Catch Me Up: Daily news roundup for June 9, 2025

This Daily News Roundup for the 24 hours from 4:00 PM Sunday 6/8 to 4:00 PM Monday 6/9 is based on news articles created by Bay City News reporters and editors. We prompted ChatGPT to analyze the articles produced by our staff and to choose 5 stories to highlight. Then we used ElevenLabs and other tools to help us convert the text into audio based on the voice of Leslie Katz, one of our Bay City News editors. This content was verified by a human editor.

Hello, and welcome to Bay City News for Monday, June 9th, 2025. Here is a look at some of the top stories from across the region.

San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie and city officials announced preparations for more protests today, following a violent anti-Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, demonstration Sunday night. Police arrested 148 people and said two officers were injured, Muni buses were vandalized, and store windows were broken. A firearm was also recovered. One person faces a felony aggravated assault charge against an officer. Half of those arrested were from San Francisco, while the other half were from outside the city. Mayor Lurie urged protesters to remain peaceful, emphasizing the city’s commitment to sanctuary laws.

Meanwhile, Governor Gavin Newsom formally requested that President Donald Trump withdraw two thousand National Guard soldiers from Los Angeles, where they were deployed over the weekend to support immigration enforcement actions. Newsom’s office stated that local law enforcement is sufficient and called the federal deployment an “unlawful” and “serious breach of state sovereignty.” This marks a rare instance of a president deploying federalized troops without a governor’s request, a situation not seen since 1965. The deployment followed unrest and reports of violence during immigration sweeps. State and Bay Area leaders, including House Speaker Robert Rivas and Senator Mike McGuire, have condemned the federal actions, with many calling them an “authoritarian assault.” The arrest of union leader David Huerta during an immigration protest in Los Angeles on Friday has further galvanized Democratic leaders in California, who have called for his release. Huerta, president of the Service Employees International Union California, is a prominent advocate for immigrant and worker rights.

Shifting our focus to transportation, the Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit District, or SMART, has secured 81 million dollars in state funding to extend passenger rail service north to Healdsburg. This funding is part of a larger 187.7 million dollar package of federal, state, regional, and local funds for the project. The award also includes an additional six million dollars for a zero-emission locomotive. State Senate President Pro Tempore Mike McGuire celebrated the news, stating that the SMART train will soon be serving riders from one end of the North Bay to the other. SMART officials say the project is expected to be completed by 2028.

In Santa Rosa, a 55-year-old woman was seriously injured after being struck by a pickup truck while riding her bicycle in a crosswalk Monday morning. Police reported that the collision occurred shortly after eight a.m. at the intersection of Sebastopol Road and Laurel Grove Circle. The woman was transported to a trauma center with major, life-threatening injuries. The 59-year-old driver from Coverdale remained at the scene and cooperated with police. Authorities said there were no obvious signs of drug or alcohol impairment, and speed did not appear to be a factor in the crash. The westbound lanes of Sebastopol Road near Laurel Grove Circle were closed for nearly three hours during the investigation.

Moving to education news, a new report by the National Council on Teacher Quality sharply criticized California and many of its teacher certification programs for inadequately preparing new elementary teachers to teach math. The “State of the States” report, published last week, found that California programs performed among the lowest in the country. It also highlighted a lack of support for teachers once they enter the classroom. The report noted a significant disparity between undergraduate and graduate teacher preparation programs, with graduate programs often providing far fewer instructional hours in math. The findings coincide with the state’s adoption of a new math framework this summer, which is expected to be challenging for both new and veteran teachers. Despite the criticism, the California State University system and the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing have defended their programs, disputing the report’s methodology.

Finally, in Oakland, the city honored its youngest Youth Poet Laureate on Friday, designating 14-year-old Cael Duenas-Lara with the recognition. Duenas-Lara, a sophomore at San Francisco University High School, was celebrated for his talent, powerful performances, and strong leadership. Sharon McKellar, supervising librarian for teen services at the Oakland Public Library, which runs the program, praised Duenas-Lara as an incredibly talented writer and a strong leader. The East Oakland resident and second-generation Mexican-American stated that writing has allowed him to strengthen his voice and challenge preconceived ideas about his identity.

And those are some of the top stories we’re following. Thank you for joining us for Bay City News.