TBS Today, July 23

The Berkeley Sephora store has been targeted by thieves and burglars in July, resulting in nearly $50,000 in losses over about two weeks.

Berkeley Sephora has been plagued by burglary and theft

Berkeley police have made arrests in some of the cases, while other investigations remain open.

The Berkeley ScannerEmilie Raguso

Apologies for the quiet start to the week. A flu hit just after we covered a serious crash Saturday — but we're nearly back up to full speed.

On Monday, we had some inquiries about what turned out to be a spurious Citizen app report about a shooting downtown.

We quickly debunked the report on X and urged Citizen to do better.

We've made similar posts before, asking Citizen to make it clear that many of its posts are simply unverified dispatches regurgitated.

But, so far, we haven't moved that needle.

(Reminder: Click the "view in browser" link at the top of this email for a slightly better view of embedded media.)

Finally: If you're curious about what it takes to be a BPD dispatcher, don't miss a chance Wednesday to ask dispatchers your burning questions over free doughnuts.

BPD's "Donuts with Dispatch" event runs from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. July 24 on the Fourth Street Plaza across from Peet's Coffee.

We'll be in court so we can't make it. But otherwise we'd love to attend.

"Come enjoy free donuts, learn about our hiring process and get to know our amazing dispatchers," BPD said. "It's a great opportunity to learn more about the vital role they play in our community."

If you want to know more about the job, we did a dispatch "sit along" nearly 10 years ago at Berkeleyside (!!) and wrote an in-depth report on it.

Always on call: Inside the Berkeley Police dispatch center

For most people in crisis, the first point of contact for help is not the officer or the firefighter, but a voice on the phone line. A missing loved one, a car crash, a harrowing encounter with a violent stranger: dialing 911 happens as the situation unfolds, or in its immediate aftermath. But who answers those calls? […]

BerkeleysideEmilie Raguso

In case you missed it

Driver sustains major injuries in Berkeley freeway crash

The driver, a 45-year-old man, was unconscious after the crash and remained in critical condition Saturday, authorities said.

The Berkeley ScannerEmilie Raguso

Man in Berkeley robs USPS mail carrier via threats of a gun

The woman was robbed in the 2400 block of Ellsworth Street, near Channing Way, just before 12:40 p.m., police said.

The Berkeley ScannerEmilie Raguso

Police chase catalytic converter thieves: 1 arrested, 1 escapes

The pair smashed the windows of a neighbor’s car and threw items at police during the chase, BPD said.

The Berkeley ScannerEmilie Raguso

See all our recent stories. Learn more about our work.

On our reading list

Some TBS trivia for you: Our first scoop, before we even began publishing articles, was about the death of Deward Hastings, otherwise known as the "hot tub guy" on Essex Street.

We happened to hear an errant dispatch transmission about a man who was found deceased in his hot tub on Essex Street (where we knew there was a famous "secret" hot tub) and put the pieces together.

The Scanner broke the news of Hastings' death with a thread on Twitter, getting more than 600,000 views and sparking stories throughout the region (and beyond).

For most people, it was probably the first time they heard of The Berkeley Scanner.

The resulting publicity got us onto the radar of many Bay Area editors and reporters, and definitely helped us grow.

Even though it was a big scoop, we were focused on launch and left coverage to other media outlets, which handled it well.

Now, nearly two years later, Berkeley author Bethany Kaylor has done her own "deep dive" into the "steamy backstory of Berkeley's secret hot tub."

Alta Journal, where the story was published, does have a paywall. But you should be able to access the story if you haven't read other articles on the site recently. It's definitely a good read.

The Steamy Backstory of Berkeley’s Secret Hot Tub

For decades, visitors from around the world came to Berkeley to get naked and soak in a backyard hot tub. It was wonderful and free, as long as you obeyed the rules.

Alta OnlineBethany Kaylor

In other news, the Chronicle had an interesting story last week about Bay Area businesses struggling to find insurance due to high crime. (It may also be behind a paywall.)

Many thanks to readers for sharing stories of interest that appear elsewhere on the web. We appreciate the tips and will try to share them with you more often.

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