A 24-year-old woman named Ann was jogging west on JFK Drive in Golden Gate Park in late June when a hulking man she didn’t know locked his arm in hers, acting, she said, like “they were going to run off into the sunset together.”

She said she pulled away, but that he grabbed her arm and then her waist. She screamed, “Keep your hands off me!” and turned around to bolt in the other direction. Hey chased her. Ann asked a couple walking nearby if she could join them for protection as she called 911.

She waited for police, answered their questions, identified the man — who lingered nearby — and gave officers photos she’d taken of him following her on her phone. The man who was part of the couple she’d been walking with talked to police, too, backing up her account.

In other words, Ann did everything right. Surely, this was a slam-dunk case.

nope Emergency in San Francisco.

Not in a city where scary, threatening behavior may be deemed OK as long as nobody suffers serious physical injuries. And not in a city where misdemeanor crimes are seldom prosecuted.

More than three months after police arrested Bill Gene Hobbs, 33, that evening in Golden Gate Park — and weeks after at least six women filed similar police reports about Hobbs chasing, grabbing and even forcibly kissing them — he remains on the streets free of consequences , spotted Wednesday in Cow Hollow and Thursday in the Marina.

So far, the city’s criminal justice system seems to be sending Ann and the other women a clear message: You’re on your own. Buy pepper spray, hustle along and hope for the best.

“I was truly just a piece of prey to this man, and I’ve never been so scared in my entire life,” said Ann, who asked that The Chronicle identify her by her middle name because she fears for her safety.

After the encounter, she said she got a guard dog, installed more locks on her door, bought pepper spray and saw a therapist. Those terrifying minutes in the park changed her life.

As for Hobbs, not so much.

Police arrested him at 5:37 pm June 25 on suspicion of misdemeanor battery for allegedly grabbing Ann, but the office of District Attorney Brooke Jenkins discharged the case on July 13 for lack of evidence, though it could be revived.

Until I told Ann, she was unaware that her quick actions, cooperation with police, photos of the assailant and the witness’ account hadn’t been enough to charge Hobbs. And she was outraged.

“I don’t know what else I could have done,” she said. “Do they expect every woman in this city to walk around with a GoPro strapped to their head?”

It’s a fair question. About a dozen women have shared stories in this column about frightening encounters with a man they believe is Hobbs, who stands 6-feet-4 inches, weighs 210 pounds, sports a buzz cut and has tattoos all over his body including the letters EVIL inked on his fingers.

Countless more women have said on NextDoor and Facebook that he harassed them too. Quiet, nothing.

The Chronicle has not been able to verify that Hobbs was involved in each of the complaints about him on social media in recent weeks, but in a phone interview last month, he admitted he approaches women he finds attractive — while asserting that he never gets physical . Hobbs did not return phone messages left for him on Thursday and Friday.

Hobbs has a significant criminal record, with numerous past arrests in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Kern and Ventura counties and convictions for crimes including drunken driving, driving on a suspended license, theft and being under the influence of drugs.

Hobbs’ history of avoiding consequences in San Francisco spans years.

In December 2020, he allegedly followed and grabbed a 15-year-old in West Portal. He was charged with misdemeanor child molestation and battery and spent a few months in jail before Superior Court Judge Russell Roeca dismissed the case “in the interest of justice,” wiping clear Hobbs’ record and an order to stay away from the teenager.

Hobbs has faced charges in six other cases in San Francisco dating back to 2017, accused of crimes including trespassing, false imprisonment and battery. All were dismissed by judges.

Police Capt. Tim Falvey told me Thursday that all district captains have been notified about Hobbs and told to be on the alert for suspicious behavior against women, but that as of Thursday there was no warrant for his arrest.

A source familiar with the police investigation into Hobbs, but not authorized to speak publicly, said Deputy Chief Raj Vaswani, who oversees the investigations bureau, is leading the effort to build a solid case against the alleged stalker and is working closely with the DA’s office .

But so far, no individual account rises above a possible charge of misdemeanor battery or assault, according to the source. Though such a charge would be punishable by up to six months in jail, police have seen their efforts to arrest Hobbs repeatedly brushed off by the District Attorney’s Office or Superior Court judges and want to ensure their efforts this time stick, the source said.

Police are encouraging women to seek individual restraining orders against Hobbs — and at least one is known to have been served to Hobbs by sheriff’s deputies already. Hobbs is no longer staying at an address associated with him near the University of San Francisco, the source said, and may be trying to dodge police by bouncing around the city.

(Hobbs is no stranger to the concept of restraining orders. This past week, he sought one against me for being a “stalker, cyber bully and antagonist,” but a Superior Court judge quickly rejected it.)

Emberly Cross, who runs the citywide Cooperative Restraining Order Clinic, which helps people seek protection from their abusers, said it’s frustrating that police are putting the onus on women to seek their own court orders.

“That’s what the criminal legal system says when they’re punting a case,” Cross said. “It says nothing is going to happen on the criminal legal side.”

She said women would need to put their full names on requests for restraining orders and attend a court hearing at which Hobbs could appear, which can be a scary experience.

“To me, this gentleman really highlights the problem with the criminal legal system,” she said. “These women are screaming at him, screaming at the system, and nothing is happening. He’s just out living his life without a care in the world while women in the city are scared to go out.”

The city missed yet another chance to get Hobbs off the streets on Aug. 11 when he entered a home on Avila Street in the Marina while the residents were walking their dog.

Jackson, a man who was renting a room in the home, said he returned from his walk to find that Hobbs had parked his bike in the garage and placed his backpack on the floor, before announcing that he was moving in. He noted there was an American flag out front and that he was American.

Jackson’s girlfriend, Riley, listened to the two men’s disturbing conversation from another room and called 911.

“Jackson said, ‘It’s time for you to leave,’ and Bill was shocked,” Riley recalled. “He said, ‘What do you mean? Why would I leave? This is my home now.’ He was very convinced that we were his new family.”

Jackson and Riley, who asked to withhold their last names because they fear for their safety, said police responded quickly and were helpful, but seemed frustrated to have repeatedly picked up Hobbs, only to see him repeatedly released.

Police arrested Hobbs that day on suspicion of trespassing and giving false information to police — he claimed to be Scott Peterson, the name of the California man who notoriously killed his pregnant wife — but Jenkins’ office dismissed that case “in the interest of justice” because he hadn’t stolen anything.

Jackson said he’d never been told by the DA’s office that the case had been dismissed despite a state law requiring crime victims to be notified of developments in their cases.

When she was pushing to recall her former boss, Chesa Boudin, Jenkins repeatedly said he’d failed to hold repeat offenders accountable and had dropped the ball in keeping crime victims informed. Now, it appears she’s having the same problems.

I’ve made several requests to interview Jenkins about the Hobbs case, but she hasn’t been made available. Her spokesperson emailed a statement from her saying the managing attorney for the office’s child abuse and sexual abuse unit is working closely with the police on its investigation.

“We will take every step possible to hold Hobbs accountable when we’re able to bring forward a case that we can prove beyond a reasonable doubt,” Jenkins said in the statement. “Multiple incidents can be prosecuted together so the court understands the gravity of Hobbs’ conduct.”

Former San Francisco Public Defender Geoff Brown had a lot of thoughts on the episode — and not necessarily ones you’d expect from a public defender. He said the city has options to deal with Hobbs.

The city could seek a civil injunction against him for disturbing women on a broad scale, serving him papers notifying him to not engage in grabbing, forcibly kissing or chasing women again. Then if he repeats the behavior, he can be picked up for violating a court order and jailed, Brown said.

Meanwhile, he said, police and the DA should build a broad case and seek multiple consecutive sentences, bringing witnesses from a variety of incidents before a judge and jury.

“This boils down to one thing we haven’t done in San Francisco — we don’t take misdemeanors seriously,” Brown said. “I always thought there was a case for a good misdemeanor prosecution that stops particularly bad behavior, but now it’s like they don’t count.”

Ann, the 24-year-old jogger, believes his encounter with Hobbs should count. But only several days ago did an advocate from the DA’s victim services division call her to see if she needed assistance.

“She was like, ‘Yeah, you’ve probably heard a lot about this guy in the press.’ I said, ‘What?’” Ann recalled, noting that she then found my columns and scoured NextDoor to learn about the many other alleged incidents.

Ann said she also got a call from a police investigator who told her the department hopes to persuade Jenkins to charge her case after all and use it as part of a larger case against Hobbs.

For now, Ann waits — and wonders why there have been few repercussions for the alleged attacker who upturned her life.

“How many women have to be traumatized?” she asked. “I just don’t understand how loudly we need to scream to be heard.”

Heather Knight is a San Francisco Chronicle columnist. Email: hknight@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @hknightsf

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Waymo is beginning to operate electric Jaguar I-PACE SUVs in San Francisco with no human safety driver at the wheel.

Waymo

Waymo, the first self-driving company to launch a US robotaxi service, said it’s shifting to fully autonomous vehicle operation in San Francisco and expanding the service area where its Arizona robotaxi fleet operates into downtown Phoenix.

The Alphabet Inc. unit, which began testing Jaguar I-PACE electric SUVs loaded up with cameras, laser lidar sensors, radar and computers in San Francisco in 2020, said it’s operating some of those vehicles without a human backup driver behind the wheel. For now, they’ll only be hauling Waymo employees, rather than paying customers. Cruise, backed by General Motors, is starting to offer paid autonomous rides to commuters in San Francisco, although Waymo claims it’s the first company to have robotaxi services in more than one location.

“We’re particularly excited about this next phase of our journey as we officially bring our rider-only technology to San Francisco—the city many of us at Waymo call home,” co-CEO Tekedra Mawakana said in a blog post. “We ‘ve learned so much from our San Francisco Trusted Testers over the last six months, not to mention the innumerable lessons from our riders in the years since launching our fully autonomous service in the East Valley of Phoenix. Both of which have directly impacted how we bring forward our service as we welcome our first employee riders in SF.”

The arrival of autonomous ride services in a dense, urban environment like San Francisco is a big accomplishment for a technology that’s proven to be more complex and challenging to perfect than anticipated a few years ago, despite billions of dollars of investment and, in Waymo’s case , more than a decade of R&D. Along with Cruise, Amazon’s Zoox unit is also preparing to launch a San Francisco-based robotic ride service. Competitors including Argo AI, backed by Ford and Volkswagen, and Motional, supported by Hyundai Motor and Aptiv, have plans for their own autonomous ride services in Miami and Las Vegas, respectively.

In addition to its robotaxi program, Waymo is starting to deploy autonomous semi-trucks, initially in Texas, and has been lining up customers and truck builders for what some analysts think could be a compelling business owing to rising demand for freight and a shortage of long-haul truck drivers.

Waymo began giving test rides in autonomous minivans in suburban Phoenix in 2017, and introduced fully autonomous rides in 2020, limiting the service area to East Valley communities including Chandler and Tempe. The company is planning to make the service available in downtown Phoenix as well though just like in San Francisco, initially, only Waymo employees will be getting rides in that part of the city.

“It’s not a matter of validating your technology for certain streets, but deploying a confident Waymo Driver that is prepared to handle what could happen on that type of street anywhere,” Dmitri Dolgov, also Waymo co-CEO, said in the post. ” Just as our learnings from Phoenix’s East Valley transferred to San Francisco, our learnings from San Francisco are already informing our progress in downtown Phoenix.”

Though it’s been generating revenue for a few years, Waymo hasn’t yet disclosed that information or said when it expects to become profitable.

The post Waymo Begins Absolutely Autonomous Checks In San Francisco, Increasing Arizona Robotaxi Zone appeared first on Los Gatos News And Events.

BOULDER CREEK (CBS SF) – With the sky lightening and a strong atmospheric river moving south, Santa Cruz and San Mateo County officials announced on Monday that they were lifting evacuation orders for residents in or within the Live close to the burn scar left by the massive CZU complex fire in 2020.

The order went into effect on Sunday in parts of San Mateo and Santa Cruz counties, where fears were heightened about the fire-ravaged areas of the Santa Cruz Mountains’ ability to withstand the torrential rains.

CONTINUE READING: UPDATE: Flood has closed the lanes of I-880; Harbor Bay Parkway from Alameda to Silverado Trail in Napa

The National Weather Service reported that the mountain town of Ben Lomond had fallen 7 inches in the past 24 hours, but the hills seemed to be holding up.

KPIX 5 weather center: Current conditions, maps, forecasts for your region

Many residents ignored the order and survived the storm in their homes.

“Yes, we’ll stay tuned,” said Steven Coleman from Boulder Creek to KPIX 5 on Saturday night. “Where else should we go?”

Those who stayed cited their experiences of dealing with large storms, evacuation fatigue, and fear of looting.

CONTINUE READING: Atmospheric Flow: San Francisco Bay Area takes wild one-day drive from extreme drought to flooded streets

“We’ll stay until it gets unsafe,” said Coleman.

“We decided to stay,” said another resident of Gloria Sitz.

Most people like Sitz either stayed with family and friends or paid more than a month for hotel rooms during last year’s CZU fire evacuation.

They said they don’t want to deal with it anymore.

“At my location we have a generator, we have chainsaws, we know how to use it, and we are prepared,” said Sitz.

There were lines at the local gas station in Boulder Creek on Saturday night as residents filled gas cans to power their generators.

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“If the power goes out, we have extra power,” said Alfredo Ramirez, who had just filled a five-gallon can. He also stopped.

The post Santa Cruz, San Mateo County Officers Elevate Evacuation Orders For CZU Hearth Burn Zone – CBS San Francisco appeared first on Los Gatos News And Events.

COLFAX (CBS SF) – Containment of the burning river fire in Nevada and Placer counties increased Monday as evacuated residents were allowed to re-enter the fire zone for the first time, according to fire departments.

With the update from Cal Fire on Monday morning, containment was increased to 68 percent overnight. The size of the fire is still just over 2,600 hectares.

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On Monday, firefighters continued to work on strengthening the containment lines around the houses and moving further inside the fire to look for hotspots.

From 1 p.m. on Monday afternoon, evacuated residents were allowed to return to the fire zone for the first time to check their apartments. The fire brigade had previously confirmed that 88 buildings were destroyed and 20 damaged.

For Nevada County, a re-entry center was opened at Bear River High School at 11130 Magnolia Road in Grass Valley from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. for emergency services and other agencies.

Re-entry passes for residents with evacuation orders for the #RiverFire are available at Bear River High School from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. on 8/9. available. Passes will be available later this week at the Sheriff’s Office, 950 Maidu Ave, Nevada City, 8 am-5pm on October 8th-8th, 2013. to be available. pic.twitter.com/zlzDF8VISh

– Nevada County OES (@NevCoOES) August 9, 2021

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The main purpose of the re-entry center is to notify residents of damage to their property and to issue IDs that allow homeowners to return to their apartments in areas that are still closed to the public. Law enforcement will patrol the closed areas and verify entry passports.

A re-entry center will open at Colfax Elementary School at 24825 Ben Taylor Road in Placer County, providing evacuated residents with re-entry badges to the fire area, as well as face masks and information about the safety of the fire area.

UPDATE on evacuation orders for river fires:
A re-entry center is open today from 1pm to 5pm at Colfax Elementary School for people in the mandatory evacuation area. For more information: https://t.co/5WOieDIAm2 #PCSO #RiverFire #ColfaxCA #PlacerCounty pic.twitter.com/5Xc6D6S9Wp

– Placer Sheriff (@PlacerSheriff) August 9, 2021

Evacuated residents can also dial 211 and provide their name, home address and contact information. A representative from the district will contact you within a few hours to follow up.

Residents returning home are advised that the fire brigade will continue to work in the fire zone and reduce their speeds if necessary.

MORE NEWS: 18-year-old victim identified in fatal shooting at weekend house party in Sunnyvale

Cal Fire expects the fire to be fully contained by Friday.

The post Containment Elevated to 68%; Evacuees Allowed to Re-Enter Hearth Zone – CBS San Francisco appeared first on Los Gatos News And Events.

Replacing your home’s heating or cooling equipment costs thousands of dollars. Even on chilly days, such expenses can get you hot under your collar. Therefore, it makes sense to properly maintain your current equipment and make good repairs when necessary. To make sure your heating and air conditioning systems are working properly, they need to be properly installed and maintained – and you need someone to turn to if problems arise.

The Bay Area Consumers’ Checkbook of Heating and Air Conditioning Reviews for Quality and Price will help you find a competent contractor. Through a special agreement with Patch, you can access Checkbook’s updated reviews of Checkbook’s local HVAC services for quality and price for free through April 10 at the link below: Checkbook.org/PatchSFB/HVAC

In Checkbook’s surveys, several companies were rated “superior” for “overall quality” by 90 percent or more of their customers surveyed. But not all contractors are up to the task: some scored far fewer points and received favorable ratings from only 60 percent or fewer of their surveyed customers. Checkbook also found huge price differences. For example, to replace the control board for a Rheem gas oven, Checkbook’s undercover buyers were offered prices between $ 325 and $ 785. As a replacement for the condenser fan motor for a Goodman heat pump, prices ranged from $ 300 to $ 1,040.

Comparing repair prices is difficult because you will likely need to contact a company first to diagnose the problem. Since most companies charge high minimum fees to show yourself, you will likely have to pay something to find out the price of the repairs.

Before planning a repair, ask companies about their minimum fees and hourly rates. Since most repairs are time and material dependent, this information can give you an idea of ​​which companies are likely to be the most cost effective.

Once a company has diagnosed your problem, they should provide you with a fixed written price to fix the problem. If the repair estimate is no more than a few hundred dollars, you can get the company to do it right away. If the estimate exceeds about $ 500, consider seeking additional quotes from other companies.

If you need new equipment it is worth looking around. Have several companies prepare written proposals. While getting multiple deals on new equipment can save most consumers thousands of dollars, most don’t bother to do so. Differences in design can affect how quickly and evenly your system heats and cools your home, how much energy it uses, how much noise it makes, and many other problems.

If you are considering purchasing new equipment, you are skeptical of claims of cost savings from a more energy efficient system. There can be significant savings – and there are compelling public interest reasons to install efficient equipment – but some companies exaggerate selling new or more expensive systems (more efficient equipment costs more money). Have multiple companies make suggestions, document how much the new equipment will reduce your energy bills, and ask questions. You can calculate your own estimates using the Department of Energy’s Home Energy Saver tool at hes.lbl.gov.

For a clear home, Checkbook estimated how buying new appliances with different energy efficiency classes would affect energy costs and found the following:

· For ovens, it usually makes sense to pay an extra cost for a more efficient oven versus buying a minimally efficient model. The resulting energy savings through more efficient devices quickly “pay off” additional acquisition costs.

· Since all new central air conditioning must be fairly energy efficient, in this area it usually doesn’t make financial sense to pay more for a highly efficient model.

If you are replacing both your oven and air conditioning, consider purchasing a hybrid system that uses an air source heat pump backed by an efficient (over 90 AFUE) gas oven. Such systems offer low energy costs, but because they cost much more upfront than standard oven-A / C combinations, their energy savings will take longer to offset these additional costs.

· Geothermal heat pumps offer the lowest annual heating and cooling costs, but these systems are extremely expensive to purchase and install – typically more than $ 24,000, even when generous tax and utility company incentives are taken into account. However, because of the energy savings and long lifespan (roughly twice that of traditional devices), it makes financial sense to consider these once you know you will be around your home for a long time.

· Look for energy saving features like variable speed fans and two stage burners.

· If you are planning an expansion or want to improve the heating or cooling conditions for a room or an upper floor, consider a ductless system. With these devices, which are common in Europe and in hotel rooms, you can control the temperatures in just one room. And because they use very little electricity and don’t lose a lot of the energy that air carries through pipelines, they are very energy efficient.

Investing thousands of extra dollars in high efficiency equipment doesn’t make sense if your house is drafty, poorly insulated, or if you set your thermostat to a tropical temperature in winter. Before upgrading your equipment, make sure your attic is well insulated and plug any easy-to-fix leaks (advice on these topics can be found on Checkbook.org). The best way to reduce home energy bills is the obvious one: pull down your thermostat and get a programmable thermostat and start using it.

Heating and air conditioning services are likely to push for annual professional maintenance visits, and many will offer a maintenance contract. Such frequent professional service may not be required if you carefully perform the most important maintenance task: replacing air filters when they are dirty.

Pay by credit card, whether you need repairs or a new device. If you are unsatisfied with the work, you can dispute the charge with your credit card company.

_______________________

Bay Area Consumers’ Checkbook Magazine and Checkbook.org is a non-profit organization that aims to provide the best service and the lowest prices to consumers. It is supported by consumers and does not take any money from the service providers it evaluates. You will have free access to all Checkbook reviews of HVAC services in the region through April 10 at Checkbook.org/PatchSFB/HVAC

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