“March 6, 2018, was another mild and sunny day in San Diego. Petty Officer 2nd Class Tiara Gray, who was 21 years old, was somewhere off the coast, onboard the USS Essex, writing in her journal. It was 27 days before she died.”
That is how reporter Will Huntsberry’s story about Tiara Gray begins. His story weaves together journal entries, medical records, official reports and family interviews to paint an intimate picture of Tiara’s life in the military.
Today, April 2, 2024, is the sixth anniversary of Tiara’s death.
As Huntsberry writes: “The thousands of pages of documents and hours of interviews say one thing clearly: The treatment Tiara received in the Navy played a role in her death.”
Huntsberry spent months investigating military suicide in 2022. His reporting showed that young men and women in the military are far more likely to die by suicide than their civilian peers. These aren’t grizzled war veterans. Many aren’t old enough to drink alcohol and have never been near armed combat.
During her time in the Navy, Tiara was in and out of mental health treatment. Her Navy doctors diagnosed her with major depressive disorder and borderline personality disorder, among other conditions. They acknowledged that working at sea, aboard the Essex, exacerbated her conditions. And then they cleared her for duty — and sent her right back to the environment that had triggered her instability.
Environment Report: US Will Increase Oversight Over Tijuana’s Sewage System
In the seemingly never-ending saga that is the Tijuana River sewage crisis, it appears U.S. officials have made some progress toward figuring out how to stop sewage from spilling into the Tijuana River.
The International Boundary and Water Commission (the binational agency that deals with cross-border water issues) will start monthly inspections of some of the equipment on Tijuana’s side of things that is supposed to keep sewage from spilling into the Tijuana River.
This is a big deal for the IBWC, our MacKenzie Elmer reports. Normally, the idea of one country going to oversee another country’s broken pipes would be seen as an overstep.
But IBWC Commissioner Maria-Elena Giner announced last week that she’s ushering in a new era of collaboration thanks to the relationships she has established with Mexican officials.
Read the Environment Report here.
What’s Next for Proposition 1
A couple weeks after a statewide behavioral health reform measure narrowly passed, county Board of Supervisors Chair Nora Vargas wants to get ahead of it.
Vargas plans to urge fellow supervisors next Tuesday to direct county behavioral health officials to begin planning potential behavioral health infrastructure priorities to seek state bond funds to back. She said she’ll also call on staff to consider Proposition 1’s potential impacts and opportunities with a focus on equity – and to report back within 120 days.
Refresher: Proposition 1 called for a $6.4 billion bond to fund thousands of behavioral health beds and other services plus a reprioritization of county spending using a major mental-health funding stream to focus more on treating serious mental illnesses and addiction, especially among chronically homeless people. This money comes from a 1 percent tax on annual incomes more than $1 million. The reshuffling of priorities under the so-called Mental Health Services Act reformed by Proposition 1 means some programs and services that now rely on these funds could be cut.
What’s next: Proposition 1 reforms won’t take effect until July 2026, meaning they won’t lead to immediate cuts. But the state expects to release its first application for bond funds this fall. Many details – including funding priorities or how bond money will be divided up statewide – are still TBD.
In Other News
- The contractor that provides health care services in San Diego County jails has violated multiple terms of its contract, according to documents, including racking up $9.3 million of unpaid bills due to hospitals. It’s caused some hospitals to refuse patients that are in custody. (Union-Tribune)
- City officials will present the preferred design and estimated cost range for the replacement of the iconic Ocean Beach pier on Saturday. The 58-year-old pier has reached the end of its life after repeated closures caused by storms and high surf conditions. (Union-Tribune)
- National City leaders will consider adopting a homeless camping ban at Tuesday’s City Council meeting. (Union-Tribune)
- A second case of measles has been confirmed in San Diego County, according to county health officials. (Union-Tribune)
- California’s $20 minimum wage for fast food workers took effect Monday. (NBC 7)
The Morning Report was written by Will Huntsberry, Tigist Layne and Lisa Halverstadt. It was edited by Andrea Lopez-Villafaña.
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