Female elected officials targeted

Good Morning, I’m Erik Anderson, in for Debbie Cruz….it’s Monday, July 3rd.

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Holding office is becoming more dangerous, especially for women. More on that next. But first... let’s do the headlines….

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Three UC-SD student workers are free on bail, after being arrested last week on felony charges…accused by university officials of conspiracy and vandalism.

The student employees are members of the U-A-W 28-65, and participated in recent protests against the university’s administration…which they say have refused to implement their new contracts.

They were arrested at their homes, Thursday, on charges of felony conspiracy and vandalism outside the Scripps Institution of Oceanography several weeks ago.

Jessica Ng was held for more than 12 hours at the Las Colinas detention facility.

“What I’m feeling right now is strong pride for my fellow union members..as we continue to fight so hard for what we got ..and as the UC tries to dodge its responsibilities." 

In a written statement, UC-SD says the students did 12-thousand dollars worth of damage to the Scripps facility... and that 'UC San Diego does not tolerate vandalism or other damage to university property.

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The electric shuttle program is back in the downtown area of Oceanside starting today.

The “G-O-side neighborhood electric vehicle” can transport five passengers at a time.

It will run Monday through Wednesday from Noon to 10 p-m, and Thursday through Sunday from 10 a-m to 10 p-m.

You can catch the shuttle by downloading the “Ride Circuit” app and choosing “Oceanside” as your location.

It costs 3-dollars per rider, with a cap of 6-dollars for groups of more than two riders.

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C-H-P officers are on the lookout for drivers under the influence during the 4th of July holiday.

They made nearly one-thousand D-U-I arrests in the state during the Independence Day holiday weekend last year.

The annual “maximum enforcement period” will run through 11-59 p-m tomorrow.

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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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Holding office in San Diego County is becoming increasingly dangerous, especially for women.

Reporter Amita Sharma says a local study is providing concrete evidence.

Local academics recently reviewed the Twitter accounts of San Diego County elected officials – mayors, councilmembers, supervisors and school board members, dating back to 2018. Researchers found women are three times more likely than their male counterparts to be threatened over social media. Rachel Locke is the director of the Violence, Inequality and Power Lab at USD, which conducted the poll.  “....Women tended to receive threats or harassment that were much more personalized in nature, sexualized in nature that involved family members.” The threats were sparked by topics like covid restrictions, gun rights and race. The next phase of the survey is to brainstorm solutions to reducing threats. Amita Sharma, KPBS News.

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The citizens' law enforcement review board – known as Clerb – is investigating the deaths of two more San Diego County jail inmates last week.

So far eight inmates have died this year.

The California legislature is considering a bill to try to reduce jail deaths.

Clerb executive officer Paul Parker says he supports SB-219 because it would add more transparency and oversight – and remove the sheriff’s department from running the system.

“Whether that's to be an office of Inspector general at the county level, whether that's to be some kind of county support or at least have some control other than financial. I think that that would make sense.”

The bill will get a hearing in Sacramento next month.

Governor Gavin Newsom vetoed a previous version of it last year.

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A budget deal between the governor and the state legislature will expand Medi-cal reimbursement rates starting next year.

Medi-cal is the state’s health care program for low-income Californians.

Advocates say this will give recipients more options for care.

Health reporter Matt Hoffman has more.

State funding for medi-cal will increase by 2.7 billion dollars.. it will largely go to raising  reimbursement rates for physicians and hospitals. groups like the california medical association say this is a big deal because medical hasn’t historically covered actual costs of care.. toluwalase ajayi is a pediatrician and former president of the san diego medical society. so being able to have coverage that actually allows access, that is the key… i wholly anticipate that this is going to really open up access in a huge way the california medical association says starting in january  the increases will bring provider reimbursement rates to 87 and a half percent of medicare rates.. right now that reimbursement rate could be as low as 60% for some procedures. the association says increases will start in primary and maternity care along with some mental health services, before expanding to specialty care. mh kpbs news.

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Workers at a Starbucks in Encinitas went on strike Friday, to protest the company's treatment of unionized stores.

Last month, the Starbucks off Leucadia and I-5 became the first in the county to see its employees unionize.

They say the company has failed to bargain in good faith over things like wages and working conditions.

Employee Nelle Kaufman says customers have been supportive.

"It's a scary thing to put yourself out there and come together and say, you know, we're not going to let management treat us this way. and that's scary. and so to be received so well by our community is validating and refreshing."

Starbuck has denied allegations of unfair labor practices, but says it does prefer a "direct relationship" with its employees.

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And a Starbucks store in Hillcrest is the second in the county to petition to unionize with Starbucks workers united.

Metro reporter Andrew Bowen spoke with employees there about what they want to change.

ab: emma bradshaw has worked for starbucks for three years. she likes her job and her customers… but things started to go sour at the store on university avenue and richmond street about 8 months ago. an electrical fire forced the store to close — and the generators now powering the store have been unreliable. eb: we had a joke at the store that tuesdays — every single tuesday we would lose power. i think it was like multiple weeks in a row that we would have to close. ab: those closures have meant less hours. bradshaw has struggled to pay rent and came close to losing her health care. and she's been forced to troubleshoot the broken generators herself — even when it's raining. eb: i know that if i had more representation, i would have the power to say no, i need hazard pay. i need a different solution. (2:23) it's just been kind of a frustrating last year, and i think that's what mostly pushed me towards joining the union. ab:  starbucks recently announced it was closing a different store a half-mile away — claiming it was due to incidents involving the homeless community. bradshaw says the homeless who visit her store are kind and respectful, and usually just want a cup of water. andrew bowen, kpbs news.

Starbucks has declined to recognize any of its unions voluntarily.

That means the Hillcrest store will likely have to hold an election supervised by the National Labor Relations board.

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Coming up.... Not sure what you’re doing for the 4th of July yet? We have details on some of the firework shows happening across town. We’ll have that and more, just after the break.

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The San Diego County Fair comes to a close tomorrow.

Fair officials say attendance is on pace with last year.

As North County reporter Alexander Nguyen tells us, if you want celebrate July 4th at the fair… you should plan ahead.

On-site parking may be hard to find.

The fourth of july is typically one of the busiest days at the fair. and this year, fair officials say they expect a sell-out crowd. tristan hallman … spokesperson for the fair … says on-site parking sold out in recent days. “we don't have as much parking as we used to back in the old days. we restored some of that to wetlands habitat. we also see people here spending more time at the fair, so you don't have that same turnover.” he also recommends people take public transit to get to the fair … like the fair tripper from mts and nctd. “it's $20 per person, but that is also the price of the cost of admission is included. so basically it's paying for itself. an/kpbs

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And speaking of the 4th of July… we’ve got you covered with details on some of the firework shows happening in the county tonight and tomorrow.

Here’s SDNN host Debbie Cruz getting all the details from web producer Brenden Tuccinardi.

When I think of fireworks, I imagine colorful bursting lights in the sky, and loud booms… but this year, there will be a non-traditional fireworks show in Ocean Beach. Can you tell me about it.

The Big Bay Boom is the absolute biggest show in the county every year. What do we need to know before heading over to the event? 

YES, I was there for that one, but  I’m really looking forward to this year’s. 

Let’s turn our focus to  the South Bay. Are there any fireworks shows happening there?

How about for people  celebrating up north?

For people who like to avoid the crowds and traffic on the 4th of July, are there any pre-holiday fireworks  tonight?  

How are you planning to celebrate?

That’s awesome…. Well I hope you  and our listeners have a safe and fun 4th of July! 

I’ve been speaking to KPBS web producer, Brenden Tuccinardi.

Brenden, thank you for joining me on the San Diego News Now podcast.

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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. I’m Erik Anderson. Our team will be off for the 4th of July holiday, and the podcast will be back on Thursday. Thanks for listening, have a great Monday and a safe and fun 4th of July.