Paul Kealoha Blake

After years of community advocacy, the city of Berkeley plans to launch a mental health crisis response team that is independent from law enforcement this summer.

Known on the streets of Berkeley as “the soup lady,” Barbara Brust died Feb. 25 at the age of 69.

Discussion was held on the work plan, subcommittees, data collection and how taxpayer dollars are being spent on mental health-related activities.

The city of Berkeley launched its one-year secure storage pilot program Monday, providing 58 lockers for homeless individuals.

LeConte Elementary School was named after Joseph LeConte, a UC Berkeley geology professor who owned more than 200 slaves and frequently promoted theories of racial inferiority.

Berkeley residents gathered on the corner of Allston Way and Shattuck Avenue on Monday night for a vigil in honor of Kayla Moore, a Black transgender woman diagnosed with schizophrenia who died while in Berkeley Police custody in 2013.

With the approval of its 2016 to 2017 fiscal year fund allocations for its approximately $9 million budget, the Berkeley/Albany Mental Health Commission voted Thursday to redirect more money into mental health centers and permanent housing for the homeless.

At its Wednesday meeting, the Berkeley Homeless Commission expressed concerns about the city policy regarding property confiscation, which allows city officials to confiscate items deemed unattended after two hours.

The Stanford Criminal Justice Center presented a report during a special Berkeley City Council meeting Tuesday that could help the council decide whether to allow Berkeley police officers to carry and use electronic control weapons, or ECWs, such as Tasers.