Gray Davis

Gov. Jerry Brown's Pardon Rate Keeps Pace With Fellow Forgiving Governors

On the day before Easter, Gov. Jerry Brown pardoned 65 convicted criminals. All of them had already served prison time, been free for at least 10 years, and, according to the Governor's office, had maintained clean records ever since. Most were drug offenders, though one man had been locked up for m ... More >>

Gov. Brown's Frequent Use of Pardons is Retro California

Between 1991 and 2010, California's governors granted pardons to 20 convicted criminals. Last year, Gov. Jerry Brown pardoned 21. On Monday, Brown pardoned 79 felons. Brown's use of pardons represents the larger shift in the criminal justice mindset he has overseen in the state -- higher rates ... More >>

State Supreme Court, Legislature Want to Give Juveniles Serving Life Sentences a Shot at Parole

On June 6, 2007, Rodrigo Caballero, a 16-year-old member of the Vario Lancas gang in Los Angeles, jumped out of a green Toyota and opened fire on three Val Verde gang rivals walking down the street. He missed two of his targets, but the third caught a non-fatal gunshot wound near the shoulder blade. ... More >>

Hey, Gavin: List of Upwardly Mobile Lieutenant Governors Is Truly Brief

BrainchildvnGavin Newsom might stop applauding if he better knew the career outcomes of previous lieutenant governors -- and failed candidates for the office​UPDATE: Newsom insists he's not making any statements about running for lieutenant governor. At least not now. First things first, our calls ... More >>

It's 6:30 a.m. -- Do You Know Who Your Lt. Gov Is?

Can you answer me our questions three? Okay, it's just one question. But it's hard! ​Much drama ensued last week, when Sen. Abel Maldonado didn't quite get enough votes to be confirmed for Lieutenant Governor -- leading Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to bluster he'd confirm Maldonado anyway and Democr ... More >>

Going, Going, Gavin: What's Next For Newsom, City, State?

​ It's unlikely anyone has ever publicly announced he's taking a job so he can spend less time with his family. But countless folks turning in their resignation letters have chalked up the decision to jump ship to a desire to spend more time with the fam. Gavin Newsom joined that lengthy list ... More >>

Weekend DUI Checkpoint Catches -- Wait for it -- Alleged Drunk Driver!

No, that's not former Gov. Gray Davis​Yesterday we wrote about how a late August San Francisco DUI checkpoint didn't manage to snare a single alleged drunk driver -- but did result in 23 people having their cars towed away for various infractions. Also, due to the checkpoint's official tally b ... More >>

David Chiu's Proposed Vehicle License Fee Could Net City $70M -- But Requires 'Hail Mary'of a Senate Bill to Pass

These guys could make San Francisco lots of moneyThe Vehicle License Fee proposed this week by Supervisor David Chiu could net the city as much as $70 million. And the lottery ticket you bought this week could net you $70 million, too. Okay, that's a bit of a stretch, and the VLF won't benefit local ... More >>

Barred for Life

Desperate prison lifers turn to Charles Carbone when trying to navigate the unfair process of parole denials

Jackpot

How four tiny Indian tribes, with help from powerful gambling interests, are trying to transform the Bay Area into a slot machine Mecca

Terminator or Bloviator?

Social moderate? Republican firemouth? Who is Arnold, really?

Looking Inside INdTV

Al Gore and ex-Stanford prof Joel Hyatt say their S.F.-based cable news channel for twentysomethings won't be ideological. But do the Democratic moneymen behind the venture know that?

Democracy in Suburbia

The Economist asks: "Is California Back?" Contra Costa County wonders: "Were we gone?"

A Bridge Too Weak?

A UC Berkeley professor believes the unique new Bay Bridge design is fatally flawed

The Oracle of San Francisco

No, not that jerk-led software behemoth down the Peninsula – the real Oracle, with the surefire, bet-the-house prophecies you deserve

Ghost Story

A new Christmas Carol chorus

Letters to the Editor

Week of November 12, 2003

The Migden Chronicles

One of the last standing Democrats writes the treatment for a flick in which a befuddled sci-fi hero helps California to a better future

Play Rotorecall

Have fun with democracy, before it has fun with you

Unintended Consequences

Right-wingers cooked up the Gray Davis recall only to see it hijacked by a political moderate named Arnold

Gimme Shelters

After mortgaging our future in an orgy of budget-related borrowing, the Legislature hatches new orgiastic plans: sleazy tax shelters

Sandwich Queen

A paean to an easy summer pleasure

Recalling a Historical Mistake

Why voters should defeat the move to recall Gov. Davis -- and then work to eliminate the recall and initiative provisions from state law

Nailed?

Lawyers for hundreds of sex-abuse victims have California's Catholic dioceses in a dire financial bind. Can church leaders finagle an escape, or are they ...

San Quentin Blues

The prison guards' union angrily ripped the rug from under the governor in February

Reps Etc.

Common Cents

The Chronicle should stop the dubious "news stories" and openly rail against a sales tax hike that hurts its major advertisers -- and slaughters the poor

Letters to the Editor

Week of October 30, 2002

Notes From the Edge

The choices are dark and dreary, but the only candidate for governor is (be still, pounding heart) Gray Davis

Letters to the Editor

Week of August 28, 2002

See Jerry Not Run

If he'd just revert to type, Jerry Brown could help California avoid a Davis vs. Simon truck wreck

Letters to the Editor

Week of June 26, 2002

Blowing Smoke

WARNING: Gov. Davis' plan to use tobacco lawsuit money to fill a budget gap is dangerous to our financial health

Letters to the Editor

Week of June 12, 2002

Whore vs. Bore

Californians have refused public campaign financing, and we've gotten what we deserve: a governor's race between a fund-raising slut and a clueless rich guy

The Perfect Crime

As we're now finding out, Gov. Davis may be the only one who won't have to pay for his mishandling of the energy crisis

Gray Skies

If Gov. Davis has his way, California soon will have dozens of new power plants -- a lot of them in the wrong places, some of them unnecessary, and very, very few of them based on renewable energy

"They're Hijacking Our Rally!"

Opponents of the Potrero Hill power plant expansion could use a lesson in organization.

Getting the Treatment

Proposition 36 is based on a noble idea: substituting drug treatment for prison sentences. But the measure needs practical help.

Gambling Their Future

How a tiny, impoverished Indian tribe managed to persuade a city, a powerful union, and the U.S. Congress to let them build a Nevada-style casino in the East Bay

MUD in Your Eye

A small group wants to foist a municipal utility district on the city without evidence its version of "public power" will work. Demand evidence.

Q: What's the Opposite of a Miracle?

A: What the state does to the families of people who die while poor

Dim Bulbs

Greedy out-of-state profiteers make easy targets, but the real villains of California's energy debacle are the ones under the state capitol dome.

Don't Let Them Turn Out the Lights

It's time for consumers to take back California

Regulating Change

Bush will likely gut national health and safety regulation; local liberals screw up regulation by forgetting its purpose -- protecting the general public

A Walk in the Dark

The rest of the country is re-appraising the death penalty; California sues to keep a minister from comforting those facing execution

Fringe Character

Just another beautiful night in the Tenderloin, sampling the Fringe Festival and the Virgin Queen Contest

Power Politics

Why a retreat from electricity deregulation is a victory for PG&E, and a loss for you and me

Cothran

Riff Raff