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By Gerry Bill
After months of waiting, December finally saw some of the dirty little (or big) secrets of the Fresno Police Department (FPD) exposed to the light of day. Two events came together to make this happen—a public trial full of allegations that the department had a long history of using excessive force and the belated release of Eddie Aubrey’s Office of Independent Review (OIR) report.
Steven Vargas was shot and killed after getting in an automobile accident. A federal jury determined that Fresno police Sgt. Mike Palomino used excessive and unreasonable force in …[Read the details]
By Michael “Bud” Green
An intense struggle over the right to grow, distribute and sell marijuana in Fresno is under way. This article brings readers up to speed on the debate and legal implications that you need to know about.
The assignment seems straightforward enough: Write an article summing up the medical cannabis scene in Fresno. The diehard journalist starts a mental checklist of sources and court cases, then gives up. Dry facts don’t tell the full story.
Long story short, if you’re a Prop 215 patient in Fresno who counts on dispensaries for safe …[Read the details]
By Kevin Hall
Old Tricks, New Dogs
The San Joaquin Valley needs some really good dogcatchers right now because the air polluters and their lapdogs, watchdogs and guard-dogs are running loose and need to be locked up.
Pollution levels this fall reached highly dangerous levels throughout the Valley on repeated mornings, nights and the occasional afternoon, and it’s only going to get worse in January. This time of year we’re breathing in the very small particles that lodge deep in our lungs or enter the bloodstream to trigger heart attacks, strokes and even do damage at a cellular level.
…[Read the details]
By Mike Rhodes
This photo shows the destruction of one of the homes in the Monterey Bridge homeless encampment. The home was owned by Mother Nature (see the accompanying photo of her reaction to the destruction of her shelter). She kept crying, “That’s my home, that is my home.”
Just before Christmas, the City of Fresno continued to hammer away at the homeless, destroying more of their modest shelters, this time on the Monterey Bridge. The attack on this encampment is part of a campaign that started at the end of October and represents a …[Read the details]
Is Fresno mayor Ashley Swearengin really the Grinch who stole Christmas? If not, she sure is giving the Grinch a run for his bragging rights. Last month, the City of Fresno destroyed more homeless encampments (see: http://fresnoalliance.com/wordpress/?p=4061 ) and on Dec. 15 returned to not only take what little the homeless had left but also actually took stacks of firewood—the only thing they had left to keep themselves warm. That happened 10 days before Christmas!
I was intrigued when I heard City Council member Sal Quintero (on the same day and about at …[Read the details]
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