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- Written by: Elizabeth Larson
LAKEPORT – Two of three juveniles accused of being involved in a stabbing last week in Lakeport may be charged as adults in the case.
Five Lakeport teenagers – three of them under age 18 -- were arrested in connection with the March 16 stabbing of 19-year-old Alex Larranaga of Clearlake Oaks. Lakeport Police Chief Kevin Burke said all five suspects are involved in the Surenos street gang.
On Wednesday morning, confidential juvenile court proceedings were held for the juveniles, reported District Attorney Jon Hopkins. All three were arraigned and had defense attorneys appointed to represent them, said Hopkins.
According to the original statement from police, the juveniles arrested were a 14-year-old male from Lakeport, on conspiracy and attempted murder charges with the gang enhancement; a 16-year-old male from Lakeport, facing charges of attempted murder and a street gang enhancement; and a 17-year-old Lakeport resident, who is charged with conspiracy, attempted murder and the enhancement for street gangs.
Hopkins said he is pursuing prosecution of two of the teens as adults. Those teens, he said, are scheduled for fitness hearings, which will determine if they should be tried as adults.
The two adults alleged to have been involved in the stabbing, Ricardo Tapia Muniz, 18, and Elias Hernandez, 19, were arraigned in Lake County Superior Court on Tuesday, Hopkins said.
Muniz's booking sheet shows he is charged with attempted murder; authorities allege he was the one who actually stabbed Larranaga. He has an additional felony charge of participation in a criminal street gang.
Hernandez is also charged with attempted murder, conspiracy to commit a crime and participation in a street gang, according to jail records.
Hopkins said bail for both was raised to $500,000 at the Tuesday hearing. Defense attorneys were appointed for Muniz and Hernandez with their cases continued until Friday for plea entries, he added.
Burke said Larranaga remains in intensive care after the attack.
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- Written by: Elizabeth Larson
LAKEPORT – As the City of Lakeport prepares to hold its second community meeting to discuss hosting BoardStock later today, the event's promoter says his event is being unfairly blamed for crime and violence.
Rob Stimmel of BoardStock Productions won't be at the 4:30 p.m. meeting at city hall, although he attended the first on March 6. At that meeting, there were numerous community members who spoke both for and against the city hosting the event.
Acting City Manager Richard Knoll, however, said last week he intended to recommend that the City Council approve hosting the event, because he believes that if it were to include certain modifications – including being gated an nonalcoholic – it would be a good fit and a benefit to the local economy.
Stimmel, who is in Italy this week, said in a phone interview Monday that he's concerned that his event is being blamed for a number of underage drinking arrests that occurred last summer at Konocti Harbor Resort & Spa, which hosted the event for the past two years.
“BoardStock is getting blamed for everything,” he said.
Stimmel claims that Konocti Harbor President and CEO Greg Bennett had sought out BoardStock for several years before it finally came to the county, and had then approached him for a multi-year deal before suddenly announcing last month that the resort would not continue to host the event.
Stimmel said Bennett told him the decision to drop the event was a result of dozens of citations for underage drinking.
A call to Bennett's office late Monday afternoon was not returned.
According to District Attorney Jon Hopkins, his office filed charges in between 30 and 40 cases of minors in possession of alcohol, referred to them by Alcoholic Beverage Control.
BoardStock wasn't to blame for the crime issues, said Stimmel, which he said happened after his event ended for the day, which was usually between 4 and 5 p.m.
“The reputation of my event has kind of been tarnished a little bit,” Stimmel said.
Stimmel said he was especially concerned about recent comments made by Bennett in which he said he planned to do an event similar to BoardStock. The BoardStock banners are still up at the resort, although Stimmel said he has asked for them to be taken down.
He said he would like to be known for his sporting events. BoardStock is part of the World Series of Wakeboarding and the wakesurfing world championships, he said.
Stimmel asked for the city to give him a year, let him put on a world class sporting event and then decide whether or not to invite him back.
The event brings in between $3.5 million and $5 million, said Stimmel. Last year, he said, Konocti Harbor collected $140,000 at the gate.
Stimmel said he will offer to share the gate proceeds with the city in order to police coverage and other city expenses.
He said he's dedicated to having a “good, professional event.”
The meeting will be held at Lakeport City Hall, 225 Park St.
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- Written by: Elizabeth Larson
Melissa Fulton, executive director of the Lakeport Regional Chamber of Commerce, said this year the awards committee received its largest number of nominations in its 10-year history – 122 in all.
Twenty-four of the golden stars statuettes were handed out to gifted teens, dedicated lifelong volunteers, artists and youth advocates.
The list of this year's winner follows:
– Marla Ruzicka Humanitarian of the Year Award: Dr. Tony Veletto, Lakeport.
– Senior of the Year: Shari Koch, Lakeport.
– Volunteer of the Year: Margaret Medeiros, Clearlake Oaks.
– Student of the Year “Bo Tipton” Award, female: Lauren Nixon, Kelseyville; male, Jorel Allegro, Lakeport.
– Youth advocate, volunteer: Roy and Charlotte Disney, Lakeport.
– Youth advocate, profession: Mike Stempe, Kelseyville.
– Agriculture: Jim Fetzer, Nice.
– Organization, nonprofit: Meals on Wheels drivers (all county senior centers).
– Organization, volunteer: Free Kitchen Project, Lakeport.
– Environmental: Frank Meisenbach, Lower Lake.
– New business: Aero Airport Shuttle & Charter Service (Jeff and Michelle Tennison), Middletown.
– Small business: Strong Financial Network (Jennifer Strong), Lakeport.
– Large business: Piedmont Lumber (Bill and Vicky Myer), Lakeport.
– Best idea: Old Time Bluegrass Festival, Lower Lake.
– Local Hero: Sgt. Mike Hermann, Clearlake Police Department, and Lisa Denny, registered nurse, Redbud Hospital, Clearlake.
– The Arts, amateur: Cindy Car, Lakeport.
– The Arts, professional: Caroline Wing Greenlee, Kelseyville.
– Spirit of Lake County: David Neft, Middletown.
– Woman of the Year: Dr. Louise Nan, Clearlake.
– Man of the Year: John Norcio, Lakeport.
– Lifetime achievement, woman: Thelma Dangel, Kelseyville: man, Bill Cornelison, Cobb.
– Wind Beneath Our Wings Award: Melissa and John Fulton, Lakeport.
Check the gallery for photos of 2007 Stars!
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
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- Written by: Sophie Annan Jensen
The Hidden Valley Lake Community Service District recently presented a two-hour Webcast from the American Water Works association (AWWA) with system operators explaining what they expect in the future.
Colorado is already seeing the effects of warming with fewer cold snaps, which has created a scourge of beetles devouring lodge pole pines –"and they won't stop until they run out of trees," a spokesman said. Fewer trees will mean less rainfall in the area, and less water in the Colorado River.
Warming is expected to create more intense storms in coastal areas, with enormous potential damage to coastal water plants. Inland, faster melting of smaller snowpacks will create flooding but lessen the amount of water flowing into rivers and lakes.
Clear Lake gets some water from the snowpack of Snow Mountain/Elk Mountain (a major supply source for Lake Mendocino, which supplies Sonoma and Mendocino counties) as well as springs and streams. Because Clear Lake's waters flow towards the Central Valley through the Cache Creek and Putah Creek systems, it's included in the Sacramento watershed and Central Valley water quality area. The Cobb area's water may come from the Sierra, although Bob Stark, manager of the Cobb Area Water District, has said no one knows where Cobb's spring water originates. A Los Angeles representative of the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, which serves nearly 18 million people from San Diego to Ventura County, said the district is looking to improvements in water and power supply "originating in Northern California."
Among sources the Southern California district considers local are the Owens River Valley and the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. The area also draws on allotments from the Colorado River.
Changing precipitation patterns will result in lower soil moisture. Although a "slight" drop in Northern California precipitation is predicted, AWWA forecast maps based on climate models show a dry West Coast from lower Oregon south.
Speakers noted a probable increase of eutrophication of source water, or an increase of nutrients (as phosphates) that stimulate the growth of aquatic plant life, resulting in the depletion of dissolved oxygen.
A representative of Miami-Dade Water in South Florida said he expects greater demand and a smaller supply, although much of the area will be covered in ocean and uninhabitable.
"The water industry isn't a bastion of liberalism," said Mel Aust, manager of the Hidden Valley Lake Community Service District, which supplies water and sewer services to 2,400 households and a golf course. The district uses groundwater and has received an award for its reclamation program.
In Calgary, Alberta, Canada, a spokesman also predicted increased demand and smaller supplies, and said his district has merged utilities for better regional management and is working on storm water re-use, recycling and better aquifer storage and recovery.
The New York Department of Electricity and Water plans a $23 billion capital improvement plan over the next decade. They expect a 50-percent decline in snowpack in their 2,000 square mile watershed.
E-mail Sophie Annan Jensen at
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