{"id":378190,"date":"2025-11-14T11:24:16","date_gmt":"2025-11-14T11:24:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/378190\/"},"modified":"2025-11-14T11:24:16","modified_gmt":"2025-11-14T11:24:16","slug":"morning-report-city-hall-shake-up-underway","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/378190\/","title":{"rendered":"Morning Report: City Hall Shake-Up Underway"},"content":{"rendered":"

Mayor Todd Gloria\u2019s team says a reorganization is underway at City Hall months after he fired the city\u2019s top bureaucrat.<\/p>\n

The news follows Voice of San Diego\u2019s scoop that two of the city\u2019s deputy chief operating officers are leaving their posts.<\/p>\n

Now, Mariana Mart\u00ednez Barba reports that Gloria\u2019s office is rejiggering the city\u2019s executive team to eliminate deputy chief operating officer positions and will roll out a new organization chart early next month.<\/p>\n

Gloria Chief of Staff Paola Avila would not confirm Thursday whether the two deputy chief operating officers \u2013 Alia Khouri, who oversaw operations, and Kristina Peralta, who oversaw neighborhood services \u2013 resigned or were fired. But Avila did confirm that two city officials will take Khouri and Peralta\u2019s posts as they transition and that the changes are part of a \u201cthoughtful, organization-wide realignment.\u201d<\/p>\n

Worth noting: <\/strong>The City Council this summer approved a budget that called for the elimination of two deputy chief operating officers, spurring a fight with Gloria. The mayor later said he wouldn\u2019t lay off staff<\/a>. Now, years into the city\u2019s strong mayor experiment, two deputy chief operating officers are out.<\/p>\n

Read the full story here.<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

Councilmember\u2019s Felony Assault Charge Reduced; One Misdemeanor Dismissed<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"Encinitas Councilmember Luke Shaffer (left) stands next to his attorney Isaac Blumberg at Superior Court North County Division in Vista on Sept. 9, 2025. \/ Ariana Drehsler for Voice of San Diego<\/p>\n

Encinitas Councilmember Luke Shaffer is now facing two misdemeanors instead of a felony and two misdemeanors, after a judge reduced a felony assault charge and tossed out another misdemeanor.<\/p>\n

In August, the District Attorney\u2019s office charged<\/a> Shaffer with felony assault and two misdemeanor counts: hit-and-run driving and willful omission to perform duty, a charge that applies when a public official knowingly fails to perform a legally required duty.<\/p>\n

The charges stem from a July confrontation about trash bins between Shaffer and resident Declan Caulfield. Read more here. <\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

At Thursday\u2019s preliminary hearing, Caulfield, North Coastal Sheriff\u2019s Detective Chad Latonio, Encinitas City Manager Jennifer Campbell and District Attorney\u2019s Office supervising investigator Juan Cisneros all took the stand. Deputy District Attorney Chandelle Boyce and Shaffer\u2019s attorney, Isaac Blumberg, questioned the witnesses before making their arguments to Judge Saba Sheibani.<\/p>\n

Sheibani ruled that the evidence did not meet the threshold for a felony assault charge and reduced it to a misdemeanor. She also dismissed the misdemeanor count of willful omission to perform duty, finding that it, too, failed to meet the probable cause standard.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are thankful that the court \u2026 agreed that these charges are misdemeanor conduct,\u201d Blumberg said after the hearing. \u201cThis will be taken out of the felony track and will be sent to the misdemeanor courtroom.\u201d<\/p>\n

If you need a refresher on the full background of the case, our Tigist Layne wrote about it here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

South County Report: Leaders Aim to Transform a Service Desert<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"A tent and other items next to Marina View Park in Chula Vista on Sept. 12, 2024. \/ Ariana Drehsler for Voice of San Diego<\/p>\n

South Bay communities have some of the county\u2019s highest employment needs so it was a big deal last week when the San Diego Workforce Partnership opened a new career center in Chula Vista.<\/p>\n

In his latest South County Report, Jim Hinch writes about what local leaders are doing to try to help a region that\u2019s long had a dearth of options to meet its social service needs.<\/p>\n

Among the recent openings: <\/strong>nonprofit SBCS\u2019s center in Chula Vista to serving people facing homelessness, domestic violence and health care needs and the county\u2019s new family justice center in National City.<\/p>\n

Read the full newsletter here.<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

San Diegans Testify on CARE Court<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"Anita Fisher at home on Jan. 24, 2025, in Spring Valley. \/ Ariana Drehsler for Voice of San Diego<\/p>\n

A San Diego County Public Defender\u2019s Office supervisor, the city of San Diego\u2019s behavioral health officer and a Spring Valley mother who once rallied behind CARE Court testified at a hearing Thursday to give state lawmakers feedback on the new court system.<\/p>\n

San Diego County was one of the first in the state to implement the program, which families of people with serious untreated psychotic conditions had hoped could force their loved ones into treatment<\/a>. State officials and counties across the state \u2013 including San Diego \u2013 have emphasized that the program is voluntary, though advocates have argued that the court system is coercive.<\/p>\n

A mother\u2019s take: <\/strong>Anita Fisher, whose experience with CARE Court Voice wrote about earlier this year<\/a>, told state Senators Caroline Menjivar and Tom Umberg that her son Pharoh has been repeatedly arrested and evicted while enrolled in San Diego County\u2019s CARE program. She argued that more teeth should be added to mandate evaluations if a participant is in crisis and that more supportive housing options are needed.<\/p>\n

The psychiatrist: <\/strong>Aaron Meyer, the city of San Diego\u2019s behavioral health officer, wants the state to more closely track people who are dismissed from CARE Court to ensure those who need treatment get it and argued that counties should pursue more mental health evaluations<\/a> via court orders under existing law. San Diego County, for its part, argues that legal process isn\u2019t necessary.<\/p>\n

A public defender: <\/strong>Desirae Sanders, who supervises the county Public Defender Office\u2019s mental health unit and CARE Court work, emphasized the successes the county has seen with 158 agreements and 24 graduations since it rolled out in October 2023. She agreed that more supportive housing options are needed but said CARE Court is empowering San Diegans enrolled in it by allowing them to drive the treatment process.<\/p>\n

The county\u2019s take: <\/strong>In response to questions from Voice, county spokesperson Tim McClain struck a similar tone, noting that the county has been at the forefront of implementing CARE Court and the people who choose to voluntarily participate \u201care seeing tremendous, life-changing successes that cannot be measured through statistics alone.\u201d<\/p>\n

What\u2019s next: <\/strong>Umberg and Menjivar are considering legislative tweaks to CARE Court. Menjivar said Thursday she\u2019ll mull options post-2026 after another year of CARE is under the state\u2019s belt while Umberg, who leaves office next December, will need to pitch changes before then.<\/p>\n

In Other News\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n