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enterprise THE DAVIS
WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 1, 2020
2019: Tears and perserverance
Officers surround the house where the suspect in the January shooting of Davis Police Officer Natalie Corona (right) was hiding. SUE COCKRELL/ENTERPRISE FILE PHOTO FRED GLADDIS/ENTERPRISE FILE PHOTO
Davis Enterprise staff make their picks for the stories of the year Enterprise staff When gunfire broke out at an already chaotic traffic-crash scene on Fifth Street on Jan. 10, 2019, it was only the beginning of a trauma that would be visited on a family, a police department and a community. It is a cliché to say in moments of great tragedy that things will never be the same, but the murder of rookie Davis Police Officer Natalie Corona that night was a staggering blow to Davis’ sense of identity, and started a series of conversations on public safety, police relations and mental health that are still ongoing. It was, accordingly, chosen by the staff of The Davis Enterprise as the most significant story of 2019. The year was bookended by sorrow. Having begun with Corona’s slaying in January, we ended with the December homicide of a mother by her son in North Davis, and his subsequent death at the hands of responding police officers.
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In between, Davis residents tried to assert some control over their future, with debates over traffic, housing, voting and homelessness coming to the forefront of public consciousness. In each case the question was, “What sort of community will we be?” And the wider world made its impact, too. On the UC Davis campus, students found their lives upended by decisions made thousands of miles away, by U.S. and foreign governments. It was a bumpy ride, this 2019, one that will continue to affect us in years to come. Here, then, are the top 10 stories of year, as chosen by the staff of The Enterprise:
1 Officer slain
Rookie Davis police officer Natalie Corona, 22, was fatally shot on the night of Jan. 10 while investigating a downtown traffic collision. The suspect: Kevin Douglas Limbaugh, who took his own life during a police standoff following the Fifth
Davis Police and Fire department personnel take a moment after installing a thin blue line flag on Fifth Street in memory of Davis Police Officer Natalie Corona the day after she was slain.
Street shooting. Corona’s killing — Davis’ first on-duty officer fatality in nearly 60 years — put downtown Davis on lockdown as dozens of federal, state, county and local lawenforcement officers swarmed throughout the city during a manhunt that later focused on a house just feet away from the crash scene. Surrounded by police, Limbaugh shot himself. Investigators found no motive for targeting Corona, other than a mysterious note in which Limbaugh, who according to former coworkers and neighbors had a history of odd behavior, claimed the Davis Police Department barraged him with “ultra sonic waves.” Police also recovered two handguns, which Limbaugh apparently had in his possession for years despite a court order following a Yolo County battery conviction that prohibited him from possessing firearms. Davis Police Chief Darren Pytel described Corona as “a rising star” in the department, having
worked part-time as a community service officer since 2016 before graduating from the police academy the previous summer. The senseless slaying of a promising young officer brought an outpouring of grief in the community. A makeshift shrine grew on the spot of the shooting, and more than 6,000 mourners attended Corona’s memorial service as condolences and donations toward a memorial fund benefiting aspiring law-enforcement officers poured in from across the country and beyond. A documentary about her life also is in the works, and a memorial at the Davis police station will be dedicated to her on the oneyear anniversary of her death.
2
District elections
One pushed, one on its own, the Davis City Council and Davis Joint Unified School Board changed the method by which their members would be elected, going from at-large elections to
individual districts. Instead of voting for two or three candidates every two years to fill the five-member bodies, Davis voters will now vote once every four years, electing a single representative for the council and school board, based on where they live. Since adoption of the California Voting Rights Act, numerous jurisdictions throughout the state have faced court challenges to their at-large election systems and have lost in court whenever attempting to fight it. The school board acted early, and pushed through its changes without any pressure. The Davis City Council, on the other hand, was sued by Woodland attorney and former county supervisor Matt Rexroad, alleging that “Voting within Davis is racially polarized, which has resulted in minority vote dilution.” Seeing no point in fighting, the
SEE 2019, PAGE A4
Ballot arguments submitted for tax measures Minimum-wage workers BY ANNE TERNUS-BELLAMY Enterprise staff writer In two months, Davis voters will make a pair of decisions that could significantly impact the quality of city services and school district programs well into the future. Those decisions: whether to approve a renewal of the city’s existing 1 percent sales tax and whether to impose a $198 school district parcel tax. Ballot arguments for both measures have been submitted to the Yolo County elections office and the text of those arguments, as well as impartial legal analysis, have been posted online. Vote-bymail ballots will be sent out
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beginning Feb. 3, one month before the March 3 presidential primary.
Measure Q The city’s existing 1percent sales tax is set to expire on Dec. 31, 2020, unless renewed by voters. The tax provides the city with about $8.6 million annually to fund city services that include everything from police and firefighting to parks and recreation services and ongoing road and bike path repair and maintenance. All of the money raised by the tax goes into the city’s General Fund and may be used for any municipal purpose.
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Arguing in favor of Measure Q on the March ballot are Davis Mayor Brett Lee and four former mayors: Robb Davis, Lois Wolk, Ken Wagstaff and Ann Evans. “Davis is special,” they write. “Over many decades, we have intentionally designed our community to reflect, encourage and support our core values. “We gather for farmers market or music in our downtown common space and play sports in our parks, we’re proud to be a leader in bike- and walkability, and we love that our family-friendly town feels safe and secure. Voting Yes on Q is critical (for) continuing this life which we
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so cherish.” The sales tax renewal, they add, “is supported by every Davis city council member, the Davis Chamber of Commerce, Davis police officers, and many former and current local leaders because it generates crucial revenue for public safety, community public space, recreation programs, bike paths and roadway maintenance.” No argument was submitted against Measure Q. If passed by a majority of voters on March 3, Measure Q will continue the 1 percent sales tax in perpetuity unless repealed by voters in the future.
SEE TAX, PAGE A3
will see pay boosts today BY ERICA HELLERSTEIN Mercury News
Low-wage workers will ring in the new decade with bigger paychecks as a round of minimum wage hikes takes effect on Jan. 1. Currently, the state minimum wage is $11 an hour for businesses with 25 or fewer employees and $12 an hour for larger employers. Beginning Jan. 1, both those rates will increase by $1 per hour. The hikes are part of a statewide law that raises the rate every year until it hits $15 in 2023. In addition, about a
dozen Bay Area cities are hiking wages beyond the new statewide minimum beginning Jan. 1. The cities’ wages — some as high as $15.40 per hour — are the latest in a slew of recent hikes as the Bay Area grapples with a housing crisis and soaring cost of living. For instance, in South San Francisco, workers will get a boost from $11 an hour at small employers and $12 an hour at large employers to $15 per hour. Minimum wages in Belmont will jump from $13.50 to
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SEE WAGE, PAGE A3
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