Oversight bewilderment
Hayward files lawsuit over worries of child endangerment at county social services; Moneyball Act resolution coming to Oakland, County supe candidate is asked what's so wrong about Nate Miley?
COUNTY NEWS
BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
—NEW AMMO FOR OPPONENTS—Is the end of Alameda County Sheriff Yesenia Sanchez’s honeymoon with progressives near? During a Board of Supervisors Public Protection Committee meeting on Thursday, progressives voiced strong concerns with the presence of multi-projectile scattershot munitions on the Sheriff’s list of military equipment.
—Advocates says the munitions and grenades are sometimes used in Santa Rita Jail to bring mentally ill inmates under control. A spokesperson for the Sheriff’s Office said the munition are only used as a last resort when other means to control situations are exhausted.
—There was clear discontent on Thursday with the sheriff’s request for additional munitions and surveillance drones. They said the requests run counter to Sanchez’s campaign goal of working better with the community.
—“She is just repeating the status quo,” said Barisha Spriggs, an unincorporated Alameda County resident and member of the Alameda County Democratic Central Committee.
—Another former member of the local party warned that activists removed Sanchez’s predecessor, Greg Ahern, from office and could do the same to her.
—Supervisor Elisa Marquez, the committee’s chair, later asked the Sheriff’s Office to return at a later date with information on how many times scattershot munitions are used inside and outside the jail over past two years.
—SHERIFF OVERSIGHT—The discussion going on currently about whether to create a Sheriff’s Oversight Board diverted slightly on Thursday to being about the independence of the proposed body’s legal counsel.
—Public Protection Committee members Elisa Marquez and Nate Miley are leaning toward a proposal that would simultaneously create a seven-member Sheriff’s Oversight Committee and Office of Inspector General.
—An alternate plan would create the Office of Inspector General first, and the Oversight Committee a year later. Of the two, Miley’s support for creating both at the same time was soft. He doesn’t think oversight is needed now because of the new sheriff’s detailed plans for reforming the department. But, he added, “I’m not going to die on that hill,” if the board and public wants an oversight board.
—Public speakers repeatedly urged that any roadmap toward oversight must include an independent legal counsel.
—County Counsel has asserted having dual counsels violates the county charter. If the county can’t come to an agreement on independent counsel, several advocates raised the possibility of putting the sheriff’s oversight question on the ballot similar to what Oakland voters did in 2020.
—A proposed Sheriff’s Oversight Committee would be composed of five members appointed by the Board of Supervisors and two at-large members.
—Some advocates believe the public should have the opportunity to select some of the committee’s member. Miley, though, strongly opposed the idea. “I’m not give up my power,” he said.
HAYWARD
—HARROWING ALLEGATIONS—Citing growing concerns about the welfare of foster children at a county-run Assessment Center in Hayward, the City of Hayward filed a lawsuit on Thursday in hopes Alameda County officials will “restore a measure of control” at the social services center.
—Last month, Hayward Mayor Mark Salinas sent a letter to Alameda County officials offering shocking allegations by a private security firm working at the Assessment Center.
—“In addition to assaults between juveniles, assaults on staff, and ‘AWOL’ juveniles who were allowed to walk out of the building freely, security company staff witnessed the grooming and recruiting of 10- to 13-year-old girls by other older, more sophisticated juveniles for the purpose of human trafficking,” Salinas wrote. “No Assessment Center staff has ever contacted the Hayward Police Department to report this activity.”
—The city believes the issues at the Assessment Center grew after the Alameda County sheriff’s deputies stopped providing security on Feb. 15.
—The lawsuit follows great concerns by Hayward officials over the lack of protection provided to young people within the county’s Social Services Agency.
—Last year, the Hayward City Council urged the county to investigate the death of eight-year-old Sophie Mason, who is alleged to have been killed by her mother’s boyfriend. Sophie’s family say they repeatedly raised concerns about her welfare to county social services to no avail.
—Last month, Alameda County Supervisor Lena Tam also asked for an investigation into the matter.
OAKLAND
—UPROOTED IN OAKLAND—The Oakland City Council will pass a resolution on June 28 in support of Reps. Barbara Lee and Mark DeSaulnier’s Moneyball Act, its Rules Committee announced on Thursday.
—In a press release later in the day, Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao and Councilmember Rebecca Kaplan issued support for the resolution.
—The bill calls for compensating cities and jurisdictions when a sports franchise relocates to another city. More importantly, at least for the effort to keep the Oakland A’s in the East Bay, the legislation takes aim at removing Major League Baseball’s cherished anti-trust exemption.
ELECTION 2024
BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
—NATE’S A FINE GUY, BUT…—The Tri-Valley Democratic Club asked Jennifer Esteen, a candidate in the Alameda County Board of Supervisors race in District 4, what’s wrong with incumbent Supervisor Nate Miley? Why should someone vote for you instead?
—"I would say there’s noting wrong with Nate Miley,” Esteen said. “He’s a fine guy. He appointed me to the Eden [Municipal Advisory Council]. He made a good choice there. He also blessed my appointment to the Alameda Health System Board. He made a good choice there.”
—But Esteen also laid out criticism of Miley, including a belief he has failed to respond to growing wealth inequality in his district, which includes large parts of impoverished unincorporated areas, in addition to a lack of new housing.
—Last year, Esteen ran in the 20th Assembly District primary, narrowly missing out a spot in the top two general election. Esteen told Tri Valley Dems that she knocked on over 20,000 doors in last year’s assembly race. She intends to do the same in the March primary election season for District 4, which includes unincorporated areas around Castro Valley, a portion of East Oakland, and Pleasanton.
—WHEELING AND DEALING—The car dealership lobby is well-organized and wealthy, and most of them dole out large contributions to Republican candidates, an article in Slate detailed.
—In Alameda County, the words “Republican” and “money” are rarely uttered in the same sentence, but the article illuminates one group of conservatives who have spent heavily in the past few elections.
—Car dealership magnate, Inder Dosanjh spent over $130,000 in support of Alameda County Sheriff Greg Ahern’s failed re-election last year. Ahern was, without an doubt, the most powerful Republican in Alameda County.
—As we’ve seen recently, Dosanjh appears poised to place a big bet on Alameda County Supervisor David Haubert’s re-election next March. Haubert, however, is registered as No Party Preference.
—Like the money trail leading to Ahern last year, some of the donation leading to Haubert are paid through Dosanjh’s network of car dealership. For example, a $10,000 contribution last month came from Fremont Chevrolet. Unlike Ahern, Haubert is not expected to face a strong re-election challenge in the March primary.
—FUNDRAISER—Barbara Lee’s U.S. Senate campaign is holding a fundraiser in South Central Los Angeles on June 30. No specific location was given for the event.
—Editor’s Note: I made an error setting the schedule for today’s newsletter. If a subscriber didn’t text me about the missing post this morning, it would have arrived in your email at 6 p.m., not the usual 6 a.m.
—In other news, nearly 70 percent of free and paid subscribers read their daily East Bay Insiders newsletter. I was notified that this is a very high open-rate. What can I say? I have top-notch readers! Thank you, again.