BY SHALEECE HAAS AND SHIKIRI HIGHTOWER// Forged checks and credit cards, counterfeit money and identity theft are common crimes in Emeryville. Police and retailers are joining forces to address these paper crimes, which many believe will increase as the economy worsens. Read the full story

Officer Andrew Cassianos inspects a bag of marijuana found during a traffic stop.

BY SHALEECE HAAS // At 10:50 p.m. on Friday night, Emeryville police officer Andrew Cassianos pulled up alongside the flashing lights of another police car on 67th Street at San Pablo Avenue. Two officers shone their flashlights into the trunk and interior of a gray Oldsmobile sedan while the owner of the car sat handcuffed in the back of the police car, his head down. Read the full story

Bonnie Spence packs her purchases into a reusable bag at the IKEA store in Emeryville.

BY SHALEECE HAAS // You can still buy everything from sofas to Swedish meatballs at IKEA, but from now on, you will no longer be able to carry your purchases home in a disposable plastic bag.

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Obama supporters watch the first presidential debate at LoBot gallery in West Oakland.

BY SHALEECE HAAS // At a West Oakland gallery Friday night, Octber 3, two projected images filled the white wall normally reserved for cutting-edge art. One was MSNBC’s broadcast of the first presidential debate of the 2008 election season. The other was a real-time multimedia commentary that played to the sentiments of the boisterous crowd of 20-something hipsters. Read the full story