California Attorney General Rob Bonta on Friday led a coalition of 22 states in support of the Biden administration's proposed new policy that would make it easier for LGBTQ people to donate blood and plasma. 

Current blood donation policy recommends prohibiting gay and bisexual men from donating blood within three months of their most recent sexual contact, regardless of whether they engaged in high-risk behavior. 

In January of this year, the US Department of Health and Human Services  ‒HHS‒ and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration ‒FDA‒ presented proposed new guidance that would abandon the current discriminatory approach and instead use a risk-based analysis for all donors, regardless of gender and sexual orientation. 

In a comment letter issued yesterday afternoon, Attorney General Bonta supports the new policy.

"Everyone deserves respect and no one should have to endure discrimination, especially when trying to save the lives of others," Bonta said. 

“Our nation’s antiquated approach to blood donation is a vestige of a shameful and intolerant past. It’s time to discard it and move to a risk-based, science-based screening approach for all blood donors. Not only will it protect LGBTQ people from the stigma of being unfairly singled out, but it will also help countless more patients by giving the nation’s blood supply a huge boost,” she added.

According to the American Red Cross, every two seconds, someone in the U.S. needs blood. 

Blood transfusions and blood products are needed for major surgeries, to treat diseases such as sickle cell anemia and some types of cancer, and to treat victims injured by accidents, violence, or natural disasters. 

In recent years, as the COVID-19 crisis reduced the number of community events and blood drives, blood donations dropped significantly. In January 2022, the Red Cross declared its first national blood crisis, its worst blood shortage in more than a decade.

The danger to patients' lives during this crisis could have been significantly reduced if donation restrictions in the LGBTQ community were lifted. 

Data from the Williams Institute at the University of California, Los Angeles School of Law indicate that removing restrictions entirely, compared with a 12-month waiting period, would result in nearly 300,000 additional pints of donated blood annually, and could help save the lives of more than a million people.

If the Biden administration’s proposed new recommendations become final, the country’s blood banks will be urged to scrap the previous policy and instead ask all donors, regardless of their actual or perceived gender or sexual orientation, whether they have had sex with a new partner, or more than one sexual partner in the past three months. Based on their answers, they would either be allowed to donate blood or asked to wait three months. 

In his letter, Attorney General Bonta called for increasing blood availability nationwide, addressing critical shortage issues and saving more lives; and eliminating discriminatory aspects of current guidance that violate constitutional principles of Equal Protection.

In filing today's comment letter, Attorney General Bonta joined those from Arizona, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, and Wisconsin.

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By Bay City News.

Redwood City Police are investigating a hit and run that occurred Friday night and are asking for the public's help.

Police responded to the scene near Veterans Boulevard and Maple Street around 9:25 p.m., where a bicyclist and a vehicle were involved in a collision.

Police said in a 6:22 a.m. Saturday notice that a vehicle involved in the collision is still being sought. Anyone who witnessed the collision is asked to contact Redwood City police.

You may be interested in: San Mateo County Sheriff's Office Bets on Shooting Preparedness

By Pamela Cruz with information and images from Gerardo Ortiz. P360P.

The phone rings, a 9-1-1 emergency service operator receives a call. They are informed that there is an active shooting in a public space and that the suspect is at the scene. The authorities must mobilize and act with caution, since it is not yet known how many people could be in danger, the heart is racing and it is time to keep a cool head, another day of work.

This is a situation that thousands of operators and police officers face almost every day in the US, and because of it, the San Mateo County Sheriff's Office has undergone special training, which will be annual starting this year, to prepare for active shootings and risky situations where lives are at stake.

Thus, on March 28 and 29, Sheriff's Office agents met at the Half Moon Bay IDES Society facilities, located at 735 Main St., in Half Moon Bay, a small coastal town that just last January 23 suffered a strong blow to its community, when a man shot at a couple of agricultural farms, leaving 7 dead, to prepare themselves more and better for acts like that.

Stories like that, and those that happen constantly around the country, led San Mateo County to better prepare.

“The training, which will now be an annual one for us, is due to the events that have occurred across the country and in our county. This is our new normal, unfortunately. And in order for us to protect our communities, we know that this training is paramount,” said San Mateo County Sheriff Christina Corpus.

In an interview with Peninsula 360 Press, the sheriff explained that her team has often worked with the standards of what others do and that, due to a changing and complex world, they need to respond in the best ways to save lives.

“For me, as a sheriff, I understand that our world is changing. It’s becoming more complex. The types of crimes that are occurring are more complex and in order for us to truly respond in a way where we’re saving lives or protecting our community, we have to hold ourselves to a higher standard and so we’re evaluating all of our training at this point,” he stressed.

In this regard, the leader of this authority stated that they have made an evaluation of what is known, what has been learned and areas in which improvement can be achieved.

"This is really an opportunity for us to see where we can improve and then provide that training to them. That way we're not waiting until something happens."

Corpus acknowledged that the failure to respond adequately to the recent shooting in Half Moon Bay was “a big shock to everyone, I’m sure. The sheriff’s office may have learned something from that experience that they’re bringing to this new training.”

“We see it every day on the news, all these shootings that are happening and the innocent lives that are being lost, it doesn’t make sense. So, we need to have more complexity in our training so that we can respond better.”

But this type of training was not only useful for the Sheriff's Office, as other authorities that should be involved were invited to participate, such as the Calfire CZU Fire Department, which serves the area; and school personnel belonging to the school districts of San Mateo County.

“…we have Calfire involved, we have school administrators involved because they are our partners and together we can respond better. We know what each of us has been trained to do, we have the same training, so it was really important for me to invite and include our stakeholders and really be able to get the word out,” Christina Corpus explained.

“…schools are part of our community and we want our school officials to be aware of the training that we’re providing, and also to be able to learn from it. There are certain aspects of the training that is one way that our police will respond. But if it were to happen outside of school, then our school officials will know what to expect from us and really understand the importance of collaborating, but also keeping those lines of communication open.”

unite to win

The recent incident at a private school in Nashville, Tennessee, where 6 people were killed in a shooting, three of them just 9 years old, shook the country again, especially the residents of San Mateo County, because with what happened in Half Moon Bay, the alarms went off again.

That is why the Sheriff has sought to have her entire team join the community, especially with students and teachers, providing them with tools and programs that help them not feel alone and that they can count on these authorities to solve certain problems.

"We have officers who work inside the schools. But we are working to have a stronger relationship with the students and with the teachers, because it is important that if we can help a young person or give them resources and programs, that is how we have a stronger relationship with them," Corpus said.

Although California has one of the toughest laws in the country regarding the use and possession of firearms, the county has focused on controlling the trafficking of weapons from other states, which is why it has teams that are on the lookout for unregistered weapons.

However, Corpus has stressed that the problem goes further. "We need to look at the country level, because one of the main causes of death of children and young people is due to a firearm." 

In addition to this, they have provided mental and psychological support by working with other agencies to deal with cases where someone is in crisis. 

To this end, Corpus said, work is already underway to create teams of clinical professionals who can help assess people who are in crisis, but with a view to having them work hand in hand with officers in a co-response model, and not always responding in a lethal manner, where it is not required, "so that it does not escalate further and talking to people, but not just grabbing the firearm."

It should be noted that the scenarios are always different, so the officers have prepared themselves with programs based on cases that have occurred in the country, since not all attackers use firearms, some have knives, razors, machetes, and the fact is that, "when you go to a place, you don't know what weapon the person is going to have."

For Orlando Baltazar Gutierrez, an officer with the San Mateo County Sheriff's Office, these training sessions are important for schools, as they open channels of communication to know what to do if they have to deal with shootings at these schools.

By speaking Spanish, the officer has been able to reach out to Latino residents in the area, who have expressed their concerns, but are aware that working as a team is the best resource.

You may be interested in: Redwood City seeks tighter control of retail gun and ammunition sales

The Redwood City Police Department ha emitido una ficha de persona desaparecida a nombre de Erick Morales, de 41 años, quien fue visto por última vez el sábado 25 de marzo.

Authorities have stated that Erick is a Hispanic male adult, approximately 6 feet tall and 240 pounds, with brown hair and brown eyes. 

Police said Morales suffers from schizophrenia and has not taken his medication. 

Erick Morales también es conocido por frecuentar las ciudades de los alrededores, incluida San Francisco. 

El Departamento de Policía ha solicitado a los residentes que, si ven a Erick, se comuniquen a la estación al número 650-780-7118.

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In response to community concerns, the Redwood City Council is considering new regulations to further control retail sales of guns and ammunition within City limits and has asked residents to take a survey and attend public meetings to discuss the issue.

This proposal will affect all retail stores that sell these products, including all sporting goods stores and gun stores. On October 24, 2022, the City Council enacted a temporary moratorium on the establishment of new retail sales of guns and ammunition. The temporary moratorium is in effect until regulations are established, or until October 23 of this year. 

All residents who would like to provide their comments through a poll, which is available in English and Spanish. 

Or go directly to the next public meeting, which will be held entirely in Spanish on April 5th at 6:00 p.m. at the Community Activities Building, located at 1400 Roosevelt Ave.

Additionally, residents can also email firearm_sales@redwoodcity.org

Verbal comments will be accepted at the Planning Commission meeting tentatively scheduled for May 2. 

What is under consideration?

The City Council will consider regulating the retail sale of guns and ammunition, while key goals of the developing city ordinance include limiting unsupervised children's exposure to firearms; and protecting places such as schools, daycare centers, places of worship, libraries and parks from proximity to gun and/or ammunition sales.

Additionally, ensuring that law enforcement can confirm that firearms and ammunition are securely stored and accounted for at retail establishments; and requiring local municipal permits to open retail gun and ammunition stores.

The city government said it is not seeking to ban all firearm or ammunition sales in Redwood City, nor to regulate the right to own, acquire or carry a firearm or ammunition.

Key dates

The proposal will be refined on April 5, while the Planning Commission will hold a public hearing on May 2 and recommend the adoption of a resolution ‒with a 10-day hearing notice‒.

A City Council public hearing and first reading/introduction of the Ordinance is expected to take place on May 22; the second reading/adoption of the proposed ordinance by the City Council will take place on June 12; and a decision on whether to adopt the proposed Ordinance will be made on July 12.

It should be recalled that on October 24, 2022, the City Council voted to adopt Ordinance No. 2515 as an urgent precautionary measure, imposing a 45-day moratorium on the establishment of new retail uses dedicated to the sale of firearms or ammunition. 

The City Council adopted the temporary Moratorium after residents, through detailed correspondence and public testimony, expressed concern that a new retail establishment dedicated to the sale of firearms and ammunition could open a location in the City, without the City having the opportunity to consider planning and zoning issues regarding the location, for example, retailers in proximity to sensitive uses such as schools, parks, and residences, or regarding conditional use provisions.

Currently, Redwood City does not have specific regulations for firearms retailers, so it is treated like any other commercial retail business.

The 45-Day Moratorium was adopted to “pause,” in the short term, the establishment of new firearms and ammunition retailers to allow the City time to study and analyze the planning and zoning regulations governing the establishment of new retailers engaged in the sale of firearms and ammunition, including with respect to the appropriate processes, locations, and conditions for the approval and establishment of such retailers.

However, on November 28, 2022, the City Council adopted a new ordinance extending No. 2515 to allow the City time to study and consider enacting zoning measures for future retail uses of firearms or ammunition. 

The temporary moratorium extension is through October 23, 2023, although staff anticipates that the City Council will consider policy recommendations in May 2023, and the temporary moratorium will end once local regulations are adopted.  

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