- Ferguson documents: How the grand jury reached a decision (NPR's The Two-Way blog):
... In a rare move and in an attempt to allay concerns about bias, St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney Robert McCulloch made public the mountain of evidence that was presented to the grand jury. We're combing through the thousands of pages — including testimony from Wilson and many witnesses — and throughout the day, we'll update this post with the pieces that help explain how those 12 people reached their decision. Full story
- Law and disorder in Ferguson: 10 must-reads from coverage of the decision and its aftermath (The Marshall Project):
Three months after it began its work, the grand jury in Ferguson, Missouri, chose Monday not to indict white police officer Darren Wilson for killing black, unarmed teenager Michael Brown last August. In this, the grand jury of nine whites and three blacks was no different from grand juries all over the country that previously have excused police officers following shooting deaths like this. Our nation’s legal standards, its broad definitions of the use of “deadly force,” make it extremely difficult for police officers ever to face criminal charges even when an unarmed citizen dies after an altercation like this. Full story
- Allegations of police misconduct rarely result in charges (FiveThirtyEight):
... Police shootings, and allegations of police misconduct in general, almost never make it in front of a grand jury. And officers rarely face legal consequences for allegations of misconduct. As is the case with police shooting statistics, comprehensive numbers on accusations of police misconduct are hard to come by. There is no national reporting requirement for such accusations; in fact, many places have laws to purposefully keep the details of misconduct investigations out of the public eye. Full story
- San Francisco's technology boom spreads into Financial District (San Francisco Chronicle):
... Since 2010, the amount of space that tech companies occupy in San Francisco towers over 12 stories has jumped from 3.5 million square feet to 7.2 million square feet, according to the commercial real estate brokerage CBRE. That’s the equivalent of more than 14 Transamerica Pyramids and enough space to house about 35,000 workers. And much more is coming. Of the eight office buildings under construction in the city, 100 percent of the space has been pre-leased to technology companies. Uber, LinkedIn, Dropbox, Salesforce and Splunk have combined to take 2.5 million square feet in buildings that have not yet opened. Full story
- FDA to require calorie count, even for movie popcorn (New York Times):
The Food and Drug Administration announced sweeping rules on Tuesday that will require chain restaurants, movie theaters and pizza parlors across the country to post calorie counts on their menus. ... The rules will have broad implications for public health. As much as a third of the calories that Americans consume come from outside the home, and many health experts believe that increasingly large portion sizes and unhealthy ingredients have been significant contributors to obesity in the United States. Full story
- Berkeley High students wage campaign against sexual harassment (Berkeleyside):
Earlier this year, some male students at Berkeley High School created “slut accounts” on Instagram. The accounts included photos of female students with misogynistic, sexual captions. A number of the instigators were suspended as a result. However, a group of students who have launched an anti-sexual harassment campaign on campus say the punishment doesn’t help curb the culture that set the stage for the incident in the first place. Full story
- Baykeeper to sue San Jose for sewage spills and trash pollution (San Jose Mercury News):
In a move that could force the city of San Jose to spend millions modernizing its sewage system, cleaning up trash and removing homeless encampments, an environmental group announced Monday it will file a lawsuit under the Clean Water Act charging the city with failing to stop pollution from washing into creeks and San Francisco Bay. The group, San Francisco Baykeeper, said San Jose has had 780 sewage spills over the past five years, and has allowed tons of trash to flow into the Guadalupe River and Coyote Creek through its storm drain system. Full story
- Unanimous Sonoma County vote protects streamside corridors (Santa Rosa Press-Democrat):
County supervisors Monday adopted a hard-won compromise between farmers and environmental groups, advancing protective buffer zones along 3,200 miles of streams and rivers in the county. “This is a historic day,” Board Chairman David Rabbitt said. “It wasn’t easy to get here.” Supervisors unanimously approved the measure shielding 82,000 acres of land outside city limits, most of it on private property, from future farming and development. Full story
- Santa Clara to spend $2 million on Super Bowl fete (San Jose Mercury News):
Although Super Bowl 50 organizers have raised $40 million to fund a week of events throughout the Bay Area, the city hosting the actual game -- Santa Clara -- will be on its own to pay for a slate of festivities showing itself off to the world. Santa Clara officials on Monday unveiled a $2 million package of about a dozen events leading up to the February 2016 game at the new Levi's Stadium, headlined by a parade and fireworks extravaganza. But the city will have to start from scratch to raise private money for the showcase -- and if that campaign falls short, taxpayers will be on the hook. Full story
- Author Isabel Allende gets Presidential Medal of Freedom (Marin Independent Journal):
As Marin author Isabel Allende received the nation's highest civilian honor, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, at a White House ceremony on Monday morning, President Barack Obama quoted her, saying, "Write to register history. Write what should not be forgotten." A resident of San Rafael, Allende was one of 18 medal recipients, including Tom Brokaw, Stevie Wonder and Meryl Streep. Full story
- The legacy of Pablo Sandoval (San Francisco Chronicle):
The way the man maneuvered around the diamond despite his overflowing physique — wow. How he swung at seemingly unhittable pitches and often got hits — wow. Ranging far to his left or right, hitting the deck and getting up to throw a strike to first base — wow. That energy, passion and star power, especially in October — wow, wow and wow. Pablo Sandoval will be missed on so many levels, a face of three championship teams and a body that only a mother and Giants fan could love. Sometimes frustrated by Sandoval’s undisciplined approach to hitting — and dieting — fans were delighted by his many triumphs. Full story
Morning Digest: 11 Stories You Should Know About Today
![](https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2014/11/oakland-ferguson141124a-800x600.jpg)
Protesters lie down in the intersection of 14th and Broadway in downtown Oakland during Monday night's Ferguson shooting protest. (Mark Andrew Boyer/KQED)
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