President Obama and Francois Hollande hold a press conference, Kelly Thomas' father speaks out about the civil case settlement, the Family Dinner Project.
Ron Thomas on accepting $4.9M to settle civil case: 'It's never been about money'
The father of the mentally ill homeless man who died after being beaten by Fullerton police officers in 2011 said a multimillion dollar settlement "speaks volumes" about the city's guilt in his son's death.
Ron Thomas decided to settle the wrongful death suit he filed against Fullerton for $4.9 million. The decision was announced during the opening statements of the trial Monday.
Thomas had previously maintained he wanted to see the case through the end. On Tuesday, he told Take Two he decided to accept a settlement after jury selection suggested the case could go either way.
"We didn't know where we would stand by the end of this," Thomas said. "And, again, I needed to show that the city was liable, to show that they were completely responsible for the death of my son."
Thomas' son, Kelly, was stopped by police officers in Fullerton after officers received a call about someone trying to break into cars in a parking lot in July 2011. When the 37-year-old Thomas tried to walk away, officers beat him with their batons. The altercation was recorded and widely spread over social media. In the video, Thomas can be heard saying he can't breathe and calling out for his dad. Kelly Thomas died five days later.
Criminal charges were brought against two former Fullerton police officers for involuntary manslaughter and excessive force in 2011, but they were acquitted last year. Similar charges against a third former officer were dropped as well.
Ron Thomas pursued a civil trial suing five officers, former police chiefs and the city of Fullerton.
While the settlement reached doesn't require the city or the police admit fault or liability —the city's attorney said Monday that the city won't be admitting liability — Thomas said, "the dollar amount that they offered and I accepted speaks volumes. [...] It says that, 'you know, we know we're wrong here and we're going to pay this much'."
Thomas added he's not sure what he'll do with the money, though he suggested some might go to charities he works closely with that provide help for homeless people with mental illness.
Still, Thomas said he was after the statement that a large settlement makes.
"It puts everybody on notice," he said. "You're gonna be held liable for this stuff now."
Hear the full interview with Ron Thomas at the audio link above.
This story has been updated.
Timeline of the Kelly Thomas beating
Golden State Warriors could break NBA record for consecutive wins
The Golden State Warriors are the reigning NBA champs.
Apparently, they liked winning so much that they've decided they're simply not going to lose any more games. They've started the season with 15 straight wins — that ties the NBA record.
A win Tuesday night in Oakland would break this record. All that's standing in their way? The mighty Lakers, who have 2 wins and 11 losses.
Diamond Leung covers the Warriors for the San Jose Mercury News. He spoke to Take Two about what viewers can expect.
Press the blue play button above to hear more.
Obama on ISIS: more than 8,000 airstrikes in Syria, Iraq
After meeting with French President Francois Hollande at the White House on Tuesday, President Barack Obama said that despite the U.S. leading more than 8,000 airstrikes in Iraq and Syria, a coalition with France and other nations must still do more to combat ISIS forces in the region.
"What you heard today, frankly, from [President Obama] was the rationalization of a strategy already in play, rather than a broadening of that strategy," said Aaron David Miller, vice president for new initiatives and distinguished scholar at the Woodrow Wilson Center's Middle East program.
Meanwhile, Hollande outlined details of increased airstrikes in Raqqa, an ISIS stronghold, supplying and supporting Iraqi forces near Ramadi and closing the Syrian border with Turkey to stem the flow of potential militants into Europe.
"I found it really intriguing that [President] Hollande was the one who put the specifics on the program," said Miller, noting that an upcoming meeting between Hollande and Russian President Vladimir Putin will be key to a potential coalition.
Ahead of the meeting, the White House said the meeting would be to coordinate efforts "to assist France’s investigation into these attacks, discuss further cooperation as part of the 65-member counter-ISIL coalition" and to confront terrorism.
Obama is scheduled to travel to Paris to attend a climate change conference next week.
US trade rep makes the case for the Trans-Pacific Partnership
U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman spent years leading negotiations for the Trans-Pacific Partnership, the biggest trade deal in history.
It covers a wide swath of the global economy and governs everything from drug patents to rice.
"Through this trade agreement, we'll be reducing or eliminating barriers and that's going to make it easier to export more from the United States, from California," he says.
But while 12 nations have signed on, Froman and the Obama administration have to get approval from U.S. Congress and the public.
"We want to keep jobs in the United States and grow those jobs, and tear down those barriers so there's an incentive to stay here," he argues.
It's uncertain how well that statement resonates when there's vehement opposition to the TPP on both sides of the political aisle.
Ambassador Froman joins Take Two to make his case for how the TPP is a great deal for the Californian economy.
Tuesday Reviewsday: Arca, Martin Crane, Cavanaugh and more
Every week we look at a whole host of new music. This week, music writer
reviews a few choice selections.
Arca from the album, "Mutant"
Arca is a Venezuelan-born electronic music maverick whose interests run decidedly dark. His blackened touch is all over Kanye West's freaky 2013 opus, "Yeezus."
There are flickers of dub and hip-hop and dark house music and huge swaths that sound like abstracted classical.
Martin Crane from the album Physical Therapy
Martin Crane is an Austin based musician who's put out records before using the name Brazos. It was a solo thing that became a trio and sure enough, his pals are on this album too. The same guys, which for the music nerds includes drummer Ian Chang of Son Lux and Matthew Dear, and Spencer Zahn, who plays bass with Twin Shadow.
This isn't forceful music, it's a little wispy and fey, but it's also just great.
Cavanaugh from the album Time and Materials
This is a concept-rap crew named Cavanaugh. It's two guys who've got really colorful, insightful, adventurous catalogs apart from one another. Serengeti and Open Mike Eagle.
The album supposedly takes place in a fictional place called Detroit, Florida, where the fellas play bizarro versions of themselves: Dave (Geti's real name) and Mike. They are maintenance workers in a building that's half luxury condos and half low-income housing project.
There is a different entrance for each, but all of the residents rely on the same pipes, the same wiring, and these two guys. They're caught in the middle of this bizarre, living, social experiment,
Shovels & Rope from the album Busted Jukebox Vol. I
This recommendation actually comes from Chris's father. The band is from South Carolina and they play punky country-folk.
"Busted Jukebox Vol. 1," and it's a set of covers performed as duets with other artists they've met and befriended over the years. I picked these songs to show the kind of range they're working with. One is "Unknown Legend," from Neil Young's 1992 LP "Harvest Moon." They're joined by Austinite Shakey Graves, who brings his gruff, Springsteeny vocals to the party. The other song is coincidentally also from '92. It's Last from Nine Inch Nails' first EP, "Broken." This one's dirty gritty psychobilly, like a Johnny Cash track sped up and pushed off its center, so it chugs along like a train with a deep list.
Chris Martins is a music writer living in Los Angeles.
Attorneys press LA jails for better access to mental health services
Civil rights lawyers on Monday argued in court that not enough is being done to help mentally ill inmates when released from L.A. County jails.
The attorneys represent a group of former inmates who say recent reforms mandated by the U.S. Department of Justice come up short. They say people who suffer from mental disorders and are homeless are released without proper access to services, creating what has been called a "Skid Row to jail cycle."
Alisa Hartz is one of the lead attorneys in the case, and she joins the show with more.
The Brood: The state of the family dinner
From long work hours, to hectic commutes, and transporting the kids from one after school activity to the next -- it's getting harder and harder to sit down for dinner.
Brigid Schulte, Washington Post writer and author of "Overwhelmed: Work, Love and Play When No One Has the Time," highlighted the necessity of taking a closer look at our daily schedules.
"Our culture expects parents to be very involved in their kids lives, creating a lot of over scheduling, and making it very hard to sit down for dinner," she said.
But how important is the family dinner? Are kids missing out on important life skills by not participating in meal prep activities? And what's being done to get people back in the kitchen as a family?
Lynn Barendsen is the executive director of The Family Dinner Project at Harvard. Bardensen thinks it's important to find dinner where you can.
"Dinner doesn't have to be a home cooked meal at a table, it can be a late night snack, or a picnic at a soccer game. Don't let the perfect by the enemy of the good," Bardensen said.
Barendsen says making time for a family dinner has many benefits and the key is to make fun and something the whole family can enjoy together.
To listen to the full interview, click on the blue audio player above.
A version of this segment also aired on November 24, 2015.