Don't expect sheriff's oversight to begin anytime soon

Hayward school boardmember told staffer that parents 'should take a rope and string you up;' Oakland insider charged by DA Price had created attack website BadPam.com; Plus, recalls roundup

COUNTY NEWS

BOARD OF SUPERVISORS

—SHERIFF’S OVERSIGHT—If and when Alameda County approves an ordinance for the creation of a sheriff’s oversight board and office of inspector general, don’t expect it to be up and running for quite some time.

—The Alameda County Board of Supervisors will discuss a draft ordinance to create the oversight board on Feb. 22, it was announced at the board’s Public Safety Committee meeting on Thursday.

—Supervisor Nate Miley, who has taken some heat from his primary opponent, Jennifer Esteen, for the slow pace of creating the seven-member oversight board, said it could take at least one year before its fully constituted. County staff concurred with the estimate. “I’m kind of level-setting expectations,” Miley said.

—The reason for the delay is the onerous human resources process for creating the job classification, in addition to the recruitment process. Under the proposed ordinance, the oversight board may also include an executive director, along with the office of inspector general.

—A major unresolved aspect of the proposal is whether or not county counsel will serve the oversight board or will outside counsel be brought it? Opponents of the latter say county counsel’s involvement will create a conflict of interest.

—A hint about how the new county buruaracry may be funded was offered by Miley on Thursday. “I think they have to go to the general fund,” he said of the oversight board and inspector general’s office. “I don’t think we’re going to cut anything. We’re going to have to find new money.”

DISTRICT ATTORNEY

Two attack ads sent just days before the November 2022 Election Day by an IE funded by Oakland insider Mario Juarez.

—MAILER FAILURE—Former Oakland City Council candidate Mario Juarez was charged by the Alameda County District Attorney’s office with a felony for allegedly writing more than $53,000 in bad checks to a local direct marketing firm during the November 2022 elections, KTVU reports.

—Under a campaign committee named California Forward Now, Juarez unleashed two attack mailers during the last days of the November 2022 election. One attack mailer was forcefully aimed at Oakland mayoral candidate Ignacio De La Fuente, the other against Loren Taylor, who was also in the race.

Brutal attack website against Oakland mayoral candidate Ignacio De La Fuente emerges with a vengeance

—Companion websites were also created to attack De La Fuente and Taylor in an effort to help Sheng Thao, who later won the ranked choice election in a nailbiter.

—However, the direct marketing company alleges Juarez paid the U.S. Postal Service with bad checks. In turn, the U.S. Postal Service cut ties with the direct marketing company.

—There’s another angle here. Over the years, Juarez has been a strong ally of former Alameda County District Attorney Nancy O’Malley. During the runup to the November 2022 election, Juarez, through California Forward Now, also created an attack website that targeted DA candidate Pamela Price.

—BadPam.com was equally brutal as the mailers against De La Fuente and Taylor. It called Price a “four-time loser” at the ballot box and a “loser with [a] shady history of fraud, violence, and racism.” It does not appear a companion mailer against Price was ever distributed.

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