A Santa Clara County program to help the severely mentally ill receive treatment has outpaced expectations in its first year of implementation, after a hard fought battle to get it approved. The Assisted Outpatient Treatment program (AOT) also known as Laura’s Law, allows different authorities and family members to refer people diagnosed with a severe mental illness—schizophrenia...
Philbrick: Automated traffic cameras could save lives
Last September, 8-year-old Jacob Villanueva was struck and killed while walking to school. At the site of the crash at Castlemont Avenue and Driftwood Drive in San Jose, his family, neighbors and classmates created a memorial. One sign read, “Please drive slow.” The pain and anguish his family and friends feel will last a lifetime,...
Writers strike comes to Cupertino—Apple’s front door
While Apple held its annual Worldwide Developers Conference, the Writers Guild of America West (WGAW) organized outside the company’s visitor center to protest unfair wages and job security. Members of the local guild leafletted and made speeches on Monday, voicing their frustrations over an ongoing labor dispute between WGAW and the Alliance of Motion Picture and...
San Jose independent police auditor to retire
San Jose’s independent police auditor is planning to retire, city officials said. Shivaun Nurre, who has been in the auditor role since 2018, has worked in the auditor’s office since 2006. Word that she plans to retire comes about a week after she published her annual report on police oversight in the city. During a...
UPDATE: San Jose unveils $5 billion budget with surplus
San Jose’s final draft of its multi-billion dollar budget is out and Mayor Matt Mahan is sticking to his “back-to-basics” approach—prioritizing homelessness, crime and blight. Mahan released his June budget message today, outlining how he plans to allocate the city’s $5.2 billion purse. The monthslong budget process started smoothly, with unanimous approval of his first...
Rodríguez: Community college nursing programs need to be expanded
I recently had the honor and pleasure of attending the pinning ceremony for this year’s graduating class of nursing students from Evergreen Valley College. According to the American Association of Colleges of Nursing, the pinning ceremony dates back to the 1860s when Florence Nightingale was awarded for her service during the Crimean War. The ceremony...
Santa Clara officials won’t kick out embattled colleague
Demands for Santa Clara Councilmember Anthony Becker to resign ultimately went unheeded Tuesday, the conclusion of a seven-hour meeting often stalled by procedural minutiae and recriminations. The Santa Clara City Council voted 4-2 not to schedule a future debate over whether to press Becker to resign, with Becker abstaining. He stands accused of leaking a...
Silicon Valley elected leader wages war with agency
New records show rising tensions, turmoil and dysfunction at the region’s largest water supplier — with one of its own directors now demanding the public agency pay her attorney fees in her fight against them. Valley Water Director Rebecca Eisenberg has ruffled feathers since taking office in January. But six months into her tenure, emails...
UPDATE: San Jose to house hundreds of homeless residents
More interim housing and safe parking sites are coming to San Jose to move its homeless population off the streets. The San Jose City Council on Tuesday unanimously approved moving forward on four projects focused on safe parking and housing. A safe parking site with more than 100 parking spots for RVs and vehicle dwellers...
San Jose State students to see tuition increase in fall
San Jose State University students can expect to see a tuition hike next fall as state colleges use the increase to make up for a shortfall in operating costs. Officials in the California State University system recently reported college revenues account for only 86% of operational costs, leaving a gap of $1.5 billion for the...