latimes--2020-12-04--Bay Area counties will begin stay-at-home order on Sunday, ahead of state mandate

Five Bay Area counties on Friday announced they would impose a stay-at-home order as early as Sunday night , saying that hospitals are already so overcrowded that the time to act is now , rather than waiting for the region to pass a state threshold for a regional order .
It would be too late to act if the Bay Area ’ s intensive care units , as a region , waited until they fell to only 15 % of capacity , which is the state ’ s threshold for implementing a stay-at-home order , officials said .
The orders @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , Santa Clara and Contra Costa counties on Sunday ; in Alameda County on Monday and Marin County on Tuesday .
The four other Bay Area counties — San Mateo , Sonoma , Napa and Solano counties — are not part of the joint action .
“ Waiting until only 15 % of a region ’ s ICU beds are available is just too late , ” said Dr. Tomás Aragon , health officer for San Francisco .
“ Many heavily impacted parts of our region already have less than 15 % of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to act is now.
” “ We can not wait until after we have driven off the cliff to pull the emergency brake , ” said Dr. Sara Cody , Santa Clara County health officer .
“ We understand the closures ... will have a profound impact on our local businesses .
However , if we act quickly , we can both save lives and reduce the amount of time these restrictions have to stay in place , allowing businesses and activities to reopen sooner.
” Santa Clara County could run out of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ within a week , said Dr. Grant Colfax , the director of health of San Francisco , said in a briefing .
“ This surge is so much more serious than we ’ ve seen before , ” Colfax said .
“ We are in our worst surge yet of COVID-19 , ” Colfax said .
“ It is stressing healthcare systems across the state of California and taxing our health care workers.
” He said immediate “ urgent intervention ” was required to ensure hospital rooms remain available in mid-to-late December .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ , your spouse , your child , your grandparent or any loved one to be in need of help and our hospitals too overwhelmed to properly care for them , ” Colfax said .
The city of Berkeley , which has its own independent public health department separate from Alameda County , will also join the order .
The Bay Area counties participating in the stay-at-home order will implement the state ’ s regional stay-at-home order early , which closes many nonessential businesses with the exception of all retail stores , which will @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Here ’ s what closes under the order : Retail would stay open , but with more limited capacity All retail would be allowed to remain open under this order , although at a reduced capacity .
Counties can impose tougher rules than the state ’ s .
• Most of the Bay Area : According to state rules that apply unless superseded by tougher local rules , essential retail , like supermarkets and drugstores , had been allowed to open at 50 % of capacity ; nonessential retail , like other stores @ @ @ @ @ @ @ capacity .
The new order would lower capacity of all retail to 20 % .
• Santa Clara County : The local , tougher limit for nonessential retail ( 10 % ) will be loosened to 20 % to conform to the state ’ s framework .
Essential retail capacity would fall from 25 % to 20 % .
Travel and use of hotels and lodging for tourism and leisure prohibited The new regional stay-at-home order again prohibits hotel use for tourism , leisure and other nonessential reasons , like nonessential travel , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ road trip to see family or friends .
Specifically , it allows hotel and lodging for essential reasons only , defined as supporting “ , ” including workers in healthcare , food , agriculture , energy , utilities , transportation , communications , government operations , manufacturing , financial services and the entertainment industry .
• Professional sports without live audiences , except for Santa Clara County .
It has its own order banning contact sports , which has forced the San Francisco 49ers to temporarily relocate their team to Arizona for its @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are already open for in-person learning can remain open

Coit Tower serves as a backdrop for people walking along Leavenworth Street in San Francisco in October.
Five Bay Area counties on Friday announced that they would impose a stay-at-home order as early as Sunday night, saying hospitals are so overcrowded that “the time to act is now,” rather than waiting for the region to pass the state’s threshold for such an order.
It would be too late to act if the Bay Area waits until its intensive care units have only 15% capacity, which is California’s criterion for implementing a stay-at-home order, officials said.
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The order will go into effect in San Francisco, Santa Clara and Contra Costa counties on Sunday; in Alameda County on Monday; and in Marin County on Tuesday. The four other Bay Area counties — San Mateo, Sonoma, Napa and Solano — are not part of the joint action.
The city of Berkeley, which has an independent public health department separate from that of Alameda County, will join the order.
“Waiting until only 15% of a region’s ICU beds are available is just too late,” said Dr. Tomás Aragon, health officer for San Francisco. “Many heavily impacted parts of our region already have less than 15% of ICU beds available, and the time to act is now.”
“We cannot wait until after we have driven off the cliff to pull the emergency brake,” said Dr. Sara Cody, Santa Clara County’s health officer. “We understand the closures ... will have a profound impact on our local businesses. However, if we act quickly, we can both save lives and reduce the amount of time these restrictions have to stay in place, allowing businesses and activities to reopen sooner.”
San Francisco could run out of ICU beds by Dec. 26, and Santa Clara County could run out within a week, said Dr. Grant Colfax, the director of health for San Francisco, in a briefing.
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“We are in our worst surge yet of COVID-19,” he said. “It is stressing healthcare systems across the state of California and taxing our healthcare workers.”
He said immediate “urgent intervention” was required to ensure that hospital rooms remain available in mid- to late December.
“We do not want your parent, your spouse, your child, your grandparent or any loved one to be in need of help and our hospitals too overwhelmed to properly care for them,” Colfax said.
Here’s what closes under the order:
Outdoor restaurant dining
Hair salons, barbershops, nail salons and other personal-care services
Playgrounds
Outdoor card rooms and satellite wagering and casinos
Outdoor museums, zoos and aquariums
Outdoor movie theaters
Outdoor wineries
Campgrounds for overnight stays
Food, drink or alcohol sales at outdoor recreational facilities
Retail will stay open at a further reduced capacity.
All retail can remain open under this order, although at a reduced capacity.
Most of the Bay Area: According to state rules that apply unless superseded by tougher local rules, essential retail, like supermarkets and drugstores, will stay open at 20% capacity. They previously were allowed to stay open at 50% capacity. Nonessential retail, like other stores and malls (which were open at 25% capacity), also can be open at 20% capacity.
According to state rules that apply unless superseded by tougher local rules, essential retail, like supermarkets and drugstores, will stay open at 20% capacity. They previously were allowed to stay open at 50% capacity. Nonessential retail, like other stores and malls (which were open at 25% capacity), also can be open at 20% capacity. Santa Clara County: The local, tougher limit for nonessential retail (10%) will be loosened to 20% to conform to the state’s framework. Essential retail capacity will be cut from 25% to 20%.
Travel and use of hotels and lodging for tourism and leisure is prohibited.
The new regional stay-at-home order again prohibits hotel use for tourism, leisure and other nonessential reasons.
Specifically, it allows use of hotels and lodging for essential reasons only, defined as supporting “ critical infrastructure sectors ,” including workers in healthcare, food, agriculture, energy, utilities, transportation, communications, government operations, manufacturing, financial services and the entertainment industry.
The order prohibits nonessential travel.
What stays open:


latimes--2020-12-04--L.A. County provides at-home coronavirus testing in pilot program

With coronavirus cases skyrocketing , some Los Angeles County residents will now be able to screen themselves for infection at home .
Under a newly launched county program , residents can be mailed free testing kits if they have symptoms of COVID-19 , were recently in close contact with a confirmed or suspected case , or if they are a senior citizen or have disabilities and can ’ t go to an in-person testing site following a potential exposure .
“ We are doing everything we can to make sure testing is available to all , ” Dr. Clemens Hong @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the county Department of Health Services , said in a statement Friday .
“ This allows us to reach even more people — and they don ’ t have to risk exposing others by leaving their homes .
It ’ s an important step for combatting the virus in L.A. County.
” Residents who are interested in participating can check their eligibility and place orders through Fulgent Genetics , the county ’ s program partner .
Those who qualify will have a collection kit shipped to their home within two days , according @ @ @ @ @ @ @ need to collect their sample and deposit it at a FedEx drop box the same day .
Individuals should get their results by email within two days .
The home-testing pilot program runs through Jan. 15 and is designed “ to reduce COVID-19 spread throughout the holiday season , ” according to Dr. Christina Ghaly , the county ’ s director of health services .
“ At-home testing allows us to reach even more people , and especially people who have trouble ... accessing those in-person sites and who might have risk of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ able to easily get access to testing , ” she said during a briefing earlier this week .
For more information on the home-testing program , or to make an in-person appointment , visit covid19.lacounty.gov/testing .
The program is coming online at the same time L.A. County is seeing record numbers of new coronavirus cases and hospitalizations .
The county set records for both Thursday — reporting an all-time-daily high of 7,713 new cases and 2,668 patients with a confirmed case in its hospitals , according to data compiled by The Times .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ than 422,000 cases during the COVID-19 pandemic .
Nearly 7,800 residents have died from the disease .
Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer said the county is now “ at a dangerous point where surging cases and hospitalizations are not letting up.
” County residents are being urged to stay home as much as possible over the next few weeks .
When venturing out , officials say it ’ s vital to take precautions such as wearing a mask , maintaining physical distance from those you don ’ t live with and regularly washing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ t emphasize this enough : Everyone must take personal steps to protect themselves and protect others , ” Ferrer said in a statement Thursday .
“ We can ’ t afford lapses in the straightforward recommended safety measures because they have deadly consequences .
”

Dolly grip Mark Schwebel collects his specimen for a coronavirus test with a nasal swab on Nov. 17 in Valencia.
With coronavirus cases skyrocketing, some Los Angeles County residents will now be able to screen themselves for infection at home.
Under a newly launched county program, residents can be mailed free testing kits if they have symptoms of COVID-19, were recently in close contact with a confirmed or suspected case, or if they are a senior citizen or have disabilities and can’t go to an in-person testing site following a potential exposure.
“We are doing everything we can to make sure testing is available to all,” Dr. Clemens Hong, who oversees local coronavirus testing under the county Department of Health Services, said in a statement Friday. “This allows us to reach even more people — and they don’t have to risk exposing others by leaving their homes. It’s an important step for combatting the virus in L.A. County.”
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Tracking the coronavirus in L.A. County The latest maps and charts on the spread of COVID-19 in Los Angeles County, including cases, deaths, closures and restrictions.
Residents who are interested in participating can check their eligibility and place orders through Fulgent Genetics, the county’s program partner.
Those who qualify will have a collection kit shipped to their home within two days, according to county officials. Residents will then need to collect their sample and deposit it at a FedEx drop box the same day.
Individuals should get their results by email within two days.
The home-testing pilot program runs through Jan. 15 and is designed “to reduce COVID-19 spread throughout the holiday season,” according to Dr. Christina Ghaly, the county’s director of health services.
“At-home testing allows us to reach even more people, and especially people who have trouble … accessing those in-person sites and who might have risk of infecting others if they aren’t able to easily get access to testing,” she said during a briefing this week.
For more information on the home-testing program, or to make an in-person appointment, visit covid19.lacounty.gov/testing.
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The program is coming online at the same time L.A. County is seeing record numbers of new coronavirus cases and hospitalizations.
The county set records for both Thursday — reporting an all-time-daily high of 7,713 new cases and 2,668 patients with a confirmed case in its hospitals, according to data compiled by The Times.
Overall, the county has recorded more than 422,000 cases during the COVID-19 pandemic. Nearly 7,800 residents have died from the disease.
Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer said the county is now “at a dangerous point where surging cases and hospitalizations are not letting up.”
County residents are being urged to stay home as much as possible over the next few weeks. When venturing out, officials say it’s vital to take precautions such as wearing a mask, maintaining physical distance from those you don’t live with and regularly washing your hands.
“I can’t emphasize this enough: Everyone must take personal steps to protect themselves and protect others,” Ferrer said in a statement Thursday. “We can’t afford lapses in the straightforward recommended safety measures because they have deadly consequences.”


latimes--2020-12-04--Judge dismisses 15 cases involving LAPD officers implicated in gang-framing scandal

A clerk handed the judge a thick stack of folders that contained the felony cases of nine men , convicted of different crimes but having one thing in common : Their guilt rested on the word of three Los Angeles police officers now accused of falsifying records that mislabeled people as gang members .
At the request of Head Deputy Dist .
Atty .
Jonlyn Callahan , L.A. County Superior Court Judge Sergio C. Tapia II dismissed the nine cases and vacated the defendants ’ convictions Friday morning , saying he was doing so “ in the interests of justice.
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ additional six misdemeanor cases brought by the L.A. city attorney ’ s office .
Callahan told the court that two LAPD officers , Braxton Shaw and Michael Coblentz , worked eight of the nine dismissed felony cases .
A third officer , Raul Uribe , was a witness in the case of Vincent Fierro , who pleaded no contest in 2018 to carrying a concealed firearm and was sentenced to one day in jail and three years of probation .
Shaw , Coblentz , Uribe and three more LAPD officers , all deployed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , have been charged by the district attorney ’ s office with falsifying field interview cards , an intelligence-gathering tool that the LAPD and other agencies use to identify and monitor suspected gang members .
The officers , who have pleaded not guilty , are accused of misrepresenting people they ’ d stopped as admitted gang members , despite their body-camera footage showing no such admissions or explicit denials of gang affiliations .
In light of the officers ’ alleged dishonesty , county prosecutors have been reviewing felony cases from the start of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , that is 206 cases since February 2009 , according to district attorney records obtained by The Times ; for Coblentz , 296 cases since July 2002 ; and for a codefendant , Officer Nicolas Martinez , 122 cases since September 2010 .
So far , judges have dismissed 24 cases worked by the charged officers , according to county and city prosecutors .
Hundreds more are under review after the corruption allegations threw into doubt the legitimacy of their work .
The district attorney ’ s office has said it was sending @ @ @ @ @ @ @ their attorneys in cases that listed one or more of the charged officers as potential witnesses , urging them to reach out if they believed the officers ’ involvement had prejudiced their case .
The convictions that were vacated Friday had resulted in punishments ranging from a year of probation for a man who pleaded no contest to reckless driving , to three years in prison for several men who pleaded no contest to firearms offenses .
One defendant , Adrian Daniel , was sentenced to three years of probation in December 2019 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of ammunition .
After hearing a motion from the city attorney ’ s office , the judge vacated Daniel ’ s misdemeanor conviction .
Considering that the officer who arrested him , Coblentz , has been accused of dishonesty and charged with a felony , city prosecutors said in a motion that after “ an evaluation of the roles that one or more of the officers played in the instant case , the People have concluded that it serves the interest of justice to dismiss the case.
” Shaw and Coblentz had worked @ @ @ @ @ @ @ cases dismissed on Friday , said Diana Teran , a law enforcement accountability advisor to the L.A. County public defender ’ s office , who appeared in court on behalf of the defendants .
In two of the discharged cases , Shaw was partnered with officers who haven ’ t been charged with crimes .
Teran said the district and city attorney ’ s offices have so far declined to move to dismiss additional cases handled by a charged officer who was partnered with an uncharged colleague , with prosecutors arguing they could @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s testimony .
Teran said she has been denied information on the identities of additional officers under investigation .
A dozen more officers in the LAPD ’ s Metropolitan Division remain under investigation for potentially falsifying field interview cards and entering incorrect information in an effort to boost stop statistics .
The revelations have renewed questions about the Metropolitan Division ’ s quick ascent , then steady decline in influence within the department in the last five years .
The division was rapidly expanded and its officers were expected to make traffic @ @ @ @ @ @ @ South L.A. — under a plan to address gun violence that Mayor Eric Garcetti and former LAPD Chief Charlie Beck put into motion in 2015 .
The division ’ s ranks more than doubled under the plan , and the number of car stops its officers conducted increased from a few thousand a year to more than 63,000 in 2017 .
The work came under question after a 2019 investigation by The Times showed that Metro officers were stopping Black motorists at a disproportionate rate .

A clerk handed the judge a thick stack of folders that contained the felony cases of nine men, convicted of different crimes but having one thing in common: Their guilt rested on the word of three Los Angeles police officers now accused of falsifying records that mislabeled people as gang members.
At the request of Head Deputy Dist. Atty. Jonlyn Callahan, L.A. County Superior Court Judge Sergio C. Tapia II dismissed the nine cases and vacated the defendants’ convictions Friday morning, saying he was doing so “in the interests of justice.” The judge on Friday dismissed an additional six misdemeanor cases brought by the L.A. city attorney’s office.
Callahan told the court that two LAPD officers, Braxton Shaw and Michael Coblentz, worked eight of the nine dismissed felony cases.
A third officer, Raul Uribe, was a witness in the case of Vincent Fierro, who pleaded no contest in 2018 to carrying a concealed firearm and was sentenced to one day in jail and three years of probation.
Shaw, Coblentz, Uribe and three more LAPD officers, all deployed with the department’s Metropolitan Division, have been charged by the district attorney’s office with falsifying field interview cards, an intelligence-gathering tool that the LAPD and other agencies use to identify and monitor suspected gang members. The officers, who have pleaded not guilty, are accused of misrepresenting people they’d stopped as admitted gang members, despite their body-camera footage showing no such admissions or explicit denials of gang affiliations.
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In light of the officers’ alleged dishonesty, county prosecutors have been reviewing felony cases from the start of the officers’ careers. For Shaw, that is 206 cases since February 2009, according to district attorney records obtained by The Times; for Coblentz, 296 cases since July 2002; and for a codefendant, Officer Nicolas Martinez, 122 cases since September 2010.
So far, judges have dismissed 24 cases worked by the charged officers, according to county and city prosecutors. Hundreds more are under review after the corruption allegations threw into doubt the legitimacy of their work. The district attorney’s office has said it was sending letters to more than 750 defendants and their attorneys in cases that listed one or more of the charged officers as potential witnesses, urging them to reach out if they believed the officers’ involvement had prejudiced their case.
The convictions that were vacated Friday had resulted in punishments ranging from a year of probation for a man who pleaded no contest to reckless driving, to three years in prison for several men who pleaded no contest to firearms offenses.
One defendant, Adrian Daniel, was sentenced to three years of probation in December 2019 after pleading no contest to illegal possession of ammunition. After hearing a motion from the city attorney’s office, the judge vacated Daniel’s misdemeanor conviction. Considering that the officer who arrested him, Coblentz, has been accused of dishonesty and charged with a felony, city prosecutors said in a motion that after “an evaluation of the roles that one or more of the officers played in the instant case, the People have concluded that it serves the interest of justice to dismiss the case.”
Shaw and Coblentz had worked together on six of the nine felony cases dismissed on Friday, said Diana Teran, a law enforcement accountability advisor to the L.A. County public defender’s office, who appeared in court on behalf of the defendants. In two of the discharged cases, Shaw was partnered with officers who haven’t been charged with crimes.
Teran said the district and city attorney’s offices have so far declined to move to dismiss additional cases handled by a charged officer who was partnered with an uncharged colleague, with prosecutors arguing they could carry the case on the second officer’s testimony. Teran said she has been denied information on the identities of additional officers under investigation.
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A dozen more officers in the LAPD’s Metropolitan Division remain under investigation for potentially falsifying field interview cards and entering incorrect information in an effort to boost stop statistics. The revelations have renewed questions about the Metropolitan Division’s quick ascent, then steady decline in influence within the department in the last five years.
The division was rapidly expanded and its officers were expected to make traffic stops and confiscate weapons — especially in South L.A. — under a plan to address gun violence that Mayor Eric Garcetti and former LAPD Chief Charlie Beck put into motion in 2015. The division’s ranks more than doubled under the plan, and the number of car stops its officers conducted increased from a few thousand a year to more than 63,000 in 2017. The work came under question after a 2019 investigation by The Times showed that Metro officers were stopping Black motorists at a disproportionate rate.


latimes--2020-12-04--Mortuary transport driver arrested on suspicion of stealing dead woman's ring

A mortuary transport employee is facing criminal charges for allegedly stealing a ring from the hand of a deceased woman , authorities said .
The ring was reported missing by the woman ’ s family after her body was taken from a Riverside hospital , where she died in September , to a mortuary in Orange County , authorities said .
Riverside police detectives tracked down the ring , valued at several thousand dollars , to a pawn shop in Los Angeles County , authorities said .
They determined it had been pawned by Mark Anthony Zuniga , 27 , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the mortuary transport company at the time of the theft .
Zuniga was arrested Tuesday on suspicion of removing articles from a dead body , which is a felony , authorities said .
Riverside police spokesman Ryan Railsback said Zuniga apparently acted by himself in the alleged theft .
Zuniga was booked into the Robert Presley Detention Center and released pending a court appearance , authorities said .
He was fired from his job at the transport company , police said .
Detectives returned the ring to the deceased woman ’ s family @ @ @ @ @ @ @ information about the investigation is asked to contact the Det .
Edward Vazquez at the Riverside Police Department at ( 951 ) 353-7955 .

Mark Anthony Zuniga is facing criminal charges after allegedly removing a ring from the hand of a deceased woman while working as a mortuary transport employee.
A mortuary transport employee is facing criminal charges for allegedly stealing a ring from the hand of a deceased woman, authorities said.
The ring was reported missing by the woman’s family after her body was taken from a Riverside hospital, where she died in September, to a mortuary in Orange County, authorities said.
Riverside police detectives tracked down the ring, valued at several thousand dollars, to a pawn shop in Los Angeles County, authorities said. They determined it had been pawned by Mark Anthony Zuniga, 27, of Downey, who was employed by the mortuary transport company at the time of the theft.
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Zuniga was arrested Tuesday on suspicion of removing articles from a dead body, which is a felony, authorities said.
Riverside police spokesman Ryan Railsback said Zuniga apparently acted by himself in the alleged theft.
Zuniga was booked into the Robert Presley Detention Center and released pending a court appearance, authorities said. He was fired from his job at the transport company, police said.
Detectives returned the ring to the deceased woman’s family, police said.
Anyone with additional information about the investigation is asked to contact the Det. Edward Vazquez at the Riverside Police Department at (951) 353-7955.