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HomeMy WebLinkAbout091223-03.1 Handout-Rob Baker NOWCAST Watch on Demand BREAKING NEWS: < 1/4 > KCRA 3 Fire Threat Index Tool:Track fire conditions across Northern California regions � r ----------------- - - NERS' RIGHTS GET LOCAL BREAKING NEWS ALERTS X The latest breaking updates,delivered straight to your email inbox. Your Email Address r'v Notice California's 'Castle Doctrine' explained following deadly home invasion incidents Updated:6:59 AM PDT Jul 7,2021 Infinite Scroll Enabled Melanie Wingo f y Reporter SACRAMENTO,Calif.—For the third time in just a week in our region,a homeowner—fearing for their life while at their home—shot and killed an apparent home intruder. The most recent incident happened Tuesday in Fairfield.Two separate other home invasion shootings happened in Modesto last week. On the books since 1872,California's"Castle Doctrine"gives those people the right to act in self-defense because somebody came into their home/onto their property without permission and they felt their lives were in danger. "Our home is our castle,"said Sacramento-area criminal defense attorney,Jennifer Mouzis,who handles cases where the Castle Doctrine comes into play."It is our most sacred place.It is where we feel at home.It is where we have our children and our parents,and we can shut out the rest of the world:' If you feel your safety or that of your family are in jeopardy,the law indicates you do not have to retreat.You can defend them. "You have a right to use as much force as you need to use to make yourself feel safe against that person,"Mouzis explained. There are times,however,when the Castle Doctrine doesn't apply. "You can't use force likely to cause great bodily injury or force causing death if the person coming into the home is a family member and it's a family dispute she said."That won't work:' Mouzis advises only using the amount of force necessary to stop a perpetrator.She said if you can retreat,call police or use less-than-lethal force —do that. "I don't want people to think that,automatically,if somebody comes in their home that's a license to kill somebody or to use that kind of force that would cause really serious injury;'she explained."Only do that which you feel you have to do to save your life:' Mouzis said she has seen an increase in cases involving intruders being shot and killed by homeowners in the last year. In many instances,those homeowners do seek legal counsel to navigate the ins and outs of their particular incident because each case is very fact-specific,and often,there are questions about whetherthe Castle Doctrine applies,where their rights stand and whetherthe people involved face any criminal or civil culpability. CAL411.1 MATTERS Donate Commentary Annual crime report show COMMENTARY Annual crime report shows Californians' fear of increas- ing crime is justified BY DAN WALTERS JULY 9,2023 1� i moi• ''1�1' r t4 rr ; L_ s 001 � � �- � •{ o ,� � � u� x'41 �r1 'ij `� � + + ��,. r ��.+ iif l�d. �� L / ,,j` til Ft '^L t! �.y(�j,.t�►1�,' +� � .• i ' i !q +�� to ,� ..1r1� �, ll t, � � ,(� .�i�f iq The windows of the Valentino store in Union Square in San Francisco were boarded upon Nov.25,2021.Videos on social media showed masked people running with goods from several high-end retailers in the storied shopping area.Photo by Samuel Rigelhaupt/Sipa USA Listen to this article IN SUMMARY Very quietly, California's Department of Justice released its annual report on crime, revealing that violent and property crimes spiked in 2022. Political officeholders at all levels and of all ideological stripes habitually pursue a time-dishonored practice when releasing data. If it's positive, politicians try to maximize its importance with lavish news conferences and self- congratulatory declarations. If, on the other hand, the data have a negative cast, they will be released quietly, often late on a Friday afternoon, to minimize media coverage. California's annual report on crime was released this year on the Friday before what for many would be a four-day, Fourth of July holiday weekend. That's a tipoff that it would not be good news— and, in fact, it received minimal media attention. The 2022 report revealed that the state's violent crime rate increased by 6.1% since 2021, and property crime was up 6.2%. Homicides dipped very slightly, but robberies jumped by 10.2%. Attorney General Rob Bonta issued a low-key statement with the data release, saying, "While crime rates remain significantly below their historical highs, property and violent crimes continue to have devastating consequences for communities across the state, and gun violence remains a major threat to public safety." One can be certain that had California seen a drop in crime in 2022, Bonta would have trumpeted it as loudly as possible. Let's be clear: Neither Bonta nor any other attorney general can have more than a marginal effect on crime rates. Nevertheless, their campaigns often depict themselves as the state's top cop and imply that they do have such authority. Why crime rates ebb and flow is the subject of never-ending academic and political debate — and is colored by equally erratic public concerns about being victimized. At the moment, Californians' worries about crime appear to be on the upswing, as indicated by one of the Public Policy Institute of California's periodic polls, conducted just before last fall's election. "Californians'perception of crime spiked during the pandemic— as did certain types of crime," PPIC found, adding, "nearly two in three Californians call violence and street crime in their local community a problem. This includes 31% who call them a big problem, a noticeable increase from February 2020 (24%)." The poll found that among racial and ethnic groups, Black Californians expressed the highest level of concern about crime, women were more concerned than men, and Republicans more than Democrats or independent voters. The data released on June 30 imply that those concerns are rooted in fact. Crime did increase sharply last year, particularly robberies, and it has not gone unnoticed in the media. The proliferation of cameras in stores and in the hands of cellphone owners has produced a never-ending supply of crime video snippets, such as smash-and-grab invasions of stores, for television newscasts, which then reverberate on YouTube and other online outlets. Just a few days after the crime report release, for example, a San Francisco TV station aired video of criminals breaking into a Bay Area visitor's rental car in broad daylight, stealing the contents and driving away. Bonta and the man who appointed him attorney general before he won reelection in November, Gov. Gavin Newsom, have pursued somewhat ambivalent postures about crime. They lament its effects on victims and take some public crime-fighting steps while championing criminal justice reform to reduce traditional punishment of those caught breaking the law. A day before the crime data were released, Newsom dispatched more California Highway Patrol officers to battle open air drug dealing in San Francisco, a city he once governed as mayor. In decades past, spikes in crime have had major impacts on California's political atmosphere—helping Republicans become dominant in the 1980s, for example. Were crime to continue its currently upward path, it could once again become a game-changing political factor. ©2023 Ca[Matters. 75-year-old woman shoots at home intruders in Oakland By Henry Lee I Published July 31,2023 1 Oakland I KTVU FOX 2 1 /♦ 75-year old Oakland woman shoots at home invaders A 75-year-old woman opened fire on two intruders who broke into her Oakland home, authorities said. OAKLAND, Calif. - A 75-year-old woman opened fire on two intruders who broke into her Oakland home and came under fire herself, authorities said. The home invasion robbery happened around 2 a.m. on July 26 at a residence near the Oakland Zoo in the hills on Ettrick Street in the Chabot Park neighborhood, according to the Oakland Police Department. Officers said two armed men forced their way into a home and began searching. The elderly resident was the only one at the home when the intruders broke in. Fearing for her safety, the 75-year-old woman pulled out her .357 Magnum and fired one round toward the suspects, police said. The suspects returned fire at the woman and fled the scene. Fortunately, the woman was not injured during the shooting, and there were no reports of physical injuries, according to the police. "It's absolutely unbelievable what she was able to do,'' the woman's daughter told KTMU. "It's amazing. She is a Superwoman. We're all just lauding her and just amazed at her wherewithal." Calvin Walker, a neighbor said, "She had the presence of mind to reach into her nightstand and get a weapon. And she had it under her covers, and when she saw an opening, she fired a shot." The men fired back- about 17 to 20 shots - before leaving with valuables, including jewelry. "We went over afterwards and we saw gunshots all in the walls," Walker said. Oakland City Councilmember Treva Reid represents the area and is family friend of the victim. "It's a miracle that she's alive after the number of shots that were fired in her home," Reid said. Neighbors say the victim did the right thing. "This woman is a hero," said neighbor Dave Lederer. "She kept her wits about her." Her daughter said this should serve as a warning "I believe that this is a message also for the criminals, that people in Oakland, we're tired of the lawlessness. People are standing up. People are fighting back," she said. Neighbor Lynn Baranco agreed, saying, "They're really-they're playing with their lives because all these people out here are armed." Henry Lee is a KTVU crime reporter. E-mail Henry at Henry.Lee@fox.com and follow him on Twitter @henrykleeKTVU and www.facebook.com/henryk/eefan Shots Fired During Attempted Robbery/Carjacking In Downtown Danville Tuesday By NEWS24-680- Jun 21,2022 Photo: DPD The latest "Follow Home" robbery to rock the 24/680 involved a pricey Bentley, a group of women out for a night in the city and ended when the fiancee of one of the women intervened when a team of holdup men accosted and robbed the women as they were getting out of their car in a Danville neighborhood. The incident kicked off at around 5:48 p.m. Tuesday when residents reported possibly two carloads of robbers converging on the Bentley as it parked in the the 200 block of Hartford Road, robbing the women of watches and jewelry. Gunfire erupted when the fiancee of one of the women attempted to intervene, drawing fire from the armed men and returning fire with a pistol of his own. Upwards of four shots were believed to have been fired, at least one of the bullets embedding itself in the home of a resident away at the time. Police, some armed with long guns, quickly flooded the neighborhood as calls for assistance flooded dispatchers. The suspects, described only as black men in hoodies and masks, successfully escaped the area, leaving in a car described by some as a black sedan with heavy window tint. None of the victims was believed seriously injured and it was not known if any of the gunmen were hit during the exchange of fire. News 24/680 N EWS24-680