Proposition 47
Over the past year, protests over police shootings have brought renewed attention to racial disparities in arrest, conviction and incarceration rates. In California, efforts to reform the criminal justice system are already underway. One year ago, voters passed Proposition 47. The landmark law reduces certain nonviolent crimes from felonies to misdemeanors. It also gives felons convicted of those crimes an opportunity to have their sentence reduced. Thuy Vu talks with San Francisco District Attorney George Gascón, San Diego County Chief Deputy District Attorney David Greenberg and Brandon Martin, research associate at the Public Policy Institute of California.
Wind Turbines
If you've ever driven through the Altamont Pass near Livermore, you've noticed the thousands of windmills - turbines, technically - in the area. Those turbines generate energy from the wind. But they also pose a threat to the thousands of birds that fly through the Altamont. Hundreds of birds of prey die in collisions with turbines every year. This week, one of the largest wind farm operators at the Altamont says it is shutting down all of its turbines there. The company, Altamont Winds Inc., wants to replace them with fewer, more efficient turbines. As KQED Science producer Gabriela Quirós reports, biologists say such steps are needed to protect threatened species.
Million-Dollar Shack
Unless you have a lot of money, buying a house in the Bay Area is not easy. Home prices in the region have jumped more than 8 percent during the past 12 months, according to data from Core Logic. In Santa Clara and San Francisco counties, prices have increased by more than 16 percent in that time. Thuy Vu talks to local filmmakers Michelle Joyce and Steve Fyffe about a documentary they made about their struggle to buy a home in this very hot market.