A former Apple and Cisco engineer named Neha Rastogi claimed that her husband, Cuberon CEO Abhishek Gattani spent the past 10 years verbally and physically abusing her. He pleaded guilty to the crimes and will serve just 13 days in jails for his crimes.

The couple's struggle with domestic violence were well-documented. A Fortune article from April reveals that the marriage was an arranged one and that the violence began soon after the couple tied the knot. In fact, Gattani was arrested and charged with assault in 2013 after a postal worker called police when he saw Gattani beating his wife on their Sunnyvale sidewalk. The couple have a three-and-a-half-year-old daughter.

As many victims do, Rastogi stayed in her marriage and only summoned the courage to return to the police after collecting evidence of Gattani's abuse including audio of him telling her, "Yeah, I would like to see you murdered."

Gattani was then charged with felony assault.

According to ABC7, his attorneys worked out a plea deal with the Santa Clara County District Attorney that allowed Gattani to plead guilty to a lesser felony. As a result, he will serve just under two weeks in jail, spend the following five months picking up trash, and will not be deported back to his home country of India.

"When I made the leap of faith I felt that I would have better support from the system and I think I totally misjudged that," Rastogi told CBS 5.

Obviously ,Rastogi was hoping for a stricter sentence. Her husband, who threatened to kill her repeatedly, will be back on the streets two weeks from today. The only request of hers ordered by the judge was that Gattani start his jail sentence tomorrow as opposed to five months from now.

The Daily Beast published the victim impact statement that Rastogi read in court. It says, in part:

In these past few months I have tried come to terms with the fact that the man I married, the father of my child, is a horrible human being, and didn't deserve my care or respect or love and now, he doesn't deserve another second of my mental space given the 10 years I have already wasted on him. He was a mistake and now I need to move on... but I find it difficult to move on when I feel wronged by the DA's office and this court.

Honestly I feel fooled not just by a convicted criminal, aggressor, wife beater, batterer, that I unfortunately married - the worst mistake of my life but by this court as well. With all due respect to the system... I stand FOOLED, disgraced and ridiculed as a victim.

A small rally in support of victims of domestic violence was held outside the courthouse following Gattani's sentencing.

There are numerous 24-hour, multi-lingual, anonymous and safe support organizations for victims of domestic violence in the Bay Area and beyond. Here are some resources.

Related: 'G' Chahal, The Worst Bad Man In Silicon Valley, Charged With Abusing Another Girlfriend

Down in San Mateo, police say that a school employee allegedly kissed and fondled a young student in his care. Michael Renz, 20, of Millbrae was arrested Friday for sexually abusing a young girl attending Horrall Elementary School's after school program.

"Eric made a very bad choice to engage in inappropriate contact with a student and was caught - was actually noticed because our processes are in place,” Molly Barton, assistant superintendent of student services for the San Mateo-Foster City School District, explained to KTVU.

A worker reportedly spotted the young victim sitting on Renz''s lap on October 18 and claims to have seen inappropriate contact between the two, according to Mercury News.

Renz was booked but later released on bail. He is currently on administrative leave.

[KTVU]
[Mercury News]

SFPD's crowdsourcing unit is asking for the public's help in tracking down three suspects caught on video encouraging a dog fight in Hunters Point. In the video, the suspects can be seen slapping and encouraging aggressive behavior out of a pair of pit bulls. At least one suspect in the dogfighting ring has been taken into custody.

23-year-old Ed Perkins was already under arrest in connection with another case when SFPD investigators found identified him in the dogfighting footage last month. The video found its way into the hands of San Francisco's finest while police were working on a separate investigation and Perkins was booked for owning or training a dog for fighting, causing a dog to fight for amusement or gain, animal cruelty, participation in a criminal street gang and conspiracy. Investigators believe the fight itself actually occurred back in March of this year at the Hunters View housing complex.

24-year-old Jermaine Jackson was also handed a citation for being present at the fight, but
police have not been able to identify three other men and one woman spotted in the video. Cops are also looking for the two pit bulls involved, although they are not sure how badly they may have been injured in the recorded fight.

Anyone with any information in the dogfighting case should call SFPD's tip line at (415) 575-4444.

The neighborhood around Hunters View has been in the news for violent crime recently: In June, a 19-year-old man and his 17-year-old girlfriend were shot while sitting in a Muni shelter outside the housing complex at West Point and Middle Point Roads. The man later died from his injuries and one of the two suspects is a 14-year-old boy who is being tried as an adult.

Kwame Harris, former San Francisco 49ers and Oakland Raiders offensive, will appear in court this week for allegedly assaulting his ex-boyfriend outside a Chinese food restaurant in August 2012. The fight, it seems, erupted over spilled soy sauce.

The San Mateo Daily Journal has the details:

Harris was to drive [his ex Dimitri Geier] to San Francisco International Airport but instead became upset when he poured soy sauce on a plate of rice, according to the suit filed in San Mateo County Superior Court.

The men argued for approximately seven minutes and Harris said he would no longer take Geier to the airport, the suit states.

As the men left to remove Geier's belongings from Harris' car so that he could instead take a cab, Harris tried pulling the other man's pants down and accused him of stealing his underwear, according to the suit.

Geier unsuccessfully tried pushing Harris away but the bigger man shook him violently and punched him in the arms, the suit states.

Geier has also filed suit against the retired player for assault, battery, false imprisonment, negligence and "both intentional and negligent infliction of emotional distress." He is free on $75,000 bail.

The 30-year-old former footballer played at Stanford before moving the NFL to play for the Raiders and 49ers. He's one of the few football stars to have (openly?) been in a gay relationship.

Kachusha Munkanta, known among the local cycling community as "Chuey" and a generally peaceful guy, was allegedly jumped and beaten unconscious by SFPD officers after observing another arrest early last Friday morning.

Chuey ran his own line of handmade cycling caps and delivered coffee by bike for De La Paz coffee, so he was well-known around the local bike shops and clubs. A close-friend of Chuey's sent in an account of the incident to Uptown Almanac:

Thursday night/ Friday morning Chuey stopped on the side of the street in the Mission when he saw the cops having 4 Latinos lined up against a gate. He stopped to make sure the youth were being fairly treated.

The cops then asked him to cross the street, when Chuey said he couldn't observe from across the street. They (2-3 cops) jumped him as he was hugging his bike. They wrestled him to the ground then continued to push him into the ground, twisting his arm, slamming his head into the ground. He was in jail for almost 24 hours and released after his family paid bail. They charged him with 3 felonies for assaulting 3 cops with enough force to cause grave bodily harm and 2 misdemeanors for resisting arrest.

Chuey was released on $150,000 bail and issued a public defender yesterday afternoon, Uptown Almanac reports. Although there's no official "FREE CHUEY" fund, local bike shops like Roaring Mouse and Box Dog Bikes are encouraging people to buy Chuey's hats to help him defer the costs of court fees, the ER visit and the MRI his doctors advised him to get. Several local companies like MASH and All Hail the Black Market have offered to donate 100% of their profits to his defense.

[UA]

Despite a domestic-abuse conviction, Sheriff Ross Mirkarimi gets to keep his job after the board of Supervisors refused allow Mayor Ed Lee to use official misconduct charges to get the embattled elected sheriff out of office. Voting against removal were supervisors John Avalos, David Campos, Jane Kim, and Christina Olague. Yesterday's meeting went well into the night, with scores of Mirkarimi supporters speaking in favor of the former D5 supervisor (with a few of them ridiculing domestic violence workers).

Among the supporters were former SF Mayor Art Agnos who chided the Lee regime, saying, "As a former mayor, I know extraordinary power ... During the Loma Prieta earthquake, I used the state of emergency to close neighborhoods, hold people without charges, put the army on the streets of our city. But I never had this kind of power — and no one should."

On the flip side, Katharine Berg of La Casa de las Madres, a domestic violence organization, told the BoS that retaining Mirkarimi would "send a frightening message to survivors of violence and an empowering one to perpetrators across the city."

Mayor Lee lambasted the decision for reinstatement. He also spent last night at the Metreon Target store opening, posing for pictures next to an unhappy dog during, in lieu of participating in the brouhaha at city hall.

Read SFist's comprehensive coverage of last night's hearing.

[SF Examiner]
[Appeal]

Crazy person Sean Harris, senior pastor of the Berean Baptist Church in North Carolina, delivered a terrifying sermon on Sunday to his congregation suggesting that parents "crack" their fey sons' limp wrists, rein in daughters who appear butch, "punch" them if they act gay, and a slew of other child-abuse recommendations that are sure to horrify anyone with commonsense and a heart. Harris was speaking in support for North Carolina's Amendment One, the state's looming ban on gay marriage and civil union. Care of Good As You, who first reported the story, the transcript of the infamous sermon reads as follows:

"So your little son starts to act a little girlish when he is four years old and instead of squashing that like a cockroach and saying, “Man up, son, get that dress off you and get outside and dig a ditch, because that is what boys do,” you get out the camera and you start taking pictures of Johnny acting like a female and then you upload it to YouTube and everybody laughs about it and the next thing you know, this dude, this kid is acting out childhood fantasies that should have been squashed.

Can I make it any clearer? Dads, the second you see your son dropping the limp wrist, you walk over there and crack that wrist. Man up. Give him a good punch. Ok? You are not going to act like that. You were made by God to be a male and you are going to be a male. And when your daughter starts acting to Butch you reign her in. And you say, “Oh, no, sweetheart. You can play sports. Play them to the glory of God. But sometimes you are going to act like a girl and walk like a girl and talk like a girl and smell like a girl and that means you are going to be beautiful. You are going to be attractive. You are going to dress yourself up.”

You say, “Can I take charge like that as a parent?”

Yeah, you can. You are authorized. I just gave you a special dispensation this morning to do that."

For his part, Harris later said it was all in good fun. "If I had to say it again, I would say it differently, no doubt," Harris told the Fayette Observer. "Those weren't planned words, but what I do stand by is that the word of God makes it clear that effeminate behavior is ungodly. I'm not going to compromise on that." He also sadfaced on Twitter, "Even my apology is being judged by those who are supposed to be the most tolerant as insincere. At this point nothing seems sufficient."

Not true, Pastor Harris! Donating and/or volunteering to The Trevor Project (the leading national
organization providing crisis intervention and suicide prevention services to lesbian, gay,
bisexual, transgender, and questioning youth) would border on sufficient.

Via the church's website, Harris (born in the very liberal town of Newton, Massachusetts) lists his hobbies as reading, cycling, physical fitness, restaurants (Outback Steakhouse and Cracker Barrel are a few of his gastronomic favorites), snow skiing, NCCSA sports, and smiting homosexuals. Well, we made up that last part — we can only assume it would be one of his favorite activities — but it's nice to see that he keeps his body so tight and fit while spewing such unbridled hatred.

North Carolina is set to vote on the gay-marriage ban on May 8th.

San Francisco Sheriff Ross Mirkarimi received a one-day jail sentence and three years of probation Monday for falsely imprisoning his wife, Eliana Lopez, during a fight that allegedly resulted in his bruising her. The Chronicle breathlessly reports, "An emotional Mirkarimi said outside the courtroom that he accepted full responsibility for his actions. He will get credit for the time he has already spent in jail."

Speaking outside the courtroom, Mirkarimi said, "In standing before you today, I am ashamed and deeply sorry for my behavior ... I offer my deepest heartfelt apology. I'm going to devote myself to repair my relationship with my family, with the people of San Francisco, and am committed to becoming a better public servant, one you can be proud of - someone who should not hide from their mistakes."

No word yet if and when Mayor Ed Lee will remove Mirkarimi from office.

(By D. Hanousek)

Yesterday, a close friend pregnant with her first child posted a link on Facebook to an article about a mother who was arrested for allowing her 10-year-old to get a tattoo honoring his late brother. Said friend posed the question, "Would you let your 10-year-old son get a tattoo, for any reason? What if the tattoo is to honor the passing of his brother; is that acceptable?" I immediately felt my emotions heighten as I wrote the comment, "Er, circumcision is legal. So is piercing your infant's ears. Don't get me started..." This led me, of course, to the confession that when it comes to hot-topic children's issues, to me, ignorance is bliss.

I am a troubled sleeper mainly because I overthink when my head hits the pillow and I close my eyes. I think about worst-case scenarios involving burglars, rapists, and natural disasters. But as of late, my insomnia has taken on a more realistic tone as the words of friends and family keep swirling in my head.

Recently, not one, but two women close to me confessed that their husbands had been physically abusive to them and their children. In both cases, when I sprang to action calling domestic violence hotlines and CPS, both women reneged on their allegations, told me I was overreacting, and in one case, shunned me from her life. At night, I am so sad, trying to figure out why these women told me in the first place if they were just going to deny it in the end and deem me to be "the bad friend."

How is this related to my friend’s Facebook post? As a parent, I am sensitive to every judgment, big or small pertaining to children. My son is uncircumcised. One of the fathers mentioned above called my three-year-old son an "anteater" every time he saw him. (Abuser or not, what an asshole.) But I always kept my opinions about him circumcising his sons to myself. It just seemed like the polite thing to do.

Another father (formerly) close to my family exploded on my husband about not respecting Jewish traditions, believing that my Christian background was brainwashing my husband and my children. This isn't the case. Even though I'm an agnostic who lacks the faith required to be technically labeled a Christian, this did not keep this father from sharing his judgment. And my husband, remaining calm and polite, refrained from lashing back with arguments supporting our family's beliefs about circumcision.

Why are these parents allowed to share their opinions and judgments about my family but I am supposed to stay silent when I am informed of abuse? Should that mom have been arrested for allowing her son to get a tattoo? I don't know. Is circumcision wrong? I'll tell you what I think if you ask me in person.

Is piercing an infant's ears a selfish act performed by parents? Maybe. Is violence in the home an abominable and unacceptable disgrace? YES. Yes, it is. And while I understand the importance of an open dialogue on all of these issues, at the end of the day I would just like to close my eyes and go to sleep, ignorant of it all. But I think that's an impossible dream of mine (and most parents) as an active social networking savvy mom, news-reading citizen, and a human being with a conscience.

Abuse, judgment, and ignorance is all around us. You know this. While it would be easier to just roll over and pretend it’s not there, I have learned that, in some cases, politeness is wrong and I have to speak. Where do you draw the line? I’m still trying to figure that out. Here’s hoping for a good night’s sleep sometime in the next decade or so.

A UC Davis graduate filed a lawsuit against UC Davis for not taking action on his numerous complaints about a Jewish fraternity's sexually-charged and abusive hazing rituals. Ryan Clifford claims that he was "punched, stripped naked, molested and forced to drink 'inordinate amounts' of alcohol" while pledging the Chi Delta chapter of Alpha Epsilon Pi back in 2008.

In his lawsuit, Clifford says that he was specifically targeted for cruel initiation since he was a non-Jew pledging for a Jewish fraternity. According to The Chronicle, "[a]t a mandatory retreat at Lake Tahoe, he said, active and alumni members of the fraternity drugged him, took off his clothes and touched his penis, all while making sexual comments."

Then, a few weeks later, Chi Delt brethren allegedly "brought Clifford and other pledges to an alumnus' house and compelled them to drink alcohol." After Clifford refused to imbibe, he was then forced "into a padded vest and punched in the stomach by a member and a pledge as other members mocked him."

Even his "big brother" (the Virgil to a pledge's Dante, if you will) reportedly abused the plaintiff by "choking him, stomping on his foot and knocking him to the floor." Clifford suffered a multiple fracture that required surgery.

Although the fraternity should have been disbanded immediately after the Lake Tahoe incident, which prompted complaints from several other students' parents, UC Davis did nothing.

The Chronicle reports:

[Clifford] said he told Tracy Grissom, his academic counselor, in fall 2008 and again in winter 2009 about his experience, but she did not report it. He said he also told his professors.

In spring 2009, Clifford said he spoke to the Office of the Dean of Students of the "continuing emotional and physical distress" he had to endure attending classes with his alleged abusers. He was then advised to withdraw from classes, which he did.

He never joined the fraternity in question.

But are the aforementioned and alleged hazing acts the norm? We asked a former fraternity member if such abusive rituals were commonplace during pledge weeks. Requesting to remain anonymous, he told SFist, "touching someone's penis is unusual as is drugging somebody [during initiation] ... and physically abusing someone is definitely not cool."

In addition to causing pledge distress, Alpha Epsilon Pi at UC Davis also raises money for a slew of charities, including ELEM (Youth In Distress In Israel), the JNF - Jewish National Fund), Save a Child’s Heart, and Sharsheret. According to the AEPi site, "Raising money for quality organizations gives us a great feeling of accomplishment; raising money while having fun makes the experience even better and it is what separates us from all the other chapters." Yes, that and the unwarranted punching, choking, and occasional penis touching.

During a budding Occupy Berkeley demonstration Wednesday at the UC Berkeley campus, police charged at a group of protesting students before retreating. As the cops attacked the kids, the group chanted, "Stop beating students! Stop beating students!" In the video, you can see a few young men and women getting pounded in the stomaches with police batons.

Miles Mathews captured the scene below:

On Monday, if you recall, UC Berkeley Chancellor Robert Birgeneau sent out a campus-wide letter warning students and faculty against setting up tents or disturbing classes, stating:

Any activities such as pulling fire alarms, occupying buildings, setting up encampments, graffiti, or other destructive actions that disrupt with anyone's ability to conduct regular activities -- go to class, study, carry out their research, etc. -- will not be tolerated.

Clearly.

After getting hit by police officers, Shane Boyle, a Cal graduate student involved in the melee, told The Chronicle, "It really, really hurt - I got the wind knocked out of me...I was lucky I only got hit twice." He also revealed a red welt on his chest.

Six UC Berkeley students and english professor Celeste Langan were arrested for "resisting and delaying police officers."

After the officers left the scene, students quickly replaced their tents at Sproul Plaza.

Update: Defying UC policy, Occupy Cal students spent most of the evening on Sproul Plaza pitching tents and protesting in direct opposition to Chancellor Birgeneau's orders.

Video below shows tension simmering between protesters and police, especially around the 6:00 mark.

Oakland Police are investigating "allegations that a young boy had been sexually assaulted by five other boys at a Boys & Girls Club facility in East Oakland." A seven-year-old boy alleges he was assaulted in the bathroom of the Boys & Girls Club of Oakland (at 8530 International Boulevard) on Wednesday night by "five other boys around the age of ten." Ugh. Awful. And depressing. Please teach your kids better, world. [KTVU]

The Contra Costa Times has published disheartening details that have emerged in the lawsuit against the city of San Francisco regarding the torture of Jazzmin Davis and her twin brother at the hands of their aunt and lifelong foster parent, Shemeeka Davis, resulting in Jazzmin's death in 2008.

As SFist reported last year, the twins were born in San Francisco to a drug-addicted mother, and their aunt took them to Antioch at three months old. Davis abused the twins with extension cords, belts, and a hot iron for years, and in 2008, she began locking them in a closet for days on end.

Jazzmin weighed 78 pounds at 5-feet-7 when authorities found her body, and she and her brother were covered in open wounds, sores, and scars.

San Francisco officials have agreed to settle the lawsuit brought against the city's child welfare agency and social worker Ann Marie Smith for ignoring numerous red flags about the abuse. The city has agreed to pay $4 million to Jazzmin's brother, who has not been named.