Richard Gonzales

On California Prisons, It's The Governor Vs. The Courts

Richard Gonzales — Tue, 30 Apr 2013 18:50:00 +0000

California Gov. Jerry Brown is locked in a legal battle over control of his state's prison system. Two years ago, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld a lower court ruling ordering the state to drastically reduce its prisoner population. Brown claims the state has made substantial progress, but the governor has stopped short of complying fully with the court order.

There's a long history of legal wrangling over California prisons.

How To Be The Good Guy With A Gun At School

Richard Gonzales — Wed, 20 Mar 2013 07:16:00 +0000

Ever since the Newtown, Ct., school shooting, there's been a raging debate over how to keep America's schoolchildren safe. National Rifle Association CEO Wayne LaPierre proposed stationing an armed guard in every school in the country. Critics said that idea was impractical and would be too expensive to carry out.

But many schools and school districts already have armed police officers. Since the Columbine High School massacre in 1999, about one-third of the schools in the U.S.

Oakland To Issue IDs That Double As Debit Cards

Richard Gonzales — Mon, 25 Feb 2013 10:07:00 +0000

The city of Oakland, Calif., is taking a major step toward helping to bring many of its residents, especially illegal immigrants, out of the shadows.

It will issue a municipal identification card to anyone who can prove residency.

Oakland isn't the only city to issue such ID cards to illegal immigrants. New Haven, Conn., and San Francisco already do that.

The Oakland card, however, has a unique feature — it doubles as a debit card.

In Oakland's predominantly Latino Fruitvale neighborhood, a group of day laborers are gathered for their weekly meeting.

Berkeley Receives $1M For Undocumented Students

Richard Gonzales — Tue, 11 Dec 2012 22:14:00 +0000

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UktXJIeB1tg

School District Owes $1 Billion On $100 Million Loan

Richard Gonzales — Fri, 07 Dec 2012 22:20:00 +0000

More than 200 school districts across California are taking a second look at the high price of the debt they've taken on using risky financial arrangements. Collectively, the districts have borrowed billions in loans that defer payments for years — leaving many districts owing far more than they borrowed.

In 2010, officials at the West Contra Costa School District, just east of San Francisco, were in a bind.

California Learns From Hurricane Sandy In Northeast

Richard Gonzales — Mon, 19 Nov 2012 10:27:00 +0000

Transcript

LINDA WERTHEIMER, HOST:

Emergency managers around the nation have been paying close attention to the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy.

BBQ Support: Feeding Fellow Americans After Sandy

Richard Gonzales — Sat, 10 Nov 2012 16:29:00 +0000

Transcript

SCOTT SIMON, HOST:

Twelve days after Hurricane Sandy smacked the eastern seaboard and beyond, tens of thousands of people still lack basic necessities - food, water, even shelter. NPR's Richard Gonzales sent us this postcard about three men from Chicago who took it upon themselves to bring some comfort to Sandy's victims.

(SOUNDBITE OF CHATTER)

RICHARD GONZALES, BYLINE: Twenty-eight-year-old Kris Schoenberger is flipping burgers and hot dogs on a large portable drill in Howard Beach, New York.

Race For Redrawn Calif. District Is Tight And Pricey

Richard Gonzales — Sat, 03 Nov 2012 09:17:00 +0000

Dan Lungren has been in and out of public office since 1979. The Republican represented a Southern California district in the '80s, served as the state's attorney general for eight years, and then returned to Congress to represent the Sacramento area in 2004.

These days, he's still the same pro-business, limited-government conservative he's always been, Lungren told a friendly audience in the Sacramento suburb of Rancho Cordova.

"There's a reason people are leaving California [and] going to Texas, leaving California [and] going to Nevada, and it's not for the weather," he told the crowd.

Did Man Who Armed Black Panthers Lead Two Lives?

Richard Gonzales — Wed, 03 Oct 2012 20:39:00 +0000

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sOWR3ArCEqI

In Solyndra's Wake, Solar Company Sees Bright Spot

Richard Gonzales — Thu, 27 Sep 2012 07:40:00 +0000

A small solar power company hopes to become a winner in a market littered with losers.

San Jose, Calif.-based SoloPower is opening a $60 million manufacturing facility in Portland, Ore., Thursday as it works toward receiving a major government loan — like the one given to now-bankrupt Solyndra. SoloPower thinks it has a strategy to succeed where Solyndra failed.

SoloPower makes a niche product in a highly competitive market.

It's Hard To Tell La Familia You're Gay

Richard Gonzales — Fri, 14 Sep 2012 20:29:00 +0000

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K2FQER7c3vU

Budgets Tight, States Ask Voters To Raise Taxes

Richard Gonzales — Fri, 17 Aug 2012 21:08:00 +0000

Tax increases will join political candidates on the November ballot in several states struggling to plug some big holes in their budgets.

One of the most closely watched measures is in California, where Gov. Jerry Brown has staked his reputation on closing his state's multibillion-dollar budget gap.

On Wednesday in Sacramento, Brown officially kicked off his campaign to get voter approval to raise taxes via the Schools Public Safety Protection Act, also known as Proposition 30.

"We all know what's at stake," Brown said, flanked by a group of high school students.

Chevron Fire May Lead To Higher Calif. Gas Prices

Richard Gonzales — Wed, 08 Aug 2012 09:27:00 +0000

Transcript

RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST:

Here in the U.S., analysts are trying to figure out what affect an oil refinery fire could have on gasoline prices. The fire erupted Monday night at an important refinery in Richmond, California. It's owned by Chevron Corporation.

Oakland Turns A Corner As Calif. Faces Budget Woes

Richard Gonzales — Tue, 03 Jul 2012 18:55:00 +0000

The city of Oakland, Calif. has long been associated with crime, poverty, urban decay and, more recently, violent protests tied to the Occupy movement.

So it may have been a surprise to New York Times readers when the newspaper listed Oakland as No.

Walk This Way: Crossing The Golden Gate Bridge

Richard Gonzales — Fri, 25 May 2012 07:50:00 +0000

On May 27, 1937, San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge opened, connecting bustling San Francisco to sleepy Marin County to the north. The Oakland-Bay Bridge had opened six months earlier — but the Golden Gate was an engineering triumph. It straddles the Golden Gate Strait, the passage from the Pacific Ocean into the San Francisco Bay, where rough currents prevail and winds can reach 70 mph.

The bridge's opening day was strictly for pedestrians. The day was typical for May in San Francisco: foggy, windy and cold. That didn't stop 200,000 people from crossing the bridge. Many walked.

With Eye On Future, Billionaire Investor Bets On Paul

Richard Gonzales — Sat, 19 May 2012 09:57:00 +0000

In the race for the Republican presidential nomination, only one candidate remains to challenge presumptive nominee Mitt Romney: Texas Rep. Ron Paul.

Even Paul has said he will no longer campaign in states that have yet to hold their primaries. And Paul has always been considered a long shot to win.

Obama's Gay Marriage Stand May Not Sway Latinos

Richard Gonzales — Mon, 14 May 2012 20:54:00 +0000

President Obama is attending a campaign fundraiser Monday night co-hosted by gay- and lesbian-rights leaders and a Latino nonprofit. The event is being headlined by singer Ricky Martin.

Obama maintains a commanding lead over likely GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney when it comes to support among Latino voters.

Oakland Police: Former University Student Kills 7

Richard Gonzales — Tue, 03 Apr 2012 07:39:00 +0000

Oikos University is housed in a nondescript single-story industrial building in a business park near the Oakland International Airport.

The university's website says it trains men and women "for Christian leadership, both lay and clerical." But it doesn't say how many students attend. It offers courses in nursing, music, biblical studies and Asian medicine. And now it's the site of one of the deadliest mass shootings in California in recent memory.

Police say former student One L. Goh, 43, a Korean national, was believed to be in a classroom when he opened fire with a handgun.

An Example To Avoid: City Of Stockton On The Brink

Richard Gonzales — Sun, 11 Mar 2012 10:20:00 +0000

The city of Stockton, Calif., about 90 minutes east of San Francisco, is broke and on the brink of bankruptcy. Stockton's road to insolvency is a long one, and it appears that, financially speaking, everything that could go wrong in Stockton did.

If Stockton can't solve its budget crisis, it would be the largest American city to go bankrupt.

The City's Seen Better Days

Weber's Point in downtown Stockton is on a marina that symbolizes the city's pain and promise. Stockton is an inland Central Valley city of nearly 300,000 residents.

For Cash, Murderer Leads Police To Victims' Remains

Richard Gonzales — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 19:54:00 +0000

In California's Central Valley, authorities are excavating the gruesome remains of an unknown number of murder victims who were buried many years ago by a pair of convicted murderers and drug users.

The search began last week after one of the convicts agreed to lead authorities to the remains in exchange for cash.

But, the case raises some thorny ethical and legal issues: Should convicted criminals be able to benefit from their wrongdoing?

The bells of Holy Cross Catholic Church punctuate an uneasy calm in the sleepy farm town of Linden, about an hour south of Sacramento.

Unions Create TV Ad To Appeal To Young People

Richard Gonzales — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 08:25:00 +0000

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S3E-FnSG2jY

Silicon Valley Homebuilder Finds A Profitable Niche

Richard Gonzales — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 05:01:00 +0000

The U.S. housing market may be singing the blues, but there are pockets where home sales are rising. James Witt, a homebuilder in California's Silicon Valley is surviving and thriving thanks to his luck, location, and knowledge of the local market.

Witt is a tall lanky man whose graying long hair suggests an actor in a Western movie. He's standing on his 3-acre property in Palo Alto, which includes an updated old farmhouse and a yard with a pair of donkeys.

Calif. Gov. Brown's Speech To Outline More Cuts

Richard Gonzales — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 09:00:00 +0000

California Gov. Jerry Brown gives his State of the State address Wednesday, and things aren't going well in the state financially speaking. Brown has already made huge cuts in government, and faces even more if voters do not back his tax increase ballot measure.

Latinos Get Little Credit For Rebuilding New Orleans

Richard Gonzales — Sat, 10 Dec 2011 13:02:00 +0000

Part of a monthlong series

Since Katrina, the Hispanic population in the New Orleans metro area has skyrocketed by more than 33,000 people. That's a 57-percent increase in the past decade, much higher than the national average.

They came for the construction jobs — and they've chosen to stay.

Occupy Protesters In Oakland Ponder Their Next

Richard Gonzales — Tue, 15 Nov 2011 06:49:00 +0000

The Occupy Wall Street movement began in New York and soon protesters were pitching their tents across the country. Since then, protesters have been evicted from their campsites in Oakland, Calif., and in a number of other cities across the country.

Big Sky Country Has Lots Of Room For Optimism

Richard Gonzales — Sun, 13 Nov 2011 10:17:00 +0000

Part of a monthlong series

In Billings, Mont., the land of the "Big Sky," there aren't many clouds. A city of about 100,000 people between Denver and Calgary, Billings is weathering the economic storm better than many other communities in this country.

You can hear the sense of optimism at the weekly luncheon of the Billings Rotary Club. People there are relieved that Billings itself is being spared from the ravages of the economic crisis.

Calif. County Yearns For 'The Way It Used To Be'

Richard Gonzales — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 09:34:00 +0000

Part of a monthlong series

There's a lot to like about Solano County, Calif., a collection of bedroom communities between San Francisco and Sacramento: great climate, diversity and until recently, very stable neighborhoods.

But it also has the second-highest foreclosure rate in the country. Its largest city, Vallejo, went bankrupt. And unemployment here is 11 percent, higher than the national average.

So it's no surprise that at a recent local town hall meeting, the No.

California's New Prison Policy Has Some Skeptics

Richard Gonzales — Thu, 29 Sep 2011 05:23:00 +0000

California is days away from launching a dramatic shift in the way it handles criminal offenders: Starting in October, the state will redirect tens of thousands of nonviolent felons away from state prisons to local facilities.

The state's plan is called "realignment." It shifts certain functions from the state to the counties, says Barry Krisberg, who teaches criminal justice at the University of California, Berkeley, law school.

"It covers not only criminal justice, but it covers child welfare, mental health, jobs programs," he said, "and it's the largest shift that we've ever seen in the