The Public Eye News | The Sacramento Bee

The Public Eye

Education

She was called the N-word by a classmate. District says the initial complaint was mishandled

Like most districts, San Juan Unified tells students who feel harassed or discriminated against to report complaints to a teacher or school administrator. But school leaders and teachers seemingly have broad discretion to determine how to deal with complaints.

Tyann Sorrell talks about her $1.7 million sexual harassment settlement with UC Berkeley School of Law at the office of her lawyer, Leslie Levy, in Oakland, on Wednesday, January 10, 2018.

The State Worker

From hidden cameras to crotch-watching: California pays out millions for sexual harassment

The state of California paid out more than $25 million in the last three years to settle sexual harassment claims against state agencies, prisons and public universities, costing taxpayers about $21.3 million.

Capitol Alert

UC worker felt ‘mobilizing anger.’ Then she won $1.7 million in a sexual harassment case

Tyann Sorrell, an executive assistant in the UC Berkeley School of Law, accused new dean Sujit Choudhry of sexual harassment after his 2014 arrival.

Capitol Alert

The details behind 10 big sexual harassment payouts by the state of California

California settled sexual harassment claims against state agencies, prisons and universities totaling more than $25 million in the last three years.

The Homeless

‘It was a scary thing.’ Hospital dumps senior at homeless shelter. He’s not the first

Arlan Lewis, 77 and recently homeless, said Woodland Memorial Hospital directed a taxi to take him to Union Gospel Mission in Sacramento. But the mission had no bed for him, so he wound up outside. Shelters and nonprofit groups said the practice, a version of “patient dumping,” is not uncommon.

The Public Eye

Thousands of lives may be at risk, but faulty dams often go years without being repaired

After the near collapse of the emergency spillway at Oroville Dam, a Sacramento Bee investigation found owners of some of California’s most important dams often allow deficiencies to linger for years. The Department of Water Resources ordered 93 dams to reexamine their own spillways after the Oroville crisis.

The Public Eye

They reported sex harassment in state jobs and found ‘retaliation is alive and well’

Sexual harassment in California state government can result in few consequences – except for those who reported it, victims say.

State Sen. Tony Mendoza, D-Artesia, left, talks with Sen. Ted Gaines, R-El Dorado Hills, during the Senate session on May 30, 2017.

Capitol Alert

She wanted a job and said California senator invited her home. He fired aides who knew.

California Sen. Tony Mendoza fired three aides in September as allegations were reported that he invited home a young woman who wanted a job at the Capitol.

Del Paso Heights advocate Dionne Johnson of the Brother to Brother grassroots gang prevention organization speaks to the Sacramento City Council on Advance Peace, a controversial gun-violence prevention program, Tuesday night, August 29, 2017 after a deadly gang-related shooting in Meadowview left one dead and four injured.

The Public Eye

‘Change is hard,’ says Sacramento police chief, but slowly, it’s happening

A year into major police reforms in Sacramento, communities of color see reason for hope with new African American chief but face problems with growing gun violence that the city has been slow to address.

Col. Christopher De Los Santos is buried with full honors at Arlington National Cemetery on Feb. 17, 2016.

The Public Eye

Suicide, investigation and a lawsuit follow booze-fueled UC Davis ag school retreat

A boozy work retreat for UC Davis employees at a pricey hotel in Monterey resulted in an internal investigation and the demotions of two staff members. Their boss, accused of sexual harassment for his drunken behavior on the trip, committed suicide.

The Public Eye

Rocklin paid its former city attorney $270,000 to leave – without explaining why

The city of Rocklin gave longtime City Attorney Russell Hildebrand a $270,000 severance check last year after forcing him to resign with little explanation.

The Public Eye

California cities get next year’s pension bill. ‘It’s not sustainable,’ Sacramento official says

The Sacramento region’s largest local governments will see pension costs go up by an estimated 14 percent in the next fiscal year. City officials widely agree they are “unsustainable” and will force service cuts or tax hikes.

Gov. Jerry Brown talks about his revised budget plan, noting that an economic downturn is coming during a press conference at the Capitol on May 11, 2017 in Sacramento.

The Public Eye

‘We were forced to hire people.’ Investigation focuses on state tax agency’s hiring.

A longtime Board of Equalization employee resigned in 2016 as an investigation charged he used his influence to help job candidates favored by George Runner.

Crime - Sacto 911

Sacramento’s police force is one of the nation’s most shortstaffed. Here’s why

The Sacramento Police Department had the lowest number of sworn officers per capita compared to other cities in the United States with similar populations in 2016, FBI data shows. Currently, there are about 1.3 officers for every 1,000 people.

The Public Eye

Where the most dog bites occur in Sacramento

Hundreds of people are bitten by dogs in Sacramento each year, and the attacks happen in North Sacramento more often than in any other part of the city, a Sacramento Bee analysis has found.

Sacramento Metropolitan Fire District firefighters battled a grass and brush fire at Discovery Park and in areas near the intersection of Garden Highway and Truxel Road on Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2015, in Sacramento, Calif.

The Public Eye

This suburban Sacramento agency has state’s highest rate of six-figure pensioners

In 2016, 33 percent of Metro Fire pensioners received retirement income of $100,000 or more, the highest percentage of any government with 500 or more retirees in CalPERS, a Bee review has found.

The Public Eye

Lower American River contains unsafe levels of E. coli. Are homeless camps to blame?

The lower American River contains E. coli levels that exceed the the federal government’s threshold for safe recreational activity, tests show.

Local

Did McClellan Air Force Base poison their water? Lawsuits revive neighborhood fears

Some residents believe toxins from the former base have leaked into the water supply, and will only drink and cook with bottled water. The Air Force has denied contaminating the water

The Public Eye

UC chancellors who resign routinely get big parachutes at executive-level pay

Over the past two decades, 12 of 22 UC chancellors have stepped down to take faculty jobs, often with a reduced workload and pay rivaling their former executive-level salaries.

The Public Eye

Why is Sacramento spending so much on lobbyists?

The city of Sacramento spent $226,077 on lobbying at the state Capitol during the first six months of 2017. Mayor Darrell Steinberg says the city has “an ambitious agenda.”

The Public Eye

Trending Stories

Top Photos