Playing by her own rules

SAN FRANCISCO — It’s a good thing Kamala Harris’ job title is San Francisco’s top prosecutor because she’s fairly lousy at mounting a defense.

How The City’s district attorney could invite illegal immigrants convicted of drug offenses into a taxpayer-supported job training program is mind-boggling at best. That she could maintain that they were playing by the rules is absurd — it’s apparent that there were no rules, and in their absence some were made up along the way.

One thing not in dispute is that even after Harris found out about the case involving Alexander Izaguirre, an illegal immigrant who allegedly robbed and assaulted a San Francisco woman while in the Back on Track program, she allowed other undocumented immigrants to graduate early from it and had their criminal records expunged.

This happened despite the fact that Mayor Gavin Newsom asked for an audit of each city department one year ago after another illegal immigrant, Edwin Ramos, allegedly shot and killed three people and San Francisco’s sanctuary city policy came under national scrutiny.

Newsom changed The City’s reporting policy, but somehow the district attorney did not appear to be paying attention.

One of the more remarkable aspects of the story is that apparently Harris’ campaign reps in her run to be California’s next attorney general thought that the Los Angeles Times was preparing a nice, soft profile of Harris’ touted Back on Track program and encouraged some of her colleagues in the legal community to talk about their experiences with it.

The Times found out that illegal immigrants were allowed into the program despite the fact that they were being trained for jobs they could not legally hold. And when people started being questioned about it, they ran for cover, according to several people with knowledge of the situation.

The prosecutors who directed the training program have said they knew about the immigration status of some of the members and apparently they convinced Harris to let them graduate. How they were admitted to begin with is still not clear; vigilance doesn’t seem to be a high priority in Harris’ office.

But not reporting them to immigration officials and saying that role was completely the responsibility of the Sheriff’s Department is hardly the kind of thing you want to hear from someone trying to be the state’s top law enforcement officer.

Give Harris credit though: her campaign has drawn attention.

Supporters plan benefit for seriously injured firefighter

While San Francisco supervisors decided Thursday to go forward with $6 million in cuts to the Fire Department, a group of supporters are gathering Saturday night to raise money for a city firefighter who was seriously injured battling a blaze last month.

Firefighter Mike Estrada has already undergone six surgeries on his broken leg as a result of a warehouse fire in the Bayview district in which a wall collapsed on him. Estrada also suffered burns, a broken clavicle and shoulder injuries, and is currently recovering at St. Mary’s Hospital.

The benefit, organized by Willa Ortega, a firefighter at Station 13 and event producer Darlene Dumpit, will be held at Jelly’s Nightclub, 295 Terry Francois St. (near AT&T Park) from 9 p.m. till closing and feature DJs, including two firefighters who will be spinning.

“It’s amazing that this guy is alive,’’ Dumpit said.

And she’s right, since Estrada’s accident was captured on a YouTube video under the telling caption “San Francisco firefighter crushed by falling debris.”

Those who called for Fire Department budget cuts would be well served to take a peek at the footage and decide if you still think we need more needle-exchange programs or firefighters.

Navy makes enemies at Moffett Field

I realize it’s difficult to become emotional about an airplane hangar, but that’s exactly what is happening down the Peninsula at Moffett Field, where the Navy finds itself in uncharted waters.

The Navy, in its wisdom, wants to strip the giant dome at Hangar One, the monstrously large structure built in 1932 to house dirigibles, down to its cavernous shell.

And then just leave it, a fragile skeleton for all to see.

This had been received about as well as a lead zeppelin with historic preservationists and airplane enthusiasts, who liken it to leaving Grace Cathedral with just a few of its original retaining walls. In other words, they don’t like it, especially those members of the organization that sprang up to rescue it, appropriately titled Save Hangar One.

The essential problem with the hangar is that its future is dependent on both the Navy and NASA-Ames Research Facility — and the Navy is charged with the expensive environmental cleanup of the airfield. Neither agency wants to put up the tens of millions that it would require to replace the recladding on the structure, and now Silicon Valley politicians are trying to pressure the Navy to come up with some other solutions.

Most people who see the hangar from Highway 101 are awed by its size, and its background was important enough for it to be listed among the most endangered structures compiled by the National Trust for Historic Preservation.

The bet here is that the Navy’s plan won’t fly.

Pot seller may be an apt job for this moron

You would think that with all the recent news about people being arrested on suspicion of everything from murder to prostitution charges related to posts on Craigslist that folks would realize law enforcement monitors the sight with keen interest.

And then there’s Christopher Grey, new poster boy for the old axiom, “Why do you think they call it dope?”

The Quincy, Mass., man was arrested this week after he allegedly placed an ad on Craigslist to sell marijuana. An undercover police officer — who, like most of the world, knows what the term “420” stands for — bought a small bag of pot from Grey and then promptly took him into custody.

Grey’s not-so-subtle ad on the Web site encouraged shoppers to “give me a ring if you need some help.” And now it’s Grey who will be doing the ringing — in a shout-out to his lawyer.