Fear, courage, chaos of 1998 City Hall shooting Luncheon commemorates the 25th anniversary of the attack

It was a mass shooting that, somewhat miraculously, didn’t kill anyone. That wasn’t for lack of trying on the gunman’s part. Seven people were wounded in the rampage at Riverside City Hall on Oct. 6, 1998.

The day was remembered at a City Hall luncheon on Friday, commemorating the 25th anniversary. Two dozen people, including yours truly, were present. Survivors and witnesses offered reflections. Some said they felt lucky to be there. Or anywhere.

That you’ll see police officers stationed at council meetings around California has a lot to do with what happened in Riverside that morning in 1998.

The shooting happened something like this.

The 8 a.m. City Council meeting was minutes from starting. Officials were drifting in and out of a conference room — an oblong, windowless space dominated by a long wooden table, chairs around it — to get coffee before entering the council chamber.

Joseph Neale entered the conference room too.

He was a disgruntled citizen — a postal worker, naturally — who’d lost his parttime job as a chess instructor at a community center and began sending grandiose letters of complaint, dozens of pages in length, cc’ing the governor and president. He was a regular at council meetings, where he’d sit in the back, silently.

The conference room was easily accessible. Chuck Beaty, a councilperson, said hello when Neale walked in. Neale didn’t respond verbally. “He opened his suitcase, pulled out his gun and started shooting,” Beaty recalled.

Ron Loveridge, the mayor, was the first target. His back to Neale, Loveridge was turning to get coffee when a bullet struck the back of his neck. He dropped and got under the table’s far side for protection. Ameal Moore, another councilperson, joined him.

Councilperson Laura Pearson was, unluckily, standing near Neale. She asked what he was doing. She tried to grab his gun. He clubbed her on the head with it.

Beaty acted on impulse. Figuring that Neale was off his guard while hitting Pearson, Beaty, who was in his 60s, tackled the 48-year-old.

“He was strong, stronger than me,” Beaty recalled.

Neale shot Beaty three times through the jaw and hip.

Bullets pierced the jacket of Alex Clifford, another councilperson, and fragments struck his face. He bolted from the room.

Terri Thompson, another councilperson, was knocked to the ground during the assault. Neale apparently thought he’d killed her.

“She played dead,” recalled Maureen Kane, a councilperson who was outside the room during the shooting. Good acting probably saved Thompson’s life.

While all this was going on, the council chamber was cleared. Everyone knew something bad was happening. Speakers on each floor of

City Hall that broadcast audio of the

als, who come from middleand upper-class families that may support them, a long-term unpaid internship is feasible, for the majority of young people, that’s not the reality.

“I have had interns with me for the last 20 to 30 years as I’ve done this type of work. There’s always been interns, but because I have focused on kids from challenging circumstances, we’ve always needed to provide some

financial support,” Bass said. Bass highlighted $53 million the city received from CalVolunteers, a state office aimed at bolstering volunteering and civic action.

The $53 million will help connect 4,000 young people to jobs and provide them with training by May 1. More than 1,300 young people participated in the CalVolunteers-funded programs, such as Angelenos Corps and Student 2 Student, she said. Internships can often be a “life changing experience” for young people, exposing them to careers that might not be

accessible in their communities, Bass said.

According to Thurmond’s office, the summit will explore ways to design paid training and career coaching programs and examine other programs that may help, such as mentoring, mental health and housing programs. The program will be designed for those ages 13 to 24.

The summit will focus on how to launch programs and pilots in Oakland as a start and examine ways to expand to other cities such as San Francisco, Sacramento, Fresno, Los Angeles and San Diego.

In 2022, Thurmond sponsored Assembly Bill 2088 to fund paid internships for youth and he has signaled that he will support a similar measure in the 2024 legislative cycle. Thurmond and partners will be contacting foundations, corporations, donors, nonprofits and businesses to help fund pilot programs until a legislative allocation can be pursued in 2024.

Those interested in participating in the summit or in supporting the paid internships program can contact CAstudentinternships@cde.ca.gov.