Solano COVID report: 1 more death, and 152 new cases over the weekend. 400 active cases and youth cases seriously increasing. It’s still among us, folks – stay safe!
On April 19, Solano County reported 1 new death, someone over 65, and the County reported 152 new COVID cases over the 3-day weekend. For context, our average over the first two weeks of April was 39 new cases per day. Last week we saw 348 new cases, or slightly under 50 per day. These increases will likely make it more difficult for Solano to join all other Bay Area counties in the State’s orange tier. Solano’s Currently Active cases increased today from 373 to 400. Our percent positivity rate increased from 6.2% to 6.6%.
Cases among youth and young adults increasing – Today, the percentage of total cases among youth aged 0-17 hit 12% for the first time. This chart shows the increase among that age group since last July. Note also the increase among the 18-49 year age group.
>> The virus is still on the move here. Stay safe, get vaccinated, wear a mask and social distance! We will get through this together.
Cases by City on April 19:
Benicia added 11 new cases today, total of 926 cases since the outbreak began.
Dixon added 5 new cases today, total of 1,842 cases.
Fairfield added 49 new cases today, total of 8,720 cases.
Rio Vista added 1 new case today, total of 359 cases.
Suisun City added 11 new cases today, total of 2,191 cases.
Vacaville added 31 new cases today, total of 8,344 cases.
Vallejoadded 44 new cases today, total of 9,544 cases.
Unincorporated areas remained steady today, total of 101 cases.
Most new cases are among those of us age 18-49! Please stay safe, and if you catch it, please don’t pass it on to your elders!
Solano Age Groups – Total & New Cases reported today
0-17 Total Cases
New cases today
18-49 Total Cases
New cases today
50-64 Total Cases
New cases today
65+ Total Cases
New cases today
3,832
36
17,727
79
6,613
23
3,844
14
Ages 0-17 reached 12.0% of all cases for the first time today Ages 18-49 count for 55.4% of all cases
Ages 50-64 count for 20.7% of all cases
Ages 65+ count for 12.0% of all cases
COMPARE: Screenshots from Solano County COVID Dashboard yesterday, Friday, April 16:
The images on this page are from today’s and the previous Solano County COVID-19 Dashboard. The Dashboard is full of much more information and updated weekdays around 4pm. On the County’s dashboard, you can hover a mouse or click on an item for more information. Note the tabs at top for Summary, Demographics and Vaccines. Click here to go to today’s Solano County Dashboard.
I recently received an email from a member of the community asking me to push back against the idea that Benicia has a problem with racism. They argued that Benicia Black Lives Matter is overstating the degree of racism in our town. I responded by saying that there was, in fact, a problem here that needed to be acknowledged. They politely, but firmly, disagreed.
The incident on April 10 in the Raley’s parking lot, where three young Black teenagers were subjected to racial slurs by a white Benicia resident who later threatened them with an airsoft pistol, showed that an idealized version of Benicia is not the reality. It was the most recent and overt example of racism here, but it was not the only one. A white Benicia fisherman was captured on camera berating a group of Asian-Americans on the pier for fishing in “his” spot, and asking where “they” came from.
The young victims at the Raley’s center are understandably traumatized by this act of racist hate and intimidation. The alleged perpetrator was quickly arrested by Benicia police on several counts, including perpetrating a hate crime. He is currently out on bail, and charging decisions will be made by the District Attorney.
There are clearly too many people in Benicia, be they citizens or visitors, who still suffer from racial bias (both conscious and unconscious), and too many people of color who suffer direct and indirect discrimination. Whether the bias comes from blatant hatred, ignorance or lack of education/information, it is real and it needs to be acknowledged before it can be meaningfully addressed.
The City has taken the first steps by hiring a part-time Racial and Equity Manager to help us review our own practices. Benicia is approximately 30% minority, but the makeup of our various Boards and Commissions, as well as our overall city employment, does not reflect that level of representation.
Clearly, there is work that needs to be done to make our community more inclusive and welcoming to all of our residents. But that work must start with acknowledging that we do, in fact, have a problem.
We can do better as a community by opening our mind and listening to each other. Hate and racism have no place in Benicia, and we must do our best to make this a more welcoming and inclusive city.
On April 16, Solano County reported 2 deaths, both over 65 years, and the County reported 71 new COVID cases. For context, our average over the first two weeks of April was 39 new cases per day. The increase of 70 yesterday and 71 today will make it more difficult for Solano to join all other Bay Area counties in the State’s orange tier. Solano’s Currently Active cases increased today from 347 to 373. Our percent positivity rate fell slightly from 6.3% to 6.2%. >> The virus is still on the move here. Stay safe, get vaccinated, wear a mask and social distance! We will get through this together.
Cases by City on April 16:
Benicia added 1 new case today, total of 915 cases since the outbreak began.
Dixon added 2 new cases today, total of 1,837 cases.
Fairfield added 20 new cases today, total of 8,671 cases.
Rio Vista remained steady today, total of 358 cases.
Suisun City added 6 new cases today, total of 2,180 cases.
Vacaville added 17 new cases today, total of 8,313 cases.
Vallejoadded 25 new cases today, total of 9,500 cases.
Unincorporated areas remained steady today, total of 101 cases.
Most new cases are among those of us age 18-49! Please stay safe, and if you catch it, please don’t pass it on to your elders!
Solano Age Groups – Total & New Cases reported today
0-17 Total Cases
New cases today
18-49 Total Cases
New cases today
50-64 Total Cases
New cases today
65+ Total Cases
New cases today
3,796
19
17,648
37
6,590
10
3,830
5
Ages 0-17 count for 11.9% of all cases Ages 18-49 count for 55.4% of all cases
Ages 50-64 count for 20.7% of all cases
Ages 65+ count for 12.0% of all cases
The chart below shows the RATE of Solano cases by age groups (per 100,000 population, as of today).
COMPARE: Screenshots from Solano County COVID Dashboard yesterday, Thursday, April 15:
The images on this page are from today’s and the previous Solano County COVID-19 Dashboard. The Dashboard is full of much more information and updated weekdays around 4pm. On the County’s dashboard, you can hover a mouse or click on an item for more information. Note the tabs at top for Summary, Demographics and Vaccines. Click here to go to today’s Solano County Dashboard.
Community Group Slams Sheriff For Lack Of Transparency
SFGate.com, by John Glidden, April 15, 2021
Solano County Sheriff Tom Ferrara
Solano County Sheriff Thomas Ferrara has come under fire from critics claiming he hasn’t been completely transparent when he said federal law enforcement cleared several of his deputies of being members of an extremist organization.
Ferrara told Benicia Black Lives Matter (BBLM) in a letter this week that the FBI “confirmed none of my employees are members of any extremist organizations.”
This includes the Three Percenters militia group, which advocates for the Second Amendment and the right for private gun ownership, along with active resistance toward the U.S. government.
Ferrara and the Sheriff’s Office have not released any official reports or documents supporting Ferrara’s claim that his deputies were absolved of being part of an extremist organization.
“I’m not comfortable with the sheriff’s response,” said Nimat Shakoor-Grantham, co-founder of BBLM, on Thursday. “(Ferrara) has proof that deputies in his office supported these groups in the past. You can take off the uniform but you can’t take off the bias.”
Three Percenters are an anti-government militia named after the mistaken idea that only 3 percent of the American colonists fought in the revolution against Great Britain.
Shakoor-Grantham pointed to the firing of a Fresno police officer after he allegedly participated in a rally held by the far-right extremist group Proud Boys in mid-March. The officer was placed on leave the following day and then subsequently terminated.
“What other proof does this sheriff need?” she added. “The FBI has deemed militia organizations like this as terrorist groups.”
In its letter, which was also directed at the Benicia City Council, BBLM demanded that Ferrara and the council “not only visibly and vocally condemn right wing extremism, but also pledge to conduct afull investigation both at the County level and at the City level to ensure that policies and procedures – including those focused on recruitment and disciplinary actions – are in place to actively expel these extremists from the ranks of law enforcement and to prevent their recruitment in the first place.”
Brandon Greene, co-founder of BBLM, said Ferrara’s letter showed his unwillingness to weed out extremists in his office and be transparent about his investigation.
“Where is this FBI report?” asked Greene on Thursday. “Put it out to the public and community for scrutiny.”
The county did not respond to a request from this news organization to see the FBI report.
Both Greene and Shakoor-Grantham said the Solano County Board of Supervisors’ decision not to get involved is frustrating.
“The sheriff is almost emboldened by the lack of Board of Supervisor action,” Greene added.
Greene said BBLM sent a letter asking the board to do something, with Supervisor Monica Brown the only one to respond.
“(Supervisor) Monica Brown said the board didn’t have the power to investigate,” Greene said.
Greene says that isn’t true, as a newly enacted law, Assembly Bill 1185, allows the board to create a civilian sheriff oversight board and inspector general position. The board and inspector general would have subpoena power to investigate issues within the sheriff’s office.
Shakoor-Grantham and Greene said they have approached the board to have an item placed on the agenda to discuss the issues raised by the Open Vallejo investigation.
“So far, it’s been crickets,” Shakoor-Grantham said. “They won’t talk about it.”
A request for comment sent to the clerk of the Solano County Board of Supervisors wasn’t immediately returned on Thursday.
Ferrara continues to reject the findings from Open Vallejo’s investigation, claiming he found “no merit” in the allegations made in the report.
Open Vallejo originally reported that members of Ferrara’s office displayed imagery and support to the Three Percenters over social media during the past few years. Former Solano County sheriff’s Public Information Officer Daniel “Cully” Pratt, who owns a wood-working business, made a gun display rack for his colleague Sgt. Roy Stockton in 2016. Cully Pratt’s brother is well-known actor Chris Pratt.
The piece includes Three Percenter imagery, like 13 shotgun shells arranged in a circle around the Roman numeral III. It also has “WILL NOT COMPLY,” at the bottom of the display. Cully Pratt used the hashtag “#3percenter,” and “blackgunsmatter,” among others in the Instagram post.
Cully Pratt told The Vacaville Reporter in response to the Open Vallejo article that the symbols in the post were “believed to be strictly in support of the 2nd Amendment and Pro-America — not in any way extremist anti-government views.”
However, in the same year Cully Pratt unveiled his art on Instagram, Three Percenters from Idaho sent some of its members over to the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in Oregon during an armed standoff with federal officials.
Stockton, who was recently elected to the Vacaville City Council, also sold leather products under the name High Brass Leather and another business. As of Thursday evening, the High Brass Leather website had been taken down. For a time, a product was displayed on the site showing a coiled snake and a Roman numeral three surrounded by 13 stars.
Open Vallejo also uncovered that Ferrara’s office homeless outreach coordinator, Deputy Dale Matsuoka, under the name Matt Daley posted Three Percenter imagery over his social media.
With the lack of information coming from the Board of Supervisors and Ferrara’s office, Shakoor-Grantham says she is fearful interacting with sheriff’s deputies.
“I can’t call the sheriff’s office for support,” she said. “I don’t want them coming to my house. I’m a Black woman. It scares me.”
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