Activism
More Changes for COVID-Related Rental Assistance
The County has aimed to speed up the assessment process and offer more transparency to the rental assistance work that has been underway since the initiation of the program in February 2021. Effective March 15, the County will close the waitlist for new applications to align with the State of California plan to close the state portal and prioritize applicants with incomes below 30% of Marin’s median household income and those who went the longest with unpaid rent. (Thirty percent of the median household income in Marin is $38,400 for individuals, $43,850 for households of two, $49,350 for three, and $54,800 for four.)

Supervisors approve agreements to improve financial allocation process
Courtesy of Marin County
Through February, the County of Marin had assisted 1,335 unique households by channeling federal and state funds into the hands of local tenants on the verge of eviction because of the COVID-19 pandemic and to landlords who experienced sudden income losses. In total, the County has paid out $21,549,174 in pandemic rental assistance.
Now, emergency aid will be distributed faster as the County increases staffing and improves the review process. It is adopting a software platform used by the State of California to distribute the remaining rental relief funds. On March 8, the Board of Supervisors approved agreements with two companies to assist with distribution of rental allocations in an efficient and compliant manner.
The County is entering into a $123,846 agreement with Neighborly Software for its subscription fee and data migration services and a $347,500 agreement with LiveStories to provide staffing for application intake and case management. The two firms will help the County administer its available balance of $11,636,249 earmarked to prevent evictions and homelessness related to COVID-19.
Since December, the County has distributed an average of $1.4 million in rental assistance per month. LiveStories has distributed more than $73 million in rental assistance funds in other jurisdictions. “The LiveStories team of trained and knowledgeable staff will augment the current rental assistance staff to distribute an additional $2 million per month in rent relief,” said Hyacinth Hinojosa, Deputy County Administrator.
The County has aimed to speed up the assessment process and offer more transparency to the rental assistance work that has been underway since the initiation of the program in February 2021. Effective March 15, the County will close the waitlist for new applications to align with the State of California plan to close the state portal and prioritize applicants with incomes below 30% of Marin’s median household income and those who went the longest with unpaid rent. (Thirty percent of the median household income in Marin is $38,400 for individuals, $43,850 for households of two, $49,350 for three, and $54,800 for four.)
The program has established multiple levels of review to ensure that applications meet eligibility criteria and the funds are spent to support the most vulnerable populations with the lowest income levels and those at risk of housing instability. The average time to approve a case once it reaches the final stage of review has been 30 to 60 days.
“We recognize that those most in need of pandemic related rental assistance are often those for whom barriers to access such a program are the highest,” Hinojosa said. “We work with our community partners to conduct outreach to those that need assistance with their applications including low income and non-English speaking populations.”
Clearing accumulated tenant debt is designed to provide a lifeline to the hardest-hit families and provide income stability for landlords. Landlords have legal freedom to pursue deferred unpaid rent, although state law requires landlords to demonstrate that they have applied for rental assistance and been denied. Once applicants living at 30% or below the county’s median income are served, staff will work to assist those living at 50% or below the median.
Since the end of the statewide eviction moratorium last fall, County staff has worked with nonprofit community partners to assure an equitable distribution of funds earmarked for eviction prevention during the pandemic. Several local agencies, such as Adopt A Family of Marin, Canal Alliance, Community Action Marin, North Marin Community Services, Ritter Center, St. Vincent De Paul Society of Marin, West Marin Community Services, and Women Helping All People.
Anyone needing help with the online application may call (415) 473-2223 or email staff to learn more about the Emergency Rental Assistance Program.
Property owners may call the District Attorney’s Consumer Protection Unit at (415) 473-6450 for assistance on rights and responsibilities. Renters are encouraged to contact Legal Aid of Marin at (415) 492-0230, extension 102, for inquiries on eviction protections.
Activism
Officer Fired for Shooting and Killing Sean Monterrosa Has Termination Overturned
Michael Rains, attorney for the Vallejo Police Officers’ Association, said that “several credible sources” have told him that Detective Jarrett Tonn’s termination has been overturned in arbitration.

By Katy St. Clair
Bay City News
The officer who was fired for shooting and killing a man during George Floyd protests in Vallejo in 2020 could be getting his job back after prevailing in arbitration.
Michael Rains, attorney for the Vallejo Police Officers’ Association, said that “several credible sources” have told him that Detective Jarrett Tonn’s termination has been overturned in arbitration.
Tonn was dismissed from the Vallejo force after he shot Sean Monterrosa, 22, of San Francisco, outside of a Walgreens store on Redwood Street during the early morning hours of June 2, 2020.
The Vallejo Police Department has not commented on whether Tonn will return.
Tonn and two other officers were responding to alleged reports of looting at the store in an unmarked pickup truck. Body camera footage shows Tonn, who is seated in the backseat of the vehicle, stick an AR-15-style assault rifle in between the two officers and fire five times through the windshield at Monterrosa as the police vehicle approached the store.
Monterrosa died a short time later.
Vallejo police have alleged that Tonn fired at Monterrosa because he mistook a hammer in Monterrosa’s sweatshirt pocket for the butt of a gun.
The office of California Attorney General Rob Bonta in May 2021 opened an investigation into the shooting, but there have been no updates in that case and Bonta’s office will not comment on open cases.
Tonn was at first placed on administrative leave for the shooting death, but was fired in 2021 by then-Chief Shawny Williams, who determined that Monterrosa was on his knees with his hands raised when he was shot.
Rains, who has represented two other officers fired by Williams — and prevailed — said the reinstatement of Tonn was the right decision. Rains said Sunday that Tonn applied a reasonable and lawful use of force in the Monterrosa case, and that Williams was wrong to terminate him.
“This is just three for three now with Williams,” he said, referring to the now three officers that have gotten their jobs back. “It demonstrates what a colossal failure he was as a chief in every respect. I’m delighted for Tonn, it’s deserved.”
Rains did not represent Tonn in this case.
But others see Monterrosa’s shooting death as a dark stain on a department known for years of shootings by officers.
The law office of John Burris filed a civil rights suit against the city of Vallejo and its Police Department for Monterrosa’s death, citing alleged tampering with evidence and acting negligently by not reprimanding or re-training Tonn previously despite a “shocking history of shooting his gun at civilians.”
Burris’ office is no longer representing the case and the family is now represented by new counsel, John Coyle, with a jury trial scheduled for January 2025, according to court records.
Nevertheless, Burris commented Sunday on Tonn’s reinstatement, saying he was disappointed but not surprised at the move, because arbitrators in these cases are “biased” toward the police.
“Even though police may have committed in this case an outrageous act, it’s not surprising that that has happened, and it happens more times than not,” he said.
When asked if he was confident that Bonta would file charges against Tonn, Burris chuckled and said that he would wait and see.
“I would not hold my breath,” he said.
Tonn had previously shot three people over five years in Vallejo while on duty, none of which were found to have had firearms, a tenth of the 32 total shootings by the department in one decade, according to attorney Ben Nisenbaum.
Vallejo civil rights attorney Melissa Nold, who represents families of people killed by Vallejo police, said the decision to bring back Tonn had been in the works the minute he was terminated by Williams.
“Unfortunately, I am not surprised at this troubling turn of events because a whistleblower notified me last year via email that Tonn was working a deal to get his job back once they threatened and ran off Chief Williams,” Nold said.
Williams resigned abruptly last November. Williams was repeatedly criticized by the Vallejo Police Officers’ Association, the offices’ union, which had previously voted “no confidence” in him and blamed him for everything from attrition to high crime in the city. But advocates for the families of those killed by police said Williams had been making progress in cleaning up a department that had gained international attention for being violent. During Williams’ tenure, there were no police shootings after the Monterrosa death.
Nold places part of the blame on Tonn’s return on the city, which she said “made no effort” to support his termination. Nold said they are still expecting Bonta to file criminal charges against Tonn and there will be a push to get him decertified as an officer as well.
“He cannot ever go back out onto the streets of Vallejo,” she said. “The liability he would create by being here is astronomical, but sadly no one in the city attorney’s office is smart enough to understand and/or are too corrupt and rotten to care.”
In May, a Solano County judge found that the Vallejo City Attorney’s Office broke the law by deliberately destroying evidence in cases related to police shootings.
The city of Vallejo did not respond to a request for comment.
Members of the family of Monterrosa and their advocates are planning on showing up to the Vallejo City Council meeting on Sept. 12 to protest the return of Tonn, Nold said.
The family will also be holding a “Justice 4 Sean Monterrosa” press conference on Thursday at 11 a.m. at Vallejo City Hall, 555 Santa Clara St., Vallejo.
Activism
Oakland Post: Week of September 20 – 26, 2023
The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of September 20 – 26, 2023

To enlarge your view of this issue, use the slider, magnifying glass icon or full page icon in the lower right corner of the browser window.
Activism
Oakland Post: Week of September 13 – 19, 2023
The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of September 13 – 19, 2023

To enlarge your view of this issue, use the slider, magnifying glass icon or full page icon in the lower right corner of the browser window.
-
Activism6 days ago
Oakland Post: Week of September 20 – 26, 2023
-
Activism2 weeks ago
Oakland Post: Week of September 13 – 19, 2023
-
Activism3 weeks ago
Oakland Post: Week of September 6 – 12, 2023
-
Activism4 weeks ago
Oakland Post: Week of August 30 – September 5, 2023
-
Bay Area4 weeks ago
Mayor Sheng Thao Speaks on Public Safety, Oakland-Vietnam Trade Opportunities
-
Bay Area4 weeks ago
DA Pamela Price Engages Community at Good Hope Baptist Church Gathering
-
Bay Area4 weeks ago
JPMorgan Chase Bank Hosts Backpack Giveaway in Oakland
-
Community4 weeks ago
Maui, The GOP Debate, an Ex-President’s Arrest, Who Shall Lead America?