San Francisco will be the first county in California to implement this type of policy.

No laws are being broken with this policy as there are no requirements for local jails to hold illegal immigrants. Rather, it will be reinforcing San Francisco’s sanctuary ordinance, which does not allow local officials to assist ICE unless a felony is involved.

Federal officials have managed to work around the sanctuary city policies with a program called Secure Communities, where ICE monitors fingerprint data obtained at booking and putting “detainers” on potential illegal immigrants.

For now, sheriff’s deputies are holding low-level criminals until ICE agents come to collect them. As soon as the policy takes effect, though, those inmates will be released with a citation, the same as a U.S. citizen.

ICE spokeswoman, Virginia Kice, called Sheriff Hennessey’s decision to release inmates unfortunate.

“ICE detainers are an effective tool to ensure that individuals arrested on criminal charges, who are also in violation of U.S. immigration law, are not released back into the community to potentially commit more crimes,” she said.

George Gascon will be the first Latino to be working as San Francisco’s head prosecutor.

Gascon, a former high-ranking official from the LAPD said, “I’m very honored for the opportunity to serve the people of San Francisco in this new role and look forward to continuing to work together with our community and the other partners in the criminal justice system to make San Francisco the safest large city in the U.S.”

According to an interview with Mayor Gavin Newsom, he said after speaking with judges, law enforcement officials and lawyers came to the decision that Gascon was the best prospect and equipped with the necessary skills in order to continue reforms, form close bonds between prosecutors, policemen and leaders within the community.

Newsom also stated, “He has personal integrity and a remarkable capacity to advance reform and build trust in and navigate our diverse community. He has proven himself adept at adapting to political realities, and he’s done it in a way that he’s built even more support in the process.”

Gascon first served three years as the Chief of Police in Mesa, Arizona before relocating to San Francisco. In Arizona, many issues pertaining to illegal immigration and immigration law were top priorities. Once established in San Francisco, Gascon was named by Newsom as the Police Chief in 2009. Gascon is expected to seek out a four-year term in November but for now, is serving the rest of Harris’ term.

Not only does Gascon have vast experience in immigration issues, but he also has experience in the issues of police accountability, community policing and use of force. While working with the LAPD, he has been accredited with using technology as a force to combat crime. Furthermore, when he was serving as the assistant chief for the LAPD, he developed a scientific based strategy to fight crime in which reduced the violent crimes in the city.

However, that’s exactly what veteran “skyscraper climber” Dan Goodwin did. Using no ropes (just suction cups), he reached the top of the Millennium Tower right before 5:30 p.m. on Monday. The 645 foot building took about 3 hours to climb.

He ignored police orders to stop the climbing and firefighters say he was too high by the time they arrived to the scene.

San Francisco Police arrested him upon reaching the top of the 58 story cloud-buster after he affixed ol’ glory to an outside window. 

The 54-year-old Lake Tahoe native claims many other credits for feats such as this one, including Chicago’s Sears Tower.

All of the mess was caused by inmates flushing the toilets of  the Bryant Street jail. It caused more than 2 inches of raw sewage to seep out, flooding five courtrooms at the San Francisco Hall of Justice.

They called out a plumber who detected jumpsuits and bedsheets upon snaking out the lines. Regarding the material found in the sewer line; the buildings manager, Jason Hinson stated that inmates will ”flush it repeatedly until it just sucks it down.”

Unfortunately, the event caused the closure of five courtrooms, holding up proceedings. Further, the building may need to replace carpets if they are found to be a bio-hazard.

Coming to the rescue, and likely putting a dent in the cities budget, are devices called “muffin monsters.” These contraptions are actually installed on to sewage pipes as grinders which can help alleviate any future issues. At $100,000 each, they may be pricey but well worth the cost. They’d have to be installed at all entry lines.

The last time inmates pulled a prank like this was in the mid-90′s. It was back then the original “muffin monster’s” were purchased at the jail and put into use.

As reported in the San Francisco Examiner, the measure will be on a June 8 ballot, and according to a draft of The City’s capital plan, will take 10 years to build. The remainder of the $435 million project would be funded with certificates of participation.

The two jails slated for replacement house high-security prisoners like murder suspects and flight risks, as well as people awaiting trial and who are actively in court. But a big earthquake could force the Sheriff’s Department to evacuate 800 of these prisoners along with  the staff. “While plans to safely evacuate the jail are in place, the costs to temporarily house the prisoners until a new facility is built are likely to be in the tens of millions of dollars,” the city planning report says.

Funding the construction of a jail is always easier when you don’t have to go to voters, Sheriff’s Department spokeswoman Eileen Hirst admits.  Hirst once worked on the campaign to build San Francisco’s state-of-the-art jail in San Bruno.

So far, two previous jail bond measures have already failed. “You have this problem with, ‘Why are we building a nice jail for prisoners when my child’s grammar school looks so horrible?’” Hirst explained.

The city’s planning group is eyeing a spot next to the current Hall of Justice at 850 Bryant St. and their plan is expected to be finalized in late spring. The $652 million bond proposal would also help to fund repairs for firehouses and improve the  water system that helps them battle flames, and would go toward building a new police station.

Additional San Francisco jail information: a complete look at San Francisco’s jails as the sytem currently stands and San Francicso bail bonds.

But the real story is about the brothers who appear to be just plain bad news…

The brothers were recently arrested in San Mateo after a traffic stop having marijuana and open vodka in the car. Previously, the older brother, Kulbir Dhaliwal, was arrested in San Jose for cocaine possession.

Even before the tiger attack, Amritpal Dhaliwal had a series of other criminal convictions, including one for a high-speed chase through San Jose in April 2007. At the time of the attack, both Dhaliwal brothers were facing charges stemming from a Sept. 7, 2007 scuffle with San Jose police. They were later convicted.

I guess $900,000 doesn’t make a bad apple good.