Orange County House Members Introduce Resolution to Condemn Anti-Asian Hate Crime
Orange County-based House Representatives Michelle Steel and Katie Porter created a bi-partisan resolution Feb. 23 that seeks to condemn “hate, racism, and intolerance against” the Asian/American Pacific Islander (AAPI) community.
The resolution comes as hate crimes against the demographic have been on the rise in the United States.
Steel’s resolution seeks to affirm that the U.S. stands against and denounces all anti-Asian and Pacific Islander sentiment, condemns all manifestations or expressions of racism and intolerance, and calls on federal law enforcement to investigate, improve reporting, and hold perpetrators accountable for the crimes.
Orange County Cities Join Sheriff in Opposing Order to Release Inmates
Cities throughout Orange County, California, are standing by Sheriff Don Barnes as he fights a court order demanding the release of 1,800 prisoners from county jails.
In a Dec. 11 court order, Barnes was told to pare down Orange County’s jail population as the centers grapple with rising COVID-19 infections. But the region’s top cop is challenging the order, and refusing to release the inmates.
On Dec. 21, more cities joined a movement to support Barnes’s decision. During special city council meetings, the cities of Irvine, Mission Viejo, and Westminster voted unanimously to file legal briefs supporting Barnes’s challenge. The cities joined Newport Beach and Yorba Linda, which filed briefs on Dec. 18.