Free Republic

Thousands of people filling the sidewalks and spilling onto Tully Road had arrived early Saturday morning to receive one of 5,500 doses of coveted swine flu vaccine. "There's no way there's enough," said George Reis, who was helping with crowd control. "They keep coming."

San Jose already has a far higher rate of retired police and firefighters on disability than other large California city. And in the three years since a Mercury News investigation documented that trend, pension trustees haven't denied one of the dozens of claims that have come before them. But a city physician's effort to demand more medical documentation of career-ending injuries now has officers calling for his ouster. Police say Dr. Rajiv Das is holding up officers' disability retirements — which, unlike regular service pensions, are mostly tax-free. Though Das merely advises the trustees who decide disability retirements, police complain...

Just had an earthquake in San Jose. It was small, but the 2nd one this week.

Even a federal judge can wind up having problems with lenders and banks these days. A small Northern California community bank this week sued San Jose U.S. District Judge James Ware in Santa Clara County Superior Court, accusing him of failing to make payments on an $80,000 boat he purchased nine years ago. The lawsuit, filed by Butte Community Bank, alleges that Ware owes more than $58,000 — and the bank is seeking a court order to seize the boat. So now the veteran federal judge finds himself facing the prospect of being a civil defendant in a courtroom instead...

San Jose's ACORN has closed its first-time homeowner program in the wake of the scandal that has also cost the national group its federal funding. Allison Chadwick, a national spokeswoman for ACORN Housing, said all of its offices, including San Jose and the East Bay chapters, would suspend classes for first-time home buyers. However, foreclosure advice would continue. ACORN, a nonprofit anti-poverty organization, is reeling from a sting operation by undercover conservative activists posing as a prostitute and her pimp. The pair videotaped ACORN housing workers in Baltimore and other locations offering them advice about cheating on taxes and operating...

San Jose and other redevelopment agencies across California score a victory vs. the state — for now. California's redevelopment agencies have won a major victory in their battle to keep the state from grabbing hundreds of millions of tax dollars. Now a second legal skirmish looms that could blow a huge hole in the fragile state budget if the agencies win — or jeopardize everything from street repairs to major urban renewal projects if they lose. Last week, state officials dropped an appeal of a judge's ruling that their 2008 seizure of $350 million from the agencies — including $13...

San Jose council votes to ban most plastic and paper bags beginning in 2011 The San Jose City Council on Tuesday voted to make the city the largest in the nation to ban most plastic and paper shopping bags — and took steps to bring other Santa Clara County cities along with them. Although the ban approved Tuesday won't take effect until 2011 — and still must go through an environmental impact study that will require the council's final signoff — it's a major new front in the war on plastic bags, which environmentalists say foul waterways, clog landfills and...

Just wanted to give an after report from the San Jose Tea Party. It started today around 1pm on the corner of Winchester and Steven's Creek. I'd say there were several hundred protestors. Lots of cars were going by and honking in our support. As usual, it was full of nice peaceful all-Americans. I heard that some of the protestors were going to a Town Hall meeting that Mike Honda was having. I didn't know about it, so I couldn't go. I didn't have a camera so I can't post any pictures. It's always very encouraging to see so many...

A pigeon that nuzzled too close to another bird on a high-voltage line Wednesday got zapped into eternity and likely sparked the four-alarm brush fire that scorched several acres on San Jose's Communications Hill, PG&E officials said Thursday. San Jose fire Capt. Scott Kouns said the cause of the fire that blackened some 15 acres and the skies above before it was extinguished two hours later officially remains under investigation. Two firefighters suffered minor injuries and an outbuilding was burned. But Jennifer Zerwer, spokeswoman for Pacific Gas & Electric, said utility crews found a downed 12-kilovolt power line and a...

Babs Boxer showed up today at a Barnes & Noble book store in San Jose, CA. Many citizens showed up at the book store to express their opinions to Babs. These activities all took place out side the store. As far as I know, there was no disruptions inside the store. This small minded hag was walking around taking pictures. She said was going to put them on the Internet to show everyone what "idiots" we were. Can you imaging a conservative doing something like this at a liberal rally. The ACORN and SEIU guys would rip you apart.

Push to fluoridate water in San Jose So far, tooth fairies have had it great in San Jose: The city is the largest in the country that doesn't fluoridate its water. But now a major effort is under way to shed that title. In a push toward better dental health in the valley, advocates have launched a campaign to raise the millions needed to upgrade the city's water infrastructure. Given the controversy that typically surrounds fluoridation efforts, they expect progress to be slow. So on Wednesday backers of the effort brought a top engineer from the Centers for Disease Control...

Cisco has cut between 600 and 700 jobs at its headquarters in San Jose, Calif., the Journal said, and has trimmed jobs in branch offices as well.

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Defending Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest champion Joey Chestnut says he practiced hard to successfully retain his crown Saturday in New York. The 25-year-old told the New York Daily News he went into the annual Fourth of July competition in Coney Island confident he would repeat as the hot dog-eating champion of the world. "I've been practicing hard," Chestnut said wolfing down a personal high with 68 hot dogs. "I knew it would be hard to beat me." Chestnut said despite going against six-time titleholder Takeru (Tsunami) Kobayashi, he felt comfortable after consuming 23 hot dogs in the event's first...

Santa Clara County Sheriff's deputies arrested one man and are searching for at least one other in connection with a secret pot garden bust that netted 6,100 marijuana plants with a street value of $18 million. Acting on a tip, deputies from the Special Operations Unit's Marijuana Eradication Team discovered the hidden grow Wednesday about 8 a.m. off Hicks Road in the foothills above San Jose, Sgt. Rick Sung said. As deputies approached two large gardens, they found a man tending to the plants. And they quickly arrested 24 year-old Jesus Ochoachacon, who has an unknown address and is now...

San Jose/Silicon Valley Tea Party San Jose/Silicon Valley, California Sunday, July 5, 2009 1pm -3 pm Valley Fair Mall/Santana Row Intersection of Winchester Blvd and Stevens Creek Blvd On Sunday, July 5, 2009, 1:00 PM to 3:00 PM, the San Jose Tea Party will hold a rally protesting Obama's Government run Healthcare initiative. The rally will be at the corner of Winchester Blvd. and Stevens Creek Blvd. (Santana Row and Valley Fair Mall). In the spirit of limited government and fiscal responsibility, the protest is designed to get the "Stop Government Run Healthcare" message out to folks traveling the busiest...

Two dead crows found in Sunnyvale and San Jose have tested positive for West Nile virus, the first infected birds in Santa Clara County this year. The birds, discovered last week, were in the West San Jose area near Bongate Court and Latimer Avenue and in Sunnyvale near Orleans Drive, north of Highway 237. So far, no human West Nile virus cases have been found in Santa Clara County and the Vector Control District is collecting adult mosquitoes weekly for testing. In addition, the district is following patterns of where the dead birds are found in an effort to identify...

San Jose you have been officially dubbed a threat by Stephen Colbert. The fake news commentator took aim at the backbone of the Silicon Valley by naming it number two in his "Threat Down," a top five list of dangers to America. San Jose beat out the threat of "Casual Jesus," a mannequin hung by a church in England that depicts the Messiah wearing jeans, and the czar who says America will no longer use the term "war on drugs." So what is San Jose's crime that is so heinous it was dubbed a greater threat than visual blasphemy by...

Federal agents are on the hunt for a former California Water Services Company employee who quit his job a few weeks ago, broke into the firm's computers to wire $9 million into overseas bank accounts and then fled the region when confronted with criminal charges in Santa Clara County. In court documents filed today in federal court in San Jose, law enforcement officials have charged Abdirahman Ismail Abdi with unlawful flight from prosecution after he disappeared from the area earlier this month. Local prosecutors and police determined that Abdi has been trying to flee the country since at least May...

Man charged at officersA man fatally shot by San Jose police on Sunday after he allegedly refused to drop a knife he was holding has been identified as 27-year-old San Jose resident Daniel Pham, a police spokesman said today. Officers responded to a report of a family disturbance in the 900 block of Branbury Way at about 11:35 a.m. Relatives at the residence reported that a 29-year-old man had been stabbed. Arriving officers confronted Pham, who was believed to have been involved in the disturbance. He was holding a knife, according to officers, and refused to drop it when officers...

San Jose council votes down porn filters at public library computers A year and a half of debate over filtering pornography out of San Jose public library computers came to a head late Tuesday when the City Council rejected spending money on the technology. After a lively debate that lasted hours, the council voted 7-3 to approve a proposal by the vice mayor and two councilmen that would remind computer users of existing policies to be courteous to others. Mayor Chuck Reed and council members Pete Constant, who led the push for the filters, and Pierluigi Oliverio were opposed, favoring...

Just got back from the 5pm San Jose Tea Party. It was great. There were thousands of people there!!! The one thing that impressed me was that people driving around where the protest was were all honking in support of the protestors. I have pictures, but need my hubby's help to post them. I can't believe that the protest was that successful in the liberal Bay Area!!!!!

100-200 in front of IRS at 55 Market. Signs, flags, kids, families & cameras. Group of anti-protesters but didn't look like ACORN (not very professional). Their signs said "racists." Will be another tea party with radio station down the street at Ceasar Chavez Plaza at 5pm-7pm. I passed out flyers listing congressional actions threatening Liberty. None were thrown away. No problems, no litter. Bored cops (on overtime probably). Talked to lot of people. Exchanged information.

San Jose Tea Party was listed as 55 Markiet IRS at noon on March 21, 2009. Current listing is Ceasar Chavez Plaza at 5pm-7pm. I will be at both places.

San Jose City Council to reconsider porn filters at libraries San Jose officials are preparing for a showdown later this month over online pornography in city libraries. City officials last considered whether to electronically filter library Internet use in 1997. At the time, they overwhelmingly concluded the technology was too primitive to snag smut without also snaring information about health topics like breast cancer. The council will revisit that decision in what is expected to be a heavily attended evening meeting April 21. Councilman Pete Constant since October 2007 has called for reconsidering that move. He has cited improvements in...

The Constitution Party of Santa Clara County is hosting the San Jose (Bay Area) Tax Revolt Tea Party on tax day 2009! We initially limited the scope of the event to Santa Clara County, but upon further research learned there was only one other county wide tax day tea party (San Mateo ), so we decided to invite all patriots from within the nine bay Area counties to join with us, and speak in one voice of our bewilderment, shock, anger, betrayal, and legalized theft of our tax dollars in front of the FED's local collection agency, the San Jose...

Original Article: Accused Terrorist on Trial in Jordan Attended Classes at Sac State; Initiation to Terrorism May Have Started in Sacramento, According to Published Reports. Layla Bohm State Hornet (Student Newspaper) November 27, 2001 Former Sacramento State student Raed Hijazi at his trial in Jordan Nov. 26. Hijazi pleaded innocent to nine charges stemming from a plot to execute terrorist attacks on America and Israel during Millenium celebrations in December 1999. Courtesy Photo/A He was a typical California student. Born in San Jose Dec. 3, 1968, Raed Hijazi eventually attended Sacramento City College, took a Sacramento State extension course...

San Jose gun club hit by thieves. 100 weapons stolen. The Gun Exchange in San Jose says someone broke in and stole more than 100 weapons early Thursday morning. Thieves Swipe Up to 100 Guns in SJ Watch Video As many as 100 guns, including rifles and pistols, were taken from a gun shop on Almaden Expressway in San Jose. The store is on Almaden Expressway and the theft was reported at 5:15 a.m. Police say three men in ski masks pried their way through the front door which triggered an alarm. The alarm company could hear what was happening...

In a hard-fought display of political tenacity, San Jose Councilwoman Madison Nguyen on Tuesday triumphed against a fervent recall effort — born from outrage over a shopping district's name — that pitted her against many in the Vietnamese community who first elected her three years ago. The stunning result was all but certain soon after the polls closed at 8 p.m., when the results of more than 9,500 votes cast in the weeks before Election Day were released. With all precincts counted a few hours later, and fewer than 1,200 late and provisional ballots left to tally today, voters had...

26-year-old San Jose man died early today after he was zapped with a Taser by Campbell police who had been called to help quell a "disturbance'' at Valley Medical Center apparently involving the man. Santa Clara County Sheriff's spokesman Sgt. Don Morrissey did not identify the man, saying that the coroner had not yet given permission because his next of kin had not been properly notified. Morrissey added that he didn't have many details since the death was so recent, but what he did outline was this general scenario: On Thursday about 11:20 p.m., a woman called 911 from Valley...

San Jose, CA (AP) -- The city of San Jose will pay $70,000 to the family of a man who died after police used a Taser stun gun on him. Officers said 38-year-old Jose Rios defied repeated attempts to subdue him when they responded to a domestic dispute in November 2005, prompting them to strike him with batons and shock him with Tasers. Rios' family claimed officers continued stunning him even after he was subdued. He later was pronounced dead at the hospital.

Two engineers from China were sentenced to a year in prison Friday for stealing computer chip designs from their Silicon Valley employers and trying to smuggle the secrets to their homeland to start a government-backed company there. Fei Ye, a U.S. citizen, and Ming Zhong, a permanent resident of the United States, had pleaded guilty in 2006 in San Jose federal court, becoming the first people convicted of the most serious crime under the Economic Espionage Act of 1996. They were accused of trying to benefit China with their stolen chip designs, although prosecutors did not allege that the Chinese...

Voters narrowly approved a sales tax increase to help fund a BART extension into the South Bay, the latest vote tally shows. With all but a handful of ballots counted, Santa Clara County's Measure B secured the necessary two-thirds approval needed to win. The count Friday was 66.78 percent in favor, enough for backers to finally claim victory after the proposal had been losing in the days after the Nov. 4 election. The plan calls for raising the Santa Clara County sales tax by one-eighth of a cent, revenue from which will help to operate and maintain the 16.1-mile extension...

New numbers are expected Monday for the razor thin race to extend BART to San Jose. An unexpected surge in "yes" votes Friday pushed Measure B within .06 percent of passing. It requires a 66. 67 percent "yes" vote to pass. The "yes" vote is at 66. 61 percent. Election workers have 17,000 provisional ballots left to count. The measure would fund part of the BART extension with a one-eighth of cent sales tax increase in Santa Clara County. BART officials on Monday will showcase new parking payment machines that are supposed to make parking easier at a news conference...

San Jose Mayor Chuck Reed says he will request 2 percent -- or $14 billion -- of the federal government's $700 billion bailout package. Reed told The Associated Press Friday that he and several other California mayors plan to collectively present a bailout request to the federal government. He did not know when the request would be formally submitted, nor did he say what other cities would be asking for funds. Reed says the city -- the nation's 10th largest -- needs the money to fund the extension of rapid transit and expand the area's clean technology businesses. San Jose's...

Authorities are trying to determine who marked swastikas and a Star of David on two churches in San Jose this week, a police spokesman said. The vandalism is being treated as a hate crime, San Jose police Officer Jermaine Thomas said. Staff at Trinity Presbyterian Church and Indonesian Christian Church, both located at 3151 Union Ave., reported the vandalism early Monday morning. Thomas said the markings were found on the signs for both of the churches. The vandalism was committed late Sunday or early Monday and investigators are still working to figure out who might have been involved in the...

CBS 5 Poll: South Bay BART Measure Falling Short SAN JOSE (CBS 5/KCBS/BCN) ― A new poll of Santa Clara County voters finds Measure B, a one-eighth-cent increase in the sales tax to help pay for the BART extension to San Jose, still has not garnered the two-thirds majority it needs to pass. A CBS 5 poll conducted by SurveyUSA found that 62 percent of likely voters either lean toward voting or are certain to vote for the extension. The Yes on B campaign has lined up big names such as former Transportation Secretary Norm Mineta to convince the 17...

Vandals hit two S.J. homes with signs supporting ban on same-sex marriage For the second time in a week, homeowners in South San Jose have been targeted for their support of a proposition that would define marriage as a union between a man and a woman. Unlike the previous incident where no law was broken, the culprits who spray-painted large "No on 8" messages Sunday night on the garage doors of two homes on a cul-de-sac near Monterey and Bernal roads could face jail time and a fine if arrested and convicted. San Jose police were called to the scene...

Mayor Jose Esteves has made two key endorsements this year: for a political unknown running for mayor of Milpitas and a vetted South Bay politico vying for Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors. Esteves, who terms out as mayor at the end of the year after six years in office, is backing Craig Donnelly, an underdog mayoral challenger to Milpitas' most veteran politician, Bob Livengood. "Yes, I endorsed Craig for mayor," Esteves said. "He's new to the city, but he's not new in government in the public sector." Donnelly, 61, works as a district director for state Assemblyman Gene Mullin...

But the prices aren't dropping fast enough for some motorists, who are steamed that crude oil prices have fallen 51 percent since June while the cost of filling up has barely fallen 25 percent from its summertime peak. "Pump prices should be $2.25! What's the friggin' deal?'' roared Tony Bandermann, 33, of San Jose. "Think of all the four-letter words you know in every language you can. Multiply that by 3. That's how I feel." But energy economists point out that while crude oil prices are the biggest factor in what drivers pay for gas, they are far from the...

San Jose councilman turned evangelical activist Larry Pegram has a plan for kick-starting the right-wing religious movement in Silicon Valley. It all starts with gay marriage and Proposition 8. INSIDE the Church on the Hill in San Jose, hundreds of Christians gather before the pulpit, fixated on the one subject that's rocked the religious community this year: gay marriage. It's a final attempt to mobilize the local Christian vote on Proposition 8, the statewide gay marriage ban going before voters in November. In what has become an epic fight to preserve marriage between a man and a woman, they listen...

An elderly minister lies near death in a San Jose hospital and a 15-year-old East Side teen is in custody after what police are describing as a brutal, bizarre and unprovoked knife attack on the grounds of the Tafatolu Congregational Church. The Rev. I'a Saipaia, 79, suffered severe wounds including having his throat cut and his head pummeled with a full wine bottle Tuesday morning. "He is a very, very good man," said the Rev. Jacob Iese, the church's 33-year-old pastor, as he stood in the same doorway where the attack happened. "I can make no sense of why this...

A young nun who was ticketed by San Jose police on the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe for selling little statues of the Blessed Virgin to raise money for a soup kitchen wants the charges against her expunged, the San Jose Mercury News reported yesterday. [[DACarr081508.jpg]]In a column by writer Scott Herhold, the Mercury News recounted the story of Notre Dame Sister Marie Linie Marot, 28, who wants Santa Clara County District Attorney Dolores Carr to issue a "finding of factual innocence" regarding charges lodged against her as a result of a Dec. 12, 2007 incident outside Our Lady...

SAN JOSE, Calif. -- The driver of a Ford Bronco that fatally struck a 12-year-old girl as she rode her bike home from her last day of school before summer vacation is in this country illegally, San Jose officials confirmed on Friday. Joe Castro, the man who has helped raised Breanna Slaughter-Eck, said he was very concerned about the revelation. "I'm worried that she just might flee now and walk away from all this," he told the San Jose Mercury News. However, San Jose Police Chief Rob Davis says that his department has alerted federal immigration authorities about the case....

A peregrine falcon named Cielo has died after the 2-month-old bird likely crashed into San Jose City Hall where she and her family have been living on a ledge. She is believed to have died late Monday night or early Tuesday morning after being driven to an animal hospital that specializes in birds on Monday morning. Cielo's siblings, Meyye and Mercury, are alive and well. In fact, her sister and brother, respectively, are flying about, and expected to leave the nest - literally - sometime this summer. The falcon family has drawn widespread interest from bird watchers throughout the world...

A mountain lion attacking a small animal was spotted by students living near Gerhart Hall on the Bethany University campus in Scotts Valley Monday night, the second such sighting in as many days... Students reported seeing the cougar on both Sunday and Monday nights... Students are also being advised to avoid jogging or walking alone during the early morning hours or at dusk to avoid coming into contact with a mountain lion.

For nearly two decades San Jose police detectives came and went, passing along the case of the slain young beautician with a reminder: Don't lose sight of this. And they also passed along the name of a major suspect they could never quite nail - an ex-con jail cook who lived next door to Kristi Harris. More than 19 years after her killing, the San Jose police SWAT team swooped in Tuesday and arrested that suspect - Charles Grant - in a Ceres mobile home he shared with his mother. To the relief of her family and a long line...

A church pastor at Iglesia Cristiana Luz y Verdad in San Jose was arrested Friday afternoon for allegedly committing lewd or lascivious acts on a child who was 12-years-old at the time, police announced today. Gustavo Antonio Lanzas, 64, was arrested in San Jose around 1:30 p.m. and booked in Santa Clara County Jail after police arrested him with a warrant stemming from an allegation. Lanzas was charged with lewd acts on a child under 14 years of age and showing harmful matter to a child. The investigation is still underway and anyone with information is asked to call Detective...

A longtime preacher of a San Jose church was arrested on suspicion of molesting a 12-year-old churchgoer, San Jose police officer Enrique Garcia said Wednesday. Gustavo Antonio Lanzas, 64, of Sunnyvale was taken into custody Friday on suspicion of committing lewd acts on a minor under 14 years old. He has been the only pastor at Iglesia Cristiana Luz y Verdad for about 20 years, Garcia said. Police began investigating Lanzas after the boy alleged that he had been molested. It's unclear if the boy said that Lanzas molested him at the church or another location, but officers searched the...

Chief Seaman praises inter-agency cooperationLos Gatos/Monte Sereno Police today announced that four men were arrested last week on charges of murder and conspiracy in the shooting death of Mark Achilli, 53, on Mar. 14. The arrests include Esequiel "Paul" Garcia, 29, the man who bought Mountain Charley's and the 180 Restaurant and Lounge from Achilli and Sue Farwell last August. Police believe that the other three suspects--Daniel Chaidez, 23, an employee at Mountain Charley's, Miguel Chaidez, 22, and Lucio Estrada, 24--were related to each other, possibly cousins. Estrada was the gunman who shot Achilli in the driveway outside his townhome,...