The agency responsible for regulating the ride-hailing industry in California has failed to collect consistent data on complaints of assaults, threats and harassment on Uber and Lyft rides, a San Francisco Public Press investigation found.
Category: Public Safety
Posted in“Civic” Podcast, Bay Area, Public Safety
New Tsunami Maps Show More Widespread Potential Flooding Than Previous Ones
Rick Wilson, a senior engineering geologist with the California Geological Survey and manager of its tsunami program, joined “Civic” to outline some tsunami basics and explained how and why these maps are made and updated.
Posted in“Civic” Podcast, Community, Health, Homelessness, Public Safety
SF Team of Specialists Responds to People in Crisis on the Street
Members of San Francisco’s Street Crisis Response Team show up to situations when someone is experiencing a mental health or substance-related crisis, as an alternative to police response, which can escalate such situations.
Posted in“Civic” Podcast, City Hall, Public Safety, Utilities
Journalist Uncovers Potential Fire Danger in Earthquake Safety Retrofits
In an effort to keep certain buildings from collapsing during an earthquake, thousands have received city-mandated seismic retrofits. But as Joe Eskenazi, managing editor at Mission Local, revealed in a recent special report, some of these upgrades left gas lines encased in concrete, which raises concerns about post-quake fires or explosions. “The real problem is […]
Posted in“Civic” Podcast, Public Safety
In Two Shootings a Decade Apart, Police Claim Taser Confusion
In 2009, BART police officer Johannes Mehserle shot and killed Oscar Grant, later claiming he had meant to use his Taser and not his gun. In April 2021, Brooklyn Center, Minn. police officer Kim Potter shot and killed Daunte Wright. Police say this, too, was due to confusion between the less-lethal weapon and the gun. Demian Bulwa, now director of news at the San Francisco Chronicle, covered Oscar Grant’s death and Johannes Mehserle’s trial extensively and spoke with “Civic” about how much these two shootings more than a decade apart have in common.
Posted in“Civic” Podcast, Community, Public Safety
Training Offers Bystanders Tools to De-escalate Conflict
Bystanders to harassment, conflicts and even violent attacks sometimes find themselves at a loss for what to do, and refrain from getting involved. For victims, that can add insult to injury. In response to a wave of attacks against Asian Americans, two organizations have partnered to offer a bystander intervention training, which has been in very high demand.
Posted in“Civic” Podcast, Government & Politics, Public Safety, Social Justice
Bloated Police Budgets Crowd Out Public Safety Alternatives, Activist Says
“Law enforcement budgets are like the weeds that choke out all other spending,” said James Burch, policy director for the Anti Police-Terror Project and the Justice Teams Network and president of the National Lawyers Guild Bay Area. Burch spoke with “Civic” about the trial and the movement to defund law enforcement.
Posted in“Civic” Podcast, Bay Area, Public Safety, Social Justice
Anti-Asian Violence Resurfaces Narratives Shaped by White Supremacy
Jeff Chang, author of several books including “Who We Be: The Colorization of America and We Gon’ Be Alright: Notes on Race and Resegregation,” has written extensively about this history and talked with “Civic” about the legacy of white supremacy and how it has influenced the discussion of recent anti-Asian violence: quietly rather than overtly.
Posted in“Civic” Podcast, Coronavirus, Government & Politics, Public Safety
To Stop Asian Hate, Invest in Prevention, Victim Support, Advocate Says
Nearly 4,000 incidents of anti-Asian attacks — including verbal and physical assaults — were reported to Stop AAPI Hate, a national tracking project launched by a coalition of activist groups last year, as of late February 2021. Cynthia Choi, co-executive director of Chinese for Affirmative Action, one of the founding partners of Stop AAPI Hate, reflected on the increase in attacks with “Civic.”
Posted in“Civic” Podcast, Law & Justice, Public Safety
Killing of George Floyd Showed Evidence of ‘Intentional’ Murder, SF DA Says
Charging decisions are made by district attorneys, so “Civic” spoke with San Francisco District Attorney Chesa Boudin about recent cases in which local law enforcement officers have killed people and why he did or did not bring criminal charges against those officers.