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Suppose Paul Bocanegra is elected to the San Mateo County Board of Supervisors District 4 seat this November. In that case, he will be the first youth survivor of an indeterminate sentence to serve an elected position.
Bocanegra was sentenced to life in prison without parole for a crime he said he did not commit. After spending 25 years behind bars, he was freed when Senate Bill 9 passed, making it unconstitutional to condemn a minor to life in prison through the felony murder rule. He said the democratic party saved his life through that bill, giving him reason to be politically active in the community.
“When they opened the cage and freed my limbs, I knew I had to act,” Bocanegra said.
Focused on housing, juvenile justice systems, sustainable and reliable public transportation, public safety, and climate change, Bocanegra said the county is stuck in a rut, and the leadership styles must change.
Housing
“Fifty percent of our tenants are renters,” Bocanegra said. “The majority of homeless people are senior citizens.”
Bocanegra is against the Board of Supervisors’ Hopeful Horizons ordinance that issues misdemeanors to unhoused individuals who refuse a bed at a county shelter.
“I am a certified substance abuse counselor, and one of the most significant fears in the homeless population is being victimized in a homeless shelter. They don’t want to be there,” Bocanegra said. “First, we tax the hell out of them, and now we want to criminalize them for being displaced. This is the leadership we have today.”
He thinks the county’s Navigation Center is ineffective because there isn’t enough privacy. Instead, he suggests housing the unsheltered in spaces like the La Quinta Inn in Millbrae, which is being transformed into an apartment where tenants will have their own shower, kitchen and living space.
“It gives (people) solitude to be in their own private space,” Bocanegra said.
He added that some of the vacated commercial spaces in the county could be transformed into permanent affordable housing.
Youth
Bocanegra said the county spent $2 million on the food in the juvenile detention center at Hillcrest last year, and he questions the nutritional value of their meals.
He said the county outsources its foster system, something he thinks the county should invest in.
“Bring foster kids home and provide them with permanent housing and equal educational opportunities because they deserve that,” Bocanegra said. “People must be accountable and transparent for overlooking community members, especially our youth. I am with and for the people.”
Civilian Oversight
Bocanegra has been instrumental in nudging the county to implement a civilian oversight program to work with the Sheriff’s Office. Bocanegra, Fix’n San Mateo County vice chair emeritus, a grassroots organization focused on establishing a county inspector general to the sheriff’s office. The Board of Supervisors unanimously supported oversight of the Sheriff’s Office in November of 2022.
He said he worked on the county’s United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) ordinance, which prohibits county employees and representatives from cooperating with ICE or other entities for immigration enforcement.
“As a kid, growing up with immigrant parents in an underserved community, plagued by drugs, prostitution, ICE deportings that ripped families apart, and a foster home down the street from my home — I am not angry. I am concerned,” Bocanegra said.
Transportation
Focus on the working class people. Bocanegra said the county needs to have a more connected public transportation system. He stated that means working with Bay Area Rapid Transit and connecting its train lines to Caltrain’s schedule.
“When I came home (from prison), I never owned a car, lived alone, and didn’t drive. I was completely reliant on a discounted Clipper pass. And that card allowed me to move about the Bay Area for an affordable price. And I think the county could incentivize businesses to participate in a program to encourage more public transportation from community members.”
Climate resilience
Regarding climate resilience, rising sea levels are a considerable concern for the peninsula cities along the bayfront. While OneShoreline, a county agency, is exploring how to fund a sea wall in the Bay to combat climate change, Bocanegra argues other alternatives such as dredging and building landgraves.
“We don’t want a wall in the Bay,” Bocanegra said.
He said artificial turf in parks as the new default isn’t healthy and should be further considered. Adding it destroys the environment under it and emits toxic fumes that are unsafe for children.
He said that the corporations that profit in the Bay Area need to contribute more to the residents and working class. Childcare should be affordable and readily available.
Background
During Bocanegra’s stint in prison, he said he got in many fights to stay alive and to survive, which ended with him being in solitary confinement for over 12 years. With little hope of ever leaving prison, Bocanegra wasn’t deterred, he said.
Instead, he turned to educating himself on the laws. He was among the first inmates to receive a General Education Development (GED) certificate from Pelican Bay State Prison. He also received an Associate of Arts degree in business management while incarcerated. When he was released in 2017, he co-founded ReEvolution, a nonprofit organization that aims to support people transitioning back into society from the prison system.
“As long as I was alive, I knew I had a future. Every time I was attacked, I gave it my all, and you don’t win them all, but you walk away breathing, and I live to fight another day,” Bocanegra said. “I overcame adversity. That’s who I am, and that same kid who fought his entire life has picked a new fight, and my fight is for the people.”
Bocanegra joins Maggie Cornejo, director of government and community relations at Boys and Girls Club of the Peninsula; Antonio López, East Palo Alto council member and current mayor; Lisa Gauthier, council member of East Palo Alto; and Celeste Brevard, a project manager for Stanford University and a resident of Redwood City, in the race to replace current Board Supervisor Warren Slocum who has reached the end of his term limit.
The primary election is set for March 5, with a possible general election on Nov. 5 if no candidate secures more than 50% of the primary vote.
