Rampage
Fresno City College Volume CXXI, Edition 7
December 7, 2011
SCCCD Police Dept. Proposes Increase Parking Fee By Austin Verburg Rampage Reporter
photo Illustration by Jesse
Franz
The police department of the State Center Community College District is proposing an increase in parking and citation fees charged on all campuses of the district, including Fresno City College, Reedley College, Willow International, the Madera Center and the Oakhurst Center. The proposed increase raises the price of a semester’s parking permit from $17 to $20 and summer permits from $8 to $10. Parking meters will change from $1 an hour to $2 an hour, and daily parking permits from $1 a day to $2 a day. The cost of parking violation fees will also increase. Right now, most violations cost $16, increasing to $32 if not paid within the first 21 days and then $45 if not paid within the next 45 days. Additionally, parking violation citations that are unpaid after 45 days must be dealt with through the Department of Motor Vehicles. The proposed fee increase would change that to $25 at the first tier, $50 at the second tier and then $100 at the third. The only parking violation fee that would not change is parking in
a space reserved for the disabled, which is $250 at first tier and then $500 through second and third tiers. Possessing a counterfeit, fraudulent, altered or forged permit will only change at the third tier from $63 to $100. One of the reasons for the proposed increase is to raise the amount of money in the parking fund, according to SCCCD Chief of Police, Joseph Callahan. Additionally, an information packet on the fee proposal which is available for anyone who wishes to view it, states that the money brought in from parking permits, parking meters, and parking citations all go into the parking fund which pays for things such as rebuilding and repairing the district’s parking lots, as well as parking dispensers, tickets, making and distributing parking permits, and the summer paint crew that keeps road paint visible. The revenue in the parking fund also pays salaries for 25 percent of district’s police officers and the office assistant III’s. It pays 100 percent of the salaries of student parking control officers, student dispatchers, student clerks and an independent hearing officer for protest of citations.
See Parking on page 5
Brown Appeal Denied for Missing Deadline By Jordan Russell Rampage Reporter Former Legislative Vice President Karlton Brown’s appeal of his removal of office was denied on a technicality of time. According to ASG adviser Sean Henderson, Brown’s appeal was turned in past the official deadline of 5 p.m. on Dec. 2. According to Brown’s phone records, the appeal was sent on Dec. 2 at 5:12 p.m. Brown said he waited until the deadline because he wanted to ensure that his appeal was complete and adequately represented his point of view. “I took a lot of time gathering information - reading through the regulations, reading through the bylaws so I can basically explain the place that I am coming from,” he said. ASG president Cindy Quiralte said that the appeals process
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began with adviser Sean Henderson sending Brown a “formal letter on how to handle the appeals process.” Quiralte also said that Brown fol-
because it was unconstitutional and I feel that the charges against me were unwarranted,” he said. According to Brown, he was denied the fair and impartial hearing
members were asked to go on record regarding my guilt or innocence before a hearing had even been discussed.” As action toward Brown’s
“When I was finally told specifically what I was being charged with, my guilt or innocence was already assumed by the senate.” -Karlton Brown
lowed the appeals process until he submitted it on Dec. 2. Brown, who was removed from office on Nov. 1, said he formally appealed the decision because his impeachment was unjust. “I am specifically appealing the ASG decision
Former ASG Legislative Vice president
guaranteed him by the ASG constitution. He said that during the discussion that initiated his removal, ASG was asked to “formally go on record with a straw poll.” He added, “Due to the inflammatory nature of the discussion and the vote that was held, the
removal proceeded, the perceived unfairness continued. “When I was finally told specifically what I was being charged with,” wrote Brown in his appeal, “my guilt or innocence was already assumed by the Senate.” Brown also said that grounds for
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his removal were trivial. “The only thing they offered to support the other charges was groupthink and gossip. ‘One day in the office I saw this,’ or ‘we all feel frustrated,’ is not evidence.” He also said that all members of ASG made mistakes from time to time, yet they were not removed from office. He said that if failure to immediately respond to emails were grounds for impeachment, “there wouldn’t be any members of ASG left.” Before his impeachment, Brown was formally charged with failing to perform his duties as outlined by the ASG constitution. Brown claims, however, that “the better part of their charges had nothing to do with what the con-
See Brown Appeal on page 3