How to resolve AdBlock issue? REGIONAL: Law enforcement officials ask judges not to go through with Fort Bragg court cuts
MENDOCINO COUNTY, Calif. – Law enforcement officials in Mendocino County are asking the Mendocino County Superior Court’s judges not to go forward with deep cuts to services planned at the court’s Fort Bragg-based Ten Mile division.
On Tuesday Mendocino County District Attorney David Eyster, Sheriff Tom Allman, Fort Bragg Police Chief Scott Mayberry, Ukiah Public Safety Director Chris Dewey and Willits Police Chief Gerry Gonzalez delivered a formal letter of opposition to each of the judges of the local Superior Court regarding their plan to curtail court services on the Mendocino Coast, starting in January.
The county’s top law enforcement leaders believe the cutbacks planned for the Fort Bragg-based Ten Mile division of the Superior Court are contrary to the needs of public safety on the coast, and place increased and unfair burdens on coastal residents.
They said that taking away all felony matters, all juvenile hearings, all jury trials and all cases in which defendants are held in-custody is ill-advised.
The cuts, they said, will have a much greater budgetary impact collectively on the Fort Bragg Police Department, the Sheriff’s Office, the California Highway Patrol, State Parks, Fish and Game, and the District Attorney’s Office than the amount of money the Mendocino County Superior Court hopes to save.
“Victims, witnesses, jurors, business owners, and other interested coastal residents who already have difficulty attending court proceedings in Fort Bragg due to limited transportation options and work obligations will now be forced to undertake an even more daunting and arduous trek – both in terms of time and expense – to the crowded Ukiah courthouse, assuming you go forward with your plan,” the letter said.
Fort Bragg Police are expected to spend less time on the streets and more time driving to the Ukiah courthouse, which is a 90-minute drive one way, the letter said. “None of the coastal law enforcement agencies could anticipate and budget for the increased time and effort your plan will unilaterally cost each agency.”
The letter continues, “Each of us understands that difficult decisions must be considered when budgets are cut. We have all been required to do this within our own organizations. Yet, we have all reorganized and absorbed our respective budget cuts while keeping the public’s interest and their safety foremost in our minds. Again, the service cuts you seek to impose on the coast is a bad plan, makes the courts less accessible to a large percentage of local residents, and hurts more people than it will help the Superior Court’s bottom line.”
The law enforcement officials conclude by asking Mendocino County’s eight judges to make their budget and service cuts in Ukiah if they believe that needs to be done, “but please leave Fort Bragg’s Ten Mile Division of the Superior Court alone so it can continue to be a full-service court doing the important and full-time business of the people who call coastal Mendocino County home.”
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Clearlake man arrested after leading police on pursuit in stolen vehicle
CLEARLAKE, Calif. – On Friday a Clearlake man driving a stolen vehicle was taken into custody by police following a short chase.
Steven Galvin, 37, was taken into custody following the pursuit, which began shortly after 2:30 p.m., according to Clearlake Police Sgt. Tim Hobbs.
Hobbs said Officer Alan Collier observed a 1999 Toyota Corolla, driven by Galvin, allegedly commit several vehicle code violations on Old Highway 53 near Cass Avenue.
Collier attempted to conduct a traffic stop on the vehicle by activating his emergency lights and siren, Hobbs said.
Galvin fled in the Toyota and led Officer Collier on a short, half-mile pursuit that reached approximately 40 miles per hour on residential streets, Hobbs said.
While behind the vehicle dispatch advised Officer Collier the vehicle had been reported stolen in Clearlake the week prior, according to Hobbs.
Galvin voluntarily pulled over and was taken into custody after other officers arrived to assist in the vehicle stop, Hobbs said. Galvin also was found to have a misdemeanor no bail warrant for his arrest.
Hobbs said Galvin was booked into the Lake County Jail for possession of a stolen vehicle, possession of stolen property, evading and the warrant.
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Police search for suspect who allegedly brandished gun at woman
CLEARLAKE, Calif. – The Clearlake Police Department is seeking an as-yet unidentified male subject who allegedly brandished a gun at a woman in a local hotel Wednesday night.
Sgt. Dominic Ramirez said police were dispatched to the Best Western El Grande Inn, located at 15135 Lakeshore Drive, shortly before 10 p.m. Wednesday on a report of a male subject pointing a pistol at a woman in the hotel hallway.
He said Officer Bobi Thompson contacted the female reporting party, whose name is being withheld due to safety concerns.
She told police that while she was waiting for the elevator on the hotel’s second floor, she saw a white male adult standing close to a nearby exit door, Ramirez said.
The woman described the male subject as being approximately 5 feet, 11 inches tall, and wearing a gray-hooded sweatshirt that was pulled over his head, partially concealing his face. There was no further description of the male provided, according to Ramirez.
Ramirez said the woman also told officers that she was not able to clearly see the suspect’s face, however, she described him as having a “large pointed nose.”
She said the suspect was standing at the exit door and she saw him holding what she believed to be a black pistol near his waist, Ramirez said.
At that time the suspect pointed the pistol in her direction, Ramirez said.
Ramirez said the woman reported that the suspect did not say anything to her and shortly thereafter ran out of the hotel through the exit door in an unknown direction.
He said officers searched the nearby area for the suspect, but were unable to locate anyone matching the description provided.
Ramirez said the victim reported to officers that an unidentified witness saw a suspicious man loitering around the hallway approximately two hours prior to this brandishing incident. Police so far have not identified any additional witnesses.
Ramirez said this has been the only report received of this nature; however, citizens are reminded to contact law enforcement if they see suspicious persons or activity. Callers may remain anonymous.
The Clearlake Police Department is requesting that anyone having information regarding this incident to contact Clearlake Police Officer Thompson, 707-994-8251.
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Supervisors vote to move forward on Acorn Street sheriff's substation in Clearlake Oaks
LAKEPORT, Calif. – The Board of Supervisors on Tuesday afternoon voted to direct staff to move forward on setting up a county-owned property in Clearlake Oaks as a temporary sheriff's substation.
The Clearlake Oaks visitor center, which is not currently being used, is located at 12580 Acorn St., off of Highway 20.
The vote to designate it as a substation while the county continues to explore other future options was 5-0.
The board also directed staff to work on establishing a policy relating to how such county projects are handled – including how property purchases are negotiated – by department heads.
Board members said they felt the Acorn Street property, which would cost about $4,000 to renovate, was a better option than spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on a property on Shady Lane which Sheriff Frank Rivero prefers.
The need to be fiscally prudent was particularly important in light of a presentation given to the board earlier in the day by Undersheriff Pat Turturici, who received approval for a feasibility study on expanding the Lake County Jail, now seriously taxed by the additional demands of correctional realignment.
That jail expansion may cost as much as $22 million, with a required county match of $600,000.
Rivero and the board members had a tense exchange at the Oct. 16 meeting, during which he denigrated the offer of a $1-per-month space offered at the Big Oak Shopping Center.
That had been the board's preferred option, but after the meeting the center's manager, Milton Pereira, retracted the offer, saying Rivero had insulted the center and seriously misrepresented it.
That sent the County Space Committee – composed of county Deputy Administrative Officer Alan Flora, Supervisor Jeff Smith and Public Services Director Caroline Chavez – back to the board to explore other options for a Clearlake Oaks substation.
Rivero was not present for the discussion, with Turturici and Capt. Chris Macedo appearing before the board instead.
Looking for options
Flora told the board that other issues had arisen for the Shady Lane property, including that it was zoned residential, not commercial as the real estate agent had told the county. That would have to be addressed before moving forward, as administrative office use currently isn't allowed.
After reconsidering the visitor center space, Flora said it was possible to designate parking space spaces, provide the necessary restrooms for both sheriff's staff and the public, and add a kitchenette.
He said he also was going to explore the possibility of moving the visitor center – which is to be manned by the Lake County Chamber of Commerce – to a privately owned commercial space along the highway.
The Big Oak Shopping Center was the only property among those considered for the substation that had a direct line of sight to the county's communication towers on Mt. Konocti, said Flora. All of the other properties will require that a repeater be installed.
Supervisor Denise Rushing said the value on the Shady Lane property also appeared to be less than the owner was asking. Flora agreed, saying the county's research showed that regardless of zoning, the price was inflated.
Rushing said it was unfortunate that the county lost the chance at the Big Oak Shopping Center. While she felt the Shady Lane property was ideal, it is far more than the county can afford. She said the visitor center offered the chance to open a substation and save up for a more suitable future location.
Board Chair Rob Brown said he liked the visitor center because the county owned it, it was relatively easy to move into and it was going to allow them to save money in the face of needed jail expansion.
Smith agreed, noting if they needed to make changes to the visitor center, they were actually adding value to their own property.
Supervisor Jim Comstock publicly thanked Pereira for his original offer, also noting it was unfortunate that the offer was no longer available. He supported the visitor center being an initial substation.
Supervisor Anthony Farrington supported his fellow supervisors. “This shouldn't be an issue or any type of power struggle,” he said.
Clearlake Oaks resident Olga Martin Steele, also a county planning commissioner, referred to a petition submitted to the board from community members wanting a substation. She wanted to hear from Turturici and Macedo about what would work for them.
Macedo wanted additional time, saying Rivero was continuing to negotiate with the property owner and real estate agent, and that the owner had made significant concessions.
“I don't mind seeing it put off,” said Brown. Referring to remarks by Rivero at the Oct. 16 meeting that decentralization of the sheriff’s office was decades overdue, Brown noted, “We were told we were 50 years behind so we thought there was a big hurry there.”
Brown added that he thought it was a bad idea for any department head to go out on their own and try to negotiate on property before a purchase is approved.
Farrington said he didn't mind delaying, but his position was not going to change, explaining that he didn't feel it was prudent to spend so much money on a new substation. “I don't see the economy bouncing back.”
Smith said he also wanted a substation in Clearlake Oaks. “We're not serving the public very well if we keep putting it off.”
Rushing said it was not a good year to be investing hundreds of thousands of dollars in a new substation, but suggested the visitor center was a start, and that they could save up for a better future location. She questioned if the sheriff's office would be enthusiastic about the temporary space.
“We just don't feel like it's big enough,” said Turturici, who said that a temporary fix in the form of a substation on Acorn Street could go on for a few years. “We're swamped with construction projects.”
Turturici said he wants to conduct Neighborhood Watch and rural crime programs, and the visitor center is too small. “We really want to make it a community substation. I feel it's too small for those needs to be met at this time.”
Brown said there is no substation in Kelseyville, yet they are able to find other facilities to host classes and events.
Being fiscally responsible
Farrington said the board has to be very cognizant of the money it spends. He referenced the need to expand the jail and said the proposed annexation by the city of Lakeport for a portion of the South Main Street area could result in the county losing six deputy positions. He said he would not support spending more tax dollars on real estate.
He said it was not about a suggested power struggle between the sheriff and board. “It's about being fiscally responsible.”
Steele said the board needed to give Clearlake Oaks equal treatment, saying she saw them spending more money on other communities.
Board members took issue with her comments, pointing out the time and effort to improve the community, which received significant amounts of redevelopment money. It also is getting a new senior center, has new senior housing, a new plaza, new docks, Clarks Island and Nylander Park.
Smith said Lower Lake needs more help than any place else around. “If we want to start comparing, we shouldn't do anything in the Oaks,” he said. “Let's compare apples to apples and oranges to oranges and move on.”
Rushing moved to authorize use of the visitor center for a sheriff's substation and directed staff to make improvements, which the board approved 5-0.
The board also directed work stop on the Middletown substation, which has hit significant snags, with the front building on the property having issues with its foundation and unpermitted additions.
Brown said he wanted the brakes put on that project until a county policy on managing such construction and acquisition projects was created by staff and approved by the board.
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Lunas wins race for Lake County Superior Court Department 1 seat
LAKEPORT, Calif. – Lakeport attorney Michael Lunas will be Lake County’s next judge.
Lunas, 54, defeated 62-year-old Judy Conard of Lakeport on Tuesday in the race for the Lake County Superior Court Department 1 bench.
With 69 of 70 precincts reporting late Tuesday night, Lunas had 56.6 percent, or 8,538 ballots cast in his favor to Conard’s 6,558 ballots, or 43.4 percent of the vote.
Conard conceded the race earlier in the evening after Lunas continued to widen the lead he had held throughout the night.
The two had emerged from a field of four that had formed early in the year and which initially had included attorney Michael Friel and prosecutor Susan Krones.
Lunas had led in the primary, followed by Conard, with the two set for the November runoff.
Lunas will succeed Judge David Herrick, who is retiring.
The judges who sit on the benches of Departments 2, 3 and 4 – Lake County Superior Court Judges Richard Martin, Andrew Blum and Stephen Hedstrom, respectively – ran unopposed. As a result, they did not appear on either the primary or general ballots, but were declared elected by Registrar of Voters Diane Fridley on Tuesday.
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