NorCal-based journalist holding court @VAPwriter
The Ascension Of Charles Ogletree: How a Black child raised in poverty became a star legal scholar and mentor
“He wanted to be more than just a little Black boy from south Merced that picked tomatoes and picked cotton," said one of his relatives.
Escape from terror: Sudan through the eyes of refugees
About 3,000 Southern Sudanese refugees currently reside in San Diego County, according to the Alliance for African Assistance (AFAA), a local refugee resettlement program. Several of them spoke with CityBeat about their lives in Sudan and why they were forced to leave.
‘It’s hard to see something like this.’ California's ag workers sink under flood impacts
Many Merced County residents impacted by recent floods work in the agriculture industry, the backbone of the Valley’s economy. They are among the county’s low-income residents. And while times were tough even before the floods, they are bound to get harder.
Death Row Inmate Who Murdered California Police Officer Back in Court, Says His ‘Rights Violated’
The inmate sitting on California’s death row for the 2004 murder of Merced Police Officer Stephan Gray was back in a Colusa County courtroom, alleging his trial more than 15 years ago was unfair.
Under Pressure: Depression and Black Men
Once thought by many in the Black community as a phenomenon that impacted only white people, during the past 30 years the suicide rate between African Americans and whites has narrowed.
Highway 99 construction frustrates Merced County drivers. When will it be done?
MERCED, Calif.— Anyone who uses Highway 99 to travel through Merced County undoubtedly has asked themself the same question: When will all of this construction be over?
What’s going on with the Merced Mall? New $4.5 million project could bring new businesses
Ambitious plans to renovate the landmark property appeared in question in the aftermath of the COVID pandemic, which disrupted retail operations everywhere. But, finally, it looks like that’s about to change.
This radio station is about more than music
At KDEE-FM 97.5, The Staples Singers live in audio immortality, along with Bobby Womack, The Stylistics, Fatback, Roy Ayers and countless other throwback funk, rhythm and blues and soul artists.
“That’s where I feel our programming is superior to others. Giving people what they can’t get anywhere else,” said Marvell Reed, KDEE’s station manager. “And doing it in a way that nobody else does it.”
Prominent academic Cornel West backs proposed California ban on caste-based discrimination
Prominent civil rights philosopher, academic and Sacramento native Dr. Cornel West is lending his support to a proposal that would make discrimination on the basis of caste illegal in California.
California courthouse named after Harvard law professor, mentor to Barack and Michelle Obama
Ask Richard Ogletree how to describe his older brother Charles James Ogletree Jr. and he’ll cut straight to the chase with a single word.
Hero.
Bodies of kidnapped California family found. ‘Our worst fears have been confirmed’
“There’s no words right now to describe the anger I feel and the senselessness of this incident," said Merced County Sheriff Vern Warnke.
Who is Jesus Manuel Salgado? What we know about suspect in California family’s killing
Court documents show the man suspected of abducting and killing a family has previously served time in prison for another crime that was eerily similar.
An Economy Failing Its Youth: Why Sacramento is one of the worst big cities for young people to find work
Although the area’s unemployment has decreased since the recession, recent data from the Greater Sacramento Economic Council suggests the region’s unemployment levels for 16- to 24-year-olds are among the nation’s worst.
After Aerojet: What happens after Sacramento's rocket maker moves 1,100 jobs from the region?
Aerojet Rocketdyne Holdings Inc.’s plan to remove 1,100 jobs from the Sacramento region by the end of 2019 is in motion — but a lot may happen between now and then that could determine how much damage to the local economy is left behind.
The Broken Promise: Some doctors are fighting to be compensated for their efforts to meet a key goal of the ACA
Reimbursements under Section 1202 have been caught up in insurance industry bureaucracy and a lack of support in Congress. The result has been millions of dollars in losses for some doctors who have taken on more low-income patients, and ongoing legal disputes.