Farrington, 37, was injured Sept. 23 when he collided with a pickup while riding a dirt bike at the Cow Mountain off-highway recreation area.

Since then, it's been a painful few weeks for Farrington, who has been resting at home and hasn't been able to attend Board of Supervisors meetings.

He told Lake County News that most of his injuries have been healing fast, however he now has casts on his left arm and hand due to fractures discovered since the accident.

He said his bruised pelvis, torso and lower legs also appear to be healing well, except for a few areas of blood and fluid buildup.

Farrington said that an MRI confirmed that his right shoulder was fractured, which is the reason he'll have surgery today at 10 a.m. at Santa Rosa Surgery Center.

The orthopedic surgeon who will operate on Farrington, Dr. Kent Yinger, was on the team of orthopedic surgeons that performed surgery in 2001 on former President Ronald Reagan's right hip, which Reagan broke in a fall at his home.

Farrington said after he discovered that fact about Yinger he told him he was glad he was working on his right shoulder, and not his left.

The surgery is expected to last two hours.

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THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN UPDATED WITH A CLARIFICATION ON MEDICAL MARIJUANA LIMITATIONS. 

LAKEPORT – The Federal Bureau of Investigation and local authorities last week seized nearly 100 marijuana plants from a home whose owner said he was growing it for medicinal purposes.

Lt. Brad Rasmussen of the Lakeport Police Department said the raid took place at the home of Matthew Ward within the Lakeport city limits on the morning of Sept. 27.

Police became aware of the plants by accident, said Rasmussen. A US Forest Service marijuana flight went over the home and a federal law enforcement officer spotted the grow.

Once it was determined to be in Lakeport's jurisdiction, police discussed the matter with the FBI, who Rasmussen said ordered the seizure.

“They are taking the lead on the investigation,” said Rasmussen.

Lakeport Police wrote search warrants which were served Sept. 27. Rasmussen said accompanying four Lakeport Police officers were agents from the FBI and the Lake County Narcotic Task Force.

Taken were a total of 97 plants, said Rasmussen – 84 mature, 13 immature – plus a little more than a pound of processed marijuana.

Ward, who said he is co-owner of the Clearlake-based D&M Compassion Center, a medical marijuana dispensary, was at work at the dispensary when the raid took place.

“It was totally a legal garden,” Ward said, adding that he believed his home was outside of the city's limits and therefore not in Lakeport Police jurisdiction.

He added that the grow was in no way connected to the dispensary.

Ward said he was growing medical marijuana under the auspices of Proposition 215, and that the plants were for 16 people with doctors' recommendations, including himself. Rasmussen said police had information that Ward actually was growing for 25 people with recommendations.

According to California's chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML), SB 420 limits on Proposition 215 allow individuals with a medical marijuana recommendation from a licensed physician to have six mature or 12 immature plants, and 8 ounces of marijuana, unless local governments authorize more or a physician rules that more is needed.

Rasmussen pointed out that while Ward's grow appeared legal under Proposition 215, that's a state law, which federal authorities don't recognize. Federal law holds all marijuana growing to be illegal.

Ward said he wasn't presented with a federal search warrant, which was one reason he questioned the validity of the search. While they took all of the plants, growing equipment was left untouched, he added.

He said he's talking to six different attorneys who have advised him not to pursue a case. “There's nothing I can do at this point.”

Part of the reason he doesn't plan to pursue a legal case, he added, is that he's concerned about retaliation, including having D&M Compassion Center shut down.

He said he had seen helicopters pass over the garden and that Lakeport Police officers had casually pulled into his yard at about 10:30 p.m. on a weekday night the previous week, although they weren't there to look for marijuana.

Although this is his first year growing marijuana in Lakeport, he's grown it in other areas of the county. “I keep it legal,” said Ward. “You obey the law.”

He added, “You would hope you would be protected by the state.”

Ward estimated a year's worth of medical marijuana was taken, amounting to thousands of dollars of medicine that he said was intended for people on fixed incomes. They'll now have to go to marijuana clubs and pay higher prices, he said.

“I was doing it for people who really needed the help and they just kicked the feet out of under me,” Ward said.

Rasmussen said the FBI is trying to form a case against Ward in order to prosecute him in federal court. Once the FBI investigation is complete the case will be submitted to the US Attorney.

The FBI also has sent evidence to the Department of Justice Laboratory, which could result in an additional case being submitted to the Lake County District Attorney's Office, Rasmussen said.

Police are holding evidence samples for the FBI, said Rasmussen. None of the seized plants will be returned because, under federal law, growing marijuana is illegal.

The marijuana plants already have been destroyed, Rasmussen added.

August seizure won't be prosecuted

The FBI recently notified Lakeport Police that another marijuana seizure it made in Lakeport would not be prosecuted by the US Attorney, according to Rasmussen.

On Aug. 28, the FBI, the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and local law enforcement agencies conducted parole searches on parolees with previous gang affiliations, as Lake County News previously reported.

During that enforcement officers visited the Brush Street home of Howard Holtz, 70, where a recent parolee, 20-year-old Adam Southard, had moved in the previous month, Holtz said.

Rasmussen said officers found swords and knives in another person's room at the house, but because Southard could access them – which violated his parole terms – he was arrested.

Holtz said during the search an FBI agent spotted his 30 mature marijuana plants growing on a porch, which had a fiberglass wall to protect the plants from public view. The agent ordered the plants seized.

“I almost was going to harvest some of them that same day,” said Holtz.

Four people with medical recommendations live at the seven-bedroom home with Holtz, who said he also was growing medical marijuana for a fifth person. This is Holtz's second year growing medical marijuana.

Although he said he wasn't happy with the seizures, Holtz said all of the officers and agents were “decent” and that he wants to try to work out the issues with local authorities. He said he doesn't believe the Americans for Safe Access local chapter will take action in the case.

Holtz said the people with recommendations must now buy their marijuana. “What federal law is doing is making people support the underground in the state of California.”

He said he also is speaking with Bay Area attorneys, but added, “You cannot win when the feds get involved.”

In March, the Lakeport City Council passed an ordinance written by Police Chief Kevin Burke that prohibits medical marijuana cultivation within city limits, citing public safety concerns and the strong odor the plants give off when maturing.

Rasmussen said the ordinance had no bearing on the recent marijuana seizures. “The City Council has enacted it but have not requested enforcement of it.”

This spring Oakland attorney William Panzer sent the city a letter warning of possible litigation over the ordinance.

Added Holtz, “Realistically, if they try to enforce the ordinance, they can't afford the court case.”

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As Lake County News has reported, former City Councilman Frank Brumfield and Bill Shields led a petition drive this summer which resulted in the collection of 1,027 signatures of registered voters who live in Clearlake and would like to see the city disincorporated.

Brumfield and Shields got the issue put on Thursday's agenda, and at the meeting Brumfield gave a lengthy presentation on the reasons he felt the city was not living up to its promises.

The reasons Brumfield cited included failure to provide properly built and maintained streets, Code Enforcement's inability to quickly act on code violation cases and accusations that the police department has had a hand in illegal drug trafficking.

Following Brumfield, the council welcomed public comment that stretched over two hours, with each citizen allowed five minutes.

Twenty-one people spoke to the council. Twelve of those citizens had concerns that ranged from frustration over the level of services, bad roads, police harassment, code compliance and other issues mirroring Brumfield’s concerns.

Another nine had suggestions for improvement, took neutra positions or supported Clearlake remaining a city and moving forward.

Al Bernal said he found the disincorporation effort reminiscent of a circular firing squad.

The result of going back under county control, said Bernal, would be to have none of their demands for better services met. The county doesn’t have the resources to pick up functions such as policing. If Clearlake disincorporated, the Measure P funding used to support Clearlake Police would also disappear, he said.

Citing police statistics for the first half of this year, Bernal said Clearlake Police conducted 866 arrests, of which 290 were felonies and 576 were misdemeanors.

That’s a lot of crime, said Bernal. “Safety and security is our No. 1 issue.”

The only thing that Bernal agreed with Brumfield on was that “he knows nothing.”

Lower Lake resident Victoria Brandon, who lived in Clearlake for 22 years, beginning in 1981, said the roads have been a main issue. But without the will of the electorate to pay for road improvements, better roads won’t happen, Brandon said.

If the “community annoyance” that the petition represented meant now residents were willing to pay for better roads, it might actually happen, said Brandon.

She said having local control is vital. “I do not see how returning to the county would improve the situation of the city,” she said, adding the county isn’t equipped to deal with urban problems. Disincorporation, she said, was a “tremendously retrograde” step.

Joan Moore said ultimately community dissatisfaction seems to go back to the roads. She pointed out a recent sales tax measure meant to fund road improvement, which also was voted down.

“We in the City of Clearlake are going to have to accept the fact that we are going to have to pave the roads,” she said.

Frank Bartczak said the city always talks about adding new taxes to pay for road improvements, but they’ve never had a plan explaining how improvements would be made. He said he didn’t see anything worth voting for in the last sales tax measure.

“The city needs so much, you wonder where you’re going to start,” he said.

Bartczak added that people would be more receptive to funding proposals if they knew just what they were paying for and what the benefits would be.

Alice Reece said she’s seen a lot of improvements in county-controlled areas such as Nice, Lucerne and Middletown.

The city has accomplished nothing, said Reece. “If we’re supposed to be so lucky to have local control, how come we don’t?”

Tom Hewlett, the first mayor of Clearlake and one of the City Council that was recalled, said there has been a lot of negativity from a certain group in the city.

“When you start something new it takes a little time to grow,” he said. “This city has had growing pains.”

Hewlett suggested the city has come a long way. “If we’re sitting in this room and all we’re talking about is streets, they’ve taken care of a lot of stuff.”

He added, “If we start going positive in this community we’ll get a lot done.”

Dave Hughes, the chair of the original incorporation committee, said he helped start the effort because he wanted to see the city get its fair share, and didn’t want to have to drive to Lakeport every time the city had a problem.

Hughes said he felt the city was better off with local control and police services, although he added that the felt the county did a better job with road maintenance.

He said he believed the complaints taken that night to the council need to be taken seriously, and the public given respect for bringing them. “I don’t think they’re all frivolous,” he said.

Hughes said he originally told people that becoming a city wouldn’t pave the streets. He suggested the city start road rehabilitation efforts by choosing one focus area to show how it could work.

Susanne Scholz, who has lived in Clearlake since 1978, said she was there to support the city. “Not everybody in the room is negative.”

Scholz said she has had good response to issues in her neighborhood that she brought to the attention of police and Code Enforcement.

“I think it’s the positive side that will move this city forward,” Scholz said.

Smith: Disincorporation would lead to less resources 

Supervisor Jeff Smith said roads have been an ongoing issue, stretching back before his days on the council.

Inability to accomplish road repairs, said Smith, can be attributed in part to state government. “The state is absolutely robbing us of our road funds,” Smith said, explaining that he has watched the state pull funds that resulted in canceling road repair projects.

The city only gets 11 percent of the property tax collected by property owners, said Smith, and the police department gets part of that due to Measure P. Schools and colleges also get a piece of that limited pie, he added.

“We tried to pass the hat on sales tax three times, it failed every time,” said Smith, adding that if people don’t want to pay taxes, they don’t want roads.

The only way people living in the county are getting paved roads is through assessments, Smith said. That method, along with sales and parcel taxes, could pave Clearlake’s streets.

“If we disincorporate then I’ll have to fight with four other supervisors for a piece of money that could be spread throughout the entire county,” he said.

Rick Mayo took a middle-of-the-road position in the discussion. He said he has been in Clearlake many years, long before incorporation, which he reminded everyone passed by only a slim margin.

The city has had plenty of problems over the years, said Mayo. “We all need to just start working together.”

The city must not shoot the messenger every time someone complains, said Mayo, but officials also must remember that they can’t please everybody.

Mayor Judy Thein read a letter from Ed Robey, who couldn’t make the meeting.

Robey, who grew up in Clearlake and was on the first City Council, wrote that Clearlake incorporated so its citizens could have control over their own destiny, but it wasn’t intended to be a full-service city.

He said the city has finally entered a period of stability and maturity with its council and staff. He suggested the council accept the petition, thank citizens for sharing their concerns and use that information to move forward.

Council responds to public comments

Following the close of public session, council members shared their reactions to the petition and the concerns from the public.

“We need help getting the roads done, there’s no ifs, ands or buts,” said Council member Joyce Overton.

She suggested another petition to see what people want the city to do first.

Overton said she has heard rumors about the police department for years, yet no one has brought her proof. In the last year alone there has been a private investigation conducted as well as one done by the Federal Bureau of Investigation; Overton said neither found any wrongdoing.

If residents want a better city, Overton suggested, they can’t leave it to the five council members alone, but need to join in the effort.

Councilman Roy Simons said the cost of infrastructure belongs to adjacent property owners, and that it was not the city’s responsibility to maintain unmaintained streets.

He said the recent Measure L sales tax failed because it was badly flawed, and that the city needed tourism to revitalize its economy.

Councilman Chuck Leonard said he wanted to citizens to bring forward information about the police department trafficking drugs. “Bring that forth, let’s do something about it … I want to see the information.”

Councilman Curt Giambruno thanked community members for the time and effort they spent in voicing their concerns.

He said he felt the city had a good staff now, which has led to a “whole new outlook in the city.”

Giambruno said he hopes people won’t tear the city apart, because they have a chance to move forward and make changes.

He also reminded the audience that last year’s midtown overlay project had repaved a large area of Clearlake’s streets, which he said have always been a problem.

Said Thein, “There’s always room for improvement in anything.”

The work of making a better city, she said, isn’t an easy one, and it doesn’t happen overnight. “It took all of these years to get these problems.”

Responding to comments about paying too much for city staff, Thein said, “You get what you pay for.”

She added that the city has never had the quality of staff leadership it does now. “They’re worth every cent that we pay them to take the city forward.”

Thein said she drives the same roads as her constituents do, and she believes assessment districts are the way to make improvements. “If you want something you have to pay for it.”

When the council concluded the disincorporation discussion at about 9:40 p.m., the chamber emptied out, with only six people remaining in the audience.

The council went on to vote to focus Code Enforcement efforts on the Lakeshore Drive area in an effort to improve the city’s look, especially to those coming into town. Neiman noted there hasn’t been consistent enforcement previously, and Thein suggested a volunteer program to engage the community.

In other business, the council voted unanimously to award a $14,000 bid to tear down dilapidated buildings at Highlands Park. Neiman reported that Supervisor Jeff Smith helped the city save money by getting the county to waive the dump fees.

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Frank Brumfield, a former City Council member from the 1980s who also previously served as the city's public works superintendent, and Bill Shields have spearheaded the effort during the past few months.

Brumfield and Shields said they’ve collected 1,027 signatures of registered voters who live in the city – which has a total estimated population of 15,000 – who are interested in seeing the city disincorporated.

On the basis of that, Brumfield and Shields asked for time on the council agenda to discuss the merits of disincorporation after 27 years, a discussion that filled the council’s chambers.

Brumfield had asked the council to respond to certain points of concern, which were first addressed by City Administrator Dale Neiman and then commented upon by the council.

Neiman said he looked back at the original Local Area Formation Commission (LAFCO) application for incorporation, and noted that the city was never intended to be “full service,” which would have meant also controlling fire, sewer and water services.

Brumfield asked the city to consider thorough study of a citywide improvement bond to address the city’s crumbling streets, and build storm drains and street lighting.

Neiman said the city has undertaken 10 assessment district projects before, meant to improve streets, and spent considerable money to design three of them, only to have the city's property owners vote them down. He said, however, that the city plans to form a revolving loan fund to assist in improving streets, and has the funding for three demonstration projects.

In his questions to the council, Brumfield asked the council to request the Department of Justice investigate the Clearlake Police Department’s possible involvement in illegal drug trafficking.

“It’s really not possible to respond to allegations without facts,” said Neiman.

He said private citizens themselves can file such complaints with state and federal officials.

Neiman said he reviewed claims against the city’s police department going back to the 1990s, and found that only three of 42 were considered valid.

City Attorney Thomas Gibson said if the city believed it had such a problem it would deal with it.

Councilman Chuck Leonard suggested that whoever had evidence about such activities should immediately bring it to the council so they could take care of it.

Brumfield asked the council about reorganizing the Code Enforcement Department and hire a professional director, citing citizens’ complaints about harassment from Code Enforcement officers.

Neiman said they have complaints that Code Enforcement isn’t aggressive enough, as well as complaints about them being too aggressive. “It’s damned if you do and damned if you don’t.”

During the last decade the city has undergone a great deal of clean up, said Neiman, who said he visited Clearlake in 1996 and, when he came back in 2005 for a visit, he saw a big difference.

Earlier this year Neiman and interim Police Chief Larry Todd reorganized Code Enforcement and put it under the police department in order to better manage it.

Neiman said he believes that the three things the city’s residents want are better police protection, streets and a better community.

Councilman Roy Simons said he felt Code Enforcement didn’t always react quickly enough, pointing to one example in his own neighborhood that has continued for six years.

Addressing Brumfield’s request that the city consider reestablishing its own animal control services, Neiman said the city contracts with the county for such services. From 2005 to 2006, costs for services have grown by 110 percent, and he said another increase, this time as high as 270 percent, could be coming.

During this year’s budget process, Neiman said he suggested the city do just what Brumfield suggested – take over providing their own services. “We should be saving money wherever we can, and be providing better services.”

On Brumfield’s request that the city reestablish its own weed abatement program, Neiman again agreed the idea was a good one. “We hope to do it. I think it’s an important thing to do.”

Brumfield also asked the city to discuss its fiscal responsibility to constituents and “the possibility of the necessity” in returning the city back to county governance.

There was a previous proposal to disincorporate the city in 1990, said Neiman. LAFCO turned it down because the applicants failed to show the county could provide better services.

“If the city disincorporated I think there would be less money and less services in the future,” said Neiman.

He suggested taking suggestions from the city’s recent Vision Task Force report and use those as a basis to move forward and improve the city.

Gibson said he works for many LAFCOs throughout the state and sees many cities forming because they want more local control, and want more representation than just one supervisor on a county board.

Brumfield states his case

Brumfield was allowed to make a presentation to the council, which lasted 40 minutes and recounted many of the city’s failings over the last 27 years.

He emphasized that the council should take seriously the petition effort, which he said was based on problems citizens had brought to him.

As he collected signatures, Brumfield said he was shocked at some of the things he heard, especially relating to police harassment. “I thought I knew everything in this town. I know nothing.”

Because of fears over police retaliation, Brumfield said many people would not sign the petition.

Brumfield said of the city, “It’s getting worse and worse and worse every year.”

The city’s roads, said Brumfield, are the most important issue.

Another concern for Brumfield is what he said is a lack of response by Code Enforcement. Cleanup of a property in his neighborhood with 15 cars parked on it has been dragging on for years, he said.

If the goal, as Neiman said, was to offer better services, Brumfield suggested, “Let’s get on with it.”

Brumfield said the city should sell bonds to improve the roads. Neiman asked what would secure the bonds; Brumfield said he didn’t know. In order to have the security to sell the bonds, Neiman responded that they needed an assessment district.

First, however, Neiman said the city would need to complete an engineer’s report to do cost estimates. If the city were to try to pave all of its roads, at $1 million per mile, it could cost as much as $150 million, said Neiman. That would require a $6 million engineer’s report, a number based on a set percentage.

“Based on past history, I don’t think they’re going to pass,” Neiman said, pointing to the nine out of 10 road improvement districts that were voted down in the past.

Brumfield asked if state and federal funds were available; Neiman responded that they weren’t.

Tomorrow, what community members had to say about the matter of disincorporation.

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Alex Larranaga was stabbed outside of TNT's Restaurant on March 16 during an attack by members of the South Side Willow Point Sureno gang, as Lake County News previously reported.

On Aug. 27 three of the suspects – two of them juveniles tried as adults, Juan Yepez and Mathew Domeier – and Elias Hernandez were sentenced to prison for the assault. Other suspects are still awaiting trial.

On this Tuesday's Lakeport City Council agenda is a rejection of a claim Larranaga has filed against the city to recover his extensive medical bills.

Lakeport City Attorney Steve Brookes said Friday afternoon that Larranaga's claim barely passed the legal test for a claim, and as such he is advising the council to reject it.

When contacted Friday evening Brookes said he didn't have immediate access to the Larranaga claim so he couldn't report on the amount that was sought.

Brookes said in this instance, with Larranaga being stabbed by gang members near the park and not on city property, there is no legal theory upon which Larranaga can recover any money from the city.

“Independent, third-party criminal acts are not forseeable,” said Brookes, and because of that the city can't be held accountable.

The City Council meets this Tuesday, Oct. 2, beginning with a staff and council workshop at 5 p.m. with the regular meeting beginning at 6 p.m., at Lakeport City Hall, 225 Park St.

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This summer Clearlake residents Frank Brumfield and Bill Shields led a petition drive to collect signatures in support of disincorporating Clearlake, which became a city in 1980.

Close to 80 people crowded into the council chambers for Thursday night's discussion.

In a format explained by Mayor Judy Thein, the discussion began with City Administrator Dale Neiman and City Council members responding to a number of questions about the city posed by Brumfield in his request to be on the agenda. They included requests to discuss the city reestablishing its own animal control and weed abatement programs.

The council then allowed Brumfield to address his concerns.

In a 40-minute statement to the council, Brumfield recounted a litany of the city's failures over the last 27 years – from not following through on code enforcement issues to lack of road repairs, to complaints about citizen harassment by police officers and an accusation that the police department was responsible for drug trafficking in the city.

Following Brumfield, there was two hours of testimony from community members, many of whom complained about similar issues.

There were, however, several people, such as David Hughes, who chaired the original incorporation committee, who pointed out that the city was never meant to be a full-service entity.

Hughes and others, including Supervisor Jeff Smith, explained that addressing the streets was a much larger community issue that required taxpayers be willing to pay their fair share for right of way improvements.

At the end of the discussion the council thanked the community for sharing their concerns and said they would use the testimony to help inform them in moving forward.

Lake County News will soon follow with a full report on the meeting.

E-mail Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

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