Yesterday a fire broke out in a storage room of the Pasadena Courthouse on the 3rd floor. While first responders were doing their thing they ran across a bunch of hazardous materials and one firefighter was injured by noxious fumes. News reports indicate that adjacent to the fire was a bunch of oily, stain soaked rags which are known the world over for their ability to spontaneously combust.
How come the AOC’s facilities vendor didn’t know this? Are they so desperate at cutting costs that they’re grabbing the homeless that happen to walk by and giving them jobs?
This is the kind of thing that happens when everything is contracted out with vendor oversight – because there is none. And the AOC’s very few facilities maintenance are stretched well beyond their limits with each one responsible for managing vendors that are ultimately responsible for millions of square feet of court space.
This is also the result of what happens when you tell local fire inspectors that they have no business inspecting Judicial Branch facilities and that your own fire inspectors will be performing inspections on over 500 buildings and can’t possibly inspect them all. Fire inspections are typically annual and quite routine and they catch really important things and encourage occupants to stop bad habits. Oily rags, hazardous materials being improperly stored and extension cords are just a few items that fire inspectors might point out in a fire inspection.
Comprehensive fire inspections by independent entities save lives. What happened in Pasadena yesterday is but another of a long list of examples that demonstrate the utter lack of oversight by independent entities like your local fire department. When buildings were owned and maintained by the counties that they were in, fire inspections were a routine part of doing business. Today, the AOC does their own fire inspections or contracts sometimes with CalFire (the forest fighting people) to provide inspections.
Yesterdays hazmat situation caused the response of multiple hazardous material crews from other surrounding fire departments. They will likely look at the fire inspection reports and realize they have none and send the AOC the entire response bill. As they should.
Query: Do court workers or members of the public have to die before someone takes action?
The lack of local fire inspections is yet another reason to audit the facilities maintenance program at the AOC.
Wendy Darling
July 28, 2015
“Query: Do court workers or members of the public have to die before someone takes action?”
Answer: Apparently, yes. Sadly, I, and others, accepted the reality of this quite some time ago. Every available enforcement agency in California has been educated, provided documentation, and is fully aware of the very serious problems in the administration of the California Judicial Branch – both branches of the State Legislature, the Governor’s Office, the State Attorney General, law enforcement, and many others. For at least the last 8 YEARS they have all been informed about all of it. And not one of them – not a single one of them – will do a damn thing about any of it.
So yes, someone is probably going to have to die before someone – anyone- takes action.
Long live the ACJ.
wearyant
July 28, 2015
“Query: Do court workers or members of the public have to die before someone takes action?”
I totally agree, Wendy D, because the powers that be have too much pride to give up an iota of power and at the same time lack all common sense. Yes, someone would have to die; that’s how high-minded they are. Very sad. They’re still serving themselves at the expense of public safety too, and now we all know it’s been going on for eight years at least.
unionman575
July 28, 2015
Help!
This Trial court slumdog can’t breathe…
😉
sharonkramer
July 29, 2015
“So yes, someone is probably going to have to die before someone – anyone- takes action”
Leave out the word “probably”. People HAVE DIED from members of the Judicial Council and their committees falsifying court documents in a San Diego SLAPP suit over toxic substances in buildings. What do you all think I’ve been screaming about for years?
Justice Huffman’s and Justice McConnell’s, et.al.s, falsified docs in the fixed SLAPP were used to cover-up how and for what purpose it became a scientific fraud in policy that a toxic substance found in buildings, was allegedly proven by the plaintiffs in the SLAPP, not to harm.
Now, it comes to light that the Judicial Council/AOC are directly responsible for the liability when someone is harmed by negligence of allowing toxic substances in the courthouses. Has anyone in the State of California filed a workers comp claim for disability caused by toxigenic biocontaminants in improperly maintained water damaged courthouses?
If so, did the defense argue that their disabilities “could not be” caused by the biocontaminants because medical policy in the US says so? How do you think that fraudulent policy, which limited liability of the JC/AOC and other building stakeholders, stayed in effect for over thirteen years? Do you think that maybe falsifying court docs to cover up that its scientific fraud upon the court, had anything to do with it continuing?
unionman575
July 29, 2015
$59 million…
http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/saic-awarded-it-managed-services-contract-by-california-300120049.html
SAIC Awarded IT Managed Services Contract by California Company to provide IT service support to the Judicial Council of California
MCLEAN, Va., July 28, 2015 /PRNewswire/ — The State of California awarded Science Applications International Corp. (NYSE: SAIC) a prime contract to continue to provide information technology services to the Judicial Council of California. The single-award, firm-fixed-price contract has a three-year base period of performance, two one-year options, and a total contract value of $59 million. Work will be performed in San Francisco, California, with support services provided by SAIC’s Integrated Services Management Center in Oak Ridge, Tennessee.
The Judicial Council of California administers and oversees judicial processes for California. California has the largest court system in the world serving a population of more than 38 million people. Under the contract, SAIC will provide IT Managed Services such as support for the Judicial Council’s data center, disaster recovery, data network, and security. SAIC will also provide help desk, desktop, and remote server support. These services assist end users comprised of more than 2,000 judicial officers and approximately 19,000 court employees statewide.
“SAIC has supported California’s Judicial Council for nearly seven years,” said Bob Genter, SAIC senior vice president and general manager of the Strategic Growth Markets Customer Group. “We are proud to continue to support the Judicial Council with the daily operation and maintenance of their IT infrastructure.”
About SAIC
SAIC is a premier technology integrator providing full life cycle services and solutions in the technical, engineering, intelligence, and enterprise information technology markets. SAIC is Redefining Ingenuity through its deep customer and domain knowledge, talented people, effective processes, and innovation to enable the delivery of systems engineering and integration offerings for large, complex projects. SAIC’s approximately 15,000 employees are driven by integrity and mission focus to serve customers in the U.S. federal government, state/local, and global commercial markets. Headquartered in McLean, Virginia, SAIC has annual revenues of about $4.4 billion. For more information, visit http://www.saic.com. For ongoing news, please visit our newsroom.
Certain statements in this announcement constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements involve risks and uncertainties and a number of factors could cause our actual results, performance, achievements, or industry results to be very different from the results, performance, or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Some of these factors include, but are not limited to, the risk factors set forth in SAIC’s Annual Report on Form 10-K and other such filings that SAIC makes with the SEC from time to time, which may be viewed or obtained through the Investor Relations section of our web site at http://www.saic.com. Due to such uncertainties and risks, readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on such forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date hereof.
Lando
July 29, 2015
The 455 Golden Gate insiders will never admit that Ronald George has been a complete disaster to the administration of justice in California. One of the cornerstones of George’s legacy was his takeover of every courthouse in California. That was a nice monument to his incredible ego, but the rest of us are left with the reality, an aging and endless supply of building problems big and small. As I have said before, the insiders that run the Crystal Palace need to do the right thing and get themselves out of the real estate business.
sharonkramer
July 29, 2015
Not likely to happen unless someone makes it happen. How are those letters to the Joint Legislative Audit Committee, calling for audit, coming? August 4th is rapidly approacing.
sharonkramer
August 7, 2015
More from Kamala: “….today, I’d like to know what inspired you to get involved….My desire to fight for justice and a better future for everyone comes from my family… My family instilled in my sister Maya and me a sense of shared responsibility — that each of us should have the chance to create a better future for ourselves and those around us. [Define “ourselves and those around us”] I’ve carried this philosophy as a prosecutor, and I hope to bring it to my work in the United States Senate…. Click here to tell us your story, what inspired you to join, and if you like — your view on how we can fix it. I’m looking forward to all of your input. Kamala”
Share your story with Atty Gen Harris HERE: http://www.kamalaharris.org/landing/e150807/?subsource=ngpattre150807
She asks that you “Please use the form to elaborate on how these issues have affected your life, your family, or any other thoughts you might have”