I was shocked by the crime and taken aback by the response of Det. Zuno:
" Detective Zuno went out of his way to ask that residents focus on suspicious activity, not on African-American men or white vehicles."

I have lived in the area for 30 years and have not met any/many racist residents. If these folks were robbed by 3 African-American men in a white car, should we be searching for 3 white women in a black car?

Not sure why we need to be constantly chastised by public officials not to be racists. Do your job and find the criminals and stop lecturing.

PV resident - Perhaps you weren't paying attention during attempts to bring affordable housing to Portola Valley. Some rocks were overturned and it was definitely ugly.

Or when kids from East Palo Alto were having a grand old time on the campus of the Portola Valley elementary school one summer and making a joyful noise that annoyed the neighbors, seemingly annoying them even more once they found out who had the temerity to be frolicking in a community other than their own.

[part removed.]

Joe;
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What affordable housing has to do with this crime is beyond me.
Kids making noise on a summer night at a school gets attention. So do bikes on walking trails, so do dogs not on leashes, so do sightings of mountain lions. Yes, some residents have low tolerance levels, but the schools have also been burglarized as well.

Perhaps you can screen the police calls to make sure these racist residents are calling about real problems.

PV resident: [part removed.]

You're familiar with implicit bias, I assume. By my reading, that is what the detective was referring to. I have implicit bias. I know it and I do my best to control it, but I will not deny that it is in me.

Under stress, it can come out -- and this is important -- from EVERYBODY. We all have it. Humans beings are tribal creatures, inescapably. Tribal. Get it? When push comes to shove, tribal passions emerge.

The important question is what do you do with implicit bias when you feel it?

Do you express it, either directly or via some kind of dog whistle? Or do you use your head, acknowledge what you're thinking and feeling, hold your tongue and listen to what's going on around you?

You invite criticism like this when you assert that your community doesn't have any racists. They show up when they're stressed sufficiently. No community is without them. It's called the human condition and it means a lifetime of work.

Joe;
So sorry. Your are so right.

If you see 3 African-American males in a white car in central Portola Valley, parked on a dark street tonight, Joe asks that you please don't call the police. That would be a dog whistle. Joe is so enlightened.

For those of you interested in the previous invasion robbery (June on Golden Oak - not far from this event), here is the link. I am surprised the Almanac did not insert this into the article. Obviously there are similarities and I wonder if the current description doesn't quite match that of the former. At the time there were not descriptions offered as "the investigation was ongoing", however, I think the sheriff should give residents the best description possible, aside from any biases we may or may not have....

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