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Redwood Estates Calendar of Events

Thu
21 Jun "Parent and me" Program for Infants and Toddlers A new ?Parent and Me? program for infants and toddlers begins January 5, 2012. Co-sponsored by The PJ Library® and Congrega…

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Fri
01 Jun First Friday Date Night at Lupin Lodge Come join us in our mountain paradise this season for First Friday Date Night in our clubhouse restaurant. Starting Novembe…

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Thu
17 May Late Night at the Coop Happy! Happy!! Hour at the Bar. Two Drinks for the Price of One*. Tuesdays and Thursday we have Live Music from 5pm to 7pm. S…

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Redwood Estates Area News

SF Fire Chief ordered to resume spousal support payments after hearing

In another legal domestic battle involving a San Francisco public official, the city’s fire chief was in court recently after failing to pay alimony to her ex-husband.

Unlike the case against San Francisco's suspended sheriff, City Hall was unusually quiet when it comes to the failure of the city's Fire Chief Joanne Hayes White to pay alimony to her ex-husband.

It's the latest public riff between the couple. Seven years ago, White’s then husband Sean White called 911 after an alleged assault.

"My wife has just hit me in the head with a pint glass twice and I'd like to file charges," Sean White is heard saying in a recording of the 2005 call.

When asked who his wife was, he can be heard to say "Joanne Hayes White. She's the fire chief."

Then Mayor Gavin Newsom put his support behind the chief the next day.

"I continue to have strong support for the chief and I'm confident of the outcome of the review," Newsom said at a 2005 press conference. "This is a personal matter."

Kathy Black is director of La Casa de Las Madras, the women's shelter that put up billboards after Ross Mirkarimi used the term "private matter." She said there should not be a double standard.

"Domestic violence is never a family, private or personal matter," said Black. "Regardless of gender, age, race, sexual orientation. No matter what, all crimes should be investigated."

Police did investigate the fire chief's case. She reportedly passed a lie detector test and the district attorney did not file charges.

Since their divorce in 2009, the chief, who makes $300,000 a year, has paid her ex-husband court-ordered spousal support of $3300 a month until 14 months ago when he assaulted one of their sons while drinking.

He has since pleaded guilty and Friday, a judge ordered the chief to resume paying.

The mayor's press secretary on Wednesday told KTVU that for now, he does not see the fire chief's situation as a case for the ethics commission. Unlike the sheriff, it is civil not criminal and does not relate to her job.

_{Wed, 16 May 2012 19:06:23 -0700}

Tae Kwon Do instructor convicted of molestation

A Seaside Tae Kwon Do instructor has been convicted of molesting three girls under the age of 14, two of whom where his students, the Monterey County District Attorney's Office announced Wednesday.

Roberto Mendoza, 38, of Seaside was charged with 11 counts of lewd acts on a child for molesting three young girls on various occasions between August 2007 and May 2010, district attorney's officials said.

Two of the children were students at his Tae Kwon Do studio and the third victim was sexually molested while Mendoza lived in the girl's home, acting as her babysitter, according to the district attorney's office

Mendoza will face a minimum of 15 years to life in prison. His next court date will be July 10 before Judge Adrienne M. Grover.

_{Wed, 16 May 2012 18:40:16 -0700}

Red lotus flower sculpture unveiled in SF's Civic Center Plaza

A new 24-foot sculpture of a red lotus flower was unveiled in San Francisco's Civic Center Plaza Wednesday.

The sculpture, titled "Breathing Flower," was created by Korean artist Choi Jeong Hwa and is being showcased as part of the nearby Asian Art Museum's "Phantoms of Asia: Contemporary Awakens the Past" exhibition, which will run through Sept. 2.

It will be illuminated at night and has motorized fabric leaves that will open and close to simulate the movement of a live lotus flower, according to museum officials.

Mayor Ed Lee was on hand for the unveiling of the sculpture today and joked that he had told his friends "to look for my red Lotus parked outside City Hall," a reference to the Lotus brand of high-priced sports cars.

Lee said the sculpture was an example of the beauty of San Francisco and "our inheritance of being a gateway to all of the different viewpoints that happen around the world."

"Breathing Flower" is the latest large art installation placed in the Civic Center Plaza.

A 26-foot Buddha sculpture titled "Three Heads Six Arms" was stationed in the plaza for several months in 2010 and 2011 to celebrate the 30th anniversary of San Francisco's sister-city relationship with Shanghai, China.

_{Wed, 16 May 2012 18:12:59 -0700}

News Source: MedleyStory More Local News Stories