Yet another troubling development involving former KTVU anchor Frank Somerville, as we’re learning of a November 2024 incident over which he’s now charged with battery, and the story sure is similar to what got him arrested again last month.

We really want to root for former KTVU news desk anchor Frank Somerville, who’s been in recovery from alcoholism after some deeply embarrassing incidents where he was slurring his words on the air, seemingly was fired from KTVU, racked up a couple DUIs, and was sometimes arrested multiple times in a single evening. But some recent developments make it very difficult to root for him.

While Somerville says he’s now nine months sober, and we do want to take him at his word on that, his disturbing streak continued when he was arrested for battery on September 15 in what appeared to be a physical alteration with his daughter. Even if he’s sober, that’s pretty problematic.    

Somerville has not been charged over that incident. But just three days after that happened, the Chronicle unearthed the detail that Somerville had been arrested for battery on November 19, 2024, which had not been previously reported. And on Wednesday, the Chronicle reported that Somerville has been charged with misdemeanor battery by the Alameda County District Attorney over that November 2024 incident.

Per the Chronicle, Somerville’s partner Elaine Colman “told police he had been drinking all day and that at one point she believed he was suffering a mental health episode. She started recording him, but he noticed. He allegedly lunged at her and wrestled her to the ground.”

The Chron adds that Somerville alleged punched both Colman and their daughter on that day.

When reached by the Chronicle, Somerville seemed penitent, and said this happened before he went into recovery. “That’s all my fault, because I was drunk,” he told the paper, saying this was the last straw that actually pushed him to stop drinking. “I have and I am continuing to put in the work,” he added.

Both Colman and the daughter reportedly pursued restraining orders or stay-away orders after this November 2024 incident, though both apparently dropped those requests, perhaps satisfied that Somerville had gone into recovery. But the Chronicle notes that the daughter’s stay-away order application said that Somerville allegedly “pushed me into the TV, pulled my hair and punched me in the face,” and he “tried holding me down by putting force on my neck.”

Somerville’s first court appearance over these charges is scheduled for October 6.

Related: Former Anchor Frank Somerville's Domestic Dispute Story Differs From Daughter's, According to Police [SFist]

Image: Frank Somerville via Facebook

A new fire code regulating the charging and storage of lithium-ion batteries for powered mobility devices (PMDs) like e-bikes, e-scooters, and hoverboards went into effect this week. This comes after a well-documented rise in fires linked to these batteries, which are increasingly stored and charged inside residences.

The San Francisco Fire Department (SFFD) reported a tripling of battery-related fires between 2013 and 2023. Last year alone, the department responded to 41 such fires (and a record-high 58 in 2022), with data suggesting these incidents are even more hazardous than typical fires due to the chemicals in lithium-ion batteries and the challenges firefighters face extinguishing them, as the Standard reported. Fires reportedly started by rechargeable devices caused more than $10.6 million of property damage, 13 injuries, and one death in the past 10 years

The new legislation mandates that all PMDs in the city be safety-certified according to specific standards established by Underwriters Laboratories (UL) or the European Union, approved by SFFD, per KRON4. Additionally, residents are limited to storing and charging a maximum of four PMDs per dwelling unit. If a household has more than five PMDs, stricter fire safety measures are required, including sprinkler systems and designated charging areas with three feet of space between devices.

It also prohibits the use of extension cords and power strips for charging PMDs. Instead, all devices, batteries, and chargers must be plugged directly into wall outlets. (SF landlords have also reportedly started including new terms in lease agreements about how residents can charge their PMDs.)

Residents are also instructed to follow manufacturer guidelines for charging and only use original equipment. Damaged or tampered-with batteries are explicitly banned from use, and the legislation outlaws the disposal of lithium-ion batteries in landfills or recycling bins, requiring them to be recycled through designated programs.

Feature image via Unsplash/Lucian Alexe.

An arrest has been made in the July 19 punching of the owner of Sandy’s muffuletta shop, and the 30-year-old suspect has previous arrest warrants for sexual battery and gun charges.

Even in a city where petty crime runs fairly rampant, the July 19 assault on Sandy’s muffuletta shop owner Peterson Harter drew an exceptional amount of concern and outrage. That’s partly because the highly anticipated Sandy’s had only been open for three months before this incident where Harter confronted a man who was urinating on his trash cans, only to be viciously sucker-punched. And it’s also partly because Harter posted a highly emotional (and now-deleted) Instagram post, with a visible shiner on his eye, saying, “I'm really frustrated. I hope that something will come of this. At least I hope they find the guy and I'm really mad right now.”

Two weeks later, it appears they have found the guy. The Chronicle picked up this Tuesday afternoon announcement from SFPD that they arrested a suspect in this attack, and apparently it’s not this fellow’s first allegation of violent crime.

“Through the course of the investigation San Francisco Police investigators identified the suspect as 30-year-old male, Irvin Lara Rivera,” SFPD announced in a Tuesday press release. “On Saturday, July 29, 2023, at approximately 11:15 am Mission Station officers on patrol observed Rivera on 18th and San Carlos streets. These officers recognized Rivera from the crime bulletin and other arrest warrants unrelated to the Haight Street attack.”

Yes, Rivera has priors. While he was arrested for battery in the alleged sandwich shop attack, he also has previous warrants for sexual battery, possessing a firearm while prohibited from doing so, and  making criminal threats. Some of those charges were from Napa, but Rivera is now in SF County Jail.

“I’m just happy to know he’s off the streets not terrorizing anyone else at this time,” Harter told the Chronicle via text, adding that he was grateful for the community support he and the shop had received over the last two weeks.

While an arrest has been made, this remains an active investigation. If you have any information on this incident, you’re asked to call the SFPD tip line at 415-575-4444, or text a tip to TIP411 and begin the message with “SFPD.” Tipsters can remain anonymous.

Related: New Sandwich Shop Owner In Upper Haight Punched In Face, Wants Justice [SFist]

Image: Google Street View

District Attorney Brooke Jenkins may be sensing an opportunity to prove she can be tough not just on drug dealers and car burglars, but also on those who attack the city's unhoused in an aggressive manner.

Collier Gwin, the Jackson Square gallery owner who was seen in a viral video last week spraying a homeless woman sitting on the sidewalk near his business with a hose, is now facing legal consequences for his actions. Jenkins announced Wednesday that an arrest warrant was issued for Gwin, and that he'll be charged with misdemeanor battery for the incident.

Jenkins made the announcement on Twitter, adding, "The alleged battery of an unhoused member of our community is completely unacceptable. Mr. Gwin will face appropriate consequences for his actions. Likewise, the vandalism at Foster Gwin gallery is also completely unacceptable and must stop — two wrongs do not make a right."

That statement leaves open the possibility that the homeless woman — who pretty clearly suffers from mental illness and was well known to other business owners in the neighborhood — could also face charges, but that seems unlikely.

Gwin told multiple news outlets last week that the hose incident was his inappropriate response to the woman, who goes by Cora or "Q," overturning his trash cans on the sidewalk for the umpteenth time.

Gwin said, "You know, spraying her’s not the solution, but spraying her was something that woke her up, and that calmed her down. So am I sorry? I’m only sorry that... my way of helping her countlessly has gotten nothing done."

Gwin claimed that he had called the city's social services apparatus multiple times to address the woman and her needs, but as of last week she was still primarily sleep in doorways.

Supervisor Aaron Peskin, in whose district this occurred, last week said of the incident, "I don’t care how frustrated somebody is, this is not the way human beings treat other human beings. It’s unconscionable, it’s abuse."

There was a town-hall forum on Sunday at Third Baptist Church in the Western Addition to discuss the incident, as ABC 7 reports, in which Rev. Amos Brown said, "It took us back to the days that when in Birmingham Alabama that sheriff hosed down civil rights workers back in the 60s." Brown added that Gwin himself deserved less blame than our entire society. "We must not have simplistic, reductionist thinking and planning anymore on this issue of homelessness, of unhoused people in this town," Rev. Brown said.

Gwin subsequently issued an apology via ABC 7, saying, "I completely broke. I'm not equipped or trained to deal with a longterm citywide problem like this... There's a breaking point. I have the video to constantly remind me that this is a large cross to bear."

Per the Chronicle, if Gwin is convicted of the battery charge, he faces a $2,000 fine and up to six months in jail.

Previously: SF Gallery Owner Who Sprayed Homeless Woman With Hose Could Face Battery Charge; He Blames the City

A viral video that has sparked outrage this week, showing a San Francisco gallery owner spraying a homeless woman with a hose, could wind up resulting in criminal charges, as the SFPD continues investigating.

The incident occurred late Monday morning outside Foster Gwin Gallery at 712 Montgomery Street, in Jackson Square. According to the gallery's website, they specialize in Italian period furniture, Abstract Expressionist art, and Greco-Roman antiquities.

SFist mentioned the video in Tuesday's Day Around the Bay, noting that gallery owner Collier Gwin has said he was very familiar with the woman and she is "psychotic." Gwin has since explained that he has repeatedly had frustrations over the woman's actions — specifically, that day, she had overturned some trashcans outside his gallery — and he claims to have sought city services for her repeatedly, and allowed her to sleep in his gallery's doorway more than once.

Supervisor Aaron Peskin tells the Chronicle that the woman, identified as Cora or "Q," is "well known in the neighborhood," and has been the subject of frequent reports and efforts of assistance. But, he says, that is no excuse for attacking the woman with a hose.

"I don’t care how frustrated somebody is, this is not the way human beings treat other human beings,” Peskin tells the Chronicle. “It’s unconscionable, it’s abuse.”

The video was shot by a chef at nearby bakery Brioche SF, Edson Garcia, who said he was in his car and on his way to make a delivery when he shot the video, just as a traffic light turned green. Garcia tells the Chronicle, "I was shocked. It’s crazy how people can act. I know that lady."

Garcia posted the video to the bakery's TikTok and later removed it, but it has since been picked up on Twitter and elsewhere, garnering millions of views. (An unintended casualty of the viral video has been cocktail and wine bar Barbarossa, whose windows can be seen behind Gwin in the video, leading to viewers assuming, without eother context, that Gwin is associated with that business, which he is not. Barbarossa's Yelp page now has one of those Community Alerts on it because of a wave of negative, retaliatory reviews.)

Gallery owner Gwin has been both remorseful and defiant, at turns, in discussing the incident. As he tells KPIX, "I'm very, very sorry, I'm not going to defend myself, I'm not going to, because I can't defend that." He added, "I feel awful, not just because I want to get out of trouble, or something like that, but because I'd put a tremendous amount of effort into helping this woman on the street."

But, as he said in a Chronicle interview, "You know, spraying her’s not the solution, but spraying her was something that woke her up, and that calmed her down. So am I sorry? I’m only sorry that... my way of helping her countlessly has gotten nothing done."

The Chronicle also followed him to check on the woman, who was huddled in a doorway just a block away, and she shooed them off. And the reporter watched as Gwin showed the video to another nearby business owner, Michael Imperiale of Tricolore Caffe, who also is very familiar with the woman, and who exclaimed, "Collier! That's not good!"

“Violence like this assault occurs in the context of government, societal, and press participation in scapegoating unhoused residents and treating them as though they are objects to be swept, jailed, and harassed,” says the American Civil Liberties Union in a statement, putting some of the blame on a neglectful city and state.

Cora, or "Q," was questioned by police alongside Gwin after the incident was reported on Monday, and she was reportedly "referred for follow-up assistance," per the Chronicle, by the city's Crisis Response Team. But, as the paper notes, she was back in the neighborhood by Tuesday.

Gwin tells KPIX that he and other business owners have "called SFPD and social services more than two dozen times in the last two weeks" about the woman.

The SFPD says it is investigating the incident, and legal experts tell the Chronicle that Gwin could face a battery charge, especially if he did not experience any threat to his own person when the hose incident took place. No charges have yet been filed.

The incident calls to mind one from 2015, in which a downspout cleaning system at St. Mary's Cathedral was apparently turned on every hour in order to deter homeless people from sleeping in the church's outdoor alcoves.

Related: City Attorney Blasts Judge’s Ruling Banning Homeless Encampment Sweeps, Says It ‘Defies Logic’

Exploring San Francisco through the lens of city blocks, Blocker is a regular series by Charles Hodgkins. It’s appeared regularly on SFist since May 2007, but will be going on indefinite hiatus due to a slew of upcoming travel and other projects.

View the map of all published Blocker episodes.

Blocker, No. 42: Battery St. in Northeast Waterfront

Blocker’s scope may confine us to the sidewalks 98 percent of the time, but on occasion we’ll find ourselves on certain blocks that demand a few steps outside the confines of our usual corridor. Nowhere is this more evident than along Battery between Greenwich and Filbert, a tree-lined street hemmed in by Levi’s Plaza on both sides. Granted, there’s not much to do up here unless you’re either an employee on break from one of the area offices, or merely someone always on the lookout for yet another place in the city to laze it up. But it’s a pleasant enough hideaway that’s a leafy antidote to the clatter and clang of nearby Fisherman’s Wharf or the Financial District. And you never know when you may be overrun by a just-passing-through posse of early teens in matching tees.

Well, this is jarring.

This morning at little before 11 a.m. at Pine and Battery a rather nasty accident happened. Reader Mike Miller sent SFist images and a brief report of the scene:

Happened a little before 10:45 this morning….. other car involved was a red Mazda. Driver appeared OK, but they were treating him in the ambulance. Witnesses gave conflicting stories – one person said one of the cars was speeding the wrong way down Pine, another said one of the cars ran the red light on Battery….

Battery closed for a little while at California. Pine closed at Battery.

The wrong way down Pine. Jesus. Anyway, we hope the drivers are in good condition. Really, not the best day to drive in SF.

For another image of the wreckage, do follow the jump.