Cup of Chisme: Prop. 36 Ain’t Cheap
EM - News Moderator 
Since Californians decided it was time to get tough on crime, San Diego has started putting more people in jail, and it’s costing the region a lot of money.
Our Lisa Halverstadt checked in on how things are going since voters approved changes to punishments for theft and drug crimes.
She found that post-Proposition 36, county jail populations have seen a spike. As of last week, at least 12 percent of the people in jail were there for Proposition 36 charges.
She also found that county estimates on how much this would cost have so far borne out. But that’s not all. The Sheriff’s Office had to pull money earmarked for jail facility improvements and one helicopter to pay for costs associated with Proposition 36. She explains in a new story how all the new costs are affecting different departments in San Diego’s criminal justice system. Read the story here.
Grab some cafecito. Here’s everything you need to know to start your week.
Told You So Or Freaky Prediction?
Last year, SanDiegoVille caught a lot of flack (rightly so) for claiming that the popular restaurant Las Cuatro Milpas in Barrio Logan was closing in 2025 and that a nearby church was interested in purchasing the building.
Fox 5 went out to the restaurant to clarify that it was not closing. But the Union-Tribune later revealed that while the restaurant was not closing, the owners were behind on paying property tax bills and sales taxes to the state.
Still, SanDiegoVille’s story struck a chord with people not only because it was false, but also because of sex abuse scandals tied to leaders of the church. The 2022 HBO series “Unveiled: Surviving La Luz Del Mundo” shares the accounts of survivors. One clip even shows the Barrio Logan location.
Fast forward to today. The restaurant is closing and it was purchased by Iglesia del Dios Vivo Columna Inc. for $2.21 million. The U-T reported that the new owners are the owners of the Light of the World Church (La Luz Del Mundo) next to the restaurant.
Needless to say, some people are not excited about the sale.
“So it sold to the culty church after all,” one user on reddit wrote.
Investigation: Failure to Report
South County reporter Jim Hinch revealed in a new story that after an investigation found a teacher had engaged in misconduct, Chula Vista Elementary School District officials allowed him to quietly resign and failed to inform state regulators until we asked about it
The district’s investigation found that the teacher had “inappropriately touch[ed]” female students and engaged in what the investigator called “an indicator of grooming type behavior,” according to a copy of the investigator’s report, Hinch writes.
District officials agreed to continue paying the teacher his salary for up to two and a half months. And while required by state law to notify regulators of the allegations, the district didn’t do that until eight months later.
Go Sports!
Join us on Wednesday, Nov. 19, at Soda Bar for a live recording of the VOSD Podcast. We will be joined by John David Wicker, athletics director at San Diego State University. He’s going to dish on all things related to college sports, gambling and stadium ticket tea.
Do you have any questions for Wicker? Send them to me at andrea.sanchez@voiceofsandiego.org.
Get your tickets here. I can’t wait to see you.
More Chisme to Start Your Week
- Mayor Todd Gloria is reorganizing his team. We heard he had fired two employees, but his office wouldn’t confirm or deny. Read about it here.
- Remember that North County councilmember facing a felony charge and more over a dispute that started out because of trash bins? Our Tigist Layne has the latest and it includes a judge saying the evidence didn’t meet the threshold for a felony. Read the story here.
The post Cup of Chisme: Prop. 36 Ain’t Cheap appeared first on Voice of San Diego.
