So This Happened…Week of April 22 through 28, 2024
CONTRA COSTA COUNTY, CA (Apr. 28, 2024) — In a move harkening back to when indigenous people roamed Mount Diablo, state park officials are planning controlled burns to reduce the risk of wildfires. Prior to European colonization, Native Americans managed the land for thousands of years, extensively with fire – burning at least 4 million acres every year.
Counting up the crimes: Police Chief Mark Bustillos reported an increase in crimes in Concord in 2023 – but attributed part of that to a change in reporting with the new National Information Based Reporting System (NIBRS).
“Gross numbers do look larger, but we’re counting the number of incidences per event,” he told the City Council. “If I rob you with a firearm, and then I punch you and then I drag you 20 feet, the way NIBRS counts that is a kidnapping, a robbery and an assault – there’s three felonies. Previously, that would be one crime.”
For more from Concord PD, check the latest arrest report.
Altruism runs in the family: Caitlin Sly has returned to the Food Bank of Contra Costa and Solano as the new president/CEO – a job her father Larry held for many years. “I’m incredibly proud of the work Caitlin has done in the non-profit world and am anxious to see all she can accomplish at the Food Bank,” he said.
More stories
Here are some other stories the Pioneer covered recently:
In sports: College Park taps NCS winning coach Jack Schram to lead football; Olympian Shannon Rowbury mentored prep runners at Concord High; Pioneer Athlete Spotlight on Jerry Coakley of Clayton Valley; plus Sports Shorts.
Contra Costa County confirms first West Nile Virus positive dead bird of 2024.
In the community: Perform with the a cappella Diablo Vista Chorus; get your garden on at these beautiful Clayton homes; plus urgent call for Red Cross volunteers.
Clayton mail carrier goes the extra mile in daring rescue.
Concord council reviews goals, from homelessness to climate change.
Letter to the Editor: Turn down the music in your car.
Preserving your mental health in today’s workplace.
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Read more Pioneer stories by Bev Britton.
Bev Britton
Bev Britton graduated with a degree in journalism from the University of North Dakota and moved to the Bay Area with her soon-to-be husband Jim in 1986. She was features editor at the Contra Costa Times in Walnut Creek before becoming managing editor of the Contra Costa Sun in Lafayette in 1995. She retired from newsrooms in 2001, but an ad for the Clayton Pioneer drew her back in. The family moved to Lake Wildwood in the Gold Country a few years ago - but working at the Pioneer keeps her in touch with her old neighborhoods in Concord and Clayton.