Update: Woman who survived fatal crash identified as Kensington mom
As of 6 p.m. Wednesday, the names of the deceased were still unavailable, the coroner’s office said.
Crime & Safety
Top Stories
Berkeley police investigate 2 unrelated reports of gunfire
Shootings have been on the rise in Berkeley since 2018: There have already been twice as many this year as there were in 2020.
Berkeley leaders demand more data about ‘militaristic’ police equipment
Data about where police use rifles, launchers and other “controlled” equipment will now be public. Officials said it’s a matter of racial justice.
Police: Woman charged with hate crime after making anti-Asian slurs
It’s the second hate crime arrest for Antoinette Archimede, and the first time the DA’s office has filed hate crime charges in Berkeley, this year.
Berkeley police: Helicopter footage shows chase, arrest of armed man
Dramatic aerial footage from the Contra Costa County sheriff’s helicopter shows the pursuit as it happened.
Policing
Police should track mental health, homeless calls better, new audit says
The 80-page analysis — the first known assessment of its kind — was published Thursday by city auditor Jenny Wong.
Nationwide search for new Berkeley police chief expected to take 6 months
The city says the process will focus on finding diverse candidates and that it will involve robust community engagement.
‘Alarming’ crime uptick brings local leaders together for Zoom town hall
“We must employ a variety of tactics to deter, intervene and investigate crimes,” West Berkeley Councilmember Terry Taplin said during Wednesday’s Zoom.
After 35 years at BPD, Berkeley Police Chief Andrew Greenwood steps down
Capt. Jen Louis will serve as interim Berkeley police chief, “effective immediately.” The city will conduct a national search for Greenwood’s replacement.
Berkeley votes to limit low-level traffic stops to reduce policing disparities
Officers will focus on investigative stops and pulling over dangerous drivers rather than “random observations of minor equipment violations,” Police Chief Andrew Greenwood said.
Policing task force applications due soon; racial equity town hall on hold
Applications are due Monday, Feb. 8, for the city’s new policing task force. An online town hall on racial equity that had been planned for this week has been postponed.
Homicide
$30,000 reward still on offer after Berkeley man’s unsolved killing
Patrick Demarco Scott Jr. was waiting for the bus near his Berkeley home when someone shot him repeatedly, killing him. He was on his way to see his grandmother.
After killing of Cal student, Berkeley man confessed, key witness says
An old friend of defendant Tony Walker said he confessed to a killing in June and had the same type of gun used in the crime just two days before the Seth Smith homicide.
4 feet 7 and feisty: Loved ones remember Sereinat’e Henderson
“We don’t lose people like that in our family,” Henderson’s cousin told Berkeleyside. “It was just like somebody had stabbed me in my heart.”
Berkeley hopes new Ceasefire program will curb violence
Citing an “alarming rise in shootings” this year, officials pledged Tuesday night to work to create a new Ceasefire program designed to “address gun violence” in Berkeley.
Shootings
Berkeley police find casings on University after gunfire reports
Police found casings but no victims at University Avenue and West Frontage Road, authorities said.
911 call that preceded police shooting of Vincent Bryant has been released
Bryant survived and has announced plans to sue the city.
Crime log: Guns seized, elders attacked, hate crime arrests, more
Police investigated two shootings, made two hate crime arrests and seized several guns during traffic stops. Strangers attacked two older women.
Teen charged with stalking, gunfire in Berkeley domestic violence case
Police said the 19-year-old harassed his ex-girlfriend with texts that became “threatening and aggressive” and fired a “warning shot” outside her home.
Police: Gang member arrested after he ran after ‘fleeing vehicle’ and shot at it
Police identified Jose Paz-Leja as a convicted felon and “documented West Side Berkeley” gang member who has other gunfire arrests in the neighborhood.
Traffic safety
Driver crashes into Berkeley homeless camp, pins man under car
The driver may have lost control and struck a fence, trapping the man under her white Toyota sedan, first responders said over the radio.
Driver struck Berkeley bike safety advocate hours after she met with the city to discuss bike safety
In another ironic twist, the collision happened on one of the “Healthy Streets” Berkeley has set aside for walkers and bicyclists.
Man sustains head injury in hit-and-run crash in Berkeley
“It was a pretty hectic scene,” police said.
In brief
Berkeley police ticket 32 drivers who failed to stop for pedestrians
Earlier this week, Berkeley police ticketed dozens of drivers who blew through crosswalks where pedestrians were trying to walk, the department reports.
Police: Cyclist who struck woman may not recover; woman is going home
The cyclist who reportedly struck a female pedestrian waiting at a Berkeley stoplight earlier this month, causing serious injuries to himself and the woman, may not ever recover from the crash, authorities said Tuesday.
Police: Cyclist hit pedestrian in crash Northside; both are seriously injured
As of Monday, the cyclist and pedestrian — a 60-year-old Berkeley woman — were still in the ICU, BPD said.
Fatalities
Kiovonni LaRoyce Lyles, 28, identified as man found dead at People’s Park
Lyles was inspired by Bay Area hip-hop music and hoped to be a producer.
In brief
Man in his 60s found dead in downtown Berkeley
The man was found unresponsive and later determined to be dead by the Berkeley Fire Department.
In brief
Man found dead in tent at People’s Park
The man was found dead on Saturday morning and has not yet been identified by the Alameda County coroner’s office.
Fire
Mass tree death in East Bay parks raises alarm ahead of fire season
Drought is the likely culprit in the first die-back pattern researchers have seen in the Bay Area.
House fire displaces 5 at Berkeley-Oakland border
No residents or firefighters were injured but several people were displaced from the home, which is no longer fit to live in.
Berkeley’s fire chief is leaving to take over top fire spot in Piedmont
Dave Brannigan has served as chief for three years.
Crime trends
Cyclists report armed robberies of bikes while riding in the East Bay hills
“Our community needs to be made aware,” said a cyclist who asked to remain anonymous because the investigation is underway.
Police investigate robbery series that started in mid-March
Berkeley Police Chief Jen Louis said detectives have “some very promising investigative leads” and that she’s put extra officers on patrol.
Annual crime report sees shootings rise for the third straight year
The 2020 Berkeley crime report shows that shootings have risen as other crimes have dropped.
Berkeleyside interactive maps: Cyclist and pedestrian injury crashes in 2019
In recent weeks, Berkeleyside has been crunching the numbers for 11 months of injury-crash data from the Berkeley police. We’ve created interactive maps and pulled out highlights. Dive into the data.
Police review boards upheld 2 misconduct reports in 2018; 1 was overturned
Berkeley’s Police Review Commission sustained just two allegations of misconduct in 2018, and one was later overturned on appeal, according to the PRC’s annual report.
Sex crimes
Police: Man arrested after following Berkeley teens; no charges filed
The man also followed women in several other cities, police said. He is no longer in custody and police are seeking additional witnesses.
After DNA link to 1997 rape of teenage boy in Berkeley Hills, man charged
Police say the man enticed the teenager with marijuana and offered him a ride home, then locked the doors, drove him around and ultimately sodomized him.
Man charged with attempted murder, sex crime after freeway stabbing
Authorities said the stabbing was the culmination of a domestic violence attack and sexual assault that began in Berkeley.
Man charged with rape of unconscious woman after night at Berkeley bar
An Oakland man was charged this week with the rape of an unconscious woman after a night out at Kip’s bar in 2019, according to court papers.
Assaults
Berkeley crime log: Gunfire, Monterey Market carjacking attempt, more
Police are investigating an attempted carjacking outside Monterey Market, gunfire on Sacramento Street, and the violent attempted robbery of a dog during a walk on Channing Way.
Wanted man arrested after car chase; other stops net guns and drugs
Police reported several felony arrests this week and Berkeleyside also received multiple inquiries about an arrest Thursday night.
Attempted murder suspect charged with rape at Seabreeze homeless camp
A man police say used a metal bat to try to kill a younger man in September has now been charged with a rape at the Seabreeze homeless camp in August.
Woman, 21, attacked in Southside home during sexual assault attempt
Police are asking the community to help find a man “with a muscular build” who attacked a 21-year-old woman in her Southside home early Sunday morning, threatening her with a gun and trying to sexually assault her.
Disaster preparedness
UC Berkeley removes hundreds of trees to ensure fire evacuation route
After years of opposition and lawsuits, Cal has succeeded in cutting down eucalyptus trees near campus.
Fireworks, ‘dangerous activity’ at Grizzly Peak has to end, residents say
The concerns are at an all-time high during a historically destructive fire season.
Berkeley pares $9.3M from police budget amid clamor for reform
The Berkeley City Council shifted more than $9 million out of the police department budget Tuesday night to help pay for a range of reforms called for by community members and city officials alike in recent weeks.
East Bay first responders put on ‘flash mob’ parade to salute health care workers
A noisy, upbeat convoy of East Bay fire trucks, police cruisers and more, with many vintage rides, took in five local hospitals.
Recent stories
Cyclists worry about being jacked on Grizzly Peak
A series of armed robberies has unnerved bike riders along popular scenic East Bay roads.
