During this week’s special Santa Rosa city council meeting, spanning almost two full days, the public heard three reports interrogating Santa Rosa officers’ responses to the 2020 protests. They say Santa Rosa police used an unparalleled amount of tear gas and four unauthorized barricade rounds injuring several people. Subsequent reporting by the Press Democrat found that force has cost the city millions of dollars in lawsuits. "The city’s effectively on trial here with the public about how we responded to this situation and we are asking the public to see it from our perspective," Council member Jack Tibbetts said. Tibbetts said he felt good overall with how the police handled the protests.… read more

Before the Johnson and Johnson vaccine was paused, Dr. Brian Prystowsky, a pediatrician and vaccine expert at Sutter Health in Santa Rosa, was excited about the one-dose shot. "I think that two weeks ago, I was primarily recommending Johnson and Johnson vaccine to everybody, literally before this news, because I was like one shot, you're totally done," Prystowsky said. But on April 13th, distribution of the single shot J&J vaccine was halted across the nation after 6 women under the age of 50 suffered severe and rare blot clots. County officials lifted the pause last week, following the lead of federal and state health officials. Prystowsky said because the side effect is very rare, two… read more

In accordance with recommendations by federal and state health officials, Sonoma County is once again distributing the one-dose Johnson and Johnson vaccine after a two week pause. In a statement Health Officer Dr. Sundari Mase said the vaccine is safe and the risk of developing blood clots is extremely rare, less than 2 cases per million doses overall and seven cases per million for women between 18 and 49 years old. Mase said she supports an additional warning label so people can make an informed decision. The majority of 3,000 still-good J&J doses being stored in the county will be distributed to Fox Home Health, a private health care agency that is vaccinating homebound seniors and… read more

The Kelloggs cereal announced a special “pride” cereal that features rainbow-colored hearts coated with edible glitter. The cereal is Kelloggs’ second pride cereal edition and is coming to major grocery stores in May. Twenty local LGBTQ politicians and activists have been announced as this year’s inductees to the LGBTQ Hall of Fame. A ceremony will take place on May 2 sponsored by the LGBTQ Victory Institute. Here in Sonoma County, Face to Face announced a new service and partnership that will enable the organization to provide PrEP directly to community members who visit the Face to Face offices. PrEP is a once-a-day drug that is highly effective in preventing an HIV infection. Learn more… read more

Governor Newsom directed state agencies to stop issuing new fracking permits by 2024 and to phase out all oil production by 2045... the same year as California’s 100 percent renewable energy goal. Story by Nicole Nixon. (Photo: A fracking site in Kern County, Calif. - Citizens of the Planet/Education Images/Universal Images Group via Getty, NPR). The Olympic gold medalist and transgender rights activist brings a celebrity name to the recall, which will likely go before voters later this year. Story by Nicole Nixon. Bicycling classes are overflowing, as people seek to avoid crowded public transportation, improve the environment and get to know their community. Story by Suzanne Potter. read more

Roughly 54% of eligible Californians have been fully or partially vaccinated, state officials say. However, California is still lagging in some efforts. Story by Sammy Caiola. (Photo: Luther Burbank high school hosts a vaccine clinic in its gym Tuesday, April 13, 2021 - Andrew Nixon / CapRadio). California Governor Gavin Newsom today declared a drought emergency for Sonoma and Mendocino counties. Story by Kris Hooks. read more

Instead of offering Spanish translations online during the meeting, like they’ve been doing for the past year, officials switched to Spanish as the primary language this week, with English translations available on Youtube. The change is an effort to reach the county’s Latinx communities, who have been hit hardest by COVID-19, making up 64 percent of the positive cases and just 18 percent of vaccinations county-wide. "I had the same worried as the whole world. First, because this is a new pandemic and a new virus. Second because the vaccine is also new," Remedos Gomez Anau, the head of San Francisco's Mexican Consul, said in Spanish. She went on to dispel myths and urge residents to talk to… read more

Photo of a Black Lives Matter Protest in 2020. (Photo by Adia White)Santa Rosa Jr. College student and activist Caitie Ferro cried when she first heard the news that Derek Chauvin was guilty of murder, and thought the dozens of marches she went to over the past year might have led to change. "All of the nights that I spent marching until my feet were sore and I was chanting and screaming, were worth it," Ferro said. Hours after she heard the guilty verdict, she went to a gathering on campus with other activists. A day later, she said she sees how much more progress still needs to be made. "It’s something but it’s not everything and there’s still a lot of work to be done. The chants stay the… read more

Video and police abuse played key roles both in the Derek Chauvin trial and the one involving four Los Angeles police officers and Rodney King nearly three decades ago. But as PolitiFact California explains, the outcomes were vastly different. Story by Chris Nichols. While some people are hopeful the conviction of former police officer Derek Chauvin will lead to a change in policing, Sacramento Police Chief Daniel Hahn says the issue is bigger than law enforcement. Story by Steve Milne. read more

California’s state employees took a significant pay cut last year thanks to a state budget deficit. Now, the union representing those workers says their pay will likely be restored this summer. Story by Nicole Nixon. (Photo: Sacramento Capitol – CapRadio file photo) A bill before Nevada lawmakers would ban so-called ghost guns, which are increasingly being used in crimes. Story by Bert Johnson. The California Public Utilities Commission will increase its oversight of PG&E heading into wildfire season. The utility failed to meet certain safety obligations. Story by Scott Rodd. On National Healthcare Decisions Day, famed civil-rights leader Dolores Huerta is speaking out as part of a campaign… read more

President Biden named an out gay police chief, formerly from the Bay Area City of Richmond, to head the Customs and Border Protection agency. In Alabama, the parents of a gay high school student who committed suicide has filed suit again the district alleging the district knew of the student’s intention to commit suicide but said nothing to the parents before it was too late. And here locally, the former mayor of Sebastopol has been charged with multiple counts of sexual assault involving minors. (Photo: Police Chief Chris Magnus - Courtesy of the City of Tucson) read more

California counties say it’s been a challenge to expand vaccine eligibility to all Californians given the fluctuation in supply, and the complications of adjusting to a new state distribution system. Story by Sammy Caiola. (Photo: Luther Burbank high school hosts a vaccine clinic in its gym Tuesday, April 13, 2021 - Andrew Nixon / CapRadio). Some of Sacramento’s top elected leaders are pushing back against plans by county officials to close three Project Roomkey motels this spring. Story by Chris Nichols. The California Air Resources Board announces money for the California Clean Vehicle Rebate Project (CVRP) will run out in a month. Story by Drew Sandsor. read more

At least 250 parents in Santa Rosa city schools this week signed a letter asking the district to open full time, in accordance with the state’s updated reopening plan. On April 1st, the district began in-person instruction two shortened days a week for elementary aged children. Next will be secondary students. "It’s hard, it’s hard it has a huge impact on the entire family, these schedules and uncertainty. There is no barriers to us being back full time and we just need the leaders to make it happen and get us back to where our kids need to be," Stacia Okura said. Okura is the mother of a child in TK in the district and one of the parents who signed the joint letter. For Okura, working and… read more

State health officials have moved Merced County into the less-restrictive red coronavirus tier, making Merced the last of the state's 58-counties to move out of purple. The county’s health director says the state should've moved Merced sooner. Story by Steve Milne. (Photo: The view from Grouse Ridge in Tahoe National Forest - Ezra David Romero / CapRadio) All Californians 16 years and older are now eligible to receive the coronavirus vaccine. The change in eligibility comes as Governor Gavin Newsom announced two other milestones in the state’s COVID-19 efforts. Story by Kris Hooks. read more