New developments in case against Nathan Fletcher
Good Morning, I’m Debbie Cruz….it’s Tuesday, August 27th.
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There are new developments in the sexual assault case against Nathan Fletcher. More on that next. But first... let’s do the headlines….
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San Diego's new fire chief is now on duty.
Robert Logan was sworn in over the weekend.
His first day on the job was yesterday (Monday).
Logan is a life-long San Diegan with nearly 25 years of service, including as a deputy fire chief overseeing special operations.
"My goal is always just to be the best of whatever position I was in and that led to people push me up up the ladder and then sometimes they push me into positions that I would didn't want to be in. But it actually made me better and it got me to where I am today. So the feeling is absolutely amazing."
Chief Logan co-founded Lincoln High School's Fire Protection Program.
He is also an active member of Women In Fire, a national organization that helps advance and empower women in fire and emergency services.
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Carlsbad is holding its 20-24 State of the City address today (Tuesday).
Because of construction at the auditorium where it would’ve been held, the presentation will be made at the beginning of today’s city council meeting.
During the speech, you can learn more about major projects and initiatives in Carlsbad from the past year, and also what’s planned for the upcoming year.
The city council meeting will start at 5 P-M, and the State of the City video presentation will begin at 5-15.
You can join the meeting in person, or watch the live stream on the city’s website.
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We’ll see temperatures gradually increasing through the middle of the week.
But the National Weather Service says even with the warming trend, high temperatures are expected to remain normal for this time of year.
Today (Tuesday) in the inland areas, temperatures will be in the mid 80s, by the coast and in the mountains, temps will be in the high 70s, and in the deserts, it’s expected to reach 107 degrees.
Temps will drop by a couple degrees in most parts of the county towards the end of the week and into the weekend.
The desert areas are the only places where temps will increase a bit throughout the week.
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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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A new court filing in the sexual assault case against former San Diego County supervisor Nathan Fletcher includes text messages that undermine the allegations made by Fletcher’s accuser.
Investigative reporter Amita Sharma has details.
In March 2023, former Metropolitan Transit Authority Employee Grecia Figueroa sued Fletcher, alleging sexual assault, harassment and battery on three separate occasions in 2022. She says he kissed her and groped her. But in text messages to a friend, Figueroa described those encounters as makeout sessions. This according to a new filing by Fletcher made last week. Fletcher’s lawyer Sam Sherman said the texts are devastating to Figueroa’s case. “They completely eviscerate any claim that Figarela has that she suffered any sexual assault or sexual harassment at the hands of Nathan Fletcher. They show that each turn, she welcomed this behavior, she was anticipating this behavior.” Figueroa declined to comment on the texts. Fletcher has denied the allegations, saying Figueroa consented to the interactions. He has filed a cross complaint accusing her of defamation. Amita Sharma, KPBS News.
TAG: You can visit kpbs-dot-org to read a detailed account of the new court filing.
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Once again, Donald Trump and other politicians are making the threat of migrant crime a key election talking point.
But as border reporter Gustavo Solis explains, research shows immigrants are actually less likely to commit crimes than native born Americans.
Leading up to the presidential election, politicians are using fear of migrant crime as a rationale for policies like mass deportation and more border walls. Sometimes, the rhetoric is subtle - simply casting suspicion on people crossing the border illegally. Here is El Cajon mayor and Republican congressional candidate Bill Wells. WELLS: “There are a lot of people coming over and we have no idea who they are. It stands to reason that many of them will be criminals.” Sometimes, it is much more overt. Like former president Donald Trump at this year’s Republican National Convention. TRUMP: “They’re coming from prisons, they’re coming from jails, they’re coming from mental institutions and insane asylums.” And we are all less safe because of it. TRUMP: “And bad things are going to happen and you’re seeing it happen all the time. That’s why to keep families safe the Republican platform promises to launch the largest deportation operation in the history of our country.” Democrats largely condemn Trump for demonizing immigrants. But they also tout their own policies aimed at getting tough at the border. In 2020, President Joe Biden ran on a platform to roll back Trump-era immigration policies. But at the Democratic National Convention last week, Kamala Harris supported tough border measures. “Last year Joe and I brought together Democrats and conservative Republicans to write the strongest border bill in decades. The Border Patrol endorsed it.” But all these actions in the name of protecting American citizens from immigrant crime aren’t backed up by the available facts. “In all of the cities that have seen large numbers of migrants arriving, crime is actually going down right now. So not only is there not a migrant crime wave, there’s not even a crime wave.” That’s Aaron Reichlin-Melnick, the policy director for the American Immigration Council. He points to local crime data in cities with large immigrant populations including New York, Chicago, Philadelphia, Los Angeles and here in San Diego. In all of them, violent crime is down compared to last year. In fact, several studies show immigrants are less likely to commit crimes than people born in the United States. Consider research by Alex Nowrasteh of the libertarian leaning Cato Institute. He’s studied crime rates in Texas, the only state that includes immigration status in its crime statistics. “But the results of all the papers are pretty similar to each other in that they all find that native born Americans have the highest criminal conviction rates and arrest rates, illegal immigrants have rates in the middle and then legal immigrants have rates in the lowest.” Nowrasteh’s research shows undocumented immigrants in Texas are 26 percent less likely to be convicted of homicide compared to native born residents. And legal immigrants are 60 percent less likely. “And the reason why I say that is because of the time when folks talk about illegal immigration and crime they use it as a justification for increased border security or for mass deportation or for interior enforcement policies as a way to reduce crime. And what I show in this research is that as a policy – or if the goal is to reduce violent and property offenders, mass deportations of illegal immigrants will not reduce the crime rate. But even these hard facts can be no match for America’s centuries-old anti-immigrant narrative. At various points in history, Irish, Italian and Japanese immigrants have been considered threats to public safety. And one way politicians like Trump stoke fear is to cherry pick examples of gruesome crimes committed by immigrants. Here again is Reichlin-Melnick. “Of course there have been individual incidents which are truly horrific. You have seen several women who have been murdered by individuals who were undocumented, and these have been truly awful circumstances and my heart goes out to the family.” Yet, he says, one thing that’s always missing from these accounts is context. These are isolated examples from a population of more than 12 million people. “It is not correct to point at one or two instances and use that to extrapolate that to an entire population of people of diverse backgrounds, religions, faiths, creeds, national origins who really only share one thing and that is a lack of paperwork.” Experts like Reichlin-Melnick and Nowrasteh say they will continue to confront lies and disinformation. They believe it is important to keep reminding people of what is true, what is not true, and what we simply don’t know yet. Gustavo Solis, KPBS News.
TAG: This is the first in a series of stories focused on separating the facts from the myths regarding border security.
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Back-to-school is supposed to be an exciting time for parents and students, but at one elementary school in Oceanside Unified, it was anything but.
Parents tell North County reporter Alexander Nguyen, construction at Pablo Tac is a hazard for their children.
quiet but with construction equipment shown Things are quiet now at Pablo Tac School of the Arts in Oceanside … but this was the scene on the first day of school on August 15th. about to start first day M Kalli Construction equipment visible while students are lining up to head to class. “Just an enormous amount of issues that first day of school.” And last week … students were evacuated after the construction crew hit a power pole … causing a downed powerline in the middle of campus. “There’s fire and smoke. The principal just went running.” Source: M Kalli That cemented the decision for M Kalli to keep her son out of school. M Kalli Pablo Tac parent “I just personally don't feel comfortable sending my child to school.” In an email sent to parents last Friday … Oceanside Unified School District says that the construction crew meets daily to review safety procedures to ensure students’ safety. A district spokesperson says the district is working with parents to address their concerns. AN/KPBS.
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Veterans from all over the country are in San Diego this week for a series of adaptive sports events.
It’s all part of the V-A’s summer sports clinic.
Military and veterans reporter Andrew Dyer caught up with them yesterday (Monday) at a morning surf session.
Navy veteran miguel navarro is one of more than 100 disabled veterans in town this week for the clinic. he’s from miami, florida and uses a wheelchair. it’s his second time at the clinic and he says the surfing this year is already better than last because now he’s able to sit upright on the board. last year he laid face down on the board. ““and it’s so much better because now i can really see where i’m going and feel the acceleration it’s almost like back riding a motorcycle again.” adaptive surfing looks a little different for each person. after a safety and training brief, teams of coaches help each veteran into the water. everyone catches wave after wave. adaptive surfing is just one of several events this week. veterans will also sail, cycle and kayak. navarro says adaptive sports can really make a difference. “it really makes you feel you can still do a lot of things it brings a lot of confidence back into you.” one-hundred twenty veterans are participating in this year’s clinic. andrew dyer, kpbs news.
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That’s it for the podcast today. As always you can find more San Diego news online at KPBS dot org. Join us again tomorrow for the day’s top stories. I’m Debbie Cruz. Thanks for listening and have a great Tuesday.
