Editorials

Two months after the death of Steven Juarez while in the custody of Gilroy police, the investigation of the exact cause of his death continues. While the police and the district attorney’s office are investigating whether police were responsible, they have said little about...

One prevailing stereotype of Californians—shared by state residents as well as red-state politicians and the Trump Administration—is that we pay higher taxes than anyone else in the country. A national consumer website, WalletHub, this month has released its 2018 Taxpayer Survey, as well as its...

We can’t help thinking of Gertrude Stein’s sentiment about trying to find her old Oakland home, “There’s no there there,” as we drive into Gilroy.

The circumstances of Steven Juarez’s death while in Gilroy police custody last month remain under investigation by law enforcement. The fact that the official investigation is unresolved doesn’t give elected city officials a pass on leadership. Police have offered no evidence to support their contentions...

The state on average takes $9 out of every $100 of personal

You wouldn't call someone a good neighbor if they invited

The stories began flying last week: Federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents would raid businesses across California and deport undocumented workers. As of this newspaper’s press time, the raids had not started, but the specter remains. Heightened anxiety about federal immigration policies has already intensified...

U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said in late March that he didn’t expect President Trump’s tariff announcements to have “a big impact on the economy.” He even went so far as to say that “what we’re doing is long-term very good for the economy.” Mnuchin...

“This has been the best year yet,” said Christine Vatuone, CEO/executive director of pregnancy resource center Informed Choices, one of 25 community-based organizations distributing information at Party in the Park at San Ysidro Park on Aug. 12.Featuring a climbing wall, jump house, live DJ music, dance performances and an assortment of games and prizes for the kids, the final installment of the fourth annual event series aimed to beat its previous attendance record set last month, when 650 people strolled, cycled or drove to the eastside 9-acre park.“Two hundred and fifty was our largest attendance before,” said Brian Hames, coordinator of the event, which aims to create safe, community spaces in neighborhoods with a history of gang activity.“We want to raise awareness and provide information on the many resources that are available to people,” said Hames, adding the event was modeled after Los Angeles’ Parks After Dark and is similar to Viva Parks! in San Jose, a series of free public events that focus on health and wellness resources, physical activities, and community engagement.In a half-circle of tables around the handball courts were representatives from agencies including CalWorks, Planned Parenthood, Santa Clara County Re-Entry Resource Center and clinics providing free health screenings.Getting a jump on Attendance Awareness Month in September, employees of Gilroy Unified School District were also on hand, reminding parents to get their children back to school on the first day of classes and promoting “Challenge Five”—encouraging students to have less than five days of absence per year.Jennifer DelBono, GUSD program administrator for school climate and student attendance said the district is looking at ways of partnering with local businesses to incentivize student attendance and hopes to launch a program soon.“We have such incredible partnerships in Gilroy,” she said.Gilroy resident Michael Martinez said he’d been going to Fifth Street Live downtown on Friday nights this summer but decided to come to the park with his seven-year-old son, Brayden, now smiling widely with his new balloon hat and pirate sword, after seeing a flyer at soccer signups.Over at the face-painting booth, Hollister residents Emma Torres and husband, Gabriel, with their three kids, Emily, Andrew and Bianca, looked through their goodie bags.“There is a lot of good information about the local nonprofits,” said Emma, who saw the event notice in Out and About magazine and decided to check it out. “We all run into people that could use this type of help and if we have these resources, we can pass it on to them.”

Sadly, events in distant cities mean that our students and teachers have had to add another set of tools for school safety that we all hope they never have to use. Preparations for a broad list of calamities—earthquake, fire, bomb threats, gunfire—are now a fact...