News briefs
U.S. army orders encampment closure
Despite the nearly completed Dakota Access Pipeline Project and an eviction notice from the U.S. Army, demonstrators from the encampment are staying, according to NBC News.
The notice stated that boycotters were to leave the premises by Dec. 5, according to The Guardian.
“We are wardens of this land. This is our land, and they can’t remove us,” Oglala Sioux member Isaac Weston told The Associated Press. “We have every right to be here to protect our land and to protect our water.”
Demonstrators continue to occupy the site despite the onset of the coldest months of North Dakota.
Pipeline company Energy Transfer Partners are anticipating the final steps for the pipeline project, according to The Guardian. The final step is to drill a hole under the Missouri River.
The date of the project’s completion is still unknown.
-Cassie Ordonio
SF judges let quality-of-life tickets slide
San Francisco courts issued over 63,000 tickets over the past five years because of quality-of-life offenses, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.
The tickets consist of offenses such as sleeping on park benches or urinating in public.
“When the cops are called about someone pissing on an elevator at BART, we will respond, and we will issue a citation,” Martin Halloran, head of the San Francisco Police Officers Association, told the Chronicle. “But we have no control over the courts.”
The cost of the tickets ranged from $200 to $500, but the court believed it would go unpaid regardless and create uncollected debt.
This causes some stir due to the recently passed Proposition Q, which bans homeless people from sleeping in tents on sidewalks.
Tickets issued to them may be dismissed without consequence. Currently, there is no legal action against quality-of-life offenses when a person fails to appear in court.
Police expressed frustration about the lack of initiative by courts. They believed that their tickets now hold no “‘teeth”’ and no one will be held accountable for their actions.
– Kyle Honea
New police chief has yet to be chosen
San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee has yet to choose another police chief following Greg Suhr’s resignation back in May, according to the SF Examiner.
On Nov. 2, Lee received the names of three candidates whose identities are withheld from the public. No candidate has been picked so far.
“If he rejects all three candidates, we start all over,” Commissioner Petra DeJesus told the SF Examiner.
Acting Police Chief Tony Chaplin has been filling Suhr’s shoes until further notice. However, that notice was left uncertain for seven months.
Chaplin was considered to be one of the candidates, but questions were raised about the qualifications for the position.
The SF Examiner reported that Chaplin received his bachelor’s degree, but did not specify from which college.
Until a final decision is made, Chaplin will continue being the interim police chief.
– Cassie Ordonio