Daily Republic: Wednesday, July 5, 2023

Annual Greek Festival returns Saturday A4

Jake Levengood is center of attention at OSU B1

Grand jury calls for consolidated dispatch center

Daily Republic Staff DRNEWS@DAILYREPUBLIC.NET

FAIRFIELD — The 2022-23 Solano County civil grand jury is calling for the creation of a countywide consolidated dispatch center to be housed in a single facility.

“There is a lapse and sometimes inappropriate delays between receipt of incoming calls and fulfillment. This greatly affects a rapid response to emergency issues. Dispatch delays increase the danger for property and lives,” the June 23 report states as part of its summary.

That summary adds, “The jury determined that there is a major disparity within the departments relating to dispatch and emergency response times. A consolidation of all dispatch centers to one facility would adequately serve the residents.

Daily Republic Staff DRNEWS@DAILYREPUBLIC.NET

SUISUN CITY — A piece of the city’s firefighting history is headed to a new home.

The city council voted unanimously to send its 1857 S.R. Spinner Hand Pumper to the Sacramento Regional Fire Museum where it will be on display.

The S.R. Spinney is the only known and working hand-pumper in existence. In 1861, when the Suisun City Fire Department was first established, they purchased the equipment, which served the community through the 1880s by what was then the Union

Engine Company.

Firefighter Tom Kamin gave a brief history of the hand-pumper.

It would require a crew of about 300 to put out a house fire, he said. After two to three minutes, they are physically drained. he spoke. It also needed about 30 guys on water buckets.

It sat behind a white picket fence until the 1960s when the United States Forest Service refurbished it and used it. The city got it back about 25 years ago served in competition for a few years. It has been on display in the city hall rotunda.

“The museum is looking for this artifact,” Kamin said. “They will clean it up, take care of it and pump

it on regular basis. It’s a prime opportunity and good bargain for the city.”

It is currently stored at the City Corporation Yard, which does not provide for a temperature-controlled environment.

The storage location at the Sacramento Regional Fire Museum provides for a temperature controlled, monitored fire alarm and fire sprinkler system on site.

The council voted not to spend more than $1,200 annually to store the equipment at the Sacramento Regional Fire Museum.

For information on the fire museum, visit https://www. sacfiremuseum.org.

The report was particularly critical of the Vallejo system, stating the city’s dispatch center has longer “call processing times” than all other agency dispatch centers.

The report states that the average processing time for a 9-1-1 emergency fire call is 7.06 minutes, and the average time for a police call was reported at 84.26 minutes.

It was not immediately clear if those times should have been reported in seconds instead of minutes.

Fairfield’s average 9-1-1 dispatch processing time for fire and police was 61 seconds; Vacaville’s was 24.15 seconds; and for the unincorporated area of the county, the average processing time was 62 seconds, the grand jury report states. Suisun City’s average call processing time for fire and police, as reported by the grand jury, was 92 seconds, and Benicia’s processing average time for police and fire was listed at 86 seconds. Dixon and Rio Vista dispatch did not have times listed

The report issued three findings and corresponding recommendations:

See Dispatch, Page A8

loS a ngeleS timeS

At a private fundraiser in the middle of Donald Trump’s America, California Gov. Gavin Newsom was on a mission to help President Joe Biden.

Newsom, who hit the road during the Fourth of July holiday weekend, told a group of roughly 50 Democrats gathered in the backyard of a mansion overlooking the Boise foothills Saturday to make the “powerful case for why we should be passionate, enthusiastic about Biden’s reelection.”

At a time when states like Idaho, where registered Republicans outnumber Democrats by more than 4 to 1, are enacting laws to restrict abortion, gay rights and advance other culturally divisive pillars of the GOP agenda, Newsom said only one man could be trusted to turn the tide: Biden.

The 80-year-old president has used his years in office to aggressively fight for Democratic priorities, Newsom told them, including LGBTQ+ rights, gun c ontrol and clean energy, while rebuilding the American economy

post-Covidd and keeping democracy afloat.

“I’m really proud of this president, and I hope you are as well,” Newsom said to a crowd happy to have one of the party’s rising stars.

Saturday’s swing through Idaho didn’t just energize Biden’s muchneglected base in such a conservative corner of the West. It helped build a future one for Newsom.

Many of the Democrats who flocked to hear Newsom speak in Idaho and at a separate fundraising event earlier that day in Bend, Ore., said they thought the 55-yearold liberal governor offered a glimpse into the

future of their party, a bolder, more charismatic and younger potential heir of Biden’s legacy in the post-Trump years.

“He looks like an incredible presidential candidate,” said Russ Buschert, an Idaho Democratic Party trustee.

Michele Anderson, a real estate broker in Bend and former Bay Area resident, praised Newsom for using his “pretty impactful” voice and his willingness to take a stand on the most critical issues facing the nation while pushing back against Republicans eroding the progress made during the country’s recent history.

“I appreciate a lot that Joe Biden has done, but I think it’s time for that next generation of leaders, too,” Anderson said. “And I see Gavin Newsom being a part of that.”

Newsom says he has no interest in the White House and that his crosscountry travels are to promote his party and president before the 2024 election.

But his stumping for Biden tees Newsom up nicely for other job prospects, said Rob Stutzman, a Republican consultant in California. His public feuding with Republicans fills a “void” in his party and sends a message that he’s a Democrat willing and unafraid to take on the MAGA wing of the GOP – a crusade that helps elevate Newsom’s national profile and build a database of supporters along the way.

“He’s putting in time and effort that no one else outside the White House appears to be,” Stutzman said. “He’s acting like the candidate in waiting.

“Someday it may pay off for him.”

The visit to Idaho, which kicked off Newsom’s second tour through See Newsom, Page A8

a my m aginniS-Honey AMAGINNIS@DAILYREPUBLIC.NET

SUISUN CITY — The Fairfield Suisun Chamber of Commerce seeks food vendors, artisans, nonprofits and commercial vendors to become part of the Suisun Waterfront Certified Farmers Market.

The season will run from July 15 through the end of October. It will operate 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturdays through Oct. 28.

“Farmers Markets have long been a way for communities to gather together to provide not only goods and services, but cultural exchange,” shared Vice Mayor Princess Washington, who spearheaded the effort

to bring the market to Suisun City. Unfortunately, the waterfront is a food desert so this will also serve as a way to provide fresh produce in that area.”

Washington credits Yolie Ramirez, of the chamber, for ensuring individuals on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program can use their CalFresh cards to purchase fresh produce at the market.

She specifically reached out to the chamber for their dedication in not only representing our local businesses, but in serving the overall community,

See Market, Page A8

Fairfield-Suisun Sewer District garners several awards

STaff DRNEWS@DAILYREPUBLIC.NET

FAIRFIELD — The Fairfield-Suisun Sewer District has again been recognized for outstanding performance by multiple industry associations. Two staff members have earned individual honors.

The District was recently awarded the following:

2022 California Plant of the Year Award, large from the California Water Environment Association. It recognizes exceptional accomplishments with regard to compliance, innovative practices, cost-effectiveness, and outstanding plant operations. The District received the same designation earlier this year at the local level from CWEA’s Redwood Empire Section.

2022 National Asso-

ciation of Clean Water Agencies Platinum Peak Performance Award, recognizing public wastewater utilities for outstanding compliance records. The FairfieldSuisun Sewer District received the ‘“Platinum 9,” for 100 percent compliance with regulatory permits for more than nine consecutive years. Individual honors were given to: Emily Corwin, senior engineer, who was recognized as a “Hidden Hero of the Greenbelt” by the Greenbelt Alliance, a nonprofit organization dedicated to educating, advocating, and collaborating to ensure that Bay Area communities are resilient to climate change. Corwin has brought several innovative naturebased climate adaptation solutions to the Solano

Bayshore region. Andrea Solis is an outreach intern at the District who was recently awarded

both the CWEA Kirt Brooks Scholarship as well as the California Association of Sanitation Agencies

Education Foundation Scholarship. These awards are given to promising students on a path to serving

the environment and advancing clean water in California. Solis is a graduate of Solano Community College and will transfer to UC Davis this fall to study civil engineering.

“We are honored to be recognized for our commitment to compliance and environmental stewardship. Our forward-thinking employees continue to demonstrate that they are the best in the State,” said Board President Rick Vaccaro, in a press release. “I’m really proud of the role that the District plays in protecting public health and the environment for the cities of Fairfield and Suisun City.”

For more information, contact District General Manager Talyon Sortor at 707-429-8930 or visit http://www.fssd.com.

She found a well-behaved dog in her yard; it was a K-9 officer

Tribune ConTenT agenCy

Camryn Escoto was away in Bakersfield since Wednesday when she noticed another dog while on Facetime with her uncle on Sunday.

She had no idea how and why the dog went to her home near Ashlan and Clovis avenues.

And little did she know it was the missing Madera County Sheriff’s Office K-9 Odin that was there with her German Shepherd.

Odin had gone missing since 4 a.m. PT Sunday when he left his handler’s home in Fresno and was last seen at Cedar and Bullard avenues after climbing over the top of his 6-foot kennel, and climb-

ing over the 6-foot fence of the backyard.

The all-day search came to an end at 10 p.m. PT when Escoto notified deputies that the K-9 was with her.

“I had no idea he was a police dog,” she said. “I guess he’s been here since

like 8 a.m. It’s been, it’s been a wild day. It’s been a wild day.”

She noticed Odin Sunday morning when her uncle gave her updates on her dog and said her dog was happy and “I’m like, who’s that?”

Escoto said she arrived home and got situated and got ready to take her dog for a walk.

Odin joined in on the walk, she said.

“What am I going to do,” she asked herself. “I went to open the gate and I had a collar on and I was trying to hold him back at the same time to let her out. I can’t restrain him and he just bolted out. I couldn’t control him. He’s way too powerful for me.

Bulris Named to University of Alabama Spring 2023 Deans List

SuSan Hiland

SHILAND@DAILYREPUBLIC.NET

VACAVILLE — Alexandra Bulris of Vacaville was named to The University of Alabama Dean’s List for spring semester 2023 in Tuscaloosa, Ala.

A total of 12,487 students enrolled during spring semester 2023 at The University of Alabama were named to the dean’s list with an academic record of 3.5 (or above) or the president’s list with an academic record of 4.0 (all A’s). These driven students are making waves across UA’s more than 70 undergraduate programs and 12 colleges and schools.

The UA dean’s and

president’s lists recognize full-time undergraduate students. The lists do not apply to graduate students or undergraduate students who take less than a full course load.

Suisun resident joins Phi Kappa Phi

SUISUN CITY — Ocie Stewart III of Suisun City was recently initiated

into the honor society of Phi Kappa Phi. Stewart was initiated at Eastern Oregon University.

Vaca man graduates from Cedarville University

VACAVILLE — Rhyan Fought of Vacaville graduated from Cedarville University in spring 2023, with a bachelor’s degree in nursing.

Do you have some good news to share? Send it to Susan Hiland at shiland@ dailyrepublic.net. Be sure to include Good News in the subject line.

He just continued on his walk with us. I didn’t want to get too close with him because I didn’t know his temperament.”

When Escoto went home after the walk, she said she called her dog trainer to see what she can do with the dog. She didn’t know it was Odin until she posted a message on Next Door. That is when people told her it was the missing K-9. Even her trainer told her.

Escoto said Odin was behaving and said he’s brilliant. She notified the Madera Sheriff’s Office that Odin was with her. Authorities

went to the home and said that was in fact Odin, who reunited with his handler.

“We cannot thank Ms. Escoto enough for her swift response reporting Odin’s location,” Sheriff Tyson Pogue said. “Our community has proven once again what a truly tight knit, compassionate, supportive place it is, and we are proud to serve each of you. We feel fortunate and grateful for this outcome, and once again thank all of those who helped the extensive search efforts today.”

Escoto said her dog is super aggressive, but wasn’t much so with

Odin around, which surprised her.

She’s just thankful Odin is back with his handler.

“I’m happy that I could help them locate their dog,” she said. “I really don’t have much more to describe it, but I’m happy that I could help them because I know how they feel; the feeling of not knowing where your dog is at, if they’re even alive, especially him being gone since 4 a.m. The longer that they’re gone, the longer the hope starts diminishing. I’m really happy that I could be of service and bring him back to his family.”

tions will be printed here.

Robinson Kuntz/Daily Republic file

Fairfield-Suisun Sewer District Wastewater Treatment Plant.

Madera County Sheriff’s Office/ TNS Camryn Escoto, with Odin, Madera County Sheriff’s Office K-9.

Solano County’s documentation lacking for countyapproved drivers

FAIRFIELD — The 2022-23 Solano County civil grand jury found 76 errors on forms needed for approval to drive a county vehicle.

The grand jury concludes that exposes the county to “significant risk and potential liability.”

There are two forms involved in the grand jury review, a county form and one from the Department of Motor Vehicles.

“Adequate completion of the forms amongst the various departments and divisions varied greatly. The sample tested consisted of 125 individual’s forms with 108 deficiencies noted, or an 86.4 percent exception rate,” the grand jury wrote in its summary section. “Completion of the two applicable forms required for approval to drive a vehicle on county business revealed several deficiencies. The most significant completion errors across both forms included the following:

n 20 individuals’ forms not provided.

n 34 approval sections on the form were blank.

n 42 forms lacked an approval signature (this number does not include the blank items).

“The fact that 76 forms lacked proper approval presents significant risk and potential liability for the county,” the grand jury wrote in the June 30 report.

There are more than 1,200 employees authorized to drive a county vehicle: 497 in the Department of Health & Social Services; 274 in the Sheriff’s Office; and 130 in the Probation Department. The next closest is 67 in General Services.

The grand jury essentially issued three findings and corresponding recommendations:

n FINDING

1A – County of Solano Authorized to Drive a Vehicle On County Business forms are not accurately completed or approved as required. Review of form attributes revealed a variety of 139 documentary exceptions.

n FINDING

1B – California Department of Motor Vehicle Employer Pull Notice Program Form INF 1101 titled Authorization For Release Of Driver Record Information forms are not accurately completed or approved as required. Review of form attributes revealed a variety of 137 documentary exceptions.

RECOMMEN -

DATIONS (For both 1A & 1B):

1. All applicable county departments must be provided with a

copy of the current Fleet Management list entitled Authorized to Fuel County Vehicles and a current list from the A-Check system (EPN database). Once obtained the two lists must be reconciled against each other and appropriate updates must be made as necessary.

2. The county must perform a full review of all department driver authorization forms on file for proper completion, approval, and filing. Moreover, each applicable county department must obtain any missing information and approval signatures.

3. The county must compare the names on the two lists (number one recommendation) obtained and make appropriate correction entries as necessary to the applicable Fleet and DMV system databases.

n FINDING 2 – The controls associated with required approval reviews and updates to fuel county vehicles list revealed weaknesses. Review of a sample of 125 employee’s forms found 108 had deficiencies resulting in an 86.4 percent exception rate. Annual department reviews for the purpose of ensuring compliance with the driver authorization and EPN enrollment are not effective and present risk and potential liability to the county.

RECOMMEND A -

TION 2 – Perform a Driver Authorization and Driver Performance Policy process review. The County Administrator’s Office engage the Audit Division of the Auditor Controller’s Office to accomplish this review. Scope of the review could include: Determine if there is a single source report to reflect current employees authorized to drive in the service of the county; Validate what procedures should be required during the annual department review and ensure they are properly documented; Verify proof of automobile liability insurance coverage at the required levels and maintenance of current California vehicle registration and license plates on privately owned or leased vehicles driven on county business; Verify once an authorized driver leaves County employment or assignment the driver’s name is deleted from the EPN program; Examine documented responsibility workflows for revocation and/or suspension of driving privileges. There appears to be conflicting instructions on whom is ultimately responsible via multiple handoff instructions.

Grand jury says alternative uses for treated wastewater should be explored

Daily Republic Staff

FAIRFIELD — The treated wastewater coming out of sewer plants in Solano County is “quite good,” the 2022-23 Solano County civil grand jury reported.

The jury, in a June 23 report, suggested in its comments that the treated water be made available for other uses “rather than releasing it into the ground or local waterways.”

“Overall, the quality of the effluent water from the treatment plants in Solano County is quite good. The

plants should be encouraged to work with federal and state Environmental Protection Agencies to develop ways to make this water available to county residents and businesses, rather than releasing it into the ground or local waterways,” the jury said in its comment section.

That followed two findings and corresponding recommendations:

n FINDING 1 – The Benicia Wastewater Treatment Plant depends on the city electrical supply, as it does not have plans to install renewable energy sources. In the event of a

Independence

California

Daily Republic Staff DRNEWS@DAILYREPUBLIC.NET

FAIRFIELD — California, with 150 historic landmarks, has the fourth highest number among the 50 states, but ranks 15th when ranked by landmarks per 1,000 square miles of land.

New York has the most landmarks with 286, followed by Massachusetts with 193 and Pennsylvania with 170, according to a study released by DealsDaddy.

Rhode Island has the most landmarks per 1,000 square miles, at 45.53, followed by Massachusetts (24.74), Connecticut (14.04), New Jersey (7.75) and Maryland (7.73).

California has 0.96 historical monuments per 1,000 square miles, the study showed.

“In order to determine which state has the highest landmark density, the team at DealsDaddy compared the 50 states based on the ratio of their land area, data retrieved from the U.S. Census Bureau and the number of historic places worthy of preservation verified by the National Register of Historic Places,” the study said.

The Fourth of Julythemed study also noted that 21 states have produced the 46 U.S. presidents, with Virginia having the largest number of presidents at eight. Ohio has had seven, New York five, Massachusetts four, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Texas, and Vermont, each with two, and California joins 12 other states with one each.

However, Martin Van Buren is the first president who was actually born in the United States. The eighth president was born on Dec. 5, 1782, in Kinderhook, New York. His first language was Dutch. English was his second language, according to historical reports.

The DealsDaddy study also noted the

states with the most Medal of Honor recipients, citing information from the National Medal of Honor Museum and the WorldPopulationReview.

The Medal of Honor, determined by Congress and presented by the president, is the highest award for men and women who

citywide electrical blackout, staff stated the plant can operate for up to thirty days on gas/oil fuel, the burning of which would diminish local air quality.

RECOMMENDA -

TION 1 – To maximize air quality of the surrounding area, continue to investigate the use of renewable energy sources to reduce fossil fuel use.

n FINDING 2 – As the Dixon Wastewater Treatment Plant does not capture methane gas produced onsite, available methane cannot be used as fuel for co-generation energy production.

RECOMMENDATION

2 – Investigate the benefits of installing methane capture equipment for digestive tanks and compost areas.

The report also suggests that those plants in the county that use chlorination as the final step of decontamination should instead explore the use of ultraviolet radiation like Fairfield does.

The report does noted that a number of plant staffs indicated such as switch “is an expensive upgrade and not feasible at the time of this report.”

from the Union forces – it comes as no surprise that New York (672), Pennsylvania (379), Massachusetts (265), Ohio (254) and Illinois (206) top the ranking when it comes to the number of award recipients,” the study shows. California has eight Medal of Honor recipients. Three honorees are buried at the historic Mare Island Naval Cemetery: James Cooney, Alexander Parker and William Halford.

There are eight civilians who have been awarded the medal, all of whom had direct ties to the military.

have served in the U.S. Armed Forces since the Civil War. It was created in 1861 and has been granted to 3,551 individuals.

“With 1,515, or 42.66%, of all soldiers and other military personnel having earned the Medal of Honor during the Civil War – all

And while the popular movie, “Yankee Doodle Dandy,” starring James Cagney as George M. Cohan claims that Cohan received the Medal of Honor from President Franklin D. Roosevelt, Cohan actually received a Gold Medal for “recognition of Cohan’s services as composer of two patriotic songs during the World War (World War I), “Over There” and “The Grand Old Flag.”

The movie also suggests the Yankee Doodle Dandy entertainer was born on July 4, but was actually born on July 3, 1878 in Providence, Rhode Island.

An man walks through the Fairfield-Suisun Sewer District’s treatment plant on Chadbourne Road, March 21, 2012.

Susan Hiland/Daily Republic file James Cooney, a Medal of Honor recipient, is one of the soldiers interred at Mare Island Naval Cemetery. Volunteers placed wreaths on some 1,000 graves of soldiers and their family members as part of the Wreaths Across America program, Dec. 19, 2020.

SHILAND@DAILYREPUBLIC.NET

VALLEJO — The third annual Greek Food Festival will take place from 11:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Saturday at Sts. Constantine & Helen Greek Orthodox Church. The festival includes live music and dancing and of

course, authentic Greek cuisine.

Money raised from the event helps support the church’s outreach programs, which help feed the homeless, and for general maintenance.

The church is located at 1224 Alabama St. For more information call 707-208-4605.

Vallejo police station continues to raise health, safety concerns

FAIRFIELD — Vallejo has done nothing to improve the conditions of its police station, according to a grand jury report, and the problems should be referred to the appropriate regulatory agencies.

The grand jury recommends that the Police Department be moved “given the health and safety concerns.”

The report also indicates the grand jury intends to “report the issue regarding the existing condition of the Vallejo Police Department facility to OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration).”

The 2022-23 Solano County civil grand jury went back to the Amador Street facility after the 2021-22 grand jury had determined the station had health and safety problems.

the general public,” the report, issued on June 30, states in its summary.

“After a review of the former jury investigations, independent inspections, and facility tours, the conditions remain the same. DIRE,” the report states. “Recommendations were made over the past three years about the poor conditions of the building. A resolution has yet to be realized by the city of Vallejo.”

The report includes two findings and corresponding recommendations.

n FINDING 1 – The Vallejo Police Department facility continues to deteriorate, is deemed to be unsafe, and requires major repair.

RECOMMENDA -

SUISUN CITY — The Suisun City Train Depot soon will have a new foodservice business.

The city recently approved a lease with Mama Laine’s Cafe. A staff reported the sole propri etor had been looking for a brick-and-mortar location.

The wholesale bakery has been a staple at local events include the Moth er’s Day Artisan Fair and the Cinco de Mayo, both held on the city’s water front. Mama Laine’s Cafe has also been at Fairfield, Vacaville and Vallejo events.

“It’s a very exciting opportunity to get someone in that building that hasn’t been occupied for some time,” said senior planner John Kerns.

As more people find out they can get food there, and word gets out, Kerns said the city will realize very helpful revenues.

Councilman Amit Pal, who has traveled by Amtrak, “The fact that it will be there is amazing,” he said.

Owner Elaine PerkinsSmith, in an email, said she is hoping for a Labor Day weekend opening.

“We chose that location because it’s easily accessible, and we’re excited to serve the surrounding community,” she wrote.

The lease agreement is structured so that the city would realize 8 percent of the gross revenues from the lessor in Year 1; 9 percent of the gross revenues in Year 2; and 10 percent of the gross revenues in the third year and beyond.

The city needs to spend about $10,000 to complete the necessary interior ADA improvements.

Over the years, the city has entered into lease agreements with several entities to occupy the existing vendor spaces.

Last year, the city opened a request for proposals process resulting in three submittals.

Within the last few months, staff has been in

lease negotiations with Mama Laine’s Café, which will offer grab and go food and drinks.

Proposed hours are 6 a.m. to 3 p.m. weekdays. Equipment needed to start are a convection oven, coffee makers, refrigeration, prep table, and sandwich prep table.

For information on Mama Laine’s visit https://www. mamalainesweets.com.

“This report is a follow-up to the 2021-2022 Solano County Civil Grand Jury report about the Vallejo Police Department and the facility conditions. The Police Department is located at 111 Amador St. in Vallejo and continues to occupy a building facility that is deteriorated and possibly hazardous to staff and

TION 1 – The jury recommends that the lack of repair of the Vallejo Police Department facility be referred to the appropriate regulatory agency.

FINDING 2 – Moving the Vallejo Police Department out of its current location is warranted given the health and safety concerns.

RECOMMENDATION 2 – Relocation is highly recommended. The report was issued on June 30.

Solano Sheriff’s Office offering youth academy

Daily Republic Staff DRNEWS@DAILYREPUBLIC.NET

FAIRFIELD — The Solano County Sheriff’s Office is hosting a youth academy for ages 11 to 16.

Participants will meet from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. July 31 through Aug. 4. Snacks and lunches are provided.

Youth will get a handson-experiences in a variety of fields includ

ing K9 demonstrations, investigations, animal control and more. Applications are due by July 19. Class size is limited. Download the materials at https:// na4.documents.adobe. com/public/esignWidget ?wid=CBFCIBAA3AAAB LblqZhBoKV9Ol8d_0ef5 JLtHqLQlBCVQQi5zg1h NyYWhtJtzCO_PteEU3z 4i7zRid8dF8L0.

Daily Republic Staff DRNEWS@DAILYREPUBLIC.NET

SuSan HilanD

Susan Hiland/Daily Republic file (2018)

Maria Tsoni, Georjia Tsoni and Katerina Bouzos took some time out of their volunteer duties to dance at the annual Greek Food Festival at the sts. Constantine and Helen Greek orthodox Church in Vallejo, sept. 16, 2018.

Daily Republic file (2016) local officials enter the newly renovated suisun City Train Depot after suisun City and solano County and solano Transportation authority representatives cut the ribbon to it, in 2016.

Aaron Rosenblatt/Daily Republic file

The solano County sheriff’s office Honor Guard lines up at the solano County Police officers Memorial service in Downtown Fairfield, May 11, 2022.

Students expecting a ‘fight to the death’ to get a spot in Stanford’s new Taylor Swift class

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Stanford student

Ava Jeffs is in her professor era.

The rising sophomore and lifelong “Swiftie” – a term used to describe fans of pop music icon Taylor Swift – is creating the cur riculum for a new English class that examines the singer’s songwriting over the course of her career. Swift is in the middle of a record-setting global tour, dubbed “The Eras Tour,” which takes fans through a more than threehour journey through her 10 albums.

Her latest, “Mid nights” – which dropped last October and broke Spotify’s record for the most album streams in a single day – was billed by Swift as “the stories of 13 sleepless nights scattered throughout my life.”

“The whole goal of the class is to dive into the art of songwriting, exploring the interplay between literary references and lyricism and storytelling in Taylor Swift’s entire discography, taking it one album at a time and trying to look at the evolution of using songwriting as a narrative form,” Jeffs said.

“It will draw parallels to classic works of literature and poetry in each album and gain a deeper understanding of the narrative power of music.”

The class is titled “The Last Great American Songwriter: Storytelling with Taylor Swift through the Eras,” and is a play on Swift’s song “The Last Great American Dynasty” from her eighth studio album, “Folklore.” It’s the second Swift class at Stanford after “All Too Well (Ten Week Version)” was taught earlier this year and gave students a chance to analyze the 10-minute version of the

song with the same name.

Jeffs, a computer science major, said the inspiration for the course came from her love of Swift and music in general. Growing up, she remembers her mom driving her to Target to purchase the singer-songwriter’s latest albums.

“When I listen to music, I’m a really big lyrics person, so I love to dive deep into the meaning,” she said.

Her Stanford application essay also was based on the song “Clean” from the album “1989” – a track she described as “healing” for her when she was battling an eating disorder.

To get the course approved, Jeffs created her own syllabus and reached out to nearly every professor in the English department until Professor Mark McGurl agreed to serve as a

sponsor. Jeffs will handle the curriculum and teaching, while McGurl will ensure the academic integrity of the class and its grading.

Stanford spokesperson

Luisa Rapport said in an email that the class is part of the university’s Student Initiated Course program.

“There are a handful of Student Initiated Courses offered per quarter,” Rapport said. “Student Initiated Courses are considered ‘activity courses,’ and allow students to explore areas of interest or enrichment.”

These types of classes are graded as “satisfactory” or “non-satisfactory” and do not count toward students’ GPAs.

Oriana Riley, a rising junior at Stanford who has been a fan of Swift’s since the singer’s 2012 album “Red,” said she expects a “fight to the death” during

Arrest made in early Saturday homicide

Daily Republic Staff DRNEWS@DAILYREPUBLIC.NET

FAIRFIELD — Police have arrested a Fairfield woman on suspicion of homicide.

On Saturday night, Alexis Burke, 27, was taken into custody for a homicide that happened earlier that morning.

Around 1:25 a.m. Saturday Fairfield Police officers were dispatched to a motel in the 2100 Block of North

Texas Street, following a report that a woman was possibly dying in a room. Upon arrival, officers located the victim, a Fairfield woman, 25, deceased. The victim's identity is being withheld.

An email seeking more information did not garner a response from the Fairfield Police Department on Monday.

Anyone with information is asked to call Fairfield Police at (707) 428-7300.

California child care costs among most expensive in US. Here’s how much it typically costs

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according to a 2023 study from the Annie E. Casey Foundation:

enrollment. She’s hoping to take the course if she can get in.

“I think she’s just a fabulous storyteller to model storytelling off of,” Riley said of Swift. “She’s consistently produced really good original music year after year. I also think she’s a really good role model for teenage girls and college-age girls, as well.”

Stanford isn’t the first university to offer Swiftcentric classes in recent years. Similar courses have popped up at the University of Texas, NYU and the Berklee College of Music.

Robert Thompson, the director at Syracuse University’s Bleier Center for Television and Popular Culture, said pop culture classes have been emerging at colleges since

California is one of the priciest places to access child care in the United States, where it can be more expensive to send your kid to daycare than it is to send them to college.

The state ranks in the top 10 for the most expensive center-based and at-home child care, according to the Annie E. Casey Foundation Kids Count Data book, a national trends book reporting on children’s well being.

Annual costs range from $11,000 to $13,000 a year.

For comparison, tuition and fees at Sacramento State come out to about $7,500 a year, according to U.S. News and World Report.

Child care annual costs in the United States has increased by 220% since 1990, according to the foundation. The hike has made it difficult for some parents to cover the costs, forcing some to quit their jobs to instead look after their child.

Here’s the breakdown on costs in California,

Top 10 most expensive states for child care

Center-based child care, such as a Montessori school, are usually operated in commercial spaces and not in the owners home. This type of care is also the most expensive option for a parent, on average. California center-based annual prices ranked ninth most expensive in the nation.

Average annual cost at a center-based child care facility in California:$13,408

According to the U.S. Census, the median household income in California is $84,097 a year, meaning center-based childcare could cost about 15% of this yearly.. For singles mothers the impact is much larger, the foundation wrote.

The study looked at all 50 states and Washington D.C., which ranked No. 1 for center-based care,

Terry Wyatt/Getty Images/TNS

nsaI songwriter-artist of the Decade honoree, Taylor swift performs onstage during nsaI 2022 nashville songwriter awards at Ryman auditorium on sept. 20, 2022, in nashville, Tennessee. See

Where is Kristin Smart? Scientists say they found human remains evidence in SLO yard

Tribune ConTenT AgenCy

Paul Flores’ conviction for murdering Kristin Smart closed one chapter in the 27-year-old mystery, but it didn’t answer her family’s most enduring question.

Where is Kristin’s body?

Solving that final part of the crime remains a top priority for the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office, and as it turns out, others as well.

Joining the effort are an environmental engineer, a scientist, a former FBI chemist and former prosecutor, who have banded together to look for Smart themselves.

Their findings from an innovative soil study – first reported by the Los Angeles Times –come from a familiar location: The backyard of Susan Flores, Paul Flores’ mother.

The team believes they have discovered evidence of a “human decomposition event” emitting from Susan Flores’ yard, but so far, no further known investigation by law enforcement has occurred there and the Sheriff’s Office isn’t commenting because the case remains active.

Susan Flores’ lawyer, Jeffry Radding, did not respond to multiple emails and phone calls asking for comment on the findings, and when a Tribune reporter visited Flores’ home to ensure she had a chance to address the allegations, her boyfriend, Mike McConville, took a photo of the reporter and threatened to call the police.

Kristin Smart knocked on soil tester’s door in college, he says

Tim Nelligan was in his junior year studying civil and environmental engineering at Cal Poly in 1996.

One week, he said, a tall blond woman knocked on his door – he lived offcampus – asking to use the phone. He let her in, she used their landline, then someone took her back to the dorms.

Then, about a week and a half later, that same woman was on the news. She was missing.

“That was quite a shock,” he told The Tribune.

He continued to follow the case over the years as he entered his environmental engineering career.

Fast forward to 2019: Nelligan had been an environmental engineer for two decades and owned Katahdin Environmental in San Clemente. One of his specialties, he said, is remediation, or reversing or stopping environmental damage, such as cleaning up storage tanks leaking underground.

He said he is “very familiar” with detecting volatile organic compounds underground and wondered if he could use that technology to help locate Smart’s body.

Volatile organic compounds are gas molecules that have a high vapor pressure and low water solubility, according to the EPA. Many are humanmade chemicals that are used and produced in the manufacture of paints, pharmaceuticals and refrigerants, while others emit from the natural decomposition process of living organisms.

“Cal Poly’s motto is ‘Learn by Doing,’” Nelligan said. “So really, I was committed, and I decided I’m going to do this.”

Soil near Susan Flores’ yard tests positive for human decomposition molecules, team says

Nelligan reached out to Steve Hoyt, who was

a Cal Poly lecturer in 1996 and received a doctorate in environmental science and now works as an environmental chemist in San Luis Obispo.

Hoyt founded Environmental Analytical Service, a lab that specializes in testing for volatile organic compounds in air and soil vapor, according to his company’s website.

The two identified which molecules to test for based on research from a 2017 study that isolated “the odor of death,” as well as 2004 and 2008 studies that analyzed the odor of human remains and created a database of the volatile organic compounds emitted from those remains.

A 2015 study also found that volatile organic compounds expended from a decomposing human body were distinguishable from those that came from decomposing animals.

Hoyt told The Tribune the two selected 50 volatile organic compounds that were specific to the decomposition of human remains, based on the research.

Studies identifying the specific compounds expended from human remains date back two decades, most with the goal of creating tools to better train cadaver dogs.

Then, Nelligan and Hoyt set out to the home of Marcia Papich, who owns the house next door to Susan Flores on East Branch Street in Arroyo Grande. Papich agreed to let the two test the soil near the back fence, which she shares with Flores’ yard.

Their first test was in February 2020.

Nelligan said the two applied the same methodology that would be used if they were looking for vapor from an underground leak, only they specifically tested for the molecules that are present when a human body decomposes. It involves drilling several holes as much as five feet deep across an area and measuring the levels found in each one.

The method is “industry standard” for testing in the EPA, but, to Nelligan’s and Hoyt’s knowledge, this is the first time it has been used to detect human remains.

Nelligan said the pair applied an “unbiased scientific approach” to the testing and took control samples in other areas near Flores’ yard. They were prepared for the test to come back without any human decomposition molecules detected.

But the opposite happened.

The results from that first test showed there were several volatile

organic compounds consistent with a decomposing human body concentrated at the border of Papich’s and Flores’ yards.

“I was shocked at the number of compounds,” Hoyt told The Tribune. “These are pretty unique compounds. They form like a fingerprint.”

The pair tested the area again in December 2020, August 2021, and March 2023. All yielded the same result: Molecules only present when a human body decomposes were present next to Susan Flores’ back fence.

The two used computer modeling to create heat maps that showed red zones spreading into Papich’s yard from beyond the fence line where volatile organic compounds were found at levels of more than 3,100 parts per billion in the soil in their highest concentrations.

“There’s something compelling about this site that keeps bringing us back, and we keep finding the same results over and over again,” Hoyt said. “It means that, you know, it’s just not some fluky thing that happened once.”

According to their data, more than 90% of the volatile organic compounds found when a human body decomposes were detected near the fence. The only compounds that were not detected were those associated with decomposing flesh, which would not be expected this long after Smart’s disappearance, Nelligan said.

The men said sent their research to

former FBI chemist Brian Eckenrode, who authored two of the studies that helped them isolate compounds to test for and later accompanied them on the March sampling. They said Eckenrode helped confirm their results and joined the team in 2021 when he retired from the FBI.

Eckenrode, who is now an associate professor in analytical chemistry at George Mason University, told The Tribune the method the two men used to collect human remains vapor was similar to what he used when he was collecting data for his research.

This is just the first time a method like this is being used in a case, he said.

The former FBI chemist attended the March 2023 test, where he helped collect more controls and confirm data from various test sites.

He said when anything decomposes underground, soil acts like a “trap” when it comes to the chemicals that are emitted, so they could be present for decades.

One of his studies at the University of Tennessee Knoxville’s Body Farm, Eckenrode said, included a body that had been decomposing for 20 years, and it yielded similar results to what Nelligan and Hoyt found near Susan Flores’ yard.

According to computer modeling of the data done by the team, volatile organic compounds were concentrated at the center portion of the fence shared between Papich and Susan Flores.

men’s findings will affect that theory.

The men also shared their findings with Chris Lambert, host of the “Your Own Backyard” podcast, which investigated the case. Lambert told The Tribune the findings were “interesting.”

“Because Kristin’s body is still outstanding, it’s compelling to me,” he said. “But I’m careful and always cautiously optimistic with this stuff because it’s not definitive and it’s not tied to Kristin.”

Lambert noted that Susan Flores’ yard has been searched twice over the past 27 years — once in 2000 by the Sheriff’s Office and again in 2007 during the civil suit.

Lambert, who has obtained documents from the 2007 search, said he didn’t know much about the results of the Sheriff’s Office search in 2000, but said it was thought to be not thorough, adding that there was no intention to dig the yard at that time.

The amount of compounds and their concentration suggest it is likely a human decomposition event occurred in the area, Eckenrode said.

Alleged molecules are in area that had never been searched, podcaster says

Former prosecutor Tim Perry has since joined the men to help them communicate with law enforcement. He told The Tribune that after reviewing the men’s work, “99 out of 100 prosecutors would authorize a search warrant.”

“Now it’s just the Sheriff’s Office’s option whether they want to leverage the science or not,” he said.

According to his personal website, Perry served as assistant U.S. attorney in the Southern District of California from 2008 to 2014. He then was appointed to Gov. Gavin Newsom’s chief of staff and deputy homeland security adviser at California’s Office of Emergency from 2019 to 2020 before later being appointed to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security under President Joe Biden’s administration, serving as chief of staff for Immigration and Customs Enforcement from 2021 to 2022.

The men have shared their findings with the Sheriff’s Office and the Smart family.

In a text message with The Tribune, Stan and Denise Smart said they admire the team’s commitment and scientific approach.

“We long to lie her to rest in the presence of those who love and cherish her along with those who continue to work to this day to bring her home,” they said. “Our hope is that NO stone will be left unturned!”

The Sheriff’s Office said it cannot comment on the case because “This case is on appeal and as such, it is still considered an active investigation.”

San Luis Obispo County sheriff’s Det. Greg Smith did tell the Los Angeles Times that the department is investigating the work to determine whether it might be useful in the case. Chief Deputy Nathan Paul also told the Los Angeles Times that sheriff’s officials have been in touch with the FBI about the research.

The leading theory – and the theory Paul Flores was convicted on – was that at some point Smart was buried beneath Ruben Flores’ deck before she was moved in February 2020. It’s unclear how the

The 2007 search, however, did allow digs. Ground-penetrating radar, which is used to detect underground anomalies to isolate a potential excavation area, was used in the search, but it could not go within two feet of the fence dividing Flores’ yard from Papich’s, Lambert said.

To Lambert’s knowledge, the area near the fence has never been searched.

To make it more interesting, Lambert said, the Flores’ family had installed two planter boxes adjacent to the fence in June 1996, about a month after Smart disappeared. Lambert said he knows this because Paul Flores said in his interview with investigators in June 1996 he had to help clean up concrete at his mother’s house.

Susan and Ruben Flores also both mentioned installing the planter boxes in their civil depositions, he said. It’s also the area where former tenants of Susan Flores said they thought they heard an electronic watch beeping, Lambert said.

Lambert says he would like to see the findings followed up on by law enforcement, but understands there are restraints in what evidence can be used to obtain search warrants, especially since the findings are using a new approach.

He added that the data analyzed by Nelligan, Hoyt, Eckenrode and Perry indicates there was a human decomposition event in that area, which means it could be ancient just as much as it could be Smart.

“There’s still so much we don’t know about what happened,” he said.

Lambert said it’s important to not jump to conclusions and try to make the findings fit into the prosecution’s theory or the timeline as it’s currently known.

“Because Kristin’s body has still not been recovered, anywhere that there’s compelling evidence of where she could be I would like to see followed up on,” Lambert said. “Obviously, if it’s connected to the Flores family and the Flores family are suspected of having her body or moving her body, I would like to see those properties crossed off and thoroughly searched.”

When it comes to the work they’ve done, Nelligan said he hopes the data is compelling enough for the Sheriff’s Office to take action.

He added that the team hopes to continue this work beyond Smart’s case to help with other missing persons cases and cadaver dog training.

Laura Dickinson/Tribune Content Agency photos

Paul Flores, left, appears with defense attorney Robert Sanger in Monterey County Superior Court in Salinas, March 10, 2023. He was sentenced to 25 years to life in prison for murdering Cal Poly student Kristin Smart.

A large portrait of Kristin Smart in graduation attire is on display at a candlelight vigil for the missing woman in Arroyo Grande.

Ruben Flores in the courtroom waiting for the judge. The jury for Ruben Flores’ criminal trial has reached a verdict, Oct. 17, 2022 in the Monterey County Superior Court in the Kristin Smart murder case. The verdict will remain sealed until the Paul Flores verdict is determined.

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without Smith

Tribune ConTenT AgenCy

Ahead of Independence Day, Vivica A. Fox is reflecting on her time starring in the alien-invasion film franchise of the same name – both with and without Will Smith.

In a recent interview with the AV Club, Fox stated that she wasn’t a fan of “Independence Day: Resurgence,” which premiered 20 years after the original “Independence Day” came out in 1996.

Fox reprised her role as Jasmine Hiller in the 2016 follow-up, but Smith did not return as Capt. Steven Hiller for the longanticipated sequel.

“I just didn’t feel like it was good and it lived up to the first one,” Fox told

AV Club. “I really feel we missed out by not ... bringing Will Smith back.”

Although “most of the original cast” returned for “Independence Day: Resurgence,” Fox added, Smith was “the one true link that was missing” and inhibited the film’s success.

When it debuted July 3, 1996, “Independence Day” broke box-office records and became an instant hit among audiences and most critics. Two decades later, “Resurgence” tanked at the box office and garnered overwhelmingly negative reviews. (The disaster movie received an abysmal 29% rotten rating on review aggregation site Rotten Tomatoes.)

Pickles Brian Crane

Zits Jerry Scott and Jim Borgman

Pearls Before Swine Stephan Pastis

Candorville Darrin Bell

Baby Blues Rick Kirkman and Jerry Scott

Baldo Hector Cantú

Vivica A. Fox says ‘Independence Day: Resurgence’ ‘wasn’t good’

Crime logs

FairField

SATURDAY, JULY 1

12:25 a.m. — Battery, 4400 block of AVONDALE CIRCLE

12:39

Harvard legacy admissions targeted after Supreme Court ruling on affirmative action

BloomBerg News

Harvard University

JULY 2

a.m. — Shots fired, 3900 block of BUSINESS CENTER DRIVE

a.m. — Indecent exposure, 2100 block of SANTA ANA DRIVE

a.m. — Drunk and disorderly, 2000 block of SAN GABRIEL STREET

a.m. — Battery, 2700 block of NORTH TEXAS STREET 10:42 a.m. — Battery, 1900 block of WEST TEXAS STREET

a.m. — Indecent exposure, LINEAR PARK PATHWAY

12:07 p.m. — Trespassing, 2300 block of EAST ALASKA AVENUE

1:38 p.m. — Vandalism, 300 block of EAST ALASKA AVENUE

2:12 p.m. — Hit-and-run property damage, OLIVER ROAD

was accused by minority groups of violating federal law by giving preferential treatment in the admissions process to children of alumni and wealthy donors, days after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the use of race-based affirmative action policies.

exposure, 1800 block of NORTH TEXAS STREET

12:19 p.m. — Forgery, 1000 block of WEBSTER STREET

12:47 p.m. — Hit-and-run property damage, TEXAS STREET

1:01 p.m. — Vehicle burglary, 1100 block of TABOR AVENUE

1:03 p.m. — Vehicle theft, 2000 block of STARLING WAY

1:52 p.m. — Trespassing, 2100 block of NORTH TEXAS STREET

3:35 p.m. — Vandalism, 5100

block of BUSINESS CENTER DRIVE

3:50 p.m. — Trespassing, 2100

block of NORTH TEXAS STREET

4:05 p.m. — Drunk driving, 1400

block of HOLIDAY LANE

4:15 p.m. — Shooting into a dwelling, 2100 block of CAMBRIDGE DRIVE

5:51 p.m. — Grand theft, 1300

block of TRAVIS BOULEVARD

5:56 p.m. — Reckless driver, PENNSYLVANIA AVENUE

8:35 p.m. — Vehicle theft, 2700

block of NORTH TEXAS STREET

8:52 p.m. — Drunk and disorderly, PARADISE VALLEY DRIVE

9:03 p.m. — Grand theft, 3400

block of NORTH TEXAS STREET

9:24 p.m. — Drunk driving, 1300 block of HOLIDAY LANE

9:50 p.m. — Indecent exposure, 2400 block of NORTH TEXAS STREET

9:55 p.m. — Reckless driver, PEABODY ROAD

11:29 p.m. — Reckless driver, HUNTINGTON DRIVE

From

Washington said.

“Not everyone can afford a brick and mortar, so this will allow many home-based businesses the opportunity to occupy space at our waterfront,” she said.

“The physical opportunity of the farmers market, coupled with the shop-online feature that the chamber offers, can create a huge shift in how smaller business are able to navigate the current economic landscape.

“Bigger picture, I’d love to see small businesses start at the market seasonally, create a virtual presence year-round, then grow into a brick and mortar permanently – all within Suisun City.”

The Wednesday Club hosted a Farmer’s Market in the summer of 2020. Washington praised the club for its efforts during the Covid-19 pandemic.

2:41 p.m. — Trespassing, 2100 block of NORTH TEXAS STREET

3:29 p.m. — Battery, 1900 block of WEST TEXAS STREET

3:44 p.m. — Battery, 500 block of WOODLAKE DRIVE

4:56 p.m. Trespassing, 1300 block of TRAVIS BOULEVARD

5:21 p.m. — Drunk driving, 800 block of TEXAS STREET

5:29 p.m. — Vehicle theft, 1300 block of TRAVIS BOULEVARD

6:57 p.m. — Hit-and-run property damage, 2700 block of NORTH TEXAS STREET

7:04 p.m. — Battery, 5000 block of FALLS COURT

8:58 p.m. — Trespassing, 2100 block of NORTH TEXAS STREET 10:25 p.m. — Reckless driver, MANGELS BOULEVARD 10:40 p.m. — Reckless driver, JULIA BERGER CIRCLE 11:15 p.m. — Drunk driving, 4500 block of BUSINESS CENTER DRIVE

SuiSun City

SATURDAY, JULY 1

6:33 a.m. — Assault with a deadly weapon, 600 block of TULE GOOSE DRIVE

10:04 a.m. — Vandalism, 1100 block of WHIPPORWILL WAY

6:38 p.m. — Fraud, 900 block of LIMEWOOD STREET SUNDAY, JULY 2 11:57 a.m. — Fraud, 500 block of WHISPERING BAY LANE

Washington hopes any interested party will participate.

“Suisun City is a beautiful environment and my hope is that this will provide locals and visitors the opportunity to enjoy the area on a regular basis to create the foot traffic that we need,” she wrote.

When Washington posted the news on her Facebook and got several messages of support for the market.

“Omg YES!!! Finally!! This will help the food desert that was happening there. I’m so happy I Could literally cry,” wrote Nikila Walker Gibson.

“I am excited to have it,” said City Councilwoman Jenalee Dawson, She credits Washington with the bringing the market to town.

The long-standing practice of legacy admissions flouts a provision of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 that bars racial discrimination in programs that receive federal funds, because about 70% of legacy admissions are White, the groups said in a complaint filed Monday with the U.S. Department of Education. “Each year, Harvard College grants special preference in its admissions process to hundreds of mostly White students –not because of anything they have accomplished, but rather solely because of who their relatives are,” they said in the complaint.

The minority groups seek a probe into Harvard’s use of donor and legacy preferences as well as a declaration that the school will lose federal funds if it doesn’t end the practice. The groups also want Harvard to ensure that applicants with family ties “have no way to identify” themselves in the admissions process.

The complaint comes as the United States continues to grapple with the fallout of the Supreme Court’s ruling ending affirmative action, which has been used by universities to diversify campuses after decades of racially discriminatory admissions practices. Harvard forcefully defended affirmative action and said it would find other ways to ensure diversity.

Harvard declined to comment on the complaint.

Justice Neil Gorsuch, in hearing arguments before the Supreme

Court in October, suggested eliminating the legacy preferences given to the children of alumni and others who gain an edge such as athletes and big-money donors. But colleges are so far mostly loath to scrap such preferences, which keep donors happy.

The groups suing Harvard argue that considering legacy status of an applicant does not serve a strong enough educational interest, and undermines accessibility for applicants more likely to be people of color.

By overturning affirmative action, the Supreme Court may have paved the way for more suits over legacy admissions, which is used by many colleges, said Jonathan Glater, a professor of law at the University of California, Berkeley.

“One reason that alumni give to colleges and universities is to enhance the odds that their kids will get in,” Glater said. “This practice bolsters development opportunities. So really, these claims highlight another way that how we finance higher education – here, the role of philanthropy –affects who can go.”

In anticipation of the Supreme Court ruling, a study by Georgetown University in March called for selective colleges to

“You think Jan. 6 is the last we are going to see.... Give me a break.”

scrap their legacy policies. The report – “Race, Elite College Admissions, and the Court” – held that doing so would help elite universities “maintain their newfound (albeit still limited) levels of diversity.”

While Massachusetts Institute of Technology has had a longstanding policy against legacy admissions, only a handful of other selective colleges have adopted such practices, including Amherst College and Johns Hopkins University.

‘Unfair, Unearned’

The complaint against Harvard over legacy admissions was filed by the Chica Project, the African Community Economic Development of New England and the Greater Boston Latino Network. The groups called the practice an “unfair and unearned benefit” based solely on “the family that the applicant is born into.”

“Your family’s last name and the size of your bank account are not a measure of merit, and should have no bearing on the college admissions process,” said Ivan Espinoza-Madrigal, executive director of Lawyers for Civil Rights, which represents the groups. The Supreme Court

ruling stemmed from a suit filed by Students for Fair Admissions, an antipreferences organization run by former stockbroker Ed Blum. On Monday, Blum pointed to his organization’s statement after the Supreme Court ruling, which said the elimination of legacy practices “is long overdue.”

“Because Harvard only admits a certain number of students each year, a spot given to a legacy or donor-related applicant is a spot that becomes unavailable to an applicant who meets the admissions criteria based purely on his or her own merit,” the groups said in its filing.

According to the complaint, Harvard receives “ substantial federal funding” from the Department of Education each year to provide for research programs in arts, science, medicine, business, design and public health.

“As a recipient of these federal funds, Harvard must comply with Title VI and applicable regulations, namely, the obligation to ensure that its programs do not use criteria that disproportionately and unjustifiably exclude applicants in protected classes, such as people of color,” the complaint says.

From Page One

red states over the past few months, was all about shoring up enthusiasm for Biden’s accomplishments and touting party accomplishments, while showering beleaguered local Democrats with some love, attention and a little campaign cash from his political action committee Campaign for Democracy.

Newsom cut the Idaho Democratic Party a $10,000 check for the event, the maximum allowed; it’s a sliver of the more than $3 million he’s funneled to Biden and Democrats in Republican-run states such as Florida, Tennessee and Mississippi over the last three months. This week, he’ll have private meetings with Democrats in Montana during an annual family Fourth of July vacation, with a stop later in Utah.

Newsom’s foray deeper into the national political arena has evolved since last year, when he ripped his party for not being aggressive enough in the face of Republican victories on the local, state and national level, including at the U.S. Supreme Court.

“I’m just trying to move from lament and critique to action and responsibility,” Newsom said in an interview with The Times in Boise. “No one wants to hear a critic. What are you going to do? And I had to answer the ‘what am I going to do’ question.

“I’m trying to build something,” he said. “But I’m trying to be complementary of the work that’s already being done.”

Boise to raise money for Idaho Democrats...and to export his litany of failed policies, including skyrocketing housing costs,” Idaho Republican Party Chairwoman Dorothy Moon said in a statement. “People are fleeing California in droves because they don’t want to live as serfs in Prince Gavin’s kingdom. I’m pretty sure his visit here to normal America violates some kind of California travel restriction.”

California Republican Party Chairwoman Jessica Millan Patterson said the state’s struggles should “serve as a warning to the rest of the nation.”

our values, and I think there’s a lot to brag about in that respect.”

Mike Madrid, a Republican political consultant and co-founder of the antiTrump group The Lincoln Project, said Newsom’s brand appeals to Democrats throughout the country, including in swing states, who are looking for a leader “unashamed and unapologetic” about running defense against Republicans.

The swing through Republican-led states gives Newsom the chance to remind local Democrats how critical they are in fighting back against what he described as a GOP-led “rights regression.”

“You think Trump, if he gets back into office, is not going to demand a third term? Give me a break,” Newsom said.

From Page One

Vendors can get more information at https:// www.fairfieldsuisun chamber.com/assets/ pd f/Suisun+FM+ Vendor+App.Rules+ %26amp%3B+Regs+2 023+Combined. n FINDING

1 – Emergency service communication is fractured throughout Solano County and puts the

But Newsom also has to contend with any side effects of his campaigning in red states like Idaho, one of the top states where Californians are fleeing, according to data analyzed by the nonpartisan Public Policy Institute of California. During Newsom’s tenure as governor, California has seen a surge in homelessness and a worsening housing shortage and affordability crisis, some of the issues cited in a recent PPIC poll showing that about 4 in 10 Californians are considering leaving the state.

“California’s farleft governor came to

Solano County residents and residences at risk.

RECOMMENDATION

1 – The County should install a uniform and consistent communications system that connects all emergency services.

n FINDING 2 – The Vallejo Dispatch Center reported 911 call pro-

“While Newsom runs a shadow presidential campaign, it’s increasingly clear he wants to take his failures from his own state straight to the White House,” Millan Patterson said in a statement. “You don’t want what Gavin Newsom’s selling.”

Newsom has dismissed that criticism as tired Republican talking points and a distraction from the cultural issues that underlie his trip.

“I’m not giving a California stump speech, never have in any of the red states I’ve been to,” he said, adding that his assignment isn’t a “Visit California” campaign.

“That’s not what this is about. I talk about the Democratic Party and

cessing times for fire and police far longer than every other agency in the county.

2

RECOMMENDATION

– Identify and correct issues to bring average call processing times in line with other county dispatch centers. FINDING

3 – There

While Democrats in decades past focused on the economy and shied from the more divisive cultural issues of their time, Madrid said, Newsom’s focus on LGBTQ+ and transgender rights, on gun control and environmental issues appeals to the white-collar, collegeeducated members of his party, along with certain Latino voters looking for a political home.

That could be a winning strategy in a deeply divided America in the middle of a culture war, Madrid said. As voters are looking for a champion on cultural issues, “Gavin Newsom is that champion.”

At least for now, Newsom is shrugging off the presidential compliments and sticking to the script.

“I guess I should be humbled by that,” he said. “But that’s not why I’m here.”

is a general acceptance among emergency service providers in the county to the idea of a consolidated dispatch center.

RECOMMENDATION

3 – Solano County Board of Supervisors should approve and begin the implementation of a consolidated dispatch center.

Scott Eisen/Getty Images/TNS file

People walk through Harvard Yard on the Harvard University campus in Cambridge, Massachusetts, June 29.

The WashingTon PosT

FRAN -

SAN

CISCO

— On a recent sunny Saturday afternoon here, a driverless car jammed itself between a lane of traffic and a painted red curb for several minutes. The Waymo vehicle parked itself diagonally, its rear sticking into the travel lane, as it waited for three passengers to hop in.

“These are very impressive machines, but they have a lot of kinks that haven’t been ironed out,” said San Francisco Board of Supervisors President Aaron Peskin, who watched as a bus slinked around the car and caused a brief buildup of traffic.

San Francisco’s windy, hilly and dense streets have been a prominent testing ground for new autonomous technologies, providing a glimpse into what a driverless future could look like in cities around the country as such vehicles become more widespread. But leaders here are fed up with the idea of being a guinea pig, saying the companies need to dramatically improve their AI-operated machines before rolling the technology out to the broader public.

Now the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) is weighing whether to allow Waymo and Cruise to expand their operations to 24/7 paid passenger pickup anywhere in the city, from the current restrictions set by the state around payment and areas and hours of operation. If state regulators on July 13 approve the companies’ permit requests, as has been widely expected, both companies will essentially operate as Uber and Lyft currently do in San Francisco - just without the drivers.

That would make San Francisco among the first cities in the country to offer such widespread service, and help solidify Waymo and Cruise as leaders in the internationally competitive industry of self-driving cars. It also would mark a major win for the companies, which argue that their technology operates largely without issue and could ultimately lead to safer streets in a city that experienced a spike of human driver-related road fatalities in 2022.

But the city has little say in the matter, which is regulated by the state. Still, officials have written letters of protest to the state regulators, fixating on a recent spike in incidents: driverless cars that have snarled traffic, interrupted emergency

scenes, disrupted bus routes and clashed with bicycles and pedestrians.

“We’ve had them run over our fire hoses. We’ve had our hoses get caught in their axles. We’ve had them block fire engines, and we’ve had them come into live active fire scenes,” said Jeanine Nicholson, chief of the San Francisco Fire Department. “We need something to change.”

She said the fire department has logged 66 incidents since May 2022, and that their frequency is accelerating. She added that she is “certain that we have not logged all of them.”

Nicholson fears even more havoc if state regulators approve the company’s request for expansion. Because the state is in charge of regulating autonomous vehicles, city officials are left with few options other than to tally up these incidents, complain loudly and warn that it’s only a matter of time before something catastrophic happens.

“I know this is the way the tech is going, and this is the way the industry is going, and that’s fine,” Nicholson said. “But don’t shove it down our throats.”

Though neither company would say exactly how many cars are on the city’s streets, they have become a ubiquitous presence in San Francisco as the state gradually lifts restrictions. Cruise currently has a permit to charge for driverless passenger pickups and drop-offs in limited areas of the city from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. The company also can offer free passenger service throughout the city at any time of day, with or without a safety driver. Waymo can charge for its rides throughout San Francisco with a safety driver present, and can offer fully autonomous pickup and drop-off if the ride is free.

Waymo has been operating its driverless paid ride-hailing service in Phoenix. Autonomous vehicles can also be found in several other cities, including Los Angeles and Austin. San Francisco has been an attractive testing ground for the companies - demonstrating that if this technology can work on the challenging roads here, it can work anywhere. The state commission originally planned to vote on the proposal June 29 but pushed the decision until July for “further review.” (John Reynolds, a member of the commission, is the

See Cabs, Page A10

The WashingTon PosT

After a very slow start, fire season may be heating up in the United States. Meteorologists are warning of a potential jump in fire activity as heat waves combine with increased ignitions during the July Fourth holiday.

While Canada’s recordshattering fire season continues to pour smoke across borders, there has been little contribution from blazes in the Lower 48. About 675,000 acres have burned so far nationwide - the lowest number at this point in the season in the past 10 years.

Wet and cool weather has kept fire danger unusually low out West. Massive forest fires, which spew the most smoke, are less likely this summer thanks to all of the snow last winter. Still, hot and windy weather in late June led to a marked increase in fire activity in Colorado and the Southwest, including Texas, according to the National Interagency Fire Center.

Despite improved drought conditions out West, dense vegetation growth is still set to fuel wildfires this year, especially at lower elevations. That happens to be where most people live, and human-caused ignitions usually spike on the Fourth of July.

We’re concerned, obviously, but the good thing is we’re so quiet to start that we’re in a much better position,” said Jim Wallmann, a meteorologist with the National Interagency Fire Center in Boise, Idaho. “We have more resources available than we normally do at this time of year.”

In the short term, the highest wildfire risk is in the Southwestern United States, where some areas are under an excessive heat warning through the holiday, with temperatures soaring above 115 degrees.

Swift

From Page A5

the 1980s. At that time, classes on Madonna were a student favorite – and often controversial.

“If a university’s mission is to try to figure out things about the human condition, yes, it’s important that we study wars and presidents. But I think

Care

From Page A5

with an average annual cost of $24,396.

Family-based child care, which is typically

“That’s where the fuels are driest right now, and they also have a lot of grass in the lower elevations from last year’s monsoon,” Wallmann said.

Last week, more than 1,100 people evacuated their homes near Scottsdale, Ariz., during a fast-moving brush fire.

Because this year’s monsoon is delayed and could be weak, the region could stay hot and dry well into the summer.

Another area of concern is the Pacific Northwest, which has already faced repeated heat waves that melted off mountain snow several weeks early. This week, Oregon is under heat advisories, while fire weather alerts have been issued for parts of Washington state.

“Portland is going to be well into the 90s,” Wallmann said. “And they really have had very little rainfall since May 1, even west of the Cascades in Seattle and the Olympic Peninsula.”

The Tunnel 5 Fire broke out about 30 miles east of Portland on Sunday, forcing evacuations and destroying several structures, according to the

it’s also important that we study lawn ornaments and sitcoms and love songs and those kinds of things,” Thompson said.

While Jeffs is still working out the details of the course, she hopes to focus some on Swift’s ability to create entire worlds based on cities, time periods, seasons and color schemes in her different albums. She also wants to highlight Swift’s celebration of girlhood –

operated in the owner’s home, tends to be more affordable than centerbased care, but still starts in the five-figure range.

California family-based annual prices ranked sixth most expensive in the nation. Washington D.C.

Skamania County sheriff’s office.

In California, where the Sacramento Valley topped 110 degrees over the weekend during summer’s first heat wave there, officials warned of potentially significant blazes despite the state’s wet winter.

“The abundant rain has produced tall grass and other vegetation that’s dried out already and is ready to burn,” said Joe Tyler, director and fire chief for Cal Fire, at a briefing on Thursday. “As the Fourth of July is quickly approaching us, I’m asking each of you to be mindful of how quickly a fire can have devastating consequences.”

A small but fast-moving grass fire destroyed two homes last week near the town of Perris, Calif., in Riverside County.

The heat combined with low humidity will keep fire conditions elevated this week, according to Matt Shameson, a meteorologist with the Southern California Geographic Area Coordination Center in Riverside. “We have an abundant grass crop, which is fully cured below 3,000 feet, so it’s going to

especially since she said a lot of classic literature has lacked an accurate representation of what coming of age looks like for young women.

On her TikTok page, Jeffs has begun revealing some of her ideas for the course. In a video posted last Tuesday, she teased a week-by-week breakdown, with week two focusing on Swift’s second album, “Fearless,” which Jeffs called “the romantic ide-

again ranked first, averaging $19,291 a year.

Average annual cost at a family-based child care facility in California:$11,607

be very susceptible to new ignitions,” he said. While grass fires can be dangerous, they tend to be short-lived and more easily extinguished than fires in heavier vegetation. “They can burn quickly, but your total number of acres is usually much smaller than the bigger timber fires that we get up in the mountains,” Shameson said.

The good news is that heavier vegetation, like brush and forests, remain moist from the wet winter and will need more time, or a lot more heat, to dry out.

California is expected to see normal to below-normal fire danger through late summer. The highest fire risk is in the northern part of the country.

The Great Lakes region has been very dry, with worsening drought since early May. Although recent rains have dampened fire danger, forecasts suggest that relief won’t last through the summer.

“They’ve had a lot more fires than normal, but they haven’t gotten really big,” Wallmann said. “We could start having more problematic fires there as we head into late July and August.”

alism era.” Week five will focus on “1989,” named for the year Swift was born, in what she has identified as the “new city, new sound era.” It was also the singer’s debut in pop music and was inspired by her move to New York City and the synth-pop sounds of the 1980s. Swift returns to Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara this month, playing shows on July 28 and 29.

When taking into account California’s average household income, family-based child care amounts to about 13% yearly.

SF may soon get 24/7 driverless cabs; city leaders are fuming

The U.S. wildfire season has been eerily quiet; that could soon change

former managing counsel at Cruise.)

Terrie Prosper, a spokesperson for the CPUC, said in an email that as driverless cars continue to evolve and expand, the commission is “actively working” to put in place policies that would monitor the technology.

In a statement, Michelle Peacock, global head of public policy at Waymo, urged the state to consider the proposal as soon as possible and that “every day of delay in deploying this live-saving technology has critical impacts on road safety.”

“In over a million miles of fully autonomous operations, we had no collisions involving pedestrians or cyclists, and every vehicle-to-vehicle collision involved rule violations or dangerous behavior on the part of the human drivers,” the statement said, referring to self-reported data detailed on the company’s blog.

Hannah Lindow, spokesperson

for Cruise, said it share’s San Francisco’s “vision of safer roads and will continue to look for ways to build toward that future in our regular meetings with” city officials.

As part of the conditions of operation in California, the companies are required to report certain information, such as mileage and collision events, to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the California Department of Motor Vehicles and the CPUC.

Jeffrey Tumlin, director at the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency, said current reporting doesn’t go far enough. Tumlin said he wants additional information on more minor incidents - such as when a car veers into a bike or bus lane, stops short and disrupts traffic or misinterprets directions from a traffic cop.

Without that data, he said, officials are left to cobble together their own from the fire and police departments, traffic cameras - and people who happen to capture incidents on their phones.

In June 2022, for example, an autonomous vehicle ran over a fire

hose at an active emergency scene, according to an incident report from the fire department. Then, after a major rainstorm downed trees and some wires in a San Francisco neighborhood, an autonomous vehicle drove through the caution tape roping off the scene and entangled itself in the wires, according to a report written in March 2023.

Cruise and Waymo both said they’ve met with city leaders, with Waymo adding that it has provided the fire department with training on how to deal with cars at an emergency scene. Both companies pointed to the difference in life-threatening incidents vs. inconveniences.

While Tumlin said these cars are “amazing” and that he believes that one day they will advance traffic safety in San Francisco, they’re currently more like a teenager on a learner’s permit or his 82-year-old grandfather.

“We need to acknowledge that this is a technology in development, and we don’t expect it to be perfect,” he said. But “generally when it comes to new technologies, I prefer to be a fast follower than a beta tester.”

Sacramento man who sexually assaulted 9-year-old sentenced to 30 years in prison

Tribune ConTenT AgenCy

A Sacramento man was sentenced to 30 years in prison after he was convicted of sexually assaulting a 9-year-old, authorities said.

Bobby Brewer Sr., 71, of Sacramento, was convicted by a jury on May 16 on 12 counts of committing lewd acts upon a child under 14. He was sentenced Friday by a judge.

At trial last month, a jury found that the victim was vulnerable

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and that Brewer took advantage of a position of trust, according to Sacramento courts. The jury ruled that Brewer used “planning and sophistication” to carry out the crime, according to a news release from the Sacramento County District Attorney’s Office. Brewer allegedly took the 9-year-old victim to the movies and other outings. It was during these outings that the sex crimes would take place, according to prosecutors.

Oldest living Wimbledon champ about to turn 100 B2

Wednesday, July 5, 2023

SECTION

A’s value could double with move to Vegas

Shea SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE

If and when shovels hit the ground for a new ballpark on the Las Vegas Strip, the financial fate of the Oakland Athletics as well as the San Francisco Giants will change forever.

The A’s would finally replace the antiquated Coliseum, albeit a 547.6-mile drive from their home of 56 years. And the Giants would be in a one-team market for the first time since 1967.

The value of each franchise should increase, though how much is a matter of debate. The A’s, who have already secured $380 million in Nevada public funding for a ballpark, could capitalize on the lucrative gambling industry. The Giants could use their Bay Area monopoly to try to secure more lucrative sponsorships.

Based on interviews with sports economics experts, the A’s would have more financial upside than the Giants for a variety of

reasons. They’re starting from an extreme low point, near the bottom of MLB’s 30 teams’ valuations, and would be moving into a new ballpark right next door to a casino.

“It’ll have a huge effect on the value of the A’s,” said Roger Noll, Stanford economics professor emeritus and expert on stadium financing. “Obviously, getting a subsidy of that magnitude is a good deal. The value of the A’s franchise will go way up, maybe double or more.

“The effect on the Giants will be positive but small.”

Benefiting from legalized gambling could be a boon for A’s owner John Fisher and help offset the limited space (perhaps no more than nine acres), capacity (30,000) and media market size (40th in the nation) the A’s would be moving into.

“It’s a reason Las Vegas is an attractive site,” Noll said. “They’d be able to integrate a gambling casino into the stadium.

Levengood center of attention on Oregon State offensive line

M att MilleR MMILLER@DAILYREPUBLIC.NET

FAIRFIELD — Oregon State center Jake Levengood might be on the radar of a lot of offensive line scouts.

The Oregon State football season is still more than a month away but the Vacaville High School graduate is already gaining notice. Phil Steele, who annually compiles his own preview magazine, named him a third-team All-American going into the 2023 season.

Levengood also likely

will be on the Rimington Trophy watch list . He earned the same honor as a redshirt sophomore last season.

The 6-foot-4 Levengood played in all 13 games for a Beavers team that went 10-3 overall in 2022 and beat Florida 30-3 in the Las Vegas Bowl.

Levengood and his linemates – one of the Pac-12's best units – helped Oregon State running backs rush for an an average of 196.5 yards per game.

The Vacaville native was an honorable mention All-American last season

and was named third team All-Pac-12.

Oregon State opens the season Sunday, Sept. 3 at San Jose State. n n n

Jesse Scholtens (Rodriguez) pitched four innings Friday night at the Coliseum in Oakland against the A's.

The 29-year-old righthander allowed six hits and three earned runs to go with one walk and three strikeouts. The A's picked up a rare win, beating the White Sox 7-4.

Scholtens is 1-2 this

People in the sports industry believe that is going to be the next major source of profitability. Zero costs, and it could be a billion dollars in profits.”

California voters rejected two competing ballot measures in November that would have legalized sports betting in the state. In Nevada, anything goes. Bets can be taken on anything at any time, and MLB is all-in on cashing in.

However, according to Nevada’s Senate Bill

1 – 28.3(c), no licensed gaming establishment would be permitted within the sports and entertainment improvement tax district, including in the ballpark. But that wouldn’t prevent the A’s from cutting deals with casino sponsorships, following in the Raiders’ footsteps.

“Clearly, gambling opportunities that don’t exist in California do open the door for opportunities when the A’s leave,” said

See Value, Page B10

Warriors felt Green needed to remain key part of lineup

Shayna Rubin THE MERCURY NEWS

One minute after NBA free agency kicked off on Thursday, Draymond Green and the Warriors agreed to terms on a contract. Yes, it was that urgent for Green to lock in at least three more years to keep alive the dynasty he helped create.

Immediately, Green’s four-year, $100 million deal with a final year player option furrowed brows for some valid reasons. He’s 33 now and will be 37 when he reaches unrestricted free agency. It’s fair to wonder how an undersized player who has 12 years of wear and tear playing uniquely physical defense will stay healthy and competitive late into his 30s.

Chris Paul as Green reestablished his domain with a big contract.

The Warriors eagerly committed to a risk. Moreover, it was never really a question he’d return.

“We really want Draymond back,” new general manager Mike Dunleavy Jr. said at his introductory news conference. “What he means in terms of this organization and this team, winning at the highest level, we feel like we have to have him.”

Outweighing the negatives that Green comes with is a distinct positive: The Warriors cannot win another title without Green. And that is the only priority this season and for as long as 35-year-old Steph Curry is in a Warriors uniform. As it should be.

season with a 2.96 ERA in 27 1/3 innings and has struck out 16 batters. He recorded a save June 17 in Seattle and picked up a win June 25 in Chicago against the Boston Red Sox.

Scholtens is pitching for the first time in the major leagues this season after an extensive minor league career.

n n n

Tony Gonsolin (Vacaville) has struggled of late in his last three starts with the Los Angeles Dodgers. The 29-year-old right

See Alumni, Page B10

Cordelia Tri-Valley All-Star 10s win District 53 tournament championship

Daily Republic Staff

DRNEWS@DAILYREPUBLIC.NET

FAIRFIELD — The Cordelia Tri-Valley AllStar 10s needed two games but came away with the District 53 Little League championship Sunday.

Tri-Valley roared back with a 10-3 win over Sonoma at the Sonoma Little League ball fields, one day after losing 5-2. Caleb Carranza’s team had entered the final round unbeaten.

“It was a group effort offensively and the defense was much cleaner (Sunday),” said Carranza, the team’s manager and league president.

Tyson Ramos pitched four strong innings Sunday. It was Ramos,

Lathan Carranza and Elijah Kelly who pitched on Saturday. Lathan Carranza threw 4 2/3 innings of solid relief.

The Tri-Valley 10s will compete in section competition beginning Thursday, July 13. The

team features Brenden Anderson, Carranza, Grant Collard, Landon Freeman, Kaleb Galvan, Ryan Lassen, Felipe Hernandez, Griffin Hokett, Major Keene, Kelly, Rowan Knight, Ramos and Cristian Saldivar.

Caleb Carranza’s coaches are Cristian Saldivar and Tyrone Ramos.

In other action, the District 53 All-Star tournament for 12s is under way at Tri-Valley Little League. Fairfield Atlanta, Suisun and Tri-Valley are all competing against American Canyon, Benicia, Napa American, Napa National, Sonoma, St. Helena and Vallejo.

Benicia was the championship in the 11s tournament and American Canyon was the winner among the 50/70 intermediates. The Junior Division is ongoing with Sonoma, Napa and St. Helena the final three competing at St. Helena High School.

And for the cynical, one has to wonder how Green could be rewarded after throwing a literal devastating blow last season. The team’s main guys linked their derailed title defense season to Green punching Jordan Poole in the face before the season even began. Now 24-year-old Poole has been shipped to Washington for 38-year-old

It’s twisted, but the front office and, most importantly, head coach Steve Kerr and Curry, learned early on in these dynasty years that Green’s most disruptive and unconventional qualities are also the ones that have made this team unsinkable – the rest of the NBA’s most intimidating foe since 2014.

See Green, Page B10

Expos win tight weekend games in WABF tourney

Daily Republic Staff DRNEWS@DAILYREPUBLIC.NET

FAIRFIELD — The Fairfield Expos picked up a pair of one-run victories Saturday and Sunday at the Western Amateur Baseball Federation tournament at Laurel Creek Park. Fairfield beat East Bay 2-1 Saturday night and followed it up with a 3-2 win over Delta Valley.

On Saturday, Aaron Strong doubled home Blake Bozzini in the bottom of the sixth inning with two outs for the win. Drew Carrington, Jace Parkinson, Connor Broschard and Isaiah Pazmino all had hits. Eli Blurton drove in a run.

Grant Genter pitched six scoreless innings of one-hit ball with four strikeouts. Jackson Kolakoski closed out the game with two strikeouts

for the save.

Fairfield's American Legion baseball team followed that win up with the victory over Delta, scoring single runs in the fourth, fifth and sixth inning. Parkinson had two hits and drove in a run. Bozzini had a hit and an RBI. Blurton, Noah Rodda and Landon Dodge also had hits. Broschard pitched four innings and had four strikeouts. Carter Preston, Matty Hague and Carrington also got time on the mound. Sunday's other games had Vallejo beating Napa 10-9, Petaluma over Vallejo 10-2 and All-Pro playing East Bay to a 10-10 tie. Delta played Vallejo on Monday with East Bay against Petaluma, All-Pro versus Napa and the Expos against Clovis.

John

Courtesy Photo The district champion Cordelia Tri-Valley 8-9-10 all--stars.

ALUMNI UPDATE

Howard Lao/TNS file (2022)

Oregon State offensive lineman Jake Levengood (70) looks on after the Beavers beat the Montana State Bobcats 68-28 in a college football game at Providence Park in Portland, Sept. 17, 2022.

TV sports

Oldest living Wimbledon champ turning 100 soon in Simi Valley

Mike SielSki THE PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER PHILADELPHIA —

The oldest living Wimbledon champion doesn’t take in much tennis anymore. It bores him. Too much power. Too many booming serves and baseline rallies.

TV sports

When Vic Seixas was learning the sport in Overbrook Park during the dawn of the Great Depression, working as a ball boy at the mediocre neighborhood clubs where his father played, he preferred a slashing, serve-and-volley style. Most players back then did. Get to the net. Challenge and finesse your opponent from there. That was how Seixas won Wimbledon in 1953 and the U.S. National Championship in 1954. That was how he helped the United States win one of the most memorable events in tennis history: the 1954 Davis Cup. That is why, even though Wimbledon has began, Seixas will wait until the second week of matches to tune in.

“I watch the end,” he said.

In the meantime, he will spend his days as he usually does, as he approaches a pair of remarkable milestones: the 70th anniversary of his Wimbledon victory was Tuesday, and his 100th birthday on Wednesday, Aug. 30. Wheelchair-bound, Seixas gets around OK inside his apartment at Harbor Point Tennis Club in Simi Valley.

“I keep pretty busy,” he said over the phone Monday.

King rookie Jones carves path from Alabama to NBA

ChriS BiderM an THE SACRAMENTO BEE

Colby Jones had a stomach bug and couldn’t keep food down. He was getting IVs to stay hydrated while staying in bed, hoping he could play the following night against Big East rival Seton Hall in the third conference game of the season.

But not much was helping the junior at Xavier. Jones struggled to get through a shootaround before the Dec. 20 game, leaving his coaches to think he would sit out to let the nausea subside.

“I was pretty down bad,” Jones said in an interview with The Sacramento Bee. “I really wanted to play because I was the leader of the team. I was one of the guys where (my teammates) would see what I was doing and just carry that throughout the season to just make our team tougher.”

Jones wound up playing through his illness and continued to throw up at halftime. His nausea would kick in when he sat on the bench, but playing basketball helped keep his mind off it. His competitive nature kicked in and served as a welcomed distraction.

The result: 16 points, eight rebounds, six assists, three blocks and a steal. Xavier won, 73-70, and Jones moved his feet to prevent Seton Hall’s Kadary Richmond from scoring while it was a one-point game in the final minute. Richmond turned the ball over because he couldn’t get around Jones to the rim. The ball slipped out of his hands.

“That’s who Colby Jones is,” Xavier assis-

tant coach Adam Cohen said in a phone interview.

“You’re gonna know what you’re gonna get. You’re gonna get his best, no matter if he’s sick, hurt.

You’re just gonna get the best out of him – and he’s going to continue to grow because he has the kind of mindset where he can keep improving. He knows he can keep getting better.”

Jones will take another important step in that process as a member of Sacramento’s summer league team. The Kings played the Golden State Warriors on Monday and play the Miami Heat on Wednesday in the California Classic at Golden 1 Center before continuing on to the Las Vegas Summer League.

Jones helped Xavier to a No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament and a run to the Sweet 16. He finished the season averaging 15.0 points, 5.7 rebounds and a teamleading 4.4 assists while often guarding the opponents’ best player.

He shot just 29.2% from 3-point range as a sophomore and knew he needed to improve if he wanted to make it to the NBA. He emphasized his footwork and shooting technique to hit a respectable 38% from distance during his final college season.

“He’s really smart on defense, blessed and physical,” Xavier head coach Sean Millersaid. “And I think Mike Brown and the Kings will really enjoy him as a rookie on offense and defense.”

The Kings traded up four spots in the second round of the NBA draft to take Jones with the 34th overall pick, hoping his intangibles and

See Jones, Page B10

At this stage of his life, busy means reading USA Today each morning, thanks to his “beautiful machine,” a visual magnifier that allows him to read the tiny newsprint. It means watching his favorite daytime game shows: Deal or No Deal and 25 Words or Less.

“I’m a big fan of Meredith Vieira,” he said. “I’ve been in love with her for a long time.” It means not venturing outside too much.

“I keep running into people I know,” he said, “and I can’t recognize them. That’s a little embarrassing.”

It’s also ironic, because in and around Philadelphia, Seixas doesn’t occupy the same level of fame and prestige that the city’s other longtime sports heroes do. As the writer Allen Hornblum, a close

friend of Seixas’, noted in a recent and excellent piece about him for MerionWest. com, Seixas is not nearly as recognizable here as Mike Schmidt, Julius Erving, or Bobby Clarke, but “the mention of Seixas’ name draws nods of recognition from sports fans stretching from New York City, London, and Barcelona to more far-flung outposts such as Johannesburg, Buenos Aires, and Melbourne.”

Maybe it’s the perception of tennis as a pastime of the elite, of the privileged and blinkered, that keeps Seixas out of people’s minds, though that characterization of both him and the sport isn’t accurate. Seixas was a four-sport athlete at Penn Charter. He was a World War II veteran who flew 14 kinds of aircraft – P-38 Lightnings, P-40 Warhawks, Black Widow fighters, three types of bombers – for the Army Air Corps. He was a late bloomer who didn’t play his best tennis until after he’d returned from the war, finished his undergraduate degree at the University of North Carolina, and turned 27. His father owned a plumbing store. The family was retail middle class, not of the stereotypical Main Line. His was an upbringing fairly typical within tennis.

“The milieu of the game

is often very affluent, but the milieu belies the game itself,” tennis historian Joel Drucker, who still covers the sport for The Tennis Channel and Tennis.com, said in a phone interview.

“The great champions don’t often come from the background of the private clubs. People think tennis was a Merchant and Ivory movie, like A Room with a View. And it’s more like Martin Scorsese’s Goodfellas.”

Six-foot-1, trim in his prime, Seixas couldn’t compete playing the style of tennis’ modern giants: Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer. His groundstroke game was weak. He beat his opponents by outworking them, by fighting harder than they did, by planting himself near the net and practically daring them to blast the ball past him – a Philly-style player if there ever were one.

“So amazing were his court coverage and his reflexes as a volleyer,” Herbert Warren Wind wrote of him in Sports Illustrated, “that on occasions he could ‘live’ at midcourt and forecourt when, really, you wouldn’t have thought he had a ghost of a chance.”

He was nearly 30 when he wiped out Kurt Nielsen in straight sets at Wimbledon in ‘53, and he had just turned 31 when he beat

Rex Hartwig the following year at Forest Hills. Three months later, more than 25,000 people – reportedly the largest crowd, at the time, to watch any tennis match of any kind –crammed into White City Stadium in Sydney to see the United States’ first Davis Cup victory in five years, a victory over Australia that was assured when Tony Trabert, Seixas’ partner, ripped a forehand winner.

“As the last ball landed six inches inside the baseline,” Adrian Quist of the Melbourne Age wrote the next day, “one could see the expression of delight that crossed the Americans’ faces. They leapt and grasped each other around the shoulders. Trabert said to Seixas, ‘We’ve done it, boy.’ But Seixas was too excited to reply.”

He never made the millions upon millions that today’s stars have. His timing, in that regard, was terrible. He came long before the sport’s Open Era began in 1968. Until then, pros played for the big money but were ineligible for the four major tournaments – the Australian Open, Wimbledon, the French Open, the U.S. Open – and amateurs played for the honor of winning the majors … and for expenses and pocket change.

“I didn’t miss anything by not having the money,” Seixas said. “That was not something I feel like I missed out on or feel sorry for. My wife and I traveled all over the world. We lived like kings and queens, and that was it.”

The oldest living Wimbledon champion does not want pity or a handout. It is enough that he can still be called the oldest living Wimbledon champion.

“The best part about that,” Vic Seixas said, “is that I’m still alive.”

The bittersweet part is that he is an example of the kind of quiet greatness that lives and lasts so long that it is forgotten. It is only when these rare, touchstone occasions arise – an anniversary, a birthday, a reason to remember – that a 99-year-old man with a frisky mind and a fondness for game shows gets to share his story for those who might hear it for the first time, in wonder.

A win-win? How the Sharks’ trade for Duclair could benefit everyone

San Jose Sharks winger Anthony Duclair said a former Florida Panthers teammate offered to help him get familiar with the area after he makes the move to the South Bay later this summer.

“(Joe Thornton’s) going to take me under his wing, he says,” Duclair said Monday. “I’m really looking forward to it.”

Duclair, 27, was acquired by the Sharks from Florida on Saturday for center Steven Lorentz and a 2025 fifthround draft pick. It was a shock for Duclair, who went from being in the Stanley Cup Final with the Panthers last month to joining the rebuilding Sharks – all in the span of about three weeks.

But Duclair said after speaking with Sharks general manager Mike Grier, and, of course, Thornton, about what might lie ahead, any concerns he had “turned quickly to excitement.”

“I’m just excited for the opportunity here in San Jose,” Duclair said. “We’ve got some good talent up

front and I’m just looking forward to getting there and meeting everyone.”

Perhaps this could be a win-win for both Duclair and the Sharks.

Duclair, who had 99 points in 137 regular season games with the Panthers over the last three seasons, including a 31-goal year in 2021-22 when Thornton was in Florida, figures to be highly motivated with unrestricted free agency awaiting him next summer.

Duclair, who is entering the final year of his threeyear, $9 million deal he signed with the Panthers

in 2021, could easily slot in the Sharks’ top-six forward group, alongside either Tomas Hertl or Logan Couture. He also could be a part of San Jose’s top power-play unit, perhaps filling, at least partially, the void left behind after leading goal-scorer Timo Meier was traded to New Jersey last season.

There’s no guarantee Duclair will thrive with the Sharks, who might soon be trading Erik Karlsson – the engine behind San Jose’s offense this past year. B

During the Panthers’ playoff run, Duclair played extensively with both

Aleksander Barkov and Carter Verhaeghe and had 11 points in 20 games, averaging about 15 minutes of ice time per game, in the hardest time of the season to produce offense.

“He’s someone who scored pretty consistently in the last few years of his career,” Grier said Saturday. “He’s shown that he can play with pace and play with good players and produce. I would say he’s going to have every opportunity to be in the top six.”

“I just want to make sure that whenever I’m out there, I’m making an impact,” Duclair said. “Being sound on defense and obviously chipping in offensively. I like to use my speed and my vision, and whoever I’m playing with, I always want to try to communicate and get better with each shift.”

Duclair said his biggest goal is to play a full 82-game regular season and then make the playoffs, something he hasn’t done in nine NHL seasons. In July 2022, Duclair sustained a torn Achilles while training and didn’t play in the NHL again until Feb. 24.

William Vanderson/Fox Photos/Hulton Archive/Getty Images/TNS

Vic Seixas of the United States holds the Gentlemen’s Singles Trophy after defeating Kurt Nielsen of Denmark at the Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Championship on July 4, 1953.

Matias J. Ocner/Miami Herald/TNS file

Florida Panthers left wing Anthony Duclair (10) competes for the puck against Carolina Hurricanes defenseman Jalen Chatfield (5) in the second period of Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Eastern Conference finals at the FLA Live Arena, in Sunrise, Fla., May 24.

Hector Amezcua/Sacramento Bee/TNS Sacramento Kings 34th pick Colby Jones displays his new jersey, June 27.

Columns&Games

Picture, chat made me think I was talking to a online scammer

Dear Annie: I had a chat interaction with a person on a website a year ago that sounds similar to the concerns of “Concerned Daughter,” whose 81-year-old mother was the target of an internet scam, and others who have written to you to tell of suspicious experiences online. On the site I visited, there was a picture of a man in a military uniform. I don’t think it was an American uniform. I think he started a chat with me because I use a picture of my folks, who both are wearing Army uniforms.

This person kept asking questions like, “Are you married?” and, “How old are you?” He tried to get my email address, and because he made me uncomfortable, I told him I don’t have one. He also tried to get me to go to some other site to communicate with him. I didn’t. He told me something about his family in an attempt to try to gain my trust. He made his military connection sound very secretive.

I am always cautious, and

I knew he must have been up to no good. One clue to my feeling this way was that he would use very low-scoring words in the internet word game we were playing. He dropped out of the game when he figured out I wasn’t going to be duped.

I’m thinking “Concerned” may need her mom to undergo some cognitive testing. — Not Duped

Dear Not Duped: Good for you for smelling out a rat. If something doesn’t feel right or honest in someone’s questioning and communication, trust your intuition. You are correct that it would not be a bad idea to have her mother tested.

Dear Annie: My husband and I have very different values. What he considers fun I consider boring, and what I consider fun he considers immature and exhausting. I found that separating as a couple helped both of us. I could not be myself when I was with him, because what we valued was very different –especially as I got older.

Horoscopes

ARIES (March 21-April 19).

The warrior energy doesn’t always have to do with war. Sometimes, it’s about knowing what’s worth fighting for and appreciating when you don’t have to. You’ll be enriched by food, fresh air and friendship.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20).

It’s a gag for the television audience, but hypnotists don’t always use fob watches to put subjects in a trance. Similarly, you don’t need a prop to command attention today because you have the power of your voice and intention.

GEMINI (May 21-June 21).

A little plan might fall through, but the big picture is still intact. In some way, the pressure is off you now, so celebrate this. Do you see the opportunity to make a new deal? All is moving in the right direction.

CANCER (June 22-July 22).

You show up and do the work. Whatever temptation, distraction, discomfort, drama, inconvenience or interference you encounter along the way, you finish what you started. Rewards are coming to you.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22).

You’re constantly learning and growing and sometimes you just want to stop and take stock of where you are. Love helps you do this. Someone to talk to and share special moments with will help you to realize your many blessings.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22). Certain endeavors seem pointless to you, but they matter to someone on your team, and so you prioritize them anyway.

Crossword

I was trying to preserve our marriage while denying my spiritual side (he finds spirituality too uncomfortable). Our conversations were superficial, and we increasingly argued over trivial things. After we separated, I found my depression lifted. I could freely pursue my spiritual growth and found great comfort. He seemed happier also, being able to pursue his hobbies.

I realize that when you print letters about couples growing apart, the issue of spiritual differences is frequently mentioned as the cause, especially as the years roll by. — Grew Apart

Dear Grew Apart: Sometimes separating is the best thing for a couple, and it sounds like you both are happier living apart. Not rushing into divorce, and taking the time to see a counselor, and then living separately to see if that made you both happier, was a very practical and mature way to go about your divorce.

Send your questions for Annie Lane to dearannie@ creators.com.

Today’s birthday

You’ll persist out of a sense of duty, loyalty and the correct belief that relationships have their own mysterious logic.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 23). Conversations will be complex and layered, and it will take a sophisticated mind and emotional intelligence to know just how deep things go. Try not to spend too much time in the depths, though. Bounce back to the surface for air.

SCORPIO (Oct. 24-Nov. 21). Avoid becoming overwhelmed and thus paralyzed. The correct move will also be easy. So just take it slow, step by step, breath by breath. It may also help to keep the brainstorming process separate from the planning process.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22Dec. 21). Even though wishing can’t make it so, much that is so began with a wish. It’s a day for wishing and dreaming without

a worry or care as to the practicalities. Why limit the scope of a wide-open wish?

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22Jan. 19). What a wonderful feeling to be the smartest person in the room. If only it meant something good – but it usually indicates you’re in the wrong room. Go where you can learn from the others and you’ll be better for the challenge.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20Feb. 18). You will have a physical reaction to reminders of what happened back there –evidence that you may still be processing an emotional charge from long ago. With conscious effort, and only when you’re ready, you can and will let this go.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20). Just remember, you’re a person who, like all people, will make mistakes. And though this can create a problem, you yourself are not the problem. You are working things out as you go, just like all the others.

CELEBRITY PROFILES:

“Avatar: The Way of Water” was among the top-grossing films of all time, and there are big expectations for the sequel next year starring Edie Falco as General Ardmore. The “Sopranos” matriarch is a moonchild who naturally fits the maternal roles she takes on, as moonchildren are known to do. Cancer is the sign of mothers and home. Falco was born when both the sun and Mercury were in Cancer. Write Holiday Mathis at HolidayMathis.com.

Bridge

by Phillip Alder

diamonds, South makes a negative double (assumed to have eight losers at the two-level), and West passes. What should North rebid?

BETTER BIDDING WITH THE LTC

This week, we are looking at the Losing Trick Count, which is used only once a fit has been found. It tends to be much more useful with major-suit fits because we are not wondering about three no-trump.

Today, you are sitting North. You open one spade (yes, some would kick off with two clubs), East overcalls two

This hand is badly undervalued by most of my students. However, let’s apply the LTC. North has only four losers: two hearts, one diamond and one club. That gives an LTC equation of 24 - (8 + 4) = 12. Even though the LTC is most accurate up to game in a major, when it tells you that you can win 12 or 13 (or occasionally more!) tricks, at least suggest a slam to partner if not strong enough to use Blackwood (or, more likely, because you have two immediate losers in an unbid suit). Here, though, North should immediately smell a slam and launch Blackwood. Yes, he would feel happier if using Roman Key Card because he would know that the heart queen was missing. Against six hearts, West leads the diamond two, low from a tripleton in partner’s suit that he has not supported. How should South proceed?

Rather than try to guess the trumps, declarer should win with dummy’s diamond ace, draw two rounds of trumps (maybe the queen will appear) and play off dummy’s top spades, discarding his diamond loser. Then he can quietly concede one trump trick and claim.

COPYRIGHT: 2023, UNITED FEATURE SYNDICATE

Sudoku by Wayne Gould

Bridge

Fill

digits 1 through 9, with no repeats. That means that no number is repeated in any row, column or box. Solution, tips and computer program at www.sudoku.com

BETTER BIDDING WITH THE LTC This week, we are looking at the Losing Trick Count, which is used only once a fit has been found. It tends to be much more useful with major-suit fits because we are not wondering about three no-trump.

by

Difficulty level: GOLD

©

by Holiday Mathis

What went wrong with ‘The Flash’?

DaviD Betancourt

THE WASHINGTON POST

It’s officially a Flash fact: DC Studios’ Scarlet Speedster bombed at the box office.

It’s been two weeks since “The Flash” debuted in theaters. In that time the film has yet to even cross the $100 million mark domestically (perhaps that finally changes this weekend) and has only grossed just over $100 million internationally (ouch) for a worldwide box office haul of $216 million as we approach a stretch of summer that should have been another box office burst of speed.

There was a time even just a few months ago when “The Flash” sparked buzz at CinemaCon and a consensus that the film would be a sure bet for a $100 million opening weekend. The film barely made half that. Some were heralding “The Flash” as the best DC film of the “Justice League” era. Not even close (that’s still “Wonder Woman” by a lot, folks). James Gunn declared “The Flash” to be one of the greatest superhero movies he’s ever seen in his first big address as co-head of DC Studios. But Gunn is a company man now: “The Flash” wasn’t made on his watch, but he said exactly what a studio head was supposed to say.

So, what happened? How is a film that was supposed to be an easy billion at the box office – with the much-hyped return of the GOAT Batman, Michael Keaton, a Latina Supergirl (Sasha Calle) who gave an impressive performance and a lot of multiversal surprises (regardless of how you feel about alternate universes at this point) – fail so hard? There are a multitude of reasons, starting with how DC Studios introduced Ezra Miller as their new Flash.

Miller was announced as DC’s new cinematic Flash in 2014, the same year “The Flash” television series starring Grant Gustin in the titular role debuted on the CW. Miller ended up doing a cameo with

Daily Cryptoquotes

Gustin during the CW’s “Crisis on Infinite Earths” crossover years later, but his casting gave off a vibe of corporate indifference, as if DC was saying “The Flash” television show didn’t matter in the grand scheme of things – all this despite the goodwill Gustin was building among comic book fans. An awkward approach given “The Flash” series lasted for nine seasons.

Then turmoil came for “Justice League.” When director Zack Snyder was forced to depart production on the film because of a family tragedy, reshoots under Joss Whedon tanked Miller’s superhero standing. Snyder had envisioned the Flash as the Justice League MVP, giving the character a defining end-of-the-movie moment of saving the Justice League and the entire universe single-handedly. Whedon’s version left that on the cutting room floor, using Miller’s Flash as comic relief in an effort to lighten up “Justice League’s” dark tone. The results were disastrous. “Justice League” was a box office failure, not even making $700 million worldwide.

By the time Miller’s defining superhero moment resurfaced years later on Max, with its incredible symphonic score and dazzling special effects in the four-hour long Snyder Cut version of “Justice League,” the damage had already been done to the Flash movie brand.

It’s now clear that as “The Flash’s” debut neared, DC wasn’t satisfied with the prerelease buzz. Almost a month before “The Flash” hit theaters, director Andy Muschietti confirmed that Nicolas Cage’s version of Superman, which almost made it to theaters in the ‘90s, makes an appearance in the film. That’s the type of surprise that shouldn’t be ruined a month before a movie’s release date. The announcement came off as a gimmick to drive up hype. Perhaps the early box office tracking was beginning to come in and Warner Bros. and DC Studios realized they were

falling short of a $100 million weekend, but the apparent scramble was an odd play that deflated the moment of Cage’s longhair Superman appearing in “The Flash.” Most people who walked into the theater already knew it was coming. Meanwhile, numerous free fan screenings meant to ignite the fan base meant a lot of the fans who wanted to see the movie already did. The fan that sees a superhero movie four or five times in a theater is a dying breed, not because they don’t want to but because these movies hit streaming platforms so quickly. The one secret that seemingly didn’t get spoiled was George Clooney’s surprise cameo as Bruce Wayne at the end of “The Flash.” Why did that scene actually work? Because nobody knew it was coming. No spoilers please. Could multiverse fatigue have played a factor in “The Flash’s” box office returns? Absolutely not. Multiverse fatigue is just something your favorite movie critic likes to say. If that were really a thing, would “Across the Spider-Verse” have jumped back to the No. 1 spot at the box office?

Perhaps some in the superhero movie fandom just decided they were going to sit this one out. The combination of Miller’s personal controversies and DC’s lackluster promotion of the film can’t be taken lightly. DC’s recent casting announcement of David Corenswet and Rachel Brosnahan as Clark Kent and Lois Lane in Gunn’s “Superman: Legacy” feels like an attempt to muster up some good will in the wake of a disaster. In a world where “The Flash” is a box office hit, that decision probably wouldn’t be announced for several more months.

The heralding of a new Man of Steel feels like a future is now moment for DC. Don’t expect a speedy answer as to whether this particular corner of the Flash universe is still a part of those plans.

Word Sleuth

Crossword by Phillip Alder

Bridge

Now suppose in answer to your oneheart opening bid, partner responds four diamonds, a splinter bid showing four or more hearts, at least gamegoing values (at most seven losers) and a singleton (or void) in diamonds. What is your loser count now?

ADJUST THE COUNT FROM THE AUCTION

We are looking at the Losing Trick Count and using it to judge how high to bid once a fit is uncovered. Look at today’s South hand. How many losers does it contain, assuming partner has three or four hearts?

Right – five: one spade, two hearts and two diamonds.

You had two diamond losers, but now you have none because you can ruff your low diamonds on the board. That gives the LTC equation 24 - (7 + 3) = 14! You should bid eight hearts! Instead, you employ Blackwood. In answer to the second dose, West shouldn’t show a singleton diamond king. (Yes, Roman Key Card Blackwood would be easier.) How would you play in seven hearts after West leads the diamond king? The only danger is a 4-0 trump split. If East has all four hearts, you are down. However, if West has them, you are safe as long as you start with your trump queen, keeping the king and ace over West’s 10 and jack. You continue with a second trump, winning West’s 10 with the king. You return to hand with, say, a spade, finesse dummy’s heart nine, draw West’s last trump and claim. You take two spades, five hearts, one diamond and five clubs – as close as you can get to the 14 winners predicted by the LTC!

COPYRIGHT: 2023, UNITED FEATURE SYNDICATE

Sudoku by Wayne Gould

HBO/TNS

Ezra Miller stars as the DC superhero in “The Flash.”

THE OTHER SIDE

Tired of being a he-man

Iwork at Cal Expo and recently during the Sacramento County Fair I was in charge of placing all of the RVs in the RV park for kids in FFA/4H showing animals. The day before the guests were to arrive, I told my supervisor that one of the spaces had a metal table in the spot and maintenance needed to remove it. He told me not to worry about it that he himself and a coworker would move the table. Fine.

The next day when the guest arrived the table was still blocking the space. So, ticked off, I went over to the spot and grabbed the heavy table and began dragging it out of the way. It was hot out, the table was godawful heavy and I had no help. While the guest waited in her truck and fifth wheel, I dragged this table some 30 feet so she could park, tweaking my back in the process.

Later on, while icing my back, I thought, did I move that table myself instead of calling maintenance to accommodate that guest or did my he-man male ego take over and I had to move that table like the incredible Hulk to impress the woman waiting in the truck.

For millenia men have been doing stupid feats to impress women. A pretty woman walks into a room of men and you’ll see the men suck in their guts and try to portray a picture of virility.

Maybe it’s hormonal. Perhaps it’s a testosterone thing. Or maybe it’s just ego. After all, no one has ever secured a date by sucking in their stomach, holding a door open or doing any of these preening behaviors we fall into.

Surely, I’m beyond that macho stuff. I’m 56. I’m off the market. I can understand young guys peacocking around. When I was a teenager I went into Consumers Distributing (which was located between Home Life Furnishings and Dollar Tree on North Texas Street.) For those unfamiliar with the store, you’d go in, peruse a catalog with all kinds of products, write down what you want and employees would go into the back and get it for you. I went there to buy a 110-pound weight set.

The pretty blonde employee brought out the barbell and dumbbells and I took them out to my car and returned for the weights. She used a dolly to wheel out a box containing 110 pounds of weights. I looked at this gorgeous woman and bent down and picked up the box telling her I didn’t need the dolly.

“Wow! Are you serious?” she marveled. “Yeah, I got it,” I said as I marched to the door of the store like Samson. I pushed through the door and once I got outside, quickly set the box down gasping for breath and praying to Jesus I wouldn’t pass out. Dumb stuff to impress the ladies struck again.

So, fast forward to last week. Melinda, a coworker called and told me I’d received a box in the office.

I went in and eyed this massive box sitting on a desk. I didn’t know what was in it so I began to open it.

“Oh good idea. Open it and take the stuff one at a time. That box is way too heavy to carry it all at once,” Melinda smiled.

Why did she have to say that?

I carried that box out of the office flexing like I was Arnold Schwarzenegger in “Pumping Iron.” And as I sit here icing my back and writing this I’m telling myself I’m not going to get caught up in these macho shenanigans again.

Or will I? You need me to carry that, ma’am? Peace.

Kelvin Wade, a writer and former Fairfield resident, lives in Sacramento. Reach him at kelvinjwade@ outlook.com.

CALMATTERS COMMENTARY

Decline in political integrity leads to scandals

There’s a question on a lot of minds in Los Angeles these days: What is happening to the Los Angeles City Council?

A series of criminal cases and other scandals have raised deep concerns about the institutional integrity of the governing body for America’s second-largest city. The collective fallout has implica tions for Los Angeles, of course, but for California politics at-large and whether Democrats (there aren’t many Republicans left in Los Angeles) can tackle everything from inequality to environmental protection to homelessness.

And, most optimistically, whether L.A.’s crackdown might offer some sort of check on the growing ordinariness of political arrogance and misconduct.

The questions about the council were in the air on Sunday when some of the city’s most influential figures – past and present – gathered at Getty House, the mayor’s official residence. Mayor Karen Bass hosted the event, which included judges, prosecutors, activists, a couple former county supervisors and even a few current and former council members.

The occasion was the publication of former councilman and supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky’s thoughtful and important new memoir, “Zev’s Los Angeles,” which has been the talk of civic Los Angeles since its release earlier this month. Much of the conversation was reflective, as the 150 or so guests considered the book, the history it traces and the light it sheds on current affairs.

In that environment, comparisons between the council of Yaroslavsky’s era in the late 20th century and the current group were inevitable. Here’s a reminder of the some of the council’s recent exploits:

n Councilman Mitch Englander, the council’s last Republican, was convicted of obstruction and sent to prison in 2021.

n Councilman Jose Huizar pleaded guilty in January to cheating on his taxes and abusing his council office to enrich himself, both felonies. Huizar will be sentenced in September.

n Councilman Mark Ridley-Thomas, one of the region’s most popular and recognizable figures, was convicted of bribery and conspiracy in March in a case related to his son and benefits he received from the University of Southern California.

n Councilman Curren Price was charged with perjury and embezzlement by the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s office earlier this month.

And then there were the non-criminal shenanigans. Council President Nury Martinez was forced out of her job last year after she and two colleagues were caught on a recording making racist

comments about a colleague’s child and carving up the city’s political boundaries in cahoots with union leaders. Of her two colleagues, one has since left office while the other, Councilman Kevin de Leon, beat back a and continues to lurk at City Hall, a source of continuing embarrassment. That’s a lot of bad behavior – criminal and otherwise – for a 15-member body over the span of a few years. And it naturally raises the concern that something deeper is happening at City Hall. One possibility, it’s important to stress, is that this is merely a coincidence. The various criminal cases are not necessarily part of any broader conspiracy, and they are different from one another. Englander and Huizar were convicted for garden-variety corruption – Englander for being a little corrupt, Huizar for being a lot corrupt. Ridley-Thomas, by contrast, has not even been accused of receiving any money, and his case feels specific to his relationship with his son. Price’s remains to be adjudicated, but the charges there are fairly minor compared to some of the others – more akin to ethics violations than big-time felonies.

As for Martinez et al, they were revealed as racists and petty powermongers, not as criminals, though their behavior was in some ways even more shocking than that of actual criminals.

Still, it’s hard to recall any point in history where so many council flies dropped so quickly.

Guests at Getty House had all sorts of theories. The spate of charges and convictions, some said, could be the result of stepped-up work by prosecutors, particularly at the federal level. The threat of a federal grand jury, a few observers noted, can have a powerful effect on witnesses. And the Price case, which is being brought by District Attorney George Gascon, could reflect that office’s desire to keep pace with federal inquiries and Gascon’s own political imperatives – he faces re-election and is widely seen as vulnerable.

Some other thoughts: the changeover of political power from one generation to another; the presence of relative newcomers among City Hall staff as well as elected officials; unfamiliarity with rules and law; a more relaxed and naïve leadership culture.

But there were two that stood out: the absence of sustained media scrutiny and the preening hubris of those elected to represent city communities.

It is undeniable that Los Angeles media has declined in recent years, particularly in coverage of civic and political life. It’s easy to be nostalgic, and there’s not much point in that, but City Hall

once received the sustained attention of more than a dozen reporters at any given time – and many times more during campaigns or crises. Today, coverage is a shell of that.

It flares at moments – the mayoral campaign last year or the discovery of the recording of Martinez and the others – but routine coverage of City Hall is limited to a vastly diminished Los Angeles Times and the occasional interest of others. If you’re a City Council member tempted to do something wrong, it’s much easier today to think that you might get away with it.

And then there’s hubris. At the event for Yaroslavsky, a number of guests suggested this as a root cause of the recent scandals. Members of the City Council represent huge districts of more than 200,000 residents. They are effectively mayors of mid-size cities, feted at parties and treated as dignitaries rather than as neighborhood servants.

What’s more, they preside over landuse decisions in their districts, giving them actual power over matters where real money is at stake.

That can create a sense of entitlement. Combine it with little fear of getting caught and the result is not pretty.

There is, moreover, a larger issue at work in all of this, and it was Yaroslavsky himself who put his finger on it. When I asked him on Sunday for his analysis of the body where he served from 1975 to 1994, he declined to single out the current council for criticism, but he agreed that institutional integrity – at all levels of government – was under duress.

“There is something wrong,” Yaroslavsky said, as members of the audience nodded in agreement. “Most politicians look down on people.”

That’s an issue that courses through our politics today, from members of Congress who demonstrate their contempt for the truth by denouncing vaccines or leveling false charges against rivals to a former president caught on tape violating the Espionage Act.

Those are acts of willful misconduct. They treat constituents and the law itself with contempt, and they start at the very top of American politics.

The misdeeds of the Los Angeles City Council do not rise to the level of treason, but they suggest an indifference to the public and an abiding, destructive hubris that permeates across California. If the cases against Los Angeles council members accomplish anything, perhaps it will be to puncture that.

Jim Newton is a veteran journalist, bestselling author and teacher. He worked at the Los Angeles Times for 25 years as a reporter, editor, bureau chief and columnist, covering government and politics.

Foy McNaughton President

Publisher T. Burt McNaughton Co-Publisher

CEO

Kelvin Wade

Vinyl Me, Please brings subscription model to collecting

Tribune ConTenT AgenCy

Sly Stone made a lot of essential releases. But what was his one “Essential” – capital “e” – record?

It’s Andrew Winistorfer’s job to decide, and then share the news with the vinyl collecting world. As the senior music and editorial director for Vinyl Me, Please, Winistorfer curates the company’s monthly record clubs. Winistorfer and the team at VMP (vinylmeplease.com) lovingly and meticulously put together vinyl reissues that subscribers eagerly await – the five subscription categories are Essentials, Classics, HipHop, Country and Rock. In case you are wondering, Winistorfer picked Sly’s 1970 LP “There’s A Riot Goin’ On” for July’s Essential release.

“This is obviously an essential record, it’s his masterpiece,” he told the Herald. “I’m constantly pinching myself that I get paid to be like, ‘Hey, what are we doing with Sly and the Family Stone?’”

Vinyl Me, Please started in 2013 with a dozen subscribers who were happy to have fellow music junkies send them monthly mailings of great records. In months, VMP had a couple hundred subscribers. A few years later, that number grew to thousands, then tens of thousands during the pandemic

For those in their 40s and 50s, getting a bunch of records in the mail is a gleeful experience that harkens to the days of Columbia House’s 12 CDs for a penny (or rather, a penny now, hundreds of dollars later for you, or your parents).

Trust me, the glee is still both real and intense –but now it costs $138 for three months, which gets your four LPs plus bonus

stuff like exclusive art prints and essays about the releases. While VMP has plenty of Gen X customers, Columbia House nostalgia isn’t fueling the company’s explosion.

“The growth is in younger generations who have decided it isn’t enough to just have their favorite album on their phone,” Winistorfer said.

“It’s this opportunity to have this thing that you really love at your fingertips in a way that’s not as disposable as everything else. It’s a physical manifestation of your love for, say, this Tyler the Creator album and, no matter what happens with Spotify or Tidal or Apple Music, you will always have this record.”

The clubs aren’t just mailing ultra-hip, young acts like Tyler the Creator or bedrock artists such as Sly to customers. The vinyl resurgence is a fad beyond genre or generation – the format has seen 17-straight years of growth leading to 50 million LPs sold in 2022. Recent Essential releases include albums from Sublime, Kasey Musgraves, Death Cab for Cutie, and Stevie Ray Vaughan. Now Vaughan is amazing but he has never been hip.

“There was a moment where I wondered if anyone would like this Stevie Ray Vaughn record, what would people think of this random ’80s blues album?” Winistorfer said. “Then the Stevie Ray Vaughn record sold out.”

There is room in the vinyl boom, and the Essentials club, for Sly and Vaughan and a hundred other artists both obvious and obscure.

“What’s really cool about us is that there is no algorithm,” Winistorfer said. “An algorithm would lose the magic that we’ve captured.”

Zits Jerry Scott and Jim Borgman

Pearls Before Swine Stephan Pastis

Candorville Darrin Bell

Baby Blues Rick Kirkman and Jerry Scott

Baldo Hector Cantú and Carlos Castellanos

SEA SUN WINERY LOCATEDAT2650CordeliaRd.Fairfield. MailingaddressP.OBox268Rutherford, CA94573.IS(ARE)HEREBYREGISTEREDBYTHEFOLLOWINGOWNER(S)Sea-SunWineryLLC2650Cordeliard.FairfieldCA94533.THISBUSINESSISCONDUCTEDBY: aLimitedLiabilityCompany Theregistrantcommencedtotransact businessunderthefictitiousbusiness nameornameslistedaboveon 06/11/2018. Ideclarethatallinformationinthisstatementistrueandcorrect(Aregistrantwho declaresastrueinformationwhichheor sheknowstobefalseisguiltyofacrime.) /s/KarenPerry/manager. INACCORDANCEWITHSUBDIVISION (a)OFSECTION17920AFICTITIOUS NAMESTATEMENTGENERALLYEXPIRESATTHEENDOFFIVEYEARS FROMTHEDATEONWHICHITWAS FILEDINTHEOFFICEOFTHECOUNTY CLERK,EXCEPT ASPROVIDEDIN SUBDIVISION(b)OFSECTION17920, WHEREITEXPIRES40DAYSAFTER ANYCHANGEINTHEFACTSSET FORTHINTHESTATEMENTPURSUANTTOSECTION17913OTHERTHAN ACHANGEINTHERESIDENCEADDRESSOFAREGISTEREDOWNER. ANEWFICTITIOUSBUSINESSNAME STATEMENTMUSTBEFILEDBEFORE THEEXPIRATIONJune72028. THEFILINGOFTHISSTATEMENT DOESNOTOFITSELFAUTHORIZE THEUSEINTHISSTATEOFAFICTITIOUSBUSINESSNAMEINVIOLATION OFTHERIGHTSOFANOTHERUNDER FEDERAL,STATEORCOMMONLAW (SEESECTION14411ETSEQ.,BUSINESSANDPROFESSIONSCODE). FiledintheOfficeoftheCountyClerkof SolanoCounty,StateofCaliforniaon: JUN082023 NewASSIGNEDFILENO.2023000927 CHARLESLOMELI,SolanoCountyClerk DR#00063960 Published:June14,21,28July5,2023

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT THE FOLLOWING PERSON (PERSONS) IS (ARE) DOING BUSINESS AS G GRACE NON-EMERGENCY MEDICAL TRANSPORTATION

LOCATEDAT2293PeachtreeDriveApt 7,Fairfield,CA.94533Solano.Mailingaddress2293PeachtreeDriveApt7,Fairfield,CA.94533.IS(ARE)HEREBYREGISTEREDBYTHEFOLLOWINGOWNER(S)GGraceNonEmergency,LLCCA. THISBUSINESSISCONDUCTEDBY: aLimitedLiabilityCompany Theregistrantcommencedtotransac t businessunderthefictitiousbusiness nameornameslistedaboveonN/A. Ideclarethatallinformationinthisstatementistrueandcorrect(Aregistrantwho declaresastrueinformationwhichheor sheknowstobefalseisguiltyofacrime.) /s/OsariyekemweIghodaro(CEO) INACCORDANCEWITHSUBDIVISION (a)OFSECTION17920AFICTITIOUS NAMESTATEMENTGENERALLYEXPIRESATTHEENDOFFIVEYEARS FROMTHEDATEONWHICHITWAS FILEDINTHEOFFICEOFTHECOUNTY CLERK,EXCEPTA SPROVIDEDIN SUBDIVISION(b)OFSECTION17920, WHEREITEXPIRES40DAYSAFTER ANYCHANGEINTHEFACTSSET FORTHINTHESTATEMENTPURSUANTTOSECTION17913OTHERTHAN ACHANGEINTHERESIDENCEADDRESSOFAREGISTEREDOWNER. ANEWFICTITIOUSBUSINESSNAME STATEMENTMUSTBEFILEDBEFORE THEEXPIRATIONJune12028. THEFILINGOFTHISSTATEMENT DOESNOTOFITSELFAUTHORIZE THEUSEINTHISSTATEOFAFICTITIOUSBUSINESSNAMEINVIOLATION OFTHERIGHTSOFANOTHERUNDER FEDERAL,STATEORCOMMONLAW (SEESECTION14411ETSEQ.,BUSINESSANDPROFESSIONSCODE). FiledintheOfficeoftheCountyClerkof SolanoCounty,StateofCaliforniaon: JUN022023 NewASSIGNEDFILENO.2023000908 CHARLESLOMELI,SolanoCountyClerk DR#00063962 Published:June14,21,28July5,2023

ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME PETITION OF: MARIA DEL CARMEN PONCE TOVAR CASE NUMBER: CU23-01732 TOALLINTERESTEDPERSONS: PetitionerMariadelCarmenPonceTovar filedapetitionwiththiscourtforadecree changingnamesasfollows:

PresentName: a. Maria del Carmen Ponce Tovar

ZUKHRA

MARLYA COLLINGS-PATTERSON CASE NUMBER: FCS059712

TOALLINTERESTEDPERSONS: Petitioner:ZukhraalexandraMarlyaColings-Pattersonfiledapetitionwiththis courtforadecreechangingnamesasfollows:

PresentName:

a. Zukhra Alexandra Marlya CollingsPatterson ProposedName:

a. Zukhra Alexandra Marlya Collings Patterson THECOURTORDERSthatallpersonsinterestedinthismattershallappearbefore thiscourtatthehearingindicatedbelowto showcause,ifany,whythepetitionfor changeofnameshouldnotbegranted. Anypersonobjectingtothename changesdescribedabovemustfileawrittenobjectionthatincludesthereasonsfor theobjectionatleasttwocourtdaysbeforethematterisscheduledtobeheard andmustappearatthehearingtoshow causewhythepetitionshouldnotbegranted.Ifnowrittenobjectionistimely filed, thecourtmaygrantthepetitionwithouta

LOCATEDAT266TamariskCir,Suisun City,CA94585Solano.Mailingaddress 266TamariskCir,SuisunCity,CA94585. IS(ARE)HEREBYREGISTEREDBY THEFOLLOWINGOWNER(S)#1Jaime Obregon266TamariskCirSuisunCity, 94585#2ZuleikaDelReal266Tamarisk CirSuisunCity,94585.THISBUSINESS ISCONDUCTEDBY: aGeneralPartnership There gistrantcommencedtotransact businessunderthefictitiousbusiness nameornameslistedaboveon 03/01/2023. Ideclarethatallinformationinthisstatementistrueandcorrect(Aregistrantwho declaresastrueinformationwhichheor sheknowstobefalseisguiltyofacrime.)

TOALLINTERESTEDPERSONS:

Petitioner:TatianaSophiafernandesfiled apetitionwiththiscourtforadecreechangingnamesasfollows:

PresentName:

a. Tatiana Sophia fernandes

DR#00063969 Published:June14,21,28July5,2023

ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME PETITION OF: AMBER OXLEY CASE NUMBER: CU23-02014

TOALLINTERESTEDPERSONS: PetitionerAmberRuthOxleyfiledapetitionwiththiscourtforadecreechanging namesasfollows:

/s/AndreAlamsjahPresident INACCORDANCEWITHSUBDIVISION (a)OFSECTION17920AFICTITIOUS NAMESTATEMENTGENERALLYEXPIRESATTHEENDOFFIVEYEARS

FROMTHEDATEONWHICHITWAS FILEDINTHEOFFICEOFTHECOUNTY CLERK,EXCEPTASPROVIDEDIN SUBDIVISION(b)OFSECTION17920, WHEREITEXPIRES40 DAYSAFTER

ANYCHANGEINTHEFACTSSET FORTHINTHESTATEMENTPURSUANTTOSECTION17913OTHERTHAN ACHANGEINTHERESIDENCEADDRESSOFAREGISTEREDOWNER. ANEWFICTITIOUSBUSINESSNAME STATEMENTMUSTBEFILEDBEFORE THEEXPIRATIONJune62028. THEFILINGOFTHISSTATEMENT DOESNOTOFITSELFAUTHORIZE THEUSEINTHISSTATEOFAFICTITIOUSBUSINESSNAMEINVIOLATION OFTHERIGHTSOFANOTHERUNDER FEDERAL,STATEORCOMMONLAW (SEESECTION14411ETSEQ.,BUSINESSANDPROFESSIONSCODE). FiledintheOfficeoftheCountyClerkof SolanoCounty,StateofCaliforniaon: JUN072023 NewASSIGNEDFILENO.2023000925 CHARLESLOMELI,SolanoCountyClerk DR#00064088 Published:June21,28July5,12,2023

ProposedName: a. Carmen Ponce THECOURTORDERSthatallpersonsinterestedinthismattershallappearbefore thiscourtatthehearingindicatedbelowto showcause,ifany,whythepetitionfor changeofnameshouldnotbegranted. Anypersonobjectingtothename changesdescribedabovemustfileawrittenobjectionthatincludesthereasonsfor theobjectionatleasttwocourtdaysbeforethematterisscheduledtobeheard andmustappearatthehearingtoshow causewhythepetitionshouldnotbegranted.Ifnowrittenobjectionistimelyfiled, thecourtmaygrantthepetitionwithouta hearing.

NOTICE OF HEARING

Date: AUG 16, 2023; Time: 9:00am; Dept: 3; Rm: 2 The address of the court is: SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF Old Solano Courthouse 580 Texas Street Fairfield, CA 94533

AcopyofthisOrdertoShowCausemust bepublishedatleastonceeachweekfor foursuccessiveweeksbeforethedateset forhearingonthepetitioninthefollowing newspaperofgeneralcirculation,printed inthiscounty:FairfieldDailyRepublic PleasefileProofofPublication5businessdaysinadvanceofhearingdate. (newspaperdoesnotfilew/court).

Date:JUN202023 /s/StephenGizzi JudgeoftheSuperiorCourt FILED:JUN212023 DR#00064248 Published:June28July5,12,19,2023

PresentName:

a. Amber Ruth Oxley

ProposedName: a. Amber Monicque Cordova THECOURTORDERSthatallpersonsinterestedinthismattershallappearbefore thiscourtatthehearingindicatedbelowto showcause,ifany,whythepetitionfor changeofnameshouldnotbegranted. Anypersonobjectingtothename changesdescribedabovemustfileawrittenobjectionthatincludesthereasonsfor theobjectionatleasttwocourtdaysbeforethematterisscheduledtobeheard andmustappearatthehearingtoshow causewhythepetitionshouldnotbegranted.Ifnowrittenobjectionistimelyfiled, thecourtmaygrantthepetitionwithouta hearing. NOTICE OF HEARING

Date: AUG 30, 2023; Time: 9:00am; Dept: 3; Rm: 2 The address of the court is: SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF SOLANO 580 Texas Street Fairfield CA 94533 AcopyofthisOrdertoShowCausemust bepublishedatleastonceeachweekfor foursuccessiveweeksbeforethedateset forhearingonthepetitioninthefollowing newspaperofgeneralcirculation,printed inthiscounty:DailyRepublic PleasefileProofofPublication5businessdaysinadvanceofhearingdate. (newspaperdoesnotfilew/court).

/s/StephenGizzi JudgeoftheSuperiorCourt FILED:JUN262023 DR#00064393

Published:July5,12,19,26,2023

/s/JaimeObregon/Owner INACCORDANCEWITHSUBDIVISION (a)OFSECTION17920AFICTITIOUS NAMESTATEMENTGENERALLYEXPIRESATTHEENDOFFIVEYEARS FROMTHEDATEONWHICHITWAS FILEDINTHEOFFICEOFTHECOUNTY CLERK,EXCEPTASPROVIDEDIN SUBDIVISION(b)OFSECTION17920, WHEREITEXPIRES40DAYSAFTER ANYCHANGEINTHEFACTSSET FORTHINTHESTATEMENTPURSUANTTOSECTION17913OTHERTHAN ACHANGEINTHERESIDENCEADDRESSOFAREGISTEREDOWNER. ANEWFICTITIOUSBUSINESSNAME STATEMENTMUSTBEFILEDBEFORE THEEXPIRATIONJune262028. THEFILINGOFTHISSTATEMENT DOESNOTOFITSELFAUTHORIZE THEUSEINTHISSTATEOFAFICTITIOUSBUSINESSNAMEINVIOLATION OFTHERIGHTSOFANOTHERUNDER FEDERAL,STATEORCOMMONLAW (SEESECTION14411ETSEQ.,BUSINESSANDPROFESSIONSCODE). FiledintheOfficeoftheCountyClerkof SolanoCounty,StateofCaliforniaon: JUN272023 NewASSIGNEDFILENO.2023001017 CHARLESLOMELI,SolanoCountyClerk DR#00064399 Published:July5,12,19,26,2023

ProposedName: a. Tatiana Sophia Castro THECOURTORDERSthatallpersonsinterestedinthismattershallappearbefore thiscourtatthehearingindicatedbelowto showcause,ifany,whythepetitionfor changeofnameshouldnotbegranted. Anypersonobjectingtothename changesdescribedabovemustfileawrittenobjectionthatincludesthereasonsfor theobjectionatleasttwocourtdaysbeforethematterisscheduledtobeheard andmustappearatthehearingtoshow causewhythepetitionshouldnotbegranted.Ifnowrittenobjectionistimelyfiled, thecourtmaygrantthepetitionwithouta hearing.

NOTICE OF HEARING

Date: AUG 18, 2023; Time: 9:30am; Dept: 22; Rm: III The address of the court is: SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF Old Solano Courthouse 580 Texas Street Fairfield, CA 94533 AcopyofthisOrdertoShowCausemust bepublishedatleastonceeachweekfor foursuccessiveweeksbeforethedateset forhearingonthepetitioninthefollowing newspaperofgeneralcirculation,printed inthiscounty:DailyRepublic PleasefileProofofPublication5businessdaysinadvanceofhearingdate. (newspaperdoesnotfilew/court). /s/AlesiaJones JudgeoftheSuperiorCourt FILED:JUN262023 DR#00064396 Published:July5,12,19,26,2023

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Jones

From Page B2

work ethic will help him develop into a core rotation player as Sacramento looks to improve on last year’s historic playoff run that flamed out in the first round.

“He’s not somebody that’s been a high school McDonald’s All-American or maybe that anointed one since he’s been 12-yearsold,” Miller said. “He’s really somebody who’s been self made, has worked his way into becoming an NBA draft pick.”

From Birmingham to Xavier Jones went to Mountain Brook High School just outside of Birmingham, Alabama. He was recruited to Ivy League schools and took official visits to Harvard and Yale before later deciding to attend Xavier in Cincinnati.

“That was before I was getting high major offers,” Jones said. “So I was really considering Harvard and Yale ... you can’t not pay attention to them.”

Jones played in highlevel games in high school.

Green

From Page B1

“Draymond is incredibly competitive and passionate and fiery,” Kerr once said last season after a Green ejection. “He’s helped us win four championships. I’ve said it many times. We don’t have a single championship here without Draymond Green. That’s the truth.

“He has crossed the line over the years, and that’s part of it. We will go to bat for Draymond and go to battle with him every day of the week.”

Who cares about some controversy and old bones when history can be made?

Curry, Green, Klay Thompson and Kerr – assuming he will get an extension now entering the final year of his contract – have a few more years to win a fifth title together. And Dunleavy’s claim that they need Green to win isn’t an exaggeration.

Green is and has been one of the best defensive players in the NBA. Last year, the Warriors’ had a 109.4 defensive rating with Green on the court and a 115.8 rating with him off the court, making for a -6.4 differential that led the league’s top defenders. His teammates praise Green’s defensive impact so much it’s

Alumni

From Page B1

He was teammates with Trendon Watford, who spent two seasons with the Portland Trailblazers before he was recently released. Their high school careers apexed with a victory over eventual national champion IMG Academy of Florida at the 2018 City of Palms Classic, a national tournament in Fort Meyers, Florida that featured some of the country’s top teams.

“The thing that was amazing with Colby is how much he improved,” said Bucky McMillan, who coached Jones in high school. “He’s obviously a great player, but he got so much better through the years. That’s a tribute to how hard he works and how humble he is.

“One of the things that really helps Colby is he knows who he is. He doesn’t try to be anything other than who he is. And he’s very comfortable with who he is.”

McMillan, who now coaches at Samford University in Texas, said Jones averaged 12 to 13 points per game as a junior while Watford handled most of the scoring. Jones was known for doing the other things, like passing, rebounding and playing defense as he grew into his

6-foot-6 frame. And as a senior, when Watford left for LSU, Jones increased his scoring to over 20 points per game and led a team with no other Division I players to a top-20 ranking nationally.

“So he could play either role,” McMillan said. “He could play a secondary role or he could play a primary role. He doesn’t care. He’s going to do whatever is necessary to win.”

McMillan said one of Jones’ most impressive traits was his ability to digest scouting reports defensively, which likely isn’t lost on the Kings and Brown. McMillan said he told former Xavier coach Travis Steele, who recruited Jones before being replaced by Miller, that Jones would be Xavier’s smartest defender as a freshman. Now, Jones has reached the NBA, in part, due to his intensity at that end of the floor.

How Jones fits Kings

Observers have compared Jones to former Kings guard Donte DiVincenzo and New York Knicks guard Josh Hart, who are both known for doing dirty work like defending and rebounding.

Sacramento, of course, wasn’t known for its defense during the regular season last year and finished ranked 24th in defensive efficiency during the regular season. That number over seven playoff games against Golden State improved from 116 to 111.6, seventh among the 16 playoff teams.

With guard Terence Davis hitting unrestricted free agency, his spot could be opened up for Jones should the rookie prove worthy with strong defense and offensive versatility. The Kings liked Davis for his microwave scoring, but his uneven defense and attention to detail kept his spot in the rotation unstable. Sacramento is hoping Jones could step in crack the playoff rotation.

“I think with Colby, especially as we watch the playoffs, the guys that are versatile and can do a lot of different things on the floor, because you don’t know what’s going to be thrown at you,” Kings general manager Monte McNair said. “Colby showed that at Xavier through his three years, especially this year as he took on a bigger role. I have no doubt that he’ll be able to figure that out at the next level.”

won’t rise. That helps the organization’s financial flexibility for the duration of his contract.

As for Green’s aging bones, the Warriors have a lot of faith in their training staff. Head honcho Rick Celebrini has expertly managed injury prone players such as Otto Porter Jr., Gary Payton II, Kevon Looney, Thompson and Green to keep them on the court. In a way, this contract is a bet on Celebrini, too.

“With night games, people go to casinos and shows. It might not be easy to capture an audience, especially if (John) Fisher continues to not significantly invest in the team.”

Value

From Page B1

David Carter, a sports business professor at USC and founder of the Sports Business Group.

The A’s say they anticipate a whopping 30% of their attendance to be tourists, but that still means 21,000 of a capacity 30,000 – if they sell out a game – would be local. Carter questions whether Nevada residents will engage in heavy betting.

“They might be less affected by the gambling infrastructure than those traveling to Las Vegas for games,” Carter said.

Gambling or no gambling, a new facility in Las Vegas would be a huge plus for the A’s, who generated limited revenues at the Coliseum. Of course, that also would have been the case with a new ballpark at Howard Terminal in Oakland.

“History shows us that switching markets improves the value of a sports franchise, but more importantly, the new stadium will drive value by generating more revenue,” said Kurt Badenhausen, a sports valuations reporter at Sportico who annually ranks MLB teams’ valuations and previously did so at Forbes.

— Andrew Zimbalist

the New York Yankees’ attendance in 1958? It went down,” Zimbalist said. “The immediate expectation was without the three-team competition, Giant and Dodger fans would go to Yankee Stadium, but the baseball culture diminished, and historic rivalries between the teams went away. People lost interest. I won’t say that’ll happen in the Bay Area.”

In the final year of New York’s three-team market, the Yankees drew an average of 19,443. With the Giants and Dodgers gone in 1958, Yankees attendance declined to 18,313.

Zimbalist isn’t convinced the A’s would experience a significant jump in value in Las Vegas.

“I’m not sure Fisher made a smart move here,” Zimbalist said. “It’s a difficult market, not an extended television market. With night games, people go to casinos and shows. It might not be easy to capture an audience, especially if Fisher continues to not significantly invest in the team.

become canon: At 6-foot7, he expertly juggles his job as an opposing bigs’ nightmare in the paint and a free safety who erases teammates’ mistakes.

If the Warriors let Green walk, it’d be near impossible to replace him.

Toronto’s Pascal Siakam or OG Anenouby were among the names potentially available in a trade this offseason that could even come close. Otherwise, it’d take a player such as Giannis Antetokounmpo, Rudy Gobert, Evan Mobley or Bam Adebayo with similar numbers to replace his defensive presence. Add in Green’s feel for finding Curry and Klay Thompson off ball and the Warriors have a tried and true formula.

This takes us to another point. Green’s contract may raise eyebrows, but

hander lasted 3 2/3 innings Sunday after allowing six hits, four earned runs, three walks to go with three strikeouts. The Dodgers lost the game 9-1 at Kansas City.

Gonsolin is now 4-3 overall with a 3.69 ERA in 12 starts and 61 innings.

it’s well below the money his peers make. And that’s all fair – the names listed above are a few inches taller and years younger than Green with more offensive upside. On top of that, the contract structure gives the Warriors immediate financial flexibility, and re-signing Green is all about the now.

Green is slated to make around $22 million next season, less than the $27 million he was slated to make had he opted into the final year of his previous contract. That saves the Warriors upwards of $40 million in tax payments, plus he’s taking up just 16.4 percent of the cap space this year. Green’s yearly payout will go up incrementally, but the luxury tax threshold’s yearly incremental rise means his yearly cap hit

He has struck out 49 batters. "I just haven't really been good lately," Gonsolin told the Los Angeles Times on Sunday. "I feel like I've been walking more guys, falling behind in counts, not executing pitches. It's super frustrating. I felt like OK until a few starts ago.I'm just trying to figure it out, trying to compete." n n n

Devereaux Harrison (Vacaville) suffered his first loss of the season as

But mostly, bringing Green back for at least three more years is a recommitment to the core that’s made history. The Warriors have one of the best players in NBA history in Curry who has shown he has a few more title runs in him.

This core disrupted basketball traditions and are still on the brink of joining the likes of Michael Jordan’s Chicago Bulls and Magic Johnson’s Los Angeles Lakers in championship lore. They’re getting old, but it would be malpractice to take this apart now. Green had to stay.

“I think I changed the game of basketball with the help of Steph Curry,” Green said three years ago on the All the Smoke podcast. “And I think Steph Curry changed the game of basketball with the help of me.”

a starter Sunday with the Vancouver Canadians, the High-A affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays.

The 22-year-old right-hander went 5 2/3 innings Sunday against the Spokane Indians, allowing four hits, five runs – though only one was earned – walked four and had six strikeouts. Spokane went on to win the game 8-6. Harrison is now 3-1 with a solid 1.80 ERA in 50 innings with 49 strikeouts. He went 3-0 in June.

Sportico reports the A’s are worth $1.31 billion, ranking 26th in the majors ahead of the Pittsburgh Pirates, Kansas City Royals, Tampa Bay Rays and Miami Marlins. The A’s rank that high only because they play in the nation’s sixth-largest media market. Forbes ranks the A’s 29th at $1.18 billion.

If Noll’s assessment is accurate and the A’s would double in value in Las Vegas to, say, $2.5 billion, the team still would need to raise the remaining $1.12 billion of the $1.5 billion ballpark plus any cost overruns, according to SB1 – 22.2(f), which states the A’s are responsible unless an overrun is caused by a change mandated by the Stadium Authority.

Both the Forbes and Sportico evaluations judged the A’s as-is, without their potential for a stadium deal. The Giants rank fifth on both lists, Sportico valuing their worth at $3.81 billion and Forbes at $3.7 billion.

“I don’t think it dramatically changes the Giants’ situation or they suddenly take on a ton of new fans,” Badenhausen said. “They might get a little incremental bounce from absorbing some fans, but it’s not easy to switch allegiance from one team to another.”

It’s a shared observation. Carter said, “A’s fans don’t usually convert to Giants fans. East Bay fans who usually attend A’s games might attend Giants games, maybe for a compelling weekend series. They’re really distinct brands.”

Noll agreed, saying “the bay is a pretty good divider of the market, it’s more or less two sports markets. It didn’t help the 49ers much that the Raiders left.”

Andrew Zimbalist, sports economist and professor at Smith College in Massachusetts, said he could see the Giants’ value increasing 10-20%, but whether their attendance grows or not would be uncertain.

“After the 1957 season, the New York Giants and Brooklyn Dodgers left for California. What do you think happened to

“The fact they’ll play on a nine-acre lot is not encouraging for me. It’s not a great place to think about outdoor sports in the summertime, so I’m not optimistic the A’s will be financially stronger. There might be an immediate boost. Whether it’s sustained is another question.”

Carter suggests that any A’s success with ticketing, sponsorship and merchandise will come down to their ability to differentiate themselves from the many other entertainment options in Las Vegas. That includes customer service, which has not been a franchise strength in Oakland.

“To the extent the team’s relocation goes smoothly – which cannot be taken for granted – the franchise will be able to elevate its brand, domestically and abroad over time, which will also lead to other positive branding impacts and long-term revenue generation,” Carter said.

Not to be overlooked are the dangers and perhaps scandals with MLB crossing the line between competing in games and wagering on games, while forced to deal with the possibility of corruption and gambling addiction.

After the Supreme Court struck down a federal gambling ban in 2018, professional leagues jumped at the opportunity to profit. Two-thirds of the states offer legalized sports betting, and several MLB teams already have sportsbooks (“official betting partners”) at their ballparks, including the Mets, Nationals and Diamondbacks. The Cubs will soon open a sportsbook at Wrigley Field.

According to SB1, the A’s couldn’t host their own sportsbook at their stadium largely because casinos wouldn’t want the competition, including Bally’s, which operates the property.

“It’s a serious risk they’re taking,” Noll said of MLB. “The amount of money at stake, including with in-play betting, is huge and creates huge incentives for gambling interests and the possibility for a player to wear a wire and conveniently make an error at the right time. This is troublesome to me.”

Jose Carlos Fajardo/Bay Area News Group/TNS file Draymond Green speaks with NBA referee Bill Kennedy during the third quarter of Game 3 of the NBA Western Conference semifinal playoffs at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, May 6.