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- Details
- Written by: Lake County News Reports
Austin Dion Duncan, 18, was arrested Tuesday, according to Capt. James Bauman of the Lake County Sheriff's Office.
Duncan is alleged to have raped a 13-year-old Lucerne girl at a rental motel room on Lucerne on New Year's Eve, Bauman said.
The young victim didn't report the incident until the night of Jan. 4, when she told her mother what had happened, said Bauman. When the mother found out, she took her daughter to Sutter Lakeside Hospital.
Sheriff's deputies responded to the hospital on the report of the alleged rape and molestation just after midnight on the morning of Jan. 5, Bauman said.
Bauman said the girl told the investigating deputy that she and some friends were at a motel room celebrating New Year's Eve when she allegedly was forced to have sex with Duncan.
The victim was subsequently released from the hospital later on Monday morning, said Bauman.
At the same time, sheriff’s detectives began locating and interviewing potential witnesses to the incident, he said.
Bauman said by early Tuesday afternoon, deputies had found Duncan at his residence in Upper Lake, where he was arrested without incident.
Duncan, whose booking sheet says he is a student, was booked at the Lake County Jail on felony charges of rape by force and lewd and lascivious acts on a child under the age 14.
He remained in the jail Wednesday evening, according to jail booking information. Bauman said bail is set at $30,000.
Bauman said Duncan also is suspected of allegedly having unlawful sex with a 15-year-old Upper Lake girl in a case that was reported to the sheriff’s department in October.
That case, said Bauman, is currently under review by the District Attorney’s Office for a felony complaint.
On Dec. 2, Duncan was the subject of a nearly daylong search by local law enforcement and Search and Rescue near Upper Lake, as Lake County News has reported.
Sheriff's deputies had tried to contact him for a reason that officials have not revealed. That prompted Duncan to run across Highway 20 and into the Reclamation Road area. A family member suggested at the time that he had been upset over the death of a relative.
After evading deputies for several hours, he fell and hurt his back and called 911 for help. He was located in wild berry bushes and transported to the hospital. He was not arrested at that time.
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- Details
- Written by: Lake County News Reports
The Northern California Ocean and Coastal Protection Act provides protection to the unique and productive marine environment along Northern California’s outer continental shelf (OCS).
“For the economic and biological health of our country, it’s critical that we permanently protect this unique area from the environmental hazards of off-shore drilling,” said Congressman Thompson. “Unfortunately in the last Congress drilling became a political drama, rather than a policy debate. My legislation is one aspect of a broader campaign to restore sensible, science based policy and ensure the health of our oceans for generations.”
During the last Congress, the ban on OCS drilling expired, which leaves the North Coast susceptible to drilling in as little as three years.
The moratorium on OCS drilling had been a bipartisan agreement in Congress since 1982, but came under regular attack, and was not renewed in 2008.
In order to make sure that the North Coast of California is permanently protected, Congressman Thompson introduced his legislation today.
“Our coastline is home to one of the four most important upwellings in the world, which together support 20 percent of the ocean’s fish,” Thompson said. “Drilling on the North Coast doesn’t make sense, either from an economic standpoint or an environmental perspective. By permanently banning drilling, we can provide our coast with the protection it needs, regardless of who is in charge in Washington.”
Upwelling regions are coastal areas that support extremely abundant and productive marine life. This is because an upwelling brings cold, nutrient-rich waters up from the ocean depths that, when combined with sunlight, enhance seaweed and phytoplankton growth.
The seaweed and phytoplankton provide energy for some of the most productive ecosystems in the world, including many of the world’s most important fisheries, such as the North Coast fisheries.
Drilling for gas and oil off the Northern Coast of California could cause serious harm to the unique and productive ecosystem and abundant marine life found off the coast, including the fish many local North Coast economies depend on.
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- Details
- Written by: Elizabeth Larson
Lakeport Police Chief Kevin Burke, whose agency reopened its public office hours on Monday following a two-week city furlough, said there were two burglaries of note in the city in late December – one at the Blockbuster video store and the second at the now-closed Carlos and Vinny's restaurant.
Blockbuster, located on Lakeport Boulevard, was the victim of a “smash and grab” early on the morning of Dec. 20, Burke said.
The perpetrators smashed in the business' front window on the northeast side of the building and took two Playstations. Burke said police were dispatched to the area at about 5:30 a.m. Dec. 20 when the break-in triggered the alarm.
About a week and a half later, at some time on the night of Dec. 29 or early on the morning of Dec. 30, a break-in occurred at Carlos and Vinny's restaurant on S. Main Street, Burke said.
He said the suspects, who aren't known at this time, smashed a window on the north side of the business, which has been closed since late November.
The building's property manager reported that most of the business' contents were there but believed alcohol had been stolen, said Burke.
“At this point we haven't confirmed exactly what was taken,” he said.
Besides those two notable exceptions, there were a few cases of vandalism and driving under the influence during the holiday period, which Burke said weren't out of the ordinary for Lakeport.
For the most part, the rest of the county was quiet for the Christmas and New Year's season.
Lt. Mike Hermann of Clearlake Police called the holidays “pretty uneventful.”
“We had a few minors arrests, just two DUIs, but nothing out of the ordinary,” he said.
The same appeared to be the case for the county at large.
“Fortunately, it appears to have been a slow holiday,” said Capt. Jim Bauman of the Lake County Sheriff's Office.
No DUI arrests outside of Clearlake or Lakeport were reported in the jail logs during the California Highway Patrol's maximum enforcement period from Dec. 31 through Sunday, although there had been three arrests during its increased enforcement period around Christmas.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
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- Details
- Written by: Elizabeth Larson
Clearlake Police arrested Christopher Adam Sanders, 28, early Monday, according to a report from Lt. Mike Hermann.
Hermann said the Clearlake Police Department is continuing to investigate the incident that led to Sanders' arrest.
He said portions of the allegedly crime occurred within the city limits.
Hermann said additional incidents also were reported to have occurred within the county's jurisdiction. In order to avoid jurisdictional conflicts, it was determined that the Clearlake Police Department would lead the investigation.
No other information is being released on the case is being released at this time, Hermann said.
Sanders, whose booking sheet indicates he works as a plumber, remained in the Lake County Jail Monday night.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
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