City of Chula Vista faces legal claims from its Police Chief

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Good Morning, I’m Lawrence K. Jackson, it’s FRIDAY, MARCH 20TH>>>>  [POLICE CHIEF ALLEGES DISCRIMINATION BY THE CITY OF CHULA VISTA

More on that next. But first... let’s do the headlines….########

A PROPOSED BALLOT MEASURE TO KEEP PARKING FREE AT CITY BEACHES AND BAYS HAS INITIAL APPROVAL FROM THE SAN DIEGO CITY COUNCIL'S RULES COMMITTEE

 IT NOW ADVANCES TO A SECOND COMMITTEE FOR FURTHER CONSIDERATION 

IF APPROVED THERE, THE FULL CITY COUNCIL WILL DECIDE IF IT WILL LAND ON THE NOVEMBER BALLOT 

COUNCILMAN RAUL CAMPILLO SAYS HE PROPOSED THE MEASURE IN RESPONSE TO THE NEW  PARKING FEES AT BALBOA PARK

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ANOTHER PROPOSED BALLOT MEASURE TO  CURB WHAT'S REFERRED TO AS "DARK MONEY" HAS ALSO GAINED INITIAL APPROVAL FROM CITY COUNCIL'S RULES COMMITTEE 

IT WAS PROPOSED BY COUNCILMAN SEAN ELO-RIVERA AND WOULD REQUIRE 

BANNING CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTIONS FROM REGISTERED CITY LOBBYISTS TO THE OFFICIALS THEY LOBBY…

AND REAL-TIME DISCLOSURES OF OUTSIDE LOBBYING ON CITY POLICY MATTERS  

ELO-RIVERA'S OFFICE SAYS THE MEASURE PUTS FOCUS ON LOOPHOLES AND 

LEGAL GAPS THAT HAVE ALLOWED SPECIAL INTERESTS TO POUR MONEY INTO CITY ELECTIONS AND CITY-HALL DECISION MAKING WHILE HIDING WHO IS BEHIND THE SPENDING

IT WILL RETURN TO THE RULES COMMITTEE BEFORE THE FULL COUNCIL WILL DECIDE WHETHER OR NOT TO PUT IT ON THE BALLOT

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THINGS HAVE BEEN HOT AND FORECASTERS SAY THEY'LL STAY THAT WAY INTO THE WEEKEND

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IS ISSUING AN EXTREME-HEAT WARNING 

THAT'S IN EFFECT UNTIL 8 P-M SATURDAY FOR OUR DESERT COMMUNITIES

THIS LATEST LATE-WINTER, HOT SPELL HAS RESULTED IN A RECORD-SETTING MARCH   

SATURDAY, THE FIRST FULL DAY OF SPRING, IS ANTICIPATED TO BE ANYWHERE FROM 20 TO 30 DEGREES ABOVE NORMAL FOR THIS TIME OF YEAR

From KPBS, you’re listening to San Diego News Now.Stay with me for more of the local news you need.

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THE CITY OF CHULA VISTA IS FACING LEGAL CLAIMS FROM ITS POLICE CHIEF…. WHO SAYS CITY LEADERS ARE TRYING TO GET HER TO LEAVE HER JOB.

REPORTER JACOB AERE SAYS CHIEF ROXANA KENNEDY HAS BEEN ON MEDICAL LEAVE FOR MONTHS.

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CVCHIEF 1 (:57)

The legal claims filed on behalf of Chula Vista police chief Roxana Kennedy allege defamation, breach of privacy and a hostile work environment.

Kennedy also claims discrimination based on age and race.

Cory Briggs is Kennedy’s attorney. He says the actions in the claims date back principally to a police union holiday party last December.

“The false accusation against the chief that she did something wrong at the holiday party and the subsequent initiation of an investigation against her based on false pretenses – that's retaliation and harassment.”

In a statement the city of Chula Vista said it has received the claims, denies the allegations … and will address the complaints in the appropriate venue.

Briggs says the city has 45 days to respond to the two legal claims before Kennedy files a lawsuit. Jacob Aere, KPBS News.

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MOST LOCAL GOVERNMENTS IN THE COUNTY WILL NEED TO MAKE CHANGES TO COMPLY WITH NEW STATE TRANSPARENCY REQUIREMENTS STARTING THIS SUMMER 

KPBS PUBLIC MATTERS PARTNER INEWSOURCE HAS RANKED OUR LOCAL GOVERNMENTS BASED ON THEIR COMMITMENTS TO SHARING INFORMATION PUBLICLY.  

KATIE FUTTERMAN IS THE REPORTER BEHIND THE TRANSPARENCY RANKING. 

SHE JOINED ANCHOR DEBBIE CRUZ TO EXPLAIN THE RANKING AND WHERE LOCAL GOVERNMENTS ARE LACKING IN TRANSPARENCY  

SUNSHINE (inews) TRT (3:33) last words “local officials are up to”

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Can you give us a brief synopsis of how local governments were graded in your report?

Yeah, so we had a big rubric that we gave governments points for based on their website accessibility and their meeting accessibility and we then also gave them the chance to comment and give notes about, you know, other things that they might be doing as well.

What was the top performing city and the lowest in your ranking? Ocean Side was at number one. It got 19 out of 19 points. That is with some extra credit points.

We asked whether local governments had videos with time stamps and navigation tools that you could click through when you're watching a video and whether there were written transcripts of the meetings available and in bottom place was Lemon Grove which got 11 out of 19 points.

Where did they need improving?

They do not have videos posted through their website. So as a result a lot of the questions were based on that. There is a YouTube page where it seems like you can watch meetings on of Lemon Grove and notably I will add that when we talked to Lemon Grove they did say they were in the works of getting a contract to have videos of their videos of their meetings to have videos of their meetings.

Notably, Lemon Grove did tell us that they are in the process of getting a contract to create videos of their meetings.

What were common things governments were missing?

So around three quarters of local governments did not have the ability to do live remote comment so that's like calling or doing a zoom in so that you can speak at the meeting. A lot of governments were also missing the meetings the minutes from the second to last meeting and transcripts.

So those are some of the areas where they were falling short. Now what will governments need to have by July to comply with the new law?

So they'll need to have that remote comment option that I mentioned and the good news is the government said that they were planning to implement it. Uh they will also need to translate their agendas to certain languages uh based on their population of the area.

When you were compiling this report, what were responses like from governments?

They were really good for the most part. We got to see what city clerks were up to and they told us about their process and we're excited about all the work they do. Um also governments made changes based on our findings. So For instance, we had uh Imperial Beach. We noted that there were no officials listed on their agenda and they, you know, said that they would uh consider changing that and other agencies also um responded positively to to to what we pointed out.

So, what were things most governments did well?

They were all posting their agenda 72 hours before their meetings. They also a lot of them had live stream options and uh videos that were posted afterwards so people could go back back and review on their website consistent meeting times and most of them had email address at least for their public officials some of them phone numbers too but that depended.

What was your takeaway on all this?

My takeaway was that the governments were doing fairly well. I would say for the most part you know all of the governments got over half the points based on our rubric the top ones were only missing a few points so there's really just a few things, but you know, it's really important because this is something governments together are spending lots of money and elected officials are making a lot of decisions.

So, it's really important that their meetings are accessible to the average person who might not be able to, you know, go on evenings uh to go watch their meetings so that they can just go on a website and see what their local officials are up to.

TAG: THAT WAS KATIE FUTTERMAN SPEAKING WITH  ANCHOR DEBBIE CRUZ. INEWSOURCE IS AN INDEPENDENTLY FUNDED, NON-PROFIT PARTNER OF KPBS.

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A NORTH COUNTY BOARDING SCHOOL FOR FOSTER YOUTH HAS SEEN ITS POPULATION SHRINK OVER THE LAST FEW YEARS… NOW, EDUCATION REPORTER KATIE ANASTAS SAYS THE  COUNTY WANTS INPUT ON ITS FUTURE

SANPASQUAL1 1:15 SOQ

San Pasqual Academy has provided housing, a high school, mental health services and more for foster youth since 2001.

Shane Harris went there after leaving a foster home at age 16.

HARRIS

Nobody wanted to take someone who was close to graduating high school in. So San Pasqual Academy was the only place and the only option for me.

He says the Escondido campus, surrounded by orange groves, was a safe haven.

HARRIS

My high school GPA had been failing, and there was a lot that was going on, and San Pasqual sort of gave me the chance to reground myself.

Enrollment at the school peaked at 195 students in 2009. Now, the county says, there are 44 students.

The number of children entering the foster care system is down…and more of those who do enter the system get placed with relatives or foster families.

That’s according to Alfredo Guardado. He directs San Diego County's Child and Family Well-Being Department.

GUARDADO

San Pasqual Academy mimics what we've seen at the larger child welfare level.

As the number of students declines…he says there may be other ways to use the campus’s 238 acres.

One thing Harris would like to see stay is transitional housing for recent graduates.

The county is asking for public input. An online survey closes March 30. Katie Anastas, KPBS News.

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HAVE A GREAT DAY AT THE BEACH, BUT DON’T BURY YOURSELF OR DIG TOO DEEP IN THE SAND.

THAT’S THE MESSAGE IN DEL MAR.

AS REPORTER ALEXANDER NGUYEN TELLS US, THE CITY HAS AN ORDINANCE BANNING HAZARDOUS HOLES ON THE BEACH.

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DMHOLES 1(an) trt: 0:55 SOQ

NATS 7928 “pat, pat, pat”

Digging holes and building sand castles is a core memory for any kids visiting the beach.

But starting next week, Del Mar will have a new ordinance that bans digging holes deeper than two feet on city beaches.

SARAH KOWALICK // VISITING FROM LAS VEGAS

“Families come to the beach to play in the sand, and part of that is making sandcastles and digging. And two feet isn't very deep."

Sarah Kowalick (koh-WAHL-ick) is visiting from Las Vegas for spring break.

She was helping her daughter build a sandcastle.

“She’s 4. I don’t think she would be able to dig that deep.”

The city says it’s for safety reasons. Big holes create tripping hazards and make it tough for lifeguards or emergency trucks to get through.

Del Mar will also require beachgoers to refill the holes they’ve dug.

“So cleaning up those holes or refilling them is more attainable than saying don't do it at all.”

And don’t even think about burying yourself in the sand … The ordinance bans that, too. AN KPBS News.

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AS WE DO FOR YOU EACH AND EVERY WEEKEND, HERE ARE SOME WEEKEND EVENT IDEAS FOR YOU AND YOURS 

ON FRIDAY, SD-SU WILL HOST SOME FIRST ROUND NCAA GAMES

VIEJAS ARENA WILL HOST NUMBER ONE RANKED ARIZONA AND SEVEN OTHER COLLEGE TEAMS WHO ARE FACING OFF

THE FIRST GAME KICKS OFF AT 10:35 A-M

ON SATURDAY IS THE HUMANE SOCIETY’S WALK FOR ANIMALS

IT TAKES PLACE AT KIT CARSON PARK IN ESCONDIDO 

THE EVENT WILL ALSO HAVE  A PANCAKE BREAKFAST, PET RELATED VENDORS AND LIVE MUSIC.

AND… HAPPENING ALL WEEKEND LONG IS LIBERTY PUBLIC MARKET’S 10TH ANNIVERSARY 

THE FOOD HALL IS CELEBRATING WITH TEN DOLLAR FOOD AND DRINK SPECIALS ALL SATURDAY AND SUNDAY

WHATEVER YOU DO DECIDE TO DO THIS WEEKEND, ENJOY! 

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That’s it for the podcast today. This podcast is edited by Brooke Ruth AND  hosted and produced by me, Lawrence K. Jackson. As always you can find more San Diego news online at KPBS dot org. Thanks for listening and have a great weekend.