From the archives

loses battle to cancer

A retired San Mateo police lieutenant regarded by many as a trailblazer in San Mateo County law enforcement lost a two-year battle with brain cancer the week of Jan. 6, 2007.

Barbara Hammerman, 46, died that week at home in Belmont. Hammerman, a retired San Mateo police lieutenant with 24 years experience, paved new paths for women in law enforcement and was an advocate against domestic violence. After retirement, she became the poster child for a ground-breaking brain tumor treatment that may one day cure the disease.

Hammerman was diagnosed with the deadly brain tumor in July 2004 and was given nine months to live. She went on leave shortly after that and retired in January 2005, receiving countless honors and praise for her outstanding service.

Hammerman joined the ranks of the San Mateo Police Department in 1984 and later became the first female sergeant and female lieutenant in the city’s history.

Hammerman’s smile and upbeat personality won her many friends, while her dedication and hard work earned her respect throughout the county.

Isabella and Alexander

top county baby names

Knocking off Sophia and Daniel wasn’t easy, but Isabella and Alexander rank as the most popular baby names in San Mateo County in 2006, Warren Slocum, the county’s chief elections officer-assessor-county clerk-recorder, said the week of Jan. 6, 2007.

There were 5,065 new babies born in the county in 2006, more boys than girls. There were 2,464 girls born in 2006 compared to 2,686 born in 2005. That compares to 2,601 boys born in 2006 and 2,676 in 2005. The total number of San Mateo County births dropped 297 from the prior year, Slocum said.

Despite the shift at the top, many names were repeated from last year, Slocum said.

Mom busted for brothel

When Min Liu appeared at her son’s bail hearing the week of Jan. 6, 2007, she expected to learn if the 21-year-old would remain free on his own recognizance or be taken into custody.

Chances are she didn’t expect to be arrested herself.

Broadmoor police, however, took Liu into custody on suspicion of helping her son, Jia J.

Xue, help run an Asian prostitution ring out of a Broadmoor apartment. She was charged with pimping, pandering and human trafficking and booked into jail on $60,000 bail.

Xue, of Oakland, was charged Aug. 17 with three misdemeanor counts of pimping and three misdemeanor counts of pandering and conspiracy.

Police caution

walkers about robberies

Two robberies of Foster City residents out on nighttime strolls the week of Jan. 6, 2007 had police reiterating important safety tips for walkers.

After two incidents in three days, Foster City police cautioned walkers to travel in pairs, especially at night, to keep within well-lighted areas, and to always be aware of their surroundings.

Police reported one man was robbed while walking near Shell and Beach Park boulevards. The suspects got away with the man’s iPod.

The second incident took place a few days prior when a man and his niece were confronted, also by three men, as they were taking photographs at Leo J. Ryan Park, police reported. The men absconded with the man’s cash and camera.

From the archives highlights stories originally printed five years ago this week. It appears in the Thursday edition of the Daily Journal.