In the wake of a rejected special permit to occupy Cesar Chavez Plaza 24 hours a day, Occupy Sacramento protesters expanded their occupation to the front door of City Hall, 915 I St., on Tuesday. “We want to fully exercise our First Amendment right to assemble,” Kevin Carter, 55, a youth volunteer and an Occupy Sacramento outreach coordinator said. “If our grievances are going to be addressed, they need to be addressed right here.” Protesters packed up some of their canopies, tents and information tables Tuesday and gathered at the front of Old City Hall as well as on the lawns in front of the new City Hall building, immediately behind the older building. “Our statement is simply this,”

Read "Locke property dispute (part 1)" here. This is my reply to the long response of another of my neighbors in Locke to "Locke property dispute (part 2)" RLM: It was with great interest that I read this. Esch: Glad to have your interest, Ronnie.   RLM: I have never publicly spoken on this matter, neither verbally nor in print--not even anonymously. Esch: According to my friend Jacquie and her friend, who visited me a couple weeks ago, you had quite a lot to say to them about it.   RLM: However, I must dispute some of the claims made. Firstly: There are two separate issues here 1" the manner in which the building at 1265 Levee was acquired by Ms. Esch and 2) the zoning of this propert

Occupy Sacramento protesters and attorney Mark Merin are considering legal action against the city of Sacramento for violations of their First Amendment rights if arrests of protesters for ignoring the park curfew are not stopped. “It’s not a question of whether we will pursue legal action – that decision has been made,” Merin, a Sacramento civil rights attorney, said Thursday. “It’s just a matter of when.” There have been close to 100 arrests made since the Occupy Sacramento movement first appeared in Cesar Chavez Plaza Oct. 6, and protesters say all of those are in violation of First Amendment protections of speech and assembly. The nature of the Occupy movement, according to Merin, i

Continued from "Locke property dispute (part 1)" There was a second response – a very lengthy one - to my first article from an anonymous person posting under the name, “Locked.” I suspect “Locked” is one of my neighbors and a board member of LMA Locke Management Association, the public agency which has filed a lawsuit against me to take my property. Locked’s writing style is recognizable, accusatory, with no factual basis. Original article (part 1) is found here: http://www.sacramentopress.com/headline/56717/Locke_property_dispute_part_1 I’ll take Locked’s questions and comments one by one... Locked: Who's throwing stones? Esch: LMA board threw the first stones at me when they sent me a

A marathon of litigation lies ahead in Arc California’s emerging legal battle with the State of California – but for now, they’ll look to start things off with a 5K. “As California taxpayers, we fully appreciate the State’s need to reduce costs, but we cannot allow the State to endanger its citizens and risk their basic civil rights,” Arc California executive director Tony Anderson said in a statement released on the Sacramento-based organization’s website. Filed jointly in federal court by Arc California and United Cerebral Palsy (UCP) of San Diego, both agencies which serve as advocates for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities, a law suit against the State of Ca

On the same day that activists and supporters rallied together for homeless rights at the Safe Ground Jubilee, attorneys for the city of Sacramento were busy filing a motion to appeal a Federal Court decision in a contentious homeless class action lawsuit. “Our rationale for appeal is based primarily on procedural and evidentiary rulings that came up in the trial,” Brett Witter, supervising deputy city attorney for Sacramento said Thursday. The motion for appeal was filed Sept. 14 in the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals by attorney Chance Trimm, on behalf of the city. According to court documents, the city is appealing a May 24 Federal Court decision that found the city liable on two of s

A lawsuit against the Sacramento Natural Foods Co-op has been dismissed at the request of those who filed it, members of the co-op who earlier this year sought to ban the sale of Israeli-made products at the grocery store. “We, the petitioners, chose to dismiss this case,” said Sharon Adams, Berkeley-based attorney for Maggie Coulter and Robin Kristufek. The lawsuit, filed June 30, alleged that the co-op’s board was violating its bylaws by not allowing a ballot initiative to ban Israeli-made products to go to a vote by the full membership. The Sacramento County Superior Court denied a request to expedite the case on July 28, which could have brought a resolution in advance of ballots go

Public Agency Lawsuit to Seize $21,000 Home from Rightful Purchaser near Sacramento, California... In the rustic, antique wood-built town of Locke, California, founded from 1912 to 1920s, the Locke Management Association (LMA), a thirteen (13) member board put in place in 2003 to maintain, preserve and manage the town is prioritizing its limited $60,000 operating budget to attempt to undo a recent property purchase that occurred. The buyer, Martha Esch, struck a deal to purchase one of the town’s dilapidated properties with seller, Dona LaBlanc for a $21,000 purchase price. The LMA claims both women circumvented the agency’s rules in order to complete the sale. The property was previously

Q. Is it possible to obtain an individual's booking photo using the booking number at a County jail? Thank you, Rebecca A. There are several reasons a person might want to see booking photos (also known as “mug shots”). They are a popular part of news stories on crime, especially when celebrities or particularly newsworthy crimes are involved. In some cases, a person may want a photo to help them identify a person who may wish them harm, but whose appearance may have changed. Academic or other studies may be another potential use for booking photos. Although a few police or sheriff’s departments routinely release booking photos, and some even post them online, in many cases they are re

A request for an expedited hearing by two shoppers suing the Sacramento Natural Foods Co-op was denied Thursday, according to court documents, meaning that the case will not be heard before board elections this fall. The lawsuit was brought against the co-op earlier this month and claims that the co-op is not following its bylaws as board members refuse to ban Israeli-made products from the store’s shelves. According to the documents released Thursday, the plaintiffs, Maggie Coulter and Robin Kristufek, “will not suffer irreparable injury if the hearing is heard according to the Court’s normal procedures.” It was unclear Thursday evening when the case will be heard. Had the expedited h

The League of California Cities and the California Redevelopment Association filed a petition in the California Supreme Court Monday challenging the constitutionality of recent legislation affecting redevelopment agencies in the state. Assembly Bills AB1x26 and 27 were signed into law along with the state budget in June. According to the petition, both violate Proposition 22, a constitutional amendment passed by California voters in November 2010. “AB1x26 eliminates redevelopment agencies,” Kathy Fairbanks, California Redevelopment Association representative, said in a press release. “AB1x27 allows agencies to continue to exist (albeit on life support) if they agree to pay their share o

Jurors are deliberating in federal court whether homeless citizens’ belongings were illegally taken and thrown away by Sacramento police officers between August 2005 and the present. The trial, which centers on homeless people’s constitutional rights and their personal belongings, began May 9 at the Sacramento Federal Courthouse at 501 I St. Plaintiffs attorney Mark Merin represented Linda McKinley, who was homeless in the past, and a group of homeless people in the class-action case against the city of Sacramento, according to court documents. Merin is a supporter of the Safe Ground group, which presses Sacramento city leaders to designate land for homeless people to live.  In closing

A Feb. 4 breach-of-contract lawsuit brought against the United Football League concerning the Sacramento Mountain Lions Team is being resolved out of court. The lawsuit filed Feb. 4 by Runyon Saltzman & Einhorn Inc., a public relations and marketing firm representing the Mountain Lions, sought more than $250,000 in the lawsuit. “It is being resolved,” said Scott Rose, vice president of Runyon, Saltzman and Einhorn. “We’re in the process of working through that right now and signing agreements and arrangements for payments.” Rose added that both parties are pleased with the outcome, and that the agreement was reached within the last week. “It’s being amicably resolved and will be settle

Working out is supposed to be rewarding. For some, even fun. On Oct. 9, 2009, for Sacramento Kings forward Francisco Garcia it was neither. Garcia was in training camp preparing his body for the rigorous NBA season. During a bench press exercise, while laying on his back on an exercise ball known as the Gymnic – “Burst Resistant” Plus Stability Ball, the ball suddenly burst open and sent Garcia crashing to the floor while still holding on to the weights. Garcia broke his right forearm and damaged ligaments in his wrist in the fall and missed all but 25 games of the 2009-10 season. Roger A. Dreyer of the law firm Dreyer Babich Buccola Wood, attorney for the Sacramento Kings Limited Partn

About 30 local writers, journalists, students and public relations professionals met at The Sacramento Press office Wednesday evening to attend a media ethics workshop headed by assistant professor of journalism at California State University, Sacramento, Molly Dugan. Dugan hooked her audience by posing hypothetical questions like “If I see a public official strangling a baby, can I write about it?” The answer is yes, but it’s best to seek legal counsel before targeting someone with the means to hire a good attorney. Dugan warned journalists against using anonymous sources whenever possible, encouraged them to keep notes and documents as long as possible for personal protection, and to u

Hina's Tea announced Monday that it will close soon. Owner Hina Soni, who has been in a legal dispute with her landlord, Gary Orr, since mid-2007, learned last week that Orr was entitled to repossess the property until litigation is complete. Soni and Orr declined to comment, saying to contact their lawyers. There are more than 100 court documents attached to the case, number 07AS02841 on the Sacramento County Superior Court's website, some reaching 330 pages. According to the most recent court order, there are several key disputes unresolved. "There is a triable issue of fact as to the amount of back rent, if any, owed," according to the document. "There also is a triable issue of fact

For about 30 years, the Hernandez family has owned the only house on the block of 13th Street between B and C Streets. Until Aug. 21, the rest of the block surrounding their home was filled with vacant lots. "Safe Ground" came to the block when Sacramento lawyer and homeless advocate Mark Merin, who has owned several of the adjacent lots since 2007, teamed up with non-profits, businesses and other individuals. Tightly fit rows of matching tents complete with a "Safe Ground" logo (click here for photograph) began filling the one vacant lot directly behind the Hernandez's house, and for nearly a month, tents have housed about 40 homeless people on the property. Monday, the Hernandez family

Today's (Tuesday, March 31st) Sacramento city council meeting includes an item on the "consent calendar" (meaning a group of items expected to be non-controversial) that would eliminate portions of Sacramento's campaign finance law. This change would remove any fundraising limits for organizations called "independent expenditure committees"  and also raise campaign contribution limits for political candidates. What is an "independent expenditure committee," you might ask? Wikipedia defines them as: "In elections in the United States, an independent expenditure is a political activity intended to assist or oppose a specific candidate for office which is made without their cooperation, appr