S1: Coming up on KPBS roundtable. An investigation finds differences in how white and black people were sentenced in robbery murders under a former San Diego County district attorney.
S2: It couldn't be explained away by any other factors we were looking at. It was this stark racial pattern.
S1: Then a look into planned job cuts at the Department of Veterans Affairs and how veterans reacting. All that , plus the weekly roundup. That's ahead on KPBS roundtable. A KPBS investigation has revealed stark differences in how white and black people were sentenced in robbery murders under a former San Diego County district attorney. KPBS racial justice and social equity reporter Katie Hyson spoke with KPBS Andrew Bowen about her investigation. Here's that conversation.
S3: So your story starts with a woman named Leyla Aziz.
S2: And Layla is really central to that in San Diego. She directs a nonprofit called pillars of the community , and they advocate for people impacted by the criminal justice system in San Diego. She didn't always do that. She grew up in southeast San Diego , and when she moved back , she noticed some of the people she grew up with were gone. There were just familiar faces missing from the community. And when she started asking around , she discovered some of them had been convicted of this charge called felony murder special circumstances , which is essentially murder during a robbery. But that that wouldn't come back up in her life until years later when she got into community work.
S3: So you say that Aziz , when she was looking at all of these criminal charges or cases , she noticed a pattern.
S2: And nearly all the black defendants were serving life without parole. They'd had no chance to even go before the parole board and argue that , um , you know , they had changed. They deserve parole and let the board decide whether or not to release them. How did she find this pattern ? It's really fascinating. So she just. She's kind of a public records hound. I would say. She probably , um , rivals our newsroom for the number of public records requests she submits every year. And so she submitted a public records request for all the cases , um , that could have been charged with this penal code for felony murder , special circumstances. And she got this list of cases , but she quickly realized that the list was incomplete. There were co-defendants , white co-defendants that weren't on that list , and there were cases. She could see a news archives that were missing from that list as well. And this is what she said about that moment.
S4: And that's when we realized we're not going to get the data just from the Da. We're going to have to do it.
S2: So she's a when she says dig , she means it. She self-described as a total data nerd. And the team at pillars is to and they have people on their team that can code um computer languages that can pull data from places where it's not easily available. And they also work with what they call inside organizers. So people who are incarcerated and have access to certain databases that they don't on the outside. And they they did everything. They visited multiple courthouses , combed through archives , um , pulled from , uh , news archives. And they started filling out this list with everyone that could have been charged in robbery murder cases. And that's when they found that pattern that the white defendants were often getting the chance at parole because they were given plea deals , or they were charged differently from the outset.
S3: So pillars of the community was looking into these cases around , uh , this particular type of charge of murder , uh , special circumstances. You also did your own investigation for KPBS into all of this. What did you find.
S2: The specific numbers that are pretty striking are that 13 out of 15 white defendants in these robbery murder cases , and that includes killers and non killers , were given the chance at parole. 11 out of 12 black defendants , killers and non killers were given life without parole. I did a lot of work to make sure we were comparing apples to apples , and in the end it couldn't be explained away by any other factors we were looking at. It was this stark racial pattern. And this is Lila's response to seeing this pattern.
S4: When you're looking at people , not even numbers anymore. I know all of their names by heart , and you see them treated differently by the same exact system. You're like , separate but equal. Plessy versus Ferguson , Jim Crow. It all feels the same.
S3: Katie , can you explain more this term ? Felony murder , special circumstances.
S2: And there's a whole list of what those might be. And the one I was looking at and the one Layla was looking at , is specifically when a murder happened during the commission of a robbery. Um , and at the time , at the time we're looking at here the way this code was , even if you were not the killer , say you were an accomplice in the robbery. Things went bad and someone else there committed a murder. Just being a participant in the robbery under this penal code at the time , you could be charged with murder yourself. And it was life without parole. Now , that's since , uh , changed. But at the time , killer. Non killer. You were considered a murderer under the law.
S3: So you mentioned changes in California law around this particular charge. People can now appeal for a resentencing if they were not the actual killer in one of these robberies , like they weren't the one who pulled the trigger , but they were still , you know , charged with with taking part in that crime so they can appeal for resentencing if they weren't the killer or if they can prove racial bias in their case.
S2: It's just that they have new grounds for an appeal now. So now if you weren't the actual killer , or if you want to try to prove racial bias in your case , you can file an appeal. From what I've seen in these case files. It's really hard to win those. At least here I didn't see successful attempts at that. And all of the appeals I saw for resentencing by black defendants were denied. And there was a study that showed that appeals more broadly in California under the Racial Justice Act , which is that , you know , proving racial bias in your case. The study showed that very , very few of those were granted.
S3: So , Katie , tell me more about the reporting process that that you put into this story.
S2: This peek behind the curtain , because there's there's one line in the story. The the line says the data show it wasn't one problem judge , one overeager attorney or even prior convictions. And then it goes on to say it was a racial pattern. That line took two months , hundreds of miles of driving , hundreds of dollars , about ten visits to three different courthouses , going through tens of thousands of pages of court documents. A little bit of my sanity. Like , it took a lot to report that with solidity , because I wanted to make sure that what we were describing here really was a racial disparity , and that it held true even when you were controlling for , you know , who the judge was , who was the prosecuting attorney , what were their prior convictions ? And to get that information , because these cases are old , these case files are paper. And not only are they paper , a lot of times they're in like manilla file folders in a box in a warehouse offsite from the courthouses , two of the courthouses in our county , they're not digitized. So you can't just look this stuff up on a computer , and you have to pay someone to go to these warehouses and fetch it and bring it back. And then you have to open the manila file folder and make sense of sometimes tens of thousands of pages in one file. Um , and I'm trying to I'm looking for not just the gist of the case , but those factors I mentioned the judges , the attorneys , the prior convictions , which are case files separate in and of themselves , and also some of them , by the way , are on microfilms. I don't know if you're familiar with those , but you have to you have to feed this little mini real film through a mechanical system and like , crank it looking for the specific case that you need. Um , and I say all of that to say like this is very inaccessible for an average person , right ? Like , this is my full time job , this is my training. And it still took me two months and all that money and all that time just to prove this very narrow disparities in this very narrow set of cases.
S3: I feel like we could do a whole story just about how inaccessible court documents are.
S2: Everything's in there. So there's mitigating what they call mitigating circumstances. So a lot of times the defense lawyer will include , um , all these different reasons to kind of make the jury and the judge understand the background of this person. What led them up to this point in their life ? There's letters from their family and friends. There's analyses from , um , therapists who are evaluating them. And this this broader pattern emerged , you know , black and white defendants were treated very differently. But these root , um , I don't think I'm qualified to say that they're the root causes. But I will say , like patterns across all of their lives were things like poverty , childhood trauma , um , lower education , substance abuse disorders , lack of housing. Many of these people didn't have housing at the time of the crime. Um , domestic growing up in domestic violence , um , untreated mental health disorders that , um , they didn't have medication for or weren't diagnosed with until they were admitted into the justice system.
S3: There's a scene in your story , Katie , where we hear a people's tribunal , uh , that was put together by Leyla Aziz's nonprofit , pillars of the community.
S2: It really is the heart of journalism , right ? To hold powerful people to account and powerful systems to account. And the community was doing that themselves. Not just the community , but everyone in that room had been impacted by the justice system , either directly or indirectly. They had been incarcerated themselves or had loved ones who were incarcerated. And to see them attempt to hold the district attorney accountable was just this really powerful moment. And also , like it just made for a great story. Honestly , it was it was a pretty dramatic scene , and I felt very privileged to witness it. And I wanted to bring people who couldn't be there into that moment with me.
S3: You reached out to the San Diego County District Attorney's office in this story.
S2: You know , in my wildest dream , they would have worked with me on this story to give me their point of view. I wanted to interview the current district attorney , Summer Stephan. I wanted to understand , you know , what other what other circumstances could play into a pattern like this ? Um. What's context we might be missing from the beginning. So they sent me an email written response. It was one paragraph that basically said these cases are very old. And so it wouldn't be right for us to comment on these cases. But the current office takes equal justice very seriously. And they said it would be reckless to suggest otherwise from there. I really wanted them to understand the scope of this investigation. Every single claim that was going to be in the story. So they had a fair chance to respond. And I went ahead and asked every single question along the way that I wish that they would answer in person , but maybe they would answer by email. They did not answer any questions , did not answer to any of the claims every time they just responded. You know , our previous statement still stands.
S3: And all of these cases were brought under former San Diego County District Attorney Paul Finks.
S2: I tried several different ways of reaching him and also left a message with his assistant. I will give the caveat. You know , we're we're looking at this time frame of cases because that's what initially got Leila interested was that it was the younger brothers of people she grew up with that were gone. And when you're trying to prove racial bias under the Racial Justice Act in California , you have to make them the cases as similar as possible. And so part of that was we're going to narrow this to one district attorney and make sure all the cases were under the same district attorney. That doesn't mean that the story is necessarily about Paul Finks , although it does. You know , in that position of power , you know , he is responsible for what ? His office did at the time.
S3: And in part two of your investigation , you introduce us to a man named Marquel Smith. Tell us about him and why his story resonated with you.
S2: So , you know , we're talking about 12 black defendants in this case list , 11 of them serving life without parole. So there's this limited pool of people. I'm looking to see if there's someone that might share their story. And Markle's mother was at the People's tribunal that pillars held. And it really struck me. She asked Laila Aziz to hold up degrees he had earned in prison and books he had written while incarcerated. And there was this community consensus in the room that if it was , some people around the room said , if anyone deserves to come home , it's Marquel. And there were some men in the room that had done time in prison with Marquel , and they said the same. They said if anyone should be home , it's him. And that caught my ear. I think it takes a lot to earn that respect , not just from the community , but from people you're incarcerated with. Spoke a lot. And yeah , he and his mother were willing to talk with me. And here's the first thing Marquel said to me when we had our video visit.
S5: Even though I have a life without the possibility plus 206 year sentence , I know that the good Lord has a plan for me in the near future.
S2: I want people who hear that to just imagine. So he's been incarcerated since his early 20s , and he was incarcerated before that as well. How hard it would be to come to a mindset like that within the prison system. That was just really remarkable to me. And so I was interested in how did he come to a positive mindset while being Incarcerated for most of his life.
S3: Can you tell us more about the crime that Markwell was convicted of , and why he felt like there was racial bias in his trial ? Yeah.
S2: So Marquel was convicted of killing a 19 year old clerk during a convenience store robbery. He denies that charge , but he believes that there was racial bias in his trial because he says that attorneys during his trial kept talking about ghetto gang hits. And he says his case wasn't a gang case , and he wasn't sure why. They were talking about gangs. And he and he really didn't understand why people were talking about the ghetto in the courtroom and in front of a jury. And he says the judge kept calling him and his co-defendant , dudes. And he said he knew that this was racist. These are his words. But he he didn't know case law or how to incorporate that into his arguments. He just knew that it didn't feel right. It felt racist.
S3:
S2: And it was important to me in the framing of the story that , of course , that's that's a tremendous tragedy. But for the sake of the racial disparities and sentencing , we're talking about , whether or not he's innocent or guilty is irrelevant to this disparity , because there were so many white men convicted of being the actual killers in their cases who were eligible for parole. And it was important to me that to not get hung up on the details of his case , or his innocence or guilt , to not get caught up in trying to weigh that out , but really to say what is fair to people with different skin colors going into the justice system.
S3: One district attorney in San Diego County are really the tip of the iceberg. And with these changes to California laws allowing for resentencing , advocates petitioning for that resentencing have to focus on similarly situated cases. In other words , apples to apples and apples to apples. Comparison of two crimes. In order to prove that there was racial bias. Can you talk about how high that threshold is ? What's the burden of proof ? Right.
S2: So this was one penal code in one county during one time frame under one district attorney for one age range. Black people are disproportionately arrested , convicted for every charge , at every step at in every county in California. Imagine how much work would have to be done. It would be endless. We'd be here till the end to the end of time. And I think it raises this question. Do we require this to be proven , or do we accept that overwhelming evidence and lived experience and history points to pervasive racial bias throughout the justice system in this country. And do we make some system wide changes ? Um , Alaska is the only state without life , without parole sentences. Other states have tried and failed to pass similar legislation. Um , it's more common now to ban life without parole for juveniles. And there's the current Senate bill in California that is looking at extending that to people through 25 because brains haven't fully developed yet. So extending what we think of as youth up through age 25 and letting anyone whose crime was committed up through age 25 to they automatically get to go before the parole board after 25 years served. And I'll say it's really important when we talk about parole eligibility , having the chance of parole , having the chance to go before the parole board. That's all it is. It's not saying everyone gets to get released. Everyone gets to go home. All we're talking about here is who gets to go before a board of people to make their case that they've been rehabilitated , and that it's safe for them to reenter society. People like Marco and the other ten black defendants in these robbery murder cases , they don't even get the opportunity to talk to a parole board and try to show that they're safe.
S3: I've been speaking with KPBS racial justice and social equity reporter Katie Hi , Katie. Thank you so much for sharing your reporting on this.
S2: Thank you. Andrew.
S1: Coming up on KPBS roundtable , we hear about proposed job cuts at the Department of Veterans Affairs and how local veterans are reacting. That's next on roundtable. Welcome back to roundtable. I'm Andrew Bracken. Earlier this month , the Trump administration announced plans to fire more than 70,000 workers at the Department of Veterans Affairs. The VA oversees health care and disability benefit programs for people who served in the military. Veterans across the country are pushing back now against those planned staffing cuts. KPBS military and veteran affairs reporter Andrew Dyer joins me now to talk more about the cuts. Andrew , welcome back to roundtable.
S6: Hey , thanks for having me.
S1: So let's start with what's happening at the VA. Tell us more about the plans they announced earlier this month.
S6: Well , um , they basically want to downsize the VA. Uh , similar to other agencies across the government. This is all part of , you know , President Donald Trump and Elon Musk's grand plan to shrink the size of government. Um , VA is one of the largest , uh , parts of that government. And , um , it goes to follow that they're going to want to shrink. That. The way they're going to do it is by cutting staffing. Uh , the VA secretary said , you know , 70,000. I've seen other reports of more than 80,000. Uh , either way , it's it's a significant chunk of the VA staff.
S1: So stepping back a little bit now , you've covered the VA now for several years.
S6: Um , I want to make sure to , to say that , um , but many are eligible for it. And whether you choose to use it or not. Uh , the VA is always there and they're going to see you. Right. So veterans who don't have other options. Um , and then also , you know , for like mental health care , you know , a lot of veterans want to get that care at the VA because you're going to get , you know , specialized , uh , providers there. Uh , they have , you know , the PTSD clinic , for example , and , um.
S1: Kind of cater to the needs of veterans , specifically.
S6: Even group therapy and stuff , where you're going to be around other veterans. So it's a very , uh , depending on how you use the VA. Um , it's a very big part of your , your post military life , whether you're getting health care from the VA. Um , if you are receiving disability compensation. Um , that can be a significant piece of your income. So it's a big part of your your life post military.
S1: And the relationship. Again , you know , between the VA and veterans , there was a slight shift that came about in 2021 with the passage of the Pact act. Can you tell us more about that and how that's impacted that relationship ? Sure.
S6: So all of these these cuts are happening. Um , it's important to understand the context of the Pact act. In 2022 , President Joe Biden signed the Pact act. It was the largest expansion of veteran benefits in a generation. Is what it was sold as. What the Pact act did was it opened up VA benefits and health care to a couple million more veterans. Um , it took all of these injuries and ailments that are tied to toxic exposure. B that burn pits Agent Orange. It took all of these ailments. And the VA said , listen , we're not going to make you come in with a paper trail of receipts showing how Agent Orange impacted your health. We are going to presume we are going to err on the side of of it did. And , um , you know , this was huge for a lot of veterans who have been dealing with these issues for many years in some cases. Um , especially you look at like burn pits in Iraq and Afghanistan. There's been a lot of injuries associated with those burn pits. So , uh , this was this was huge. And in order to , you know , accommodate this influx of veterans coming into the system , the VA hired people. They hired about 70 or 80,000 people to accommodate this influx of new , uh , beneficiaries. So , um , for the VA to say that they want to roll back their staffing to 2019 levels , which is what has been said. Um , those veterans aren't going anywhere. They're not kicking them off the VA. You still have to take care of these extra a couple million veterans that came into the system. But now you're going to do it with , you know , 70 , 80,000 fewer staffers. And I struggle to make sense of of that.
S1:
S6: I would say , uh , in the VA , if you , you know , VA workers are members of , you know , they're in our communities. They're they're talking a lot of them have gone to Reddit to to talk through some of this stuff. And I've spoken with people at the VA. Um , and there is guidance. You know , they they've said that they're not going to eliminate providers , um , you know , and that veterans care is going to get better because of this. I think it's safe to say there's a lot of skepticism among veterans and people who work at the VA , many of whom are veterans themselves. Uh , that that that's the case. But the official line is that they're not going to eliminate providers. We're talking about other roles within VA. It's not entirely clear what they are , though.
S1: And you mentioned there that a lot of VA workers might be veterans themselves.
S6: And for somebody who is leaving the military , you know , government work is very appealing Healing because , you know , other than the military. And until the Trump 2.0 administration , federal jobs were looked at as some of the safest , most secure jobs you can get. You know , there's a trade off. You know , the government doesn't pay as well as the private sector , but you have this job security. You have the service element to to government work , right where park rangers feel like they are , you know , serving , you know , nature. And they're helping people discover all the joys of these national parks. And , and for VA workers , you know , they are helping veterans. Uh , you know , a clinician can make more money working in a private hospital. Why do they go to work at the VA ? And when you talk to them , it's because they they want to help veterans. They like working with veterans. And so there's this trade off. And that's why these government cuts have been such a rug pull for people. Because , you know , you think that you're in a safe , stable job that you know , isn't subject to rounds of layoffs like in the private sector. And then all of a sudden , here we are staring down the barrel of some significant layoffs.
S1: And so you attended a protest earlier this month.
S6: I mean , I will say that , you know , it should come as no surprise that if you go to a protest against cuts to the VA , you're going to run into a lot of veterans that are mad about those cuts. Um , no veteran that's happy about it is probably going to go to the protest. So there may be a skewed sample here. But yeah , you know , people aren't happy. There's been a long history in in our politics where politicians , there's certain groups that they really , uh , they really try to cater to. And this is a bipartisan thing where everybody wants to honor veterans and respect veterans , and they want to have veterans standing behind the candidate on the stage. And they're all always talking about how they're going to honor veterans and protect veterans benefits and all of this lip service. And that's the way that the thing , the word that kept coming up when I talk to veterans is betrayal. Uh , veterans feel betrayed by the government and by the country , um , that these cuts and it hasn't happened yet and they haven't said it's going to happen , but the feeling is that you cannot cut this number of staff from the VA without it impacting the care that veterans receive , and they're not happy about it. Um , nobody was asking for these cuts , which is another kind of strange element to it is , um , you know , I talked to representative Mike Levin up in Oceanside , and he made this point. Nobody will tell him what problem this is solving. Nobody can articulate. Why do we need to cut this stuff anyway ? The only thing that I've heard is they point to the national debt , which has existed for for decades.
S1: Earlier you mentioned , you know , some of the specific health care needs that veterans often face that the VA supplies. And I think you specifically mentioned , you know , mental health is one example. And at that protest you attended , you did speak with one Navy veteran , Cliff DeWolf , and he kind of tied into , you know , that mental health care piece. Let's let's listen to a clip from him.
S7: I've seen people die. I have I've known people who have committed suicide. I suffered from PTSD. And the counselor that I had , that I had , she's no longer available to me.
S1: So is that pretty common with the fears that you're hearing from veterans and the possible impacts ? I mean , that's a direct impact on his mental health care , right ? Right.
S6: And Mr. DeWolf , that's the first veteran that I'd heard from who actually had something material already impact them ? Uh , because , you know , the VA fired about 1500 of these , uh , probationary employees , and that's VA wide. So I don't know how many VA San Diego were affected. Uh , VA San Diego will not tell me how many were impacted. Now , those cuts have been , uh , and there's been an injunction from a federal judge. So the VA is supposed to be hiring those people back ? I don't know specifically , uh , Mr. De Wolf's situation with his provider , but , um , that is the fear is that you're going to lose your provider or or more. Uh , I think the more immediate , uh , impact is , uh , just wait times and wait times of the VA. This has been a problem they've been trying to solve for many , many years. Um , and there are still wait times. You know , I am a VA patient myself. And if I want to see a primary care provider. I want to see a mental health provider. A VA clinician. I know that I'm going to be waiting a while to see that person. And a lot of veterans don't mind waiting. I interviewed the head of the San Diego VA last year , and this is something he told me is that , you know , our veterans , they like the care they receive from the VA and they're willing to wait to see a specific VA provider. Um , and this is with the staffing as it is right now , you are still waiting. So cutting , uh , cutting staff , I don't see how that. I don't I can't say that it's definitely going to make wait times longer. I don't see how it improves them.
S1: Earlier you mentioned Congressman Mike Levin as someone you spoke to about this. Can you talk about what Congress's role here is because some of this is dependent on Congress , right. It can't just be , you know , done with the president's pen altogether. Right.
S6: Well , that's the big that's the big question that's being litigated in the courts right now. almost all of these executive actions are from Donald Trump. These layoffs and these attempts to stop funding , they've all been challenged in court. There are several injunctions out there right now , and the Trump administration is fighting to make it happen. So this is that big kind of fundamental question about how our government should work is that Congress , with the power of the purse , they pass legislation. You know , the president has has their role as the chief executive. And where does that line of power and right , where does Congress's oversight of the executive start , and where is the executive ? You know , it's supposed to be this is what we were taught in school. It's supposed to be a system of checks and balances. Right ? But right now , that system is is what's being challenged. And Levin's complaint was that because Democrats are in the minority , in the House and in the Senate , is that they are counting on Republicans to be that check on the president. And his point was that they don't seem willing to do that right now.
S1: I'm curious what you think.
S6: They're cutting making cuts at the VA. And right now that may be true , but what they are not cutting is the veterans benefits , right. So that's in written into law. Congress passed these laws. If you are receiving VA disability compensation , there is no talk right now about cutting that compensation. So you know your benefits are still there. They're not cutting benefits. Fits. This is only about staffing right now. The president can't just cut your benefits. It takes an act of Congress. What can the president control ? Well , he says that he can control the hiring and firing in the agency. And that's that's where they're going. So , um , when we talk about cuts to the VA , I want to make sure folks understand that we're not talking about cutting your your your benefits.
S1: Yeah , yeah. No , that's an important point. And we'll continue following this. Obviously this is something as you mentioned , this doesn't just impact veterans and Veterans Fair. This is happening across other federal agencies as well. I've been speaking with Andrew Dyer , KPBS military and veteran affairs reporter. Andrew , thanks so much. Hey.
S6: Hey.
S8: Thank you.
S1: After the break , it's time for the weekly roundup of other stories we've been following. You're listening to KPBS roundtable. You're listening to KPBS roundtable. I'm Andrew Bracken. It's time now to catch up on some other stories from the week. And here to help me do that is KPBS producer Ashley Rush. Hey , Ashley.
S9: Hi , Andrew.
S1: So your first story involves some breaking news. Tell us about. That.
S9: That. Yeah. So this one's from our border reporter , Gustavo Solis. It broke yesterday in El Cajon when Ice agents raided a paint business around 1:15 p.m.. They alleged that the business it's called San Diego Powder and Protective Coatings knowingly hired people without legal status.
S1: And Gustavo has been following this beat quite closely since the new administration took hold. And I think a lot of his coverage in the previous couple months was on sort of the , the , the climate of fear around these raids from happening. But here's one. And he got on the scene pretty quickly. Right.
S9: Yeah , yeah. And workers told Gustavo that dozens of agents handcuffed more than 50 employees and forced them to stand outside in the sun while they verified everyone's immigration status. It was a really emotional scene. Friends and family of detained workers were there , arriving , visibly shaking and crying. One of them was Blanca Carona. Her husband was detained. And here's what she told Gustavo.
S10: I'm freaking out from the inside. But I still have to say , father , I have four kids.
S9: Agents told Gustavo they made around 20 arrests. And Gustavo is going to have plenty. More on the story later this afternoon during our All Things Considered broadcast on KPBS. But you can also find the latest as it develops at KPBS.
S1: So you know , an evolving story there. Definitely more to watch. And that's not Gustavo's only story from this week. I wanted to bring up another story. He did. And this involved a rule change in money transfers. You know , it's particularly impactful here in our region , but basically there's some big changes coming to the amount of money you can transfer at certain parts along the US-Mexico border. And that obviously impacts a lot of communities here in San Diego County. But basically , this is an effort from the Trump administration to combat money laundering involving Mexican cartels , is what they say. But they're lowering the amount of of money transfers that you can do without having to report it from $10,000 down to $200. So a really big change in the limits there. And this again impacts , you know , parts of Texas obviously , but a lot of communities here in San Diego like San Isidro and Chula Vista. Um Gustavo mentions also Claremont Mira mesa. So these rules , they go into effect next month and I think they're set to be in place for six months. But there's a lot of concern. You know , a lot of questions come up. Um , and I think it's interesting just that the way how integrated the economies of San Diego and Tijuana and our region are , that this is going to kind of impact , like a lot of people in certain ways that we may not even think about. Okay , so for this last story , I wanted to bring in our colleague , technical producer Brandon Truffaut. Brandon , as you know , there was some sad news related to the Padres. I mean , the Padres had a great opening game yesterday at Petco Park. They came from behind and they won. But earlier in the week , the end of last week , actually , news came that San Diego Union-Tribune sports columnist , a long time sports columnist here in San Diego , Bryce Miller , passed away. And on last week's roundtable , we actually talked about the Padres. One of our guests for that show was Ryan Finley , who worked with Bryce Miller. And he he wrote a really nice remembrance of Bryce. And I just wanted to bring you in , Brandon. I mean , one thing that I appreciated about Bryce's work , he was on roundtable. He had been on Midday Edition. We spoke with him. He was always a really kind , generous person. But one thing , as a sports columnist , I always think oftentimes a sports columnist has to be kind of like biting and kind of critical and tough and stuff like that. And I always one thing I appreciate about it is journalism was just often how there was heart to it in these sports stories. And I kind of just wanted to get your thoughts on it. Yeah.
S11: Yeah. I mean , Bryce was a super nice guy. He had been in here , I think , a couple times since I've been hired here. And , you know , he had one story. Someone posted a story that he wrote , I believe it was Spring training 2023. There's actually a pitcher on the Mariners named Bryce Miller. Also same same spelling , same everything. So while Bryce was out in Peoria , where the Padres and the Mariners both hold their spring trainings , they met up with each other and Bryce Miller , the UT the sports columnist , wrote a piece basically where he met Bryce Miller , the starting pitcher who throws 100 miles an hour for the Seattle Mariners. And it was just like a nice , lighthearted article about , like , what's it like being named Bryce Miller ? You know ? Do you have any other favorite Bryce Millers ? You know , do you have any struggles being named Bryce Miller ? Just a really goofy , lighthearted piece. And , um , he was always super kind and very nice. And the Padres , actually , yesterday , uh , they left a spot in the press box open for him with some flowers and , uh , a nice little homage to our to our good friend.
S1: And before the season started on Sunday , when , when news kind of hit , Padres manager Mike Schultz had some words to say about Brice.
S7: Take a minute to remember Bryce. You know.
S12: It's , uh , clearly tragic and , you know , spent a lot of time dedicated his life to journalism. And , you know , it's a sad day for for Bryce and his family. So I think it's important we we , uh , we remember him this morning.
S1: Yeah , Brandon , I agree. Um , I remember some of his columns during the , uh , San Diego State men's basketball run in 2023 , where they made it to the championship game. A lot of great work and a really just kind hearted person. Bryce Miller passed away last weekend at the age of 56. Well , I've been joined by KPBS producer Ashley Rush and Brandon Tufa. Thanks both for being here.
S11: Thank you. Andrew.
S9: Thanks , Andrew.
S1: That'll do it for KPBS roundtable this week. Thanks so much for listening. You can listen to the show anytime as a podcast. Roundtable airs on KPBS FM , noon Fridays and again Sundays at 6 a.m.. If you have any thoughts on today's show , you can email us at roundtable at KPBS or leave us a message at (619) 452-0228. Roundtable's technical producer This week was branded. The show was produced by Ashley Rush. Brooke Ruth is roundtable senior producer. Supervising audio producer is Quinn Owen. I'm Andrew Bracken. Thanks again for listening and have a great weekend.
