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Oakland, California: by Jim March December 11, 2001 (Click
here for the .pdf version.) "I see the world in very fluid, contradictory, emerging, interconnected terms, and with that kind of circuitry I just don't feel the need to say what is going to happen or will not
happen." -- Jerry Brown, when he was Governor of California "We are not disorganized. We just have a kind of organization that transcends
understanding." -- Jacques Barzaghi, campaign aide to Jerry Brown (quoted in '92) "If Jerry Brown is the answer, it must be a damned peculiar
question." -- Senator Lloyd Bentson, on Brown's 1992 Presidential campaign KeepAndBearArms.com -- In our Marin report of 11/26/01, we showed you a good random selection of "normal" CCW (mal)practices
-- the sort of thing seen all over the state of California. For those new to the issue, a "Carry Concealed Weapons" (CCW)
permit allows the carry of a loaded, concealed defensive firearm without fear
that you are going to have your life ruined by law enforcement authorities if
"caught" exercising your Constitutional and human rights. The
requirements include training, a detailed background check with fingerprints and
getting the personal approval of your PD Chief or Sheriff. The Marin report,
first of the series, has more details on the way CCW law works in California and
includes the first round of evidence exposing their corruption and violations of
federal and state law. Abuses of the CCW application process have been legendary, in California and
elsewhere. In the early '60s, for example, when Mississippi had the same system,
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was denied by his Sheriff after his home was
firebombed. Our goal is to take the evidence of abuse out of the realm of
"legend" and into public exposure as cold hard fact. 12050. (a) (1) (A) The sheriff of a county, upon proof that the person applying is of
good moral character, that good cause exists for the issuance, and that the person applying satisfies any one of the conditions...[emphasis added] Oakland is a city of about 400,000 right across the bay from San
Francisco, and only one of them apparently has "good moral character"
-- but his character has been called into question publicly and repeatedly. Read
on...
OK, fine, so the only permitholder in the whole city is a crony of Mayor (and former Governor, and Presidential aspirant) Jerry "Moonbeam" Brown. Sex Charges Against Jerry Brown Aide Could Cost Mayor "It's not going to end his career as mayor, but it could definitely impact his future on the national landscape -- and believe me, that's where he's been looking these days." That's how one East Bay politico in the know summed up the dilemma facing Oakland Mayor Jerry Brown -- now that sexual harassment allegations have been leveled at his longtime friend, housemate, alter ego, gun-packing bodyguard and de facto chief of staff Jacques Barzaghi. As reported by The Chronicle's Chip Johnson yesterday, the flamboyant and often mysterious Barzaghi stands accused of putting the moves on an Oakland trade representative while they were with the mayor in Mexico last week for the inaugural festivities of Mexican President Vicente Fox. (One allegation is that the 61-year-old Barzaghi tried to nibble her ear.) Neither Brown nor Barzaghi, who was hospitalized for chest pains yesterday, was talking. It's as if a sonic boom hit this hall. But like a sonic boom -- most insiders say they felt it coming. "I know of at least four other women that have either been subjected to provocative comments or propositions from him," one source alleged. "It's a total pattern with the guy,' said one former staff member. "I can't think of a person in that office who doesn't feel they were harassed at some point. . . . I've seen aides burst into tears (because) he's always trying to get under their skin." http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2000/12/08/MNW111077.DTL Q: As soon as you came to office, the Jacques Barzaghi case (Mayor Brown's Special Assistant accused of sexual harassment) and the Riders (Oakland Police Officers accused of abusing their powers and falsely planting evidence against defendants) case exploded on the front pages. In light of these developments, do you have a changed view of the city attorney's office being handled with the risk management philosophy that you espoused and have these high-profile cases bogged down your ability to move your agenda forward? A (Russo): Wow! Yeah, it was pretty bracing to have those cases come up as soon as I took office. Those cases actually validate the emphasis my campaign placed upon the importance of risk management. These cases have not impeded the implementation of a risk management philosophy; rather, they have made the need for its implementation more obvious to everyone at city hall. Since I took office, we have placed dedicated departmental counsel in the police department and in the public works agency, our two largest liability generators. These two attorneys are responsible for practicing preventative law and assisting the appropriate department heads with avoiding legal liability. As for the cases you mentioned, they are being handled very professionally by a combination of in-house and outside counsel. We got an excellent result in the Barzaghi case (a settlement with the plaintiff for $50,000) and we believe we are well positioned in the Riders case to not only save the taxpayers money but to insure that our otherwise excellent police department does not find itself in such embarrassing circumstances again. So the city paid $50,000 for this guy's misconduct, and the city attorney clearly feels lucky that it wasn't worse. Final CCW Notes We could go into detail on Oakland's policies, how the $1million liability insurance policy requirement is illegal per Penal Code 12054(d),
which bans any extra-cost requirements above and beyond the state requirements, or the medical exam banned on the same
basis. Miscellaneous Weirdness Oakland is one of the state's hot-beds of gun control, generating "new ideas" such as a ban on "pocket rockets". If a gun won't fit sideways through a cardboard square 4" by 6", it's banned for sale. Actually,
We're not sure they
successfully passed that one, because they ran the only gun dealer in town out of business by taxing everything in the store 3%
-- and they were doing more business in fishing gear and the like than guns, so the "pocket rocket" sales ban would have been purely
symbolic, as nobody sells guns in Oakland anymore. A left-wing granola-sucking health-food co-op in NYC did a glowing profile on Barzaghi that has to be seen to be believed for it's depth of
muddle-headedness. (See: http://www.foodcoop.com/bios/jacques_barzaghi.html.) Finally, a comedy documentary was made on the 1992 Presidential race and apparently our boy Barzaghi was the #1 freak in the resulting circus:
http://www.blockbuster.com/bb/movie/details/0,6861,VID-V++++17003,00.html
-- we are desperately searching for a copy. CONTACTING OAKLAND OFFICIALS Oakland Police Department: Mayor Jerry Brown: Vice Mayor Jane Brunner: Council Member Danny Wan: Council Member Nancy Nadel: Council Member Dick Spees: Council Member Ignacio De La Fuente: Council Member Moses L. Mayne, Jr.: Council Member Larry Reid: Council Member Henry Chang: City Auditor Roland Smith: City Manager Robert C. Bobb: City Attorney John Russo: NEXT STEPS 1) I'm going to be at the next Oakland
City Council meeting on Dec. 11th (Tuesday) at 7:00pm to speak and pass out 30
copies of this report! Anyone who wants to observe is warmly welcome (by us) to
do so, although what welcome the city will have will be an open question :). 2) We are raising funds to continue
trumping many other counties in California -- one by one -- until Attorney
General John Ashcroft takes notice and takes action. Please
click here and then here
to see more about how you can pitch in. |
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