From the archives

The U.S. Attorney’s office said Sept. 24, 2004 that two of the four men charged with stealing about 200 pounds of explosives in San Mateo County over the July Fourth weekend pleaded guilty and a third defendant was to plead guilty soon.

U.S. Attorney spokeswoman Cynthia Caparizzo said Timothy Dean Byrd, a 36-year-old Hayward man, pleaded guilty on Wednesday to possession of stolen explosives and to being a felon in possession of stolen explosives and 40-year-old Gregory Sherinian, who has no known address, pleaded guilty to identical charges that week.

The theft of the explosives embarrassed law enforcement officials, as the storage bunker where they had been housed is used by the San Francisco Police Department, the San Mateo County Sheriff’s Department and the FBI.

The stolen materials included C4 military explosives, grenades, grenade simulators, signal flares, detonation cord, TNT, fuses and blasting caps.

Warrant issued for stabbing suspect

An arrest warrant was issued Sept. 24, 2004 for the stabbing death of Timothy Griffith after a San Francisco Giant baseball game on Sept. 17, 2004, San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom and Police Chief Heather Fong announced Friday.

Rafael Antonio Cuevas, 22, of San Francisco, was suspected of killing Griffith, 21, of Redwood City, who was stabbed in the heart after brushing up against the suspect’s car as he walked with friends along Terry A. Francois Boulevard around 10 p.m., police said.

Griffith’s mother and father attended the 5 p.m. news conference where they thanked the media for its coverage of the case and voiced their satisfaction with the city’s efforts in identifying a suspect.

Cuevas was identified through his work associates, who reported him to police after he failed to show up to work.

New deal for hospital reached

After four years of arduous negotiations, the Peninsula Health Care District and Mills-Peninsula Health Services agreed Sept. 23, 2004 to build a $420 million ultra-modern hospital in Burlingame.

The agreement, which was set for ballot approval, will allow Mills-Peninsula to lease 21 acres from the district for 50 years at a rate of $1.5 million a year.

At the end of 50 years, the site will be returned to the district.

Mills-Peninsula, a Sutter Health affiliate, announced it was to tear down the existing Peninsula Medical Center at Trousdale Drive and El Camino Real and construct an earthquake-proof modern facility designed by San Francisco architects Anshen and Allen.

Mills-Peninsula’s plan at the time called for a 243-bed hospital plus space for an additional 70 beds.

Gov. vetoes immigrant license bill

A fourth attempt to let illegal immigrants apply for driver’s licenses failed Sept. 22, 2004 as Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger made good on a vow to veto legislation that would have allowed up to 2 million immigrants to drive legally.

Supporters of the bill immediately promised to resume the battle next year and said the governor caved in to negative public sentiment instead of showing leadership.

Schwarzenegger, who promised to veto the bill after lawmakers passed it Aug. 27, said in a brief veto message that the bill did not address his security concerns.

The bill lacked a key provision he insisted upon for months, a special identifying mark on the licenses held by illegal immigrants. Supporters of the bill said such a mark would create a "scarlet letter” stigma.

The governor’s veto added new weight to California’s decade-old ban against licensing illegal immigrant adult drivers, most of them from Mexico. It also marked Schwarzenegger’s second major decision on the issue, coming 10 months after he pushed lawmakers to repeal a similar law signed by Gov. Gray Davis shortly before his defeat in the October recall.

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