INSIDE THE LENS’s blog

DEBRA EDGERLY

OAKLAND — Mayor Ron Dellums joined City Administrator Deborah Edgerly in announcing today that Edgerly will stay at her post until July 31, even as Edgerly comes under fire for interfering with a police investigation.

Speculation arose last week about Edgerly's future after allegations surfaced that she interfered with a police investigation of Oakland's Acorn drug gang on behalf of her nephew William Lovan, 27, a city employee and suspected member of the gang.

Dellums' office had mostly stayed quiet about the allegations until Tuesday, saying little other than that the mayor was aware of them and was taking them "very seriously."

The mayor said Edgerly's July 31 retirement date was something they had agreed to in January. Both Dellums and Edgerly refused to answer any questions at today's brief press conference.

Edgerly did not comment last week about the allegations against her, with the exception of a statement she released Friday calling rumors and press reports about the matter "shocking" and "unfounded."

DEBRA EDGERLY

OAKLAND, Calif. -- A top level official in Oakland city government is under investigation for possibly interfering with Tuesday’s high-profile "Operation Nutcracker" raids aimed at dismantling the city’s violent Acorn street gangDeborah Edgerly is Oakland's city administrator. Sources said she could be out of a job depending on the results of the city's investigation.On Wednesday, KTVU Channel 2 obtained police documents which show that officers were investigating a William Lovan as part of operation nutcracker. Lovan is Edgerly’s nephew.According to a police report dated June 7, officers assigned to Operation Nutcracker were outside an Oakland liquor store on the 1200 block of Market Street.The officers noticed a gun inside a car driven by 27-year-old Lovan. The report says Edgerly arrived on scene soon thereafter and told officers Lovan was her nephew and that she wanted to know why his car was being towed.Police informed Edgerly that they were not allowed to explain and, according to the report, she told the officers she was going to contact internal affairs regarding the matter.Lovan was not taken into custody outside the liquor store on June 7, but he was reportedly one of the 34 suspected gang members arrested in raids held Tuesday.Police say they continue to search for other gang members as part of Operation Nutcracker. Whether or not Edgerly compromised the ongoing investigation in any manner is under review.Oakland Police Chief Wayne Tucker met behind closed doors at City Hall with Mayor Ron Dellums and attorneys Wednesday to discuss City Administrator Edgerly."This information was developed as a result of the investigation that has been ongoing," explained Police Chief Tucker.Tuesday, Oakland police arrested dozens of suspected Acorn gang members in Operation Nutcracker. KTVU asked the police chief whether Edgerly might have compromised the investigation."In this case the material that you've come in contact with is one of those issues. We've discussed it with the mayor, we've discussed it with counsel and again on advice of counsel the best thing for us to do is try to get through this and continue the investigation," said Police Tucker.Mayor Dellums met with Edgerly Wednesday morning, but she was not in her office all afternoon."We're aware of the allegations. We take them very seriously. They're very serious allegations, and as we speak, we're looking into them," said Mayor Dellums. When asked if Edgerly still had her job, the mayor replied "That is to be determined."SOURCE:KTUV CHANNEL 2 NEWS

Gaydoublestandard

Everyone remembers “Monster’s Ball” as the movie that won Halle Berry her weepy Oscar and got her mauled by Adrian Brody during her acceptance speech.  Because of the enormous success it brought Berry, Billy Bob Thornton’s work in it is often overlooked. And it’s a shame, really, because it must have been hard for him to, …you know…have to act like he was in love with a black woman.  And those sex scenes! There really should be a special award for actors like him who have to suffer for their art like that.Now, before you start writing letters to the editor, let me assure you I do not feel this way. Perhaps some people do, and more likely, more people did 40 years ago, but it’s an anachronistic and repulsive perspective that rarely sees the light of day, thankfully.Yet here we are, in 2008, and we hear this very same argument each time a straight actor dares to play gay. They are held up as heroes, pioneers, and not just by the scions of mainstream culture (Oprah, the New York Times, etc), they are even awarded by our very own watchdogs.  Can you imagine if the NAACP had given Katharine Houghton an award for being so brave as to portray a woman in love with a black man in "Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner?" Or Jane Alexander for playing James Earl Jones’ wife in The Great White Hope?  Nevermind that Poitier and Jones had to act as though they loved white woman – I mean how hard could that be - everyone loves a white woman, right?And so it goes with gay roles: Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal; Charlize Theron; Tom Hanks…all of them, in the hunt for credibility, took on gay roles. And those that didn’t win Oscars for their roles were at least nominated, reflecting the dominating perspective in Hollywood that there is no better way to proclaim your dedication to your craft than to kiss someone/play gay. No wonder Brad Pitt wants to join the club. SOURCE: GAY.COM

Samesex marriage

Marital bliss, same-sex style, has broken out at county clerk offices all over the Bay Area, with eager gay and lesbian couples exchanging vows the moment the offices opened this morning.

From Sonoma and San Mateo to San Francisco and Contra Costa, ebullient celebration filled the air as couples young and old - some of whom have been together for decades - fulfilled a nuptial dream many had thought could never be fulfilled. A smattering of protesters here and there tried to dampen the festivities, but they were generally either ignored or shouted down by counterprotesters.

"This is legal and we're equal but the most important thing is that I get to spend the rest of my life with the man I love," said Jeffrey Halpern, 43, who with Hank Donat, 41, was the first to tie the knot in San Francisco.

Donat and Halpern rushed into City Hall the minute the clerk's office opened, giddily running though the ropes set up to control the waiting crowd of about 400 couples, friends, relatives and protesters. Wearing suits and red-rose boutonnieres, they were also the first to pick up a marriage license.

Board of Supervisors President Aaron Peskin married the San Francisco pair in the supervisors' ornate chambers, where they exchanged gold rings and gave each other a big kiss at the end of the ceremony.

(06-18) 17:36 PDT SAN FRANCISCO -- After an unusually strong April, the number of Bay Area homes sold fell to a 20-year low for May, undercutting hopes that the earlier surge signaled a nascent turnaround for the battered real estate market. The few examples where transactions did tick up were concentrated in outlying cities that have suffered the greatest numbers of foreclosures, as bargain shoppers took advantage of the resulting price breaks.

A total of 6,216 new and resale houses and condos traded hands across the nine-county region last month, down 1.5 percent from the previous month and 23.1 percent from a year ago, according to DataQuick Information Systems. It was the eighth time in the last nine months that sales reached a two decade low for the period. The median price paid was $517,000, down 21.7 percent from 12 months earlier.

"The broader market couldn't build on the momentum we thought we saw in April," DataQuick analyst Andrew LePage said. "We're in for a long, bumpy road to recovery from this downturn."

April sales had risen nearly 30 percent from the prior month, the largest increase for that time period since at least 1988, when the La Jolla (San Diego County) research firm began tracking the market. LePage attributes part of that month's jump to more complicated financings and closings delaying sales that would have normally closed during March, always one of the strongest sales periods of the year.

lakers game 2

There would be no blown lead in Game 2 of the Western Conference finals. Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers saw to that. Bryant scored 22 points, Lamar Odom added 20 points and 12 rebounds, and the Lakers took command late in the second quarter to rout San Antonio 101-71 Friday night for a 2-0 lead over the Spurs.

Games 3 and 4 in the best-of-seven series will be played in San Antonio, where the defending NBA champion Spurs have a 6-0 record in the postseason and have won 20 of their last 22 games.

Only 14 of the 222 teams to fall behind 2-0 in best-of-seven NBA playoff series have come back to win, including the Spurs in their second-round matchup with the New Orleans Hornets. But this figures to be a much tougher assignment — San Antonio has to be perfect at home and win a game at Staples Center, where the Lakers are 7-0 in the postseason and have won 13 straight.

"The old adage is you just won the games on your home court, which is the important part, and extended the series to six games," Lakers coach Phil Jackson said. "We know that. Now, nothing happens until we win on their court. And someone wins on the other team's court."

The Lakers had to rally from a 20-point third-quarter deficit to win the opener 89-85, and didn't take their first lead in that game until the final 3 minutes.

They never trailed in Game 2 — the third time in their last four playoff games that happened. After a basket by Tim Duncan enabled the Spurs to forge the only tie, the Lakers scored the final nine points of the second quarter for a 46-37 halftime lead.

San Antonio would get no closer.