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Blue city DA says repeat drug offenders ‘will not respect the law’ under current system
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Democratic San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins went against many in her own party and said releasing repeat drug offenders before their trial is a big reason why the city sees “repeat offenders in and out of our stores, on our streets, rotating through our courtrooms.”
Jenkins made the comments during a late September community gathering in San Francisco where residents shared their concerns over crime, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. She said that the outcome of releasing repeat drug offenders – who then go on to commit more crime – is something that deeply frustrates those in the local law enforcement community, which includes prosecutors.
“The community, especially in the Tenderloin, find it abhorrent, right? To have to keep dealing with the same problem each and every day,” Jenkins said. “We simply cannot live in a society where we let people tell us over and over again that they will not respect the law.”
She said that while most of the time repeat drug offenders get multiple “chances,” those same drugs continue to take lives.
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San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins criticized the practice of releasing repeat drug offenders. (Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
“That is part of the problem of why we continue to see repeat offenders in and out of our stores, on our streets, rotating through our courtrooms: Because until we take the responsible position, when somebody’s clearly putting people in danger, clearly demonstrating to us that they will not follow the law so that we can figure out a plan for them, that will help them follow the law, we’re in this cycle,” Jenkins said.
On Oct. 1, Jenkins’ office tried to detain eight of 11 people who were charged with felonies relating to drug trafficking, but wasn’t successful.
The public defender’s office in San Francisco said Jenkins’ comments were “fearmongering.”
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A homeless couple sleeps on a sidewalk in San Francisco on Sept. 2, 2023. (Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
“Our legal system is based on the presumption of innocence,” the office said. “This fearmongering is another attempt by the district attorney to attack the independence of the judiciary, further pack our already crowded jails, and put her thumb on the scale of these pending cases.”
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Homeless people consume illegal drugs in an encampment along Willow Street in the Tenderloin district of downtown on Thursday, Feb. 24, 2022, in San Francisco. (Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
Tom Wolf, a former homeless addict from San Francisco, told Fox News Digital that Jenkins is fighting an “uphill battle” when it comes to detaining accused drug traffickers before their trial.
“We have a problem, especially in San Francisco, but really throughout the state of California…because of a law that was passed in 2018 in California called the Mental Health Diversion Act, so many of these repeat offenders basically go into court and say, ‘hey, I’m struggling with my mental health,’” Wolf said.
“Addiction is considered a mental illness. And so they’re continually referred to diversion, which means that they’re let out of custody. And it’s created an untenable situation in cities like San Francisco, where we have 8,000 people on the street. Most of them are addicted to drugs, and most of them have been arrested multiple times, and yet they continue to remain.”
Fox News Digital reached out to Jenkins for comment.
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SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) — San Francisco Supervisor Jackie Fielder hosted her first community listening session Thursday night since returning from a three-month medical leave.
Dozens of District 9 residents packed the Bernal Heights Neighborhood Center to welcome back Fielder and voice concerns about issues affecting their communities.
“We are thankful that you took time for yourself to equip yourself to be sitting here today,” one attendee told Fielder. “So I thank you and commend you for returning.”
Fielder returned to City Hall last month after taking a three-month medical leave.
“I’m just grateful for the outpouring of support that I had and glad to be back on the job,” Fielder said. “Mental health is really prevalent, and I’m not going to shy away from the fact that I had a mental health crisis. This is a challenging job, and I’m very privileged to be here.”
Fielder said she is hosting a series of town hall-style meetings to give residents an opportunity to voice their concerns.
“To me, the biggest issue locally is the homeless issue, and it’s citywide,” San Francisco resident Maggie Weis said.
Fielder was joined by members of the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency and San Francisco Police Department to answer questions about pedestrian safety, city budget cuts and other issues.
The supervisor said one of her priorities moving forward is expanding access to clean, well-maintained public restrooms.
“[We’re] still seeing a lot of feces around the district and city,” Fielder said. “Would love to see our city have more public bathrooms and be able to maintain them as well.”
The next listening session is scheduled for July 23 at 6 p.m. at La Fénix in the Mission.
Watch the full report from KRON4’s Sara Stinson in the video player at the top of the story.
DENVER — Denver Mayor Mike Johnston is launching a $100 million plan to boost the local economy and support 10,000 jobs over the next three years.
Johnston announced the four-part program Thursday morning, flanked by business leaders while praising downtown businesses like brunch eatery Snooze.
▶️ WATCH: Denver7’s Alex Dowd reports on the plan
Denver mayor promises to create 10K jobs in next 3 years
Snooze Co-Founder Adam Schlegel said his business benefited from a similar program when U.S. Sen. John Hickenlooper was mayor in the early 2000s.
“The city really was the one that stepped up,” Schlegel said. “We wouldn’t have started if it wouldn’t have been for the economic development office. We ended up getting an incentive from the city to open up, particularly in this space [downtown]. It was a fiscal incentive to do it, in addition to coaching.”
Both of those are offered in the new four-part Denver Jobs Agenda. With funding from the Denver Downtown Development Authority and the Office of Economic Development and Opportunity, Johnston aims to develop start-ups in the city, grow existing businesses and draw in new companies while working to advance the Denver-area workforce across industries.
At the end of the last fiscal quarter, Denver’s unemployment rate hovered around 3.6% — under the national rate of 4.2% — according to U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, while office vacancy sits just under 40%, according to commercial real estate broker CBRE.
Johnston and other speakers made multiple references to more jobs bringing more people downtown.
“Denver has so many things going for it, so it will come back,” Schlegel said. “It’s not coming back as fast as I want, or as much as anyone will, but will it have a long-term future? 100%. It’s things like this, though, that I think give us a lot of hope that it can happen sooner than waiting it out.”
▶️ Watch the full press conference
Press conference: Denver mayor announces Denver Jobs Agenda
Chris Berthiaume, the city’s director of workforce industry initiatives, says the three workforce development centers across Denver serve around 20,000 people each year. He’s confident this new initiative will help more of those visitors find employment.
“We want to focus on things like aerospace, cybersecurity, green construction,” Berthiaume said. “This new initiative really just tightens the focus on sectors that we know are growing. Colorado is home to a huge aerospace culture. Quantum technology is emerging and coming. Green workforce are jobs that we know drive around Denver. Construction is everywhere. We need to make sure we have a skilled workforce that’s ready to take on those jobs.”
While also finding employers to hire them and stay within the community for the long haul.
“I think the reason businesses work — certainly restaurants work — is that you are integral to the community specifically where you are,” Schlegel said. “There are so many people in our community that really believe in Denver and want to see what it can be, and so it will get there.”
It’s well on the way. Denver’s Economic Development Corporation says they’re working with 52 active prospects that could bring more than 12,000 jobs to the area.
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Global entertainment company Webtoon is returning to the hallowed halls of San Diego Comic-Con with a larger-than-life slate of panels featuring top talent and fresh announcements.
They will be shining the spotlight on some of today’s most engaging webcomic creators, including Derek V. Song (Fantasy High) and Punko (Cinderella Boy).
Let’s take a look at their schedule:
Thursday, July 23 – 10am – Room 29AB
Creature Craft: Visionaries of Horror Comics Share Their Secrets
This panel features Punko, creator of Stagtown and Cinderella Boy on WEBTOON; Cullen Bunn, creator of Ripcord and Deluge for Ignition Press; and Cat Staggs, co-creator of Death Mask, and artist on Tales for a HalloweeNight for Storm King Comics. Rotem Rusak, Editor-in-Chief at Nerdist, will moderate.
Friday, July 24 – 10am – Room 32AB
Love in Every Universe: The Great Romance Trope Debate
Join ROSEOAK, creator of Not So Silent on WEBTOON, Alessandra Ferreri, Head of Content at Wattpad, E.M. Wilson, author of Situationship, and Becca Erin Title, founder of Meet Cute Romance Bookshop. The panel is moderated by Crystal Bell, the Culture Editor at Mashable.
Friday, July 24 – 1pm – Room 32AB
Adapting Fantasy High for WEBTOON with Derek V. Song
Featuring Derek V. Song, writer of Fantasy High. Fans will get a behind-the-scenes look at adapting the beloved Dimension 20 series for WEBTOON and learn more about bringing the world of Fantasy High to a new visual format.
Saturday, July 25 – 11:30am – Room 24ABC
What’s Next from WEBTOON Entertainment
Featuring Ryan Lee, Head of Content at WEBTOON; Sydney Bright, Head of Global Animation at WEBTOON Productions; Erik Kozura, Producer at WEBTOON; ROSEOAK, creator of Not So Silent; Derek V. Song, writer of Fantasy High; Punko, creator of Stagtown and Cinderella Boy; and Ucheomaaa, creator of Vibe Check! on WEBTOON. Journalist, comic critic, and 2026 Eisner judge, Tiffany Babb, will moderate. his panel will deliver a slew of announcements, exclusive first looks, and Creator appearances from its platform and entertainment businesses. Additionally, the panel will give fans a window into what’s next from WEBTOON’s most exciting stories and projects, with news from WEBTOON Originals, WEBTOON Productions, WEBTOON Unscrolled, and more.
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