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Ruling advances lawsuit against S.F. over arrests during 2023 Dolores Park hill bomb

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Ruling advances lawsuit against S.F. over arrests during 2023 Dolores Park hill bomb


Skateboarders ride down Church Street at the annual hill bomb event at Dolores Park in San Francisco on Saturday, July 6, 2024.

Jason Henry/For the S.F. Chronicle

A federal court on Thursday granted class-action status to a lawsuit filed by teenagers who say they were unlawfully arrested during the chaotic 2023  hill bomb at Dolores Park, paving the way for more than 100 others to potentially join the case against the city and county.

The ruling allows approximately 113 people — including 81 minors — who were arrested on 17th Street on July 8, 2023, to join the lawsuit first filed by four teenagers in December 2023. The mass arrests concluded a night of general mayhem, marked by fireworks that sparked fires, vandalization of Muni vehicles and confiscation of several firearms around Dolores Park, according to police.

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Within the chaos, innocent teenagers were swept up in detentions, the lawsuit argues. Rachel Lederman, lead counsel for the plaintiffs, called the mass arrest of children and youth an “outrageous round-up” where police arrested young adults without probable cause.

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“Then, the police held the children and youth outdoors and in vehicles for many hours as darkness fell and the night turned cold and windy,” she said in a statement. “SFPD did not provide them access to a bathroom for up to seven hours forcing desperate children to use a bucket in the street handed out by a neighbor.”

Jen Kwart, spokesperson for the city attorney, defended police, saying Friday that officers exercised appropriate crowd control to protect public safety. The city is looking forward to presenting its case in the coming months, she said.

The ruling was first reported by Mission Local.

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Over at least the past decade, the informal competition has often sparked conflict with police. The hill bomb has gained notoriety in recent years after the event led to a death, a traumatic head injury and multiple skirmishes with the police. After 2023’s confrontations and arrests, the hill bomb was relatively calm in 2024 as police barricaded Dolores Street but skateboarders bombed down a different one.

This year, the event did not take place, and was instead replaced by a more formal, structured hill bomb at Twin Peaks, a largely peaceful affair.

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Two Muni trains were vandalized during the Dolores Hill Bomb in 2023.

Two Muni trains were vandalized during the Dolores Hill Bomb in 2023.

San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency 2023

Police were made aware of the 2023 hill bomb three weeks before the event took place, according to the lawsuit. The city sent additional officers to the area and erected barricades on the steepest part of the hill on Dolores Street. The crowd grew to approximately 200 people that night. 

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Police said that around 7 p.m., a 16-year-old man spat in a sergeant’s face. Police said the officer was assaulted while trying to detain the teenager and suffered lacerations to his face. Police said that during the arrest, the crowd began to throw ignited fireworks, smoke bombs, glass bottles, and metal cans at officers.

Two Muni light-rail vehicles were vandalized with graffiti, and the crowds refused to disperse and began removing barricades police had placed in the area, police said.

Around 8 p.m., after declaring the crowds an unlawful assembly, officers began making mass arrests. Plaintiffs argue they were trying to leave the area when police began corralling them for detention. 

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One 15-year-old said in the lawsuit that she was trying to ride a scooter to a friend’s house and was still detained after telling officers she had nothing to do with the hill bomb.

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The lawsuit alleges officers gave little information to parents who arrived to pick up their kids. Parents waited on the street for hours, and the last child was released from the Mission Police Station at 4:15 a.m., the lawsuit alleges. 

The teens were cited and released for inciting a riot, remaining present at an unlawful assembly and conspiracy, police said.

Police said one minor was sent to the hospital to be treated for intoxication but “there was no other report of injury from the arrests.”

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“This dangerous and unlawful behavior put members of the public and our officers at risk of serious injury or worse,” then-police chief Bill Scott said in a statement at the time. “This behavior will not be tolerated in our city.”

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50 Beagles Rescued From Wisconsin Lab Arrive in Bay Area, SF Activist Faces Felony Charges

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50 Beagles Rescued From Wisconsin Lab Arrive in Bay Area, SF Activist Faces Felony Charges


Animal rescue groups persuaded a Wisconsin breeding lab to sell 1,500 beagles after activists worked for a decade to free them, and 50 of the dogs arrived in the Bay Area Sunday. Meanwhile, an SF activist faces 12 years in prison for rescuing some of them prior to the deal.

Last month, several animal rights activists attempted to free 1,500 beagles at Wisconsin-based Ridglan Farms, the second-largest breeder of beagles for laboratories in the US, as KGO reported last week. Four activists, including Dean Guzman Wyrzykowski of San Francisco, were arrested during the rescue operation and charged with felonies, with up to 12 years in prison, according to a post by Wyrzykowski on social media.

“There are thousands of dogs just like her in laboratories across the country,” says Wyrzykowski, while holding the dog he’s accused of stealing.

Last week, animal rights group Big Dog Ranch Rescue, which is based in Florida, and DC-based Center for a Humane Economy made a confidential agreement with the lab to purchase the animals to be adopted out by rescue groups. Per KGO, well-known Berkeley activist Zoe Rosenberg, who brought one beagle named Chester home with her, was among the volunteers helping the dogs in Wisconsin after they were rescued.

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Northern California Beagle Rescue Group/Facebook

As KGO reports, the Northern California Beagle Rescue Group brought 50 beagles to the Bay Area via school bus Sunday, and they’ll be adopting them out to homes in San Francisco, San Jose, Sacramento, and nearby cities once they’ve received veterinary care.

The dogs had likely never touched grass until after leaving the lab, and they’ve been slowly acclimating to their new lives. Some were reportedly malnourished and most had bad teeth and were in need of dental work.

“It was very emotional,” says Wendy Lansdon, a volunteer with Northern California Beagle Rescue, speaking to KGO about when the bus full of dogs first arrived in the Bay Area. “Some of them were really quiet when we got in there, some of them were happy, and the other ones were terrified.”

Prior to the dogs’ arrival, the Northern California Beagle Rescue Group announced on social media it was seeking foster home volunteers in Fremont, San Jose, and Sacramento — near where the beagles will be receiving veterinary care. The group is also requesting donations to help fund the dogs’ vet care.

According to the site Save the Dogs, activists had been pushing for the closure of Ridglan Farms for almost 10 years, as investigators, whistleblowers, veterinarians, and others worked to spread the word about the inhumane conditions of the lab, which stayed in operation for decades, despite being hit with hundreds of state-level cruelty violations.

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Save the Dogs

“The dogs born there were treated as inventory: bred, confined, sold to research, disposed of,” says Save the Dogs.

Save the Dogs notes that activists are now targeting Marshall BioResources, the largest breeder of dogs for laboratories in the country, which has operations in New York and the United Kingdom.

Image: Northern California Beagle Rescue/Facebook





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San Francisco Giants vs Los Angeles Dodgers Live Stream: How to Watch MLB

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San Francisco Giants vs Los Angeles Dodgers Live Stream: How to Watch MLB


Division-leading Dodgers aim to snap home losing trend as they open series against the Giants in a matchup of NL West foes

After dropping their second straight home series over the weekend, the Los Angeles Dodgers head into Monday night’s series opener against the San Francisco Giants sitting atop the National League West Division standings, aiming to avenge a series loss to the Giants from two weeks ago. San Francisco has lost nine of its last 12 games overall and have dropped seven in a row on the road as they begin a 10-game road trip that will keep them away from home until Memorial Day Weekend. The Giants will start Trevor McDonald (1-0, 1.29 ERA) in his fourth start in the Majors while the Dodgers will counter with second-year Japanese import Roki Sasaki (1-3, 5.97 ERA) who has given up a home run in five consecutive outings.

How to Watch San Francisco Giants vs Los Angeles Dodgers:

Date: May 11, 2026  

Time: 10:00 p.m. ET

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TV Channel: MLB Network

Location: Dodgers Stadium

Live Stream the San Francisco Giants vs Los Angeles Dodgers game on Fubo: Start watching now!

Dodger center fielder Andy Pages, who has helped Los Angeles claim World Series titles in each of his first two years in the Majors, leads the team this season hitting .333, ranking the 25-year-old Cuban third among all hitters in MLB. Pages is hitting .371 so far in May with five extra base hits and 10 RBIs and has successfully reached base in 13 of his last 14 games.

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With nine hits in seven games so far this month, Giants second baseman Luis Arraez is hitting a team-leading .310 at the plate in 2026 and is on pace for his eighth career 100-hit campaign. Arraez is one of only two active players with a career batting average above .300, hitting .316 for his career and leads Houston’s Jose Altuve by 15 points.

What time is Giants vs Dodgers?

Coverage of the San Francisco Giants vs Los Angeles Dodgers starts  Monday, May 11, at 10:00 p.m ET. Tune in to see if the Dodgers can beat the Giants for the fifth time in the last six games at Dodger Stadium or if San Francisco can beat LA for the fourth time in the last five head-to-head matchups.

What channel is the Giants vs Dodgers game on?

Looking to watch the game? Subscribers can tune to MLB Network to catch the action. Make sure you subscribe to Fubo now to watch this matchup at home or on the go with the Fubo TV app.

Watch the San Francisco Giants vs Los Angeles Dodgers game on Fubo: Start watching now!

Regional restrictions may apply.

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Mother’s Day Gamethread: Giants vs. Pirates

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Mother’s Day Gamethread: Giants vs. Pirates


Happy Mother’s Day to all the McCoven who hopefully have better things to do than watch this dreadful baseball team. But if this is your chosen way of spending the day, then welcome, and may the Giants beat the Pittsburgh Pirates to win the series for you.

Right-hander Tyler Mahle takes the mound for the Giants, as the veteran makes his eighth start of the year. He’s 1-4 on the season, with a 5.00 ERA, a 4.91 FIP, and 34 strikeouts to 18 walks in 36 innings. He was very strong his last time out, pitching 5.1 shutout innings against the Tampa Bay Rays.

For the Pirates, it’s right-hander Bubba Chandler, a 23-year old in his second season. In seven starts this year, Chandler is 1-4 with a 4.76 ERA, a 5.60 FIP, and 31 strikeouts to 26 walks in 34 innings. Chandler gave up two runs in five innings against the Arizona Diamondbacks in his last game. He has issued the most walks in the Major Leagues, so he’s probably foaming at the mouth to face the Giants, who apparently believe that drawing walks is a sin on par with murder.

Enjoy the game, everyone. Go Giants! Go moms!

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Who: San Francisco Giants (15-24) vs. Pittsburgh Pirates (22-18)

Where: Oracle Park, San Francisco, California

Regional broadcast: NBC Sports Bay Area

Radio: KNBR 680 AM/104.5 FM, KSFN 1510 AM



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