City’s first homicide of the year

By Lieutenant John Fortner, Antioch Police Investigations Bureau

On Sunday, Feb. 14, 2021 at approximately 10:38 PM, Antioch police officers were called to the 2900 block of Enea Way on the report of several gunshots heard in the area.

Numerous officers responded to the scene and located a 47-year-old male shooting victim seated in a vehicle parked in the street. This victim was found to be suffering from at least one gunshot wound. Officers immediately began providing first aid and called for emergency paramedics. Ultimately, the victim, who was an Antioch resident, succumbed to his injuries and passed at the scene.

A second shooting victim, also an Antioch resident, was located at the scene and he was suffering from a gunshot wound to the chest. The 37-year-old male was transported to a local area hospital where he was taken into surgery and is expected to survive.

Antioch Police Department’s Crime Scene Investigators and detectives with the Violent Crimes and Special Operations Units responded to the scene and took over the investigation.

Currently, detectives are working to identify any suspects or persons of interest. The investigation is still active, and evidence is being collected and evaluated.

According to Antioch Police Chief T Brooks, this is the city’s first homicide of the year.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Antioch Police Department non-emergency line at (925) 778-2441, or Detective Bledsoe at (925) 779-6884. You may also text-a-tip to 274637 (CRIMES) using the key word ANTIOCH.

Allen Payton contributed to this report.

By CHP – Golden Gate

A recent retail theft at a Lululemon store in Reno led to the recovery of more than $150,000 in suspected stolen merchandise, $7,000 in cash, one handgun, and the arrest of three suspects in the Bay Area, through the cooperation of several law enforcement agencies that are part of an Organized Retail Crime Task Force (ORCTF).

On February 5, 2021, nearly $50,000 of clothing was stolen from the Lululemon clothing store in Reno, Nevada, by five suspects in an organized retail theft. Some of the suspects were repeat offenders, known by Lululemon loss prevention investigators to have ties to the Bay Area.

The Lululemon investigators reached out to the ORCTF, a multi-agency effort of the Golden Gate Division of the California Highway Patrol (CHP). The task force includes members from the San Francisco Police Department and the San Francisco District Attorney’s Office.

With the help of information from the Lululemon loss prevention investigators, the ORCTF executed two search warrants in San Francisco and Antioch on February 11. The search warrants led to three arrests and the stolen merchandise, cash and handgun. The recovered merchandise included clothing, cosmetics, purses and sunglasses from multiple retailers including Lululemon, Macy’s, Nordstrom, Victoria’s Secret, JCPenney’s Sunglass Hut, Solstice Sunglasses, Ulta Beauty, Sephora, Burberry, Sax Off 5th, Louis Vuitton, Hermés, Gucci, Channel, and others.

Arrested were: Mario Omar Cisneros-Cruz, DOB 5/27/1979, of San Francisco; Owen Omar Cisneros/Rodriguez, DOB 9/23/2001, of San Francisco; and Saul Garcia Hernandez, DOB 3/11/1992, of Antioch, on suspicion of organized retail crime (490.4 PC), possession of stolen property (496 (a) PC), grand theft (487 (a) PC), theft of lost property (485 PC). Hernandez was also charged with carrying a loaded firearm (25850 (a) PC).

“It is our Task Force’s mission to detect, deter and dismantle organized retail crime,” said CHP Lieutenant Kevin Domby of the ORCTF. “If you have any information that may lead the detection of organized retail crime, please call our Tip Line at (510) 957-8247.”

 

By J.R. Wilson, President, Delta Veterans Group

If you are a veteran and have always wanted to be in a TV commercial here is your chance

RJH CASTING IS LOOKING FOR VETERANS FOR A TV COMMERCIAL!

Seeking:

Male & Female Veterans from all branches, Ages 55-75

Male & Female Veterans from all branches, Ages 22-40, Physically fit

Some roles will require filming in veteran’s personal living space.

Active duty military are not eligible to participate.

If this sounds like you or someone you know, please send the below information ASAP to: usaacasting2021@gmail.com

Name/Age/Military branch/Rank/Date separated from military

Contact Info (phone, email, city/state)

Family members in your household (list names, relation and ages)

Other family & friends in your immediate Covid safety bubble (list names, relation and ages)

Briefly describe your living space (house, apartment, condo)

Attach recent photos of yourself, spouse, family/friends in your household and Covid safety bubble.

Project Details (if you’re selected):

PAID Union Commercial for USAA (USAA membership is a plus but not required)

Shoot Date: Week of March 15th with a tech rehearsal week of March 8th. 

*This commercial will be filmed in and/or around actual homes of the veterans selected.

Hope to see you on TV… Good luck.

Over 1,000 stolen ID cards, forged checks and EDD cards!

Illegally parked car leads to arrest for drug sales, illegal gun

By Antioch Police Department

The last couple of days were very productive for the Antioch Police Department’s Problem-Oriented Policing (POP) Team. After several months of investigative work and working with members of the community, the POP team was able to tackle a number of the ongoing issues in some of the city’s problem areas.

Tuesday, our POP Team served a search warrant related to an ongoing investigation that led to the arrest of a subject with an outstanding warrant. Over one thousand ID cards, forged checks, and EDD cards were recovered along with a gun (possessed by a convicted felon). One interesting observation, the arrested subject wanted it to be known that he was the “Fraud God” and purchased a gold chain as proof. This is one of the pictures we included in this post so you can see for yourselves.

The day continued with a focus on the Sycamore Square shopping center. We would like to make it clear, illegally parking in the handicapped zone is not a “pick up food zone” and should not be abused. Not only did this contact lead to a $250 parking ticket, but the driver was also arrested for drug sales and an illegal firearm.

Wednesday, the POP Team served several search warrants on active gang members in the city. With the assistance of the APD Gang Unit and Investigations Bureau, we were able to take two stolen guns off the street possessed by convicted felons as well as marijuana for sales.

Like always, the Problem-Oriented Policing Unit would love to hear from you to help reduce any ongoing problems. Our POP Team can be reached by emailing popteam@antioch.gov. You can also submit a tip by sending a text message to 274637 with the keyword ANTIOCH in your text.

 

By Newsroom Newswire

Now that it’s tax season, and tax forms are arriving in the mail, many people are beginning to find a nasty surprise in their mailbox: an IRS form 1099-G reporting unemployment benefit income that they did not actually apply for or receive.

If you receive a form 1099-G but did not file for unemployment, someone may have stolen your identity to commit unemployment fraud.

Attorney David Fleck, who has extensive experience in fraud cases, said this is one of the easiest frauds to perpetrate, which is why it has suddenly become common during the pandemic. As unemployment numbers swelled, unemployment departments across the country became overwhelmed with applications and made thorough background checks of applicants fall by the wayside.

“I’ve seen so many different scams in my career, and frankly there is nothing new under the sun,” he said. “Because these are unusual times, con artists are just using this moment as a way to take advantage of the system.”

Learning that your identity has been used to perpetrate a fraud can be a stressful experience, Fleck said, but there are steps you can protect yourself and mitigate the damage:

1. Report the fraud to the California employment development department, https://www.edd.ca.gov/. California EDD has a form on their website to use for reporting identity theft and unemployment fraud. You can also call the EDD Fraud Hotline at 1-800-229-6297.
2. File your taxes as normal, and do NOT report the fraudulent income. If you’ve reported the fraud to EDD, that’s all you need to do. You don’t need to also report it to the IRS.
3. If you suspect you may be a victim of a broader identify theft, you may want to check the website of The Identity Theft Resource Center, a nonprofit in San Diego. Visit idtheftcenter.orgor call 888-400-5530.

“Fraudsters never let a crisis go to waste,” Fleck said. “But hopefully, now that state officials know this fraud is going on in such large numbers, innocent victims won’t be on the hook.”

 

Story by MELISSA JORDAN | Photos by MARIA J. AVILA BART Communications 

The word “ambassador” derives from the Latin ambactus, which dates to the 14th century and means servant or minister.

BART Police’s Transit Ambassadors mark their first anniversary on the job today. They are public servants, ministering to the needs of passengers on BART train – offering free face masks, giving safety tips, helping with directions, connecting those in crisis with services.

And they are making a difference.

“Having additional uniformed personnel has been received very well by our riders and employees,” said Deputy Chief Angela Averiett, who heads the Bureau of Progressive Policing and Community Engagement, a new unit created by Police Chief Ed Alvarez last year. “They are the face of BART out there interacting with the public.”

Since the start of the program, Ambassadors have made more than 12,000 educational contacts, the highest number of any type of contact. They checked in with nearly 10,000 people on platforms and handed out more than 1,000 masks to members of the public who needed one. In only a fraction of contacts, 132, did they need to contact a Police Officer for assistance.

The Ambassadors are part of a larger shift within BART Police to find new approaches using unarmed personnel to respond to people in crisis, such as mental health emergencies, drug overdoses or the unhoused population. With additional crisis intervention specialists yet to be hired, there will be an infusion of 40 additional positions in total, all devoted to train presence.

“With just that one piece of the Ambassadors, that alone is a huge accomplishment,” Averiett said. “I can’t wait to see the impact in our system when we have all of these positions in place.”

Like a diplomatic corps, the Ambassadors speak a multitude of languages – Spanish, Chinese, Tagalog, Cambodian, Farsi – and they are dedicated to communication, education and presence.

Ambassador Brandon Fenwick’s Spanish language skills proved lifesaving one day when he and his partner persuaded a man who was experiencing a mental health crisis to get out of the trackway at Glen Park Station.

“The Millbrae train was just 1 minute out, and he didn’t speak any English,” Fenwick recalled. “We were able to get him out of the trackway just in time.”

Fenwick was part of the original group of 10 Ambassadors who started their work on Feb. 10, 2020.

Fidel Escario said he wanted to be an Ambassador because the job involves working closely with the public and has an immediate positive impact.

“We help people and answer their questions,” he said. “If they don’t have a mask, we give them one. We see a lot of things.”

The Ambassadors are trained in de-escalation and anti-bias techniques and carry radios to call for backup from a BART Police Officer if needed. Escario recalled one situation on a train when a man was exposing himself and cursing at Ambassadors; they radioed for backup and Officers arrested the man.

Sequoia Taylor joined the ranks of the Ambassadors just last month in January 2021.

“I grew up in Oakland,” said Taylor, who has seen firsthand the issues that can result from disproportionate policing impacts in Black and brown neighborhoods. “You’ve got to treat people with respect. You can convey so much just with how you carry yourself, your demeanor.

Two of the original Ambassadors have moved up into other positions within the BART Police Department, showing the path of upward mobility that can be available for workers starting in the entry-level Ambassador roles.

“We have a lot of good interactions with riders,” Fenwick said. “They’ll say ‘thank you’ or give us a thumbs-up.”

The Ambassador Program won an Innovation in Public Safety Award from the national foundation Transit Center in 2020

Architectural Preservation Foundation wants old jail preserved for other uses; Board hears from Budget Justice Coalition on COVID related equity issues; COVID-19 variant draws concern

By Daniel Borsuk

Contra Costa Supervisors Candace Andersen and Karen Mitchoff chastised Contra Costa District Attorney Diana Becton, during the Board’s meeting on Tuesday, for holding her wedding reception in the backyard of her El Sobrante home in August in violation of COVID-19 health protocols.

“I think we give up hope when our top public officials improperly conduct themselves,” District 4 Supervisor Mitchoff of Pleasant Hill said.

“What District Attorney Becton did was wrong.  There were so many events that so many of us had to give up that were important,” Mitchoff later said. “It just needs to be called out.  We cannot sweep it under the rug and act as if this did not happen.”

“I feel very frustrated about the wedding District Attorney Becton had at her home” remarked District 2 Supervisor Andersen of Danville.  “I was very surprised that she would have a party after a wedding, knowing it was in violation of county health codes.”

In her defense, Becton said: “I did everything I believe was in proper guidance with what I thought was allowed.  I realize public officials like myself are held to a higher standard as we should be.”

Becton married Rev. Dr. Alvin C. Bernstine, a fourth-generation preacher and the author of his most recently published book, Hope Us, Lord. (See related article)

Approve Demolition of Old County Administration Building, Old County Jail

Over the concerns of preservationists, supervisors flashed the green light for Contra Costa County Public Works officials to hire a design-build contractor to demolish the old 12-story county administration complex at 651 Pine Street in Martínez and the old county jail across the street from the administration complex so that either a two or three-story office building can be constructed on the site of the old administration building.

In December, the county opened a new four-story, 71,000 square foot Administration Building across the street from old the Pine Street building.

It would cost about $65 million to demolish the old building and then build a two-story building and $75 million to build a three-story office building.  The County plans to provide parking and open public space on the land cleared through demolition.

“Four years ago, we presented over 300 signatures to you for preservation,” said Architectural Preservation Foundation of Contra Costa President Cheryll Grover. “There has been no current relevant community outreach on this issue.”

According to the organization’s website, “In 1989 the entire Contra Costa County ‘Court House Block’ was listed on the National Register of Historic Places, including the 1903 County Jail and the present-day Finance Building.  The National Register described these as classically inspired dignified structures of Vermont granite ‘designed to represent stability and permanence.’”

County officials have shown interest in using the Pine Street site for office space for the Sheriff’s Office, District Attorney’s Office, Public Offender’s Office, Health Services and the Office of Racial Justice and Equality.

Supervisors said because of the old jails building material – concrete to keep prisoners inside along with concerns about the presence of asbestos, made it problematic to renovate the old jail.  Grover said her preservation group did propose alternative proposals to rehabilitate the old jail, but their proposals apparently fell short of the mark as far as meeting County Public Works criteria.

Hear from Budget Justice Coalition on COVID Related Equity Issues

In other action, the Supervisors heard a presentation from the Contra Costa Budget Justice Coalition and the Bay Area Equity Atlas on COVID Related Equity Issues, to ensure all county residents are treated fairly during recovery from the pandemic.

According to their slide show, “The Contra Costa Budget Justice Coalition advocates for community engagement in the Contra Costa County budgeting process and for a set of values-based budgeting principles that support safe and affordable housing, stable employment with fair wages, sufficient healthy food, essential health care, access to critical social services, and quality early care and education.”

Presenters spoke on the subjects of Disparate COVID Health, Housing, and Economic Impacts, BIPOC (Black, Indigenous and People of Color) Community Challenges and Stabilizing Neighborhoods and Equitable Relief.

They offered proposed solutions and plans of action in response including: “Producing and Maintaining lasting affordable housing”; “Prioritize equity and those most in need – evictions, food, housing, health, essential services”; “Protect and stabilize vulnerable households and workers”; “Connect low-wage workers with economic opportunities”; and “‘Build Back Better’ through equitable investments in a stronger, fairer, more sustainable economy”; among others.

Santa Clara County COVID-19 Variant Draws County Warning

A deadly Coronavirus variant now prevalent in Santa Clara County could surface in Contra Costa County, Contra Costa County Health Department Health Officer Dr. Chris Farnitano informed supervisors.

“Getting a vaccine is still the most important thing one can do to protect oneself,” said Dr. Farnitano upon informing supervisors about the Santa Clara County variant.  So far, 800 patients in Santa Clara County have been stricken with this variant and “there have been a couple of cases of this variant in Contra Costa County,” he said.  “We expect to be more knowledgeable about this variant in the next couple of weeks.”

The Santa Clara County COVID-10 variant is one of a number of Coronavirus strains to have surfaced globally, particularly in Brazil, Nigeria, South Africa and the United Kingdom.

Dr. Farnitano said because Contra Costa County remains in the Purple Tier, at or under 46.2 new infections as it was in late January, school grade levels K to 6 can “bring back students as soon as tomorrow (Wednesday).”  The restart of school for grade levels 7 to 12 will be determined later.

County health officials made the COVID-19 announcements at the same time United States health officials announced Tuesday that the most severe surge of the COVID-19 pandemic in the nation has weakened significantly based on major metrics.  Nationally, newly reported cases have declined 56 percent over the past 30 days.  Hospitalizations have declined 38 percent since January 6.  The seven-day average of COVID-19 tests returning positive declined to 6.93 percent over the past week, the lowest rate since October 31.

Dr. Farnitano announced religious institutions can reopen at 25 percent occupancy, but chanting, singing and the serving of food are prohibited, he said.

Contra Costa Health Services Director Anna Roth also confirmed the county will receive $40 million in stated COVID-19 vaccine distribution funding but, could not provide details.  Last week, there were initial reports the state aid the county would receive would be shared with health organizations Kaiser Permanente and Blue Shield.

County Health Equity Officer Gilbert Salinas said the county’s efforts to equitably distribute the vaccine throughout the county, especially in parts of the county where there are more people of color or economically disadvantaged is gaining traction.  He reported that about 70,000 vaccine shots had been administered to county residents and retailers like Safeway, RiteAid, and WalMart are participating in the administration of vaccine shots.

Allen Payton contributed to this report.

 

A fourth-generation preacher, Rev. Dr. Alvin C. Bernstine introduces her as his “fellow colleague in the ministry”, says she faces the “yeast of Americanism…white supremacy”; during Martin Luther King Sunday sermon Rev. Diana Becton says attack on U.S. Capitol “fueled by the hate of white supremacists”; both teach theology at Oakland institute

By Allen Payton

Following news articles on Sunday that Contra Costa County District Attorney Diana Becton held her wedding and reception in the backyard of her El Sobrante home, last August, in violation of COVID-19 restrictions, a YouTube video revealed that her new husband is Rev. Dr. Alvin C. Bernstine, MDiv, DMin. He has been the pastor of Bethlehem Missionary Baptist Church in Richmond since 2006.

According to his ministry website, he is a fourth-generation preacher, who has been preaching for over 40 years. Bernstine recently authored a book entitled, Hope Us, Lord. Among his previous publications are The Evening and The Morning Ministry, and In A Disaster Zone: The Seven Sayings of Jesus as Preached in an Urban African American Church.

He introduced Becton during a virtual service from their church on Sunday, Jan. 17 as “my incredible wife” and “my dear friend, and buddy, golf partner, book sharer reader, fellow colleague even in the ministry.”

“By the way, I have been married with her for 138 days…and I am grateful to God,” Bernstine added.

Becton can also be seen in a video on the church’s Facebook page introducing him during the service, this past Sunday, Feb. 7.

During Bernstine’s introduction of Becton on Jan. 17, which he labeled Martin Luther King Sunday, the day before the national holiday, he said, “One of the things we have to guard ourselves against is this whole notion of individualized salvation and individualized freedom. Because what is plaguing our nation, now is we got some folk, they are free, but they don’t want you to be free. And so, if I’m going to be free you need to be free, then we need to celebrate that we are free.”

“It is on that note that I want to do something special, today. The Lord laid it on my heart to invite the Rev. Diana Becton to speak to us,” Bernstine stated.

“Beware of the yeast of the Sadducees and the Pharisees…beware of their teaching,” he said. “Their teaching tends to be anthropocentric and ethnocentric. In other words, it’s so focused on who they were as people and who they were as a culture, that it literally displaced God. Whenever you do that, you’re in trouble. So, he said don’t focus, don’t give so much attention, don’t give so much of your life to their teaching.”

“Because one of the things that kind of teaching can do, because that’s what it has done in America, it can make you think you’re something you’re not. And the yeast of America is this, you all,” Bernstine continued, then getting political. “The yeast is a bad teaching because it will have you doing crazy things like storming the Capitol or have you doing crazy things by plotting to storm the capitols of fifty states. Because it got you thinking you’re something that you are not. I wish I can make it plain. Amen?”

“So, the yeast of Americanism is white supremacy, where white people, they believe they’re superior and then it makes black people inferior,” he said. “Beware of any yeast that makes you think that you are inferior. I wish I could make this plain, and that some other folk are superior.”

“So, it’s on that note that I want to introduce our preacher, for today,” said Bernstine. “She’s been experiencing the yeast, because as an attorney, she experienced the yeast. As one of the first judges in our county she experienced the yeast. And Lord knows she’s been experiencing the yeast as the first woman and the first person of color to be elected as District Attorney of Contra Costa County. The yeast is still out there, ya’ll.”

“But we are excited that in the midst of all that, as an attorney, a retired judge, District Attorney,” he shared. “But we celebrate her, here. But she wears that tag…of the First Lady of the Bethlehem Missionary Baptist Church.”

“She’s my first lady, my only lady because I don’t have no firsts and seconds. Amen,” Bernstine continued. “My mama was my first, but she’s gone. So, she’s my first…my only.”

Becton then preached a sermon entitled “A Maladjusted Jesus” and opened in prayer, thanking God for the life and example of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. (See the 37:38 mark of the video) Her message was from Matthew 9:36-38 and she spoke of “the full-blown insurrection, that attempted coup that took place in our capitol…the violence, the crazy madness fueled by the hatred of white supremacists and even the words of the President of the United States. That stuff is not normal. What we see is a national tragedy, and in this abnormal moment, I share the words of Dr. Martin Luther King. ‘God grant that we be so maladjusted that we will never be able to go out and feel that all of this is normal.’”

Becton then quoted from a speech by Dr. King, that “he argues that there are some things in this world, in our society to which we ought to never become adjusted” including “the viciousness of a mob rule…the evils of segregation and the crippling effects of discrimination…the inequalities of an economic system that takes the necessities of the masses to give luxuries to the classes.”

“We have adjusted to what is truly abnormal,” she said.

Becton then brought her sermon back to the text, “because that’s where we find Jesus. He is seeing those who are sick, blind, stressed, grieving, with souls that are uncared for. And what Jesus saw broke his heart. Take note because you just walked into the space with a maladjusted Jesus. He’s a compassionate Jesus who demonstrates that He never intended to accept the inequalities of this world. Jesus was maladjusted.”

She then exhorted listeners to be like Jesus, to see the need, feel compassion, and be troubled by their pain.

“We are just not moved anymore. We have adjusted, accepting the things that are just not normal. Things that would have broken the heart of Jesus,” Becton said. “We have to shake off our lethargy, stop walking past human brokenness in our communities. We have to feel compassion for the people. We’ve got to stop normalizing these painful circumstances. For surely anything that broke the heart of Jesus should break our hearts, too.”

She shared a quote from Rev. Raphael Warnock, the new U.S. Senator from Georgia, and then encouraged people to help others with “basic things like food and they still need to feel safe. So, we can think about ways to fulfill those needs.”

“The hallmark of Jesus’ ministry was compassion,” Becton shared. “Jesus saw the need. Jesus felt the need and Jesus was moved to meet the need. So, if we’re going to be like Jesus, we too have to see, we have to feel and then we have to be moved by compassion to do something.”

She concluded with quotes by Dr. King.

“In the spirit of Martin Luther King, today, let us remember some of the words that were spoken by a man who changed the world. ‘I have decided to stick with love. Hate is too great of a burden to bear.’” Becton said. “In the words of Martin Luther King I call upon all of you to be maladjusted, today. God grant that we will go. That we will be so maladjusted that we will be able to go out and change the world. See, feel, move and be maladjusted.”

Becton, Bernstine Also Teach Theology

As previously reported by the Herald, Becton earned a Master of Divinity degree from the Pacific School of Religion. (See related article) The school’s website includes the following description.

“Vision: Living a Radically Welcoming Gospel – Whether ministering to the local homeless community or participating in our MultiFaith Transgender Summit, PSR students embody a message of radical inclusivity. Our two centers, Ignite Institute @ PSR and Center for LGBTQ and Gender Studies in Religion, share an expansive, hopeful message of spiritual and social transformation.”

The school is a member of the Graduate Theological Union (GTU), an interreligious consortium of seminaries and institutes in the Bay Area. That includes the Berkeley School of Theology affiliated with the American Baptist Churches USA, of which Allen Temple Baptist Church in Oakland is a member.

Both Becton and Bernstine teach at the Leadership Institute at Allen Temple in Oakland. She is Professor of Theological Studies and he is Professor of Homelitics/Preaching and Christian Ministry Cohort Leader.