Marines keep Bay Area offices open
By John Simerman

STAFF WRITER
Article Launched: 03/07/2008 03:05:13 AM PST

Marine Corps recruiting offices in the Bay Area remained open Thursday after the early-morning bombing of a recruiting station in New York City's Times Square, a Marine Corps spokesman said.

"Right now all we're doing is making sure our recruiters know about it and are kept informed," said Gunnery Sgt. Matt DeBoard. He did not know whether the bombing affected activity at the 15 Marine Corps recruiting stations from Santa Cruz to Eureka. No new security measures were added.

Meanwhile, Melanie Morgan, the conservative talk show personality dismissed last week from radio station KSFO, came to Berkeley and called on Mayor Tom Bates to add security at the controversial U.S. Marine Center there. In a news release, she said that Bates shares "plenty of blame for the escalation of hostility towards our military men and women."

Bates, a former Army captain, leads a City Council that last month, under intense national pressure, retracted a statement calling Marine recruiters "uninvited and unwelcome intruders" in the city.

Bates, who was out of town Thursday, does not think that additional police protection is needed, said Julie Sinai, his chief of staff.

The downtown already has a significant police presence due to recent protests and rallies by CodePink and the World Can't Wait. Since a Feb. 12 protest at City Hall, the city has spent more than $110,000 on police overtime for protests at the Marine Corps center.

Staff writer Kristin Bender contributed to this story.

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