter closing at end of month. 
Synopsis: Joe Cortez writes that the volunteers operating the 49-bed We Care facility in Turlock are giving up, closing their doors on July 1. The shelter lost a $270,000 state grant that would have kept it open for the year after the city council voted 3-2 not to make a token show of support with a $1 grant. That decision has turned into a statewide issue as Gov. Gavin Newsom ripped the council. Former councilmember Mary Jackson asked at the last meeting, “What is the city going to do? Is there an alternative?” The We Care board chair, Sandy Singh, asked the three members of the board to “please stop putting your politics over peo0ple.”

How the cookie crumbls

Merced Sun Star. Merced cookie shop fails health inspection for improperly storing butter.
Synopsis: Merced County’s latest inspection report shows four of the six inspected were rated “Good.” The other two were dinged. That includes Crumbl Cookies, which earned an “unsatisfactory” rating for not training employees in handling food, poor temperature control and 14 other violations.