I been driving by the illegal encampment at Depot Park lately partly because we helped a friend move out of that neighborhood and then again because there’s a farm stand out the west side of town that has really good eggs and stuff. So I’ve seen that rambling mess, and I’m getting pretty disgusted with Chico City Council and their Whack-a-mole management plan.
Everybody is calling it that – “whack-a-mole” – after the arcade game, you know the one. The mole pops up, you try to hit it, it disappears and pops out another hole. That’s the scene in Chico, only the transients aren’t really the ones being whacked. Residents report being afraid to use parks, afraid to go out after dark, and, I’m guessing, too disgusted to go Downtown to complain about it.
Our city staff and council would like us to believe they are helpless because of the lawsuit – you know what, I’d like to see the judge enforce that lawsuit. What would that mean, does anybody know? Cause I’m going to guess it would have something to do with the loss of the transfer money the county is getting to bring these people in here in the first place.
Here’s an example of a transfer – right now Placer County residents are up in arms about the transfer of a “sexually violent predator” to their county, and here’s what really sounds WHACK – “as a transient“.
According to ABC 10, “William Stephenson will be placed into an RV provided by Liberty Healthcare, who said in the release that ‘money is no object.’” Did you read that – “money is no object…” That’s how they always talk about taxpayer money. That’s right, Liberty Healthcare is fully taxpayer funded. Here’s a story from San Diego about a “client” who was placed under Liberty’s supervision – unfortunately they didn’t supervise him. I can’t post the link for some reason but here are some excerpts.
SAN DIEGO (KUSI) – A pedophile convicted of molesting four boys was arrested last week on another felony charge. But that sex offender is not in custody. Instead, Allen Fields is living in Campo being supervised by a program ran by Liberty Healthcare.
Liberty Healthcare is taxpayer funded and, according to the District Attorney, failed to keep the terms of Fields’ release.
The penal code states that sexually violent predators must register every 90 days with law enforcement, something Allen Fields agreed to under the terms of his release in 2014. He has successfully registered every 90 days for 6 years, until now.
Court records show fields was arrested and booked into jail for a felony charge. Three days later, the charges were not filed, and he was released under the supervision of Liberty Healthcare, a for-profit agency that monitors sex offenders.
According to the District Attorney, the failure to make his appointment to register as a sex offender was Liberty Healthcare’s error.
That is the story of a transfer gone bad, and we paid for it. A “for profit” company that is supposed to supervise dangerous sex offenders, but they just don’t? But he gets released into their custody again? This is how the system works, and we’re paying for it.
Every month, our county board of supervisors accepts hundreds of thousands of dollars – amounting to millions annually – in fees for the transfer of mental patients and criminals into Butte County. The supes use the money as they please, distributing it among various county and private providers. Some are sent to our jail from other over-crowded jails, but those are released due to overcrowding at our jail. Some are housed at shelters, others are simply released and directed toward a mish-mash of ineffective “services”, like Liberty Healthcare.
Don’t believe me? Well, fuck you, read the agendas and the budget, it’s all there. And then walk out into the street and look around yourself, open your eyes – this is happening because our elected leaders care more about money to pay ridiculous salaries and benefits than securing our community’s safety. Screw quality of life – we’re living like Whack-a-moles.
Chico Taxpayers Association 
Leave a comment