Valley Solutions

Killing sparks protests in Valley

Modesto Bee. Protesters gathered in Modesto to rally against ICE, killing of Renee Good.
Synopsis: About 70 protesters waved flags, held signs, chanted and responded to honking horns at Crows Landing and Hatch roads on Saturday in Modesto. Protester Kelly Gepley’s sign read, “Subaru moms against ICE.” Armando Mendoza’s sign read, “Fight Back” and “I will vote.” Angelica Foreman’s sign read, “We the people are pissed.”

Fresnoland. ‘They’re trying to make us afraid’: Fresno draws large crowd at River Park to protest ICE.
Synopsis: Hundreds gathered Sunday morning at River Park Shopping Center to protest ICE and mourn the killing of Renee Nicole Good. “People are being murdered in broad daylight,” said one protester. “We voted this into power, and we need to advocate for change.” While the protest started with about 500 people, numbers grew throughout the morning. Smaller protests sprung up in other parts of Fresno. Said one: “I can’t, in good faith, not be here. I can’t live in a world like this.”

KSEE24 / CBS47. ‘Bad things are happening’: Fresno protestors speak out against ICE. 
Synopsis: On Blackstone and Nees, hundreds of demonstrators stood shoulder-to-shoulder and filled both sides of the street to protest ICE tactics. “I had other plans this morning, but this seemed much more important,” said one.

SF Chronicle. ‘Terrified’ by Trump, thousands around Bay Area demand: ‘ICE out for good.’
Synopsis: From Ocean Beach, where several hundred spelled out “It was murder,” to downtown San Francisco, thousands of people came out to protest ICE violence. There were an estimated 1,200 in the Mission. Protests in Berkeley, San Bruno, Alameda, San Jose, Hayward, Santa Rosa and Sausalito drew hundreds more. Said one protester: “We’re in real danger, so we’ve really got to come alive.” Another said she was moved to protest because the ICE violence has “sickened” her. A young dad pulled his daughter in a wagon, saying she needs to learn early that action is necessary. The only reports of trouble came from Oakland where protesters sprayed graffiti on the federal building.

Fed up with animal shelter

Modesto Focus. People passionate about pets seek major reform for Modesto animal shelter. 
Synopsis: Garth Stapley writes that “a small army of pet owners and advocates” are demanding top-to-bottom reform at the Stanislaus Animal Services Agency shelter. They’re offering a “conceptual proposal” to transition the county shelter into a private, non-profit shelter. Executive director Lily Yap says she appreciates the enthusiasm but still supports a county facility. Modesto councilmember Chris Ricci is spearheading the effort and getting support from others. Said councilmember Jeremiah Williams: “It’s not a squeaky wheel getting the grease, it’s that the wheels fell off.” Lots of frustration. But Stapley asks the question: Could a nonprofit do any better? Considerable costs make that debatable.

Modesto Bee. Stanislaus animal shelter temporarily closed; respiratory illness spreads quickly.
Synopsis: Executive director lily Yap shut down the Stanislaus Animal Services shelter due to highly contagious “kennel cough” sweeping through the kennels. The condition is “more than a common cold” and is caused by a combination of bacterial and viral infections. The shelter is often above its 183-dog capacity.

More rain means more salmon

FishBio. Right as rain: Salmon surge after consecutive wet years. 
Synopsis: Three consecutive wet years have been a boon for salmon. Combined with a closed commercial fishing season, conditions have been perfect for a strong fall run of Chinook throughout the Sacramento and San Joaquin watersheds. Salmon are being seen in places they haven’t visited for decades. Fall Creek, available to salmon for the first time in a century after four Klamath River dams were demolished, counted 65,000 juvenile salmon last week. “While salmon numbers are looking up, that does not guarantee they are here to stay,” writes FishBio. “As environmental conditions continue to shift, the survival of salmon will depend on continued restoration, research and adaptive management.”

‘Egregious’ situation for foundation

Fresno Bee. Fresno State Foundation put millions in grants and donations at risk, CSU says. 
Synopsis: A 32-page review conducted by the CSU said “egregious weaknesses” are leaving millions of dollars in donations and essential funding exposed to “financial fraud.” The report looked at a single fiscal year, finding 46 areas that require immediate action. The report says the foundation does not have an “adequate system to oversee its 22 operating and investment accounts.” Seven of those accounts were reconciled only once each year. The 25-member foundation board manages more than $250 million, the third-largest foundation in the CSU system. FSU President Juan Jimenez-Sandoval – the only member of administration on the Foundation’s board -- declined comment.  

Who gets stopped in Stanislaus

Modesto Bee. Stop data for 2024 shows policing patterns in Turlock, Oakdale and Newman.
Synopsis: Data from the Racial and Identity Profiling Advisory Board, required by state law, shows large increases in police stops in Modesto compared to significant drops in Stanislaus County during 2024. The data compares the ethnicity of those stopped and those whose stops resulted in police action. Turlock has a Black population of 2.1%, but Black people were the subjects of 4.4% of the city’s stops with 23.7% of the stops resulting in no action. Hispanics make up 43.6% of residents, 47.6% of stops and required no action in 22.8% of cases. Whites are 43.1% of the population, but only 36.1% of those stopped. In Ceres, whites make up 20.9% of the residents but 26.1% of those stopped. In Oakdale, 57.7% of residents are white but made up 63.7% of those stopped. Interestingly, Oakdale had the lowest percentage of “no-action” stops across three of the four racial categories – meaning stops usually resulted in tickets or arrests.

Valley Children’s ignores RFK

KVPR. Valley Children’s says it will follow pre-RFK Jr. childhood vaccine recommendations. 
Synopsis: Valley Children’s Healthcare is one of the many – actually, most – medical institutions across the nation whose pediatricians have rejected the recommendations of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and the Centers for Disease Control about childhood vaccinations. Valley Children’s will continue to encourage a series of 17 vaccinations rather than the 11 now recommended by Kennedy -- eliminating hepatitis A and B, meningitis and rotavirus. Dr. Rene Bravo, a pediatrician, said “I have seen firsthand how routine vaccinations save lives, prevent suffering and protect entire communities. Compounding these concerns is a (CDC) process that has lacked transparency, making it difficult for physicians and the public to understand the evidence and reasoning behind such a consequential change.” Valley Children’s Dr. Anne VanGarsse called the CDC’s approach “non-science” and said her organization will follow the advice of the American Academy of Pediatrics instead, maintaining the complete vaccination schedule. She was especially critical of the decision not to vaccinate for meningococcal meningitis, “a horrific illness.”

Hospitals endanger patients

Fresno Bee. Wires left in patients, surgical error, Fresno-area hospital fined $265,000 by state. 
Synopsis: Kaweah Health Medical Center in Visalia was fined $265,125 for four separate violations governing medical care from 2023 through 2025. Each involved “a threat of imminent danger of death or serious bodily harm.” Such citations are rare, making up only 2% of all citations across a 10-year period. Among the examples was that of a man brought to the Kaweah ER by ambulance with a heart condition; he did not receive quick attention and later died. The hospital says it takes the findings seriously.

Fresno Bee. Psychiatric facility in Madera County fined for patient escape, abuse, state says. 
Synopsis: River Vista Behavioral Health, which opened just three years ago, has been penalized by state regulators for allowing two incidents of “immediate jeopardy” to occur in 2024. The designation means patients were in imminent danger of injury or death. A patient escaped from the hospital after taking a staffer’s badge and van keys. The 128-bed facility was cited for not following rules on verbal and physical abuse of patients – including threatening to hurt the family of one patient. Staff members were cited for directing racial and homophobic slurs at patients. The facility is run by Valley Children’s Healthcare and Universal Health Services, and admin insists it is “committed to the safety of our patients and staff.”

Will dams be kept in place?

SF Chronicle. PG&E plans to remove century-old CA dams, but there’s a new obstacle: Trump. 
Synopsis: PG&E wants to get rid of the two deteriorating dams that make up the Potter Valley (hydroelectricity) Project because they cost too much to operate and maintain. Power generation at Potter Valley depends on moving water from one reservoir to the other. As Prof. Karrigan Bork at UC Davis law school put it, “These dams … are losing money for PG&E, so it would be very hard to force PG&E to keep operating them.” Local farmers, however, depend on the water moved from the Russian River to Lake Pillsbury to irrigate their grapes. Ag Sec. Brooke Rollins has gotten involved, blaming the state for PG&E’s decision. PG&E has offered a plan to move some water from the Russian to the Eel, but not as much as before and at greater cost to farmers. No mention of Rollins’ intent to cover the cost of moving the water.

Take stalking seriously

Modesto Bee. Turlock woman’s stalking death in 2003 turned her sister into a national advocate.
Synopsis: Debbie Riddle became an anti-stalking advocate after her sister, Peggy Klinke, was killed in Turlock in 2003. Peggy’s ex-boyfriend, Patrick Lee Kennedy, had stalked and tormented Peggy and her family for over a year. He killed himself after killing Peggy. Riddle joined the Stalking Prevention, Awareness and Resource Center and now travels the country to warn others. She was in Ceres Wednesday to speak with law enforcement and the Family Justice Center of Stanislaus about the importance of monitoring stalkers. January is National Stalking Awareness Month.

‘Routine’ creek maintenance

Merced Sun Star. Merced County working on creek banks to prevent future flooding.
Synopsis: Merced County and crews from the CA Conservation Corps are doing “proactive creek bank maintenance” along Bear and Miles creeks – both of which flooded in 2023. There is no imminent risk of flooding, said the county, “this work is preventative in nature and part of routine efforts.”
MAD Note: Miles Creek, clogged with brush and debris, flooded in 2023 and damaged over 400 buildings in Planada.

Kamikaze kids on bicycles

CBS13. Video shows group of teens riding bikes on Manteca freeway, sparking safety concerns.
Synopsis: A large group of teens were videoed riding their bicycles in the eastbound right lane on the Hwy 120 bypass. Mayor Gary Singh was outraged, saying the stunt was due to “a lack of supervision and accountability” by parents. “What is it going to take for this to register? A child being struck by a vehicle? A life lost? Because that’s exactly where this behavior leads.” Folks in Manteca were not surprised. “I’ve seen those kids before,” said Kleigh McMillen. Added Singh, if you saw your kid in that video, it’s time to step up.