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SATURDAY, MAY 30, 2020 • SANTA ROSA, CALIFORNIA • PRESSDEMOCRAT.COM

Sheriff digs in on health order

Essick ‘not following
this f--king health order’ as
apparent deal collapses
By JULIE JOHNSON
THE PRESS DEMOCRAT
Sonoma County Sheriff Mark
Essick doubled down Friday on
his stunning announcement
a day before that his deputies
would stop enforcing Health
Officer Dr. Sundari Mase’s pub-
lic health order, a move likely
to thrust the
county into an
confirmed his
stance Friday
came forward publicly to voice
support in its wake.
al times throughout the after-
noon, forging agreements in one
explosive na- evening, rough- Instead, the county’s top phone call with fellow county
tional debate
about limits on
ly 24 hours
after his sud-
elected leaders and health au-
thorities were drawn into a
leaders, and abruptly changing
his position in the aftermath.
liberty and eco- den statement, hastily arranged online meeting Then, in a 5 p.m. interview,
nomic activity posted on so- Friday morning where many he said his stance from Thurs-
amid the coro- cial media, that thought they had secured a deal day would not change — that
navirus pan- he was pulling with Essick — one they intend- come Monday, his deputies
Sundari Mark
demic. his deputies ed to announce as a group in the would only educate the public
Mase Essick
Essick, who back from any afternoon, according to several about the local health order, but
publicly complained that he’d enforcement of Mase’s health officials at the meeting. not enforce it. Speaking with
been sidelined in key decisions order. The move caught county But that announcement nev- emotion, Essick said he felt the
and ignored by county super- supervisors and peers in law en- er came, and Essick was said to
visors and top administrators, forcement by surprise, and none have changed his mind sever- TURN TO SHERIFF » PAGE A2

REACHING MILESTONE » 2020 GRADUATION 14 test

Drive-thru positive
at local
celebrations
Roman Hutchison adjusts his mask while participating in the drive-thru graduation
winery
CORONAVIRUS » Cluster
ceremony Friday at Maria Carrillo High School in Santa Rosa. 1 of 3 separate outbreaks
at workplaces in county
By MARTIN ESPINOZA
THE PRESS DEMOCRAT

Fourteen workers at a Sono-

ma County winery recently
tested positive for coronavirus,
Public Health Officer Dr. Sund-
ari Mase said Friday, offering
no other details about the out-
break.
The incident is one of three
separate workplace outbreaks
Mase recently cited as part of
the reason she halted further
steps to reopen the local econo-
my this week.
During a previous press brief-
ing, Mase said recent infections
were also found among workers
at a water filter manufacturing
plant and among a group of
farmworkers. But she and oth-
er health officials have failed to
respond to repeated inquiries
about the outbreaks, including
the names of the businesses,

TURN TO WINERY » PAGE A12

Bishop slated
PHOTOS BY CHRISTOPHER CHUNG / THE PRESS DEMOCRAT

Helen Tewolde cheers with her diploma in hand while returning to her vehicle Friday during the drive-thru commencement at Maria Carrillo High to hold Mass
School in Santa Rosa. This weekend marks the kickoff of graduation celebrations in Sonoma County for about 5,300 members of the class of 2020.
against order
Emotions flow for seniors as they get to walk stage — alone, with masks By GUY KOVNER
THE PRESS DEMOCRAT
By KERRY BENEFIELD trements were affixed to vehicles, along day and celebrate this senior class.
THE PRESS DEMOCRAT with painted messages of good luck for Maria Carrillo had originally planned Santa Rosa’s Catholic bishop

I
t wasn’t the synchronized walk around
the track and onto the athletic field as
“Pomp and Circumstance” played like
for graduations past, but rather a long
line of cars, idling in the Maria Carrillo
High School parking lot, waiting for the
moment when each student was given the
OK to leave their car and take their spot
onstage.
Instead of families gathered in the
bleachers, moms and dads clutching bal-
loons and homemade signs, those accou-
the class of 2020. Prohibited from getting for Friday night’s event to be less formal. is considering leading a Pen-
out of their cars, parents They were calling it a tecost Sunday Mass at his dio-
stretched out of windows ONLINE senior celebration and cese’s most important church in
recording the moment on See more photos and video from slideshow until the county defiance of a county health or-
their phones. the graduation ceremony at Maria received the green light to der aimed at curbing the spread
There were no hand- Carrillo at pressdemocrat.com hold drive-thru ceremo- of the coronavirus pandemic.
shakes as diplomas were nies. The staff switched Bishop Robert Vasa said
handed to students Friday afternoon as gears immediately and decided to go full- Thursday he would officiate at
they crossed the stage, and Principal Katie tilt with diploma presentations and many the 10:30 a.m. Mass, one of five
Barr wore gloves. The county health order of the other elements of a graduation that Sunday Masses, at the Cathe-
in light of the coronavirus pandemic put staff, students and parents have come to dral of St. Eugene in Santa Rosa,
strict requirements on how schools across known as the bishop’s church.
Sonoma County could mark graduation TURN TO MILESTONE » PAGE A2 The in-person services were
advertised earlier in the week
as a “blessed and glorious gift”
for celebrating the birth of the

Protests flare nationwide over killing

church.
The bishop, who oversees a
six-county diocese with about
196,000 Catholics, said the

MINNEAPOLIS » Officer
charged with murder of
unarmed black suspect
By AMY FORLITI, TIM SULLIVAN
AND SUDHIN THANAWALA
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Demonstrators marched,
stopped traffic and in some cas-
es lashed out violently at police
as protests erupted Friday in
dozens of U.S. cities following
the killing of George Floyd after
a white officer pressed a knee
into his neck while taking him
into custody in Minneapolis.
The officer, Derek Chauvin,
44, was arrested Friday and
charged with third-degree mur-
der and second-degree man-
slaughter. He also was accused night after protesters torched
of ignoring another officer who an abandoned police station.
have handled the crisis.
In Atlanta, Phoenix, Denver,
TURN TO BISHOP » PAGE A9
expressed concerns about Floyd Thousands of protesters Las Vegas, Los Angeles, the Bay
as he lay handcuffed on the marched through downtown
ground, pleading Minneapolis past
Area and beyond, thousands
of protesters carried signs that
INSIDE
that he could not INSIDE curfew and encir- said: “He said I can’t breathe. SANTA ROSA
breathe as Chauvin Minneapolis, which has cled a police precinct Justice for George.” They chant- High 66, Low 49
pressed his knee raged and mourned station. “Prosecute ed “No justice, no peace” and
THE WEATHER, C8
into his neck for sev- since video emerged of the police!” some “Say his name. George Floyd.”
eral minutes. Floyd, man’s killing by police, chanted, and “Say After hours of peaceful pro-
who was black, had has endured the painful his name: George test in downtown Atlanta, some Advice B11 Horoscopes B9
been arrested on sequence before / B1 Floyd!” There was demonstrators began smashing Business B12 Lotto A2
suspicion of using a no violence, but police cars — setting one on fire Classified D3 Nation-World B1
counterfeit bill at a store. some protesters sprayed graf- — spray-painting the iconic logo Comics B10 Obituaries B3
Chauvin, who was fired along fiti on buildings. Elsewhere in sign at CNN headquarters, and Crossword B11 Sonoma Home D1
with three other officers who the city, officers fired tear gas breaking into a restaurant. The
Editorial A10 Sports C1
were at the scene, faces more and rubber bullets to drive back crowd pelted officers with bot-
than 12 years in prison if con- crowds. tles, chanting “Quit your jobs.”
victed of murder. It wasn’t clear if — or how — At least three officers were
Authorities in Minneapolis authorities would enforce the hurt and there were multiple
imposed overnight curfews to curfew amid sharp questions
try to tamp down protests a about how city and state leaders TURN TO PROTESTS » PAGE A12 ©2020 The Press Democrat
A2
Graduate Bryce Walls wears his mask while walking to the stage during the drive-thru
commencement Friday at Maria Carrillo High School in Santa Rosa.
MILESTONE
CONTINUED FROM A1
expect over the years.
“Driving through,
seeing everyone — I had
no idea what to imagine,
so this is cool to see it,” an
emotional Camilla Conte
said. “It feels satisfying.
I wasn’t expecting it to
feel as grand as it did but
actually I feel like they did
a good job. It was fun to
walk across the stage and
see everyone watching.
“It’s so clear that they
are doing the best they can
and I feel like they did a
good job.”
Patrick Oliver agreed.
“It’s definitely a lot in
terms of what they can do
with separation and what-
not. It’s pretty exciting to
actually walk across the
stage and get the diploma,
actually handed and every-
thing,” he said. “It’s been
super exciting. I think they
did a really good job. It’s
been fun so far.”
This weekend marks the
beginning of graduation
celebrations for about
5,300 members of the class
of 2020 across Sonoma
County. Elsie Allen and
Santa Rosa High celebrat-
ed their seniors Thursday.
At Santa Rosa, there was
a festive drive-thru party
replete with DJ, confetti
cannon, dancing and a
T-shirt giveaway. Piner
High hosted a drive-thru
event Thursday in which
seniors picked up their
caps and gowns and they
launched a virtual com-
mencement video Friday
night. Montgomery had
a drive-thru event Friday
along with the airing of a
video ceremony. Rancho
Cotate, too, aired their
virtual commencement
video, along with similar
efforts from Petaluma and
Casa Grande.
Windsor and Cardinal
Newman are planning
celebrations Saturday, and
Healdsburg, Analy and El
Molino are scheduled to
celebrate next weekend.
For Mayuka Anderson,
daughter Audrey’s big day
at Maria Carrillo was her
first graduation as a mom.
“I’m from a different
country and I don’t have
the traditions,” she said.
“I’m a little disappoint-
ed that we can’t have a
traditional graduation, but
they tried. I’m happy with
their effort, they tried to
do their best.”
A public address system
had “Pomp and Circum-
stance” playing on loop as
a predetermined group of
seniors went through the
drive-thru in 30-minute
intervals. One-by-one the
seniors stepped from their
cars and, just like tradi-
tional graduation, heard
their name read over the
The Press
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Darius Anderson, Managing Member
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THE PRESS DEMOCRAT • SATURDAY, MAY 30, 2020
SHERIFF ment were also present.
In an interview after that
call, Gorin said she had
CONTINUED FROM A1 “a commitment from the
Sheriff’s Office to enforce
county was “trading lives respects Mase’s authori- the public health officer
for lives at this point. All ty and wants to continue orders to the best of their
around me I see crushed working with her. ability.”
families, crushed relation- But he said law enforce- But Essick withheld his
ships, a crushed economy.” ment should be included support in the following
“I’m not following this in policymaking talks for hours, creating confusion
f--king health order, and rules his agency is being among county leaders and
my original statement asked to enforce. the public. The Sheriff’s
that we’re done on June  1 He compared the un- Office after 1 p.m. posted
stands until Dr. Mase is precedented limits to civil a brief update on its Face-
able to provide me with liberties during the pan- book page saying the de-
enough information that demic to the decision he partment still intended to
we’re on the right path,” made to evacuate nearly abandon enforcement of
Essick said. 200,000 people during the the public health order.
The sheriff said his dep- Kincade fire last year. By 4 p.m., Mase, Rob-
uties will continue edu- “It was an emergency inson and Gorin believed
cating residents about the situation,” Essick said. “As they had again reached an
health order and guidance soon as the threat was mit- agreement with Essick to
PHOTOS BY CHRISTOPHER CHUNG / THE PRESS DEMOCRAT
to wear masks in public, igated, we let people back avoid such a yawning rift
wash hands and keep a in. That’s what’s missing in policy and enforcement.
distance of 6 feet from oth- here.” Mase announced on a call
ers. But he stuck by his Since he took his stance with reporters: “The sher-
original demand: that the
health department needed
to provide more data and
against Mase’s health or-
der Thursday, Essick said
he has felt “bullied” by
iff has agreed to enforce
the orders.”
Essick dispelled that no-
collaboration before he local elected officials, and tion only an hour later in
would commit to enforc- he singled out Rep. Jared an interview.
ing Mase’s order, saying he Huffman, one of Sonoma His 24-hour stand came
was elected as sheriff “to County’s two congress- just two days after county
defend the people of this men, who convened Friday supervisors roundly gave
county.” morning’s meeting with public support for Mase’s
He did not, however, in- Essick and lawmakers. decision this week to pause
form fellow elected leaders “I’m mindful that I’m a the county’s reopening for
he was persisting in his member of the U.S. Con- at least 14 days after re-
stand, according to state gress, it’s not my place to porting COVID-19 trends
Sen. Mike McGuire and Su- dictate to a sheriff how to she characterized as “red
pervisor Lynda Hopkins. do his job,” Huffman said. flags.”
They voiced shock Essick “It’s not my place to tell No other law enforce-
Graduate Bella Lepe smiles as she crosses the stage after
had backed away from his the county how to set up ment agency has followed
receiving her diploma Friday at Maria Carrillo High School.
promise earlier in the day its communications or its the sheriff’s lead, and many
loudspeaker and ascend- with her diploma case to withdraw his “non-en- rules. law enforcement leaders,
ed the steps to the stage in hand, Haley Joerger forcement threat.” “But we all represent the including the Santa Rosa
where they received their spotted Emma Huntsing- “This community has same people, and I thought Police Chief Ray Navarro,
diploma jacket in front of er five spaces away in the been through so much over it would help to use my po- have publicly vowed to en-
the MC logo on the gym parking lot where both the past 2½ years — mul- sition to help bring people force Mase’s health order.
wall. They were allowed families were watching tiple devastating wildfires together,” Huffman said. Other elected officials
to remove their masks for the senior slideshow. and floods — and we’ve “And the fact that the sher- called out the sheriff on
photographs, taken both Joerger immediately always come out stronger iff views that as bullying social media Friday. Super-
by a professional shooter shed tears. by working together,” Mc- suggests he’s in a fragile visor-elect Chris Coursey
and family members in “I couldn’t run up Guire said. “Cooler heads and dark place right now said Essick had done “a
cars, before descending the and give her a hug,” must prevail. There’s too and that causes me to wor- disservice to his commu-
stage for another round of she said, noting they much at stake for ego.” ry.” nity and his government
photos in front of a Puma hadn’t seen each other County health officers McGuire said Essick’s and law enforcement col-
backdrop. in person since shelter have broad authority claim he had been bullied leagues with this back-and-
The cars then moved to in place went into effect during health emergen- is “100% inaccurate.” forth sh-t show.”
the south end of the park- in March. “And she’s my cies to sharply restrict ac- “Congressman Huffman “‘Protect and Serve’
ing lot where a slideshow best friend.” tivities and take measures was an absolute statesman. means you work togeth-
of senior portraits played The coming together to stem dangers to public It’s disappointing to see the er to keep the community
on a massive screen. On of classmates and teach- health. Mase issued her sheriff go his own way. The safe. These actions under-
their own time, cars pulled ers, even under these first order in mid-March community deserves bet- mine the work that local
out and drove away. No circumstances, brought and has since followed a ter than this,” McGuire government has done for
tassels from right to left, home all that they were succession of state guide- said. the past 10 weeks — work
no mortar boards tossed missing, she said. lines that have allowed her Gov. Gavin Newsom has that has kept our infection
into the air. No speeches. “You miss everything to loosen restrictions. been clear that local health and death rates relatively
The class of 2020 spoke and the way life was But with a recent in- officers must make deci- low,” Coursey said.
of making the best of it before quarantine,” she crease in cases, hospital- sions based on local data. Santa Rosa Councilman
and their appreciation for said. izations and person-to-per- He underscored during Ernesto Olivares, a retired
all the effort that had been The emotions of the son transmission, Mase his public briefing Friday police lieutenant who ran
put in to mark their big day got to Conte, too. this week announced she that the state’s guidance against Essick in 2018,
day. But there was a slice “I’m just so grateful would pause any further allowing some businesses called his decision “appall-
of sadness, too. that they have been reopening for 14 days until to reopen and community ing” and said he was “mis-
“I think it would defi- trying so hard through- she can be sure the county activities to resume are not interpreting the gover-
nitely be a lot better if out this whole process,” is not running headlong directives. nor’s guidelines, adding to
could be physically close she said. “It’s hard to say into a surge of illness that “We are not mandating the confusion of an already
to all my friends while goodbye but I love seeing could overwhelm its medi- a pace for opening,” New- frustrated public.”
I’m graduating,” Oliver everyone. It’s just a big cal resources. som said. “The Sheriff’s ill-in-
said. “And the speeches combination of every- Just last week, the coun- Responding for the formed decision has caused
would have definitely be a thing, I guess.” ty published demograph- Governor’s Office to a fol- a dangerous division in lo-
huge part. And I’m in the But like other seniors, ic data showing the virus low-up question posed by cal law enforcement that
choir at my school so we Conte said she was was disproportionately The Press Democrat about puts the public and officers
would have been singing a trying to find positives affecting Latino residents, any potential state rever- in harm’s way,” Oliveras
song and whatnot, so it’s and things she can learn who represent 27% of the berations from Essick’s wrote.
definitely a bummer to in these unprecedented population but a startling stance, a representative Petaluma Mayor Teresa
miss all of that but this is a times. 70% of reported cases of from the state Department Barrett issued a statement
good substitute.” “I’m definitely going COVID-19. That was anoth- of Public Health replied in Friday calling for Essick
The actual stage was to be more appreciative er point of concern in addi- an email, “Suggest you ask to be removed from office,
the selling point for senior of the moment. I’m going tion to outbreaks at some the sheriff.” describing his actions as
Ryan Murgatroyd. to do my best to do that workplaces, Mase said. “Local health officials “reckless.”
“It was pretty cool for the rest of my life,” But Essick pointed to know their communities “He needs to go,” she
honestly. I would have Conte said. “I don’t know the low rate of illness in best and Californians wrote.
rather had an in-person if you can experience Sonoma County, where should pay attention and Hopkins, late Friday,
graduation on the field but this without realizing only 2% of the 25,258 tests listen to these leaders,” an said such options still
it was the best we could that, almost.” for COVID-19 have resulted unnamed Public Health stand and she urged Essick
do and they put on a great Oliver, a member of in positive diagnoses. The spokesperson added in a to view Mase’s expertise
graduation,” he said. “It the Carrillo choir, had public health department statement. on health matters with as
was cool how they had the been looking forward to reported 322 current active Essick’s move was a much regard as he gave to
stage as they would on the the group singing a song cases as of Friday night, in- dramatic rejection of an the fire officials who ad-
field up there; it almost at the graduation. They cluding 10 people currently accord that Board of Su- vised him on evacuations
made it feel like it was were going to sing “See hospitalized with the dis- pervisors Chairwoman during the Kincade fire.
a normal graduation in You Again” by Wiz Khal- ease. Susan Gorin believed the Hopkins said her constitu-
these weird times.” ifa and Charlie Puth. It Essick said Mase’s rules group of senior officials ents in the west county ini-
Getting the diploma was a fitting pick that have in some cases seemed had reached during the tially pushed back against
case — the real one can be ends with these lyrics: arbitrary and difficult for Friday morning meeting evacuation orders because
picked up later — was the “So let the light guide his deputies to defend, convened by Huffman and the fire, burning in north-
key for Alejandro Rodri- your way, hold every such permitting patio din- attended by Rep. Mike eastern Sonoma County,
guez. memory, ing but not outdoor church Thompson, the county’s seemed so far away.
“At least we had a grad- As you go and every services. senior congressman. In ad- “I stuck my neck out and
uation. It’s kind of emo- road you take will al- Essick, a 26-year sheriff’s dition to McGuire, the as- I defended Sheriff Essick’s
tional,” he said, sitting in a ways lead you home office veteran who was first sistant majority leader of decision,” Hopkins said.
convertible with his three It’s been a long day elected sheriff two years the Senate, and Hopkins, “There are a lot of anal-
sisters and his mom. “I’m without you, my friend ago, rejected the idea that the board vice chairwom- ogies to draw today. Dr.
happy. I actually did it.” And I’ll tell you all he is bristling at the pow- an, Dr. Mase and Barbie Mase is that official that is
Sitting in the passen- about it when I see you er of an appointed public Robinson, director of the vested with that responsi-
ger seat of the family car again.” health officer. He said he county’s health depart- bility now.”
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THE PRESS DEMOCRAT • SATURDAY, MAY 30, 2020
BISHOP
CONTINUED FROM A1
services at the cathedral off
Montgomery Drive would
be done in accordance
with guidelines set by Gov.
Gavin Newsom earlier
this week, including social
distancing and a limit
of 100 people inside the
building.
Vasa said he was leav-
ing the matter up to parish
priests and that “a couple”
of churches would reopen
for services on Pentecost
Sunday, a major Christian
celebration.
But Vasa left open on
Friday the question of
whether he would reopen
the cathedral with parish-
ioners in the pews.
“I’m going to discern on
this until Sunday morning
and then I will make a deci-
sion,” Vasa said.
The bishop indicated
his thinking might be in-
fluenced in part by Sheriff
Mark Essick’s decision on
whether Sonoma County
deputies would continue
to enforce the local health
order — something that
they would not do starting
Monday, Essick confirmed
Friday evening.
Law enforcement in the
area of the cathedral is led
by Santa Rosa police, not
the Sheriff’s Office.
Vasa said he will officiate
the Sunday Mass even if it
continues to be streamed
online with no parishio-
ners in the cathedral.
The public health order
does not include churches
and other houses of wor-
ship reopening, Dr. Sund-
ari Mase, the county health
officer said Friday.
Allowing people into the
cathedral would “definite-
ly be a violation” of her
standing order, she said
Thursday.
Mase paused reopening
earlier this week to see
what direction the county’s
COVID-19 infection rate
took after a recent spike
in cases, person-to-person
spread of the contagion
and hospitalizations.
Vasa said Thursday he
had been trying to parse
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A9
“We are not opening un-
til we get an OK from Dr.
Mase,” Rev. Michaelraj
Philominsamy at St. Rose
Church in Santa Rosa said
in an interview. The church
had posted plans for week-
end Masses on its website,
but then canceled them.
Priests were “all excited
to hear” they could reopen
in a Zoom meeting Tues-
day with the bishop, but
had another meeting the
next day and “most of us
(except for the Cathedral)
have decided not to reopen”
without the health officer’s
permission, Philominsamy
said on the church website.
In a letter posted on
the cathedral’s website,
Rev. Frank Epperson, the
pastor at St. Eugene, said
reopening for Pentecost
Sunday would be “a bless-
ed and glorious gift” for
celebrating the birth of the
church.
Safety guidelines include
wearing face masks during
Mass, 6 feet of separation
between people except for
CHRISTOPHER CHUNG / THE PRESS DEMOCRAT family groups, no singing
“I’m going to discern on this until Sunday morning and then I will make a decision,” says Bishop Robert Vasa. He left open and having volunteers san-
the possibility of reopening Catholic churches in the Santa Rosa Diocese for in-person services this weekend. itize the pews after each
Mass. Confessions will re-
the distinction between
the governor’s reopening “I understand verbal and written warn-
ings, and “as a last resort,
a city spokeswoman.
She did not have infor-
sume Friday evening with
special lighting in each stall
guidelines and those set
by Mase. He acknowledged
how hard this is when necessary, enforce
the law,” the chief said.
mation on who the police
would contact.
to purify the air “between
penitents,” Epperson said.
that county officials have
the authority to set strict-
... but we all “I understand how hard
this is — faith is a big part
Vasa said the situation
put him in a “position of
The bishop said Epper-
son proposed the reopen-
er standards than the state
and said he was awaiting
have to follow of my own life — but we all
have to follow the orders
saying I am acting in good
faith ... to recognize that
ing. “I didn’t pressure any-
one,” he said.
a specific declaration by
Mase that reopening the
the orders and and get through this chal-
lenging time by doing our
people of faith need a sign
of hope.”
Admission will be limit-
ed to 100 by counting peo-
cathedral is not allowed.
County Attorney Bruce
get through part,” Navarro said.
Essick waded into the de-
Leaders of seven local
Christian congregations
ple as they enter the ca-
thedral and all others may
Goldstein said the gov- this challenging bate with a different view and a Jewish rabbi said remain outside, he said.
ernor “has allowed and on Friday. earlier this week they were A simpler note was on
encouraged local public time by doing “Going to church is not opening their doors the St. Eugene website Fri-
health officers to put in lawful behavior and I’m this weekend, with several day, including the advice
place orders that best fit our part.” not going to be the sheriff saying they did not see how that people who are anx-
local community needs to RAINER NAVARRO, who criminalizes going to it could be done safely. ious about it, not feeling
protect public safety.” Santa Rosa police chief church,” Essick said in an Three Catholic parishes well or in a high-risk group
Local orders “can only interview. “I think if peo- said they were canceling for coronavirus infection
be more restrictive and not the desire and need to ex- ple want to go worship, plans for Pentecost services. should consider not attend-
less than what the state pand access at the earliest whatever they choose to St. James Church in Pet- ing Mass.
provides,” he said in an possible date consistent worship, if they can do so aluma said on its website it About 30,000 Catholics
email. with public safety.” safely with social distanc- is “abiding by the Sonoma regularly attend Mass
“Indoor services and Santa Rosa Police Chief ing and masks, they should County directives and will throughout the diocese,
gatherings are not allowed Rainer Navarro said in a be able to do that.” not be holding in-person which covers Sonoma,
at this time due to the sig- statement his department The Santa Rosa Police services until the county Lake, Napa, Mendocino,
nificant relative risk and is responsible for enforc- Department’s compliance permits them.” Humboldt and Del Norte
other Sonoma County vi- ing the order and “we don’t team is aware of the pros- St. Elizabeth Church in counties.
rus transmission indica- pick and choose which pect for open services at Guerneville posted a state-
tors,” Goldstein said. “The types of organizations we the cathedral this weekend ment that Pentecost Mass- Staff Writer Julie Johnson
health officer is reviewing hold accountable.” and intends to contact the es had been canceled with contributed to this report.
the restrictions on a regu- In cases of ongoing vi- church before they hap- emails sent to all who had Contact Staff Writer Guy
lar basis and understands olations, police will give pen, said Adriane Mertens, registered. Kovner at 707-521-5457.
• MISSION WHITE CABINETS
• SANTA ROSA ROOM
• BERTAZZONI PRO SERIES RANGE & HOOD
A12 THE PRESS DEMOCRAT • SATURDAY, MAY 30, 2020

PROTESTS cars were set on fire, a Starbucks

CONTINUED FROM A1
arrests, Atlanta police spokesman
Carlos Campos said. Campos said
protesters shot BB guns at officers
and threw bricks, bottles and knives
at them. People watched the scene
from rooftops, some laughing as
skirmishes broke out.
Mayor Keisha Lance
Bottoms passionately ad-
dressed the protesters at a
news conference: “This is
not a protest. This is not in
was smashed up, the windows of the
College Football Hall of Fame were
broken, and the iconic Omni Hotel
was vandalized.
Protesters gathered outside the
White House, with President Don-
ald Trump inside, and some tried to
push through barriers set up by the
U.S. Secret Service along Pennsylva-
nia Avenue.
An initially peaceful
demonstration in New York
City spiraled into chaos
as night fell, as protesters
skirmished with officers,
destroyed police vehicles
Numerous people were arrested
and police brought in buses to carry
off those they arrested.
BREAKING DOWN SPREAD OF CORONAVIRUS
Sonoma County public health officials continue to urge
Tensions rose in several West residents to call their doctor if they are ill, think they have
Coast cities as night fell. flu-like symptoms and want to learn whether they should be
About 1,000 protesters gathered in tested for coronavirus.
Oakland at a demonstration billed
on social media as a rally to “F***
the police,” and some windows were
548 4 548
smashed.
Total cases
as of Friday
Deaths
as of Friday
(2%)
Demonstrators shut down a free- Positive results
way in Los Angeles amid isolated
scuffles with police that ended in a
322 222 24,710
few protesters detained and one of- Active cases Recovered
ficer receiving medical treatment, as of Friday as of Friday (98%)
police said. An LAPD vehicle had its
windows smashed, and CNN report- 25,258 Negative results

the spirit of Martin Luther
King Jr.”
“You are disgracing our
city,” she told protesters. Derek
“You are disgracing the life Chauvin
of George Floyd and every
other person who has been killed in
this country. We are better than this.
We are better than this as a city. We
are better than this as a country. Go
home, go home.”
Bottoms was flanked by rappers
T.I. and Killer Mike, as well as King’s
daughter, Bernice King.
Killer Mike cried as he spoke.
“We have to be better than this
moment. We have to be better than
burning down our own homes. Be-
cause if we lose Atlanta what have
we got?” he said.
After Mayor Bottoms appealed for
calm, the violence continued. More
and set fires. ed that someone wrote “killer” on a Tests finished
In Brooklyn, activists who patrol car. as of Friday
had marched from Manhat- In Minneapolis, an attorney for
tan chanted insults at offi- Floyd’s family welcomed Chavuin’s INFECTIONS IN COUNTY BY REGION
cers lined up outside the Bar- arrest but said he expected a more
clays Center and pelted them
with water bottles. Police sprayed
serious murder charge and wants
the other officers arrested, too.
46 22 337
an eye-irritating chemical into the Prosecutor Mike Freeman said North East Central
largely diverse crowd multiple times, more charges were possible, but au- (Windsor north (Kenwood, Glen (Santa Rosa,
then cleared the plaza. thorities “felt it appropriate to focus to Cloverdale) Ellen, Sonoma) Rohnert Park,
Cotati)
Video posted to social media on the most dangerous perpetrator.”
103 27
showed officers using batons and
shoving protesters down as they
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey’s
curfew also will be in place Satur- South West 13
took people into custody and cleared day, and nearby cities announced (Penngrove, (Sebastopol, Under
streets. similar restrictions. Petaluma) Guerneville) investigation
Demonstrators rocked a police “I know that whatever hope you
van, set it ablaze, then scrawled feel today is tempered with skepti- VIRUS CASES IN COUNTY BY AGE
graffiti across its charred hulk and cism and a righteous outrage,” Frey
set it on fire a second time as offi-
cers retreated from the area. Blocks
said in a statement. “Today’s deci-
sion from the County Attorney is an
89 307 96 56 0
0-17 18-49 50-64 65+ Unknown
away, protesters used a club to bat- essential first step on a longer road
ter another police vehicle. toward justice and healing our city.”
VIRUS CASES IN COUNTY BY MALE, FEMALE
283 265
Male Female

HOSPITALIZATION
Currently hospitalized: 10 confirmed cases, 8 suspected
cases, 2 confirmed cases in ICU, 2 suspected cases in ICU;
as of Thursday
Total hospitalized during pandemic: 42
Sources: Sonoma County health department; state of California;
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; Press Democrat reporting
ONLINE: See more coronavirus-related data and charts at
pressdemocrat.com/coronavirus-numbers

WINERY But as of 6 p.m. Friday,

CONTINUED FROM A1
when they occurred and
how many employees had
been affected.
Mase has said that lo-
cal spread of the virus is
shifting from households to
workplaces and that more
cases are expected as ac-
tivities and businesses in
the county begin to reopen.
Mase did say Friday that the
three workplace outbreaks
occurred at businesses that
were considered essential
and were not shut by the
county’s stay-at-home or-
der issued in mid-March.
“I can tell you there’s
a winery that’s involved,
there are 14 persons that
are positive in that winery
and there’s others that are
under investigation,” Mase
said during her daily press
briefing. “These, I think,
are considered more essen-
Essick said his decision had
not changed and that his
office will not be enforcing
the rule beginning June 1.
In Mendocino County,
health officials reported
the first two cases of coro-
navirus transmission in the
community at large. There
have been 29 confirmed cas-
es of COVID-19, 21 of which
are tied to close contacts
with those who are known
to have the virus, officials
said.
A 30th case is being in-
vestigated as a possible
false positive test result,
said Public Health Officer
Dr. Noemi Doohan during
a Facebook Live briefing.
“This is a time which I had
predicted would be when
the pandemic would start to
hit us hard,” Doohan said.
“And it’s going to get worse
before it gets better because
we are opening up.”
Doohan previously is-
sued a new health order

Using more electricity?

tial workers, this is not …
something that’s happen-
ing in the outdoor tasting
section for the winery, this
is actually in the central
that went into effect at
11:59 p.m. Thursday, which
allows places of worship
to hold up to 100 people or
25% of their capacity —

Tips for energy efficiency worker group.”

Mase said she did not
have details readily avail-
able and would need to “sit
and look at that data to give
While you're home, SCP encourages you to make you very accurate informa-
tion.” She said she would
these and other energy-saving habits part of your need to consult a county
epidemiologist “to map out
daily routine: the clusters, figure out the
numbers in each.”
Also on Friday, the coun-
ty announced 17 new active
Unplug devices and appliances that aren't cases of coronavirus, bring-
ing the total to 548 since
being used the start of the pandemic.
Of that number, 322 are ac-
tive cases, 222 people have
recovered and four have
Turn off the lights when you leave a room died. As of Friday, there
were 10 confirmed cases of
COVID-19 in Sonoma Coun-
Wash and dry full loads of clothes and dishes ty hospitals and another
eight  people suspected of
having the disease caused
by the new coronavirus.
Replace your standard incandescent The news of a significant
outbreak at a local winery
lightbulbs with LEDs comes at a time when coun-
ty health officials and mem-
bers of the Board of Super-
visors were scrambling to
respond to Sonoma County
Visit sonomacleanpower.org for more helpful tips. Sheriff Mark Essick’s dec-
laration Thursday that he
would not enforce the local
shelter-in-place rule.
Essick said on Facebook
that beginning June 1 he
could not “in good con-
science” enforce local pub-
lic health emergency orders
without more information
supporting these measures.
During Mase’s press brief-
ing Friday, she was joined
by Supervisor Susan Gorin
and Health Services Direc-
tor Barbie Robinson, with
all three saying they had
had productive and positive
discussions with Essick
and agreed to provide more
information and to improve
communications with his
office.
whichever is less.
Up to 100 people are also
allowed to gather for a pro-
test, permitted they abide
by social distancing guide-
lines, and swimming pools
can reopen solely for phys-
ical therapy purposes. Hair
salons and other business-
es involving hair services
can reopen, but not to treat
facial hair, Doohan said.
Doohan said Mendoci-
no County will not reopen
any further for about two
weeks so officials can eval-
uate the impact of these
new measures.
The news of an outbreak
at a local winery was no sur-
prise to one health care pro-
vider whose clients are pre-
dominantly farmworkers
and their family members.
Michael Valdovinos, a
clinical psychologist who
works for Santa Rosa Com-
munity Health, the coun-
ty’s largest network of
health centers, said many
of his patients say they are
under a great deal of pres-
sure to work even if they’re
sick. Others say they have
no choice but to carpool
with other workers or they
live in crowded conditions
where social distancing is
next to impossible.
“The outbreak doesn’t
surprise me because of the
inherent risks that farm-
workers have to deal with,”
he said. “I have talked to
migrant farmworkers who
live in houses, up to 20 peo-
ple in a house, sharing one
kitchen, one bathroom.”
Michael Haney, execu-
tive director of Sonoma
County Vintners, could not
be reached for comment
Friday evening. Sonoma
County Winegrowers Pres-
ident Karissa Kruse could
also not be reached Friday.