Hundreds of people gathered at St. Joseph the Worker Church on Friday to mourn the death of 15-year-old Berkeley High School sophomore Alberto Salvador Villareal-Morales. -more-

A Hayward judge has handed down a mixed victory for Raymond Chamberlin’s lawsuit challenging the reduction of traffic lanes on Marin Avenue. -more-

Amid a flurry of controversy, KPFA-FM General Manager Roy Campanella II has stepped down. -more-

If an Oakland Public Works Agency guided walk around the south end of Lake Merritt was designed to dampen criticism of the city’s plan to remove more than 200 trees, it didn’t exactly work. -more-

AC transit’s plan to “delete” 44 bus stops in Berkeley, Alameda and Oakland next week to provide faster and more reliable service has angered many riders who depend on those stops. -more-

A much-anticipated Board of Trustees presentation on the Peralta Community College District International and Global Education Department has been postponed. -more-

With the approval of state Attorney General Bill Lockyer, the lawsuit filed by environmentalists over the sale of Richmond’s Point Molate is history. -more-

Berkeley city councilmembers will hear an appeal Tuesday by the owner of Dwight Way Liquor, who wants to overturn a Zoning Adjustments Board (ZAB) decision declaring the store a public nuisance. -more-

Density bonuses, West Berkeley zoning changes and creeks are among the land use issues city officials will be considering this week. -more-

Opponents of a plan to build a shopping mall in a Golden Gate Fields parking lot are holding a rally Thursday in the form of an old-fashioned ice cream social. -more-

In an unprecedented crackdown on more than 500,000 absconders—illegal immigrants who have not followed deportation orders—U.S. authorities this year are nearly tripling the number of federal officers assigned to round up such fugitives. -more-

Brandisher boogies -more-

COCHABAMBA, Bolivia—The inauguration of Evo Morales as the first president of Bolivia of indigenous origins marks a watershed in the history of the Americas. The “caras,” whites and mestizos who have dominated Bolivia for centuries, are being replaced by an Indian who represents the country’s true majority. -more-

CORRECTION -more-

To view Justin DeFreitas’ latest editorial cartoon, please visit -more-

First of all, I want to say that despite all the turmoil that has occurred since I sold my Honda dealership, I have been pleased at so many positive references to how Jim Doten Honda was viewed by the Berkeley community. That is very important to me. I want to assure all the citizens of Berkeley that I sold the franchise to a group in whom I have the utmost confidence. I believe that they are committed to being good corporate citizens and have the talent, dedication and wherewithal to grow the business to new levels, providing many more jobs and sales tax revenues to the community that I have served for 31 years. -more-

Thank you for this community forum to discuss issues that affect the whole community. I feel compelled to respond to the letter written by Gloria Atherstone, owner of Glass Onion Catering Company, also the tenant who rents the performance space and mezzanine at the Gaia Building. She signs her letter as Gaia Arts Management, Inc. She asserts that the private party-turned-melee on Jan. 7 was “not facilitated in any way by Glass Onion Catering, Gaia Arts Management or Panoramic Interests.” The party was held in a building owned by Panoramic Interests, in a space rented and managed by Ms. Atherstone. Yet no one takes responsibility for this private party that attracted hundreds, kept my customers away and had to be shut down by the police. -more-

The reason that I moved to South Berkeley a few years ago was to become part of a community that shared my vision for an inclusive society that valued diversity and compassion above all other things. While I still feel deeply committed to a world that is centered more on the common good of its citizens than petty economic pursuits, I do feel that there needs to be a little flexibility and open mindedness when it comes to the growing need for high-density housing options here in Berkeley. -more-

Before you read this article, take a five count. Slowly inhale through your nose for five seconds, hold your breath for five seconds and then slowly exhale through your mouth counting to five. -more-

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The South Berkeley Blues -more-

My New York friends took me to see the musical Jersey Boys at the August Wilson Theatre on 52nd Street in Manhattan. They thought that because I grew up in the Garden State I would identify with, at the very least, the title. And in some ways I did. Jersey Boys, the story of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, was familiar because, like almost everyone from the ‘burbs in the early ‘60s, I grew up with their music. -more-

It’s only on my worst, most misanthropic days that I suspect most of my fellow humans of not noticing that the trees around us are more than overdecorated hatracks. We all know they’re alive, right? And we all know, or ought to, that they’re in motion, growing, moving (though at a pace we’re ill-equipped to see), performing, building the massive edifices of themselves with light and carbon and air. -more-