♪ announcer: building a better bay area, moving forward, finding solutions, this is abc7 news. kristen: getting answers on abc seven. we talk with experts on issues about the bay area and get answers in real-time. today, whether landlords can do background checks on tenants in weather that discriminates against those incarcerated this after a surprising vote last night. both sides of the debate join us. also, women's history month we will look at the significance of the celebration through the

eyes of a historian and playwright. first, bart facing a crisis. rising crime and slumping ridership and other issues, one state lawmaker says no more, announcing yesterday he is stepping down from the newly formed senate select committee on bay area transit. he said, i will not serve on a cheerleading panel for bart. senator steve glaser joins us now to talk about it. senator glaser to thank you for your time. senator glaser: thank you. kristen: you have been a watchdog and critic for some time. why are you resigning from a position where you could have influence? senator gle off the freeways, helps our

environment, and it is important. that is why i pay attention to bart. four years ago, i created an office of inspector general on the functioning of bart, the fiscal responsibility of bart, and i was promised the board in the broader transportation community that was made to me, it was many years ago but what has happened is they have strangled his office and limited the access to people the records, and eliminated that oversight and accountability that is important, so because of that frustration, because of the work i have done to give that office the powers they need that has led to my decision, even though transportation is facing a fiscal crisis, if we give them the money, i hope we provide more money for transit, we need to ensure oversight and accountability. kristen: i want to ask you why

is fiscal oversight so important to bart? can you give us recent examples, or incidents that suggest they need oversight? senator steven m. glazer: the office has been in place for a number of years and despite the restrictions, they have had reports of fraud conflict of interest, financial impropriety. they have done their work. they have places where the has not been spent appropriate. a story a few weeks ago talked about a $350,000 directed for homeless outreach that only helped one person. these are the eyes and ears we want to make sure agencies are doing their job the best they can, and the fact they are strangling that office and watchdog is a problem for me. kristen: i understand there is

another investigation into an employee who got a $2 million contract after leaving the job. it is a big agency and accusations happen. it is about the follow-up, accountability. what about in terms of the responsibility to the public? how has bart failed the public when it comes to service and safety? senator steven m. glazer: yeah, the pandemic has caused a lot of problems. i'm sure your viewers know that personally. for bart, it is a caving of ridership and revenue, so that is a problem. on the other hand, they, you see empty trains going by, so why are they going by and no one is on those? you have the safety issues. the fair gate can be jumped over and that causes crime, and the homeless folks on that transit system, and making people

unsafe, so there are so many things that bart has failed to do to keep competence up of the traveling public and the taxpayers. kristen: pardon me. i'm sorry. you brought up safety, so we wanted to show this graphic, statistics from last year but looking at the crime numbers mostly up in different categories. this corresponds to a doubling of the police presence on bart, that clearly this will cause more money, that given these oversight issues, will you propose more money for bart? senator steven m. glazer: well, i think bart is in financial trouble, and that should provide greater motivation to ensure their office of inspector general is properly funded. the alameda county grand jury last year said bart leadership has repeatedly blocked the inspector general's authority and autonomy. it's not just me who feels this way. we have independent sources who

feel bart has strangled independent oversight, but we need to find more money for transit, absolutely. i think we spent $500 million a year on this high-speed train to nowhere and i would rather see that money come into the bay area and improve transit and roadways. there is more money we need to get them up but we need the commitment from bart to have independent oversight, not to the failure that has frustrated me met to say i'm not going to be on a cheerleading panel to ask for reform money with no accountability. those things have to go hand-in-hand. kristen: what are your options to get bart to play ball with the ig? what powers could the ig be given? the governor vetoed a bill that would have done that just recently. senator steven m. glazer: that is right. the governor vetoed it at the request the bart board, but you have to have access to records, financial records, subpoena

employees who do not want to talk to you to make sure they can speak the truth and share information. you talk about the conflict of interest, findings over the last few weeks, you know, you can't do that kind of big digging in an organization without access to data and people, and that is what bart has continually restricted, so i hope they will come around in the next few weeks and we could solve the problem i am raising in the next few weeks if bart is committed to doing that. i want to be part of helping them get the money, but they have to keep their promises to the office of inspector general. kristen: is this an issue at other bay area transit agencies? senator steven m. glazer: in ig for caltrans, all highways in the state, and the ig at l.a. metro for transportation in los angeles, it is a oversight function and transportation networks across the country. bart once again wanting to limit

the power that office and standing out, so we have had a lot of these issues over the years with bart and conversations in the past about how they need to do their jobs better, and it is frustrating that they have their hands out for more money and now there are problems because they don't have all of us together trying to go in the same direction. kristen: you talked about creating the ig office in 2018 in exchange for your support on a measure that raised ridge tolls in the bay area to fund transit. i wonder if you regret supporting that measure? senator steven m. glazer: well, i think the goal of the bridge toll increase was to improve the highway system and transit, so i am on the same page, but it is the same issue as four, i can support those revenue raising g activities if there is oversight, and that is the promise that has been broken. we have another chance to fix

that. that bill last year vetoed at the governor's request would have done that. we can turn that around in weeks if bart is committed to proper oversight, and i hope this conversation is motivation for bart to come to the table and resolve the issue. kristen: are you planning to introduce another bill? senator steven m. glazer: i have introduced another bill that matches the powers with those of caltrans, the same thing in place today. i hope it would make it more difficult for the governor to veto it, but i hope it does not have to get result in legislation nine months from now. bart is facing a fiscal crisis this year and beyond sublets get together and work it out and solve the problem. kristen: we appreciate it. senator steven m. glazer: thank you. kristen: coming up, a setback for inmates hoping to secure housing, but alameda county did not pass an ordinance.

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kristen: a stunning reversal the push for protections for incarcerated people in alameda county. the board of supervisors meeting last night, an ordinance failed in a second read berkeley heaven acted the ban, but alameda county would have been the first to do it. what happens now? joining us live our two guests representing the two sides of the debate.

thank you for your time today. >> thank you very much for inviting me. >> pleasure to be here. kristen: you must be disappointed, but explain what this ordinance would have done. >> you named it already. it would have prohibited criminal background checks in most rental application processes in alameda county. it is an important tool for advancing justice because folks with criminal backgrounds are shut out of the housing system, and the population in oakland in particular, 70 3% has a criminal record, so there is a tie between homelessness and criminal history. kristen: can you give me a concrete example of someone her, a personal story perhaps -- hurt? >> yes. it is better to hear the story from the person who gave testimony. i do not want to speak for him. he was homeless for some time because he could not find a

place due to his criminal history and spent time living in his car and was unable to access and spend time with his family because of it. kristen: daniel, what is your response to the concerns expressed and what is your viewpoint on why such an ordinance would not be beneficial to a lot of people? >> well, my fundamental con about not having access to information is that in an apartment community where people want to feel safe and protected information about someone's prior history is important especially if it raises a red flag that someone may have a propensity towards violence or other behavior that may cause fear among that community. so this is not just really about a landlord's right to investigate criminal background history, it is preserving and stabilizing an apartment

community so all tenants can flourish and not be confronted with the risk that someone next to them may have a history that is better that they are not at the actual community. kristen: i hear the points you're making. did you see a way to allow the landlord to have information that would make them and other tenants comfortable while ensuring no one is discriminated against? >> the real question is what is the purpose of the criminal justice system. if it is to rehabilitate, we should give him chances once they leave the system. the premise that people should be punished for the rest of their lives for something they did a long time ago is something we do not agree with and if we are rehabilitating people, we should treat them as rehabilitated. kristen: all right. i hear that point as well. daniel, could landlords perform background checks, see the results and not decide based on criminal past if it is

discrimination or unconscious bias? you don't want anyone who has paid their debt, so to speak, to continue paying. >> it is a tricky issue. i am respectful of the fact that people who are indeed rehabilitated should not be discriminated against, however, that should not obviate the right to inquire about someone's prior history. we look at credit reports to determine someone's credit history. we also need to look at prior criminal engagement to see if this person has multiple indications they are unable to control themselves and have a tendency towards violence, that is something that should be evaluated when determining whether to offer an individual unit in a property, and that is the core tension here. i need to ensure that the community is safe, and one way to evaluate it is to look at someone's background to

determine if they actually have a propensity to engage in violent behavior. kristen: i am trying to hear and listen for any middle ground, and i'm not hearing it. are you sensing there is anything that would satisfy both sides so to speak? >> yeah, that the of this law came from conversations with the berkeley owners association, and their exemptions to protect small landlords living at the property , under the idea that they are trying to live in their space and they should have some decision in that context, but at this stage, given all the foundations and research going into this law, it is best policy and practices and is working in oakland and berkeley. we found from survey results on the 33% have gained access as a direct result of it and we are

making an impact in the homeless population. there are also studies about safety and what keeps people safe ohio and maryland studies have demonstrated that when you give people access to housing, housing subsidies, support for housing, they're less likely to recidivate afterwards. when we are talking about safety , if you are shutting people out of the housing system and not giving them the opportunity for housing, employment, and a stable living situation, that makes people resort to other methods to survive, but if you give them access to housing, a fair chance, that is when we see success. kristen: is that not a good point that without housing it is impossible for anyone to rebuild their lives or have a foundation moving forward? >> i absolutely agree we need more housing. the best solution is to immediately start building more

and more housing to ensure that the whole population and enjoy a safe and secure housing environment. i am not in favor of not being entitled to look at someone's background, and i think that the best middle ground would be to permit a review of criminal background check, but limit a decision not to offer housing to someone who has a recent history of terminal behavior or -- criminal behavior or repetitive history of criminal behavior. this is not just about the individual who has a bad mark on the background, there are other people looking for access to this housing who have not engaged in criminal conduct who should be evaluated based on a factor that they have not had that in their background, and maybe they should -- kristen: thank you. in the interest of time, we have

to go, but normally, the second reading is perfunctory, a formality, but one supervisor reversed her vote and another who supported it sadly passed away so if you can just tell me what now? what is next? what is coming up? >> so we will continue moving on this issue. i want to clarify the record. the supervisor was not part of that vote. another supervisor passed away earlier and another supervisor failed that spot after she passed away. dave brown was part of the original vote and was an interim member. moving forward, we continue to advocate and push supervisors to support the legislation because we think it is good and strong legislation that will make an impact, but we will continue the argument in the fight. kristen: thank you both for coming on. >> thank you for inviting me. kristen: next, celebrating

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kristen: today is march 1, the start of women's history month. in the bay area and across the country, events will be happening all month long celebrating the vital role of women in american history. joining us now is amy simon, historian, playwright, performer. thank you for joining us. amy: happy to be here. kristen: you are designated women's history expert. that's a lot of strong women power. tell us how this celebration evolved. amy: a great story that started in 1972, and in the 1970's but that was the beginning of the women's liberation movement, the

second wave of feminism, but women have been fighting for centuries, but molly mcgregor was a teacher in los angeles. a boy came up to her in her class and asked her what is the women's movement because he had just seen the first issue of ms. magazine. she said she was glad it was a friday because she did not know how to answer him and said i would let you know on monday and she goes home and looks in the library and she has one book, meanwhile, she had been teaching a course in sonoma state college called sexism and education and asked her students to go into a library and do an analysis on women's history. they found three to five books that had not been checked out in 15 years. she said the seed was planted. she brings the idea of women's history week to the sonoma commission on the education task force on the status of women and brings this idea of a women's history week, so they have a

parade. it goes great. they do it the next year. she gets publicity and is invited to the sarah lawrence institute in new york headed by a major women's history icon who created first women's history program for colleges. the first was in san diego. i studied women's history thanks to her. and while, there were -- meanwhile, there were all these scholars who were impressed with her curriculum and what she had done in sonoma, and as molly put it, they were very prominent scholars, some friends with jimmy carter. so, cut 21979, molly q school and created the national women's history project, which is known as the national women's history alliance. i encourage people to visit that website. she tells me she will never forget it, she is sitting in her office and gets a phone call

from the white house, sarah tesn withyear-old jane doe for roe v. wade, but in 1980, she was jimmy carter's assistant, and she calls molly mcgregor to tell her that jimmy carter said, ok, let's do it. women's history week. kristen: all right. that is the story. i wish we had more time because there are no more than three books, three resources, including your play, she is history, which we saw some snippets. thank you for sharing that. we appreciate it. amy: happy women's history month. kristen: you can get our live newscast with our streaming tv app, just search abc 7 bay are more paper being crumpled music: “i wish” by skee-lo boom!

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kristen: breaking news in santa rosa, a 16-year-old student was stabbed to death this morning at montgomery school this morning, involving a fight in the classroom involving three students. >> the fight breaks out, a physical altercation, and the teachers jump into action and break up the fight is about importuning moments later, the fight continued and the student inside the classroom produced a knife peered the knife was described as a folding knife with a black handle with a blade four inches to five inches. the student produced a knife and started engaging the two students who came into the classroom and both students were stabbed. kristen: the second student got a cut to his hand and will be ok. a 15-year-old is in custody. we have a reporter at montgomery high school and will bring your

live report from santa rosa at 4:00. thank you for joining us for getting answers. we are here every weekday at 3:00 answering questions from experts around the bay area. tonight, breaking news. the alarming discovery at an american airport. an explosive device found in luggage. authorities say powder and fuses. the suspect on surveillance. the fbi on this tonight. also, those two trains colliding on the same tracks. more than 40 dead now. and tonight, the images just in, the moment of impact. first, here in the u.s., the tsa intercepting that explosive device found in a suitcase. authorities say hidden in the lining of a checked bag at an airport in pennsylvania. meant for a flight from pennsylvania to florida, the suspect seen on surveillance with his bags beforehand. and then leaving the airport. trevor ault reporting tonight on what else they found in that bag. the horrific images now emerging tonight. the video showing the moment of

impact when those two trains collided on the same track in