National Roundup

California
Overdose deaths far outpace COVID-19 deaths in San Francisco
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — A record 621 people died of drug overdoses in San Francisco so far this year, a staggering number that far outpaces the 173 deaths from COVID-19 the city has seen thus far.

The crisis fueled by the powerful painkiller fentanyl could have been far worse if it wasn’t for the nearly 3,000 times Narcan was used from January to the beginning of November to save someone from the brink of death, the San Francisco Chronicle reported Saturday.

The data reflects the number of times people report using Narcan to the Drug Overdose Prevention and Education Project, a city-funded program that coordinates San Francisco’s response to overdose, or return to refill their supply. Officials at the DOPE Project said that since the numbers are self-reported, they are probably a major undercount.

Last year, 441 people died of drug overdoses — a 70% increase from 2018 — and 2,610 potential overdoses were prevented by Narcan, a medication commonly sprayed up the nose to reverse an opioid overdose, according to data from the city Medical Examiner’s office and the DOPE Project.

The crisis is deepening because fentanyl, which can be 50 to 100 times more potent than morphine, flooded the city’s drug supply, the newspaper said. Moreover, the coronavirus pandemic has disrupted city services like housing and treatment, and left many people who rely on others to help save them if they overdose to use alone.

While nearly 40% of the deaths occurred in the Tenderloin and South of Market neighborhoods near downtown, city data showed the epidemic has touched every part of the city. Many people overdosed in low-income apartment buildings and in city-funded hotel rooms for the homeless. Others died on sidewalks, in alleyways and parks around the city.

Georgia
Judge ends suit saying city writes too many tickets
DORAVILLE, Ga. (AP) — A federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit claiming that an Atlanta suburb improperly relied on fines and fees to finance its budget.

U.S. District Judge Richard Story last week dismissed a case brought against the city of Doraville by four people represented by the Institute for Justice, a libertarian group.

The 2018 lawsuit alleged that the DeKalb County town excessively relies on fines and fees, which make up roughly 15% of its overall revenue. Most cities that size get a far smaller share of revenue from fines and fees. Reliance on fines became a national issue after the U.S. Justice Department sued the city of Ferguson, Missouri, over its heavy reliance on fines following the police shooting of Michael Brown in 2014.

The plaintiffs argued enforcement was driven by the need to generate revenue, not by regular law enforcement purposes. Doraville, though, argued that heavy traffic and the need to keep up property values were motivating enforcement.

Story found that the city’s municipal judge didn’t have a direct financial interest in how much the city collects in fines, and that the plaintiffs hadn’t proven that police and code enforcement officers were writing tickets for the sake of driving up revenue.

“Absent other evidence that the city’s need for revenue somehow infects its officers’ policing, the court is unwilling to conclude that the city’s budgetary practice renders the entirety of its law enforcement operation unconstitutional,” Story wrote.

The Institute for Justice said in  a news release that it disagrees that revenue needs weren’t driving ticketing and plans to appeal the decision.

“I’m disappointed in today’s ruling but looking forward to continuing the fight on appeal,” plaintiff Hlda Bruckner said in the release. “It was a hopeful sign that the judge called out, in his written decision, how an overreliance on fines and fees distorts the justice system and creates faulty incentives.”

Bruckner was cited in October 2016 for rotted wood and chipped paint on her house, weeds and overgrown vegetation in her yard and a crumbling driveway. She pleaded no contest to one charge and received a $100 fine and six months of probation, while other counts were dropped.

Doraville provided a statement to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution refuting the plaintiffs’ claims and hoping the judge’s ruling ends the legal battle.

“Our fines and fees are all carefully balanced to discourage property owners from allowing their properties to fall into disrepair without placing a strenuous financial burden on them,” the statement said.
“This ruling ensures that we can continue to take appropriate measures to keep Doraville beautiful.”

Washington
91-year-old priest exonerated after abuse allegations
YAKIMA, Wash. (AP) — One of four priests accused of sexual abuse by an Ellensburg man has been exonerated, with the man’s attorneys expressing regret over the false accusation and the priest being restored to ministry.

The Rev. Seamus Kerr, 91, was named in a lawsuit filed in Kittitas County last year by a man identified only as John Doe, the Yakima Herald-Republic reported. The man said he was abused as a boy in the late 1970s and early 1980s at St. Andrew Catholic Church in Ellensburg.

But during the course of the litigation, it was revealed that Kerr, who has been a priest for 60 years, was wrongly accused. The lawsuit was settled on Dec. 10, with the Catholic Diocese of Yakima agreeing to pay $15,000 in past and future counseling costs for the man in exchange for the lawsuit’s dismissal.

According to a news release from the diocese, the man’s attorneys wrote Kerr a letter stating: “On behalf of our client ... we acknowledge that the allegations of sexual abuse and improper conduct made against you, including statements in court pleadings and the press, have proven to be false.”

“We hereby withdraw the allegations and express our regret for any harm they may have caused to you and your reputation,” the letter said.

Daniel Fasy, a Seattle attorney who represented the man, confirmed the contents of the letter in a phone call with The Associated Press on Saturday. Fasy declined to comment further on the case.

Monsignor Robert Siler, a spokesman for the diocese, said church officials had doubts about the other allegations in the lawsuit as well.

“No other victims came forward despite widespread advertising and news coverage,” he said.

Yakima Bishop Joseph Tyson has reinstated Kerr, who took a leave of absence following the allegations. Kerr remains active as a senior priest at Holy Apostles Parish in East Wenatchee.

“I regret any abuse this man has suffered, and I am hopeful the help we are offering will be of benefit to him,” Tyson said in the release. “And I am very pleased that Father Kerr has been fully exonerated. He has served the Church faithfully and well since his ordination in 1960.”