You remember King Stahlman, yes? Well, meet his son. Randy Dotinga sat down with George Stahlmman III at his North Park office where his staff’s professionalism present a different face from the bail bond industry of the past.
It’s still a shady business, though, Stahlman said.
“Before, the seediness was the outside appearance of the bail bond office,” he tells Dotinga. “Everyone was hard-drinking, card-playing and hard-charging. Now the seediness is done by skirting the rules.”
Stahlman explains the in’s and out’s of the industry and how his father changed the face of bail bonds, upgrading bail bondsmen from their image as bottom feeders.
He even shares a story about one of his employees who went to work and bailed out the very same man that had robbed him earlier that night.
“He thought: Hey, who better to get this guy’s money than me?” said Stahlman.
You Can Take Uber Across the Border … You Just Can’t Take It Back
Unhappy public transportation unions and having rocks thrown at their cars hasn’t stopped Uber from trying to expand into Mexico. The ridesharing app recently unveiled UberPASSPORT, which will offer one-way trips from San Diego to Tijuana.
This week’s Border Report provides details of the new Uber service. It also looks at similarities between the Tijuana and Los Angeles Rivers and delves into the future of Tijuana’s former police chief, Julian Leyazoala Perez.
Leyazoala served as Tijuana’s director of public safety from 2008 to 2010 and is now vying to become the city’s mayor in June. The former chief was both praised for falling crime rates and criticized by human rights groups, who accused him of treating suspects brutally.
Democrats Trying to Oust Republicans in City Council Races Face Uphill Battle
The Democrats trying to unseat Republican Councilmen Scott Sherman and Mark Kersey may struggle trying to get support from the Democratic Party, reports KPBS’ Claire Trageser.
Sherman, the Republican incumbent in District 7, is facing Democrats Justin DeCesare and Jose Caballero. Democrats Keith Mikas and Frank Tsimboukakis are challenging Kersey in District 5.
DeCesare and Tsimboukakis were both endorsed by the Democratic party, but a lot of the funds that would go towards mailers, e-mail blast and volunteers are being funneled to a different race.
The party is focusing most of its attention on trying to hold on to the seat in District 1, occupied by Democrat Sherri Lightner. If Republican Ray Ellis wins, it would shift the City Council to a Republican majority.
If the Republicans have a majority, they can elect a Republican City Council president.
Quick News Hits
• CA Gov. Jerry Brown presented the details of the plan to raise the state’s minimum wage to $15 by 2022. The plan is expected to be voted on by the Legislature this week. (The Sacramento Bee)
• Civic San Diego is facing another lawsuit. This one was brought by the owners of Entrada Taqueria and Speakeasy in Little Italy, over the nonprofit’s proposed revocation of its permit. (San Diego Reader)
• The first witness for the defense in a sexual harassment case against former San Diego Mayor Bob Filner testified Monday. (City News Service)
• Barbara Bry, the Democrat battling Republicans Ray Ellis and Bruce Lightner, for the District 1 City Council seat was endorsed by the San Diego Firefighters labor union. Mara Elliot, who is running for city attorney, was endorsed by Save San Diego Neighborhoods, which wants tighter restrictions on vacation rentals. (Union-Tribune).
• San Diego County ranks 42nd out of 58 counties in California for its food stamp program, enrolling only 30.7 percent of eligible households in CalFresh. (San Diego Reader) In 2007, it was 35 percent.
• This old Hillcrest home was sold for $1….and then put on a semi-truck and moved to South Bay. (Union-Tribune)
• The San Diego Zoo Safari Park has six baby cheetahs newly on display. You’ll want to click here.
VOSD’s Scott Lewis will be moderating a panel on addressing inequality Thursday March, 30 at UC San Diego from 5 to 7 p.m. He’ll be talking with three faculty members about which solutions work best to promote upward mobility in the United States.