Why are they only investigating Mayor Silva, What about the rest of the council

(Photo: News10)

Stockton is facing its share of challenges. As the city tries to get its financial house in order and address the violence that it has struggled with for the past few years, scandals and squabbles at the top of city government seem to dominate the headlines.

Emails from Mayor Anthony Silva about city business could shed important light on efforts to solve Stockton's problems. But getting those emails – which an expert said are public records – can be difficult.

Citing California's public records laws, News10 requested emails sent to and from Silva's work email account since he took office last January.

According to the records the city sent News10, Silva did not send a single message from his city email account for the entire months of May and June.

for more on this story, click here!

First off, News10 what do you think you are going to uncover, by getting his emails? Also, I don't get what you believe gives you the right to have records of his personal e-mails, text messeges and phone calls, because you don't! I am one who will stand by his side on this issue, and say that he should not hand over any personal account information, what the news station is doing here is extortion, we need to realize when the media is over-stepping the boundaries set in place by our constitution.

Rains Three Days Straight in Central California, but Still in "Drought"

ASSOCIATED PRESS - The San Francisco Bay Area has received only about 25 percent of the rain it has normally had by this time of year, said National Weather Service forecaster Diana Henderson.

San Francisco normally would have received 14.5 inches of rain this season by now. That figure is currently at a little more than 3 inches, with up to 3 more inches expected over the weekend.
Before the storm rolls out Monday morning, the northern San Francisco Bay Area could see as much as 9 inches of rain, the weather service said. In the Sierra, up to 4 feet of snow is expected at elevations above 7,000 feet. (AP)

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PACIFIC TIGERS VS. PRINCETON TIGERS PICK-ODDS-PREDICTION
Pacific was enjoying an 8-1 start to the campaign before running into Princeton on Friday night. Pacific was shut down en route to an 83-58 loss in the contest, ending a seven-game winning streak. After this game the team will be off until Dec. 30 when it faces Saint Mary's.

Anthony Silva was the Punch-line of a Jay Leno Joke

This Top 10 list dedicated to Jay Leno


Jay Leno, likely with the help of PhotoShop, used this photo as part of a recent monologue dig at Stockton. This image of the photo was supplied to The Record by none other than Stockton Mayor Anthony Silva.

By Mike Klocke
Record Editor
April 21, 2013 12:00 AM
For Stockton, there's no escaping the wrath of Jay Leno.

"Stockton Bankruptcy" jokes are peppering his monologues almost on a nightly basis.

Many are, as Atlantic magazine once described Leno's general comedic repertoire, "groan worthy."

"Stockton is even price gouging at the 99 Cent Stores." "Lindsay Lohan won't shoplift there." "The city's founding father wants a paternity test."

Meh. Even with joke writers doing the work, that's the best he's got?

Ah, but giving credit where it's due, a couple of Leno's digs were first-rate.

"You know what they call 'Here Comes Honey Boo Boo' in Stockton? 'Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous.' "

"Stockton is so broke, their meth labs just give out Sudafed."

But there are so many things that Leno does not realize about Stockton. It's our civic duty to make him more informed.

So, in honor of a more-talented talk-show host, David Letterman, here are the Top 10 things about which Jay Leno is Stockton-ignorant:

» No. 10: There are many fine restaurants here - excellent places to dine. But Leno would likely choose to break bread at Burger King. His comedy was once described by a more talented talk-show host, Jimmy Kimmel, as, "A master chef who has opened a Burger King."

» No. 9: We do have crime, and some of it is committed with knives. None of the knife wounds, however, compare with the one Leno administered to a more-talented talk-show host, Conan O'Brien.

» No. 8: Many of Stockton's fiscal troubles can be traced to poor economic decisions made in the past. Stockton was its own worst enemy. Bad financial decisions come in many forms including, say, NBC needing to fork over $45 million to O'Brien and his staff upon departure to clean up Leno's mess.

» No. 7: Bankruptcy? That's so 1994. Or at least that was the year Leno's neighboring Orange County declared bankruptcy - giving a whole new meaning to the phrase "I'm going to Disneyland."

» No. 6: One of the prides of Stockton is the late, great actress Janet Leigh, whose five-decade career included such memorable movies as "Psycho," "The Manchurian Candidate" and "Little Women." You have to appreciate her grace and excellence and how it comparatively overshadows Leno's movie credits of "Fun With Dick and Jane," "Scooby-Doo and the Goblin King" and "Polyester."

» No. 5: There's culture in Stockton from a symphony to a civic theater to a great museum to the Brubeck Institute and more. We're just a short jaunt away from Sierra Repertory Theatre in Columbia and its shows at Fallon House - which, by the way, is not named for a more-talented talk-show host, Jimmy Fallon.

» No. 4: Stockton is home to the San Joaquin Delta, University of the Pacific, Stockton Arena, Stockton Ballpark and Burns Tower - all of which are smaller than Leno's chin.

» No. 3: Stockton doesn't do well in "ratings" - just ask the folks at Forbes. But we'd hope Leno's fifth-rated NBC network (behind ABC, CBS, Fox and Telemundo) could empathize with our plight, unless it's too busy trying to hold off Encore and The Golf Channel.

» No. 2: Stocktonians are excellent at making comparisons. For instance: Johnny Carson is to Jay Leno as Jay Leno is to Andrew Dice Clay.

» And the No. 1 Thing Jay Leno Should Know About Stockton: We are so genuinely nice and sophisticated that we wouldn't urinate on Leno and his Stockton jokes even if he were a fire hydrant.

Wait. He once did play the role of a fire hydrant. In the movie "Robots."

Well, that changes everything.

Contact Record Editor Mike Klocke at (209) 546-8250 or mklocke@recordnet.com.

Mayor Silva: A letter from concerned citizen

Dear Mayor-Elect Anthony Silva,

Let me first and foremost introduce myself. My name is Rufo Tabayoyong and I am a resident of Stockton and Weston Ranch to be more particular. I do not have a job, I do not go to school, and all I do every day as of recently is stay home watch over my dad and try not to let the sickness of this city get the best of me. The downward economy has a major influence over the people of any community. When there is less and less money going around in a city it is inevitable crime rate will soar and employment will decrease, cause it to be a not so comfortable place to live. That is the situation you are being given and asked to deal with, and to be honest to change this city around I believe will spark the whole nation, and country as one to eventually move toward progress and prosperity.

I do not think a lot of people in our country or city most importantly know that what we are going through here in Stockton is the first in most of the United States. I believe we were hit the hardest of our own bad judgment and misfortunes. We know that Weston Ranch had the highest foreclosure rate across the country. I have been told before that homes where I live were being sold quickly at around 450k and now they have drop down to a average mean of maybe 140k. Not only that we have a high crime rate in Stockton, high unemployment, and overall a bad negative thought of Stockton in general from outsiders looking in.

I know of many people who have a negative mindset due to the none existence of money around this city. I feel like there is less and less help and positive people in Stockton each day. One thing I do know is that the fall to any community is power, money, and greed.

I think that a reason to why crime rate is high and why people are plague with negative minds are because if one were to look around Stockton there is not so much to do around here. I almost lost myself if it was not for basketball, and my love for basketball help me do things and keep me positive about myself and kept my time in use for progress. That in turn helped me to feel better about myself and for everything around me. Basketball also help me reflect on myself and help me confront my problems, and thus I am so grateful that I can say for myself that I am mentally not affected by the economic downfall that is the primary reason for our city problems.

All of us as people are not bad evil people we just do bad things that most of the time we regret and could take back. I know of people who come out of prison totally opposite of what they once were and that time and reflection help them see and realize their personal flaws. If we want change for ourselves, for our city then we have to start within.

An idea I have to help us toward progress prosperity is to promote more community things to do. I use to live in the bay area and a good idea they had in the city of Oakland to prevent the crime and violence to rise was to create more community activity. More events to spend time with each other for common interest funded by mostly time for willing people who want better for us. They put together a community basketball league that people can come and watch as well as play in different parks around the city each Friday night.

So instead of our minors, youth, and young adults who are misguided causing trouble around the city they can use their time in something positive with involvement of the community as a whole. This represented more closeness in the people around us, granted more relations, and more people to actually know more about thy neighbor. It was more than basketball it was an event that reminded the community that we are all on the same team, and we can be happy if we stick together and do whats right instead of promoting acts of selfishness.

I believe you know what I am talking about working with the boys and girls club and this is where I see your strengths. You might know the fundamentals for keeping misguided minds together and achieving goals on the same pace. If we were to lean toward this idea and it does not have to be basketball but other events sports, talent shows, concerts, that are all funded by people just wanting to be together then it would benefit us more than maybe more police officers. We could sell food and have it known that the money made will be use to help better our city by paving our streets, paying for more officers, or whatever we need to run this city.

I have more ideas on how we can help our city but help starts within. We can never really truly do things for each other, but the best help is helping someone help themselves. Inspire and motivate instead of just paying for someone’s misfortunes. You know the term you can catch a fish for someone and they will eat for a day, or you can teach someone how to catch a fish and they will eat forever. This is what I want to promote for our city that if we teach our people how to think more positive and have more happiness in their life even at the start of Friday community nights then this will cause a domino effect and they will be more positive and have confidence to do what is morally right. Lets teach people how to be more responsible positive and to remind them that they are not alone.

Mr Mayor I support you and everything you want to do. I know that you want better for the people of Stockton and that is your true intentions and not for money greed or power. So if you agree or have any input or would like to know more about my ideas then let me know thank you and keep leading Stockton for a better tomorrow.

Inspired Stockton Resident,
Rufo Tabayoyong

2 injured in Stockton drive-by shooting

To the Citizens of this great City

oh zee TV: 4409 -- PIRATES say I look suspicious...WTF

oh zee TV: 4409 -- PIRATES say I look suspicious...WTF: Police are overstepping their bounds all of the time they are patrolling.

Stockton residents gather to take back park

Stockton residents gather to take back park

truth be told: Ron Paul - U.S. is a Republic, Not a Democracy

truth be told: Ron Paul - U.S. is a Republic, Not a Democracy: Ron Paul - U.S. is a Republic, Not a Democracy By: Dr_Ron_Paul Last week marked the conclusion of the grand taxpayer funded spectacle...

White to take case against mayor to federal judge

By Scott Smith

Record Staff Writer

August 31, 2012 12:00 AM

STOCKTON - Former mayoral candidate Ralph Lee White this month will ask a federal judge overseeing Stockton's bankruptcy to let him pursue his case against Mayor Ann Johnston over term limits.

White said he believes the city inappropriately lumped the suit he initiated among 54 cases the City Attorney's Office froze under a provision of the U.S. bankruptcy code, which gives the debtor temporary relief while it reorganizes finances.

U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Christopher Klein on Sept. 18 will hear White in person making his plea to lift the stay against on his suit.

"I will have an opportunity to speak," White said Thursday. "And I will quite naturally speak my mind."

White and the Stockton Black Leadership Council in May took Johnston and the city to court, arguing that the mayor had exceeded the number of terms allowed under the city charter.

The case hinged on Section 606 of the city charter, which says:

          "No person elected as either Mayor or Councilmember shall be eligible to serve, or serve, as either Mayor or Councilmember for more than two (2) terms..."

He will ask Judge Klein to allow him to have Superior Court Judge Holland reconsider his ruling and possibly petition the state's Third District Court of Appeal for a review.

Johnston declined to comment for this story. City officials, who have defended her right to run for a second term as mayor, also had no comment.

Contact Reporter Scott Smith at (209) 546-8296 or    ssmith@recordnet.com.       Visit his blog 

He Said, She Said: Mayor, opponent battle over alleged pay

By Roger Phillips
Record Staff Writer
August 28, 2012 12:00 AM

STOCKTON - The mayor's race turned nasty Monday as incumbent Ann Johnston accused opponent Anthony Silva of spreading a "blatant, outright lie" about her salary in a campaign email sent out by her challenger over the weekend.

"Your Mayor Ann Johnston has just recently voted to give herself a $20,000 raise in the worst economic times for this city," begins the email, sent to Silva's friends on LinkedIn. "She now makes $102,000 and is rewarded for leading us to bankruptcy!"

On paper, the mayor's position pays $102,232. The city charter says the mayor's salary "cannot be less than the amount paid to the Chairman of the Board of Supervisors for San Joaquin County."

Johnston, however, has refused raises twice since taking office nearly four years ago and has continued to receive the $82,088 salary established by the city's charter-mandated Salary Setting Commission in 2007. Johnston also takes the same furlough days as other city employees, reducing her salary to about $78,000.

"I did not accept (the pay increase)," Johnston said Monday. "It's all documented. It's a matter of public record. For him to suggest I did that is an outright lie. I find it offensive that this is being made an issue when it is not the truth whatsoever."

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Help Support the No on Johnston Campaign

Oh Zee - HOW WE FINA GET PAID

Oh Zee's Words of Wisdom: Ron Paul supporters sue GOP, claiming intimidation...

Oh Zee's Words of Wisdom: Ron Paul supporters sue GOP, claiming intimidation...: By STEPHEN OHLEMACHER | Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Supporters of GOP presidential candidate Ron Paul have filed a lawsuit aga...

We Don't Appreciate The Negative Remarks Alvin

Lots of talk, few specifics on pension reform

By Matt Augustine

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — While members of city council will likely have their share of problems with the mayor's proposed budget as they begin to work their way through the more than 400 pages of numbers, the one thing most seem to agree on is that the city needs to reform its pension system or face the possibility of bankruptcy.

"We're not going to be like Stockton, California...we're going to do this right," says Mayor Alvin Brown.
However, exactly what that reform will entail is another issue entirely. Specific details of a pension reform plan, even tentative or speculative ones, have been non-existent.

"I would say this: If we don't reform the pension system, in a few years, we could be looking like some of the other cities," says councilman Steven Joost, referring to cities like Stockton and San Bernardino, California, which have filed for bankruptcy due largely to bloated pension funds.

The city of Jacksonville will pay out $150 million in pensions this year -- a $46.5 million dollar increase from last year and about 15 percent of the total general fund budget which adds up to about $945 million.

Joost says the first thing city council has to do is pass the budget. Once that's done, he says, they can start working on pension reform seriously. However, council president Bill Bishop says it's going to be a long road.
"I really don't know how that's going to go. The pension issue is highly complex. There are a lot of moving parts, there are a lot of people involved," he says.

Mayor Brown vowed during his budget speech that Jacksonville would not end up like Stockton or San Bernardino, and says the wheels are already in motion for a pension reform plan.

"We're going to present a pension plan by the end of the year that's going to be fair and sustainable," said Mayor Brown. "It's not sustainable, we've got to do pension reform and we have to protect the taxpayers and the city employees, and the only way to do that is to make sure we do pension reform, and we're working on that. I don't want to get into specifics but we're literally working on that. We'll present a plan by no later than the end of the year."

Brown says the goal is to have it done before next year's budget.

Bullets, glass fly in attack on California Street

By The Record
July 12, 2012 12:00 AM
STOCKTON - A documented gang member and two women near him were injured during a shooting Wednesday afternoon in central Stockton, according to police.

The male victim, whose identity was not released, was one of three people hospitalized after the 2:40 p.m. attack on California Street between Arcade Street and Monterey Avenue. None of the injuries are severe, and no suspects have been identified, police said.

Stockton police briefly closed a section of California Street as evidence technicians combed the scene for shell casings.

A Jaguar sedan was hit by multiple gunshots, and more than 10 shell casings were in the parking lot next to Alpine Market, said Officer Joe Silva, a spokesman for the Stockton Police Department. In keeping with department policy, authorities are not disclosing the specific gang the man belongs to.

Another young woman, who lives in an apartment across the street from the market, was also injured when bits of glass flew in her eyes as a bullet pierced her window and embedded in her living room wall.

The victim, who did not give her name for fear of reprisal, said she heard several gunshots but did not see anything because her vision was temporarily obscured. The woman, who appeared to be in her 20s, did not seek medical attention.

Stockton bankruptcy: Retirees sue to stop cuts to health benefits

A group of Stockton retirees is seeking a restraining order against the bankrupt city's efforts to cut their health benefits, part of the city's "pendency plan" aimed at keeping it solvent while it seeks protections from creditors.

The city informed retirees by letter they must pay their premiums by July 30 or "medical coverage will be canceled retroactive to July 1."

Promises of lifelong health benefits have been blamed in part for Stockton's failure, which was also brought on by the housing bust, unemployment and borrowing for downtown development that did not bring expected results.

PHOTOS: California cities in bankruptcy

Dwane Milnes, who was Stockton's city manager from 1991 to 2001, has been widely criticized for giving retirees full retirement healthcare in return for agreements from unions not to seek raises. The unfunded liability for those benefits is $417 million.

Milnes now represents the retirees in bankruptcy-related negotiations.

"It is not unfair to make changes in the retirement plan," Milnes said. "The world changes and when the world changes you have to adapt. But the question is, how do you change it in a way that is respectful of those most in need?"

Plaintiff Alfred Seibel, 58, a retired parks worker, said he can't afford the premiums and can't afford to lose coverage.
With the city's cuts, Seibel's health insurance costs would be $1,126.66 per month, or about 51% of his net income.

"I am already taking generic meds for cholesterol and triglycerides against my doctor's advice, I can't afford the $70 co-pay. My wife cries all the time. She don't understand how when they promise you all this stuff, then they [can] just take it away," he said in court documents.

A retired parks caretaker who worked for the city for 31 years, Seibel also suffers from a work-related herniated disc and enlarged lymph nodes that doctors say are from chemicals he used on the job.

The suit seeks class-action status covering all retirees, but Milnes said he and other managers with higher incomes would be willing to give up their benefits.

"The ones we're talking about are the ones who worked for us for years. For crying out loud, we know them, we know their families. We know about their breast cancer, their husband's diabetes," he said.

The budget the Stockton City Council adopted slashed contributions to current employee and retiree health benefits and eliminated benefits for employees with fewer than 10 years of city service. It eliminates city-funded medical benefits for retirees by July 2013.

There are about 2,400 city retirees, about 1,000 of whom receive health benefits. Two-thirds of the city retirees do not meet poverty requirements for California's low-income healthcare program but cannot afford private insurance, Milnes said. Those who are over 65 can get Medicare, but they must pay for medications and doctor's office visits.

Stockton Vice Mayor Kathy Miller said the lawsuit was not unexpected.

"All I can say is that there is a group of retirees who think it's more important for the taxpayers to pay 100% of their retirement than to keep police officers on the street," she said. "They know the situation. They know 80% of our discretionary income is for public safety. There is no way we can close the budget gap without these cuts. But they think they should come first."

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— Diana Marcum

Stockton Internet & Innovation Conference - 4th Annual

Back by popular for the 4th year!

4th Annual Stockton Internet & Innovation Conference. It's a full day on inspiring talks from industry leaders. Lean the keys to why some organizations succeed and others don't. Some of the topics:
- Innovating ideas that change our lives and how local organizations can excell as well.
- Network security at the office and home.
- To Cloud or not and other questions you were fearful of asking
- Valley Economic Outlook with updated information and opportunity for growth for local businesses.
- Generating revenue with eBay
- Social Email marketing
- Improving your businesses online exposure

Advanced registration required. Last year's event was a sold out.

For registration or more information visit www.StocktonInternetConference.com or call (209) 957-8629.

Location: University Plaza Waterfront Hotel
110 West Fremont Street Map

Date: 7/26/2012 to 7/26/2012

Hours: 8:00am to 5pm

Prices: See below

Ticket Info: For more information
call 209-957-8629.

Stockton to Become Largest US City in Bankruptcy

Stockton to Become Largest US City in Bankruptcy

Stockton, Calif. Files for Bankruptcy

Stockton, Calif. Files for Bankruptcy
Video from WSJ Live



Stockton CA Bankruptcy - Hoenig v Sawyer
video from FOX News