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News From Silicon Valley's Neighborhoods Take the Money and Run Cupertino--A Santa Clara County sheriff's spokesperson says that two recent bank robberies in the suburban town--separated by only a week--are probably not related. Earlier this week, a thief netted $800 by smashing in the window of a Wells Fargo branch; seven days later, an armed robber made off with $42,000 in cash from the East West Bank after holding four employees at gunpoint. Mother Charged Sunnyvale--The 18-year-old mother who allegedly abandoned her newborn baby girl in Lakewood Park on Sept. 6 was arrested last week for attempted murder and cruelty to a child. According to police, Tri Minh Hoang left her child in a plastic bag in the park shortly after giving birth. Randy Hey, deputy district attorney for Santa Clara County, said the attempted-murder charges stem from the fact that this case was not an ordinary abandonment. "You could just abandon your baby and hope somebody picks it up," Hey said, "but in this case there was evidence that she did attempt to kill the baby." Fiery Speech Willow Glen--The 19-year-old man accused of firebombing Santa Clara County Superior Court Judge Jack Komar's home last month left more than a charred front porch behind as testimony to his white supremacist beliefs. Victor Quintin Podbreger also left a videotape, recorded before the alleged hate crime, which shows Podbreger and friends spouting racist and anti-Semitic philosophy. "He made it clear he hates people of the Jewish faith, African Americans, Mexican-Americans and Asian Americans, although ... these are not the terms he used to describe these Americans," assistant district attorney Karyn Sinunu said. After learning of the videotape last week, San Mateo County Judge Barbara Mallach set bail for Podbreger at $1 million. [ San Jose | Metroactive Central | Archives ]