A former San Diego police detective sues the city
Good Morning, I’m Debbie Cruz. It’s Tuesday, January 7th.
A former San Diego police detective is suing the city
More on why next. But first, let’s do the headlines.
Peter Seidler’s widow is suing two of her brothers in law to get control of the Padres.
Sheel Seidler filed the suit in Texas on Monday.
She accuses the brothers, Matthew and Robert, of “fiduciary breaches of trust” and “fraud” in their handling of Peter Seidler’s estate. That entity controls the Padres.
The Padres announced last month that another brother, John Seidler, would control the team. Major League Baseball owners have not yet approved that move.
Sheel Seidler claims in the suit that her husband wanted her to control the team.
The EPA said they will not be granting a superfund designation in response to the San Diego-Tijuana sewage crisis.
San Diego County Supervisor Terra Lawson-Remer and other local leaders requested the designation in October.
The agency said sediment samples collected in 20-18 and 20-19 showed concentrations of contamination exceeding screening levels, but not exceeding the EPA’s threshold for human health concerns.
They cited that as a reason for not approving a Preliminary Assessment.
Lawson-Remer told Midday Edition yesterday that she and other advocates are figuring out what they can do to push back. She said she’d like them to take more recent samples.
“I'd like the EPA to come out here and take soil samples and sample the water and sample the groundwater, so they can tell us what the deal is.”
The EPA also denied the request because of several federally funded projects currently underway to address the pollution.
Moderate to strong Santa Ana winds are expected over the next few days.
That and low humidity has led to a fire watch advisory for the county’s mountains and valleys.
It also caused SDG&E to take action.
More than 64-thousand customers have been notified that they could be without electricity as part of a public safety power shutoff.
SDG&E says if the shutoff takes place it could be between 4 pm today (Tuesday) and Friday at 4 pm.
From KPBS, you’re listening to San Diego News Now. Stay with me for more of the local news you need.
A former San Diego police detective is suing the city. She says the police department covered up domestic violence by her husband – a sergeant. Reporter Katie Hyson looked into her claims.
Allyson Ford worked for the San Diego Police Department for 17 years. In a lawsuit announced Monday, she calls it a boys club, where women are punished for speaking out. “The San Diego Police Department's culture of retaliation and cover-ups must end.” SDPD, the City Attorney’s Office and her ex-husband declined to respond to the allegations. The suit details widespread sexual harassment. And pressure not to report. It claims that culture enabled her then-husband, Sergeant Mitchell Ford, to abuse her. When she told him she wanted a divorce, it alleges he physically assaulted and threatened her. Allyson Ford says he told her she would lose her job. “At first, I didn't believe him because I thought that the department that I loved and that I had worked so hard for would protect me. But they did not.” The lawsuit claims when she reported the assault, SDPD didn’t investigate properly. Her husband was placed on paid leave and then cleared of wrongdoing. And that SDPD refused to enforce her restraining order. Allyson Ford resigned last year. She says Mitchell Ford remains with SDPD, armed. Katie Hyson, KPBS News
Encinitas now has a new mayor and two new council members … signaling a shift in priorities for the seaside city.
North county reporter Alexander Nguyen sat down with Mayor Bruce Ehlers to discuss his vision for Encinitas.
When Bruce Ehlers narrowly defeated incumbent Tony Kranz this fall … it was seen as a rejection of how the city was run. Ehlers ran on a platform of more local control and pushback on state housing mandates. “The goal is to actually maintain our small beach town ambiance.” He says the city … like many coastal cities in the region … has an affordability issue. But he doesn’t think state housing mandates are the answer. Encinitas is already in compliance with the state for affordable housing … but some residents are pushing for more. They want the Encinitas to turn the city-owned lot … L-7 or Quail Gardens into affordable housing. Ehlers is against this. He agrees with other residents that it should be turned into a park and says there are a number of new homes being built around that area. “There's going to be 1045 units with roughly 3000 people moving in there over the next several years. It was the absolute place where we need a park.” He also wants to tackle the issue of homelessness … saying it’s a regional issue that the county needs to step up on … especially by implementing CARE Court to get drug users off the streets and into treatment centers. Alexander Nguyen, KPBS news.
Pope Francis has named San Diego Bishop Robert McElroy as the next archbishop of Washington, D.C. Reporter Katie Anastas says McElroy has been a vocal critic of Donald Trump’s policies.
McElroy celebrated the overturning of Roe v. Wade in 2022, calling it a “great victory” for the pro-life movement. But he’s been a vocal opponent to other Trump administration policies, including calls for mass deportation. Mary Doak researches religion and politics at the University of San Diego. She says McElroy will challenge Catholics to focus not just on abortion “…but also for the environment, for migrants, for refugees, for poor, for all of the various marginalized peoples, to recognize their human dignity. He will challenge Catholics nationwide. But he'll also, I think, in doing that, perhaps challenge the conscience of the nation a bit.” A spokesperson for the Catholic Diocese of San Diego says priests will elect someone to lead the diocese until Pope Francis appoints a new bishop. Katie Anastas, KPBS News.
Furnishing a home can be overwhelming and expensive, especially for someone transitioning out of homelessness.
Reporter Melissa Mae tells us about a local nonprofit that’s helping people go from simply having a roof over their heads to having a home.
“Welcome home!!! Oh my God! What?! This does not look like our house?! This is Beautiful.” That’s Rita Chavez and her son Dominick seeing their fully furnished home in Chula Vista for the first time! Not long before this, they were living at the South County Lighthouse in National City. It’s an emergency shelter run by the San Diego Rescue Mission. “I was going through a lot. I was having problems with certain people and I had some addiction problems as well, and it closed roads for me. So I needed a new start.” Scott Miner was Rita’s advocate at the shelter. “Rita was the person that was able to grind and work her way and she just was hungry. She refused to go back to the streets and for her son, Dominick. And so she worked very hard. She put in the work.” The work included completing legal paperwork, doing chores and staying sober. And because Rita did her part, Miner was able to find them an apartment...making them the first official graduates from the South County Lighthouse! “They pushed us like to say, everything's going to be okay. You are going to get a home.” But that home was an empty apartment, with nothing more than blankets and pillows on the floor. That’s where Humble Design San Diego comes in. “It's one thing to have shelter, to have a space, but it's another thing to make it a home. And a step further, a home that is catered to the individual or individuals that are inside.” Courtney Brown is a designer for Humble. The nonprofit designs and fully furnishes home interiors for people transitioning out of homelessness. “There's a dignity in having a home and not having to worry about having a bed to sleep in or not being able to have pots and pans to cook with. Everybody deserves that.” Humble has a 15,000 square foot warehouse in Logan Heights full of donated furniture and housewares. “My favorite thing about Humble is all the hands and people that go into it. From somebody who's just making a donation and how that donation comes to our warehouse. It's touched by volunteers, it's pulled by volunteers and it ends up coming to a space to better somebody's life.” Bettering Rita’s life started with an initial client meeting. This is where Courtney and her team got to know Rita… what motivates her… and what a home means to her. “With relatives, everybody, where you guys can unite in one place and one area to have a lot of good times, to have a lot of good times together.” This is the first time that she has a say in the design of her space. “I want to altar my room, where I can put Jesus’ face and the Archangels, like crystals, quartz, like tourmaline. I like stuff like that. It relaxes me.” Throughout the meeting, Rita told the designers her son had one request…a gaming console. Then it was time for the designers to choose what would fill that empty apartment. “I come back to the space and I think about Rita as a person and what she would want and just kind of the energy she brings. And I try to find items that match that.” Three days later, the Chavezes were sent out of the apartment for a few hours… while Team Humble came in to transform it… with some help from the San Diego Padres Foundation. Then Rita and Dominick came home for the big reveal…what Humble calls the client’s Day of Joy. “I like this! I like everything!” Remember the altar Rita requested…“This is perfect. This is what I want. This is more perfect than I thought.” And remember the one thing Dominick wanted: A game console? He got it, thanks to the Padres Foundation. “I wasn’t planning to cry, but I’m gunna cry.” Rita says she’s going to treat her home with care and make visitors feel as welcome as she felt during her Day of Joy. “It was overwhelming because nobody ever did this for us. This is the first time anybody ever has did anything like that for us.” To date, Team Humble has furnished 450 San Diego homes. “And I feel safe. I feel like nobody could come in here and do anything. Just I don't know, it just makes it home. That's the perfect word. That's the key word. Home.” Melissa Mae KPBS News.
Funeral services for former President Jimmy Carter are happening today and Thursday.
NPR will provide special coverage starting at 11:30 today. Listen or watch at KPBS dot org.
That’s it for the podcast today. I’m Debbie Cruz. Thanks for listening and have a great Tuesday.
