Uncategorized

The Morgan Hill City Council settled a California Voting Rights Act claim from an Oakland law firm for $25,000, according to the city attorney.The settlement, approved on a narrow 3-2 council majority, ends the legal saga that forced the council to change to a district-based local election system starting in November 2018.The council met in closed session Oct. 18 to discuss the claim filed by law firm Goldstein, Borgen, Dardarian & Ho. The firm, which sparked the city’s change from at-large to district elections in May with a demand letter to the council, initially filed a claim for $30,000, the maximum allowed for damages under applicable election laws.However, the council voted to negotiate a $25,000 settlement with the Oakland firm, Morgan Hill City Attorney Donald Larkin said. That settlement was negotiated and approved by both parties Nov. 2.The settlement includes a “full release from (further) claims under the Voting Rights Act,” Larkin said at the Nov. 15 council meeting.  Mayor Pro Tem Larry Carr and City Councilmember Rich Constantine voted against the settlement in the Oct. 18 closed session.The council reluctantly approved the switch to district-based elections after receiving the May 1 demand letter from the Goldstein firm, which represented Morgan Hill residents Armando Benavides, Sally Casas and Brenda Cayme—all of whom are Latino. The firm claimed that the city’s at-large system, which has been in place since Morgan Hill was founded in 1906, violates the CVRA because it limits the influence of minority groups.Benavides and Cayme have previously run for elected office in Morgan Hill, but have not won an election.After the council approved the change in election systems this summer, they spent several months working with a professional demographer and community members in drawing four geographical districts within the city limits, equal in population and each one represented by a single councilmember.Throughout the process, councilmembers complained that the new district-based system is unlikely to produce its intended effect of giving more voice to minority groups living in Morgan Hill. Instead, the incumbents think the system will severely limit the pool of qualified candidates for council.But the council adopted the change out of fear that fighting the demand letter could result in substantially higher legal costs. Larkin noted that no city has ever successfully challenged a CVRA claim. With the council agreeing to change to a district-based system, the law caps any damages owed to a plaintiff at $30,000.Carr and Constantine said they didn’t think the Goldstein firm deserved even the $25,000 that the majority of the council agreed to settle for.“They weren’t really showing what they spent the money on, or their billable hours,” Constantine said. “It was more out of principle than anything else (but) if we took them to court it would have cost more.”He added “this is what happens in cities throughout California” when challenged under the CVRA.Constantine said even the four districts approved in September by the council under the new election system are unlikely to result in better representation for minority groups such as Hispanic voters—which was the stated intent of the residents represented by the Goldstein firm.“There is really no advantage (to district elections) from what I see, other than it’s going to be cheaper for everyone to run,” Constantine said. He added, “Sometimes the remedy doesn’t work in every situation.”Carr added the demand letter and claim by the Goldstein firm and its clients amounted to a “frivolous lawsuit” that was “forced” upon the city. He also doesn’t think the expenses claimed by the firm are justified.“I was hoping that we could see from (the Goldstein firm) some of their data (and) analysis they did that made them come to the conclusion that underrepresented people in Morgan Hill are disenfranchised when to comes to voting, and they did not want to produce any of that kind of information,” Carr said. “So I just think...they didn't earn the amount that they were asking for.”The by-district system will start with the November 2018 election, when the seats occupied by Constantine and Councilwoman Caitlin Jachimowicz will be on the ballot. The seats occupied by Carr and Councilmember Rene Spring will next appear on the November 2020 city election ballot.The mayor will continue to be elected at large, every two years, under the district-based system.

With the approach of winter harkening memories of devastating floods downstream from Anderson Reservoir’s northeast Morgan Hill spillway, officials have assured locals that precautions are underway to minimize the risks that became reality earlier this year.

The Gilroy Police Department last week found a credit card scanning device planted at the Valero gas station on First Street. And just days later, Gilroy police and a county computer investigating team found two additional skimmers on gas pumps at the Chevron Gas Station, located at 7999 Westwood Drive in Gilroy.Police from Gilroy as well as Morgan Hill are working to get the word out about the skimmers, and are offering advice on how to avoid being an unsuspecting victim.Chevron and Valero gas stations are cooperating with investigators as they search for the approximate dates these skimmers were installed, according to police. At this time, it appears the skimmers have been on the pumps for no less than two weeks.The skimmers have allowed thieves to go into people's bank accounts and steal money.Police are reminding people who have used their debit or credit card at either Valero Gas, 1190 First St. or Chevron Gas, 7999 Westwood Drive—both in Gilroy—to monitor their bank statements and card usage for unauthorized withdrawals or purchases.Anyone who finds fraudulent charges on their account can contact the Gilroy Police Department at (408) 846-0350, or the Morgan Hill Police Department at (408) 779-2101. Officers note that due to the high volume of calls, your report may not be immediately taken, but your name and contact number will be retained for an officer to call you back in the next couple of days.To prevent getting ripped off, police advised:• Paying with cash would be the safest.• Use a credit card instead of your ATM. That way they do not have access to your personal bank account.MHPD Sgt. Carlos Guerrero also noted the department is testing a new mobile phone application known as Skimmer Scanner, that can identify illegal skimming devices located on gas station pumps. The app is currently only available for Android users.“We are not necessarily promoting the app,” Guerrero said. “Our concern is for our residents to be aware of the issue.”In the cases in Gilroy, the skimmers were essentially undetectable to the public because they were inside the gas pump. There were no obvious signs to look for, police said.

Morgan Hill police arrested a Campbell man Nov. 10 who had more than 20 sets of stolen car keys from an area dealership in his vehicle.An MHPD officer made a traffic stop on a “refurbished older San Jose police car” about 6pm Nov. 10, according to a post on the MHPD Facebook page.The traffic stop resulted in a search of the vehicle, during which the officer found the numerous sets of car keys tucked inside the trunk, police said.Attached to many of the keys were valet tags that looked similar to each other. The officer began contacting vehicle dealerships throughout the county until police located the victim, according to authorities.The victim auto dealer told police that the keys were stolen, and the suspect was a recently terminated employee, police said. MHPD Sgt. Troy Hoefling clarified that the suspect was likely upset with the former employer, and police do not think he intended to try to steal the vehicles to which the keys belonged.Police arrested the driver and sole occupant of the vehicle, Michael Aaron Buckland, 41, of Campbell, on suspicion of embezzlement and stolen property.

The man convicted of killing Morgan Hill teen Sierra LaMar failed to disqualify the judge who presided over his four-month murder trial this summer.An assigned judge’s Nov. 14 order denying Garcia Torres’ challenge to Superior Court Judge Vanessa Zecher—due to a perceived conflict of interest from 27 years ago—allows Zecher to proceed with his sentencing hearing Dec. 12 at the Hall of Justice in San Jose. Zecher will also hear any remaining defense motions—including a motion for a new trial—at future proceedings.A jury convicted Garcia Torres, 26, of Morgan Hill, of murdering Sierra after kidnapping her from outside her home in north Morgan Hill March 16, 2012. Sierra was a 15-year-old sophomore at Sobrato High School at the time of her disappearance, which prompted law enforcement officials and hundreds of volunteers to search for the missing teen for several months. Her remains still have not been found.Garcia Torres was also convicted of three unrelated attempted carjackings—in which he targeted women walking alone to their vehicles at night—in the parking lots of two Safeway stores in Morgan Hill.The same jury later determined Garcia Torres should be sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole, but the court has yet to formally sentence him. Prosecutors from the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office argued he should receive the death penalty.In September, lawyers for Garcia Torres filed a motion to disqualify Zecher because she previously represented a sheriff’s sergeant who played a prominent role in the investigation of Sierra’s disappearance.The Chief Justice of the State of California assigned San Francisco Judge Jeffrey Ross to review the case and rule on the motion to disqualify Zecher. On Nov. 14, Ross filed a written order declaring that Zecher can continue as a “fair and impartial” judge in future hearings for Garcia Torres.“The evidence does not demonstrate that a reasonable person aware of all the facts might entertain a doubt that the judge would be able to be impartial or that there was bias against or prejudice to a party or lawyer in the proceeding,” Ross’ order reads, in part.Specifically, Garcia Torres’ attorneys’ challenge of Zecher is based on her employment 27 years ago as the county’s deputy counsel, when she represented the sheriff’s office and 14 of its staff in a civil wrongful death lawsuit. One of the 14 employees was Sheriff’s Sgt. Herman Leon, who was the lead investigator in the disappearance and death of Sierra. Leon testified at length during the trial this summer for Garcia Torres.Leon was involved in the 1989 death of Jeffrey Leonti, a mentally ill inmate at the county jail, according to defense attorney Al Lopez’ motion challenging Zecher. Leon was a jail guard at the time of the incident.Leonti’s family subsequently sued the county over the death. Zecher—representing the county, Leon and the other sheriff’s staff named in the 1991 lawsuit—“ultimately consummated the settlement in which the (county) paid plaintiffs $650,000,” reads Ross’ Nov. 14 order.Due to Zecher’s previous representation of Leon, which she did not disclose prior to Garcia Torres’ trial, his attorneys argued that she should be disqualified from the upcoming sentencing hearing and other case motions. One of the motions yet to be heard in Garcia Torres’ case alleges misconduct by Leon during the investigation of Sierra’s disappearance, and false testimony in relation to hair samples that prosecutors presented as evidence of Garcia Torres’ guilt.Ross’ order notes that Leon played a “very limited role” in the 1989 incident that led to Leonti’s death. Leon “did not subdue Leonti…did not make the decision to conduct the strip search…did not make the decision to administer the taser, nor did he administer it to Leonti.”In response to Garcia Torres’ challenge, Zecher declared that although she “generally” recalls the Leonti case, she does not remember Leon’s involvement.  Garcia Torres’ upcoming hearing on Dec. 12 is billed as a sentencing hearing. His attorneys are likely to argue for a new trial at that time or in a future hearing, based on Leon’s testimony and conduct during the Sierra investigation.

San Martin is a cleaner and greener city today than it was last week, thanks to the efforts of about 80 South County residents who participated in the local chamber of commerce’s inaugural Trash Bash and Veterans Day Flag Raising event.

With more than eight years of planning and preparation under their belts, Santa Clara County has finally begun a vast, $26 million makeover of the William F. James Ranch juvenile detention center in northeast Morgan Hill.Officials say the expansion, which will increase the ranch’s detention capacity from 84 to 108 beds, will replace the much older buildings on the property off Malaguerra Avenue with more modern, efficient facilities. It will also make it easier for James Ranch staff to provide the wide range of services offered on site for youth offenders—including education, counseling, mental health services, life skills and more.“While the existing 50-year-old facility designed for a rural, agricultural community has been adapted to offer trade-based programs such as construction, carpentry and welding, a new facility is crucial to delivering programs that better serve the needs of youth living in Silicon Valley,” Nick Birchard, Deputy Chief of Santa Clara County’s Juvenile Institutions Division said in a statement.James Ranch houses both male and female youth offenders age 15-18, with a focus on rehabilitating and helping them productively return to their communities. Birchard said this age range will not change when the expansion is complete.The ranch houses children who have committed “more serious crimes,” or youth whose individual histories or needs are best served by the specific programs offered there, according to the 2016 Annual Santa Clara County Juvenile Justice Report.Grading for the expansion at the 11-acre site—off Malaguerra Avenue adjacent to existing James Ranch facilities—began in October, according to Santa Clara County Facilities and Fleet Capital Projects Manager Rudy Castelo.The expansion will include a new 31,000-square-foot dormitory; a new 7,300-square-foot gymnasium; a new 5,400-square-foot kitchen; and a new 6,000-square-foot administration building.Completion of the James Ranch expansion is projected for summer 2019, Castelo said.“We want to be able to give them a state-of-the-art dormitory facility,” Castelo said during a recent tour of the construction site, which is currently fenced off from the adjacent older James Ranch facilities that will continue to house and serve the detained youth until the new project is complete.Birchard added the new James Ranch design will “support the Enhanced Ranch Program vision,” which consists of small, personalized living spaces for treatment, as well as “a team approach in which small groups of juveniles and staff form therapeutic units focused on group process, personal development and the shared activities of daily living.”The bulk of the funding for the project comes from the state Local Youthful Offender Rehabilitative Construction Funding program under Senate Bill 81, according to county staff reports. Probation staff began seeking these funds for the James Ranch expansion in 2008.After a series of delays, the board of supervisors finally approved a $26-million design and construction contract for the site with Roebbelen Contracting in April 2016.Juvenile crime drops, but ranch needs riseA county probation “needs assessment” of the James Ranch expansion in 2011 predicts the need for more beds for detained youth will rise well into the future. This is due to the closure of the Muriel Wright Ranch, juvenile offender facility in San Jose, which housed only girls (who were moved to James Ranch after the closure); and an increased effort by national and local law enforcement to divert youth offenders to the therapeutic services offered by programs such as the James Ranch.Closing the Wright Ranch allowed the county to “consolidate at one site,” County Facilities and Fleet Director Jeff Draper said.Probation officials have also become more committed in recent years to ensuring that troubled youth are rehabilitated as close to their hometowns as possible, rather than being shipped to a far-away facility outside the county. “Local placement of these youth would allow them to maintain that sense of connectedness to their community and receive the needed family counseling sessions that are not an option when they are placed out of the county or state,” reads the May 2011 memo summarizing the needs assessment for the James Ranch expansion.  But the number of arrests and citations throughout the county is on the decline, according to the 2016 county juvenile justice annual report. In 2016, 3,310 juveniles were arrested or cited for offenses. That number is down 17 percent from 2015, and has declined steadily since 2012.More than half of the offenses committed by juveniles in the county are a combination of property crimes such as theft, vehicle theft, burglary; and alcohol/drug related crimes, according to the annual report.

May 19, 1933 - November 9, 2017

The Morgan Hill City Council will conduct a public High-Speed Rail study session at 5:30pm Nov. 15, followed by the body’s regular meeting at 7pm.The back-to-back meetings will take place at council meeting chambers, 17555 Peak Ave.The purpose of the High-Speed Rail study session is “to receive an update from Michael Baker, the City’s consultant on their findings associated with a high speed rail alignment that most closely aligns to Highway 101,” according to the agenda packet, posted on the city’s website at morganhill.ca.gov. “In addition, the City has reimbursement consultant agreements specific to the High Speed Rail project that will be also discussed at the Study Session.”The California HSR project will route trains through or around Morgan Hill, depending on which alignment the state officials select. The local segment’s environmental study is expected to be underway by the end of this year.At the regular city council meeting, the council will consider, discuss and possibly approve the following items:• Final map approval for the Evergreen rental project, a 168-unit residential apartment rental complex to be located at the northeast corner of San Pedro Avenue and Condit Road in east Morgan Hill.• Final map approval of the Evergreen for-sale project, a 74-unit subdivision on the northwest corner of San Pedro and Murphy avenues.• A three-year contract with Salinas Pump Company for $275,000, for on-call routine and emergency repair, maintenance and rehab of the city’s wells and pump stations.• A conceptual plan for improvements to Jackson Park in east Morgan Hill. The city has applied for grant funding for the improvements from the “Healthy Play Initiative.” The council will consider matching the grant with up to $72,327 from the city’s park impact fund.• Authorize the city manager to execute a letter of intent to purchase a 19.98-acre vacant property on Hendry Drive in unincorporated east Morgan Hill for an agricultural conservation easement. The cost of the purchase is not yet known, according to the city staff report. If the council approves the drafting of a letter of intent, the city will next conduct an appraisal to determine the site’s value. The appraisal is expected to cost about $12,000.• Site approval for the architectural and landscape plan for the 6,434-square-foot addition to the Morgan Hill Library, located at 660 W. Main Ave. The council has previously hired local contractor Weston Miles Architects to complete the expansion. The project will cost about $3.3 million worth of library impact fee revenues.• Approve an agreement with the California Student Opportunity and Access Program (South County Cal-SOAP) to provide a $25,000 college scholarship to a Morgan Hill student.• Award the Outdoor Sports Center artificial turf replacement project to Astroturf USA for about $1.48 million. The project will replace the turf on two fields at the complex on Condit Road.• Receive a report on the city’s 2016 water loss audit. The audit shows that in 2016, the city lost 9.9 percent of the water it distributed to customers. The losses are from unbilled water use and leaks. The lost water cost the city about $314,000. Most of that sum ($244568) is from leaks. The remainder is from unbilled water usage.• Receive a report from MHPD on police resources and recommendations for the city’s Public Safety Master Plan.