As the SF Appeal notes this morning, Walker, 22, is getting away with having tossed an adorable Jack Russell terrier from a Mission District window, assuming she in fact did do it.
But therein lies the problem. The dog's owner has refused to cooperate with police, or give a statement that would back up another witness' claim that Walker threw the pup, Stephanie Ong Stillman, spokesperson for the DA's office, tells the Appeal. More >>
Contrary to what men hope, cat fights almost never end in two girls making out
Who needs cable when you can view this kind of drama at your local grocery store?
Two women got into a fight while shopping for groceries inside a store on the 5200 block of Diamond Heights. According to police the victim was cruising the aisles when the suspect approached with a small dog in tow.
The victim used sharp language to communicate how she felt about bringing a dog inside a grocery store. The suspect cursed at the victim, telling her to shut up.
The victim shot back with her own string of profanities -- and the cat fight was on. More >>
Last month, SF Weekly published a cover story revealing that two candidates for Catholic sainthood -- including Mother Teresa, founder of the Missionaries of Charity order and winner of the Nobel Peace Prize -- had taken steps to protect convicted pedophile priest Donald McGuire after molestation allegations were lodged against him by a Bay Area family in 1993.
Mother Teresa's implication in the McGuire scandal comes through a typed 1994 letter, never before published, in which she appears to urge the priest's Jesuit superior to return him to active ministry despite the abuse allegation. (McGuire returned to ministry, and molested multiple additional boys before his arrest in 2003.) While the letter is unsigned, it bears a salutation in her characteristic handwriting, and contains strong clues indicating Mother Teresa as the author. For instance, the letter-writer refers by name to the nun's four top deputies, calling them "my assistants."
We just came across a videotaped response to our story that was published by Mary Johnson. A former Missionaries of Charity nun, Johnson left the order after 20 years and has just published a book, An Unquenchable Thirst, detailing her experiences working under Mother Teresa. She read our story and the letter, which we published online.
Sheriff Ross Mirkarimi regained the right to see his 2-year-old son in family court today, overcoming a protective order that a judge had issued after domestic-violence charges were filed against him last month.
According to an agreement between Mirkarimi and his wife and alleged abuse victim, Eliana Lopez, Mirkarimi will be able to see his son without supervision for two hours daily and up to six hours on the weekend. Mirkarimi said he planned to see the boy, Theo, today.
"I can't tell you how excited and gratified I am. This has been a tortuous process," Mirkarimi said on the steps of the civil courthouse on McAllister Street today, appearing to choke back tears before a throng of reporters. Holding aloft a small toy fire engine he said he planned to give to Theo, Mirkarimi added, "I'm just so hungry to see my son. I'm going to gobble him up."
Solano County has gotten caught in the crossfire of a family feud that ended with one brother in the hospital and another in jail.
David Bango is suing Solano County, claiming sheriff bailiffs failed to restrain his brother while Bango testified against him at his murder trial. According to court documents filed last week, Bango was stepping down from the witness stand after he testifed when his older brother -- Wilberto Belardo -- attacked him.
News outlets report that during the May 5, 2011, trial in which Bango was a key witness, Belardo reportedly shouted out that his brother was a liar before attacking him and punching him in the nose.
Bango's injuries left him with multiple stitches, post traumatic stress disorder, nightmares, and loss of sleep, according to the claim. Bango is squarely blaming the county, which he says should have had his brother handcuffed -- at the very least -- throughout his murder trial.
Same-sex marriage advocates rejoiced today as the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit upheld U.S. District Court Judge Vaughn Walker's 2010 decision that Proposition 8, the 2008 California ballot initiative banning gay marriage, is unconstitutional.
The decision is almost certainly destined for appeal and a likely ruling before the U.S. Supreme Court. In the meantime, today's ruling was not an unalloyed victory for gay-rights advocates: One judge on the three-judge panel that upheld Walker's decision authored a 39-page decision dissenting from the majority.
The dissent by Judge N. Randy Smith could provide some insight into the arguments in favor of Prop. 8's constitutionality that the Supreme Court might seriously consider. UC Hastings College of the Law professor Evan Lee says there were three major issues on which Smith, a conservative, disagreed with the famously liberal Judge Stephen Reinhardt, who authored the majority opinion:
When Ross Mirkarimi was elected sheriff, he had ambitious plans to influence the criminal justice system, although this billboard to the right probably isn't what he had in mind.
However, after being charged with battery, endangering a child, and dissuading a witness, La Casa de las Madres, a San Francisco-based domestic violence victim
shelter, is attempting to make an example out of the sheriff. The organization is trying to raise enough money to plaster a billboard in front of the Hall of Justice that references Mirkarimi's disturbing quote about his own domestic violence charges.
Here's what the billboard will say: "Domestic Violence is NEVER a private matter. If you need help, call (877) 503-1850."
As readers might recall, Mirkarimi shocked everyone when he publicly stated that allegations he physically abused his wife, Eliana Lopez, were nothing more than a "private matter, a family matter."
Follow this guy, and be sure to miss the sobriety checkpoints
Last week, Twitter users were outraged by the company's new policy to allow censorship country-by-country -- not that this will have any influence in places like China or Iran, where tweeting is entirely blocked.
In any event, the new policy is getting its first real test after Brazil filed a lawsuit against the San Francisco company. The Brazilian government is less than pleased with Twitter for allowing users to tweet locations of upcoming sobriety checkpoints, giving drunk drivers a chance to elude the cops.
According to Gizmodo, more than 300,000 users are following the Twitter account that posted the locations of the DUI checkpoints as well as locations of police radars, and Brazil says that's essentially promoting drinking and driving.
Sheriff Ross Mirkarimi's wife, whom he has been charged with physically abusing, appeared in San Francisco Family Court today asking a judge to allow her husband supervised visits with the couple's son, asserting that a court order barring Mirkarimi from seeing his family is doing "damage" to the child.
"My son, Theo, is asking for his father every day," Eliana Lopez said in a signed declaration filed with the court today. "He waits for Ross on the stairs in the morning, hoping Ross will be there to take him to school; he runs to the window in the evenings looking for Ross; and the last few days he has been imagining he sees Ross's car outside. He is constantly asking me when daddy is coming home."
Mirkarimi and Lopez appeared at family court with their respective lawyers to request a modification of Superior Court Judge Susan Breall's stay-away order, which was issued in the criminal case stemming from Mirkarimi's alleged abuse of Lopez. After filing paperwork requesting supervised visits for two hours every day, attorneys said that a hearing on the matter would take place next Wednesday.
The Presidio Historical Association and Sierra Club said they were left with "no choice" but to file a federal lawsuit to put the kibosh on the SF Presidio Trust's plan to build a luxury hotel, which the public nearly unanimously opposes, PHA President Gary Widman said in a statement.
The lawsuit filed yesterday in San Francisco claims the Presidio Trust's plans violate the Presidio Trust Act, National Historic Preservation Act, and National Environmental Policy Act and is ignoring its duty to protect the park from being developed. The SF Presidio Trust was established by the Trust Act to preserve the National Park's "significant natural, historic, scenic, cultural, and recreational resources."
"The unique historic value of the Presidio Main Post should not be sacrificed to build an unnecessary hotel," said Sierra Club spokeswoman Becky Evans.
Write Comment
Email to Friend
