According to the Antioch Herald, which cited the Antioch Police Department's CitizenRIMS log, the incident unfolded just after noon on Thursday in the 2700 block of Hillcrest Avenue, the same stretch where the Hillcrest 7-Eleven sits beside a 76 gas station. Police records show the confrontation occurred at 12:05 p.m., and Grayson was taken into custody less than an hour later, at 1:00 p.m.

Grayson is described in police records as a Black or African American woman standing five feet two inches tall and weighing 225 pounds, per the same report. She was booked on felony charges of assault with a deadly weapon that was not a firearm under California Penal Code 245(a)(1) and threatening a crime with intent to terrorize under Penal Code 422(a), as noted by Antioch Herald. She was also taken in on an outstanding misdemeanor warrant for aggravated assault from another case.

Protective Order Violation Adds to the Charges

On top of the felony counts, Grayson is charged with a misdemeanor violation of a protective order under Penal Code 273.6(A), which covers the intentional and knowing violation of such an order. The article notes that the aggravated assault charge alone carries a potential sentence of two, three, or four years in state prison, or up to a year in county jail, along with a fine of as much as $10,000 — or both. The felony threat charge likewise carries the possibility of state prison time, the report states.

Grayson is currently being held at the West County Detention Facility, according to the Contra Costa County Sheriff's Office as relayed in the report. Her $75,000 bail has not been posted, per the same account.

Separate Elder Abuse Lawsuit Filed Last Month

Court records cited in the article show Grayson is also the subject of a civil lawsuit filed in Alameda County by Victor Grayson on September 8, accusing her of elder abuse, according to Antioch Herald. That filing, attributed to Trellis.law records in the Antioch Herald's reporting, includes a request for a temporary restraining order and a protective order for elder or dependent adult abuse. It is not clear from available records whether that civil case is connected to the criminal charges filed against her this week.

The Hillcrest Avenue corridor has drawn police attention before: a separate report from Antioch Herald described a registered sex offender arrested for arson at the same 7-Eleven on Hillcrest Avenue, held on $70,000 bail, though the full details of that case were not independently verified beyond a brief search snippet.

Unlike a traditional bank, the proposed institution would skip personal checking accounts, ATMs and local branches entirely, according to Berkeleyside. Instead, it would lend to institutions rather than individuals, working through partner credit unions and community banks, the New York Times reported. The Daily Cal notes that the bank would be owned by the city of Berkeley but would serve the broader Bay Area, lending to and accepting deposits from local municipalities and institutions focused on three priorities: affordable housing, clean energy and small businesses, as the Daily Californian reported.

Berkeley Betting on a Regional Institution

Berkeley would be the one generating the bank's startup funds even though the capital would flow well beyond city limits, per the New York Times. Proponents envision a locally controlled bank that steers clear of fossil fuel and weapons manufacturer investments, while making capital available across the East Bay. Will Toaspern, chair of the Coalition to Keep East Bay Money Local, which supports Measure Z, told the Times the proposal would create a publicly funded institution with community leadership focused on community priorities.

The parcel tax is meant to be a short-term bridge rather than a permanent funding stream. The Daily Cal reports that in the long term, the bank is intended to be self-funded, with the tax revenue serving as seed capital rather than an ongoing subsidy. The New York Times reported that Berkeley could apply for F.D.I.C. insurance and state certification once it collects $40 million, a threshold the city expects would take more than four years to reach.

Opponents Call It a Risky Bet With Berkeley's Money

Not everyone is convinced the arithmetic works in Berkeley's favor. Paul Mathew, a longtime Berkeley resident and member of Affordable Berkeley, which opposes the measure, called the proposal a bad deal for the city, according to the Times. Opponents broadly argue that the measure would impose financial risk on Berkeley taxpayers while the benefits flow to the wider region, with some describing the plan as a high-risk experiment that could misuse public money.

Richmond has already pledged $750,000 toward the effort, but that commitment comes with strings attached. Per Berkeleyside, Richmond's pledge is contingent on state regulators approving the bank's charter and on Alameda County also contributing money. A city-commissioned poll conducted in April found that 58% of likely voters said they were inclined to support the parcel tax, a figure that has buoyed supporters heading into the final stretch of the campaign.

Fundraising Numbers Don't Quite Match Up

Money has flowed into the campaign from multiple directions, though the exact tally depends on which account you read. Berkeleyside reported that the Coalition to Keep Berkeley Money Local had raised more than $155,000 as of Aug. 17, while a more recent account from KALW put contributions from Friends of the Public Bank East Bay and the San Francisco Foundation at close to $150,000. The two figures don't fully reconcile, but both point to a campaign with real financial backing behind it.

Looking to North Dakota, With Caveats

Supporters frequently point to the Bank of North Dakota, which Berkeleyside describes as the only longstanding U.S. example alongside the Territorial Bank of American Samoa; the Daily Cal says the bank is more than a century old. That bank acted as a financial bulwark during the Great Recession, offering credit when conventional lenders could not, and made tens of millions of dollars in low-interest loans when droughts ravaged the state's ranches in 2017, Berkeleyside reported. The Daily Cal notes the Bank of North Dakota now serves about 800,000 people and reported more than $230 million in net income last year.

David Flynn, an economics professor at the University of North Dakota, has discussed public banking.

Walt McRee, president of the nonprofit Public Banking Institute, which advocates for public banks nationwide, framed the push in broader terms, telling the Times that banking should function as a public utility like water and electricity. The movement traces back to the 2008 financial crisis and the Occupy protests that followed, according to RichmondSide, and similar efforts have surfaced in Vermont, Philadelphia and Los Angeles. Public banks remain rare in the United States.

San Francisco Takes a Different Path

Berkeley isn't the only Bay Area city grappling with the public-banking question this fall. San Francisco voters will also consider a public bank measure in November, but that proposal would not raise money through a tax. Instead, per SPUR, it would authorize a nonprofit Municipal Financial Corporation as an interim step, one that could not accept deposits and would instead make most loans through community finance institutions and community development financial institutions. Public-bank efforts have also surfaced in Los Angeles.

The Daily Cal describes Berkeley's proposed bank as city-owned and intended to serve the broader Bay Area.

Oakland voters rejected their own parcel tax, Measure E, in June 2026. Measure Z will appear alongside other statewide questions on the November ballot, including proposals on a one-time billionaires' wealth tax, permanently extending higher taxes on upper-income earners, and a regional measure aimed at shoring up BART and other transportation agencies.

According to the Antioch Herald, Myers is listed as five feet 11 inches tall and 170 pounds. The Antioch Police Department's records system lists his race as White, while the Contra Costa County Sheriff's Office lists it as Hispanic, the outlet reported. His case has been assigned number 26-10181, with an incident number of 2610210023.

Per the Contra Costa County Sheriff's Office, Myers was born April 13, 1987, and is currently being held at the West Re-Entry Treatment and Housing facility. His next court appearance is scheduled for Monday at 1:30 p.m. in Superior Court, Department 5, in Martinez.

A Second Arrest Just Blocks Away

About an hour before Myers was taken into custody, a separate arrest unfolded nearby. Miguel Campos, 42, was arrested at 3:39 a.m. in the 40 block of West 18th Street on charges of felony vandalism and misdemeanor trespassing, the Antioch Herald reported, citing Antioch Police Department records. He was charged with vandalism of $400 or more and with trespassing for refusing to leave the property.

A felony vehicle burglary, listed as larceny or theft, occurred at that same location, but Campos was not charged in connection with it, the outlet noted. That vandalism case carries case number 26-10180, while the vandalism incident and the vehicle burglary share incident number 2610210021. The burglary report was cleared at 5:18 a.m. with a report taken, per the same account.

The Contra Costa County Sheriff's Office said Campos was born Dec. 3, 1983, and was booked into the West County Detention Facility on $50,000 bail. As of Friday at 8:21 p.m., however, he was out of custody with no charges filed, the Antioch Herald reported.

Prior Run-Ins With Law Enforcement

Court watchers tracking both men's histories will find a pattern of recent trouble. LocalCrimeNews.com data cited by the Antioch Herald indicated this was Campos's fifth arrest since 2023, including the third so far this year, with prior arrests involving burglary, trespassing, DUI, driving with a license suspended for drunk driving, and failure to obey a peace officer. Those are reported prior arrests, not convictions, and the Herald's sourcing does not establish the outcome of any of those cases.

Myers, too, had a brush with police just two days before the Antioch incident. He was arrested Oct. 19 in Solano County for failure to appear on a misdemeanor charge, driving without a license, and possession of drug paraphernalia, according to LocalCrimeNews.com data referenced in the same report.

What Comes Next

Under California Penal Code section 664, a person who attempts to commit a crime but fails, or is prevented or intercepted, can be punished under the statute's attempt provisions when no other law covers the punishment for that attempt. Beyond that statutory framework, the underlying facts of what happened on Cavallo Road — including the identity or condition of anyone involved, the alleged weapon, or what prosecutors ultimately allege — have not been independently verified. Whether Myers has been formally charged, entered a plea, or remained in custody beyond Monday's scheduled appearance also remains to be seen.

The bulletin describes Benjamin as 5 feet tall and 100 pounds, with gray hair and brown eyes. She was last seen wearing an orange shirt, black sweatpants and white slippers. The intersection is in Antioch, Contra Costa County. The bulletin does not give further circumstances surrounding her disappearance.

What a California Silver Alert indicates

The California Highway Patrol’s Silver Alert criteria cover missing people age 65 or older, as well as people who are developmentally disabled or cognitively impaired. Age or disability alone is not enough: law enforcement must believe the person may be in peril because of factors such as health, disability, environmental conditions or other circumstances. Those statewide criteria explain the alert program; they do not establish what happened in Benjamin’s case.

CHP says it activates alerts on behalf of investigating agencies and reviews incident details and activation criteria with the requesting agency. Silver Alerts are one of six alert types the agency oversees, alongside AMBER, Blue, Feather and Ebony alerts and the Endangered Missing Advisory, according to the state’s missing-alert plan.

Other documented cases offer context, not a forecast

A separate missing-person case in Antioch had a safe resolution: KRON4 reported that on Jan. 8, 2025, Rosalinda Tecson, a missing senior, was located and returned home, according to a subsequent update from Antioch police. That was a different case and does not indicate what will happen in Benjamin’s search.

CHP’s success stories also describe a 78-year-old woman who walked away from a San Bernardino care facility on June 28, 2022. A citizen recognized her after receiving a Wireless Emergency Alert, notified authorities, and the woman was safely returned the same day, CHP reports. It is one example, not an overall measure of how often people are located or evidence of how Benjamin’s case will end.

No update on Benjamin’s status had been issued as of the alert’s publication. Anyone who sees her is asked to call 911.

The findings come from an 82-page report prepared by the Municipal Resource Group, which the Port of Oakland hired after the custodians' union, SEIU 1021, filed a formal grievance, according to The Oaklandside. The Port of Oakland operates the airport under a governing board appointed by the mayor and city council, and the paper reports the port's labor relations manager, Pamela Trawick, told the union on February 21, 2025 that an outside investigator had been secured, asking SEIU 1021 to pause its grievance while the review proceeded. That pause meant much of the grievance process, and how it was ultimately resolved, was never publicly documented, per the same account.

How the Complaints Started

Complaints about how overtime was being handed out first started cropping up in June 2024, the outlet notes. SEIU 1021 filed its grievance on February 19, 2025, alleging that managers were rigging the process by steering lucrative overtime shifts to favored workers while others were systematically passed over, and the union asked for compensation for the overlooked custodians along with removal of the supervisors responsible. The union also alleged that some favored workers paid kickbacks to managers in exchange for overtime, though the report notes the union's accounts of cash, meals, travel, flights, and rental cars allegedly exchanged for shifts were often secondhand.

The investigation concluded the kickback allegations lacked credible evidence, while finding that most other alleged examples of favoritism were not substantiated. But the report did sustain some complaints: inconsistent overtime-distribution practices created inequitable treatment of custodians, and favoritism did influence how some shifts were allocated, the document found. The report ultimately concluded that a lack of written standard procedure led to both possible and actual unintentional inequities in how overtime got handed out.

The union contract in force during the dispute already set a baseline: overtime was to be distributed “as equally as possible” through a voluntary rotation, with Facilities employees moving to a list that tracked hours worked or declined once the seniority rotation was exhausted. The agreement also says classification seniority applies to overtime distribution. The finding that inconsistent practices produced inequity therefore points to an implementation problem against an existing negotiated framework, rather than an absence of any contractual rule. The Port-SEIU labor agreement spells out those requirements.

Pay Records Draw Scrutiny

The numbers behind the allegations are striking on their own. Airport custodians collectively drew more than $2 million in overtime annually for three straight years, and in 2023 the highest overtime earner averaged 74 work hours a week, according to timecards cited by the outlet.

The contract also provides a staffing backdrop: it lists 71 custodial shift-and-work-area bid lines for calendar year 2023, compared with a benchmark of 84 lines in fiscal year 2005-06. It allows the Port to use overtime to cover custodial absences or vacancies and provides for an annual bid process. Those terms do not explain why particular employees accumulated the most overtime, but they show that the agreement anticipated overtime filling coverage gaps as well as setting rules for distributing available shifts. The agreement’s custodial and overtime provisions set out those details.

Separately, terminal services supervisor Kimberly Moses said she did nothing wrong, describing the airport's overtime records as handwritten call sheets and codes kept in a binder.

Port Response and Oversight Questions

Port Communications Director Justin Berton said the sustained findings were isolated and that the port is taking action to discipline the individual involved, per the outlet's reporting. The port says it has already made changes to its overtime system meant to ensure fair distribution going forward under the custodian union's contract.

Not everyone is satisfied with how the matter was handled. Joey Friedman, a former SEIU 1021 Port of Oakland chapter president, said he believes the investigation was steered by the port and that its results do not tell the whole story. Oakland City Auditor Michael Houston has said it might be time for his office to audit the port, asking what assurance the city has that adequate controls are in place. The port and SEIU 1021 say they will continue working together on overtime allocation going forward.

Oakland’s oversight structure gives elected officials a role in appointments but leaves Port management with a separate board. The City Charter vests the Port’s exclusive control and management in seven commissioners nominated by the mayor and appointed by the City Council, serving four-year terms. That arrangement helps explain the distinction in the city auditor’s question: the mayor and council choose commissioners, while the commission governs the Port. The Port’s strategic plan describes the board’s charter-based authority and appointment structure.

Budget Pressures Ahead

The scrutiny arrives as the airport's finances tighten. Passenger traffic fell nearly 15% from December 2024 to December 2025, and the airport is projecting $209 million in operating revenue against expenses that would leave a $47 million deficit, according to port data cited by the outlet. The port's board has approved the airport budget unanimously for four straight years.

A Sold-Out Return After a Long Absence

Promoter Bill Graham booked Led Zeppelin for two Day on the Green shows at the Oakland Coliseum, scheduled for July 23 and July 24, 1977, according to Led Zeppelin News. The band's official website confirms both dates, listing the July 23 performance and the July 24 performance at the Coliseum. The shows marked the band's first Bay Area appearances following a two-year gap tied to Robert Plant's 1975 car accident, with the band's own site quoting an apology for “the two-year delay.”

Demand for tickets was intense. Per the Led Zeppelin News account, 30,000 tickets sold in the first 90 minutes after they went on sale on July 5, 1977, with 85,000 sold by the end of that same day. Attendance figures for the run are murkier, though: the same outlet reports 115,000 total ticket purchasers across both dates, while the band's official website describes the July 23 show alone as playing to “the packed house of 54,000” — a discrepancy the available record does not resolve.

A Dispute Over a Trailer Sign Turns Violent

The trouble began backstage on July 23, when festival employee Jim Matzorkis asked Warren Grant — the 11-year-old son of Led Zeppelin manager Peter Grant — not to remove a sign from a dressing-room trailer, according to the same Led Zeppelin News report. What followed escalated into violence that left three Bill Graham employees assaulted, per an account from Led Zeppelin security employee Greg Baeppler cited by the outlet. John Bonham, Peter Grant, tour manager Richard Cole, and Led Zeppelin security employee John Bindon were all accused of being involved, the report states.

According to the original reporting, the injured employee was rushed to the hospital bleeding. Reported accounts describe Peter Grant, John Bonham, and John Bindon as allegedly beating Matzorkis, with Cole reportedly standing guard during the assault — allegations drawn from later recollections rather than adjudicated findings. Separately, per Bill Graham's later account as relayed by biographer Mark Blake, Bindon knocked crew member Jim Downey unconscious in another confrontation, and Cole swung a piece of aluminium tubing at stage manager Bob Barsotti.

Bill Graham himself later said his security guard had politely told Warren he could not take the sign, while John Bonham claimed he saw the incident from the stage and that the guard had hit the boy — two conflicting versions of how the confrontation started, according to the original reporting.

Arrests at a San Francisco Hotel

Two days later, on the morning of Monday, July 25, 1977, police arrived at the San Francisco Hilton with misdemeanor arrest warrants for Peter Grant, John Bindon, John Bonham, and Richard Cole, according to Led Zeppelin News's account of Baeppler's recollections. All four were taken to the Oakland Police Department without handcuffs. Bill Graham signed a letter of indemnification tied to the previous night's incident before the second show.

A separate account from Primidi states that Graham signed a letter of indemnification tied to the previous night's incident before Led Zeppelin's second Oakland show. The four men later received bail and pleaded no contest, receiving suspended sentences, per the same source.

Three Bill Graham employees — identified in lawsuit filings hosted on Scribd as James C. Matzorkis, James L. Downey, and Robert N. Barsotti — brought a civil action against Led Zeppelin and the Dutch business that employed the band, seeking $2 million, according to Led Zeppelin News. Per the original reporting, the case lasted over a year before it was settled out of court for an undisclosed fee.

A Final U.S. Performance and a Lasting Legacy

According to The Guardian, the group's last show on U.S. soil followed the incident in Oakland. The fallout extended beyond the courtroom: Led Zeppelin News also reports that the backstage violence drew political attention, including a request that authorities investigate what had happened at the festival, with the matter raised in connection with the band's immigration status as of September 8, 1977.

Bill Graham later discussed the episode in a chapter of his autobiography.

According to NBC Bay Area, the suit names Deonna “Dee Dee” Thompson, Chloe Shedrick and Jolie Zahra Drevitch as plaintiffs. Thompson and Shedrick each allege they had brief consensual relationships with the property manager before ending them, and that he then used his position in the building to stalk and harass them, per the lawsuit. The women claim the owners and management company failed to act appropriately once they raised concerns.

Per the lawsuit, Thompson says the manager allegedly tracked her movements using building security cameras for about a month after she ended the relationship, and that he showed up repeatedly, contacting her by calls and texts and trying to enter her apartment. Thompson also alleges that a building employee grabbed her buttocks without her consent at a Halloween party; that employee has denied the allegations against him. The following morning, the lawsuit states, the property manager left flowers at Thompson's door.

Incident Reports Allegedly Went Nowhere

Thompson and Shedrick said they filed incident reports with the building management company documenting what they experienced. But according to the lawsuit, those complaints went through the very property manager accused of harassment. Thompson told the outlet that the manager read her incident report and then texted her asking to discuss it.

Shedrick's allegations describe a similar pattern: the lawsuit claims the manager would show up at her door and try to enter during their relationship, sometimes while drunk, and that after she ended things, he tracked her movements using the building's security cameras as well. Thompson said she moved out of the building in March, earlier this year, in response to the alleged harassment, telling the station she believes speaking up can help prevent the behavior from continuing.

Juneteenth Party Incident Prompted a Police Report

Drevitch, who the lawsuit says had lived at Axis for four years without incident, alleges a different kind of encounter during a building Juneteenth party. According to the suit, the manager put his arm around her neck and pulled her face close during the celebration, then later made unwanted sexual advances toward her in a stairwell. When she declined to enter an apartment, the lawsuit alleges, he tried to block her path.

Drevitch reported the incident to upper management and also filed a police report, and Oakland police said the investigation into her report remains ongoing, the station reported. The lawsuit claims management promised to fire the property manager following her complaint, but that the manager remained at work when Drevitch came forward — an allegation the suit ties to the company's broader failure to act on the women's complaints.

Manager Denies Allegations, Owners Stay Silent

The property manager denied the allegations in an email to NBC Bay Area, saying the lawsuit does not accurately reflect his account and that he intends to contest the women's claims through the appropriate legal process. The building's owners and management company did not respond to the outlet's request for comment on the lawsuit. When asked whether the manager had been fired, neither he nor his employer would comment, according to the report.

Attorney Rahman Popal, who represents the women, said ownership is ultimately responsible for tenant rights and safety, and that he feared the alleged conduct could happen to other tenants if left unaddressed. Attorney Rachel Neff said photos of messages, emails and calls showed what she described as a prolonged pattern affecting multiple tenants in the building.

What Recourse Tenants Have in Oakland

Beyond the civil lawsuit itself, the City of Oakland says its Tenant Protection Ordinance gives tenants legal recourse when they are harassed by a property owner, offering a separate avenue outside of criminal investigation or a civil suit. It remains unclear how the Axis case will play out in court, and no outcome has been reported for either the civil claims or the ongoing police investigation into Drevitch's report.

Concord Police Dispatch received the 911 call at about 8:51 p.m. on Oct. 23, according to contracosta.news, which reported that the man involved was armed with a knife. When officers arrived, they tried to reach people inside the home, but no one responded, so they forced entry, per the same report.

Inside, officers found a man and woman with apparent stab wounds and began providing medical aid, the outlet reported. The woman died at the scene despite those efforts, while the man was taken to a local hospital, where he remained listed in critical condition.

Detectives Take Over as Preliminary Probe Continues

Detectives from the Concord Police Department's Investigations Division were called in to take over the case, the station's report notes, and they have continued conducting follow-up interviews. Based on the preliminary investigation, police reported there were no outstanding suspects and no ongoing threat to public safety, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.

Anyone with information relevant to the investigation is being asked to contact Detective Justin Wilson at 925-603-5859 or the anonymous tip line at 925-603-5836, per the same account. The identities of the man and woman, their relationship, and what led to the disturbance have not been disclosed.

Concord Has Seen Other Violent Domestic Cases

This is not the first time a disturbance inside a Concord home has turned deadly. On Dec. 31, 2025, police said a 90-year-old man and an 85-year-old woman were found dead of gunshot wounds inside a Concord home following a reported family disturbance, according to KTVU. The victims' 61-year-old son, Kirk Richardson, was arrested on suspicion of double murder in that case.

KTVU also reported that a separate Dec. 15 incident near Concord left one person dead and three others hospitalized after the Contra Costa County Sheriff's Office responded to a home on the 5100 block of Laurel Drive. In another Concord case, officers shot and killed a man they said was actively stabbing a family member, according to ABC7 News, which reported that the stabbing victim in that incident was hospitalized and expected to survive.

Contra Costa County outlets also reported a May 2025 double stabbing in Concord that left two people wounded, though the circumstances of that earlier case differed from Friday's incident. The City of Concord notes that its official crime statistics are dynamic and subject to revision as cases are updated or reclassified, meaning any broader pattern remains unconfirmed. For now, the investigation into Friday's stabbing on Panoramic Drive remains active, with detectives continuing to piece together what happened inside the home.

A Welfare Check Turned Medical Emergency

According to the San Francisco Chronicle, deputies conducted a welfare check on Watson on Oct. 13 and found her unresponsive in her cell at about 8:36 p.m. She still had a pulse at that point, and deputies and jail medical staff performed lifesaving measures before she was taken to a hospital. She died there on Thursday, per the Sheriff's Office.

Watson had been booked into Santa Rita Jail on Oct. 10 on suspicion of domestic violence and driving under the influence, the Chronicle reports. She was released on her own recognizance the day after she was sent to the hospital. Her case was dismissed. An official cause of death remains pending autopsy and toxicology results.

Required Notifications to State and County Officials

The Sheriff's Office notified both the Alameda County District Attorney's Office and the California Attorney General's Office about Watson's death, the Chronicle reported. That notification process tracks with state law: AB 2761, which added Section 10008 to the Penal Code, governs reporting requirements for deaths in law enforcement custody, according to California Legislative Information. The Alameda County Sheriff's Office separately says it is required to post specific information within 10 days whenever someone dies in its custody, per its own transparency page.

No further details about the circumstances of Watson's death had been released as of the Chronicle's report.

Part of a Troubling Pattern at Santa Rita

Watson's death adds to a string of recent in-custody deaths at the Dublin facility. In June, SFist reported that 37-year-old Brandon Anthony Josep Watson of San Francisco died at a hospital two days after being found unresponsive in a dormitory housing unit, following his transfer from Monterey County Jail. That outlet noted his death was the second reported in-custody death at Santa Rita that year and the 77th since 2014.

The same SFist report detailed other recent deaths at the jail: Kenyonna Farr of Oakland died in a holding cell in March, three days after being transferred there, and 36-year-old Dequita Grace Harrell died in the women's restroom of the jail's lobby in February while visiting an inmate. In 2024, KTVU reported that 30-year-old Abrion William McElmore died at Santa Rita on Aug. 24 after being found unresponsive in his cell and never regaining consciousness — the second death at the jail that year and the 70th since 2014, according to that KTVU analysis, which also covered a death at the nearby West County Detention Facility that officials said did not appear suspicious.

A Statewide Pattern of Record Jail Deaths

The deaths at Santa Rita fit into a broader trend across California. CalMatters has reported that California jails are holding fewer people than they have in decades, but they are deadlier places than ever, with deaths surging during the COVID-19 pandemic and a subsequent wave of overdoses and suicides keeping death rates at record levels. The outlet also found that almost all of the people who died in the state's lockups had yet to be tried — a detail that echoes Watson's case, which was also dismissed.

The milestone anniversary comes courtesy of the Antioch Herald, which describes this weekend's gathering as the 12th annual Hot Rods 4 Paws Benefit Car & Bike Show in Antioch's Rivertown. According to Antioch Animal Services, the event's Saturday hours and location were confirmed on the agency's Facebook page, which also laid out the day's lineup: trunk-or-treat stations, a kids zone, music, vendors and a pet and kids costume contest set for noon.

A Fundraiser Built Around Pets in Need

Beyond the chrome and candy, the show exists to raise money for a cause. The event's organizers describe it as a fun, family-friendly car show meant to help Furry Friends Pet Relief continue its work in the community, per the organization's official website. That website also details what Furry Friends Pet Relief actually provides to families: free-to-low-cost spay and neuter services, vaccines, preventative medical care and free pet food for households in need.

Antioch Animal Services said it plans to send volunteers to the event alongside adoptable pets, inviting the public to stop by and meet them. The agency's post described the animals as waiting to welcome visitors, framing the show as a chance for Rivertown visitors to combine a day of car-watching with the possibility of finding a new pet.

Free Admission, Noon Costume Contest

Organizers have kept the event free to the public, with the full slate of activities packed into the four-hour window. The noon costume contest for pets and kids is positioned as the midday centerpiece, breaking up a morning and early afternoon of car browsing, vendor shopping and music in the historic downtown core.

It's worth noting a small discrepancy in the event's history: while this year's show is billed as the 12th annual edition, a 2025 listing from the Antioch Herald referred to that year's show as the 11th annual Hot Rods 4 Paws Benefit Car & Bike Show and Trunk or Treat. The dossier does not resolve the gap between the two counts, but either way, the Rivertown fixture has clearly built a multi-year run heading into this weekend's gathering at 708 West 2nd Street.

A Rookery Larger Than Any Other in Oakland

The four trees at the corner, along with three across the street, host black-crowned night herons and snowy egrets that breed there each spring and summer. The dispute has also drawn coverage from Coyote Media. CBS News reports that the rookery hosts nearly 100 nests in total. The birds contribute to regional biodiversity, but they are also loud and messy, leaving droppings on sidewalks, parked cars and pedestrians below, the station reports.

The danger cuts both ways. In 2019, a mature ficus tree loaded with heron nests split and partially collapsed, sending dozens of newborn chicks crashing to the ground; the surviving chicks were rescued and taken to the International Bird Rescue center, per the same account. Mature ficus trees carry a risk of limbs breaking and falling on property or on the nests themselves, and chicks and fledglings that tumble onto hard concrete can suffer broken legs, broken wings, and damaged internal organs, CBS News reports. Predators may find injured birds that rescuers do not reach in time.

The Housing Project Moving Forward Below the Nests

The development planned for 285 12th Street is being built by the nonprofit East Bay Asian Local Development Corporation, known as EBALDC, according to Coyote Media. Accounts of the project's size differ: Coyote Media and SFYIMBY both describe a 65-unit building, with SFYIMBY breaking it down as 15 studios, 16 one-bedrooms, 17 two-bedrooms and 17 three-bedrooms, while the Oakland Housing Authority states the development will provide 64 units of affordable family housing. CBS News separately reports the project plans 64 units of affordable housing. All units will be restricted to households earning 30% to 60% of Area Median Income, with 13 reserved for people exiting homelessness, according to the Oakland Housing Authority.

Oakland and EBALDC were jointly awarded $35.9 million in state climate-action funding to support the 285 12th Street development and related transportation improvements, the housing authority reports. Initial grading and site-preparation permits for the parcel were submitted on July 2, 2026, according to SFYIMBY. Coyote Media reports that when ground breaks on the lot later this year, it is likely the four ficus trees on the corner will have to come down.

Oakland has a critical and growing need for low-income housing, and affordable projects in the city routinely carry long waitlists, Coyote Media notes. Oakland's Housing and Community Development Department frames its mission around a “3P” approach — protecting residents from displacement, preserving existing affordable stock, and producing new deeply affordable units — per the housing authority. Ryan Nakano has said the herons symbolize Oakland residents who face displacement, tying the fate of the rookery directly to the affordable-housing fight, according to CBS News. Nakano has also said the heron represents Oakland because it is resilient, even while acknowledging the birds are loud and messy.

Past Relocation Attempts Have Fallen Flat

Efforts to relocate Oakland's herons back to Lake Merritt have had limited success, according to the San Francisco Bay Bird Observatory, which notes that tree removal rarely resolves these conflicts because the birds simply nest in other nearby trees. Oakland's own prior attempt lasted two breeding seasons and relied on decoy birds, transplanted empty nests, and recorded mating and breeding sounds, according to CBS News. H.T. Harvey & Associates was hired to encourage birds to leave the construction-site rookery and establish a colony near Lake Merritt as part of that effort, the station reports.

None of it worked. “The birds poo-pooed the efforts, and happily continued making stinky, messy nests downtown. Eventually, Oakland quietly killed the relocation plan,” Coyote Media reported. Trimming the trees will not prevent the birds from returning, CBS News notes, and a 2019 count by the bird observatory found just 55 active nests in Oakland, down sharply from 156 in 2018, according to The Oaklandside.

What the records and nest counts show

The project information cited above says initial grading and site-preparation permits were submitted on July 2, 2026; that submission does not establish that tree removal has been approved or set a construction start date. In broader housing context, the City of Oakland’s 2024 progress report says three affordable housing projects entitled under SB 423 included 112 units deed-restricted to VLI households, 73 LI units and 76 MI units, according to the City of Oakland. The Oaklandside reported that the San Francisco Bay Bird Observatory’s peak count of active nests fell 64% between 2018 and 2019, while noting that temporary disturbances at one rookery can shift counts to others. The change in nest counts alone does not establish a change in the overall bird population. In a separate Oakland effort in November 2017, H.T. Harvey retrieved 130 night-heron and 20 snowy-egret nests downtown as part of a relocation effort paid for by Holland Partners, The Oaklandside reported.

The bird observatory previously partnered with the Oakland Zoo, International Bird Rescue, Golden Gate Audubon, and California Fish & Game on a collaborative plan to plant Chinese banyan and Brazilian peppertree species herons favor in a neglected strip of green space near a slough, several blocks from the colony's current sites, according to the bird observatory. In 2015, the Golden Gate Bird Alliance, Oakland Zoo, and International Bird Rescue formed a separate partnership after tree trimmers knocked down active nests, according to the Golden Gate Bird Alliance.

A Rare Success Story From Long Beach

One comparable effort did succeed. A black-crowned night-heron colony in Long Beach was relocated after its former site was threatened by port development, according to the Conservation Evidence Journal. Workers moved 50 mature trees two kilometers away, placing them near roughly 70 existing trees, and used recordings of the original colony's vocalizations, decoys placed in the trees, and restrictions on public access to lure the birds in. The following year, 423 pairs of black-crowned night herons successfully fledged 1,128 chicks at the new site, the journal reported.

Oakland's Official Bird, Named by Schoolkids

Black-crowned night herons became Oakland's official bird in 2019 after a two-year campaign led by Park Day School third-graders, who launched their initiative in 2017 and described the heron as a cool and funky bird, just like Oakland, according to the Oakland Zoo. The zoo has rescued 87 egrets and night herons since nesting season began in March, a 28% increase over the previous year, per Coyote Media. The zoo runs a dedicated heron rescue team that patrols downtown streets, and injured birds it recovers often end up at International Bird Rescue, which operates an intensive-care unit in Fairfield, CBS News reports.

JD Bergeron has said the center provides critical care like a hospital, and that small snowy egrets and black-crowned night herons are currently receiving treatment there, according to CBS News. An egret chick at the center needs an incubator to survive because it cannot yet regulate its own body temperature, the station reports. Bergeron has also said urban environments can be unsafe for birds and problematic for nearby residents, and suggested removing the trees could ultimately be positive for the birds themselves.

EBALDC, which develops the 12th and Harrison project, declined an interview request and referred questions about the project to the City of Oakland, according to CBS News. The city in turn provided a report prepared by H.T. Harvey & Associates. Those involved in the project say they hope to find safe spaces for both people and birds, CBS News reports, even as the fate of downtown Oakland's largest rookery remains tied to a construction timeline still taking shape.

According to a statement from Gov. Newsom's office, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in favor of Newsom and the State of California in the lawsuit filed by Attorney General Rob Bonta on behalf of the governor and the state against President Trump. California Attorney General Rob Bonta, who is based in Oakland, took to social media Friday to celebrate the outcome, writing that the Ninth Circuit had made clear that President Trump's 2025 deployment of California's National Guard was unlawful and unconstitutional.

In the same post, shared via his account on X

, Bonta said the court also blocked what he described as the Trump administration's transparent attempt to keep a pathway open to federalize the Guard over California's objections. The attorney general added that his office will fight to hold President Trump accountable whenever he tramples on the Constitution and Californians' rights, and will win.

A Legal Fight That Stretched Back to Last Year

The dispute traces back to a September 2025 order that barred the Trump administration from deploying, directing, training, or using the National Guard and other military troops in California to execute civilian law enforcement functions. As reported by the Governor's office, that order enjoined the federal government from using the troops then stationed in California for arrests, searches, seizures, security patrols, traffic control, crowd control, riot control, evidence collection, interrogation, or acting as informants.

The underlying legal question centered on the President's authority under 10 U.S.C. § 12406, the federal statute that allows a president to call National Guard members and units of any state into federal service in numbers deemed necessary to repel invasion, suppress rebellion, or execute federal laws, per the version of the statute published by the U.S. House of Representatives. Earlier Ninth Circuit proceedings examined whether that federalization decision was subject to judicial review at all, a question that shaped much of the litigation that followed.

By late December 2025, the legal pressure on the administration intensified. The Trump administration was ordered to return hundreds of California National Guard troops to Gov. Newsom's control, according to the New York Times, after a federal appellate court sided with the state.

Administration Backed Away From the Fight

California officials have described the case's final stretch as a steady retreat by the federal government. The state's Department of Justice said the Trump administration withdrew its motion to stay and allowed a lower-court order ending the extended federalization of the California National Guard to take full effect, following a Supreme Court decision, according to a press release from the California Attorney General's Office.

That same office had earlier noted that the Ninth Circuit's rejection of an emergency request to pause the restrictive order meant that, come the following Monday, there would be no National Guard troops deployed in California. Taken together, officials say the sequence shows the administration moving from an injunction, to a failed emergency appeal, to an outright withdrawal of its legal effort.

What Comes Next

With the National Guard case now resolved in the state's favor, Bonta has signaled the fight over federal overreach in California is far from finished. He said his office will continue working to hold the president accountable whenever constitutional or state rights are threatened, framing the Guard ruling as part of a broader pattern of pushback against federal actions in California.

The looming cutback is the latest swing in a policy that has changed dramatically in just a few years. California reinstated a $130,000 asset limit for older adults and people with disabilities effective January 1, 2026, according to Justice in Aging. That reinstatement itself marked a reversal of a broader elimination of asset testing — the Sacramento Bee reported that the state removed the asset test entirely between 2024 and 2025 before reinstating it at the start of this year, while other accounts have described the full elimination as taking effect either in 2024 or in January 2025. Now, under a budget lawmakers approved this year, the $130,000 threshold is set to collapse to $21,000 for individuals in 2027, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.

The asset limit specifically targets people who qualify for Medi-Cal through age- or disability-related pathways — those who are 65 or older, blind, disabled, living in a nursing home or receiving long-term care, per the Chronicle's reporting. People who qualify under federal modified adjusted gross income rules, including many children, pregnant people, parents and working-age adults, are not subject to any asset test at all. Current enrollees won't feel the change all at once; the newspaper reports that asset limits will be assessed on a rolling basis as people come up for renewal, with Justice in Aging noting that current enrollees must first verify their assets at their 2026 renewal.

What Counts Against the Limit

Under the rules, a primary residence and one vehicle are exempt from the asset count, but a second home or car is not. Justice in Aging describes countable assets as cash, money in bank accounts, second vehicles, and homes or land the person does not live in — one home remains exempt only if the applicant actually lives in it. California's bill text, reviewed through California Legislative Information, spells out the $21,000 limit for a one-person household, $31,000 for two people, and the added $1,550 per additional household member, up to ten people.

For people like Elizabette Guéçamburu, the math is personal. She works part time as her family's bookkeeper on their farm in Patterson, where the family grows walnuts, almonds and alfalfa, according to CalMatters. The outlet reports her father was diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2024, and that her family has since removed her from inheriting a portion of their 100-year-old farm so she can stay under the asset threshold — she may instead place money inherited from her grandmother into a special needs trust controlled by a family member.

“It's Really Expensive to Be Disabled”

“It's really expensive to be disabled,” Guéçamburu said, according to the same CalMatters report. A used wheelchair-accessible van can cost about $75,000, and home modifications like ramps and accessible bathrooms — which Medi-Cal does not cover — can run into the tens of thousands of dollars, the outlet reports. “I have to surrender our legacy just to have medical security and have the ability to live my life,” she said.

Julia Feinberg, a 37-year-old therapist in Oakland with a degenerative neuromuscular disorder, faces a similar squeeze. Medi-Cal currently covers her power wheelchair and about 19 hours of caregiving each day, per the outlet's reporting, and she would need to spend about $10,000 to meet the new asset cap. If she loses Medi-Cal, she would also lose access to a special disability program that pays for extra caregiving hours — a program that already has a multiyear waitlist. “We keep having to have the same fight over and over and over again,” Feinberg said.

A Budget Fight With a Lower Number on the Table

The $21,000 figure that lawmakers settled on is itself a retreat from a far steeper cut Gov. Gavin Newsom had sought. Amid a $12 billion budget shortfall, Newsom proposed reinstating a former $2,000 asset limit, arguing that Medi-Cal enrollment had come in at more than twice earlier estimates, per the same CalMatters account. The Legislature opposed that plan, and the two sides ultimately compromised on the $130,000 figure before lawmakers approved lowering it further to $21,000 for low-income seniors and people with disabilities.

The scale of Newsom's original proposal would have been dramatic: the California Budget & Policy Center calculated that cutting the limit to $2,000 for an individual represented a 98% reduction from the $130,000 threshold, and that someone with $10,000 in savings would have been forced to spend 80% of it just to qualify, according to the California Budget & Policy Center. The state's own Department of Finance estimated that a $2,000 limit would have caused 62,000 seniors and people with disabilities to lose Medi-Cal over two years, CalMatters reports — though the outlet also notes California had not released budget estimates before lawmakers approved the less severe $21,000 limit. When the $130,000 threshold was reinstated at the start of 2026, about 600 people lost coverage as a result, according to the same CalMatters reporting; advocates now expect more people to lose Medi-Cal once the $21,000 limit takes hold.

Advocates and Candidates Weigh In

Advocates say the asset rules unfairly target older people and people with disabilities, a group for which Medi-Cal often covers essentials — a single person's income eligibility limit sits at about $1,800 per month, while private home care can cost thousands of dollars monthly, according to AARP figures cited in the CalMatters report. Lindsay Imai Hong, California director for Hand in Hand, said organizers with the group are looking to the next governor for policy change, per the outlet.

The politics of the issue are already surfacing in the race to succeed Newsom. Steve Hilton has criticized California for extending Medi-Cal benefits, including coverage for immigrants without legal status, beyond what the state could afford, and he opposes the asset limits. Xavier Becerra did not answer specific questions about the asset-limit policy, but his campaign spokesperson, Johnathan Underland, blamed federal cuts from the Trump administration for squeezing California's Medi-Cal program and said Becerra would focus on protecting access to care and demanding savings that are, in Underland's words, real, measurable and sustainable. Becerra has floated raising taxes to reverse Medi-Cal cuts, though CalMatters notes he has not released detailed health policy plans. Camille Nguyen, an attorney with the Legal Aid Society of San Mateo County, was also referenced in the outlet's reporting on the policy's legal dimensions.

A Bigger Coverage Crunch Looms

The asset-limit rollback is unfolding alongside broader warnings about California's health coverage. Experts estimate that combined federal and state cuts could remove more than 2.2 million Californians from coverage over four years and roughly double the state's uninsured rate, according to CalMatters' reporting — a projection that aligns with separate analysis from the Los Angeles Times, which reported that California's uninsured rate could nearly double to almost 15% by 2030. A California Health Care Foundation report cited by the Chronicle similarly found that combined state and federal Medicaid policy changes could lead to up to 2 million Californians losing coverage.

Nationally, the stakes of these eligibility pathways are substantial. Nearly one in four Medicaid enrollees qualify because they are 65 or older or have a disability, according to KFF, and spending on people in those pathways topped $339 billion in 2021 — more than half of all Medicaid spending. Most states still require applicants in these categories to show limited savings, typically capped at $2,000 for an individual and $3,000 for a couple, far below even California's new $21,000 threshold.