Border-crossing journalism from the Sacramento Valley
Editor’s note: Chico resident Eileen Robinson shared a March 13 letter she sent to the Chico City Council regarding the City’s newly-designated campsites at Eaton and Cohasset roads. The city has set up two new sites for unhoused people to comply with a judge’s order.
Honorable Council Members and Mr. Sorenson,
I saw the televised account of Target Team members visiting designated campsite one and issuing citations because some folks didn’t have permission to be there.
by Natalie Hanson
commentary posted March 14
For those of us who have lost a parent to illness, or conspiracy theories, the pain of witnessing a massive campaign to debunk medical science runs deep.
When COVID-19 hit and began devastating millions of lives, misinformation about the virus -– whether to profit, politicize or divide -– also hit. I felt alone, recognizing telltale signs of the same messaging that tore my family apart.
by Leslie Layton & Natalie Hanson
posted March 13
An effort to force Chico Unified School District (CUSD) staff to obtain “informed consent” from parents before “socially transitioning” a youth who identifies as transgender has stalled in federal court.
A federal judge has denied a request made in the Regino v. Staley lawsuit, filed against CUSD over a gender identity case, that the district be immediately stopped from accomodating any student who identifies with a gender different than what appears on school records without first contacting the parents.
by Dave Waddell
posted March 11
Eddie “Gabe” Sanchez, who was shot dead in 2015 by Chico police Sgt. Mark Bass, was called “a piece of shit” by Bass during a confrontation last week at a Paradise restaurant, claims Sanchez’s brother.
The Sanchez family has a wrongful death lawsuit pending in federal court against Bass, the Chico Police Department and City of Chico over the killing.
posted March 9
A coalition of environmental groups, including Chico-based AquAlliance, has submitted a notice of intent to sue the State Water Resources Control Board over an order to suspend water quality and fish protections in the Sacramento/San Joaquin Delta.
The Board issued the order following a decision by Gov. Gavin Newsom to retain water in state reservoirs to ensure future deliveries for Central Valley agriculture, an AquAlliance press release says. The coalition also includes the California Sportfishing Alliance and the California Water Impact Network.
by Leslie Layton & Natalie Hanson
posted March 7
A lawsuit filed against Chico Unified over its response to a student who was questioning their gender identity has opened a new front for Butte County culture wars.
The lawsuit, Regino v. Staley, filed Jan. 6 in federal court in the Eastern District of California, alleges that a school counselor at Sierra View Elementary coaxed a student into adopting a male identity after the fifth-grader confided that they “felt like a boy.” The lawsuit names as defendants the Board of Education and Chico Unified (CUSD) Superintendent Kelly Staley.
