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Youth To Celebrate A Year of Accomplishment At BMAGIC Winter Ball

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***Note to media: Interviews with BMAGIC participants may be arranged upon request***

What: 5th Annual Bayview Magic (BMAGIC) Winter Ball: A fun, positive and safe winter formal dance party to celebrate the end of the year and honor the accomplishments of neighborhood youth. Free admission to the formal includes DJ and dancing, dinner and professional photos. Formal dress is required at this alcohol and drug free event. Jeans, sports attire and fatigues are not allowed.

Who: All youth ages 14-18 who live, go to school or attend a youth program in Bayview-Hunters Point.

When: Friday, December 18, 2009, 7pm-11pm

Where: Joseph Lee Recreational Center, 1395 Mendell St., San Francisco

Details: BMAGIC’s 5th Annual Winter Ball provides neighborhood youth with a free, formal party to celebrate their accomplishments in 2009 and welcome the New Year.

Bayview-Hunters Point Mobilization for Adolescent Growth in our Communities (BMAGIC) was co-founded in 2004 by the San Francisco Public Defender’s office to help improve outcomes in the juvenile justice system. BMAGIC and its sister program, the Western Addition-based Mo’ MAGIC, help build capacity of community-based youth and family organizations that assist San Francisco families overcome poverty and violence. Members of BMAGIC and Mo’ MAGIC work to improve economic, educational and juvenile justice for youth and families.

“A loving community of adult allies can make a huge difference in teenagers’ lives,” said BMAGIC Director Yvette Robles.  “We want all youth in Bayview-Hunters Point to know they have dozens of people and community organizations available to support them. It’s also important that youth have the opportunity to attend positive events that fuel their social skills and development.”

Formal wear is donated by partner organizations, small businesses, UCSF, and the Public Defender’s office. Teens that show up to the formal in street clothes are directed to the donation area to change, and are able to keep the clothes they select.

Donations can be dropped off at the BMAGIC office inside the Public Defender’s office, 555 Seventh St., second floor, San Francisco. Checks to support the event can be made out to Urban Services YMCA c/o BMAGIC. Parents and guardians of Bayview-Hunters Point youth are encouraged to chaperone the event.

The BMAGIC Winter Ball is sponsored by the San Francisco Public Defender’s Office, the Department of Children, Youth and their Families,  Joseph Lee Recreation Center, the San Francisco Police Department, Spice It Up Catering, Renaissance Youth Movement, and BAYCAT.

Public Defender Jeff Adachi noted that last year’s Winter Ball drew more than 200 Bayview-Hunters Point teens. Young neighborhood residents help plan the party and participate in leadership trainings, event planning and community outreach workshops.

“The Winter Ball is like a junior prom for the youth in Bayview-Hunters Point. With the support of adult mentors, youth from different neighborhoods learn how to work together to plan a very special and meaningful event. It’s part of BMAGIC’s mission to empower youth by breaking down barriers between them and help them create positive experiences in their own community,” Adachi said.

New State Rules on Caregivers Discriminatory, Hurt Seniors

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San Francisco, CA—San Francisco Public Defender Jeff Adachi will lend his support Monday to San Francisco Supervisor John Avalos’ resolution calling on the state to reverse its discriminatory new regulations governing in-home care for the sick, disabled and elderly.

Adachi will provide testimony in support of the resolution at the Board of Supervisors’ City Operations and Neighborhood Services Committee meeting Monday, Dec. 14, at 10:30 a.m. The hearing will be held at San Francisco City Hall.

California’s new regulations for in-home supportive services unlawfully bar anyone ever convicted of a felony or “serious misdemeanor” from working as a care provider. More than 22,000 low-income seniors and people with disabilities in San Francisco rely on in-home care to avoid institutionalization and remain living in the community. Statewide, nearly half of home supportive services recipients receive their care from a family member.

The lifetime ban does not allow for case-by-case consideration. For example, a law-abiding citizen who had one felony conviction 40 years ago would be barred from caring for her 97-year-old mother.

In addition to cutting back on the number of available caregivers for San Francisco residents, the regulations take a critical choice out the hands of seniors and people living with disabilities.

“Low income seniors and others who need assistance should be able to choose their caregiver. These new policies violate that right,” Adachi said.
The broad exclusion, which was instituted last month by the state, is under a temporary restraining order while facing court challenges. That restraining order could be lifted as early as Jan. 29.

San Francisco’s proposed resolution points out that the new rules contradict local, state and federal law. Currently, only those who have been convicted of child abuse, elder abuse or defrauding government health programs are barred from work as a caregiver. Federal policy excludes people from being home care providers only for job-related offenses and makes it illegal to use absolute bars to employment based on conviction history. Similarly, San Francisco’s Civil Service employment policies require those with criminal convictions to be evaluated on a case-by-case basis.

“San Francisco has been a national leader in creating re-entry programs to integrate people with prior convictions back into the community. The state’s new regulations lock hardworking people out of employment that could be crucial for the survival of their families,” Adachi said.

Golden Gate X-Press: Uniting Youth and Families With Magic

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by Martha Vallejo, staff writer
Golden Gate X-Press
December 3, 2009 1:42 PM

At the Mo’MAGIC offices in the Fillmore, high school students mingle with each other as they paint and decorate big plastic spheres with bright colors that will adorn the Davies Symphony Hall christmas tree. This is a small activity out of many that Mo’MAGIC organizes to help and unite Western Addition youth and families.

The Fillmore/Western Addition Mobilization of Adolescent Growth In our Communities, or Mo’MAGIC, is a convener institution that coordinates projects and complimentary activities community-wide by getting service providers within organizations like the police department, city agencies, nonprofit and community-based organizations, merchants and community members to bring different services to children, youth and families.

Some services Mo’MAGIC offers include help obtaining public housing, mental health assistance, help with employment or school, advocacy to maintain public safety and a violence prevention program.

Impressed with the results at the Bayview-Hunters Point Mobilization for Adolescent Growth in our Communities program started by Public Defender Jeff Adachi in 2004, Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi brought the program to the Western Addition in November 2006. The area was called “the mo” — a nickname given to the Fillmore — and the community picked the name Mo’MAGIC, according to Sheryl Davis, Mo’MAGIC program director.

Through different activities and projects, the organization serves around 1,500 participants between kids, youth and families. Initially, Mo’MAGIC participants were mostly African American, but the project grew to also serve about 10-20 percent members of Asian, Latino and Russian backgrounds. Typically, the youth programs focus their resources on adolescents ages five to 18.

“The core is children and youth, but you can’t help them without supporting the family,” Davis said.

Meetings twice a month help groups identify the issues and challenges in the neighborhood, and develop strategies to address them.

“The area had been resource-thin and neglected by the city. I worked to implement and infuse resources in new programs,” Mirkarimi said. Some of the challenges faced were getting Mayor Gavin Newsom’s office to redirect resources into new programs, and convincing the community and different organizations to accept a new program and collaborate, he added.

To some, Mo’MAGIC has been a cohesive force in the community, as well as an influential factor in decreasing violence in the Western Addition.

“It has helped to get our groups together and get rid of the destructive kind of competitiveness,” Rev. Arnold Townsend, a volunteer since 2006 who counsels youth through different workshops, said. “Our community has changed for the better,” he added.

“We are stronger because we work together,” said London Breed, executive director of the African American Art and Culture Complex where many of Mo’MAGIC programs and events occur.

Having the organizations working comprehensively to help kids with academic, social and recreational activities through different programs like helping them with homework, artistic activities and sports has made a huge difference, Davis said. “Kids get to know kids from the other side of the street and they don’t view each other as enemies,” she added.

A variety of events and activities are offered at different facilities. During the summer, centers for literacy and youth development programs work on keeping the young engaged as well as preparing them for jobs.

With respect to the crime reduction during the last years, Townsend said, “I’m convinced Mo’MAGIC has a lot to do with that.”

“2007, 2008, and 2009 have been really good summers,” Davis said. “We have seen a huge drop in teen violence and homicides.”

To Davis, the collaboration and partnership between the community, the police department and all organizations working together instead of independently, has helped keep the neighborhood safer.

“When you look, a good portion of these crimes were happening in this community,” Davis said. “Because it has decreased, the whole numbers in the city has decreased,” she said of crime in the Western Addition.

In the future, Davis hopes to implement early childhood programs and create projects to work with preschoolers, as well as projects to work with older kids who get out of high school and need help with getting a job and becoming self-sufficient.

Mirkarimi added that he wants to make sure “our families and our youth are getting the resources they need on their behalf and also teach them how they can stand by themselves.”

San Francisco Chronicle: Adachi Celebrates Decade-Old Rehab Program

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Think it’s tough finding a job in today’s economy? Just try having a criminal record to boot.

Public Defender Jeff Adachi pioneered a program a decade ago that allows people convicted of minor offenses to clear their record if they can show they’ve lived crime-free since conviction. The “Clean Slate” program also helps those sent to prison to get state certification of rehabilitation if they’ve been out of trouble for at least seven years after release.

Today Adachi is celebrating the 10th anniversary of his program, which has been replicated in Alameda and Santa Clara counties and honored by the city and the statewide public defender’s association.

Adachi said dozens of participants have gone on to earn college degrees or work for the city and nonprofits.

“Many people didn’t even realize that they could ask the court to remove the stain of a criminal conviction upon a showing of rehabilitation,” Adachi said.

He estimates the program now clears 2,000 records each year and has cleared 15,000 since he introduced it.

The anniversary celebration, with Adachi, Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi and others is from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at the Westbay Conference Center, 1290 Fillmore Street (at Eddy). Live music by Simply Sara. If you want to go, RSVP at sfpublicdefender.org

Clean Slate Program Celebrates 10 Years

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***Note to media: Interviews with Clean Slate participants can be arranged prior to the event***

WHEN: Thursday, Dec. 3, from 5:30 pm-7:30 pm

WHAT: A public reception celebrating the 10th anniversary of the groundbreaking Clean Slate program, which helps those convicted of crimes in San Francisco to clear their criminal history.

WHO: Dozens of participants who have gone on to lead successful lives, remarks by District 5 Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi and Public Defender Jeff Adachi, as well as awards for community partners who have contributed to the program during the past decade. The event is being co-sponsored by the law firm of Kazan, McClain, Lyons, Greenwood and Harley. Live music featuring Simply Sara www.myspace.com/sanginsara

WHERE: Westbay Conference Center, 1290 Fillmore Street (at Eddy). For more information or to RSVP, please visit www.sfpublicdefender.org

BACKGROUND:
SAN FRANCISCO – A decade ago, the San Francisco Public Defender’s office launched a program unlike any at the time– wiping the slate clean for people whose past mistakes marred their chances of a new job or better life.

Past participants of the Clean Slate program have gone on to secure jobs with the City of San Francisco, return to college to earn degrees, or serve the community through nonprofits, nursing, social work, or mentoring current inmates.

The groundbreaking program has been since replicated by several other counties in California, including Alameda and Santa Clara.  Clean Slate was initiated by Public Defender Jeff Adachi in 1999 when he served as the office’s Chief Attorney. Participants must be able to demonstrate that they have lived crime-free lives since completing their sentences.

“Many people didn’t even realize that they could ask the court to remove the stain of a criminal conviction upon a showing of rehabilitation,” Adachi said.    Adachi noted that before the Clean Slate program began, the Public Defender’s office was only clearing about 70 cases a year.  Adachi estimates that the program now clears 2,000 records each year and has cleared 15,000 records over the past decade.

While the stain of a criminal conviction can ruin a candidate’s job chances in the best of economic times, succeeding in the current downturn can be nearly impossible for those with a criminal record, even if the crime was committed years ago.

“The Clean Slate program helps by assisting individuals who are concerned that their criminal history will affect their future employability or might be used to deny other essential services, such as housing, that a person may need,” said Deputy Public Defender Simin Shamji, who manages the Public Defender’s office’s reentry programs.  The program received 2006 Program of the Year award from the statewide Public Defender’s association, as well as the city’s Managerial Excellence Team Award in 2004.

The office operates four community clinics, staffed by an attorney, where Clean Slate program services are available on-site.  The Public Defender also has drop-in hours every Tuesday at its main office from 9-11:00am, at 555 Seventh Street.

Public Defender Argues for $926,000 in Cost Savings

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SAN FRANCISCO – San Francisco Public Defender Jeff Adachi will ask supervisors on Wednesday to allow him to fill seven vacant positions in his office–a move that could save the cash-strapped city $926,000 while ensuring equal justice for San Francisco’s poorest residents.

The resolution to fill the positions is sponsored by supervisors Ross Mirkarimi and David Campos. It will be heard at 11 am on Wednesday, Dec. 2, 2009 before the Board of Supervisors’ Budget and Finance Committee.

While the Mayor’s office has refused to allow a single position to be filled in the Public Defender’s Office, it has approved 200 job hires for the district attorney, police, sheriff and probation departments in the last six months.

Crippled by a lack of staff, the Public Defender’s office has been forced to turn away approximately 400 felony and misdemeanor cases in the last three months and is expected to refuse 1,400 cases by the year’s end, Adachi said.

That means the city must outsource the cases to private attorneys at a price tag of at least $1.6 million, Adachi said.  Filling the seven positions would free up public defenders to handle in-house most of the cases being referred to private attorneys.

The cost of filling the vacant positions, according to the Board of Supervisors’ budget analyst, is approximately $640,000.

“The city has an impending $522 million deficit and must save wherever it can. By approving these seven positions, the city will save $926,000 in private attorney costs” Adachi said.

Adachi noted that the Superior Court, which is responsible for administering city funds paid to private attorneys, has already estimated that it will need an additional $3.2 million dollars to handle cases that are being declined by the Public Defender’s office due to insufficient staffing.

Each of the 28,000 low-income clients served annually by the Public Defender’s office must share an attorney with a crush of other defendants.

A report by the city’s controller found that public defenders in San Francisco work 50-60 hours per week, juggling caseloads that exceed by 50 percent the American Bar Association’s recommended caseload.  Each Deputy Public Defender handles about 70 felony cases or 100 misdemeanor cases at any given time.

Time For Real Budget Reform

Jeff Adachi
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Published Wednesday November 25 in the San Francisco Chronicle

San Francisco’s impending $522 million budget deficit may come with a silver lining: It may finally force San Francisco city leaders and the electorate to make the tough decisions needed to turn things around.

Over the past decade, the cost of city government has increased 58 percent, from $4.2 billion to $6.6 billion, while the city has continued to experience huge budget deficits each year. The cause, according to the controller, is that “citywide costs have continued to climb, in large part due to escalating salary and benefit costs related to labor agreement provisions, new mandates and capital funding.” Put another way, the city is paying for salaries, pension plans and mandated spending levels that it simply can’t afford.

Like the state Legislature in Sacramento, San Francisco has tried to triage each year’s budget deficit, delaying important capital projects, bargaining for short-term salary concessions while hoping that the economy improves. These temporary fixes ultimately make the problem worse by passing the buck.

But this dire situation can be reversed if immediate changes are made.

The city’s pension system must be redesigned to ensure that it is able to meet the needs of retirees without bankrupting the city. According to findings of the civil grand jury, the city’s cost from its retiree pension system will triple from $175 million in 2005 to $544 million by 2012. With more than 40 percent of active employees eligible for retirement, this will create a huge cash flow problem and add to future years’ deficits. Abuses to the system, such as “pension spiking,” where employees are allowed to artificially increase their pension before retiring, must be stopped. The grand jury estimated that this practice has cost the city $132 million.

It is also time to evaluate spending voter-approved set-asides that require the city to spend certain amounts on specific programs regardless of the city’s financial standing. Currently, 60 percent of San Francisco’s general fund budget is spent through mandated spending formulas. However, in an economic recession, all mandates, except those established to protect extremely vulnerable populations, should be suspended or reduced.

Pay raises should be limited during deficit years. Just two years ago, city officials voted to give a 25 percent increase to police officers over four years at a cost of $64 million and a 19 percent increase to registered nurses over three years at a cost of $39 million. In order to pay these increases, from 300 to 400 employees, including police officers and nurses, would have to be laid off.

But even if these changes are made, the budget process itself needs to be reformed. Having managed a city department for 10 years, I’ve witnessed firsthand the inefficiencies of the current budgetary process.

San Francisco’s budget process resembles a poker game, where the mayor and supervisors bargain for and against each other’s programs, without knowledge of what cards the other is holding. The rules of the game are constantly changing, and the parties rarely share the information they are relying upon in making budgetary decisions with each other. Witness the three different deficit estimates coming from the mayor’s office during a single week, or the political battle stemming from the supervisors’ recent attempt to override last year’s budget to restore positions. The city’s departments and programs are treated as the ante, with the winnings going to those who are best at playing the game.

San Francisco needs an independent, nonpartisan budget office that is accountable for guarding the city’s long-term fiscal health. This practice, employed by most similarly sized counties in California and across the nation, would require the mayor, the Board of Supervisors and department heads work collaboratively with the budget office to develop a balanced budget from the priorities set by the mayor and board. The office’s proposed budget would be submitted to the mayor and the board for their review and approval.

The budget office would also be responsible for providing policymakers and the public with an objective evaluation of the performance of the city’s departments and programs, and would also advise the mayor and the board on projected salary costs. Armed with this information, the mayor and the board would decide the appropriate funding level for each program or department after receiving public input. This would increase the transparency, accountability and long-term focus of the process.

Of course, these fundamental changes, like the efforts to redesign our nation’s health system, won’t come easy. Changing the city’s budget process requires amending the City Charter and combining the city’s various budget agencies into a single, independent budget office. But the failure to act will mean more mass layoffs, a severe decrease in city services and a bankrupt pension system. Only by enacting real, structural reforms to our fiscal process will we get San Francisco’s city government back on the road to a sound and sustainable economic recovery.

Jeff Adachi is San Francisco’s public defender.

SF Public Defender’s Office Clean Slate 10th Anniversary Celebration

Larry
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sunburst-flyer

The Clean Slate Program, one of San Francisco’s original reentry programs, was started by Public Defender Jeff Adachi in 1999. Since then, Clean Slate has continued to provide ongoing legal representation to help individuals clear up their criminal records so they can restore and improve their lives.

Over the past 10 years, the Clean Slate Program has helped thousands of individuals overcome barriers to obtaining employment, housing, professional licenses, certifications, and government aid. The Program’s success would not be possible without some of our community partners.

Special Guest Speaker
Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi

Please join us in honoring

Auda Okutani, Program Manager
Arriba Juntos

Toye Moses, Executive Director
Southeast Community Center

Reginaldo Woods, Executive Director
Up From Darkness

Sharen Hewitt, Executive Director
C.L.A.E.R. Project at New Village Community Center

RSVP/Registration (This event is free, but registration is required)

* For further information, please contact the Clean Slate Program at (415) 553-9337 or email belle.la@sfgov.org

Public Defender’s Office Receives Grant To Assist Mentally Ill Clients

Larry
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The Public Defender’s Office will receive an annual $80,000 grant from the Metta Fund for two years to hire a social worker who will provide additional support for Public Defender clients with major mental illness in finding and maintaining employment and eliminating barriers to employment. According to Deputy Public Defender Jennifer Johnson, “meaningful work is the key to helping clients with serious mental illness regain their lives. It has an unparalleled ability to restore confidence and to give our clients a sense of responsibility and purpose. The result is a safer community because our clients are able to break the cycle of incarceration, homelessness, and hospitalization that has held them hostage.”

Public Defender Jeff Adachi said that an employment component for mentally ill clients made sense. “This program will allow individuals to seek, obtain and qualify for employment opportunities that will lead to the individual’s independence and sustainability.” The grant will allow the office to assist over 100 people in the next two years and requires that the Public Defender’s office work in collaboration with community mental health providers, Jail Psychiatric Services, and Behavioral Health Court.

The goal of Behavioral Health Court is to redirect clients with mental illness from the criminal justice system into the community mental health system. Many clients in the jail would not be incarcerated if they had the ability to negotiate the complicated web of social services to secure quality mental health treatment.

The Metta Fund is a private foundation dedicated to improving health in the City and County of San Francisco. Metta Fund promotes health by focusing in four areas: providing access to health care; supporting healthy behaviors; violence prevention; and, improving the quality of care.

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Local Budget Measure Falls Short of True Reform

Jeff Adachi
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Published: 10/29/2009 in the San Francisco Examiner

While Proposition A, titled “Budget Reform,” takes a few steps toward changing the current process by which our city’s annual budget is decided, it falls far short of the reforms necessary to address our city’s long-term fiscal health.

Prop. A would establish a rolling two-year budget process to replace the current one-year cycle. It would also require a five-year financial plan and a certification by the city controller that San Francisco has enough money to pay its contracts. Additionally, it provides that all labor agreements be approved before the beginning of the fiscal year.

While Prop. A affords more time for reasoned decision making, it fails to address the fundamental structural problems that threaten San Francisco’s fiscal viability — skyrocketing pension costs, inflexible spending requirements and salary negotiations made without regard to The City’s ability to pay for them.

Prop. A fails to rein in The City’s pension liability. In July, the civil grand jury determined that San Francisco’s pension costs will increase by nearly 300 percent — from $178 million a year to $520 million — during the next three years. The increase is compounded, according to the report, by the fact that 40 percent of city employees are now eligible for retirement and another 15 percent will become eligible in the next five years.

The measure does not permit a reassessment of voter-mandated expenditures, known as set-asides. Currently, 60 percent of San Francisco’s $6.6 billion budget is spent through automatic spending formulas. While many of the services provided by these set-asides made sense in good economic times, in a recession it ties the hands of elected officials.

Prop. A also doesn’t control salary increases. Salary negotiations are made exclusively by the Mayor’s Office and approved by the Board of Supervisors, often without any input from department heads. It’s a common practice for raises to be handed out with no additional funding given to departments to pay for them.

This has resulted in departments having to lay off staff in order to pay raises it has no control over. For example, this year my department faces an $800,000 salary deficit because insufficient funding was provided to pay my current staff.

Unless these and other fundamental problems are addressed, The City will face even greater budget deficits, layoffs and a retirement system that will eventually go bankrupt.

So what’s the answer to improving the budget process itself?

The budget process needs an objective referee. The Municipal Executive Association, which is comprised of more than 1,000 city leaders and managers, has called for the creation of a professional budget office that would be accountable to the mayor and supervisors to develop the annual budget, facilitate negotiations with the mayor, Board of Supervisors, department heads and city contractors earlier in the fiscal calendar, and provide independent analysis.

According to a report issued by the association, “Nowhere in the process is the budget prepared or analyzed by a neutral professional manager who, while not the ultimate decision maker, is accountable for protecting the long-term fiscal health of San Francisco government and its core programs, and has the independence to stand up to political pressure.”

The study examined the budget processes of 16 similar local governments across the United States. Only King County, in Washington state, and San Francisco directly invested one elected official with the responsibility to develop a budget. In other jurisdictions — such as Chicago, Honolulu and even Los Angeles — the agency that develops the budget is accountable to both the executive and legislative bodies, and the independent budget officer is not an elected professional.

San Francisco would benefit from an independent budget office because it would require the mayor, safety board members who monitor Chicago Car Collisions, and the Board of Supervisors and department heads to work together in preparing the budget, while providing taxpayers with an objective evaluation of The City’s budget process and programs. It would also help to reconcile genuine political differences that exist, while lessening the influence of short-term political decisions.

Of course, these fundamental changes, like the efforts to redesign our nation’s health care system, won’t come easy. Transforming this process will require not only amending the City Charter, but also reorganizing The City’s various budget agencies into a single, independent budget office.

We are fooling voters and taxpayers by labeling Prop. A “budget reform.” Only real, structural reforms to our fiscal process will get city government back on the road to a sound and sustainable economic recovery.

Jeff Adachi is the public defender of San Francisco. To see a copy of the Municipal Executive Association’s report, visit www.sfmea.com.

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